Avowed’s Early Development Centered on Cooperative Multiplayer

Avowed is a highly anticipated RPG developed by Obsidian Entertainment, renowned for its expertise in the genre. Initially, it was designed as a cooperative multiplayer game before returning to a single-player format.

In celebration of its 20th anniversary, Obsidian Entertainment produced a documentary series. Within this documentary, Feargus Urquhart, the founder of Obsidian Entertainment, shared various insights into decisions made over the last two decades and upcoming projects, including Avowed.

In the documentary’s final segment, he admitted to initially insisting on making Avowed a multiplayer experience but later recognized that it was an erroneous decision.

He further explained that his push for a multiplayer mode was rooted in the idea of presenting something compelling to publishers. He stated that when requesting funding in the range of 70 to 80 billion dollars, there needed to be an intriguing concept, and the addition of a multiplayer mode heightened the game’s appeal.

Transitioning from a multiplayer mode to a single-player mode posed a significant challenge for the studio. Game director Carrie Patel detailed that this transformation required about eight months to shape a new vision, create an initial playable segment, and prepare for full-scale production.

Currently, the game is undergoing development for a single-player mode. Recently, in June, it resurfaced alongside its inaugural gameplay trailer. Although an official release date has not been disclosed, its launch is anticipated in 2024 for PC and Xbox Series X/S.