Avowed Gameplay - My Brutally Honest Opinion

Following Avowed's reveal to the public, a lot of people have complained about the art style. In natural Matty style, I dig through all the trailers, Xbox Wire posts, and more to get to the bottom of whether or not Obsidian sent us the wrong message. Long story short, I think Avowed looks amazing and I can't wait to sink hours into this one.
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#Avowed #Skyrim #Xbox

[@josephmanganiello9110]

It’s funny because I expected Fable to have a colorful cartoonish art style and Avowed to be more realistic high def looking but it ended up the other way around

[@ryuhayabusa3302]

I LOVED Fables art style. Avowed not so much. Fable has a great blend of realism/cartoony and while i don't mind Avoweds style it looked very AA? It didn't scream AAA to me.

[@cheeksdafreak3058]

Fable was a cinematic trailer. The game will not look anything like what they showed just like most of Xbox games do.

[@ryuhayabusa3302]

@@cheeksdafreak3058 You can be mad all you want but it stated IN GAME and the developers said as much. They also showed a few seconds of gameplay.

[@cheeksdafreak3058]

@@ryuhayabusa3302 Not mad at all. I'm not the one that's going to be played for a sucker by Phil and the gang. And by the way the the senior environment artist for playground games is the one that confirmed it was a cinematic trailer. But you can go on ahead and keep believing Phil all you want. How's that 30fps Starfield looking on the world's most powerful console? Lmao 🤣

[@fredthepelican69gaming76]

​@@cheeksdafreak3058 honestly I couldn't have said it better I'm sick of xboxs trash like fuck off with 30 fps you promised 4k 60 and are now saying shits 30

[@Not-Great-at-Gaming]

I much prefer AI companions over Co-op. While I can appreciate having fun with friends, it is definitely immersion breaking having IRL people in my game. Not to mention the extra content added by AI companions.

[@alexw5042]

Same I liked the idea of coop once, until they gave us FO76. Never again

[@DrDinoNuggies]

@@alexw5042 that’s not co-op. That’s multiplayer. Do you really think developers should stop doing stuff because there was one high profile failure?

[@alexw5042]

@@DrDinoNuggies games are only going to take longer to develop now. Say the next elder scrolls is multiplayer, and it fails because they were too busy focusing on the multiplayer instead of the single player eleemts. How many decades do we have to wait for the next one? There's so many ways to evolve and innovate in the single player genre, it'd be a shame to abandon it

[@digitaldevil7522]

Agree.

[@alexw5042]

@@DrDinoNuggies you can add more dialogue, more choices, more fleshed out characters, more unique singleplayer elements. But no let's just add multiplayer or coop, where the singleplayer part of the game has to suffer. Want your multiplayer or coop games? Ask the experts in those genre to do it.

[@aGrimTurtle]

The magic looks REALLY cool. My issue with the Avowed trailer was the dramatic tone shift in the visuals versus the reveal trailer. Look, I don't expect the game to look like a pre-rendered CGI trailer. But look at the color palette in the reveal, the overcast skies, the dark barren landscape that the skeletons crawl out of, the high-contrast, dark cave with intense orange light approaching. Then you see the gameplay trailer, and it's cartoony, saturated, bright, and flat. CG trailer gives us a dark fantasy vibe, regardless of photorealism, while the gameplay trailer looks like Sea of Thieves. The art direction just seems confused. Now, all this aside, I am sure that the game is going to have an awesome story, in-depth RPG mechanics, and it's going to be good fun.

[@Evilshtt353]

Which is why you never go off of CGI trailers.

[@jynxce]

Why they're burying their heads in the sand is ridiculous. The "it's CG" is not going to fly when Dark Souls CGI completely matched the tone and art style of what was delivered in the end regardless of the graphical fidelity. Avowed initial trailer is not being represented in what this trailer presents... period. Why would anyone want to lose credibility, when they could just call it for what it is.

[@Evilshtt353]

@@jynxce And? There are plenty examples of CGI trailers representing the actual final product and vise versa. Plenty of examples of the final product being good despite not representing what a CGI trailer showed. Its on the people for thinking that its ALWAYS going to happen when its not going to be the case 100% of the time.

[@jynxce]

@Evilshtt353 And... that's not the argument being presented. It's calling the inconsistencies out in tone & atmosphere, not whether the game is good or not.

[@Evilshtt353]

@@jynxce And... you failed to realize that statement applies to tone and atmosphere as well. It literally applies to everything. I shouldn't have to spell out everything but I guess I have to for you. However, its still like I said, numerous examples out there that had a CGI trailer that had a darker tone/atmosphere/art, and the final product did not end up like that and still ended up being good, and again, vise versa. Its still on the fault of the person for thinking CGI trailers mean anything when its a coin flip.

[@wilqak8605]

In an exclusive pc gamer interview with devs it is stated in one bullet point that it is in fact purely single player game without co-op. It's a good read, I recommend looking it up, it clarifies many misconceptions the community has about Avowed!

[@xBINARYGODx]

why would anyone think there was coop? its amazing the BS people come up with so they can be pissy about it.

[@alberthood6280]

Thanks

[@t.t6294]

@@xBINARYGODx there was some job posting that mentioned co op. that's why people thought it was for avowed

[@kouguy8213]

Thank you for letting me know it’s not co-op. That’s a make it and break it for me. I play co-op games with my brother like Destiny 2 and World War Z so I will not be getting this game!

[@devlinengland]

No one thought it was gonna look like the cg trailer but, I was not expecting fantasy sea of thieves.

[@comebackkid44723]

I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought it looked like Sea of Thieves.

[@rpgadventurer32]

No, in the CG trailer they showed a moment that looked to be a gameplay moment. That's part of the issue, they promised a game with a level of graphics they were never able to deliver because of their current used engine. It's also the tone of the game which was far darker than what they've shown.

[@nosferatu2]

@@comebackkid44723lmao same here. That’s the first thought that crossed my mind while looking at the setting and graphics. Total sea of thieves vibes.

[@JimDeFran]

Something that people also need to remember is that the game was originally supposed to be a larger Bethesda-style game but got rebooted to be more focused on depth, which is more Obsidian's wheelhouse anyway. I personally like the art style, but there is a noticeable difference from the vibe in the CG trailer (which was pre-reboot IIRC) so I get that some people were caught off guard.

