When the trailer for Obsidian Entertainment’sAvoweddropped last year, fans were quick to notice the similarities toSkyrim. The game’s first-person perspective, medieval fantasy world, ands the history between Obsidian and Bethesda led many to conclude that Obsidian was developing an RPG with the specific intent of taking onThe Elder Scrolls.
Although groundbreaking,Skyrimis approaching its ten-year anniversary.Avowedwill need to push the first-person fantasy genre far beyond where it was a decade ago if it’s going to compete withThe Elder Scrollsseries. IfAvowedis going to take things to the next level, it needs dungeons that blowSkyrim’s out of the water.
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Beyond Skyrim’s Dungeon Design
Skyrim’s dungeons are not poorly designed by any means, but it isn’t long into the game before they begin to get somewhat predictable. A large Nord tomb will almost always begin with winding underground crypts leading to a larger cave system, which in turn leads to a “puzzle” door which can only be opened with aDragon Claw. Beyond the door is a final fight, a world wall, and a conveniently placed secret door which leads right back to the entrance.
Dwemer ruins tend to be the most expansive and varied in their design, butAvowedwill need to do much more than emulateSkyrim’s best dungeon experiences. With evidence thatAvowedmay be further along in developmentthan fans think, here are just some of the ways Obsidian could redefine the dungeon-diving experience for the next generation.
Avowedis set in the same world as Obsidian’sPillars of EternityCRPGs. InPillars of Eternity, some dungeons are not designed to be completed in a single run through. In the first game, for example, players come across the 15 story “mega-dungeon” the Endless Paths of Od Nua, which gets progressively more difficult the further the player descends, requiring them to return throughout the story.Avowedcould find success combining elements ofSkyrim’s andPillars of Eternity’s dungeon design.
Lessons From Pillars Of Eternity
While returning to the same mega-dungeon could risk feeling repetitive, it also creates a far greater sense of accomplishment.The Endless Paths of Od Nuafeels like a nearly insurmountable challenge to conquer, a dungeon that is genuinely intimidating and keeps the player in suspense, wondering what mysteries the next level might entail.
The Endless Paths of Od Nua is an Adra pillar, an underground tower built into the vein of a magical mineral by an ancient civilization known as the Engwithans. Adra pillars are known to extend under the surface of the setting’s entire world. AlthoughAvowedwill take place inthe Living Lands, far away from the Endless Paths of Od Nua, it seems likely that players will get to explore expansive Engwithan ruins in the game.
Hopefully the potential return of mega-dungeons will give each dungeon a more unique personality than those found ingames likeSkyrim. To make them more unique,Avowed’s dungeons should have their own puzzles which require more thought than matching the symbols on a Dragon Claw to those on a puzzle door.
Pillars of Eternityalready has some great unique puzzles. Even small dungeons like the ruins under Cilant Lis have multiroom puzzles that require more thought thanSkyrim’s Dragon Claws without being frustratingly difficult. The Cilant Lis puzzle requires the player to investigate a mural showing howthe Engwithansbypassed their traps and then follow in their footsteps.Avowedneeds to entrust its players with a tough range of dungeon puzzles if every dungeon is going to feel like it tells its own story.
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Next-Gen Dungeon-Diving in Avowed
Avowedshould also adopt some of the more dynamic NPC logic found in some ofPillars of Eternity’s dungeons. InSkyrim, players might find a dungeon filled with bandits. As any stealth archer knows, it’s relatively easy to pick offSkyrim’s dungeon enemies one by one without the NPCs noticing or meaningfully changing their behavior in response. In the first room ofBleak Falls Barrow, for example, the player can stealth-kill some of the bandits sitting around a campfire, but once the player is fully hidden the survivors will happily return to their original positions.
In contrast, the Deadlight dungeon inPillars of Eternity 2: Deadfirehas enemies that are far more logically organized. If player enters the Deadlight dungeon and attacks one of its patrolling guards, they will sound a horn which will turn the entire dungeon hostile.Avowedshould take this a step further. The game’s NPC AI needs to be smart enough that players can lure enemies between different rooms. If the player kills a group of NPCs and one escapes, that escapee should run to where they know their allies are, instead of hanging around like a sitting duck. Some NPCs could even be making progress through the dungeon themselves.
Many ofSkyrim’s dungeonslead the player through a clear linear path to the end, which in turn loops back to the start of the dungeon. Just asAvowed’s AI could be more dynamic, the upcoming RPG’s dungeons could be more open in floor plan, allowing players to approach problems from multiple angles. A dungeon could present the player with two choices, for example: tackle a difficult puzzle which leads deeper into the dungeon, or try and take another route to the same location that is guarded by more enemies.Avowedplayers should have to keep their wits about them, rather than simply moving forward and killing every NPC they run across.
Avowed’s trailer implies that the player character will be fighting some huge, powerful monsters lying in wait beneath the setting’s surface. Dungeon boss-fights against unique NPCs with special abilities, phases, and ways of using their dungeon environment to their advantage would make a great change toSkyrim’s dungeons, which usually end in a Draugr Lord,Dragon Priest, or Dwarven Centurian.
It appears that significant progress has already been made developingAvowed’s dungeons. Fans can only hope that Obsidian chose to keep some of the unique dungeon design found inPillars of Eternity. It may seem risky to move away from theElder Scrolls formula, but those risks could be just what helpsAvowedstep out ofSkyrim’s shadow.
Avowedis in development for PC and Xbox Series X.
