Among some of themost popular RPGsof all time isFallout: New Vegas,famously developed by Obsidian under an extreme time crunch handed to them by Bethesda. Occasionally there might be a poignant moment of contemplation where players look around New Vegas and wonder what could have been, but for the most part, Obsidian’s dire development time has been overshadowed by the sheer quality of the tile.
Filledwith difficult decisions, engaging factions, and a world that was ripe for exploration,Fallout: New Vegashelped establish the gold standard for what an RPG can be capable of. But maybe, at the risk of adding to the hype train, the time has come to raise that standard again.Avowedis currently set to release in 2025 and early playtests have already indicated it has the makings of a great title, but here are some things it could learn to keep in mind from another Obsidian classic.
8Quest Design
New Vegas' Quest Were Branching And Multifaceted
InNew Vegas,no two questsever went quite the same way. Beyond even paths that branched on accounts of morality, there were usually multiple people to side with during a quest and multiple means of tackling them.
Avowedshould similarly address quests in its own game, which does sound promising at the moment, given howPillars of Eternityhas similarly addressed its own quests in the game.
7Reputation Mechanics
Reputation mechanics in RPGshas always been something that Obsidian does well, but what is it exactly that makes it such a strong feature in their titles? The simple versatility in reputation is enough, but there’s one feature in particularAvowedcould take advantage of.
Factions big and small inNew Vegastrack good and bad reputations separately, so that a player could have, for example, 50% negative reputation with a faction, and 70% positive. This is sure to makeAvoweda nuanced and compelling RPG with in-depth factions.
6Skill Versatility
A New Vegas Implementation Of Avowed Skills Would Be Great
Pillars of Eternity 1 & 2both had a great and robust collection of skills for players to specialize into, but one specific thing that could really improveAvowed’s standing on release is if it focuses more on skill implementation in quests and dialogues.
A character with a high lore should be able to recount knowledge that would otherwise have to be researched during a quest, a character with high survival should be able to immediately track an enemy that would normally require investigation.
5Dialogue System
Characters Have A Great Opportunity To Gain A Personality
There are manydifferent schools of thoughton how dialogue should be done in an RPG, especially western RPGs that typically place such a huge focus on it. Obsidian’s philosophy was simple but effective.
Players should be able to have a personality. The world may very well flood with the tears of embittered gamers ifAvowedat launch has dialogue that resembles “Yes, No, Sarcasm, Questions”. Players should have multiple flavored ways to approach other NPCs, as is seen inNew Vegasmore than any other 3DFalloutgame.
4Companion Mechanics
While companions are not as vital to Western RPGs as the party for a protagonist is in JRPGs, there are plenty of games, includingNew Vegas, where companions are some ofthe best featuresin the game overall.
Avowedseems to have a stronger emphasis on companions thanNew Vegasif anything, where it was not unheard of to do a game without meeting or needing any company on the road. This is an excellent opportunity to add some truly well written and engaging companions toAvowed’srepertoire that can surpassNew Vegasentirely.
3Atmosphere And Ambiance
New Vegas Was A World Like No Other
New Vegasin particular is known for itsexceptionally detailed environment. But this isn’t, in truth, a game that brokers much exploration. Without specific quest to take players out there, the most players will find outside of societal hubs are death and cazadors. So, just cazadors.
This isn’t really a critique, as having a Wasteland that rewards distant ambling with death is really just good world design.Avowed, on the other hand, is a sprawling fantasy world lush with danger, and could putNew Vegas' environment design principles into practice while also making a world that practically begs to be explored.
2Attention To Lore
Eora Has Fascinating Lore
Plenty of good RPGs are built upon asolid foundation of their lore, andNew Vegasis no exception. This isn’t distant lore, mind, such as the falling of the bombs. Much more immediate history is what defines the setting inNew Vegas.
This is whatAvowedshould strive for, a world that feels active and lived in and alive, with recent events just before the player picks up their character that have helped to establish the player’s world and their role in it.
1A Gripping Introduction
New Vegas' Introduction Is Astounding
Are there many titles that can live up toNew Vegas' introduction? And this is beyond meeting an 18-carat run of bad luck in the opening cutscene. Goodsprings is one of the best introductions to a game world, period.
It’s a perfect microcosm ofNew Vegas. It introduces the reputation system, the morality system, combat, merchant reputation, skill checks, and makes sure the player knows that the world is theirs to explore, all at the player’s own pace. None of the things just listed are mandatory, they’re all side content the player can choose to do if they so wish. It’s a tall order, but having a similarly focused but free introduction toAvowed(lethal head trauma optional) would be absolutely stellar.
