Avowedis going to have some tough RPG competition on the next-gen of consoles.Cyberpunk 2077andThe Elder Scrolls 6will both be vying for the first-person open-world RPG market, but Obsidian does have one key way to get ahead.
Obsidian’s work onFallout: New Vegasdemonstrates one way thatAvowedcan distinguish itself. It’s a feature included inNew Vegasthat some of the most popularSkyrimmods have tuned to a fine craft, and it’s one the developers' next game should have at launch if it wants to fly and not to flop: survival/hardcore modes.
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Fallout’s Hardcore Mode
Games likeSkyrimand the first-personFalloutgames were never known for their depth, and that’s not why fans fell in love with the games. The greatest strength of the genre was the breadth of its world and the utter freedom that it gave players to make their own story within it, prescribing no backstory and making the main quest as unobtrusive as possible.
Some of the most exciting parts aboutSkyrimandNew Vegaswere experiencing the scale of the world when much of it was still mostly unknown, spelunking into caves to find hidden treasure or overcoming parties of bandits on the roads.On top of that,Fallout: New Vegasincluded a Hardcore Modewhich introduced survival elements like water, food, and rest to make them even more realizstic.
One mod which became immensely popular forSkyrimwas Frostfall, which ascribed different warmth and coverage values to all the clothes acrossSkyrimand made the player have to factor in warmth, camping, and other survival aspects into the game on their journey. Eventually, a survival mode did come to the base game in one ofSkyrim’s many special editions, but it was not there at launch.
This complemented the base game fantastically. Early adventures like climbing up the mountain by Riverwood to get the Golden Claw from Bleak Falls Barrow suddenly became far more intimidating, as players at the top of the mountain needed to make sure they’re brought the right supplies with them to avoid passing out from exposure. Travelling from Riverwood to nearby towns likeFalkreathturned from simple journeys where the player could aim for the map marker and sprint in that direction into hikes which needed to be planned.
While some players might worry this could make exploring the game world burdensome, it encourages far more exploration. Other adventures often sprung up along the way when players were given greater incentive to hide in caves at night or to avoid bad weather. It is unlikely Bethesda will include survival inTES6at launch, especially considering themodding communityit has built up, givingAvoweda unique advantage if it includes this feature on its console release.
IfAvowedis going to make its world the main character of the story as the studio did inNew Vegas, that world needs to feel intimidating. Replicating the real size of a fantasy country is impossible on current engines without procedurally generating environments, and tomake the setting ofAvowedfeel huge,Avowedneeds to include a Survival Mode in the game at launch.
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The Future of Open-World RPGs
Avowedshould expand upon the survival system the team began developing forFallout: New Vegasto include Frostfall’s use of weather dynamics, clothing, heat, wetness, exposure, and night, all of which factor in to the PC’s comfort level. The game should also look toSkyrimmods like Mythical Ages to revamp weather and to make the climate seem like a more realistic adversary, making a sunny day all the sweeter.
Obsidian is facing tough competition forAvowedand needs to distinguish itself.Avowedshould include Survival Mode at launch to provide all players with a unique experience, one whichSkyrim’s modding community has demonstrated complements the fantasy formula and which Obsidian’s team has shown themselves capable of withNew Vegas. Otherwise,Avowedmay never be able to live up toSkyrim’s legacyor step out of its shadow if Obsidian doesn’t take some chances.
Avowedis in development for PC and Xbox Series X.
