What Avowed Could Learn From Other Obsidian Entertainment Games

Grounded stands out among the list of current projects at Obsidian Entertainment, as it has technically already been released but just in Early Access. It's a survival RPG where players embody a person who has been shrunk and must survive the terror of creatures like bees and spiders in a backyard. Grounded is in early access and has already seen several updates with new content, and this looks set to continue for some time. The unique game has resonated well with gamers and critics alike and will likely be a big focus for Obsidian going forward until and probably after it has received a full rele


For fantasy fans who err towards evil, Avowed should also include multiple ways to introduce hostility to otherwise non-hostile default encounters. Players should be able to tell a traveler they meet on the road that they’re robbing them, for example, instead of just pick-pocketing in games like Skyrim and hoping they succeed. The NPC might then take several factors into account before deciding whether to give up their goods or put up a fi


With news about The Elder Scrolls 6 practically non-existent since its announcement at E3 2018, Obsidian is likely hoping to fill part of that gap in the market, even if Xbox head Phil Spencer claims Avowed will be a very different experience to The Elder Scrolls . Avowed may be trying to differentiate itself, but comparisons to one of the best-selling games of all time are unlikely to hurt its sa


Skyrim 's dungeons are not poorly designed by any means, but it isn't long into the game before they begin to get somewhat predictable. A large Nord tomb will almost always begin with winding underground crypts leading to a larger cave system, which in turn leads to a "puzzle" door which can only be opened with a Dragon Claw . Beyond the door is a final fight, a world wall, and a conveniently placed secret door which leads right back to the entra


Hopefully the potential return of mega-dungeons will give each dungeon a more unique personality than those found in games like Skyrim . To make them more unique, Avowed 's dungeons should have their own puzzles which require more thought than matching the symbols on a Dragon Claw to those on a puzzle d


In contrast, the townsfolk of Solstheim frequently reference their isolation and the small size of their settlement, despite Raven Rock being bigger than some of Skyrim ’s other settlements like Riverwood and Rorisktead. Avowed could create towns which are the same size as Skyrim ’s cities, but seem far more convincing as hastily constructed frontier towns than ancient seats of power no bigger than a f


Todd Howard recently announced that The Elder Scrolls 6 is still "in the design phase" over three years after its initial reveal, with the studio focusing primarily on Starfield , its first new IP in over 25 years. It's likely that, similar to Bethesda, most of Obsidian's resources are currently focused on Avowed . The Outer Worlds 2 's trailer may have poked fun at games announced long before their development had begun in earnest, but it's also likely a self-confessed culprit of exactly t


The second and final Outer Worlds DLC, Murder on Eridanos , is set to arrive sometime before the end of the current fiscal year. This means that the expansion should be in the hands of players before April 1, 2021. The story of the expansion revolves around a character known as Halcyon Helen, the star of an in-universe show called Terror on Monarch. Helen is looking to go on a final adventure and looks set to be a solid follow-up to the first expansion, Peril on Gor


Dwemer ruins tend to be the most expansive and varied in their design, but Avowed Updates will need to do much more than emulate Skyrim 's best dungeon experiences. With evidence that Avowed may be further along in development than fans think, here are just some of the ways Obsidian could redefine the dungeon-diving experience for the next generat


Although groundbreaking, Skyrim is approaching its ten-year anniversary. Avowed will need to push the first-person fantasy genre far beyond where it was a decade ago if it's going to compete with The Elder Scrolls series. If Avowed is going to take things to the next level, it needs dungeons that blow Skyrim 's out of the wa


Raven Rock is one of Skyrim ’s best towns when it comes to environmental storytelling. Each of Skyrim ’s towns has some level of intrigue - there’s the feud between the Stormcloak and Imperial families of Whiterun, the chatter and tension surrounding the recent public execution of High King Torygg in Solitude, and the string of mysterious murders in Windhelm, to name a


Pillars of Eternity also gets wrong what New Vegas gets right. In Pillars of Eternity the player is exposed to a cultists ritual that makes them a Watcher , a person able to read souls and see their past lives. If the player doesn't track down the cultists, they are told, their character will go ins