Avowed

Avowed is more than it might seem at first, it is an RPG that is accessible to everyone, but that shows above-average quality from the hands of Obsidian.

Obsidian's signature is evident throughout Avowed, from its richly crafted setting to its deep role-playing mechanics and meaningful quests. That said, Avowed remains an AA title, lacking the extra budget needed to realize its potential fully and if you're expecting vast open worlds, ambitious design, or cutting-edge visuals, you may find yourself disappointed.

Despite these flaws, Avowed offers a fantastic RPG excursion to the Living Lands, with an intriguing world to explore, a gripping narrative that'll keep you hooked, and sumptuously satisfying combat against a varied cast of enemies. With a few bugs to address and a requirement to grind out crafting materials for upgrades, it's by no means perfect, but Avowed offers a further iteration on the tried and tested RPG formula loved by so many, and will no doubt be played for years to come.

In the absence of a new episode of Skyrim, or even an opportunistic remaster, Avowed immediately positioned itself as a perfect replacement candidate. It must be said that for years, the Obsidian Entertainment studio has shown its appetite for old-school RPGs, with a strongly assumed Bethesda-style coating and formula. But from Skyrim, Avowed doesn't borrow much, except for its old school, so 2011 side, which could be likened to a comforting feeling for the most nostalgic players. Because despite appearances and an intriguing first part of the adventure, Avowed subsequently reveals its true face, that of being an RPG for dummies, or a chatty and more complex than average action-adventure game. It is somewhere between the two and a bit nowhere, since it tries to hit both categories at once. The result is a game that displays some pretty blatant game design inconsistencies, with on one hand more flexibility in its class and progression systems, and on the other a completely frozen world where interactions have been reduced to next to nothing and NPCs reduced to inert and uninteresting green plants. We still manage to have fun with its more open combat system, but we have to get past the ultra-rigid animations that take us back to another time. The lack of staging and the slightly too rainbow artistic direction also contributed to spoiling the party and it's a shame because Avowed had a great story to tell us. An adventure that will find a nostalgic or unobservant audience, but a game that will not go down in history, that's for sure.

If you’re a fan of role-playing games of all shapes and sizes, Avowed will not be the experience you are looking for. As much as it pains me to say it, if you’re looking for a game that has great characters, story, and gameplay, you may be better off looking at Obsidian’s previous titles such as Fallout: New Vegas.