Companions maketh the RPG. While exploring, defeating enemies, and finding loot are all big parts of any RPG, doing so with interesting and engaging companions takes the game to a whole new level. Just look at what the in-depth character building has done for Baldur’s Gate 3. Nobody wants a Lydia-esque loot holder like in Skyrim anymore.
Thankfully, it looks like Avowed is going to put a lot of work into its companions, making them react to conversations, events, and other lollygagging you get up to. Obsidian has said that it doesn’t want its companion characters to act like mere bodyguards who follow you around.
Avowed Companions Will React To Gameplay And Dialogue
In a conversation with GamesRadar+, Avowed director Carrie Patel said “one thing we wanted to do with companions in Avowed is give them a little more interactivity and reactivity based on the events and conversations and quests that you’re encountering in the game. So we wanted them to be a little bit more present in conversations, and we also wanted them to have a little bit more to say about the adventures that you’re experiencing together.”
While making companions talkative and engaging is one thing, Patel also noted that the team was careful not to make them sound like “someone is backseat driving and second-guessing all your choices.”
“But it can also feel weird for players like me, who really do get invested in companions, to think you’ve been on this adventure with me this whole time, and you’re not saying anything about it,” continued Patel.
“So we’ve written a lot of content for these characters for their engagement in the story with one another, with the player. A whole lot of it is opt in, however. And so for players who go back to party camp, you know, they might hear their companion say a thing or two, but it’s really going to be on them to have that conversation, to kind of really dig into that perspective and get to know their companion a bit better.”
Welcome to the Living Lands, a mysterious island filled with adventure and danger. Set in the fictional world of Eora that was first introduced to players in the Pillars of Eternity franchise, Avowed is a first-person fantasy action RPG from the award-winning team at Obsidian Entertainment.