As a fan of Obsidian’s RPGs, I’m excited about Avowed, but I’m also a little nervous about it repeating a similar mistake as the Fallout series. Although the go-to comparison for Avowed seems to be the Elder Scrolls series, as both are first-person fantasy games, I’m more reminded of Fallout due to the similar origins of both games. And, while I don’t dislike modern Fallout games, there are some issues I have with Bethesda’s direction for the series that I wouldn’t want to see Obsidian repeat.

Although it’s hard to fully judge a game based on preview materials, I can’t pretend that what I’ve heard about Avowed so far from those with hands-on experience hasn’t helped fuel my concerns. As someone who enjoyed The Outer Worlds, warts and all, I am hopeful that any apparent problems with Avowed won’t be a major dealbreaker for me. That said, it isn’t just Avowed that I’m worried about, but also a connected series of games from Obsidian that I really enjoy.

Fallout And Avowed Both Started As Isometric RPGs

Fallout’s Transition To Action RPG Wasn’t The Smoothest

Before turning into a first-person action RPG, the Fallout series started as isometric computer role-playing games (CRPGs). Similarly, Avowed is a spin-off of Obsidian’s fantasy CRPG series Pillars of Eternity. Like the original Fallout games, they are played from an isometric perspective and involve a lot of dialogue/role-playing elements. Although role-playing elements aren’t absent from later Fallout games, they do feel like somewhat of a downgrade compared to the original games.

The transition from Fallout 2 to Fallout 3 was rough from a role-playing standpoint. The games went from presenting a ton of choices to a somewhat on-rails main story that had you following around your digital dad who seemed more like the real hero of the story. While Fallout 3 didn’t completely ax role-playing, it felt less emphasized than other elements of the game. Later Fallout games have tried to correct this, and my hope would be Obsidian knows not to make the same mistake. That said, there have been some early indications that this could be the case.

Some Avowed Previews Say It Is Light On Role-Playing Elements

Preview Material Seemed To Indicate Dialogue Had Less Impact

Initially, I chalked my concerns about Avowed’s role-playing elements up to making an unfair assumption based on its similarities to Fallout. After all, Avowed’s developers emphasized role-playing and character relationships as major aspects of the game. However, now that we’re closer to release, and some players have started to actually preview the game, some reports have reawoken my concerns.

Gaming community Fextralife’s preview mentioned that the section of the game they previewed felt a little light on role-playing elements and meaningful choices. While the IGN previewer praised the game for letting players be cartoonishly evil, that’s usually a red flag for me in choice-based RPGs. I’m not a big fan of games that present only a binary choice between being generically good or unforgivably bad.

To be clear, I haven’t personally had a chance to play Avowed, and the previews I’ve seen had to split their attention between multiple aspects of the game. This means that to fully get an in-depth look at the role-playing, I’ll probably have to wait until I can play the game myself. This is also just preview material, and it’s possible that the developers intentionally chose a section of the game that’s lighter on role-playing to emphasize gameplay. That said, it is ironically the Fallout series that also gives me hope for Avowed.

Obsidian Has Proven It Knows How To Handle This Type Of Game

Fallout: New Vegas Has Me Hopeful For Avowed

While Fallout 3, 4, and 76 lack some of the depth I look for in RPGs, Fallout: New Vegas did a much better job with it. As luck would have it, New Vegas is the one Fallout game that was developed by Obsidian. This means that, despite some of my hesitation, I can remain optimistic that Avowed will deliver the type of role-playing experience that I enjoy.

Avowed also has a team behind it that I have a lot of faith in. The game’s director, Carrie Patel, was involved in narrative design elements for both Pillars of Eternity games and The Outer Worlds. It would stand to reason that Avowed has a good chance of holding up to Pillars of Eternity’s story, given this crossover. However, even if the game delivers on the story, there is still another aspect of the Fallout series I’m worried Avowed may repeat.

Avowed’s Possible Success May Kill The Pillars Of Eternity Series

Like Fallout 3, Avowed Could Mean The End Of Its Series’ Isometric CRPG Roots

When Fallout transitioned from being an isometric CRPG to an action RPG, the series never returned to its roots. I understand why. Trying to keep an IP alive across two styles of games presents a risk and splits a studio’s focus. However, that does make me a little nervous that, if Avowed turns out to be a huge success, Obsidian will shift its focus from making the Pillar of Eternity games to an Avowed sequel.

Part of my concern here comes from the fact that the Pillars of Eternity games had to be crowdfunded. While the first two games raised a good amount of money and both games were able to produce a base game and expansions, I worry that making a third would seem like more trouble than it’s worth if Microsoft offers to fund another Avowed game. I’m not saying I’m against the idea of more Avowed, just that, in an ideal world, the Pillars of Eternity series would continue too.

Part of this comes down to personal taste. If given a choice between a traditional CRPG and an action RPG, I prefer the former. I find that action RPGs tend to live in a middle ground between two genres I enjoy. They typically don’t have as polished of action as something like the Soulsborne series, nor do they have as deep role-playing as something like Disco Elysium or Baldur’s Gate 3. This means that, while I usually enjoy them to a certain degree, they are rarely among my favorite games.

One thing that has me hopeful the Pillars of Eternity series can continue is the fact that Josh Sawyer is not directing Avowed. If Obsidian is trusting Patel with the Avowed series, Sawyer could still be free to work on future Pillars of Eternity games. While this is no guarantee, I would be slightly more nervous had the entire Pillars team jumped over to Avowed. My sincere hope is that both series can co-exist.