I kind of agree, what brought me over to mort is his authenticity, but I’ve seen UA-camrs go down this road and many eventually just turn into marketing for these publishers. Hope it’s not the case for morti!
I still think The Outer Worlds is underrated and seeing this looking pretty good makes me hopeful that TOW2 will be what more fans wanted the first game to be. They went a little safe with that game but their goal was to have good performance at launch on a Tim Cain project, and they did that. If Avowed shows a good depth of RPG mechanics and runs pretty smooth I'll just be happy that Obsidian still has life and passion.
Its so sad that PoE 2 wasnt a huge success. Its my personal favourite modern CRPG and was such an intense journey, that I couldnt stop it and when it was done I felt happy but exhausted and like let a good friend go. Its one of the best of all time.
They marketed it so poorly. I was a huge POE1 and Obsidian fan, followed multiple CRPG forums of the time and I barely knew about POE2 until it came out. The quality of craftsmanship in the game was totally let down by the publishing efforts.
Unpopular opinion: one of the reasons PoE 2 wasn't a smash hit was because of PoE 1. The first one had some INSANE hype going into it, but the way you're introduced to the setting in general in the first game is in my opinion very overwhelming, info dump-y and confusing. I think a lot of people got the first one while swept up in the hype, ended up bouncing off of it and then not bothering with PoE 2.
A) This makes me want to go back and play more of POE2 as I never finished it B) The game looks WAY better than what marketing originally showed, makes me much more excited to give it a shot
@@kewa_design Ah, I totally missed it. It's weird that they wouldn't put more emphasis on it. A lot of people (like me) prefer third person, because it provides more peripheral vision, and makes the game feel less tunnel-visioned.
@@tizodd6 Watch another video and they said there is noticeable frame drops in 3rd person to below 60 FPS, but still above 30 FPS. So depending how important that is to you, that could be an issue with 3rd person, and maybe a reason they haven't made a big deal about it. Also you have to go into the menus to change between 1st and 3rd person views. So there are currently a few issues to watch for upon release.
@@lexiconprime7211 yeah that kinda worries me. I really want to play this in 3rd person but it looks like Skyrim 3rd person which was just an afterthought.
Loved the PoE world setting. This game became a must buy for me when it was revealed it would take place after the events of 2. Can hardly wait for this one.
Obsidian has always over delivered while being under funded and in a time crunch. Now they finally have a decent budget and extra time. They probably are shocked. Lol
Great video but I was hoping you could weigh in on two things for me. 1. The cut classes really annoy me because all of my favorite options seem to be the stuff that got chopped but at the same time I do understand that something like spiritshifting would be a big hassle to add. The thing I want to be sure of that I’ve seen no mention of is if monk or unarmed combat in general has also been left out. I saw a ring of transcendent suffering in one gameplay vid that was just a generic damage boost and was really disappointed. It seems like basic warrior and wizard with guns on the side are the only actual options in this classless system that was supposed to open options up. 2. In fextralife’s impressions video he said he felt that the non wizard options in this game were so limited that the combat just doesn’t have many options or much fun if you don’t play a mage or spell blade type. Thinking on it yeah basically every gameplay vid I see is some kind of wizard hybrid with grim and sword, or wand and gun like in this video. How would you weigh in on this? Do you think a pure warrior build will still be a fine way to play or have they basically handicapped anyone that doesn’t want to play a wizard? I fully admit I frankly just don’t like the classless system and much prefer a well defined class system with more uniqueness in identity and playstyle between classes. I’ve seen too many classless systems claim to be about freedom and choice only to limit my playstyle since I don’t want to make a mishmash jack of all trades character.
I LOVE this universe and Pillars 2 is one of my favorite games of all time. It breaks my heart that it’ll never get a crpg sequel. That said, I’m very hopeful that this game succeeds as I need this lore and universe to continue in to the future. It’s so unique and awesome. I’m afraid if this game does poorly financially like Pillars 2, then the IP will probably be shelved permanently.
I'm very willing to buy this just to support fans of this world. I always love Obsidian dialogue and role playing and as long as that's good here, I'll have fun.
Glad I watched this. Missed the fact they added in third person view. I get motion sick from first person games without fail so I was going to cheer the studio on from a safe distance, but if a functional third person is added? Hell yea, I get to play too!
I'm LOVING the look of the inventory. Everything being all in one screen with different boxes to scroll... That feels like a UI mod that would be made to replace the previous awful UI. But it's not. It's just the native UI. Gorgeous.
cautiously optimistic about this one. The big cuts to classes and mechanics are not surprising; given the scope, but its going to require taking this game for what it is rather than what it could have been. Do still hope that classic Pillars of Eternity gets another chance some day; as I think it was one of the crpgs that handled the turn based mode the best out of the last few I played.
Carrie Patel is becoming one of my favorite developers. Everything she's worked on has been quality and her co-directing Pillars II and White March I ouldnt help but feel like she made the setting and lore a lot less dry and dour without compromising its maturity. Josh Sawyer is the GOAT but I do think Pillars 1 was a bit too somber and it took me a couple attempts to get hooked. Pillars II is much better paced and has more variety in tone and genre in its quests.