[@DrDinoNuggies]

Personally, I think it’s ridiculous to fully form your thoughts around a minute long cgi trailer. My takeaway was “wow a fantasy rpg from Obsidian, I’m in!” And it’s not like the angry people could have preordered or something. It’s a non-problem at best.

[@JimDeFran]

@@DrDinoNuggies I agree. My reaction at the time was "Obsidian First Person action RPG. Yes, please. Can't wait to see more." and that was it because there was literally nothing else to go on as far as I know.

[@LicoriceLain]

@@JimDeFran If it is the choice to between a more vibrant, deeper experience and a grimmer, bloated open world, my choice will always be the former.

[@zuflis]

​@@JimDeFran my reaction was more or less like that too. "its obsidian, im gonna play it for the deep lore, story, gameplay etc" i dont really pay attention whether the art was bad or not. if im picky about less than realistic graphic then i wouldnt have played any obsidian past games (which i thankfully did)

[@garretthorsch8143]

I don’t hate what I see but I also don’t think it is as good as it could be. I don’t obsess over the best graphics possible I was just confused by the graphics. I would 100% of the time take worse graphics for a bigger better open world RPG. We will just have to see. Yeah it got rebooted but at the same time had this been a bethesda game I feel like people would’ve been way quicker to jump on their ass about it. So we need to pick a standard and stick with it. Either we criticize for this across the board or we don’t at all

[@BrassThief]

my expectation for the art style was that it would be "darker", or perhaps, more grim. The first Pillars of Eternity game had a very foreboding tone that really grips you. POE2, while not have quite that same grim/dark fantasy feel, still had a gritty underbelly (the lower city of Neketaka, the destroyed cities in the wake of Eothas, the dungeons were dark and spooky) To me the tone of the trailer does not match the tone of the cinematic. I am still excited for this, and the art style is still cool. Just not what I was hoping for. Looks too much like The Outer Worlds and not enough like Pillars of Eternity.

[@jamesdylan2446]

I agree 100. Thought would be darker looking

[@MrSwitchblade327]

Yeah they obviously changed it. Meaning that teaser was nothing but a lie except for the title

[@WVRLORD]

I was most definitely expecting a more open dark fantasy RPG, the more I watch the trailer the more I’m not sure how I feel about this game… I’m replaying Pillars now though maybe that change my mind

[@bardanation419]

Same. It looks much more like outer worlds. Still looks fun, just different than the trailer.

[@timothyevo]

Totally agree. The tone looks very different between the two. That's why people are disappointed. A cinematic trailer should still be close in style, tone and design elements. Otherwise, what's the point?

[@Jako101]

Look I understand that Bethesda had a much higher budget at the time but it boggles the mind how obsidian can’t make better graphics with series x hardware than Skyrim an Xbox 360 game.

[@bradenhazle4378]

The graphics are fine, you're thinking of style.

[@JellyJman]

This game looks WAY better than vanilla Skyrim on Ps5 or Xbox series. Wtf are you blind lol?

[@mawortz]

they went from dark fantasy to comic pg-13 fantasy

[@sparkyspinz9897]

That remains to be seen. We don't know any of the story or characters yet

[@TheTreemuss]

I felt like the game was going to be more gritty and realistic, whereas the new trailer made me feel the game is going to be abit more over the top

[@D71219ONE]

I wonder if they changed the design a bit after the Bethesda acquisition. Maybe they said Avowed/Pillars will be the more fantastic colorful over the top fantasy, while Elder Scrolls will be the more grounded high fantasy. It’s probably unlikely, but still, I wonder if that changed something, so they wouldn’t be so similar.

[@JaPo92]

One word: Grounded. Avowed was in front of us the entire time, at least the art style, combat, enemy types (giant spider). In retrospect, this should've been obvious... We knew they've been working on Avowed for a while, and now I'd say it's pretty obvious that Grounded grew out of Avowed in a sort of "we've got the foundations for another game, let's build off what we have." Much like how Fallout 3 was built off Oblivion.

[@Pontus28]

@@D71219ONE Microsoft aquired Obsidian, not Bethesda.

[@tb1235]

​@@Pontus28 Microsoft acquired both Obsidian and Bethesda. If you want to be literal Microsoft now owns Zenimax, a company that has all of Bethesda development under it's wings. Bethesda Softworks is the Publisher above Bethesda Game Studios (BGS), id Software Arkane Studios, MachineGames, Tango Gameworks, Zenimax Online Studios. Obsidian is it's own Developer also now owned by Microsoft. Bethesda is much more complicated because it was a Media Company, Publisher and several Development studios acquisition.

[@TheCybercoco]

@@JaPo92 No, it's called Pillar of Eternity. This is the pre-established setting that this game takes place in, and I'm guessing there was no console port. That a lot of this confusion is coming from console players. That's what you had all along if you wanted an idea what Avowed was going to look like.

[@emarskineel]

Honestly it has the look of a $30 vr game...

[@Geredis089]

I don't think anyone was expecting 1:1 parity between in-game and the trailer. However, when you're going, graphically, from something Skyrim-like...to something that looks like an oversaturated Sea of Thieves clone, it can be a little surprising. And I think that this was definitely NOT helped with the near-immediate comparison since the Sea of Thieves/Monkey Island crossover was announced not long after. Had SoT not had its new content drop at the same event, I think people'd be a lot more okay with it since that immediate comparison would not have been present.

[@Adalon-]

Wow, I wasn't aware you had to have a specific graphical style to be a "skyrim like"...fascinating.

[@Geredis089]

@@Adalon- I meant it in regards to what seemed to be its graphical language and cues. I'm not speaking in even the slightest to the nature of the game in terms of design or intent or anything of the like.

[@ElrondKaresh]

Dude sea of thieves was the exact vibe I got from the trailer on a color palette perspective. Good comparison.

[@Mohgenstein]

They shouldn’t have released the first teaser smh, it looks like an entirely unrelated game compared to what we saw at the showcase.

[@SpartanArmy117]

Honestly I don't know if its even the style more than it is the lighting. I love colorful worlds but the lighting is so damn flat in a generation of games focused on Ray tracing based amazing lighting. If this game is anything like the outer worlds then we're in for a bit of a stinker.

