Avowed Reviews Released: Here’s a Summary

Feedback is streaming in for the latest role-playing game, Avowed, brought to us by Xbox Game Studios and developed by Obsidian Entertainment. Overall, reviewers are applauding its world design and combat mechanics, although there’s some disagreement when it comes to the storyline and player freedom offered in the game.

As I pen this, Avowed boasts a score of 80 on Metacritic based on 58 reviews. Similarly, it holds a rating of 81 on Opencritic from 93 reviews. Most scores hover around the range of 8s and 9s, with a few lower scores impacting the average. Here are a few notable reviews:

VG247 gives it a perfect 10/10: “Role-playing games take many forms, but it’s refreshing when a game in the genre doesn’t get bogged down with gritty details. While I do appreciate a well-crafted world experience, sometimes I just crave an RPG that’s unapologetically a video game. Avowed delivers that—it’s immersive yet doesn’t shy away from putting mechanics first to create a fun and memorable world to explore.”

Digital Trends rates it 9/10: “Avowed is the best RPG I’ve played since Baldur’s Gate 3 and might just end up being my favorite Obsidian game. If titles like Skyrim have tickled your fancy before, dive into Avowed right away. Just make wiser choices than I did if you hope for Garryck to survive!”

Inverse pitches in with a 9/10: “Obsidian prioritizes quality over quantity once more. Avowed isn’t a small game by any means—I still have lots of side content to explore after two weeks of gameplay—but everything it offers seems designed to maximize fun. Avowed is a compact, meticulously crafted RPG that doesn’t compromise on its ambitious adventure.”

Pure Xbox assigns it an 8/10: “Fans expecting the depth found in the Pillars series might need to adjust their expectations. This is more a brisk, spirited, combat-heavy experience centered on crafting cool loadouts and treasure hunting. Come for the fast-action fights, vibrant settings, and excellent exploration opportunities, and you’ll have a blast.”

IGN provides a 7/10: “With its impressive worldbuilding and standout character writing, Avowed reminds me why I fell for Obsidian’s RPGs initially. However, it tends to play things pretty safe, featuring a standard fantasy quest that’s more familiar than ground-breaking, with little variety in enemies to keep its magical battles compelling for long.”

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Adventuring through Eora in a new way

Obsidian first introduced gamers to Eora with Pillars of Eternity back in 2015. Nearly ten years later, it’s fantastic to see this world continue to grow, even through a more streamlined game like Avowed. I’ve been playing it as I work on the guides, thoroughly enjoying flinging spells and interacting with companions like Kai.

Naturally, I have to mention our own Avowed review, where Zachary Boddy gave it 4 out of 5 stars, sharing that “Avowed transports us back to Eora from Pillars of Eternity, with The Living Lands offering the most eccentric, colorful, and wild adventure yet. Obsidian has successfully bottled the ‘magic’ of RPGs similar to Skyrim, making it a joy to explore and get lost in this vibrant world.”

Personally, I can’t wait to finish my current playthrough and start anew with a different Envoy of the Aedyran Emperor!

Mark your calendars: Avowed will be available on February 18, 2025, for Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC via platforms like Steam, the Xbox App, and Battle.net. As a first-party game, its standard edition hits Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass on launch day. If you preorder the Premium Edition, you’ll get a head start, playing as early as February 13. For more information, check out our Avowed preorder guide.