I kind of agree, what brought me over to mort is his authenticity, but I’ve seen RUclipsrs go down this road and many eventually just turn into marketing for these publishers. Hope it’s not the case for morti!
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
Also gave me the impetus to go finish PoE2 as well. Also, I didn't even know that Avowed was part of the Pillars universe so that was some very pleasant news.
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.
@@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
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.
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.
@@geordiejones5618 Same here. I'm part of the "never preorder" crowd, but I want to see more Pillars, and I have faith in these guys. I'll continue trusting them until they live long enough to become the villain.
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.
Yep. Their explanation isn't an answer. It's an excuse. They stripped out 3 of the most unique things about Eora, and are trying to sell this as a continuity of that world? Color me skeptical.
@@Argo.nautica I love the world of Eora but animancy and the unique classes like Changer and Cipher were big draws for me. My first PoE 1 character was a Cipher who used rifles while my PoE 2 character I actually managed to finish the game with was a Chanter (Troubadour) who went sword & shield. I have a dozen games where I can play a wizard with a sword, I only had one game where I could sing a dragon into existence to burn my foes.
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.
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 can see Chanter going against the octane, this-or-that combat ethos (meaning you don't need to time your phrases or worry about their resource costs), and we already saw that Spiritshift would be too resource-intensive. Paladin may be too rigid for your more defined background as the Envoy, though maybe I lack imagination since there are already different character backgrounds. Shieldbearers of St. Elcga and Steel Garrote paladins are Aedyran, right? As someone who knows nothing about game development, I arrogantly think Cipher or some of its abilities would've been easy to add compared to the other classes, starting with a glowing weapon + essence/focus generation on every weapon hit. The Focus route would probably demand its own tree, however, and the essence generation may compete with the Wizard abilities they already implemented. It'd be funny to pair Soul Whip with Blast, stunning enemies and stealing their essence for a Pull of Eora pull-stun-blast loop. The Godlike skill tree may actually incorporate Cipher-esque abilities since both seem to be sorcerers with innate soul powers. After all, everyone always says Cipher is THE thematic choice for a Watcher. The Dreamscourge seems to corrupt minds, so the Envoy, maybe depending on their story choices, could have their own version of Whispers of Treason or Ringleader.
Some how I feel the issue with magic is the demo they all played wasn’t very long. Like he even said about the lighting hand gun I’d bet other unique and more impactful ranged/melee options exist just not in the couple hours the demo covered. Difference is magic just feels more impactful from moment one. I mean if you got a fireball scroll it be more awesome than the starter gun
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.
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.
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!
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
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! What a nice surprise. Congrats on what sounds like an experience of a lifetime! I'm happy for you... and look forward to hearing more about Avowed. It's at the top of my most anticipated projects, too. All the best!
I'm really happy for the channel. Your are one of the few review tubers who we can trust to not shill despite being invited to events like the one you went to. Recording interviews is one of the harder things to do well. Especially if you want to include video.
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.
Fantastic vid. Awesome of the devs to reach out to true experts like you. Truly happy for you Mortismal. Picked up the first games based on your reviews. Will be getting this too.
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.
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.
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.
@@EloyBushida Well sadly, Obsidian's last affair into a first-person perspective was Outer Worlds and it... was mixed. Felt out of date and unresponsive; not great and it looked very similar to this with fewer flashy effects.
Maybe it's tied to the stats? Like stun/stagger chance in Skyrim or Cyberpunk. I might've missed something, but I feel like this is a problem with a lot of action RPGs. If the enemies get staggered/hitstunned with every hit, then they wouldn't be able to fight back if you keep spamming the attack. It's great for games like Devil may Cry, but in an RPG, it'll make levels and stats pointless. Why would you want to level up if we can just stunlock every enemy we encounter? Dark Souls enemies get stunned, but you have to manage stamina so you can't keep combo-ing them.
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! 😁
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!
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.
Agree I'm guessing it wouldve been hard to implement it without it just being a wizard a 1st/3rd person rpg maybe in the future if they don't axe the franchise again
Gratz on being invited by Microsoft/Obsidian. That's a great achievement! I'm cautiously optimistic about this game. I hope this game lives up to it's legacy and treats the PoE stories with respect.
definetly gonna need a refresher on all that PoE lore but the more I hear about this game the more confident I'm feeling that it's going to be good. Thanks for sharing this, fingers crossed Avowed ends up being amazing!
I wasn't super hyped until I played The Outer Worlds just recently. Man I needed that. I'll take a small and focused game over some ridiculous procedural monstrosity ANY day. I'm hyped. That I can use guns is just gravy!
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.
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.
