Avowed might look like Skyrim, but its director says Obsidian's new fantasy RPG is actually much closer to The Outer Worlds than anything from Bethesda

Nov. 23, 2024

And there’s a healthy dose of Pillars of Eternity too, of course

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Despite all the Skyrim comparisons, Avowed is much more like The Outer Worlds than any Bethesda RPG, according to its director.

In an interview with GamesRadar+, game director Carrie Patel was asked about the comparisons being drawn betweenAvowedandSkyrim. As a first-person fantasy RPG set in an established world, made by a studio with a history of working directly with Bethesda (on the excellentFallout: New Vegas), perhaps the comparisons with The Elder Scrolls 5 are inevitable. But according to Patel, that’s not necessarily how the game actually plays out.

“As far as comparisons go structurally and mechanically, I’d say it’s a bit closer to The Outer Worlds,” she explains. The one major difference Patel points to is The Outer Worlds' “very strong satirical bent” - as Obsidian’s answer to Fallout, The Outer Worlds' parodical, anti-capitalist slant is made with its tongue firmly in its cheek, but that satire is something that “Avowed does not have.”

“I think, like previous Pillars games, Avowed is more grounded in terms of tone,” Patel explains, “but you’ve still got a variety of styles of content, and certainly plenty of humor and levity that is largely character-based.”

Still, the Skyrim comparisons remain there for all to see. Patel notes that “Avowed is a first-person fantasy action adventure” that’s all about “exploration, [….] discovering the world, [and] discovering these very deep mysteries within it.” Much like Skyrim, you can dig into those mysteries as much or as little as you want to, diving deep into the lore of the Pillars of Eternity universe, or simply engaging with the main narrative that drives you through the game.

Despite the Skyrim comparisons, Avowed is an Obsidian RPG first and foremost: “Let’s bring in all the greatest hits.”

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I’m GamesRadar’s news editor, working with the team to deliver breaking news from across the industry. I started my journalistic career while getting my degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick, where I also worked as Games Editor on the student newspaper, The Boar. Since then, I’ve run the news sections at PCGamesN and Kotaku UK, and also regularly contributed to PC Gamer. As you might be able to tell, PC is my platform of choice, so you can regularly find me playing League of Legends or Steam’s latest indie hit.

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