I'm looking forward to the game but I'm still disappointed that Chanter and Cipher, the two most unique classes from the Pillars of Eternity series, aren't included as options. I think the explanation at 10:00 doesn't really convince me; Ciphers build up energy hitting foes and then spend it to cast spells that often deal damage or debuff enemies, that's a pretty standard mechanic in a lot of games and would be easy to translate to a game like Avowed. Likewise, Chanters basically just switch between a 'stance' that buffs them and their team, and gradually charge up energy they can use to cast spells, many of which are your standard damage cones or summoning. Again, mechanics we've seen before in similar games. My hope is that Avowed gets expansions that include additional class trees and they do something like limit the player to 3 of them at character creation; e.g. swap the Wizard tree for Cipher.
I agree, also the answer on animancy was disappointing, a vehicle, a tool to facilitate story. Which i suppose everything is, but that combined with not having the actual unique classes or races feels to me like they want to make a more generic game and dont care as much about the setting. Hopefully I'm just wrong, but i also dont know I'm willing to spend $70 if its lost the unique aspects that made pillars interesting. Edit: I'm also hoping the philosophical tone and exploration in 1&2 that I felt was tied into animancy is still a central part of the series.
Glad that your seeing the success your seeing sir, came for the pathfinder content.... stayed for the great, no-nonsense reviews of all the games worth playing this year. Just wanted to say I appreciate ya.
Thanks for the video. Hopefully something like this does happen again. I don't share your enthuse for this title, but I am excited to see what you think of the final product. Onward to 400k. All glory to the algorithm.
Based on this, I expect to like Avowed more than I thought I would. But I doubt that it will ever be included in my personal list of top 10 or 20 favorite games of all time. We shall see in February. Terrific video. Mortismal!
I really don't want to be that guy, but I "think" those kind of things are added very late in development, but I am wrong more times then I am am right.
@@snorkman2 I hope you're right, I want this game to be awesome because I'm a huge nerd for the Pillars games and the lore of the world is one of my favorites to dive into.
I haven't completely delved into Pillars of Eternity yet but I'm really excited for Avowed. It's really interesting to hear your thoughts about it since you're a big fan of the series. Keep up the great work.
Fantastic coverage! The game has looked better every time it gets new footage. Even though I wanted a Pillars 3, this looks like it's carrying over quite a bit from those games which is really nice. Probably my most anticipated game at the moment as well. Also, congrats on getting the opportunity to preview the game. Well deserved.
Thanks for the preview Mort! Really happy to hear all the positive things about the game, because it alleviated some of my fears. One concern for me is the writing: how was it? Because that's what I care about the most.
I'm not super hyped for this game. However I also don't think it looks bad. It certainly seems like the kind of game I'd like and I'll definitely check it out on gamepass. Having said that this was excellent coverage. I feel like i understand this game much better now and am looking forward to it more than I previously was.
Looking forward to the game, although $70 is nuts honestly, BG3, Black Myth Wukong and Elden Ring didn't sell for $70, the price feels like they are really pushing people to sign up for gamepass rather than purchase it on another platform.
You are the best! I was so excited to see this in my feed. I have really high hopes for this game, and it looks like Oblivion has done an amazing job. I appreciate how much thought they put into the player’s experience and their design philosophy. I love all the ways in which this looks to have stayed true to Pillars while in a whole new play style. I think some of the changes they did make were wise. The 3rd person looks surprisingly good, and I was excited to see the way weapons/gear appear on the character. I finally tried the Pillars games because of your channel, and it has quickly become one of my favorite gaming experiences of all time. I completed the first game a few months ago and am now having a blast playing Deadfire. Just completed the Beast of Winter DLC and am hoping to have the game wrapped up by the time Avowed hits! 😁
It's got flintlocks and magic dammit I'm sold. Outward had something similar and while the build was janky and suboptimal, it was still fun figuring out how to play around it. Hopefully Avowed has a better level and quest design than the Outer Worlds.
This is the video Ive been searching for, in regards to Avowed. Information about the plot, classes and Finally 3rd person! Im excited to know more, POE is one of my favorite series and Eora a fascinating setting. Genuinely curious as to their continued commentary on religion, after the ending of PoE2 (and which ending is considered canon). Looking forward to your next set, discussing matters in detail, Mort.
I really wish they bit the bullet and made pillars 3 but if this means we get another Poe then I will be happy. Congrats on the interview and invitation bud.
Haven't watched the video yet, but judging by the comments, the game is looking good, which I'm excited about. I'm still disappointed that we are restricted to playing as only two races from the POE universe, I believe. It might be three, but I'm pretty sure it is only two. I know that mostly came down to development time and resources from what I've read, but I like playing the less human races. Haha.
Sounds just as good as I'd hoped it would be. The fact that they limited scope in some things just means they increased focus on others to me. Seems like a wise move, quality wise. Thanks for the preview.
I really hope that the cut classes at least have some abilities usable. I loved the druid storms and chanter mechanics and would like to see them in some fashion. I do very much hope they still make more crpgs
Really dissapointed that we can't make dwarf, orlan and amauan characters. Some of these races were part about making the og Pillars more distinct and since they are all humanoid I don't buy the excuse that they would be complicated to animated or anything (perhaps orlans would just need small adjustments for size). Seeing how Skyrim, which is a decent comparisong for what this games goes for, didn't have any issue with adding race variety I don't see why not here, and yes I know you are bound to be a godlike here but they can come from any other race amd you don't even have the more extreme physical variations they had in previous games.