22:51 This price point really requires more than two playable races and more than 20 hours of gameplay. Why would I ever consider paying this much when there are many indie titles that provide entertainment for fractions of the price? Putting faith into a company who is currently having Microsoft as their publisher is not something I'd recommend to anyone.
This looks so much more promising than the previous preview. I truly loved pillars of eternity one and deadfire and love Eora as a setting. Definitely checking this one out, and more excited for it than I was for dragon age.
You know you're doing something right when Xbox invites you out to test their games. Always enjoy your content and how down to earth you present yourself. Keep up the good work man!
Hearing that the traditional class system from Pillars was cut is devastating to hear because I loved playing Ciphers and seeing how they added so much value to dialogue as well as killing my hope for being able to play a Steel Garrote paladin like I had done in Deadfire. I'll love whatever I get because it's Eora, but I'm feel cautious about how good the game actually is after this
I thought this game was only 1st person. Started watching your video and while seeing the footage had to double check that Avowed was the game I was thinking about. This footage looks very different from what they showed previously. And I like what I'm seeig now much, much better than what was shown previously.
I'm a little disappointed they didn't Finnish poe storyline it was meant to have one more game to wrap up the storyline of the watcher but instead they gave us this
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.
Honestly I haven't been interested in this game since they tossed out the CRPG gameplay and then I find out the companions and classes are smaller in scope & romance and personal relationships were tossed out so I wasn't too interested in this game. This video has however single-handedly caused me to re-evaluate my thoughts regarding this a bit. I don't know if I'm ready to bite the bullet and pick the game up on release (especially now with the price they are pushing) but my complete disinterest has shifted to slight interest. I really hope Pillars of Eternity 3 as a CRPG would return someday though. Hell I think I would actually be more interested in Outer Worlds as a CRPG because that's a series I did not like game play of; Got bored real quick but then again I think I'm just not a fan of these types of games in general anymore. I think my niche is CRPG, SRPG, & JRPG the rest of it just doesn't interest me as much.
Hey man im sure you get this a lot but I am just such a huge fan of the way you make videos. I watch everything you make, and while I don't always agree with your takes, I always feel like I can get where you're coming from and why in a very rational way, and I think that is such a rare point of view for a RUclipsr. You're an awesome dude and I think you make the internet a better place.
I'm so excited for this game! You are my favorite RUclips reviewer. I've never once detected bias from you, and I appreciate that. Please keep up the good work. There are so many sellouts now days.
Thanks for directly addressing the 3rd person view, especially the fact that you can be in 3rd person even in combat! (Of course also for showing that)
Love how I’m getting like a Baldurs Gate mixed with Skyrim vibe. I may be way off, but that’s how I’m feeling about this game. And it feels goooooooood. 😊
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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 RUclipsrs 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.
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.
Also gave me the impetus to go finish PoE2 as well. Also, I didn't even know that Avowed was part of the Pillars universe so that was some very pleasant news.
I actually was planning on replaying both PoE myself before Avowed comes out. Just to get into the world again.
ekera
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.
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.
It's funny to think of a threequel taking place after the 2nd game as a surprise.
@@surelychordophonic Probably mostly because it's in first person instead of third. This could've easily just been a reboot.
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
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!?!
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
@@geordiejones5618 Same here. I'm part of the "never preorder" crowd, but I want to see more Pillars, and I have faith in these guys. I'll continue trusting them until they live long enough to become the villain.
Wasn’t expecting this in my feed today. What a pleasant surprise!
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.
Yep. Their explanation isn't an answer. It's an excuse. They stripped out 3 of the most unique things about Eora, and are trying to sell this as a continuity of that world?
Color me skeptical.
@@Argo.nautica I love the world of Eora but animancy and the unique classes like Changer and Cipher were big draws for me. My first PoE 1 character was a Cipher who used rifles while my PoE 2 character I actually managed to finish the game with was a Chanter (Troubadour) who went sword & shield. I have a dozen games where I can play a wizard with a sword, I only had one game where I could sing a dragon into existence to burn my foes.
love that they are also giving us 3rd person i struggle with first person combat
I have close to 2000 hours on Pillars 1+2 combined. I dont care if this game isnt perfect, I need my Eora fix.
How the heck did you play two single player rpgs that much? Mods?
@@khelgarironfist3301 What can I say, they're extremely replayable. Plus PoE 1 has been out for almost a decade now.
And I will soon play poi 1 for the first won’t play two tho don’t like the changes they did with the whole exploration
Finally someone talks about and actually shows third person! Thank you!
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.
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.
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
Looks and feels more arcade-ish to me from the videos unfortunately.
Unreal Engine soft-modern style game
PoE and PoE2 had some originality and didn't look like every other game pumped out on UE engine
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!
