Avowed makes its moral unease part of the job description: you play an envoy of the Aedyran Empire, sent to investigate the Dreamscourge in the Living Lands, where many residents see the empire as an occupying power. In Kyle Orland’s February 13, 2025, Ars Technica review, that clash between the envoy’s mission and the locals’ distrust is the game’s most compelling idea—not a simple good-or-evil score.
Why does Avowed make you ask, “Are we the baddies?”
You arrive with an official mandate: investigate and quell the Dreamscourge, a plague affecting minds and beasts. But your character is also a “godlike” envoy from Aedyr, an empire whose presence in the Living Lands is tied to occupation and control. To residents, you are not simply a helpful outsider. As Orland puts it: “You are an outsider. You are not welcome here.”
That friction gives ordinary conversations political weight. You can invoke the authority attached to your office, try to distance yourself from imperial power, negotiate, or use force. Inquisitor Lödwyn and the Steel Garrote embody a more coercive imperial approach, sharpening the question of whether the envoy is serving the people in front of them or the institution that sent them.
Are Avowed’s choices morally ambiguous?
Orland says the game does not appear to track a numerical morality score. Its dilemmas instead ask what you think is defensible when every option carries a cost. Examples in the review include whether to support or challenge another godlike, what to tell survivors about a fatal expedition, how to respond to smugglers exploiting stranded people, and whether to confront an imperial soldier accused of theft.
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- 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.
The choices are not all consequence-free: Orland says some have real, lasting impacts, even though the overarching story often follows a similar course. The uncertainty is the point. The game does not reduce the role to accumulating good or bad points, and a decision that feels compassionate in one moment may still carry political or personal consequences.
How does Avowed play?
Orland describes an action-focused first-person RPG with a broad resemblance to the familiar open-ended RPG pattern of Skyrim, but combat that asks for quicker reactions. You can mix melee, ranged weapons, and magic, switch between two weapon sets, and play in first or third person. Up to two companions can accompany you.
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 review praises responsive controls and the flexibility of combat, including the usefulness of companions. Its reservations are about presentation and pacing: Orland found dialogue animations stiff, some stretches of the world mostly empty, and parts of the mystical visions tiresome. Those are his assessments, not claims that every player will react the same way.
What should you know about difficulty?
Rushing through the main quests can leave you underleveled for some encounters. Orland notes that the game marks especially difficult fights with a skull indicator. If a battle is overwhelming, the review’s suggested alternatives are to take on side quests, improve your gear and levels, use consumables, or change tactics rather than repeatedly attempting the same fight.
Rank #3
- 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.
The review also says difficulty cannot be lowered after starting. Because that detail can depend on the game’s current version, check the in-game options before beginning if you expect to adjust challenge later.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Is Avowed a good RPG, and where can you play it?
Orland’s verdict is positive, particularly on the responsive combat, flexible approach to encounters, and uneasy political perspective. The main reservations are stiff dialogue presentation, empty stretches, and mystical story passages that did not work for him. It is most appealing if you want an action RPG whose protagonist’s institutional role complicates the usual savior narrative; readers primarily seeking consistently dense exploration or polished dialogue scenes may share the review’s reservations.
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
Avowed was released on February 18, 2025. The official Xbox product page lists Xbox Series X|S and Windows 10/11. Its official US store page lists Standard and Premium editions as well as Game Pass access. The page showed Standard Edition at $49.99+ and Premium Edition at $59.99+ when accessed October 7, 2026; prices, subscription access, and availability vary by region and can change. Xbox describes Premium as including the base game, skin packs, and a digital artbook and soundtrack.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- What's in the box: Xbox Series X console, 1 Xbox Wireless Controller - Carbon Black, Ultra High Speed HDMI cable, Power cord.
- Equipped with AMD's Zen 2 and RDNA 2 architectures, DirectX ray tracing delivers true-to-life lighting, shadows and accurate reflections to create dynamic, living worlds.
- Memory: 16GB GDDR6 w/320 bit-wide bus; Memory Bandwidth: 10 GB @ 560 GB/s, 6 GB @ 336 GB/s; Internal Storage: 1TB Custom NVME SSD
- Gaming Resolution: True 4K; Performance Target: Up to 120 FPS; High Dynamic Range: Up to 8K HDR; Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blu-Ray; HDMI Features: Auto Low Latency Mode, HDMI Variable Refresh Rate, AMD FreeSync.
- Bundled with HDMI_Cable
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
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