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Avowed is still in Alpha, duration of Alpha/Beta stage longest ever for Obsidian

Kurotri

Member


Still shooting for 2024, I guess it'll be a holiday release.
Edit: some quotes of the devs posts as recommended:
Codex always gives a good, wild ride! This thread is bonkers but 100% warranted. The trailer fails to show much in its 2 minute run time, which also means it fails as a trailer, many at the studio certainly agree. To clear up misconceptions though I'll say this, the game is big and open, it is unfair to compare it to OW (I think Ferg is trying to keep expectations down just in case), which I think it is nothing alike, this coming from someone who did not like much of OW, especially the art style.

The studio that did the trailer did some compression of colors and image editing, the screenshots that have been released are much more representative of what it looks like just running through it (they also are appear to be totally random shots from the game, I'm not sure why these were chosen out all the things, probably to keep spoilers at minimum). A lot of the game is being kept hidden right now, I think you will have to wait until the next trailer or some sort of presentation to really see it, but it is safe to assume it is very Obsidian, for better or for worse :lol:. No, the entire game isn't all bright and happy town, no it is not all so indistinct visually, just the spots shown in the trailer. There are lots of characters, quests, conversations, various game mechanics, big story, etc. Hopefully we can just release more shots from the game without having to worry about another trailer. I miss working on POEs where we could just leak our own shit and no one could tell us no.

I guess take that as you will. Dumpsterfire comments are bit overhype, development is going well right now, MS is allowing Obsidian free license to do as they will, and if it is success or fails it'll be on Obsidian's own terms.
All I can say is the game has not entered Alpha yet, art will get refined in various ways. Lighting will change. Though designs will not change of course. They are what they are.
On previous projects Alpha periods were sometimes just a few months long. This is actually the longest we'll have for Alpha/Beta period for any game at Obsidian by a longshot, and is good news.
 
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ANDS

King of Gaslighting
It certainly looks it. Game looks like a bog standard "first person fantasy game" and has no charm whatsoever; if they are still working on the game art aesthetic and identity then that's great.

. . .because it is non-existent in what we saw from that trailer (it honestly reminds me more of OUTER WORLDS which makes sense if they are fashioning these games in the same manner).
 

Robb

Gold Member
That’s good news at least. Some sections of the latest trailer looked pretty awful.

Although I’m not sure if that’s because it’s not finished or if it’s the ”style” they’re going for.. Hoping for the former.
 
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Calverz

Member
It certainly looks it. Game looks like a bog standard "first person fantasy game" and has no charm whatsoever; if they are still working on the game art aesthetic and identity then that's great.

. . .because it is non-existent in what we saw from that trailer (it honestly reminds me more of OUTER WORLDS which makes sense if they are fashioning these games in the same manner).
Completely disagree with this. The other option is to make the game look more like Skyrim or final fantasy 16. No thanks. I thought it looked great.
 

StereoVsn

Member
Yeah, didn't like that new reveal at all. Instead of Obsidian's take on Skyrim, much like they did with New Vegas, we got Obsidian's Outer Worlds but Magic.

That's utterly disappointing. I guess it makes sense considering their dev issues with the game, but that doesn't make it better. Outer Worlds was limited in scope, absent memorable characters, had mediocre overall story and even combat/looting were meh.

Oh well, guess we will see in a year and a half or so what happens next.
 

Bernkastel

Ask me about my fanboy energy!
OP should include his RPG codex posts instead of Klobrille's tweets.
Codex always gives a good, wild ride! This thread is bonkers but 100% warranted. The trailer fails to show much in its 2 minute run time, which also means it fails as a trailer, many at the studio certainly agree. To clear up misconceptions though I'll say this, the game is big and open, it is unfair to compare it to OW (I think Ferg is trying to keep expectations down just in case), which I think it is nothing alike, this coming from someone who did not like much of OW, especially the art style.

