Developer Obsidian Entertainment is no stranger to crafting dense, well-directed open worlds to explore and engaging narrative experiences to remember. Fallout: New Vegas still stands as one of my favourite games of all time, so their latest project, Avowed, immediately grabbed my attention.
While it doesn’t necessarily change or redefine the current RPG structure, Avowed provides a gorgeous open world to explore complete with a decent story and solid characters. It’s also packing in some varied and functional combat, along with a range of character skills and upgrades that keep things feeling fresh in the long run.
It Now Falls to You
Players take control of the Envoy of the Emperor, who has also been chosen by a higher power and imbued with special abilities. You must head to the Living Lands and investigate and ultimately rid the world of the Dreamscourge, a deadly fungal disease that infects its host and eventually drives them mad.
Generally, it’s a premise I feel many would have come across before, being the chosen one, who is sent to finally rid the land of evil and save the day. But at the same time, I appreciate how much deeper the story dives in its later hours, complete with some solid voice acting, supporting characters and general character development as you progress.
Without spoiling the story itself, you’ll be choosing between various dialogue prompts in conversation, while making choices based on the mission at hand. Keep in mind that your choices will yield various outcomes, with some consequences immediate and some only highlighted when all is said and done. There were more than a few occasions where I had either instantly regretted a choice, or felt consequences I had not yet anticipated.
While it feels convenient at times that most of these choices fall upon you, I can also appreciate the fact that even though the game must come to these certain crossroads, there’s always an element of freedom at the heart of it. The story itself plays out over 11 main missions which feels more like bookended chapters, which do a great job at keeping the pace consistent and meaningful.
By playing these main missions, you’ll also come across four companions, Kai, Marius, Giatta and Yatzli. They’re all fantastic, from their voice acting and character abilities to the emotional role that each of them plays in the main narrative. While I’ll touch on their gameplay mechanics a little later, I always found it a little tricky to pick only two to take on a mission.
Overall, Avowed throws you into an interesting open world with plenty of lore to uncover, but rarely bogs you down without your input. The main story is on the shorter side for a game of this size, clocking in at around 20 hours, but it’s certainly worth playing through. Thanks to a series of both minimal and important choices, it will also more than likely lead players on various branching paths.
Put Your Skills to the Test
You’ll spend most of your time in Avowed fighting enemies with a range of weapons, looting areas and fallen foes, and talking to characters of interest. While it’s nothing out of the ordinary for a Western RPG, I can’t criticise Avowed for this as it’s using these pre-existing tropes to its advantage.
As far as combat goes, things feel pretty tight. You’ll be able to use several melee and ranged weapons, from daggers, swords and hammers, to wands and guns. While you can buy weapons with in-game currency, you’ll find most of your arsenal by simply playing the game and taking down foes. The game also does a great job at encouraging you to mix things up, depending on if you’re using one or two-handed weapons.
Either way, there’s a bunch to mess around with, and I found myself mixing and matching my arsenal right up until the very end. Weapons will also yield certain statistical advantages like damage and attack speed, and can even use less or more stamina, which is a nice touch.
Like most things in Avowed, your weapons can even be upgraded as you progress. Early on in the game, players are given the ability to set up party camps in certain areas that act like checkpoints or safe areas, in which you can upgrade weapons at the workbench. You can craft upgrades in five categories, Common, Fine, Exceptional, Superb, and Legendary, with each option requiring objects and resources that are much harder to come by.
If that wasn’t enough, your Envoy is also able to upgrade their abilities with a massive skill tree that spreads over three categories; Fighter, Ranger and Wizard abilities. Your Fighter abilities upgrade your melee combat skills, while Ranger abilities bolster your ranged weapons. Finally, your Wizarding abilities will increase the effectiveness and add new elements to magical items and abilities like spells and wands.
Once unlocked, you’ll also have access to two companions at once during a mission, each of which can assist with combat and puzzle-solving. While you’ll spend more time in the former than the latter, each member’s unique abilities will slightly alter your approach, and you’ll be able to target an enemy and command them to use their ability with the tap of a directional button.
The only real issue here, unlike Dragon Age: The Veilguard for example, is that these party members, as excellent as they are, have no other implementation. You can talk to them, but that’s about it. There’s no romancing or specific character-building missions, they’re sort of just there. Thankfully, companion abilities can also be upgraded, so I guess there is something to work towards.
Look the Part
Exploring the Living Lands in Avowed is also a real treat. With colourful funghi brimming in almost every area, it’s honestly a sight to behold. Towns, cities and even characters are brimming with style and flare, making it a joy to exist in.
While most side quests generally lend themselves towards looting and fetching items of value, you’ll even have a light parkour system to help explore those out-of-reach nooks and crannies. Unfortunately, as large as these environments are, enemies don’t respawn, meaning once you’ve run around for a few hours, things can feel a little empty.
Avowed also features both a 30 FPS quality mode and a 60 FPS performance mode (on PC and Xbox Series X only), the latter of which scales back certain textures and draw distances. That 30 FPS option does look great visually, but I would lean towards that smoother performance option, even with slight frame rate drops here and there. But overall, this was solid on the Xbox Series X.
Final Thoughts
Avowed might not feel as big and bold as RPGs that have come before it, but it’s certainly taking those existing tropes and putting them to good use. With a gorgeous open world to explore, a decent story and awesome characters and voice acting, it’s certainly worth checking out. Combat is also super functional and varied based on the amount of weapons and abilities at your disposal.
While the story feels a little short and the open world empty at times, I do not doubt that both RPG fans and newcomers alike will find something to enjoy in Avowed.
THREE AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Highlights: Fantastic story with plenty of choice and consequence; Fun combat and companions; Gorgeous open world
Lowlights: The main story feels a little short; Certain open areas can feel a little empty; Not much to do with companions beyond combat
Developer: Obsidian Entertainment
Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, Windows PC, Game Pass
Available: Now
Review conducted on Xbox Series X with a pre-release code provided by the publisher.
