Avowed breaks with a great tradition of the PoE series

Highlights

Avowed moves away from the isometric view and focuses on immersive gameplay to reach a wider audience.
The introduction of a visible sky in Avowed adds depth to the lore and creates a connection to the gods of Eora.
Constellations play a significant role in gameplay, integrating celestial elements into the first-person experience.

Upcoming first-person action RPG Confessors expands Obsidian Entertainment Pillars of Eternity universe from the isometric perspective that has characterized the IP so far. While the titles that introduced Eora stayed true to the traditional style of the CRPG genre, this latest effort seems to focus on reaching a larger audience through its more immersive and accessible style. This shift will have an important impact on the core gameplay of Confessorsbut it will also provide an unprecedented opportunity to capture a previously unseen aspect of the franchise’s world-building.

Although it may not seem like a particularly exciting addition compared to the major changes to the gameplay, the introduction of a visible sky for Confessors is a remarkable difference to what is in the Pillars of Eternity series. The gods of Eora have always been an integral part of the lore underlying the IP, but their connections to the celestial bodies of the world were limited to the representations possible in the isometric format.

Avowed is more like PoE 2 than The Outer Worlds and could be a knockout

The fact that Obsidian is leaning more towards the themes of Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire than the tone of The Outer Worlds for Avowed might make it stand out even more.

Constellations in the lore of Pillars of Eternity

The subtle influence of celestial bodies through Eora’s pantheon

As a deeper part of the story, which is especially emphasized in the quest “Council of the Stars”, Pillars of EternityThe gods of are tied to constellations that represent them, which are linked to a puzzle that requires pairing these zodiac signs with shrines that reveal a picture of the cosmos to the player, thus strengthening the domains of these deities as part of a larger divine order.

Trust in the invisible sky of an isometric view

As important as celestial bodies are for the traditions in game texts and other images of gods, the isometric CRPG perspective of the Pillars of Eternity Games have never been able to actively show references to the night sky. Being limited to top-down interactions has never really hindered world-building, but there has always been the potential for a more realistic depiction of these cosmic forces outside of third-party sources. Space and the stars have previously only been shown in a hard cut from normal gameplay, and may now be made part of the actual skybox in another subgenre.

The influence of Seeing the Sky on Avowed’s storytelling and gameplay

Constellations can be fully integrated into a first-person experience

Through a completely new approach to the representation of the world and the resulting more accessible opportunities for exploration for the player, Confessors will introduce a new way to experience the celestial elements of Eora. Through the dynamic sky, which can be viewed through a camera with full control, players can interact with the constellations by simply looking at them and the gods they represent. With the protagonist of Confessors Since he was touted as a member of the godlike race, this divine lineage could even lead to the stars playing a significant role in the main story. Such a lineage, which is linked to at least one of the PoEDeities seems inevitable, and ConfessorsThe skybox will likely provide more than just a pretty sight throughout the title.

Some elements already seem to be common between Confessors and the first-person gameplay of The Elder Scrollsand the use of zodiac signs in the game promises to take on a similar meaning. Whether as subtle as the zodiac stones of Skyrim or the greater impact they had in previous titles, the ability to see the night sky of Eora leaves the door open for the inclusion of deeper magical lore in a practical aspect of Confessors‘s presentation.