A couple of thoughts: charging $70 for a game then saying intermediate features like character race/class are beyond the scope of it seems a bit.. wrong. Also the camera movement seems very harsh, maybe those are Mort's settings though. I'm currently playing Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and the combat is way more intense than what I am seeing here- this looks like it has Starfield-level baddies who are just lame. These enemies are just sort of standing around.
One thing's for sure: Obsidian does NOT know how to market this game themselves... Your video here made me way more confident in it than their latest fake gameplay presentation at Gamescom
No cipher, canter, Druid, sorcerer, and practically every other class in the original two games. Also, only human/elf. This game is so dumbed down, it makes Dragon Age look like a stellar rpg. Seriously, could they not just make a traditional POE experience? They need to read the room, if BG3 can sweep all the worlds game rewards then they should know there is a place for crpg’s
@@mobiusoneplays3218 yeah, I don't understand the positivity ... looking at that skill tree, it seems like a PoE 2 multiclass character had more choices to make. Let's be honest .. the reason I still paly Deadfire from time to time is the combat, and this one seems to be super simplified. Someone at Obsidian wanted to make their version of Skyrim, but that's...a game from another age. It will probably be a pass, until a sale anyway.
@@mobiusoneplays3218Read the room? Deadfire flopped on release, they didn't make profit on it until over a year after it came out. That was six years ago. Five years ago Outer Worlds came out and for all the online discussion revolves around how disappointing and mediocre it was it was more financially successful so they pivoted over to what worked and Obsidian aren't independent anymore as hands off as Microsoft are Obsidian is still beholden to them at the end of the day. Also nobody believed CRPGs could make mainstream level money or acclaim until BG3 came out just a year ago. Game development takes a long time and we won't be seeing any game with a substantial budget take any cues from BG3 for another three to four years. If we're lucky Microsoft will sign off on giving Josh Sawyer the BG3 budget he wants to make Pillars 3 but I wouldn't count on it.
It seems like they've taken the feedback constructively, the game looks pretty interesting. I'm always going to be a little disappointed they didn't make a PoE3. I hope this does well enough that they can afford to make it.
I've been super excited about Avowed ever since I saw the first gameplay footage of it. Big fan of the Pillars world, but could never get into the games due to the combat, so I'm extremely happy that there's going to be a game set in Eora that I can enjoy playing. Already pre-ordered the game as an early birthday present, since I know I'm going to love it (always loved Obsidian games and particularly their stories and choice&consequence focus).
A game I fear will get massively overshadowed in this crowded February 2025... Probably the worst launch window: a week after Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, and around a week before Monster Hunter Wilds
Would you say this feels like a significant step up from the Outer Worlds overall? What I'm hearing so far sounds like they took the best parts of that and went even harder
I was always of the opinion that the non-AA-CRPG cost of POE2 was why it sold badly, and I'm a bit concerned the increased price tag is going to hit them again here.
Congratulations for the invite, Mort! I'm still disappointed by being only able to play as a human or elf and having none of the really interesting classes from PoE 1 and 2. However it's good to see swimming and stealth though, something I do wish DA:TV would have had. The traversal does remind me a bit of DA:TV though.
Literally wanted a updated deep dive on this game the other day haha. I have always said we need more 'scrolls like' games so I am really looking forward to this game. Combat does look decent, happy to hear it feels even better; that matters so much to me.
Thanks for this! I didn't play the previous games, so this one is for me. The pre order and date trailer put me off, but seeing more bring some hope. Be wary of some UA-camrs, they name dropped you regarding Veilguard.
Cool! I don't know if it's just because of the work they clearly did on it, or if it's also an effect of seeing it in 3rd person extensively here for the first time, or possibly even because of the build you went for in your game. But the combat looks a lot more fast paced and dynamic then it seemed to me before now. Pleasantly so, imho, as this game is an action RPG. A lot still to be seen and tested, such as the significance of choices and how the story reacts to them, or what kind of tone the other, possibly darker, parts of the map have, or how fleshed out and viable are the possible builds, or the balancing, which is still a focus of developers at the moment as mentioned in the video, or the technical performance the game will end up to have for every hardware tier, ... etc. But personally, I now feel pretty good about this project, what I see and hear in this coverage feels reassuringly solid. I'm keeping those fingers crossed still... Thanks for your videos! (BTW, if you end up going to attend more preview events like this one in the future, you might consider bringing your son with you to one of them at some point. For sure it would be quite the additional load for you, of work and responsibility. But can you imagine being him in that situation? Just visiting a place like Obsidian's headquarters, not even understanding anything about it, would have been beyond magical for me at that age, especially if done together with my father)
Wanted to give Wael's body to the mushrooms in Deadfire. But wasn't allowed - even though there was a choice. So hopefully they will assert their rightful authority in the new game.
