Avowed is a wonderful little game so far. I’ve only just stepped foot into Paradis and have so much more to see in Obsidian’s latest effort, but so far it appears to strike a balance between scale and density that makes me constantly curious to discover what awaits around the next corner. Its world design appears to inform this approach too, with the majority of places built with a single linear path complemented by a multitude of distractions.
That’s no bad thing considering the central narrative is pretty dry right now, and I’d rather spend my time spelunking with hunky fish Garrus than uncover my true destiny at the heart of The Living Lands. Like Fallout: New Vegas and Skyrim before it, this feels like an RPG where you can go and do whatever you want, so I’ve spent most of my time in ruins doing whatever I want.
Avowed Is A Game Filled With Beautiful Distractions
Speaking of Skyrim, so far the majority of Avowed reminds me of the countless caves you’d explore in Bethesda’s 2011 classic. You know the ones. Small dungeons burrowed into cliffs that you can enter and spend a few minutes fighting spiders, looting corpses, and leaving in a far better state than you entered.
They’d grow repetitive after a dozen or so hours, but I could never walk past one without an urge to explore. More so than ruins, outposts, and castles, the caves in Skyrim embodied the curious exploration that makes these games so damn good.
Avowed has plenty of smaller locations like this, such as an early dungeon in which I had to receive an ancient relic while tracking down a lost legion of troops. It felt like yet another side quest as I stepped inside, but just a few minutes later I was deciding whether I wanted to try and bring an ancient god back to life or murder the dude encouraging me to do so.
I walked in hoping to find a new sword and a few nuggets of gold for my troubles, and here I was now trying to save the world. All because of a random ruin I wandered into because I didn’t care about the main narrative. Skyrim is filled with moments like this too, where caves can be the catalyst to adventures that soak up hours of a playthrough without you even noticing.
And All Of Them Are Worth Pursuing
Even when the smaller locations in Avowed or Skyrim don’t lead to grander quests, they are still worth engaging with. They embody the brilliance of discovery that makes RPGs like this so inviting, where the most basic of dungeons and combat encounters give way to water-cooler anecdotes that few others are going to experience in the same way.
I’m still so early into Avowed, but I already know my journey is going to be fuelled by abandoning most of its main quests whenever possible. I want to spend my time walking in new places as I fight enemies and open treasure chests only to watch the path wind back in on itself and lead me back into the open world to do it all over again.
I’d go as far as describing Avowed as some sort of medieval Mirror’s Edge at times. I’m always jumping about the place and clambering up cliff sides and rooftops.
Outside instanced caves and dungeons, the wider world design of Avowed leans into this philosophy. There is something increasingly vertical about how every space is designed as you are encouraged to parkour up to unexpected places or look harder at the surrounding area in order to uncover the secrets within. It is small and focused and has little interest in hurling you into an open world where all you can do is venture from one city to the next with nothing to do in-between. As far as I can tell, Avowed’s whole world is walkable.
Avowed isn’t a grandiose RPG destined to rival Baldur’s Gate 3, but I don’t think I ever really expected it to be. I’m content with an experience where exploration and loot are at the centre and my time can be spent enjoying smaller stories or crafting my own. If this unfolds in a big cave filled with colourful mushrooms, that’s just an added bonus.
- Released
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February 18, 2025
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Strong Language, Violence