Obsidian Entertainment celebrate 20 years, sharing a few details about the upcoming Avowed including it was one being pushed as a co-op RPG.
Avowed Once Upon a Time was a Co-op Multiplayer RPG
In the latest episode behind the history of the Obsidian studio, the developer shares a few tidbits about their latest game in development, Avowed. The Action-RPG is now a single-player game but once upon a time, it was aiming for a co-op multiplayer experience.
The Pillars of Eternity 2 and The Outer Worlds developer talked about why Avowed was once going to be multiplayer. Studio head Feargus Urquhart explains in the video when looking back on the 20 years at Obsidian, that there were choices they felt good about, and some that felt “not so good”. Previously they “pushed” Avowed as a multiplayer in order to sell it better to publishers. However, they felt ultimately it wasn’t the right direction, realising they “weren’t focused on the things that we’re best at” says head of development Justin Britch.
We weren’t focused on the things we’re best at. And so we did make a pivot on the game, basically to refocus and make sure that it was, at the end of the day, an Obsidian game and not something different.
Head of Development Obsidian Entertainment – Justin Britch
The multiplayer aspect had a major influence on how quests, narratives and more were developed. Taking a different direction took about eight months, creating a “very hectic” transition period according to the game’s director Carrie Patel.
Co-op vs Single-player
Before Obsidian was acquired by Microsoft, they were independent. This influenced how the game was viewed and pitched. Urquhart explains asking for “50, 60, 70, 80 million” from publishers, there’s got to be something to hook them in and “multiplayer made it interesting”. This is also probably why we hadn’t really gotten much of an update on Avowed until recently, when it appeared at the Xbox Games Showcase in June with a new trailer. Now slated for a 2024 release window.
Single-player games don’t necessarily mean playing alone. Having a band of companions in tow always makes games such as Dragon’s Dogma or even the recent Baldur’s Gate 3 all the more appealing. While your main character is set for one build, you can utilise other members of your party to round out the combat. Whether Avowed will include some co-op content is currently unknown. They could have kept some aspects of it when switching to more familiar pastures.
Familiar Ground
Avowed’s first-person Action-RPG combat is reminiscent of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Having players cast with one hand and wield a weapon in the other. Being set in the Pillars of Eternity universe will also have fans of the series’ interest piqued. While a multiplayer version of the POE world would have been interesting, doing what they know best and keeping it an “Obsidian game” will be what players love about a studio’s games. The game while not open world, will be similar to that of The Outer Worlds open areas.
Avowed will be released in 2024 coming to Xbox Series, PC via Windows 10/11 and Steam. You will also be able to pick it up on Xbox Game Pass/PC Game Pass on day one.
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