[@shutuppabs323]

I don’t think people thought the game was going to look exactly like the CGI trailer. But that reveal trailer was setting a tone, not only narratively but visually. In the original CGI trailer they simulate gameplay? And while that’s there to tell you what kind of game it is, the visual tone is very prevalent and what we got is almost the opposite of that. To be clear, I think avowed looks fine and i know it’s all about gameplay and Obsidian always delivers… but I think it’s fair for people to be confused and even disappointed that the visual art style is def at odds with what was teased.

[@w00master]

What part of the trailer didn’t match the intent of the cgi one? I don’t see it at all. Methinks folks are imagining “promises” in a cgi trailer that never existed in the first place.

[@RobotWithHumanHair.]

@@w00master maybe watch them? And if you’re not blind you’ll see that both trailers are quite different in tone. I think this game still has great potential but it’s understandable why some are upset by the new trailer looking nothing like how we thought the game would look thanks to the original teaser.

[@Oozaru85]

Yeah, the CG trailer looked like a dark LOTR/TES type of game while this gameplay showcase looks like some frickin Fortnite medieval fantasy DLC.

[@amini011]

@@w00master I think when people saw the large landscapes and the very bleak and somber atmosphere of the world, it gave off a very different tone from the one we saw in the gameplay trailer.

[@bobjoe5937]

​@@Oozaru85 lmao this was one of my thoughts too.

[@sterlingkart9562]

I am a bit disappointed that it looks more like a fantasy version of outer worlds, other than that I love Pillars

[@chensel65]

It definitely looks like it's in the same engine. I mean Outer Worlds is a great game though!

[@ridiculogan2962]

Well what did you expect?

[@ridiculogan2962]

​@@chensel65it's *okay* it definitely gets far more praise than it deserves, just because it was developed by obsidian (who everyone only loves because of the situation with New Vegas) and it was released during some Bethesda controversy or other, so that added fuel to the fire. More objectively, the game wasn't so hot

[@chensel65]

@@ridiculogan2962 Thank you for your opinion!

[@fulltimeslackerii8229]

@@chensel65cope. he’s completely correct

[@KingOfMadCows]

There are some ideas in Pillars that I really hope they emphasize more with Avowed. Pillars is set in a world where technology is catching up with magic. Wizards used to be a very dominant power but with the invention of guns, they've been losing their influence since bullets travel fast enough to pierce magical shields created by wizards. At the same time, there's the discovery/rediscovery of a new/old form of magic that allows people to manipulate souls to achieve all sorts of fantastical things. And there's a magical/technological arms race between different factions in the world. The Pillars games dealt with that conflict but it wasn't that central to the main story. I'm hoping Avowed deals with it a lot more.

[@willo6651]

I know nothing about Pillars but that sounds very interesting

[@T2G_Scoop]

I don’t think anyone can deny that first trailer compared to the newest one almost looks like 2 different games

[@artcent7083]

True. Im out now. Thats hurt.

[@Josh-fj9hi]

That's exactly how I feel.

[@Josh-fj9hi]

The first reveal looked clean and nice. This new real reveal looks like a cheap cartoony imitation. I just expected it to look better. I'm not a fan of cartoons art styles for dark setting rpgs

[@bradenhazle4378]

Not really and it's not new. Have you seen League's CG trailers? Or Starcraft? WoW?

[@T2G_Scoop]

@@bradenhazle4378 yeah i have and all those games are MMO and online games. ESO does the same thing. Avowed is a single player rpg. First trailer made it seem like Skyrim but in reality is fantasy outer worlds and to me outer worlds was mid at best.

[@AutarchKade]

Borderlands and Overwatch are cartoony. Their CG trailers are also cartoony. It's Obsidian's fault for picking a different art style for their trailer. There was no reason to do that, other games managed to represent their tone AND visuals in a CG trailer.

[@bencrawford4945]

Chill edgelord

[@russianbot2630]

It didn’t look that different to me tbh. The avowed stuff. I’m not even on the hype train. I didn’t care for outerworlds and am super skeptical of Obsidian lately

[@omarcomming722]

​@@bencrawford4945chill fantard

[@CephalopodsRock]

The very first trailer for the original borderlands had a very realistic style. The whole tone and artsyle of that game was rebooted during development

[@dancewithyourcorpse281]

Maybe developement issues that had them change? Whatever the reason I never trust teaser trailers, and it's never a big deal to me. If the game delivers with the graphics as is, great. People will be missing out.

[@prismatic9890]

I really wanted that darker shading style and color pallette that the reveal trailer showed. this looks too colorfull and much like the outer worlds too me but it still looks fun

[@DrDinoNuggies]

Fantasy worlds are too often bland and grey. I’m personally excited to not have to stare at snow and stone for the entirety of the game.

[@dravenripley9468]

​@@DrDinoNuggies i was going to write the same thing and Matty went over this in the video too. There's already plenty of dark and grey rpgs. Avowed immediately screams an Obsidian game to me and thats a good thing.

[@WolfAgent7]

So this one takes place in the living lands which is a very colorful and fantastical area. There's some cool lore on it

[@TheWhiteWolf2077]

Honestly Outworlds has better lighting and detail... it’s a shame Avowed looks even more like a AA cartoon game.

[@ethansnyder3401]

Yeah, Outerworlds was just ugly and it looks like they're leaning into that art style heavily.

[@Gematria74]

Most people who watched the CG trailer were not thinking that the game will actually have the same graphic fidelity etc they and myself were thinking that the CG trailer was indicating to us the art style that the actual game will have. CG trailers are supposed to give us the vibe and art style of the game. So I personally felt lied to or misled but I'm still looking forward to the game, I still like what I saw.

[@xtoadsannom6704]

It's the same style, it's just that one was in a room with no natural light whereas the game is set in the bright of day.

[@YouTubeCensors]

​​@@xtoadsannom6704 I don't get what these people smoking tbh.. Literally clinging to a CGI trailer. If that was the case every gamer ever would be the definition of disappointment going back to when CGI trailers were even bigger lies.

