Ahead of the full release of Obsidian Entertainment’s new RPG,Avowedon February 18, reviews for the game have dropped - and while they’re trending mostly positive, the aggregate score does fall notably short of the developer’s past work. First revealed in 2020,Avowedtakes place in the fantasy world of Eora, the same setting as Obsidian’sPillars of Eternitygames, but doesn’t function as a direct sequel. Instead,Avoweddiverges from the CRPG approach ofPillarsto adopt gameplay more similar to something likeThe Outer Worlds, or a Bethesda RPG.
As of February 13, which is also the game’s early access release date,reviews from critics have landedAvowedwith an aggregate score of 80onMetacritic- which, while still a good score, is somewhatlower than the Metacritic scores of other Obsidian RPGs. The twoPillars of Eternitygames, for example, have scores of89and88, respectively, andThe Outer Worlds, which is perhaps the most similar game toAvowed, gameplay-wise, has an85. For more points of comparison, the smaller-scalePentimenthas an86, and perhaps Obsidian’s most well-known game,Fallout: New Vegas, has an84.
What Critics Are Saying About Avowed
Avowed’s Reviews Are Mixed On Several Of The Game’s Aspects
Reading into the actual reviews as opposed to the aggregate score,reviewer opinions onAvowedare surprisingly mixedin several aspects. WhileScreenRant’s ownAvowedreviewputs the game at a 9/10, with reviewer Kyle Gratton highlighting “compelling” writing, but also saying that the “combat isn’t especially engrossing”, some other reviews take the opposite perspective.The Washington Post’s Gene Park, for example, describesAvowedas: “Great in fighting, not the writing[…]My story choices didn’t matter much, either to the narrative or, more fatally, to myself.”
Avowed’s Early Access Sets A Concerning Precedent For Xbox Game Pass
The Premium Edition for Avowed offers early access for players willing to pay, but the package doesn’t justify the price tag—and that’s a problem.
A mixed reception, trending towards the positive side, seems to be whatAvowedwill end up with. At the absolute highest,VG247’s Alex Donaldson awarded the game with full marks, giving it 5/5 stars, saying that, “It’s exactly what it needs to be,” while at the lower end, Stacey Henley, writing forTheGamer, ratesAvowedat 3/5, calling it “middle of the road sustenance.“A common thread in reviews, both positive and middling, is thatAvoweddoesn’t innovate much, or at all, with both the reviews fromVG247andTheGamerexpressing as much, andIGN’s Travis Northrup who gave the game a 7/10, saying thatAvowed"plays it quite safe”.
Avowed Looks Like A Great RPG, Even Compared To Other Obsidian Releases
Avowed Might Be A Game Where Personal Taste Is The Deciding Factor
Of course,reviews should generally be taken as guidance, not fact- especially when opinions on the different aspects ofAvowedare so varied. Notably, also, aggregate scores from critics have been a somewhat strange measuring stick for Obsidian RPGs in the past. Prior toAvowed,Fallout: New Vegas’s technical issues at launch landed it with one of the studio’s lower Metacritic scores, despite being perhaps Obsidian’s most well-regarded game, whileThe Outer Worldslanded a point higher, but garnered a mixed reception from players.
This isn’t to say that any of the reviews are inaccurate or untrustworthy, but especially forAvowed, the mixed opinions make it seem like a game that’s hard to rate with an “objective” number, and perhaps more subject to personal taste.Luckily, at least, the game will be available on day one of its full release on Xbox Game Pass, so players won’t have to buyAvowedat its full $70 price tag to see if the game is for them.
