Avowed, a newly released role-playing game from Obsidian Entertainment, has been available for three days and is the first title published under Xbox Game Studios. Player concurrency data is expected to emerge over the weekend, indicating possible peak numbers on Steam. In the meantime, Bloomberg has revealed insights from an interview with Game Director Carrie Patel, who expressed satisfaction with the game’s sales performance thus far.
Development Insights
During the Bloomberg interview, Patel discussed the significant reboot that took place in 2021, when she assumed directorial duties from the previous director. She reflected on her growth throughout the development process.
I’ve gained so much valuable knowledge over the past four years; I wish I had this understanding at the beginning. This journey has had its extreme highs and lows. When you attempt to reevaluate creative direction and develop new production plans, typically, such a process involves a smaller team. However, at that time, our team was quite substantial. Many lessons we acquired while developing Avowed ideally should have been learned during a narrower focus in preproduction.
Game Design Changes
One of the primary adjustments stemming from the reboot was the shift from an expansive world similar to Skyrim to a format more akin to Obsidian’s previous titles. Patel elaborated on this change:
When developing any game, you consider which challenges are truly worth pursuing. From our experience with The Outer Worlds, we realized that crafting a fantastic game with ‘open zones’ was possible. This approach also allows for distinct thematic areas and offers players a clear sense of progression as they transition from one environment to another.
Future Prospects
Patel concluded with an optimistic note regarding potential sequels for Avowed:
Having created this rich world and established a strong team dynamic, I would love for us to explore more within this universe.
With her background on Pillars of Eternity, it’s plausible that she is referring specifically to this action-oriented iteration rather than the traditional cRPGs. The decision for any further development largely hinges on Microsoft’s evaluation of sales figures and the overall reception of the game.
For detailed insights on Avowed and its merits as an RPG, visit our comprehensive review. Additionally, Obsidian is concurrently working on another project, The Outer Worlds 2, set to release later this year on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S|X.