oh that is exciting, happy for You, that You had the chance to meet these guys and talk to them directly. For me Obsidian is in one camp with Larian and Owlcat, where I'm confident for the quality....and even if Skyrim'esque game is not my 1st choice I will still buy it and hope they deliver next games from that universe...which smoothly shifts to something I need to know, cause I know for certain You had the chance to ask the big question - if there is a PoE3 in the pipeline...give us some hints!! :)
I love pillars and obsidian, and I would be fine with them leaving so much of the pillars franchise out of the game due to scope, if it wasn't a triple A 70 dollar game. That really rubs me the wrong way, hearing them leaving out so much that is core to the pillars identity due to scope while charging that much for the game is kinda crazy. You telling my I'm paying that much and I can't even play the fun and original classes that PoE actually came up with? idk man
I'll have to wait and see on this. I would have preferred something more like the Pillars of Eternity games. Action combat does not agree with me, so I'll only find the game to be playable if the easiest difficulty level seriously nerfs the combat. (Dragon Age: The Veilguard really got this right - I've been spoiled by story mode + no death.) Though I don't mind engaging with turn-based or real-time-with-pause systems, combat is not my primary interest in RPGs. For me, RPGs succeed or fail on exploration, story, world building, and characters. Hopefully, Avowed will be strong in these aspects and the combat will be a non-issue. If so, then I'll probably enjoy this game, but I doubt it will top Pillars of Eternity 1 and 2. If Avowed is successful, hopefully they will take another look at creating a proper CRPG in this universe (especially if Avowed drives new sales for the first two games). The success of Baldur's Gate 3 proves that the genre is still commercially viable.
This video gives me a little more hope for the game. I'm a huge Obsidian fan and I appreciate that they manage the scope of their games in order to deliver a solid experience. A lot of AAA games hinder themselves by trying to be everything to everyone. It's also promising that they delayed the game and gave it a little more time to cook. I'll keep following and keeping my eye on this one.
Magic is amazing in Pillars. I can't wait to a wizard build in this. Hopefully there is more than one way to be a wizard. It looks like there will be plenty of DLC if it is successful.
Congratulations on being extended an invitation to physically visit the devs and play this game! That's a huge milestone for the channel!
Yes congratulations
Milestone for channel, loss for viewers. Theres too many shills already, nothing good will come out of this.
@@Hosoude22some people 😂 grats mort!!
I kind of agree, what brought me over to mort is his authenticity, but I’ve seen UA-camrs go down this road and many eventually just turn into marketing for these publishers. Hope it’s not the case for morti!
@@Hosoude22remove the tinfoil hat, open your curtains, and take a look outside.
I like that American magic is implemented in this game. Some wizards shoot fireballs, some wizards shoot lead balls.
The use of deadly wizard force.
Thought American Magic these days is getting the masses behind you with pure stupidity?
@@ReasonbyNight Putting lead in the water is American transmutation or Alchemy i guess.
@@ReasonbyNightthere's nothing magical or specifically American with that. That's just a human thing.
@@ReasonbyNight Mememagic is much older than America.
This looks so much better than what was shown a couple of months ago, restored my hype for the game to be honest.
i touched your gods and made them cry
Agreed. The earlier footage looked mediocre, this looks really great.
I still think The Outer Worlds is underrated and seeing this looking pretty good makes me hopeful that TOW2 will be what more fans wanted the first game to be. They went a little safe with that game but their goal was to have good performance at launch on a Tim Cain project, and they did that. If Avowed shows a good depth of RPG mechanics and runs pretty smooth I'll just be happy that Obsidian still has life and passion.
Same.
Dude the feedback! And it's combat is somehow engaging similar to Vermintide. I wasnt even aware they're adding Third person.
Its so sad that PoE 2 wasnt a huge success.
Its my personal favourite modern CRPG and was such an intense journey, that I couldnt stop it and when it was done I felt happy but exhausted and like let a good friend go.
Its one of the best of all time.
The way JSawyer talks about it you can tell the team has put a lot of heart into the worldbuilding. I'm pretty excited to jump in for the first time.
Poe2 has some of the best art and the single best real time with pause combat ever
They marketed it so poorly. I was a huge POE1 and Obsidian fan, followed multiple CRPG forums of the time and I barely knew about POE2 until it came out.
The quality of craftsmanship in the game was totally let down by the publishing efforts.
agree, poe 2 is fantastic, i still hold firm in opinion that poe 2 combat is the best in any rpg.
Unpopular opinion: one of the reasons PoE 2 wasn't a smash hit was because of PoE 1. The first one had some INSANE hype going into it, but the way you're introduced to the setting in general in the first game is in my opinion very overwhelming, info dump-y and confusing. I think a lot of people got the first one while swept up in the hype, ended up bouncing off of it and then not bothering with PoE 2.
A) This makes me want to go back and play more of POE2 as I never finished it
B) The game looks WAY better than what marketing originally showed, makes me much more excited to give it a shot
Tekehu wrecks all!
Same I'm actually happy with how it looks rn.
OMG third person is an option?! I was already looking forward to this game, but know that it can be played in third person makes me *SUPER* excited😁
yeah got announced roughly a year ago or so
@@kewa_design Ah, I totally missed it.
It's weird that they wouldn't put more emphasis on it. A lot of people (like me) prefer third person, because it provides more peripheral vision, and makes the game feel less tunnel-visioned.
@@tizodd6 Watch another video and they said there is noticeable frame drops in 3rd person to below 60 FPS, but still above 30 FPS. So depending how important that is to you, that could be an issue with 3rd person, and maybe a reason they haven't made a big deal about it.
Also you have to go into the menus to change between 1st and 3rd person views. So there are currently a few issues to watch for upon release.
