Summary
A lead developer working onAvowed, Obsidian Entertainment’s upcoming action RPG, has revealed that negative feedback regarding the game’s combat mechanics resulted in major improvements being made to its gameplay systems. Although reception towardsAvowedhas been mostly positive so far, not everyone has been pleased, with many voicing their opinions about what they’ve seen of the fantasy role-playing game on social media. Fortunately, it seems Obsidian has taken a lot of this feedback to heart and adjustedAvowedaccordingly, signifying the developer’s willingness to listen to the demands of players.
Despite being announced in 2020 with a brief CGI teaser,Avoweddidn’t receive a proper gameplay reveal until June 2023, when Obsidian dropped a trailer for theupcoming Xbox Series X/S gameduring the annual Xbox Games Showcase. At the time, reactions toAvowed’s showing were mixed, with many criticizing the rough-looking first-person combat and lamenting the change to a more colorful art style. Though the action RPG made another, more substantial appearance at the Xbox Developer Direct in January 2024, not all the negative buzz surrounding the game was assuaged. Some fans still thoughtAvowed’s melee combat looked floaty and unresponsive, which they believed was unbefitting of an RPG that touted its combat as a major selling point.
The mixed responses toAvowed’s combat designhaven’t gone unnoticed at Obsidian.In a recent interview with Windows Central,Avowedgameplay director Gabe Paramo discussed how feedback from the gaming community was instrumental in shaping and fine-tuning the combat of the anticipated action RPG. Looking back on the days leading up to the 2024 Xbox Developer Direct, Paramo said that he and Obsidian “thought [Avowed] was good enough to show as-is.” After all, the studio was always planning to spruce up its combat and gameplay mechanics “before shipping.”
Obsidian Has Made Major Improvements To Avowed’s Combat Based On Player Feedback
However, after the criticismAvowed’s combat received from fans following its deep-dive, Obsidian decided to prioritize improving it as soon as possible. “We just went ‘Okay, let’s look at this, this is a big deal, people are noticing this, we should polish this sooner,'” Paramo admitted. The gameplay director went on to explain the changes Obsidian made to the feel ofAvowed’s diverse combat system. “We really analyzed the feeling and moment when the player swings their weapon and the moment of impact. Were there any delays, was there any system that might have been preventing it from being immediate?” Paramo then cited “posing,” blood impacts," “VFX feedback,” and “audio” among the other elements that Obsidian focused on refining to “make [combat] feel more juicy.”
The improvements Obsidian has made toAvowed’s gameplay seem to be showing, as the game’s combat received a considerably more positive reception when it was shown during the Xbox Games Showcase Deep Dive in early June 2024. Luckily, according to apossible leaked release date forAvowedthat points towards a November 2024 launch, players should be able to experience the action RPG’s improved combat themselves in just a few months.
Avowed
WHERE TO PLAY
Avowed is a first-person RPG being developed by Obsidian Entertainment. Taking place in the same universe as Pillars of Eternity, players explore the world of Eora using both rune-based magic and sword combat.
