Obsidian had a busy 2025, releasing three sprawling RPGs – Grounded 2, The Outer Worlds 2 and Avowed. The first was released in early access, the second was released on multiple consoles and the third bypassed the PlayStation 5…until now. Avowed launches on Sony’s flagship hardware one year after initial release, providing a new legion of players with the chance to explore the Living Lands. While the reviews of Avowed originally hovered around the ‘good to great’ mark, there is no doubting the enjoyment of a fresh RPG that allows for deep building and customisation. This is no Skyrim in size or depth, and offers fewer RPG staples than a Fallout, but it does scratch the itch for those eager to embark on a sprawling adventure full of varied quests and loot.
The story here is similar to most within fantasy RPGs – you’re special, you’re sent somewhere with a mission and the location in question is beset by an issue that needs solving. Plot here plays second fiddle to gameplay, but the stories of individual characters will draw you in. There are cutscenes, Baldur’s Gate 3 style ‘inner’ voices, political intrigue and conspiracies, villains with purpose and a core thread that will lead you through the various zones of the game. In the example of the first area, you’ll spend most of the time trying to track down someone who tried (tried may be putting it lightly) to do you harm. Narrative is quite open in how you tackle this and the decisions made, providing the player with just enough choice in the process. Dialogue can be quite extensive, even in the smaller story beats, but the lore here is deep and available for anyone keen to really immerse themselves.
While the story is serviceable, the bulk of your time in Avowed is spent exploring and fighting through a range of biomes. Technically not open world, the areas are very large full of caves, towns and ruins. To stay safe during your travels, it is essential to engage in combat. This is where the decision-making comes into play beyond base level, choosing between melee, ranged and wizard options. Being able to swap between two full loadouts means you can essentially dabble in all. I’m generally a sword-and-board man, but the ranged options (pistols and magic) combine for a more unique and powerful experience. Avowed is at its strongest when you’re experimenting with the options available in laying waste to enemies. I soon moved from sword and shield to a wand and book of spells, then to a powerful bow, and finally to a frost axe that froze anything in my path. I swapped out my shield for a fire sword, suddenly able to burn and freeze depending on my mood. Completing side missions or travelling off the beaten path is the best way to find the coolest gear, which can also be upgraded and improved at camps. Fighting is fun – yes, there’s some jank. But the moment-to-moment skirmishes allow you to test the new moves found when levelling up.
The RPG mechanics ensure that you need to choose a field of mastery. Unlike a Skyrim, levels are capped and therefore you cannot unlock everything in a single playthrough (Obsidian does this with The Outer Worlds 2 also). When you create your character, you’ll pop points into six categories and then also start choosing special moves from the ranger, fighter, wizard skill trees (all can be accessed and combined). Respeccing is cheap, allowing for you to go for a move and then swap it out later if the build plans change. Avowed respects the players’ indecision, which was somewhat refreshing for someone that gets anxious wondering if my choices are aligning with my strategy. I changed my specs three times after the first 10 levels, but then only changed once more as I felt comfortable by the second zone. You’ll have multiple dials full of moves to access during battle (my go-to was a charge attack that could crash me through anything, and vines that held enemies in place) and it doesn’t stop here. You can also manage your NPCs.
Avowed provides you with NPCs to assist on the journey. There are multiple, and they are quite fun to have around. Whether it is their morality, conscience or preference in your ear, their commentary on decisions can often impact approach. They’re also handy to have in a pinch. Kai, this blue reptile looking fellow, has a move where he leaps into the air and crashes into the ground – dealing a wide circumference of stun and damage. This move is on your L1 wheel, likewise his ability to use flames if none of your combat options have this capability. This is useful for moving through webbed areas, while ice may break gates open. There’s this layer of strategy here that is best explored on the harder difficulties, and how you manage your NPCs can often be the difference. Once I was powerful enough, I left them to their own devices in battle. Early, especially with one bounty that was causing me issue, I made sure Kai and another NPC took the brunt of the bears while I picked off foes from a distance with my rifle. It’s a fun balance that prioritises situation.
Performance is always a focus for sprawling, detailed games – especially when moving from Xbox to PS. Avowed provides three performance options, and I aptly chose the 60FPS performance mode. It is quickly evident that graphically the game takes a fair hit to accumulate greater frames. I need frames for this type of combat, therefore adopting the more blurred version of the game. It is by no means a deal-breaker and one soon forgets what the other options look like when engaging with the game. The voice acting is solid, the soundtrack is fairly minimal in memorability, and the sounds of battle are the audio highlight. There are plenty of options to tinker with, but that RPG ‘jank and ragdoll’ is simply part of the charm. One challenge I found was how the dodge is mapped to left stick movement and pressing the action button. When high up on a bridge, there were times I made to jump a ledge and it dodged instead. I imagine there is a way to re-map this, and it didn’t punish me too much. There are plenty of accessibility features to play with.
This edition is under the ‘Anniversary’ title after a year of play on other systems. As I did not play Avowed before this playthrough, I am unsure if any major improvements are here. There is new game plus, the addition of a quarterstaff, photo mode, new races, QOL improvements, a magic mirror to change your look and expanded customisation. All of this was part of my game, therefore didn’t stick out to someone who may have played in early 2025. Either way, they are beneficial to the whole and will provide all players with more to see and do.
Avowed is a very good RPG with many of the staples the genre is renowned for. Many of its strengths are there for those that go the extra mile – deep side missions, extensive builds, hidden loot and pages upon pages of lore. Those who dash quickly through the game may see this as just another Skyrim-like, but it is they who miss the point here. One side mission in the first zone took me deep underground to a God-like villain and questions of creation. I would have missed this if staying on the core path. These moments are here, and their rewards are worth it. Now transferring over to the PlayStation 5, this game deserves its time in multi-coloured lights as there really is a gem to uncover here.
Pros
- Combat and gear options are a joy to play with
- Interesting locations and deep side missions
Cons
- Too much dialogue, especially when just wanting to explore or fight
- Main story not the most captivating (side content can be better)
- Is jank a pro or a con?
4/5