[@qmarkp98]

What caught me off guard was that the CGI looked like it had The Pillars of Eternity vibe, and this gameplay trailer gave me... Toon-ish, outer worlds, goofy vibes)? Which was... A bit underwhelming adding to the fact that I DIDN'T really like the Outer Worlds, and I really tried liking it 😢

[@Gematria74]

@@KZbinCensors CG trailer for God of War ragnorok was still in the same art style as the actual game. The cg trailer showed a realistic looking game just like the actual game. It's not like some CG trailers that shows a realistic looking game then the actual game is a cartoony game. A cartoonish game should have a CG trailer that has a cartoonish art style not a realistic artsyle. What are you smoking.

[@Camerooonify]

They made parts of the original trailer look like gameplay. Especially when he holds the sword and casts the spell. It went from looking like a next gen rpg to honestly like elder scrolls online or other generic mmo looking game. I also felt the vibe of the whole game dropped from a dark gritty bloody looking game, to a colourful fantasy adventure. So i think i just feel slightly misled. Sure it still looks great. But just almost looks like a completely different game, and more cartoony and honestly graphically end of the ps3 era looking.

[@fangus3194]

This is another example of a CGI trailer being a bad representation of the final product, and why I tend to ignore them. For me, I like the art style in the gameplay trailer a lot more. The one thing that I am a bit iffy on is the melee gameplay. Some of that looks a bit stiff and similar to the Outer Worlds. It still looks good though and has a ways to go until release, so that is not much of a complaint. I definitely am looking forward to this one. The world of Pillars of Eternity is super cool.

[@Smitty_Werbenjagermanjenson]

Something to keep in mind is that ALL trailers are commercials, and you shouldn't expect them to accurately represent the final product.

[@Mavern567]

It's also good to keep in mind that Avowed did go through a soft reboot shortly after initial reveal, hence why it took far longer to get then expected and why it took so long for us to see or hear anything about it.

[@TrojanGamer10]

It's not CGI. It's in engine.

[@demoflow]

I love the art style Sony fanboys are just coping with jealousy 🍼🍼🍼

[@TheWhiteWolf2077]

Gameplay was in there..did you miss it? The graphics look AA..it’s awful.

[@tylerstorck6909]

On the companions conversation, in PoE you can have up to 5 companions at once. So I’m thinking that if it’s anything similar there will probably be a big emphasis on the companion system. They also were a big part of the story and had great side quests.

[@nemesis7884]

You will have 2 comp at the same time

[@ashmash9712]

As I am beginning my video creation journey I’m starting to see how hard you work man! GOOD SHIT on being so consistent and timely. Any time I need some to watch your right there. Keep going man!

[@JeanBaptiste2k]

i dont mind the bright and colorful style at all, i only played pillars of eternity 1 but one of my favorite things about that game was how dark the narrative and stories could get but how bright and beautiful the environments were at the same time. combined with the music it could make you feel hopeful even if some quests were pretty sad and dark

[@peakresolve]

Why not mention that Avowed is no longer an open-world RPG?

[@platontzintzis4637]

Obsidian is known for great Story telling RPG games, not huge open worlds or next gen visuals. And to be honest, since very few teams make these anymore, i am happy with that

[@mikeclark4480]

This right here

[@TheKennyboy92]

Outer Worlds looks good though

[@TheWhiteWolf2077]

Now that they got bought by Xbox with bigger budget they should have went for more realistic style for ONCE a studio can change and level up... you argue they should just not grow and do the same thing instead of go bigger- they’d appeal to a wider audience if they did and I’d be more interested..

[@slinkbradshaw8674]

Gameplay over graphics all day

[@mikeymacaque]

@@TheWhiteWolf2077 realism isn’t synonymous with “leveling up.”

[@xcalicojack]

I think tonally it doesnt match what we got in the first trailer. That's the problem. But at the same time, if you look at the first trailer, most of it is in a grayscale aside from the fire, grass, and the magic. So maybe they didnt have the artstyle down during that time. The logo is even different. I'm a little let down by the artstyle and tone, but I'll still keep an eye on it and wait for reviews before I buy. I do enjoy Pillars of Eternity, so maybe i'll like it.

[@Kris.G]

The level of sheer Obsidian fanboyism in the comments is startling.

[@Wft-bu5zc]

Obsidian has made many of my favorite games and I thought this looked really cheap and low quality. I don't understand how someone thinks it looks amazing?

[@chrishaugh1655]

It might have an excellent story knowing obsidian but I just couldn't get past how HORRIBLE this game looked on the surface. The animations, the (limited footage of) combat, the graphics, the overall tone of the game just screamed 2010 and not in a good way. This is why I will never get excited for teaser trailers, as they almost never tell the story of what will be. The teaser gave a COMPLETELY different feeling and vibe compared to what that trailer showed. Everything about that looked like generic, uninspired clichés. I'm also not quite sure why you're confused Matty. The game looked nothing like what the teaser trailer "implied" we were going to get. The teaser implied we were going to get a dark, gritty dungeon crawler in the Pillars universe. And yes Matty, we're aware it was a "CG" trailer, but we didn't expect 2010 graphics quality from a game releasing in 2024. And again, it wasn't just the tone, the animations looked clunky as hell. There is nothing wrong with a fun/colorful fantasy atmosphere, but they didn't even nail that down properly.

[@yogamerbks]

Mannnn your enthusiam in the last video and the energy in your las videos is contagius, hi from latin america. Been a fan since the fallout 4 especulation days great to see you grow 🙂🙂

[@jamesadams1698]

I am disappointed in the direction they took visually, but not because of fidelity. No, they seem to have went from "What if Frank Frazetta had a 'Blue Period'" to "Hey, let's do 'Fable'"... at a show 'Fable' OPENED. The contrast between grim and gritty to pretty and twee was jarring. I wouldn't say we were lied to, I would say there was a gradual transition behind the scenes that we weren't privy to over the last three years and the results were less to my aesthetic tastes.

[@seanrodrigues8184]

Well said.

[@AmritZoad]

Exactly! The art direction was so poor. When the game started it felt like Assassin's Creed and then it looked like fantasy version of Outer Worlds.

[@hyggeravn6325]

Its not really like i wanted the game to look like the CGI trailer. I just wanted more of the same things in terms of style and tone than i got in the new trailer. I think the logo change perfectly encapsulates the shift, I liked the old logo better, and i liked the tone of the old CGI trailer better as well.

