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Avowed is one of Obsidian’s strongest modern RPGs, but calling it the studio’s best is a matter of what you value. In Zachary Boddy’s launch-week Xbox Series X review for Windows Central, flexible combat, exploration, presentation and story stood out; bugs, uneven performance and a smaller scope than the biggest AAA role-playing games held it back. That makes Avowed an appealing, focused fantasy adventure—not a direct Skyrim-sized substitute. Obsidian later added new features and released a PlayStation 5 version, so launch impressions should not be mistaken for a review of those later builds.
What kind of RPG is Avowed?
Developed by Obsidian Entertainment, Avowed takes place in Eora, the fantasy setting first introduced in Pillars of Eternity. You play an Aedyran Envoy sent to the Living Lands to investigate the Dreamscourge. The official Xbox game page lists its original release date as February 18, 2025.
Windows Central describes Avowed as a focused, semi-open-world RPG with first- and third-person viewpoints. Rather than locking the protagonist into a fixed class, it lets players combine weapons and abilities. Its regions offer places to explore without trying to reproduce the uninterrupted sprawl of the largest open-world games.
Is Avowed as good as Obsidian’s other RPGs?
“Its best” is a defensible verdict if the comparison is about a polished, approachable action-RPG experience with flexible combat and memorable exploration. It is not an established ranking of every Obsidian game: the available hands-on review is one launch-week Xbox Series X review, not a portfolio-wide comparison or a new test of the anniversary build.
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#1 Best Overall
- Welcome to the Living Lands, a mysterious island filled with adventure and danger.
- Set in the fictional world of Eora that was first introduced to players in the Pillars of Eternity franchise, Avowed is a first-person fantasy action RPG from the award-winning team at Obsidian Entertainment.
- Explore an island home to many different environments and landscapes, each with their own unique ecosystem
- Mix and match swords, spells, guns, and shields to fight your way
- Companions from a spread of species will fight alongside you, with their own unique set of abilities.
In that review, Windows Central’s Zachary Boddy praised Avowed’s distinctive regions, exploration rewards, varied combat, visuals and engaging story. Boddy also reported bugs and uneven performance and judged the scope more limited than that of the biggest AAA RPGs. The review sample was supplied by Xbox Game Studios, which did not see or influence the review before publication. Boddy’s conclusion was: “A varied combat system, gorgeous visuals, and an interesting story all help make Avowed one of the most fun RPGs I’ve played in a long while.” That is one reviewer’s experience, not a claim of universal consensus.
How does Avowed compare with Skyrim?
Avowed shares a first-person fantasy perspective and the freedom to shape how you fight, but it is better understood as a compact, region-based adventure than as a Skyrim-scale world. If your priority is a huge, continuous world to roam, Avowed’s tighter scope may feel limiting. If you prefer directed areas with rewarding diversions and a central story, the narrower structure can be a strength.
Rank #2
- Requires base game, Game Pass Ultimate, or PC Game Pass Membership (Sold Separately)
- Premium Upgrade includes: Premium Skin Packs: 2 sets of bonus skins for your companions, and access to Avowed Digital Artbook & Original Soundtrack
- Set in the fictional world of Eora that was first introduced to players in the Pillars of Eternity franchise, Avowed is a first-person fantasy action RPG from the award-winning team at Obsidian Entertainment.
- Explore an island home to many different environments and landscapes, each with their own unique ecosystem.
- Mix and match swords, spells, guns, and shields to fight your way.
The combat is similarly flexible in premise: weapons and abilities can be mixed rather than tied to a single class. Boddy found the variety enjoyable. That review does not establish that the system will satisfy players seeking especially deep or technically demanding combat; that preference is a key dividing line when deciding whether Avowed suits you.
Does Avowed work if you haven’t played Pillars of Eternity?
Yes. Avowed is set in the same world, but it follows a new protagonist and a new investigation in the Living Lands. The Dreamscourge provides the immediate mystery, while the first- or third-person presentation and flexible build choices make it accessible as a standalone entry. Prior knowledge of Eora may add context, but the premise does not require you to have played Pillars of Eternity.
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- Premium Edition includes: Avowed base game, Premium Skin Packs: 2 sets of bonus skins for each of your companions, and access to Avowed Digital Artbook & Original Soundtrack
- Set in the fictional world of Eora that was first introduced to players in the Pillars of Eternity franchise, Avowed is a first-person fantasy action RPG from the award-winning team at Obsidian Entertainment.
- Explore an island home to many different environments and landscapes, each with their own unique ecosystem.
- Mix and match swords, spells, guns, and shields to fight your way.
- Companions from a spread of species will fight alongside you, with their own unique set of abilities.
Xbox Wire’s February 7, 2025 developer feature offers useful context, though its comments are developer perspectives rather than independent assessments. Game director Carrie Patel said, “We always want to give the player a few different ways to solve some of the problems ahead of them.” She cited approaches such as using fire through spells, weapons, found items or companion Kai’s ability. Environment artist Jeremy Presnell said, “We really reward the player for exploring the world as much as possible.” These statements describe the design intent behind problem-solving and exploration.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What changed after launch?
Launch-week impressions describe the Xbox Series X build reviewed at that time. Obsidian later announced an anniversary update and a PlayStation 5 version. The update added three playable species—Dwarves, Orlans and Aumaua—to the existing humans and elves, as well as New Game Plus, Photo Mode, visual polish and quality-of-life changes. It also lets players change their character’s appearance and species at the party camp. Those features were not part of the launch-day game.
Rank #4
- L'édition Premium SteelBook comprend: le jeu de base Avowed, jusqu'à 5 jours d'accès anticipé, le SteelBook Avowed, la carte des Terres Vivantes, deux packs de skins Premium et l'accès à l'Artbook numérique Avowed et à la bande-son originale
- Vous êtes l'envoyé d'Aedyr, une terre lointaine, missionné pour enquêter sur les rumeurs selon lesquelles une épidémie se propagerait dans les Terres Vivantes, une île pleine de mystères et de secrets, de dangers et d'aventures, de choix et de conséconsés. quences, et d'une nature sauvage
- Explorez une île qui abrite de nombreux environnements et paysages différents, chacun avec son propre écosystème unique
- Mélangez et associez des épées, des sorts, des armes et des boucliers pour vous frayer un chemin
- The compagnons d'un large éventail d'espèces se battront à vos côtés, avec leurs propres capacités uniques
Obsidian’s March 25, 2026 Patch 2.1 notes list a setting to disable enemy respawning and fixes for issues including crashes, Photo Mode, frame generation and platform-specific problems. The patch confirms those changes; it does not establish that every performance concern raised in the launch review has been resolved. Nor should the Xbox Series X review be treated as a direct assessment of the PlayStation 5 version.
Should you play Avowed?
- It is a good fit if you want a focused fantasy RPG with flexible first-person combat, a distinctive setting, exploration rewards and a story you can approach without prior Pillars of Eternity experience.
- Think twice if you want a vast, continuous open world, or if technical smoothness at launch is a decisive requirement. The cited performance and bug observations are from one launch-era Xbox Series X review, not a current test of every platform and build.
Xbox Wire announced Game Pass availability at launch in 2025. That is historical information, not confirmation that Avowed is in the catalog today; check the live catalog for your region and subscription before relying on it.
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