Obsidian Entertainment's Avowed: A Development Journey Marked by a Dramatic Reboot
Bloomberg recently interviewed Carrie Patel, Avowed's second game director, revealing a turbulent development history involving the complete scrapping of two years 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 significant fan anticipation, yet it masked the game's far-from-complete state. A decision was made to completely restart development just months later, leaving the initial trailer as a testament to an abandoned prototype vastly different from the final release.
Patel, taking over as director after the reboot, fundamentally reshaped the project. The Skyrim and Destiny influences were discarded, along with the open-world design and multiplayer features. Instead, Obsidian opted for their characteristic zone-based structure, focusing on a compelling single-player narrative deeply rooted in the Pillars of Eternity universe.
This mid-development restart presented monumental challenges, likened to filmmaking without a script. Teams faced intense pressure and uncertainty as leadership solidified a unified vision. Despite these setbacks, development continued for another four years before Avowed's eventual launch.