The studio that did the trailer did some compression of colors and image editing, the screenshots that have been released are much more representative of what it looks like just running through it (they also are appear to be totally random shots from the game, I'm not sure why these were chosen out all the things, probably to keep spoilers at minimum). A lot of the game is being kept hidden right now, I think you will have to wait until the next trailer or some sort of presentation to really see it, but it is safe to assume it is very Obsidian, for better or for worse :lol:. No, the entire game isn't all bright and happy town, no it is not all so indistinct visually, just the spots shown in the trailer. There are lots of characters, quests, conversations, various game mechanics, big story, etc. Hopefully we can just release more shots from the game without having to worry about another trailer. I miss working on POEs where we could just leak our own shit and no one could tell us no.

I guess take that as you will. Dumpsterfire comments are bit overhype, development is going well right now, MS is allowing Obsidian free license to do as they will, and if it is success or fails it'll be on Obsidian's own terms.
All I can say is the game has not entered Alpha yet, art will get refined in various ways. Lighting will change. Though designs will not change of course. They are what they are.
Alpha? Ouch.
On previous projects Alpha periods were sometimes just a few months long. This is actually the longest we'll have for Alpha/Beta period for any game at Obsidian by a longshot, and is good news.
You know like those that Destiny First Look Alpha and then the Beta? They seem to have a different definition of Alpha/Beta than what you are thinking. If this is just few months long like those public Alpha/Beta of MMOs, then they are still on track for 2024.
 
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Zathalus

Member
What Alpha/Beta means is different for each company. Not even Alpha can mean the game is out in 4 years or it could be out end of the year. With the advent of early access the definition becomes even more muddled.
 
I am quoting a dev from Obsidian. You seem to think they are only starting development because he said "alpha". He himself clarified what he meant by "alpha".
meaningless.

"Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me".

"Being a fanboy makes you stupid" (not you).

we had example after example of bullshit statements over the years. people never learn.
 

bender

What time is it?
With hookers and black jack.
angry-bender-mad.gif
 

Bernkastel

Ask me about my fanboy energy!
meaningless.

"Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me".

"Being a fanboy makes you stupid" (not you).

we had example after example of bullshit statements over the years. people never learn.
You are saying the game will be delayed based on a dev'a quote of the game being in alpha. But believe that the same dev's quote in the same thread about there alpha only lasting a few months is a "bullshit statement"?
 

Ozriel

M$FT
Obsidian has an excellent track record, and everything out there points to the game coming along nicely.

Only thing really to take from this is their insistence that the final game will look much better than the trailer. That’s pretty much it, and it’s great news since the trailer looked visually unimpressive.
 

gothmog

Gold Member
I mean I want it as soon as possible, but I also want it to be fully baked. I'm smelling 2025 based on this news.
 

Verchod

Member
I think those people that are worried really shouldn't be. From what we've seen, I think the gameplay will be solid, and the magic combat looks interesting.
Too much doom mongering going on.
 

ANDS

King of Gaslighting
Completely disagree with this. The other option is to make the game look more like Skyrim or final fantasy 16. No thanks. I thought it looked great.

Completely disagree with your disagree. The options for medieval fantasy aesthetic isn't just "Bethesda" of "SENIX." Take a look at Pillars of Eternity I or II (which this game is based on) and how Obsidian brought an aesthetic style to the isometric genre. That game has a great deal of class and character that is nowhere to be seen in the Avowed gameplay trailer.
 

Ozriel

M$FT
Saying it will probably be delayed if it's in alpha right now is a shit post? Okay.

Yeah.

uf5GPHB.jpg


Dev at Obsidian who said it’s in Alpha also points out that it’s usually a few months long, and they’ll be taking time to polish the game. All part of the exact same game development roadmap behind the 2024 release date announced.

You with zero knowledge of the game development: “I smell delay to 2025”


Keep in mind typical beta stages take 3-6 months and it’s hard to see how anything we’ve heard today screams ‘delay’


Again, the only thing we can take away from this discussion is that there’s scope for them to improve the visuals, which was the key issue most had with the Showcase trailer
 
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Calverz

Member
Completely disagree with your disagree. The options for medieval fantasy aesthetic isn't just "Bethesda" of "SENIX." Take a look at Pillars of Eternity I or II (which this game is based on) and how Obsidian brought an aesthetic style to the isometric genre. That game has a great deal of class and character that is nowhere to be seen in the Avowed gameplay trailer.
That’s fair enough but this is 3D. I thought it had character with the enemy design and the saturated colours. We can agree to disagree.
 

night13x

Member
GOOD.

