Way back in 2020, Obsidian Entertainment released the first trailer for the upcoming RPG, Avowed. At the time, the developer revealed very little about the game, but it appeared to be the studio's answer to The Elder Scrolls franchise. In the past three years, Obsidian has steadily revealed more information about the game. One thing that isn't clear, however, is whether Avowed will have companion characters.
The latest trailer for Avowed finally gave gamers a better idea as to what to expect from the game. In addition to showing off the Pillars of Eternity world, the trailer revealed where the game would take place, who the main character was, and what the primary conflict would involve. Unfortunately, there are still many things that the developer has not revealed about the game. If the game does include companion characters, however, they will need to be some of the best Obsidian has ever created.
Obsidian's History With Companion Characters in RPGs
RPGs have effectively been Obsidian Entertainment's bread and butter since before the studio even existed. The company was put together by former Black Isle Studios personnel whose credits included Fallout 2. Initially, the studio found work doing sequels to BioWare games like Neverwinter Nights 2 and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 before moving on to develop its own IPs in the mid-2010s. Microsoft acquired Obsidian Entertainment in 2018 which has allowed the company to inject more resources into projects.
Because of the company's extensive work on RPGs, Obsidian has gained a reputation for creating fun and interesting supporting characters. The Outer Worlds has a whole roster of companion characters and there really isn't one who could qualify as objectively bad. Both of the Pillars of Eternity games likewise have a large roster of characters with conflicting interests whose loyalty to the player character will change depending on how the player behaves. The problem, however, is that this sort of style of RPG companion character has been something of a norm since 2009.
The Companion Characters of Bethesda and BioWare Games
In 2009, BioWare released Dragon Age: Origins for consoles and PC. It was arguably the first mainstream AAA game that boasted a large roster of companion characters whose fates would be determined based on how the player behaved in-game. Many of Dragon Age: Origins' companion characters could be subjected to horrific fates while others could be allowed to prosper. The vast majority of BioWare games released after Dragon Age: Origins would continue to experiment with this while Obsidian did similar things in games like Fallout: New Vegas and eventually the Pillars of Eternity games.
Likewise, Bethesda had been experimenting with its own companion system. Fallout 3 gave the player companion characters to roam the Capital Wastelands with, though none of them ever take an opportunity to betray the player. The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim also gave the player companion characters, but they mostly functioned as NPC bodyguards.
It wasn't until the release of Fallout 4 that the companion characters really began to react to the actions the player took which affected their relationship with them. Starfield will have companions and romantic interests who will probably react to the player's actions in the world. If Avowed wants its companion characters to stand out, it will likely have to do something that breaks the mold.
In the end, it's impossible to say what the developer will do with the upcoming game when it comes to companions. Avowed having companion characters would be a natural progression from Pillars of Eternity but there is no way to know how the developer will approach them. The developer's comments have also suggested that the game will be smaller in scale when compared to say Skyrim, so it is also possible that it won't be looking to break the mold. Only time will tell what supporting characters in Avowed will bring to the table.
Avowed is currently in development for PC and Xbox Series X/S.