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Avowed will be set in the Living Lands , a harsh but ecologically diverse frontier to the north of Eora, the world first established in Obsidian’s Pillars of Eternity . The fact that the Living Lands are a harsh frontier does not mean that interactions with humanoid NPCs outside of quests should be violent by default. Avowed needs to give players enough options when interacting with non-quest NPCs that their interactions can generate small but dynamic storytelling opportunit

The fact that the main Elder Scrolls series has been dormant for nearly a decade puts the pressure on both Avowed and The Elder Scrolls 6 to solve some of the main criticisms of games like Skyrim . This doesn’t just include the game’s simple, repetitive combat and spell systems, but the weaknesses of its main narrative, the formulaic similarities between the faction quests, the lack of follower depth, and more. Avowed will take on both the advantages and risks of going first, and will likely attempt to address some of Skyrim ‘s main criticisms directly, to avoid the greater potential criticism that Avowed adds little to the Skyrim formula ten years

There is one small problem with The Outer Worlds , however, that could prove to be a far larger problem if not solved in time for Avowed crafting Guide . If Obsidian Entertainment is going to take on a giant like The Elder Scrolls series, fixing this issue will be an absolute necess

Obsidian fans should get excited about the state of the studio. It’s determined to push out a lot of new projects, and experimental ones like that. The Outer Worlds ‘ incredible claim that no NPC has to live for players to beat the game proves that Obsidian wants to try bold new things. Obsidian’s future isn’t just packed with new games; it’s packed with new ideas that’ll help Obsidian grow as a stu

The dragons in Skyrim exist almost exclusively to be killed by the player, and the dragons only return to Tamriel at the beginning of the game. The dragons in Pillars of Eternity , in contrast, could feel far more like a part of the world the player is exploring, gifting the game with more diverse individual personalities and – hopefully – more dynamic and challenging combat encount

In Skyrim , players could manipulate items to decorate their homes in extreme detail. They could sit in any chair at any inn and listen to a bard play music, and they could zoom out and see themselves as part of a scene. They could even famously put buckets over the heads of shopkeeper NPCs in order to break the character’s line of sight, letting them steal as many items from the store as they could ca

Although these features mostly add extra opportunities for immersion, sometimes the lack of them directly detracts from player immersion in the game. In Skyrim a player can kill an enemy then drag their corpse out of sight to prevent another enemy from going on the alert. This doesn’t come with any special animation like players will find in Dishonored or recent Far Cry games. In fact, the bodies in Skyrim will ragdoll, making them look more than a little silly. Nonetheless, there is an underlying logic, and players are given the ability to engage with their environment in less traditional ways than just combat or dialo

In contrast, the Deadlight dungeon in Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire has enemies that are far more logically organized. If player enters the Deadlight dungeon and attacks one of its patrolling guards, they will sound a horn which will turn the entire dungeon hostile. Avowed should take this a step further. The game’s NPC AI needs to be smart enough that players can lure enemies between different rooms. If the player kills a group of NPCs and one escapes, that escapee should run to where they know their allies are, instead of hanging around like a sitting duck. Some NPCs could even be making progress through the dungeon themsel

The last Elder Scrolls game was all about dragons, but there are reasons that the dragons in Avowed could stand to be far more impressive and interesting than those that appeared in Skyrim . Here’s a breakdown of what makes Pillars of Eternity ‘s dragons special in the lore, and how this could make for more interesting roleplaying and combat encounters in Avow

The dragons of Avowed have the potential to be far more diverse and exciting as encounters than those found in Skyrim . For a start, all dragons are merely the final form of the lifecycle of the creatures in the world of Eora . All dragons hatch from eggs, live part of their lives as wurms, become drakes during their adolescence, and eventually become dragons after years of developm

While Skyrim came out in 2011, a similar flaw can be found closer to home in The Outer Worlds , which released in 2019. Outside of towns in The Outer Worlds , most of the humanoid NPCs the player will run across are Marauders, humans who have lost their minds and become extremely violent due to overuse of the drug Adrena-Time . As a result they attack on sight. Though it’s given an explanation in the story, the madness of the Marauders ultimately feels like a cop-out that avoids the challenges of creating a more robust RPG system for interacting with NPCs outside of quests by coming up with a reason for most interactions to be instantly viol

One Small Problem With The Outer Worlds Could Make A Huge Difference In Avowed