I just wish the animation work in 3rd person wasn't so awful.
@@lexiconprime7211 yeah that kinda worries me. I really want to play this in 3rd person but it looks like Skyrim 3rd person which was just an afterthought.
Loved the PoE world setting. This game became a must buy for me when it was revealed it would take place after the events of 2. Can hardly wait for this one.
Wasn’t expecting this in my feed today. What a pleasant surprise!
Thanks for the coverage, let us hope Obsidian delivers again.
Obsidian has always over delivered while being under funded and in a time crunch.
Now they finally have a decent budget and extra time. They probably are shocked. Lol
Great video but I was hoping you could weigh in on two things for me.
1. The cut classes really annoy me because all of my favorite options seem to be the stuff that got chopped but at the same time I do understand that something like spiritshifting would be a big hassle to add. The thing I want to be sure of that I’ve seen no mention of is if monk or unarmed combat in general has also been left out. I saw a ring of transcendent suffering in one gameplay vid that was just a generic damage boost and was really disappointed. It seems like basic warrior and wizard with guns on the side are the only actual options in this classless system that was supposed to open options up.
2. In fextralife’s impressions video he said he felt that the non wizard options in this game were so limited that the combat just doesn’t have many options or much fun if you don’t play a mage or spell blade type. Thinking on it yeah basically every gameplay vid I see is some kind of wizard hybrid with grim and sword, or wand and gun like in this video. How would you weigh in on this? Do you think a pure warrior build will still be a fine way to play or have they basically handicapped anyone that doesn’t want to play a wizard?
I fully admit I frankly just don’t like the classless system and much prefer a well defined class system with more uniqueness in identity and playstyle between classes. I’ve seen too many classless systems claim to be about freedom and choice only to limit my playstyle since I don’t want to make a mishmash jack of all trades character.
did you just not pay attention? there are four skill trees, not two
I LOVE this universe and Pillars 2 is one of my favorite games of all time. It breaks my heart that it’ll never get a crpg sequel. That said, I’m very hopeful that this game succeeds as I need this lore and universe to continue in to the future. It’s so unique and awesome. I’m afraid if this game does poorly financially like Pillars 2, then the IP will probably be shelved permanently.
I'm very willing to buy this just to support fans of this world. I always love Obsidian dialogue and role playing and as long as that's good here, I'll have fun.
Pillars 2 was an initial flop but became financially successful over time. Just a slower burn
if even by turning it into action rpg it wont sell well, then for sure they will shelve it, and they will be right to do so
This is easily my most anticipated game of 2025 (so far).
I've never played a bad Obsidian game, and I know it'll be "good" at the very least.
Glad I watched this. Missed the fact they added in third person view. I get motion sick from first person games without fail so I was going to cheer the studio on from a safe distance, but if a functional third person is added? Hell yea, I get to play too!
Please be good...
I already expect more from this game than I ever will from TES VI.
Obsidians worst games are still pretty good. I have high hopes for this
It will be, it’s obsidian
@Cheddar_96 there was a time people said the same thing about Bioware.
@@geordiejones5618that's me also for TOW2 seeing Starfield
Feels as if budget constraints forced a lot of really tough design choices here.
Hmm. IDK. I liked POE's tone, aesthetics, and artwork. We'll see about this one I guess.
To me it looks exactly like Deadfire
Love how Mortism just reads out the whole interviews without footage 😂
I have close to 2000 hours on Pillars 1+2 combined. I dont care if this game isnt perfect, I need my Eora fix.
I'm LOVING the look of the inventory. Everything being all in one screen with different boxes to scroll... That feels like a UI mod that would be made to replace the previous awful UI. But it's not. It's just the native UI. Gorgeous.
Right!?!
Im glad to hear the combat feels better than it looks because i think it looks way more fun than say Skyrim combat
this video was very informative. I really wished they kept the druid wildshapes and the cipher class. it would've looked great from this perspective
cautiously optimistic about this one. The big cuts to classes and mechanics are not surprising; given the scope, but its going to require taking this game for what it is rather than what it could have been.
Do still hope that classic Pillars of Eternity gets another chance some day; as I think it was one of the crpgs that handled the turn based mode the best out of the last few I played.
No chanter was always going to be a massive disappointment for me. I absolutely loved that class and it's abilities.
Best implementation of a Bard type I've seen. Write your own music, position things like a dance. Get spells as battle goes on. So awesome.
Carrie Patel is becoming one of my favorite developers. Everything she's worked on has been quality and her co-directing Pillars II and White March I ouldnt help but feel like she made the setting and lore a lot less dry and dour without compromising its maturity. Josh Sawyer is the GOAT but I do think Pillars 1 was a bit too somber and it took me a couple attempts to get hooked. Pillars II is much better paced and has more variety in tone and genre in its quests.
I'm looking forward to the game but I'm still disappointed that Chanter and Cipher, the two most unique classes from the Pillars of Eternity series, aren't included as options. I think the explanation at 10:00 doesn't really convince me; Ciphers build up energy hitting foes and then spend it to cast spells that often deal damage or debuff enemies, that's a pretty standard mechanic in a lot of games and would be easy to translate to a game like Avowed. Likewise, Chanters basically just switch between a 'stance' that buffs them and their team, and gradually charge up energy they can use to cast spells, many of which are your standard damage cones or summoning. Again, mechanics we've seen before in similar games.
