Review

Avowed

A first-person fantasy action RPG from Obsidian, set on an island in the world of Eora, known from Pillars of Eternity. You mix swords, spells, guns and shields, explore varied regions and travel with companions whose stories your choices affect. Is it your kind of game?

Action RPGFantasyFirst personXboxPCPlayStation

Games like Avowed

8/10

Game Avant verdict

A confidently focused first-person RPG that swaps a seamless open world for four dense, handcrafted regions, a genuinely classless build system, and a political story that keeps track of your choices.

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By GameAvant · Published Oct 1, 2026 · Updated Oct 9, 2026 · 14 min read

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IGDB

80%

105 ratings

Steam:

76%

12,672 reviews

Fits you if

you like fantasy RPGs where choices, companions and build variety matter.

Skip it if

you want a huge seamless open world or purely multiplayer play.

Availability

Where to play

Steam

$29.99

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Facts

Platforms: Xbox · PC · PlayStation
Release date: February 18, 2025
Length: About 48 hours
Difficulty: 5/5 (estimated)
Genres: Role-playing (RPG) · Adventure
Themes: Action · Fantasy
Perspective: First person · Third person
Modes: Solo only
Languages: 3 languages
Text in your language: Yes
Steam Deck: Verified
Microtransactions: None

More about Avowed

Avowed is Obsidian Entertainment's first-person RPG set in the Living Lands, a corner of the Pillars of Eternity universe built specifically so new players need no homework to enjoy it. Released on 18 February 2025 for Xbox Series X|S and PC, and available in Xbox and PC Game Pass from day one, it made an unusual choice early in development: skip the open world that defines most modern RPGs and build four large, dense regions instead. That decision shapes everything else about the game. Dawnshore, Emerald Stair, Shatterscarp and Galawain's Tusks are handcrafted enough that almost every landmark in them hides something worth finding, rather than padding a map with repeated points of interest. The trade-off is honest: the regions are separated by loading screens and a critical path that moves you between them in sequence, so you never get the single unbroken map some RPG fans specifically want, but what you do get is denser and more purposeful than a typical open-world checklist. Combat drops the class system almost entirely. Any one-handed weapon can be dual-wielded with any other, and a wand or grimoire can be paired with melee just as easily, so a build built around bow and dagger one hour can become sword and spellbook the next without any penalty for switching. Five difficulty settings, from Story Time up to Path of the Damned, let the exact same build feel relaxed or genuinely dangerous depending on what you're looking for from a given playthrough. The freedom cuts both ways: without a class sheet steering decisions, it's easy to spread points thin across skills and attributes without a clear sense of what a strong build actually looks like. The companion roster is deliberately small. Kai, Marius, Giatta and Yatzli are the only four companions in the entire game, and only two travel with you at a time, a sharp contrast to the large ensembles other RPGs build their marketing around. What they lack in numbers they make up for in relevance to the story: a political plot involving factions like the Steel Garrote tracks the choices you make, and companions comment on decisions from hours earlier, with different endings depending on who you spared and who you crossed. Avowed doesn't try to be the biggest RPG of the year, and it knows it. It commits instead to a specific size, four regions rather than one continent, four companions rather than a dozen, and a combat system built on freedom rather than a fixed class identity. For players who've felt exhausted by the scale of recent open-world RPGs, that restraint is the whole appeal: a confidently paced first-person RPG that knows exactly how big it needs to be.

The thing you'll love. Or hate.

Classless dual-wielding

Four dense regions instead of one open world

Political endings that remember your choices

Not quite for you?

Three alternatives, one line each on why.

Shorter

Similar, but noticeably shorter.

With co-op

Similar, but playable together.

Cheaper or free

Similar, for less money.

Frequently asked questions

How long is Avowed?: About 48 hours to finish the main story.
Which platforms is Avowed on?: Avowed is available on Xbox · PC · PlayStation.
Does Avowed have co-op?: No, Avowed is single-player only.
Does Avowed run on Steam Deck?: Verified
What does Avowed cost?: $29.99 on Steam.