The redfall / gollum absolute disaster was a message to any and all developers/publishers out there that the age of rushing out absolute trash to gain a buck is over. Games like TotK and FF16 went through an entire year after game completion of just bug sqashing and optimizations - and look it may be the 2 goty head to head contenders this year. If a dev needs an extra year to ensure that they can push out the best game possible - I am all for it.
 
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gothmog

Gold Member
Yeah.

uf5GPHB.jpg


Dev at Obsidian who said it’s in Alpha also points out that it’s usually a few months long, and they’ll be taking time to polish the game. All part of the exact same game development roadmap behind the 2024 release date announced.

You with zero knowledge of the game development: “I smell delay to 2025”


Keep in mind typical beta stages take 3-6 months and it’s hard to see how anything we’ve heard today screams ‘delay’


Again, the only thing we can take away from this discussion is that there’s scope for them to improve the visuals, which was the key issue most had with the Showcase trailer
They bounced Starfield a year for polish and that's looking like a really good decision. You really don't think this game has any possibility of being released in early 2025 if it's looking rough?
 

Ozriel

M$FT
They bounced Starfield a year for polish and that's looking like a really good decision. You really don't think this game has any possibility of being released in early 2025 if it's looking rough?

Not sure what Starfield’s roadmap has to do with Avowed, not to mention the fact that the release year is only just getting announced for 2024.

If it looks ‘rough’, it’s because it’s still in development.
 

StereoVsn

Member
Completely disagree with your disagree. The options for medieval fantasy aesthetic isn't just "Bethesda" of "SENIX." Take a look at Pillars of Eternity I or II (which this game is based on) and how Obsidian brought an aesthetic style to the isometric genre. That game has a great deal of class and character that is nowhere to be seen in the Avowed gameplay trailer.
Yep, the colorful BS, jokey atmosphere and references to Outer World should make people wary of this.

And hell, at least if they went for Obsidian's Skyrim, much like New Vegas was Obsidian's Fallout, it would have been much more ambitious and interesting.

I mean I would take PoE 3 instead of Fantasy Outer Worlds they seem to be going for. Mind you, I would love to be proven wrong, but after game after game coming out and disappointing, my trust reserve is running on empty.
 

M1chl

Currently Gif and Meme Champion
But Obsidian is the one of the few studios which so far released games for MS, so I guess it took the toll on this big project. I just wish they would drop the cringe fantasy world and gave us New Vegas or Alpha Protocol. Fuck the jank, include it as well, I don't care.
 

feynoob

Banned
Not sure what Starfield’s roadmap has to do with Avowed, not to mention the fact that the release year is only just getting announced for 2024.

If it looks ‘rough’, it’s because it’s still in development.
Starfield had multiple delays (Original date was 2021) and look how that turned out.
Avowed could use some of those delays.
 

Topher

Gold Member
Personally I hope they push it back to 2025. I don't think anyone wants another Redfall situation.
 

Ozriel

M$FT
Starfield had multiple delays (Original date was 2021) and look how that turned out.
You're pretty much saying all games in development should go through multiple delays since that seems to have worked for Starfield.

Avowed could use some of those delays.

Why?

Personally I hope they push it back to 2025. I don't think anyone wants another Redfall situation.

Why would there be any danger of a 'Redfall situation' for a game that's reportedly coming along quite well, made by a studio with an excellent reputation and In a genre the devs are quite comfortable with?

Game is still in alpha in mid 2023? Probably a 2025 launch.

Dev : "Our alphas typically take a few months for all our games and we've deliberately planned for a robust alpha/beta stage to make sure the game comes out very well "

You: "lies. Everyone knows alpha stage takes years and the game is in trouble"
 

Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
Where are we today? With Redfall, it was "they should have delayed" and Miyamoto quoted over and over

"A delayed game is eventually a good game, a rushed game is forever bad"

But in this instance we're going to wring hands and say they ought to rush it?

Or just decide the game IS already getting delayed by a year, apropos nothing?

Cool Cool Cool Community GIF
 
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