Im glad to hear the combat feels better than it looks because i think it looks way more fun than say Skyrim combat
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
This looks pretty good, coming from a fan of Obsidian, hopefully it can break out to a larger audience too.
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.
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 can see Chanter going against the octane, this-or-that combat ethos (meaning you don't need to time your phrases or worry about their resource costs), and we already saw that Spiritshift would be too resource-intensive. Paladin may be too rigid for your more defined background as the Envoy, though maybe I lack imagination since there are already different character backgrounds. Shieldbearers of St. Elcga and Steel Garrote paladins are Aedyran, right?
As someone who knows nothing about game development, I arrogantly think Cipher or some of its abilities would've been easy to add compared to the other classes, starting with a glowing weapon + essence/focus generation on every weapon hit. The Focus route would probably demand its own tree, however, and the essence generation may compete with the Wizard abilities they already implemented. It'd be funny to pair Soul Whip with Blast, stunning enemies and stealing their essence for a Pull of Eora pull-stun-blast loop.
The Godlike skill tree may actually incorporate Cipher-esque abilities since both seem to be sorcerers with innate soul powers. After all, everyone always says Cipher is THE thematic choice for a Watcher. The Dreamscourge seems to corrupt minds, so the Envoy, maybe depending on their story choices, could have their own version of Whispers of Treason or Ringleader.
Some how I feel the issue with magic is the demo they all played wasn’t very long.
Like he even said about the lighting hand gun I’d bet other unique and more impactful ranged/melee options exist just not in the couple hours the demo covered.
Difference is magic just feels more impactful from moment one. I mean if you got a fireball scroll it be more awesome than the starter gun
There is unarmed combat , they showed a while ago, it looked really good imo
@ awesome! I must’ve just missed that.
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.
Keeping my expectations realistic, but I have a feeling this is right up my alley
Feels as if budget constraints forced a lot of really tough design choices here.
That's Obsidian's comfort zone.
So just like in Outer Worlds which gimped its potential.
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.
Love how Mortism just reads out the whole interviews without footage 😂
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!
We're in the same boat, man.
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.
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.
I want Pillars of Eternity III : '(
Playing outer worlds atm and i love it i hope this one makes me feel the same
Love seeing the switchup on this game Obsidian need a hit!
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.
Very happy to see 3rd person and a character creator but sad there is no Aumua race available to play.
It's amazing that you were able to meet up with the guys at Obsidian! You've earned it though, definitely. Love your channel, man!
There's an option for third-person view? I'm sold
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.
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
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
Maybe dlc
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! What a nice surprise. Congrats on what sounds like an experience of a lifetime! I'm happy for you... and look forward to hearing more about Avowed. It's at the top of my most anticipated projects, too. All the best!
I love to see this man succeed
I'm really happy for the channel. Your are one of the few review tubers who we can trust to not shill despite being invited to events like the one you went to.
Recording interviews is one of the harder things to do well. Especially if you want to include video.
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.
Fantastic vid. Awesome of the devs to reach out to true experts like you. Truly happy for you Mortismal. Picked up the first games based on your reviews. Will be getting this too.
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
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.
I'm curious about this game. Definitely going to stick around and listen to what you have to say in the future.
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.
@@EloyBushida Well sadly, Obsidian's last affair into a first-person perspective was Outer Worlds and it... was mixed. Felt out of date and unresponsive; not great and it looked very similar to this with fewer flashy effects.
Maybe it's tied to the stats? Like stun/stagger chance in Skyrim or Cyberpunk.
I might've missed something, but I feel like this is a problem with a lot of action RPGs. If the enemies get staggered/hitstunned with every hit, then they wouldn't be able to fight back if you keep spamming the attack. It's great for games like Devil may Cry, but in an RPG, it'll make levels and stats pointless. Why would you want to level up if we can just stunlock every enemy we encounter? Dark Souls enemies get stunned, but you have to manage stamina so you can't keep combo-ing them.
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! 😁
The UI screen shake on cast is a terrible choice
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!
Very thorough, thanks for putting this up. This is my first time here and I'm interested in the game so I'm subscribing.
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 prefer the somber tone, but I'm glad more people like the recent game's feel. They're trending upwards! I do adore Deadfire's environments.
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
Really disappointing to see no ciphers. It's one of the things that made Pillars really unique.
Agree I'm guessing it wouldve been hard to implement it without it just being a wizard a 1st/3rd person rpg maybe in the future if they don't axe the franchise again
Considering we have no idea when FFVII Remake part 3 will be released, this has become my most anticipated game as well.
Damn shame they decided to cut the Cipher class, it was easily my favorite in the POE games…
Thank for this! IIs my "most awaited game" for 2025!
