When first-person fantasy RPGAvowedwas announced by Obsidian Entertainment during 2020’s Xbox Games Showcase, it didn’t take long for fans to speculate that Obsidian could be delivering a spiritual successor toThe Elder Scrolls. However, with Xbox Head Phil Spencer claiming that the game will be “very different” from Bethesda’s flagship fantasy series, that initial assumption has been called into doubt.
Avowedmay appear to have a lot in common withThe Elder Scrolls, but even Bethesda’s games have had huge mechanical differences over the years. One of the biggest changes betweenOblivionandSkyrimwas the removal of the class system.Skyrimimplemented a broadly simplified skill tree mechanic where players improved various stats and unlocked perks through practice.Avowedcould differentiate itself by returning to more old-school class mechanics, but traditional classes could come with potential pros and cons.
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Avowed’s Possible Class System
In many traditional fantasy RPGs, players pick their class at the beginning of their adventures. This determines which stats they primarily rely on. In a typicalTTRPGand its closer descendants, for example, a rogue would largely rely on dexterity and intelligence, and would start with an initial boost to those stats. This, in turn, would affect their success with skill checks and in combat throughout the game.
InOblivion, there were 21 pre-made classes the player could choose from near the start of the game, with the additional option to make their own custom class. Each of these classes came with a specialization or combination of specializations out of magic, stealth, and combat. Each class also came with two main attributes out of strength, intelligence, willpower, agility, speed, endurance, personality, and luck. These two attributes would each have a +5 bonus at the start of the game. Finally, the player’s class would include seven skills, such as acrobatics, sneak, or speechcraft, which the player would be able to level at a faster rate than their other skills.
Avowedmay not use a system entirely similar toOblivion, butThe Elder Scrolls 4may give a good idea of whatAvowed’s class system might be working from if it has one. In this case classes are essentially major stat modifiers — they don’t necessarily affect what the player is able to do, but they do greatly tilt the likelihood of success in favor of certain tactics.
It’s also possible thatAvowedcould have a class system where each class has its own unique abilities. This is seen in RPGs like BioWare’sMass Effectseries andDragon Age. InDragon Age: Originsonly rogues can pick locks, only mages can cast spells, while warriors get their own batch of unique combat abilities. Class choice also affects stats as in olderElder Scrollsgames, but unique abilities make the differences between classes more pronounced and often easier to understand. Similarly,Mass Effect’s classes determine whether the player can hack technology, use biotics, and which weapons they can use.
The final likely possibility isAvowedmodeling its system afterSkyrim’s design. In this case there isn’t a class system, but there is a skill and perk system. Aside from differences contingent on race, everySkyrimplayerstarts out the same, and levels up skills depending on what they do more of in the game. Levelling skills unlocks unique perks, such as being able to forward roll while in stealth. Each of these possible systems comes with its own pros and cons.
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The Pros And Cons Of RPG Classes in Avowed
Having a class system at all is fundamentally restrictive, although restrictions aren’t necessarily a bad thing. Players ofclass-based gamesusually have to choose their class at the start of the game before they can really get a good idea of how it will affect gameplay. In contrast, aSkyrim-style classless system gives the player far more flexibility to figure things out as they go.
Skyrim’s system also has another key upside forObsidian Entertainment— accessibility. Part ofSkyrim’s massive financial success was no doubt in part to its accessibility to players new to the RPG genre, doing away with complicated and interwoven class and stat systems that could be alienating or confusing.
The specialization of class systems can be very satisfying, however, particularly in RPGs where the player travels in a party likeAvowed’s CRPG precursor seriesPillars of Eternity, which came with eleven largely traditional fantasy RPG classes. That level of specialization can also be particularly immersive in a waySkyrim’s jack-of-all-trades Dragonborn sometimes falls shorts. A classless sytem also risks generalizing gameplay - players may not be an all-out mage, for example, but there’s little reason not to useSkyrim’s starting Healing spell regardless of their playstyle.
Potential Compromises in Avowed
Skyrim’s skill system also has flaws which aren’t necessarily connected to doing away with traditional classes. There are plenty ofSkyrimmodswhich completely revamp the skill system without reintroducing classes, demonstrating the variety of routes Obsidian could go down even if classes go out the window.
It could be possible forAvowedto find a compromise between the class system found in more traditional RPGs and more accessible ones. Class choice could give the player certain abilities at the start of the game which other classes would have to unlock later, for example, as well as affecting their attack power with certain weapons and spells. Some lighter class systems like this can be found ingames likeDark Souls, where classes affect how the player starts the game but doesn’t stop them from redirecting their specialties as they play more.
With Obsidian moving itsCRPGPillars of Eternitysetting to a first-person RPG, it seems likely that the studio has mainstream accessibility in mind. This could make a non-restrictive class system the best option, giving players a bit of initial direction and a sense of specialization without cutting them off from changing that direction later in the game.
Avowedis in development for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