My hope is that Avowed gets expansions that include additional class trees and they do something like limit the player to 3 of them at character creation; e.g. swap the Wizard tree for Cipher.
I agree, also the answer on animancy was disappointing, a vehicle, a tool to facilitate story. Which i suppose everything is, but that combined with not having the actual unique classes or races feels to me like they want to make a more generic game and dont care as much about the setting.
Hopefully I'm just wrong, but i also dont know I'm willing to spend $70 if its lost the unique aspects that made pillars interesting.
Edit: I'm also hoping the philosophical tone and exploration in 1&2 that I felt was tied into animancy is still a central part of the series.
Shame about the price tag on the game.
Glad that your seeing the success your seeing sir, came for the pathfinder content.... stayed for the great, no-nonsense reviews of all the games worth playing this year. Just wanted to say I appreciate ya.
Finally a first person rpg with musketry, if I see a bayonet im sold.
DUDE! I love that you've gotten to the point where you getting invites to stuff and getting to interview devs!!!! That's so awesome. Congrats!
love that they are also giving us 3rd person i struggle with first person combat
This looks pretty good, coming from a fan of Obsidian, hopefully it can break out to a larger audience too.
Keeping my expectations realistic, but I have a feeling this is right up my alley
Knowing Kai was voiced by the guy that did garrus got me immediately hyped
Thanks for the video. Hopefully something like this does happen again. I don't share your enthuse for this title, but I am excited to see what you think of the final product. Onward to 400k. All glory to the algorithm.
Based on this, I expect to like Avowed more than I thought I would. But I doubt that it will ever be included in my personal list of top 10 or 20 favorite games of all time. We shall see in February. Terrific video. Mortismal!
Near zero reactivity in combat is also an issue for me. You shoot a lizard thing right in the face with a rifle and it doesn't even flinch.
I really don't want to be that guy, but I "think" those kind of things are added very late in development, but I am wrong more times then I am am right.
@@snorkman2 I hope you're right, I want this game to be awesome because I'm a huge nerd for the Pillars games and the lore of the world is one of my favorites to dive into.
Thank for this! IIs my "most awaited game" for 2025!
I haven't completely delved into Pillars of Eternity yet but I'm really excited for Avowed. It's really interesting to hear your thoughts about it since you're a big fan of the series. Keep up the great work.
Fantastic coverage! The game has looked better every time it gets new footage. Even though I wanted a Pillars 3, this looks like it's carrying over quite a bit from those games which is really nice. Probably my most anticipated game at the moment as well.
Also, congrats on getting the opportunity to preview the game. Well deserved.
Thanks for the preview Mort! Really happy to hear all the positive things about the game, because it alleviated some of my fears. One concern for me is the writing: how was it? Because that's what I care about the most.
I'm not super hyped for this game. However I also don't think it looks bad. It certainly seems like the kind of game I'd like and I'll definitely check it out on gamepass. Having said that this was excellent coverage. I feel like i understand this game much better now and am looking forward to it more than I previously was.
Damn shame they decided to cut the Cipher class, it was easily my favorite in the POE games…
Really disappointing to see no ciphers. It's one of the things that made Pillars really unique.
There's an option for third-person view? I'm sold
Looking forward to the game, although $70 is nuts honestly, BG3, Black Myth Wukong and Elden Ring didn't sell for $70, the price feels like they are really pushing people to sign up for gamepass rather than purchase it on another platform.
It appears to be coming to xbox game pass. Which is available on PC too. So quite a bit cheaper that way.
Yea if else steam regional price would be favourable here, often it's 35-45$ for AA games
@@Flincher14I’d rather buy a game once and be able to access it whenever I want
@lvsoad22 I totally get that, but microsoft owns Obsidian so it will probably never leave game pass
Maybe I'm misunderstanding you, but $70 is the standard price for most games nowadays.
You are the best! I was so excited to see this in my feed.
I have really high hopes for this game, and it looks like Oblivion has done an amazing job. I appreciate how much thought they put into the player’s experience and their design philosophy. I love all the ways in which this looks to have stayed true to Pillars while in a whole new play style. I think some of the changes they did make were wise. The 3rd person looks surprisingly good, and I was excited to see the way weapons/gear appear on the character.
I finally tried the Pillars games because of your channel, and it has quickly become one of my favorite gaming experiences of all time. I completed the first game a few months ago and am now having a blast playing Deadfire. Just completed the Beast of Winter DLC and am hoping to have the game wrapped up by the time Avowed hits! 😁
Playing outer worlds atm and i love it i hope this one makes me feel the same
It's got flintlocks and magic dammit I'm sold. Outward had something similar and while the build was janky and suboptimal, it was still fun figuring out how to play around it. Hopefully Avowed has a better level and quest design than the Outer Worlds.
This is the video Ive been searching for, in regards to Avowed. Information about the plot, classes and Finally 3rd person! Im excited to know more, POE is one of my favorite series and Eora a fascinating setting. Genuinely curious as to their continued commentary on religion, after the ending of PoE2 (and which ending is considered canon). Looking forward to your next set, discussing matters in detail, Mort.
The way it is encouraging the exploration for the chests is giving me a good feeling for the game.