Congrats on the invitation that’s so cool! I’m so excited for this game especially after playing the first pillars of eternity game recently
Gratz on being invited by Microsoft/Obsidian. That's a great achievement! I'm cautiously optimistic about this game. I hope this game lives up to it's legacy and treats the PoE stories with respect.
definetly gonna need a refresher on all that PoE lore but the more I hear about this game the more confident I'm feeling that it's going to be good. Thanks for sharing this, fingers crossed Avowed ends up being amazing!
I wasn't super hyped until I played The Outer Worlds just recently. Man I needed that. I'll take a small and focused game over some ridiculous procedural monstrosity ANY day.
I'm hyped. That I can use guns is just gravy!
I appreciate the third person camera option. First person games give me motion sickness. I am hyped for this!
Shame about the price tag on the game.
You are the only actual Pillars fan to preview the game, so your approval means a lot.
24:33 this is why you are awesome
I'm thrilled they added third person. Now, we just need more race options, particularly Orlan, and I'll buy the game.
Looking forward to playing this
Great preview! Really looking forward to this one, even though I bounced off of the Pillars series previously.
It’s great that the Xbox company got to meet Mort.
The way it is encouraging the exploration for the chests is giving me a good feeling for the game.
I don’t know why, but the UI bothers me so much; It feel like it is aesthetically disconnected from the theme of the game.
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 cant be an orlan?? 😢
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.
22:51 This price point really requires more than two playable races and more than 20 hours of gameplay. Why would I ever consider paying this much when there are many indie titles that provide entertainment for fractions of the price? Putting faith into a company who is currently having Microsoft as their publisher is not something I'd recommend to anyone.
Send me the indie titles please. Wanna add to my backlog
This looks so much more promising than the previous preview. I truly loved pillars of eternity one and deadfire and love Eora as a setting. Definitely checking this one out, and more excited for it than I was for dragon age.
Holy shit this looks great! Obsidian making a big return!
To be completely honest. The arquebus gunplay has me the most excited.
You know you're doing something right when Xbox invites you out to test their games. Always enjoy your content and how down to earth you present yourself. Keep up the good work man!
Thanks Mort! I can not wait to dig into this game and also to disable as much of the UI as it lets me.
Hearing that the traditional class system from Pillars was cut is devastating to hear because I loved playing Ciphers and seeing how they added so much value to dialogue as well as killing my hope for being able to play a Steel Garrote paladin like I had done in Deadfire. I'll love whatever I get because it's Eora, but I'm feel cautious about how good the game actually is after this
I thought this game was only 1st person. Started watching your video and while seeing the footage had to double check that Avowed was the game I was thinking about. This footage looks very different from what they showed previously. And I like what I'm seeig now much, much better than what was shown previously.
I'm a little disappointed they didn't Finnish poe storyline it was meant to have one more game to wrap up the storyline of the watcher but instead they gave us this
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.
Honestly I haven't been interested in this game since they tossed out the CRPG gameplay and then I find out the companions and classes are smaller in scope & romance and personal relationships were tossed out so I wasn't too interested in this game. This video has however single-handedly caused me to re-evaluate my thoughts regarding this a bit. I don't know if I'm ready to bite the bullet and pick the game up on release (especially now with the price they are pushing) but my complete disinterest has shifted to slight interest.
I really hope Pillars of Eternity 3 as a CRPG would return someday though. Hell I think I would actually be more interested in Outer Worlds as a CRPG because that's a series I did not like game play of; Got bored real quick but then again I think I'm just not a fan of these types of games in general anymore. I think my niche is CRPG, SRPG, & JRPG the rest of it just doesn't interest me as much.
Well the game is coming to gamepass on pc! so you could play on that without fear of investing in a full purchase if you end up disappointed.
Knowing Kai was voiced by the guy that did garrus got me immediately hyped
“Touched by the gods” that ummm doesn’t sound pleasant:(
Hey man im sure you get this a lot but I am just such a huge fan of the way you make videos. I watch everything you make, and while I don't always agree with your takes, I always feel like I can get where you're coming from and why in a very rational way, and I think that is such a rare point of view for a RUclipsr. You're an awesome dude and I think you make the internet a better place.
I appreciate that!
It's nice that you're channel has gained some "street cred". Honestly, I am more optimistic now for the game. Thank you for the video!
I'm so excited for this game! You are my favorite RUclips reviewer. I've never once detected bias from you, and I appreciate that. Please keep up the good work. There are so many sellouts now days.
Thanks for directly addressing the 3rd person view, especially the fact that you can be in 3rd person even in combat! (Of course also for showing that)
Love to see my fav gaming RUclipsr getting opportunities like this. This vid got me more hyped for the game
Love how I’m getting like a Baldurs Gate mixed with Skyrim vibe. I may be way off, but that’s how I’m feeling about this game. And it feels goooooooood. 😊