Obsidian Entertainment's Avowed: A Development Story Marked by a Major Reboot
Bloomberg recently interviewed Carrie Patel, Avowed's second game director, revealing a tumultuous development journey involving the complete scrapping of two years' worth of work. Initially, Obsidian envisioned Avowed as a blend of Destiny and Skyrim, a cooperative, massively open-world experience with multiplayer components.
The 2020 teaser trailer generated considerable fan enthusiasm, yet it masked the game's far-from-finished state. A decision was made to abandon the entire project and begin again. The teaser trailer now serves as a reminder of a discarded prototype, vastly different from the final release.
With the reboot, Patel took the helm, reimagining the game's direction. She moved away from the Skyrim and Destiny influences, abandoning the open-world design and multiplayer aspects. Instead, Obsidian returned to its signature zone-based structure, focusing on a strong single-player narrative deeply rooted in the Pillars of Eternity lore.
This mid-development restart presented significant difficulties, comparable to filmmaking without a script. Teams faced intense pressure and uncertainty as the leadership worked to solidify a unified vision. Despite these obstacles, development continued for another four years before Avowed's eventual launch.
