Summary
Avoweddeveloper Obsidian Entertainment has always placed a supreme amount of emphasis on the lore, story, and characters found in its games — all of which are generally fleshed out through dialogue. As players converse withNPCs in Obsidian games, not only are they often given opportunities to expand their relationships with said characters, but they are also more deeply immersed in each game’s world. This makes dialogue an important part of the role-play in an Obsidian game, which happens to be one thing thatAvowedexcels at.
History has more than proven the difficulty of making sure the dialogue in an RPG contributes to the game’s overall role-playing experience. More often than not, dialogue choices are bound by the duality of “right” and “wrong,” thereby encouraging players to prefer one choice over another for the gameplay benefits they often provide. However,Avowedtakes a refreshing approach to RPG dialogue, ensuring almost every outcome remains a mystery and that players are left to fend for themselves in every conversation. In the end, this results in an authentic role-playing experience inAvowed, where players can feel like they truly have a hand in the flow of dialogue.
Avowed’s Dialogue Allows for Authentic Role-Play
Avowed’s Dialogue Isn’t Bound by Skill Checks or ‘Right’ Answers
Far too often,RPG dialogueis a bit too helpful, all but spelling out for players which options are the “best” for them to choose. This is generally reflected in one of two ways: either the options are very minimal and extreme, with one very clearly being a “good” answer and the other an “evil” path, or the choices are overshadowed by a skill check that almost guarantees players will end up with a better outcome.Avowedforegoes both of these conventions by, firstly, offering skill checks that don’t always result in an outcome that players might find preferable, and secondly, providing dialogue options that are immensely shrouded in ambiguity.
Avowedtakes a refreshing approach to RPG dialogue, ensuring almost every outcome remains a mystery and that players are left to fend for themselves in every conversation.
It is true that most ofAvowed’s skill checks may lead to a more interesting outcome than the other options it provides, but there are many cases where mindlessly choosing the skill check dialogue option will lead to what could be seen as an objectively bad outcome. Furthermore, there are rarely any “right” answers inAvowed. It’s possible that many players may find themselves blankly staring at the screen as they are caught in a crossfire between two characters, and they have no idea which path is the best one to take. That’s really because there isn’t an optimal path inAvowed, with its companionseven stating multiple times that what matters more than anything else is that the player is confident in the route they’ve chosen.
Avowed Offers a Multitude of Dialogue Options in Every Conversation
Avowedis ultimately able to pull this off through the multitude of dialogue options it offers, making every conversation far more complex and layered than mostmodern RPGs.Avowed’s conversations aren’t just about exhausting every line of dialogue, as that’s often not even possible. In other words, whatever choice players make in a conversation is permanent, thereby adding weight to each option. The fact that there are then a plethora of options to choose from makes it more difficult to discern what the “good” path might be and what the “evil” path might be.
The less dialogue options there are in an RPG conversation, the easier it is to distinguish between the best and the worst.
Avowed’s approach to dialogueis a major step forward in RPG storytelling, reinforcing the idea that role-playing is at its best when choices feel uncertain, personal, and permanent. By foregoing the binary of “right” and “wrong” responses and openly embracing ambiguity,Avowedensures that every conversation carries real, often emotional weight. This design philosophy not only immerses players in its world but also challenges them to be their own person, makingAvoweda standout representation of RPG dialogue done right.
