Xbox has ramped up its RPG game in recent years, mostly thanks to acquiring a number of studios with serious pedigrees in the genre. When Bethesda, Obsidian, and inXile are all under one umbrella, there's a lot to work with, and even Forza Horizon studio Playground Games is now entering the space with the upcoming Fable reboot.
Admittedly, progress has been slow in some areas, with Bethesda failing to put out a new mainline Fallout or Elder Scrolls game in the years since the acquisition. One Xbox RPG that did make it to the finish line is now confirmed for a sequel, however, and the follow-up might have even more potential.
Amid concerns about layoffs at Xbox studios, Obsidian Entertainment co-founder Chris Avellone shared on X that "There most certainly is an Avowed 2 in production," offering the biggest confirmation yet of a sequel to the 2025 fantasy RPG. While Avellone left Obsidian over a decade ago, he certainly has the connections necessary to make this intel reliable.
Avellone also offered up a bit of behind-the-scenes speculation, claiming that "George Ziets is believed to be heading up the creative." This would mark a departure from the first game, which was directed by Carrie Patel (no longer at Obsidian) and written by Kate Dollarhyde and Robert Lo.
Ziets is best known as the director of Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer, a well-received expansion pack for the iconic D&D RPG. He also contributed to the writing for the acclaimed Obsidian RPGs Fallout: New Vegas and Pillars of Eternity (set in the same universe as Avowed), along with inXile's Torment: Tides of Numenera.
Avowed has a lot of shortcomings, and its relatively streamlined nature won some RPG fans and alienated others. All the same, while the early writing isn't Obsidian's best, it eventually develops into a potent experience that makes the most of a fascinating world. A sequel could provide the perfect opportunity to build on its strengths, and with Ziets at the helm, there's a lot to be optimistic about.
Hopefully, Obsidian will be able to deliver on the project's potential and dodge the immediate effects of the expected layoffs and potential studio closures at Xbox. It might not be the Fallout: New Vegas sequel that a large portion of the fan base is begging for, but Avowed 2 could still end up being one of the best RPGs to come out of the Xbox studio environment.