I really wish they bit the bullet and made pillars 3 but if this means we get another Poe then I will be happy. Congrats on the interview and invitation bud.
Haven't watched the video yet, but judging by the comments, the game is looking good, which I'm excited about. I'm still disappointed that we are restricted to playing as only two races from the POE universe, I believe. It might be three, but I'm pretty sure it is only two. I know that mostly came down to development time and resources from what I've read, but I like playing the less human races. Haha.
Love seeing the switchup on this game Obsidian need a hit!
Finally someone talks about and actually shows third person! Thank you!
Sounds just as good as I'd hoped it would be.
The fact that they limited scope in some things just means they increased focus on others to me. Seems like a wise move, quality wise.
Thanks for the preview.
I really hope that the cut classes at least have some abilities usable. I loved the druid storms and chanter mechanics and would like to see them in some fashion.
I do very much hope they still make more crpgs
Love to see my fav gaming UA-camr getting opportunities like this. This vid got me more hyped for the game
Really dissapointed that we can't make dwarf, orlan and amauan characters. Some of these races were part about making the og Pillars more distinct and since they are all humanoid I don't buy the excuse that they would be complicated to animated or anything (perhaps orlans would just need small adjustments for size). Seeing how Skyrim, which is a decent comparisong for what this games goes for, didn't have any issue with adding race variety I don't see why not here, and yes I know you are bound to be a godlike here but they can come from any other race amd you don't even have the more extreme physical variations they had in previous games.
Great video. I’ve been super excited for this every since they released that cinematic trailer years back, looks so good now at this point
A couple of thoughts: charging $70 for a game then saying intermediate features like character race/class are beyond the scope of it seems a bit.. wrong. Also the camera movement seems very harsh, maybe those are Mort's settings though. I'm currently playing Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and the combat is way more intense than what I am seeing here- this looks like it has Starfield-level baddies who are just lame. These enemies are just sort of standing around.
amazing video and work overall.. my hype went from 9 to 11 with this te quiero mucho mortis
This looks so f ing good! This jump to my top anticipated game for 2025!
One thing's for sure: Obsidian does NOT know how to market this game themselves...
Your video here made me way more confident in it than their latest fake gameplay presentation at Gamescom
Very happy to see 3rd person and a character creator but sad there is no Aumua race available to play.
I had no idea this game took place in the POE universe, this has definitely peaked my interest and will be keeping an eye out on this game! Great vid!
whenever i finish a game i always go to this channel and find new good game lol
They really nailed the art direction. It looks like a faithful adaptation of PoE2's art, only in full 3D. Very commendable.
No options to be a cipher is a real bummer for me, my fav class, abilities, etc. also feels the most pillars like, connects to the setting well.
No cipher, canter, Druid, sorcerer, and practically every other class in the original two games. Also, only human/elf. This game is so dumbed down, it makes Dragon Age look like a stellar rpg. Seriously, could they not just make a traditional POE experience? They need to read the room, if BG3 can sweep all the worlds game rewards then they should know there is a place for crpg’s
@@mobiusoneplays3218yah without the Druid class this game might be a pass for me but I’ll have to look at what builds are possible
cutting druids was such a massive mistake. they were really fun and unique. I really hope they add more sklll-trees with DLCs or updates
@@mobiusoneplays3218 yeah, I don't understand the positivity ... looking at that skill tree, it seems like a PoE 2 multiclass character had more choices to make. Let's be honest .. the reason I still paly Deadfire from time to time is the combat, and this one seems to be super simplified. Someone at Obsidian wanted to make their version of Skyrim, but that's...a game from another age. It will probably be a pass, until a sale anyway.
@@mobiusoneplays3218Read the room? Deadfire flopped on release, they didn't make profit on it until over a year after it came out. That was six years ago. Five years ago Outer Worlds came out and for all the online discussion revolves around how disappointing and mediocre it was it was more financially successful so they pivoted over to what worked and Obsidian aren't independent anymore as hands off as Microsoft are Obsidian is still beholden to them at the end of the day.
Also nobody believed CRPGs could make mainstream level money or acclaim until BG3 came out just a year ago. Game development takes a long time and we won't be seeing any game with a substantial budget take any cues from BG3 for another three to four years. If we're lucky Microsoft will sign off on giving Josh Sawyer the BG3 budget he wants to make Pillars 3 but I wouldn't count on it.
It seems like they've taken the feedback constructively, the game looks pretty interesting. I'm always going to be a little disappointed they didn't make a PoE3. I hope this does well enough that they can afford to make it.
Good to hear it’s improving as time goes on
Looking forward to release
I'm simple, I see a new Mortismal video, I click like before clicking play.
I've been super excited about Avowed ever since I saw the first gameplay footage of it. Big fan of the Pillars world, but could never get into the games due to the combat, so I'm extremely happy that there's going to be a game set in Eora that I can enjoy playing. Already pre-ordered the game as an early birthday present, since I know I'm going to love it (always loved Obsidian games and particularly their stories and choice&consequence focus).
I hope Obsidian add the Druid class in a future update/ DLC! 🧙♂️
A game I fear will get massively overshadowed in this crowded February 2025...
