Skyrim, Destiny Ideals Fuelled Avowed's Design

Obsidian Entertainment's Avowed: A Development Odyssey

Bloomberg recently interviewed Carrie Patel, Avowed's second game director, revealing a tumultuous development journey marked by a complete project overhaul. Initially conceived as a blend of Destiny and Skyrim, Avowed aimed for a massive, cooperative open world with multiplayer capabilities.

The 2020 teaser trailer, while exciting for fans, belied the game's incomplete state. A decision was made to discard two years of work and rebuild the game from the ground up. The initial trailer now serves as a testament to a discarded prototype, vastly different from the final release.

Patel, stepping in as director after the reboot, steered Avowed in a new direction. The Skyrim and Destiny influences were jettisoned, along with the open-world design and multiplayer elements. Obsidian returned to its roots, opting for its signature zone-based structure and focusing on a rich single-player narrative deeply connected to the Pillars of Eternity lore.

This mid-development restart presented significant challenges, likened to filmmaking without a script. Teams navigated uncertainty as the leadership solidified a unified vision. Despite these obstacles, development continued for another four years before Avowed's eventual launch.