[@BFG-Based]

Haven't yet expressed anything online, but imo, if they wanted to go "darker" like in the CG trailer the slightly cartoonish art of the actual game clashes with a supposed "dark tone"

[@justins6134]

The updated art style definitely matches the atmosphere of thepillars games more, especially the 2nd

[@mariobadia4553]

That was originated the case but the game got rebooted during development basically a repeat of what happened during cyberpunks developing where the trailers showed a different version of the game they are and what they were selling at retail

[@arg_9584]

I couldn’t tel it was avowed until I saw obsidian. The art style definitely looks different from the original teaser, but this art style definitely fits obsidian and I’m still looking forward to it. Slightly less then before, but still am and it will be my first obsidian game!

[@dominiccenteno1233]

Same, I thought it was a Ubisoft game at the first few seconds.

[@mikeclark4480]

Do yourself a solid and play Outer Worlds. Fantastic experience

[@Left4Candy]

@@dominiccenteno1233 Same, at first I thought it was Assassin's Creed when he was walking with the hood lol

[@DrDinoNuggies]

How can you say that? The announcement trailer showed almost nothing. Idk how you pick up art style from a bunch of landscape, one statue, and one skeleton. Like Matty transitions from the cgi trailer to the new one and I barely noticed.

[@TheWhiteWolf2077]

Looks like a AA cartoon game...the original reveal is the look they should have went for. Now it’s just Sea Of Thieves Skyrim.

[@Prodigy396]

It’s not just the art style, it’s the the overall visuals the graphics look mediocre, the combat looks no different from (360 era) Skyrim, and the animations are nowhere near as fluid as what we were lead to believe. Not what I expected from a Triple AAA from this gen, and Obsidian said they were using UE5 but going by the visuals, I definitely wouldn’t be able to tell.

[@thejakester6458]

Avowed was actually one of my personal favorites from the showcase. I appreciate the enemy diversity, and I like the feel they’re going for.

[@matthewjalovick]

Same. Felt unique and weird. I like developers trying new ideas.

[@bombyo3634]

Yall ever played pillars? Because its more then this

[@juliusfishman7222]

@@bombyo3634 you mean that high level view shit combat system game, most people don’t enjoy games like that

[@AmritZoad]

@@juliusfishman7222 You gotta try first before passing the jury.

[@bombyo3634]

@@juliusfishman7222 The spells and abilities alone was enough to make me play. Its crazy

[@michaelshields1861]

I haven't played the second pillars game or finished the first one however I'd guess that part of the criticism comes from the difference in art style between them and avowed. It makes sense though, the first game had a very dark and grim story and the art reflects that. Dead fire is a direct sequel set in a tropical island chain and what do you know it has a shift of color that reflects that while still being familiar. By contrast Avowed is set in the living lands, a region that is described as being full of crazy wildlife and plants so I'd expect the art to just like with the first two reflect the story and the region it takes place in.

[@Jmerithew87]

In a bubble I thought this looked pretty solid, but it feels like such a different game than what was teased years ago. It’s hard not to imagine about what could have been.

[@CrazyxEnigma]

It is. It's been reported Avowed has had troubled development and has been rebooted.

[@SadekMerchant]

I really like how this looks. I also really liked how Outer Worlds looked. Obsidian's in the process of creating their own look & I'm good with this direction.

[@dawoodwilliams3652]

Exactly, I much prefer the more stylistic art style, with a lot of colours popping and a tiny dash of realism. It makes their recent games stand out, so much better than the basic hyper realistic visuals.

[@zyonhenderson67]

@@dawoodwilliams3652 I second this. I like my games to have some color to them. Horizon Forbidden West is a great example of using lots of color in biomes.

[@dawoodwilliams3652]

@@zyonhenderson67 facts, Horizon though not my favourite type of game in a Gameplay aspect, is a beautiful work of art, mix in the realism, but not exclusively focus on it, use colour to make the environments look bold and pop to the beholder.

[@YouTubeCensors]

This follows the Pillars aesthetic anyways, so not sure why some people clinging to a dumb CG trailer.

[@SpartanArmy117]

I don't mind the art style but the flat awful lighting has to get better. It kills the whole look. And to be fair it looks better in Avowed than it did in the outer worlds so hopefully that's a step in the right direction.

[@LimySilver2]

Personally, I've had my fill of extremely bright neon punchy colors. The cg trailer was had bleak, dark, cloudy skies. A conflic in the archers firing arrows at the undead army from the walls. The player character deep below the surface echoing the fellowship in the mines of Moria with something that was presumably just as threatening as the balrog just around the corner. This gameplay trailer killed pretty much all the hype I had for the game. Bright colors, cartoony style (will help the game age better I'll admit) is not at all what i was expecting, the lack of impact of anything whether it be magic or melee (gave me Elder Scrolls Online vibes) its just i dont know, I expected a lot more. This is a wait and see maybe pick it up on sale this is Obsidian after all so at the very least I i expect the wrting and characters to carry this

[@wilhufftarkin8543]

Honestly, as someone who is still traumatized by the seventh generation era of bland and boring "gritty" visuals, I really don't mind the colorful visuals. Although combined with the cartoony look it doesn't feel as serious as the teaser, that's true. Well, we'll see. I remember not at all being a fan of SWTOR's cartoony look at first, but eventually it became one of my favorite games of all time. I just hope they'll include an FOV slider, because the FOV looks way too narrow. I can't play games with a narrow FOV, because it makes me nauseous.

[@Josh.JustJosh.]

@@wilhufftarkin8543I second this notion. I’m so tired of bleak tones.

[@gambeano]

That's one thing i was really hyped about is the magic. Like vines coming out of the ground and holding ppl, levitation. I do love the interaction. Their artstyle is kinda weird tho in an inconsistent type of way. Like the infected bear looks great, the playable character looked like something out of assassins creed odyssey but then you look at the sea of thieves skellymen and its like hm🤔 i guess ppl are meaning to say they want more grittyness to the designs cause elden ring isn't photo realistic but the designs have alot of intricacies to them whether its anatomy, deformaties in the case of monsters then you look at the bipedal dinosaur who looks cool but it's just a dino with armor and holding a weapon.

[@tekelupharsin4426]

You're giving way too much leeway to Obsidian here. The original reveal CG trailer is a perfect example of why CG trailers for video games are a big no no. Even the LOGO for "Avowed" looked better in the CG trailer. Now it has a cartoony purple glow surrounding it. I think the game looks fun, but I was expecting next-gen lighting, ray tracing, global illumination, etc. That's what the CG trailer IMPLIED. The game still looks like a PS4 game. I've got an RTX 4090 that I want to actually use. Most of the games right now are not next gen and are running like donkey shit on PC because of poor optimization.

[@logansorrell8828]

I thought the exact same thing in the trailer when I saw the two characters following the main one. The Outer Worlds let you take 2 companions with you so it makes sense and I'm glad they included that. Even the way the trailer was structured with the one companion speaking to you about your choices and what are you going to do, is VERY similar to The Outer Worlds trailers before that game came out.

[@AretaicGames]

In the trailer, I noted several distinct forms of magic, associated with distinct character classes (wizard, druid, priest, chanter . . . maybe cipher?). I wonder if players will have the full range of choices from the previous Pillars of Eternity games.

[@jb8935]

The colors look oversaturated which looks silly juxtaposed against the grey/brownscale of the rest of the game. Just needs some color balancing imo. The rest of the game looks totally fine. We all wanted an obsidian skyrim/TES game akin to what NV is to Bethesda Fallout games. Here it is, and the weird colors aren't going to ruin the experience for me.

[@Rainbowhawk1993]

My how the tables have turned. Bethesda: 👍 Obsidian: 👎

[@justinsaiyan5587]

I’m super excited to see what the diversity in skills and magic will be. Looks really cool

[@James.Hill.]

I'm going to need to see A LOT more gameplay of Avowed. The newest trailer brought down my excitement a bunch

[@HulkMode365days]

They should've given us a third pillars of eternity game because Avowed looks graphically water down!!!

[@gtylerbrown2]

Seems like the melee combat hasn't been updated since outerworlds/grounded/skyrim. Hoping for more depth

[@Noobphobic]

I think the trailer was not cut very well, made things look a bit stiff. After seeing how Tiny Tinas Wonderlands turned out I am cautious on how it will feel to play.

[@Retcon404]

I didn't expect it to look photorealistic, I did kind of expect it to have a similar art style to the Pillars series since it takes place in the same world. Still looks great though, I like the new look.

[@TheCybercoco]

It does look like Pillars, and if you read the lore, you'd understand why Avowed looks the way it does.

[@mattp3736]

​@@TheCybercoco No it doesn't, I don't know why people are saying this outright lie.

[@Adalon-]

@@mattp3736 It does though lol. Jesus, people are rose tinted blind.

[@bombyo3634]

All we need is eothas walking around as a giant and it will. D perfect

[@VoidSmoker97]

The lack of a class system and just two playable races is disappointing considering that was one of the best things about Pillars, still gonna check it out regardless since we don’t get all that many elder scrolls type games in general plus the magic looks very cool

[@CrazyxEnigma]

I didn't expect a class system given how OW worked and the Skyrim comparisons the announcement invited from day 1 but only 2 races? Yeah I don't see how this will be anything but a mistake.

[@juliusfishman7222]

Wait seriously did they say there were only two playable races

[@juliusfishman7222]

It’s not that hard to make more races

[@terryz129]

2 races? PoE2 had like 6 or something that all had 2-3 subraces

[@VoidSmoker97]

@@juliusfishman7222 exactly especially since this is a first person game, making races for a game where you hardly see your character shouldn’t even be that hard but idk shit about making games so I can’t say much on that

[@user-zu7fr8qm8r]

Yes it was darker at first. Then they checked the lore for the Living Lands and realized that the Living Lands are bright vibrant and filled with mega flora and fauna.

[@HELLFIRE155x]

So I finished Pillars of Eternity and the tone that the original cgi trailer had seemed to capture the grittness of that universe, where as this trailer was way too vibrant and seemes to not capture the same tone. I just don't understand how obsidian can't capture the same tone to an IP they already own. I am sure the writing is great, and I'm still gonna play it, but I was hoping for more than fantasy outer worlds.

[@spellandshield]

PIllars 2 is a lot less gritty to be honest, which I did not think was that great but it is what it is.

[@HELLFIRE155x]

@Spell&Shield I haven't played 2 but who knows maybe this change is due to being in a new area.

[@DonBeardy]

Thank you for destroying my sub box Matty

[@andrewvinci8437]

Matty coming through clutch with the reaction videos

[@TheFirstRealChewy]

They had gameplay in the showcase. What was missing is enough gameplay for Fable and especially Hellblade 2. However, I'm curious how much more we'll see and learn during the showcase on June 13.

[@R.B.90]

"It reminds me a lot of an elder scroll game" from 2011...

[@TaderSamich]

When I figured out the trailer was Avowed, I got a little excited. When the trailer was done, I felt meh.

[@MrSwitchblade327]

Exactly

[@werewolf772]

I'm not a stickler for graphics either but the way the trailer is presented makes it looks like a good-looking VR game. I'll still try the game out though.

[@emarskineel]

I had the exact same reaction...it doesn't look great and the art doesn't appeal to me. Huge letdown

[@Dionyzos]

It's UE5 btw and doesn't seem to take advantage of it

[@plack_benis382]

​@@Dionyzos Thats crazy it doesnt look good at all to be ue5

[@budoshi1981]

Matty what is your thoughts on starwars outlaw

[@Donnie_Oculus]

most people complaining are people who would trust a cg mobile game ad and get mad when it doesnt look like the trailer.

[@wyliesalimeno9602]

New to your channel. You really make some of the best Xbox content. Also, love your podcast on Sacred Symbols.

[@DemonsBlade238]

My complaints stem from two things: They're limiting scope of choices (no classes, limited racial choices, etc), and the size. The devs kept warning us with Outer Worlds that it was a AA game due to funding and dev size, but not we're being told that Avowed will be of similar scope (size, choices, perspective, etc) despite the Microsoft acquisition and this supposedly being their big AAA game.

[@alexhabbart1095]

Not having classes is a liberation of choices, not a limitation. And from what we've been told, it's only the size that is "comparable" to OW. The scope is intended to be larger with the density of actual stuff to do, and having that stuff be interesting and not "another settlement needs your help."

[@amethystwyvern]

​@@alexhabbart1095 people enjoy playing actual restrictive RPGs. People enjoy class systems.

[@dondoe1328]

​@@amethystwyvern I personally prefer more restrictive cause it makes it harder for me to just go jack of all trades for the 10th time with only a slight specialisation being, do you want to use the sword or hammer.

[@avressoren8860]

Yeah, I kinda wished they'd stick to class based, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt for implementation of specialization The fact that playable races are limited is also a bit of a bummer. But I'm overall looking forward to the game as someone who loves the PoE games

[@Adalon-]

@@amethystwyvern and good for those people, maybe this game won't be for them then. But it doesn't invalidate what Alex said, which is entirely correct. But I think people will be fine, considering how popular a similar classless RPG is, especially with mods.

[@thefabledarchon1828]

When are you going over the Fable trailer??

[@tiamia2370]

Is the starfield deep analysis going to be one video or split up into parts?

[@LordAxiom-]

I dont think they lied or anything but the inital reveal gave me LOTR vibes with the monster coming out of the cave slowly like with the Balrog so I was very disappointed to see the direction they took there. Also Fable looks absolutely nothing like Fable, that one is a "wait for reviews" for me and I say that as someone that played the original trilogy more times than I can count growing up.

[@samloomis7364]

I thought looked like an older AC game in terms of the graphics. I wanted Obsidian to give us their version of Skyrim and we ain’t getting that.

[@bigsmkn4207]

My man has been putting out a lot of videos but much needed 👍

[@Redfrog1011]

Bruh its not that people were expecting the graphical fidelity of CGI, we were expecting the art style that was advertised

[@joshuacruz4244]

In all honesty we are in 2023 this game looks like a game from 2010 on the 360..yea. to think that on an all new generation this is the type of stuff that's being produced from first party studios is a tragedy. If other third party studios can make games that look great why can't obsidian do it ??? I've learned to lower my hype and expectations more than I've ever had before in recent years.

[@joshuacruz4244]

@@Wilkin-vd5wx uh yea game looks horrible and looks like s***.

[@kylar634]

Honestly i just think the lighting makes it look a bit flat visually, if they have better settings for that the depth in colours will look nicer

[@simonrockstream]

nice words bro

[@Ssecave]

I was hoping for a more dark/realistic art direction but hey, let's wait to see a full gameplay showcase.

[@daniell5740]

U didn't play outworld? Lmao

[@HulkMode365days]

​@@daniell5740 😅😅😅

[@davryder12]

i was more concerned with enemy animations and combat flow in general as it didn't look smooth to me, could be that they will polish it up as they go forward or i hope that is the case.

[@lawsonrg01]

Your fanboy is showing a bit, Matty. You know the difference between CGI Trailer and "In Engine Footage" is VERY slim, and there was a TON of IEF in this showcase. I don't blame people for being upset that the last time we were "shown" Avowed, we were promised Obsidian's take on Skyrim, and now that may still be, but it looks like it's now coming through a Sea of Thieves/cartoony filter.

[@buk3628]

Avowed is an Unreal 5 game, we want a visual showcase especially for a game compared to Skyrim and years to wait for next Elder Scrolls. I don't want a Redfall where Obsidian like Arkane was left to do their own thing. Outer Worlds did not look great or sell great, visuals are a reason for that. Obsidian has never released a visually impressive game. Improve the visuals, the color palette, the level of detail even if it looks more conservative or realistic while there is time. And this is a new IP, it does not need co-op. A big reason such intense interest in Hellblade and Starfield are the visual and realistic tone they present. It is what it is, I want Avowed to do well

[@Tai_Jaiger]

If the skeletons didn’t look like they were from Sea of Thieves I’d be more hyped for this. I’m all for a brighter color palette, but the art style just seems too cartoonish.

[@thebigidea9659]

It's not what I expected but I'm willing to give it a chance. What matters the most is if the game is fun and functional. Also because it's connected to the PoE setting which I loved.

[@hypnotoad1674]

My problem is one time we're told "it was a CGI trailer, what did you expect?" While another time being told "that trailer looks sooo awesome I know the game is going to be great!"

[@LicoriceLain]

Cgi trailers are purely for getting the basic idea across: what is the point of this game? The Midnight trailer was just a cutscene but communicated the point of the game quite well - you are magic user in a bayou, hunting creatures with help of a skeleton man. That is enough to get excited to see gameplay. It is not something that should be taken as gospel for the final look of the game.

[@angryjoe98]

Yeah the problem is the art style and tome are completely different there are lots of cgi trailers that reflect there game well like we saw with star wars outlaws the cgi trailer and gameplay have the same look just different levels of fidelity

[@Adalon-]

@@angryjoe98 Tell me, how long did we have to wait for the gameplay trailer after the CGI for outlaws? Same question for Avowed. Now, when you answer those questions, perhaps you can spot the difference. One made a CGI trailer much later into production after they had things much more sorted. The other was extremely early production, likely used in part to sell the idea to a board.

[@mariobadia4553]

​@@angryjoe98 that CGI trailer was for a old version of the game. It got rebooted during development like what happened with cyberpunk

[@angryjoe98]

@@mariobadia4553 not exactly a good excuse

[@TheCybercoco]

Seeing Pillars of Eternity's magic (and world, in fact) in 3D is going to be such a treat. Looking forward to it. People keep comparing it to Skyrim, but I think it'll be more like Morrowind.

[@Wft-bu5zc]

It is going to be absolutely nothing like either game. Closer to Outer Worlds most likely.

[@JellyJman]

It’s definitely gonna be like Skyrim. You think they could sell Morrowind to kids these days???

[@t.t6294]

based on what the devs said, it's more like skyrim. they removed PoE's classes

[@Givejordr]

I'm pretty sure we expected this game to, artistically, look like Final Fantasy 16 and Elden Ring. We did get catfished, but it still looks great. Like, (personal experience) we asked out a girl when she had black hair, and a few days later, her hair is red after finding out that's my favorite color. The "change" was drastic, but still looks fun af to play.

[@meodrac]

I'm not against the artstyle, but I have grown attached with the style they presented in the reveal trailer What I'm really looking for is creative physics interaction(mostly via magic), likeable npcs/companions to get invested on, iconic enemy design and combat mechanics, immersive sim elements(doesn't have to be a full on immersive sim), and a living world(the world isn't waiting for the protagonist to arrive like a theme park) But I'd also very much like to experience the moment shown in the reveal trailer.

[@FernandoAR760]

100% they lied look at the different art styles one looks like a discount Fable and the other looks beautiful

[@almightypdx]

There's a lot of time between now and whenever in 2024 this launches, so there is no doubt we'll see more (gameplay included). That said, the max 5 enemies on screen gave me Redfall vibes and it felt empty. The art style doesn't sway me, at all, like the CGI trailer did but it being Day 1 GP, I will definitely play it regardless.

[@heyoplays]

It look like Son of Rome with magic back in the reveal. What we got is just another cartoon looking rpg

[@Sticks_of_Truth]

The Stylistics art style is cool but it does look dated when built from the ground up for the Series X. CGI or not the original reveal trailer set a tone for what they were going for. It has clearly changed. It looks like they had to end up using their old engine to get this game out quicker and that's fine. Just expecting more. I'm curious if the scale is more in line with The Outer Worlds now because of this shift as well. Everything is right in the world if this game is good. Even if this isn't this Elder Scrolls equivalent I imagined.

[@CrazyxEnigma]

Yeah they rebooted it during development to something in scale more inside their wheelhouse as opposed to a sprawling open world ala Oblivion or Skyrim.

[@bigkabuto]

It sadly was my disappointment of the show. I was expecting just a lot more visually and to me it doesn't seem a huge step up from ToW. Also the last two seconds of the reveal trailer didn't do them any favors now, because that sure as hell looked to be ingame. Even though they've never said it was.

[@ChaseArkansas]

it ticked all the boxes for me looks really fun and the combat and magic look great. im excited for it

[@anthonyjames9150]

The style looked more grounded, darker, bleak in the original trailer, yes it was CG, but what was it trying to portray? The look of the game . The new trailer looks very colourful. I don't think most people are confusing it with CG, they just see a tonal shift into something maybe even whimsical. If a game seems to campy or whimsical I personally am not likely to buy it. Gritty dark fantasy RPGs sell. Hopefully newer trailers are tonally adjusted. The comparison to the outer worlds is odd, that game from the first trailer set itself as a funny satire. I don't think anything of what we knew of Avowed was funny, campy or lighthearted. Again, hopefully future trailers are different.

[@vonb8984]

its not even cartoony, its just colorful.

[@chrishaugh1655]

Not in a good way.

[@toyotatacoma1616]

It’s a little cartoony, a lot like outer worlds imo.

[@Spr1ggan87]

Blood & Wine is colourful, Deadfire is colourful, Avowed looked like a Shrek movie.

[@samexoldx]

Yeah I know it's definitely cartoony and looks dated

[@lovejapanfrenchchef]

I am beginning to think that Game Pass is making developers …LAZY ???

[@zuflis]

my 2 cent about this is: fixing colour pallete and texture should be easier than fixing core gameplay mechanics.. if they really uncomfortable with the graphic they could still tweak it within a year before planned release window. But if the core gameplay is not fun, then no matter what state the graphic is the game just wont deliver. (the combat gameplay looks interesting already imo)

[@HrWargoblin]

If they deliver an "Outer Worlds in Eora" 30-40 hours single player experience with an amazing story and fun gameplay, I'll be overjoyed. Obsidian, please add easy combat mode for older guys like me (37) with slightly rusty reflexes. :)

[@northeastarkansasdirtfishe7060]

I guess I just don't dig Obsidian other than New Vegas. I don't like the look of the Outer Worlds and don't like the look of Avowed.

[@kieranczyzniejewski2178]

Avowed looks like it came out like 8 years ago. I was watching the gameplay and was thinking "Please don't be Avowed, please be some indie game"

[@BridgeTROLL777]

graphics arent that important as long as the gameplay and meaningful rpg elements are solid. Skyrim is still a great game even though mechanics are janky.

[@KrissKingdom]

Same tbh lol but hopefully the rest can make up for it It does look like an old game with vibrant colours

[@Pikmin.-]

It looks like a vr game lmao.

[@alexw5042]

The fact that pillars of eternity looks better is crazy

[@salazar591]

So if it doesn't look like real life it's indie? Christ gamers these days suck.

[@nathandrake9737]

I was looking for a more serious, darker, and more beautiful game. They definitely flipped the table on people's expectations.

[@landonewts]

Yeah, the CGI trailer did the actual game design dirty. I think Avowed looks incredibly fun. If it's single player, and/or if co-op is optional, I'm definitely gonna play it. I loved The Outer Worlds, and this looks potentially even better.

[@TheEngwall]

I've been hyped for Avowed since the first trailer, and I was definitely not disappointed by the showcase! I felt happy after that, and thought "nothing else matters from here to Starfield now". And that's a great feeling in my book! I am so looking forward to Avowed now!

[@KenanGwallter]

The Starfield part aged like milk.

[@TheEngwall]

@@KenanGwallter Not at all as I see it. People still talk about it

[@KenanGwallter]

@@TheEngwall it's trash and can't be fixed via updates. Bethesda screwed up big time.

[@TheEngwall]

@KenanGwallter I see what you're saying. I too see the problems with the game. Like very shallow RPG-elements, glitches, the loading screens. And those damn temples make me not wanna start a new character! But I also see very great potential! There are a lot of things they did very right in the game, and a few things that can be made better with a few patches and maybe mods. But my original comment was for Avowed first and foremost!

[@KonohaRamenNoodles]

Well the good news is it’s still at the least 7 months away, 19 at the most and that’s plenty of time to take in the feedback. Obsidian have never made a game I didn’t enjoy and with Xbox paying the bills now I have high hopes for what they’re capable of for one of their AAA titles.

[@gobro2688]

Kingdom of Amular/ outer worlds art style when we were hyping ourselves up for a Skyrim competitor

[@robbstark3316]

The game went from dark fantasy to a game that looks like medieval Fortnite with more colors than a rainbow. Game could still be good but it’s not what we waited years for

[@Krondon-SSR]

Was kiinda saddened by this trailer, mayyybe a long gameplay showcase could bring my hopes higher