Probably the worst launch window: a week after Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, and around a week before Monster Hunter Wilds
Would you say this feels like a significant step up from the Outer Worlds overall? What I'm hearing so far sounds like they took the best parts of that and went even harder
I was always of the opinion that the non-AA-CRPG cost of POE2 was why it sold badly, and I'm a bit concerned the increased price tag is going to hit them again here.
Was hoping we'd hear something from you on Avowed. Can't wait for the 100% review when it comes out.
looks super beautiful visually! hope the world will feel lived in.
Looking forward to playing this
If the game is done well and stays true to it’s lore, it will be great to enter this familiar world in a different genre.
Congratulations for the invite, Mort!
I'm still disappointed by being only able to play as a human or elf and having none of the really interesting classes from PoE 1 and 2. However it's good to see swimming and stealth though, something I do wish DA:TV would have had. The traversal does remind me a bit of DA:TV though.
Literally wanted a updated deep dive on this game the other day haha. I have always said we need more 'scrolls like' games so I am really looking forward to this game. Combat does look decent, happy to hear it feels even better; that matters so much to me.
Thanks for this! I didn't play the previous games, so this one is for me. The pre order and date trailer put me off, but seeing more bring some hope.
Be wary of some UA-camrs, they name dropped you regarding Veilguard.
I am normally a bigger fan of 3rd person, but from this footage the gameplay just seems a lot better in first person
THOROUGH preview. Deadfire is one of my fav RPGs. And this preview has me more hyped! Ty for your great work.
24:33 this is why you are awesome
I wish I had more time to replay both pillars games. Looking forward to your story content!
I'm very interested now. Thanks Obsidian for the TP mode!!
Cool!
I don't know if it's just because of the work they clearly did on it,
or if it's also an effect of seeing it in 3rd person extensively here for the first time,
or possibly even because of the build you went for in your game.
But the combat looks a lot more fast paced and dynamic then it seemed to me before now.
Pleasantly so, imho, as this game is an action RPG.
A lot still to be seen and tested,
such as the significance of choices and how the story reacts to them,
or what kind of tone the other, possibly darker, parts of the map have,
or how fleshed out and viable are the possible builds,
or the balancing, which is still a focus of developers at the moment as mentioned in the video,
or the technical performance the game will end up to have for every hardware tier,
... etc.
But personally, I now feel pretty good about this project,
what I see and hear in this coverage feels reassuringly solid.
I'm keeping those fingers crossed still...
Thanks for your videos!
(BTW,
if you end up going to attend more preview events like this one in the future,
you might consider bringing your son with you to one of them at some point.
For sure it would be quite the additional load for you, of work and responsibility.
But can you imagine being him in that situation?
Just visiting a place like Obsidian's headquarters,
not even understanding anything about it,
would have been beyond magical for me at that age,
especially if done together with my father)
Wanted to give Wael's body to the mushrooms in Deadfire. But wasn't allowed - even though there was a choice. So hopefully they will assert their rightful authority in the new game.
I liked the conversation about the developer discussions.
oh that is exciting, happy for You, that You had the chance to meet these guys and talk to them directly. For me Obsidian is in one camp with Larian and Owlcat, where I'm confident for the quality....and even if Skyrim'esque game is not my 1st choice I will still buy it and hope they deliver next games from that universe...which smoothly shifts to something I need to know, cause I know for certain You had the chance to ask the big question - if there is a PoE3 in the pipeline...give us some hints!! :)
I can’t play first person games so to see this is getting third person means I can play! Super excited
I love pillars and obsidian, and I would be fine with them leaving so much of the pillars franchise out of the game due to scope, if it wasn't a triple A 70 dollar game.
That really rubs me the wrong way, hearing them leaving out so much that is core to the pillars identity due to scope while charging that much for the game is kinda crazy.
You telling my I'm paying that much and I can't even play the fun and original classes that PoE actually came up with? idk man
I'll have to wait and see on this. I would have preferred something more like the Pillars of Eternity games. Action combat does not agree with me, so I'll only find the game to be playable if the easiest difficulty level seriously nerfs the combat. (Dragon Age: The Veilguard really got this right - I've been spoiled by story mode + no death.) Though I don't mind engaging with turn-based or real-time-with-pause systems, combat is not my primary interest in RPGs. For me, RPGs succeed or fail on exploration, story, world building, and characters. Hopefully, Avowed will be strong in these aspects and the combat will be a non-issue. If so, then I'll probably enjoy this game, but I doubt it will top Pillars of Eternity 1 and 2. If Avowed is successful, hopefully they will take another look at creating a proper CRPG in this universe (especially if Avowed drives new sales for the first two games). The success of Baldur's Gate 3 proves that the genre is still commercially viable.
This video gives me a little more hope for the game. I'm a huge Obsidian fan and I appreciate that they manage the scope of their games in order to deliver a solid experience. A lot of AAA games hinder themselves by trying to be everything to everyone. It's also promising that they delayed the game and gave it a little more time to cook. I'll keep following and keeping my eye on this one.
Thanks Mort! I can not wait to dig into this game and also to disable as much of the UI as it lets me.
Congrats on getting some hands on experience and talking to the devs! Also I’m glad this game is coming to gamepass so there’s nothing much to lose
Magic is amazing in Pillars. I can't wait to a wizard build in this. Hopefully there is more than one way to be a wizard. It looks like there will be plenty of DLC if it is successful.
I love to see this man succeed