A little more than a year since its original announcement, we still know comparatively little about Avowed — the new first-person RPG from Obsidian based in the Pillars of Eternity universe. However, a new report by Windows Central appears to shed light on the project, revealing that it's well into pre-production and that it will "feature many elements Pillars of Eternity fans are familiar with."
They reportedly include familiar spells such as Jolting Touch and Fetid Caress, as well as creatures like the Xaurips. The report repeatedly compares Avowed to Skyrim and Oblivion, describing it as "undoubtedly Obsidian's take on The Elder Scrolls." It may go as far as to include destructible environments, with fire spells leaving areas "coated in flames."
Avowed is reportedly still in pre-alpha and is not yet playable, but Obsidian is said to be making steady progress. The report speculates that Avowed could be in a playable state by E3 2022, but that date is currently unconfirmed.
Assuming it's all correct, it sounds like Avowed will be the sort of deep open world RPG that has been characteristic of Obsidian's efforts over the years. A direct descendant of Black Isle Studios, Obsidian is best-known for its work on Fallout: New Vegas and Knights of the Old Republic 2, both which has become beloved classics over the years.
Avowed was first announced back in July 2020, where it was presented as evidence of Microsoft's growing first-party muscle in the run-up to the launch of the Xbox Series X|S. Little has been revealed since, suggesting that Avowed is indeed still quite early in its development process.
However it turns out, both Avowed and The Outer Wilds represent Obsidian's renewed push into the AAA RPG space after a prolonged absence. Prior to being acquired by Microsoft, Obsidian had been focusing on smaller projects such as Pillars of Eternity and Tyranny.
Apart from Avowed, Obsidian is currently working on The Outer Worlds 2, which was announced during E3 2021. Both games are set to be released on PC and Xbox Series X|S, and neither have a release date as of yet.
Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN