If you want better frame rate stability
Choose Ghost of Yōtei. It scores 5.0 vs 3.3 for frame rate stability, with a 4.4 overall score.
Avowed Review
Bottom Line
Choose Avowed for vivid Eora worldbuilding, flexible combat, and dense exploration. Skip it if you need deep simulation, broad enemy variety, or a smoother gear-progression loop.
Best for
Best for players who want a focused first-person fantasy RPG with colorful world-building, flexible combat builds, and dense exploration. It especially suits fans who value lore, secrets, and choice-driven quest outcomes over sandbox simulation.
Not for
Not for players expecting a huge reactive sandbox, complex systemic role-play, deep stealth, broad enemy variety, or frictionless gear progression. Reviewers repeatedly warn that the world can feel static and upgrade systems can dominate the loop.
Verdict
Avowed’s review consensus is that Obsidian built a memorable, colorful Eora adventure whose best moments come from exploration, magic-forward combat, lore, and morally weighted choices. Reviewers repeatedly enjoyed the dense open zones, flexible builds, and strong world-building, especially when the game rewards curiosity with secrets or consequences. The tradeoff is that its systems are thinner than many RPG fans may expect: gear tiers, scarce upgrade materials, repeated enemy types, and limited world reactivity frustrated multiple reviewers. It lands as a confident, often fun action RPG with excellent atmosphere, but not a genre-redefining sandbox.
Feature Scorecards
Summary
81 reviewed features-
Very positive 4.5-5.011 (14%)
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Positive 3.5-4.441 (51%)
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Neutral 2.5-3.421 (26%)
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Negative 1.5-2.47 (9%)
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Very negative below 1.51 (1%)
Pros highlights
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Combat was one of the most consistently praised elements, especially magic, responsiveness, and build variety, despite repetition and gear-gating complaints.
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Narrative quality was usually a strength thanks to mystery, choices, and world stakes, but some reviewers found the main plot predictable or underwhelming.
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Exploration was one of the strongest consensus positives, with dense maps, secrets, vertical paths, and constant rewards keeping reviewers engaged.
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Side characters and companions were highly divisive: some found them memorable and heartfelt, while others thought they were shallow or uninspired.
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Fun factor leaned positive overall, especially for combat and exploration, though some reviewers found the experience merely solid or underwhelming.
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Open-zone design split reviewers: many liked curated, dense hubs, while others found the world restrictive, lifeless, or not interactive enough.
Cons highlights
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Difficulty balance was one of the most debated areas, with some finding it fair and flexible and others criticizing gear checks, sponginess, or uneven scaling.
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Enemy variety was a recurring concern; many reviewers felt the same bears, spiders, skeletons, and humanoids appeared too often.
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Upgrade systems were sharply divisive, with some liking gear longevity and many others criticizing tiers, scarcity, or number-go-up design.
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Loot opinions were mixed: unique items and progression could be satisfying, but many chests and rewards felt predictable or unexciting.
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Frame-rate stability varied: some reviewers saw stable performance, while others reported hitches, drops, screen tearing, or stuttering.
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Performance optimization varied sharply across versions, from stable and improved after patches to demanding, stuttery, or poorly optimized on some PCs.
Compared With Category Average
Compared with other Video Games, this product is above average in tutorial quality, camera behavior, platforming precision, near average in side character depth, combat system, below average in world interactivity, sandbox freedom, endgame content.
Comparison summary
81 compared features-
Above average 0.4+ pts higher26 (32%)
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Same as average within 0.3 pts28 (35%)
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Below average 0.4+ pts lower27 (33%)
Largest category differences
| Attribute | This product | Category average | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| world interactivity | 1.9 | 3.9 | -2.1 |
| sandbox freedom | 2.3 | 4.2 | -1.9 |
| endgame content | 1.5 | 3.5 | -2.0 |
| stealth mechanics | 1.4 | 3.3 | -1.9 |
| core gameplay loop | 2.0 | 3.9 | -1.9 |
| boss design | 1.8 | 3.7 | -1.9 |
| tutorial quality | 4.9 | 3.3 | +1.6 |
| upgrade system | 2.9 | 3.9 | -1.0 |
Consider This Instead
If you want better world interactivity
Choose Crimson Desert. It scores 4.8 vs 1.9 for world interactivity, with a 3.5 overall score.
If you want better open-world design
Choose Kingdom Come: Deliverance II. It scores 4.8 vs 3.5 for open-world design, with a 4.3 overall score.
If you want better writing quality
Choose Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake. It scores 5.0 vs 3.9 for writing quality, with a 3.8 overall score.
Compared in Reviews
Products reviewers directly compared with this model, grouped into quick takeaways.
- Similar: party structure The review compares Avowed's two-companion structure to The Outer Worlds.
- Worse: overall design The reviewer says Avowed improves on The Outer Worlds but remains disappointing in its own way.
Baldur's Gate 3
- Better: world reactivity The reviewer says Baldur's Gate 3 feels more alive than Avowed's setting.
- Compared: romance and companion systems The reviewer expected to miss Baldur's Gate 3-style romance but felt Avowed's relationships still worked.
Skyrim
- Compared: first-person RPG style The reviewer frames Avowed as a favorable riff on Skyrim in Eora.
- Compared: open-world expectations The reviewer stresses that Avowed is not Skyrim, while criticizing how it avoids that model.
FAQ
Is Avowed more about combat or story?
Reviews describe both as important, but combat and exploration are the most consistent sources of fun. Story and writing are often praised, though some reviewers found the main plot predictable or uneven.
Does Avowed feel like a full open-world RPG?
No. Reviewers describe it as open-zone or semi-open, with dense handcrafted areas rather than one seamless sandbox. Some liked the focus; others wanted more freedom and world reactivity.
How good is the combat?
Combat is one of Avowed’s strongest reviewed areas, especially magic, flexible loadouts, and responsive feel. The main caveats are repeated enemy types, gear-tier friction, and occasional sponginess.
Are the companions memorable?
Opinions are mixed. Several reviewers loved the companion writing, banter, and emotional moments, while others found the cast shallow, underused in combat, or hard to connect with.
Is exploration rewarding?
Yes, this is one of the strongest points across reviews. Dense maps, vertical routes, secrets, treasure, caves, and environmental puzzles were repeatedly praised.
What are the biggest complaints?
The most repeated concerns are thin world interactivity, limited enemy variety, uneven gear progression, resource grind, and RPG systems that feel simpler than some players expected.
Sample Expert Reviews We Analyzed
These are a few of the reviews included in our analysis.
Video Reviews
Article Reviews
pcgamesn.com
- Review score
- 3.0
techradar.com
- Review score
- 4.0
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