the_dog_days

The biggest advantage of using the Watcher is not having to spend 60 hours in a 100 hour game on exposition to explain the state of the world. Put the Watcher in and slapping a '3' on there eliminates that problem. Trying to get new players up to speed while cramming exposition from 2 previous games down their throats is only going to result in an unsatisfying experience for everyone.

Whoever has to clean up now has to 1) know how everyone thinks the world works, 2) know how the world really works, & 3) have an emotional connection to the situation. The Watcher has all three. There's no need, and indeed it would feel forced to create a new character to fulfil all those requirements. You have a character in the bag, you don't need to spend an entire game on exposition to fill in the blanks, and they're ready to roll. It only makes sense that it would be the Watcher.

What we know: 1) Takes place in the Living Lands. 2) New player character. 3) Only human or elf. 4) We work for Aedyr. 5) No co-op. 6) There are companions, you can have two of them with you at a time, and they are mandatory. 7) Lots of factions from the previous games (flags in trailer). 8 ) We will meet some familiar faces from Deadfire. 9) No classes (at least for the player character). 10) We're not playing a Watcher. 11) The original CGI trailer focused on scope of the narrative. 12) The gameplay trailer focused on player power fantasy. 11) In 2021 there were rumors that the project had been rebooted. Deep Fan Zone: 12) Deadfire ended on an apocalyptic cliffhanger. What we can reasonably suspect: 1) Takes place either in between the Pillars games or after Deadfire. Why*: Elves and other races in Eora don't have magically extended**, super long lives like in other fantasy settings. That and the fact that they picked familiar faces specifically from Deadfire means that in all likelihood this is the timeframe the game takes place in. 2) Co-op was likely scrapped as part of the reboot from a few years ago. Why: Both leaks happened around the same time and it was rumored that Obsidian decided to cut back on the scope and just make a really good Obsidian game and they've never been known for their co-op games (yes, Grounded is really good but it's not their signature genre). Deep Fan Zone: 3) Their original idea was Avowed would be Pillars3-at-home. Why: There was supposed to be a POE3. Deadfire's apocalyptic cliffhanger deliberately left the door open for one more Watcher game, but initially Deadfire was considered a financial failure. Josh Sawyer as since come out and said that Deadfire's done pretty darn good over the long haul. The reboot coincides with around the time that Deadfire had turned the corner and now started to earn Obsidian a real profit. This would imply that originally Avowed was meant to sidestep the Watcher's story, present a new player character in a new series to finish the Watcher's story. 4) Avowed is no longer Pillars 3 by proxy. Why: The original CGI trailer had all this Woedica imagery and the voice over focused on 'we', the nation of Aedyr. This implies the original idea involved wars, gods, the conquest of nations, and the narrative scope was huge. The gameplay trailer focused on player power fantasy (they say 'you' 11 times in 9 sentences). The smaller scope and focus is obvious. Also, the Pillars games never sold themselves on power fantasy. It was a part of the games and the marketing, but they always focused on the lore, the world, the stories, and player choice. 5) There's real hope now of a Pillars of Eternity 3. *'Why' as in, why do we suspect this. I didn't want to have to type it out every time. **Correction: elves can live up-to 300 years old and dwarves and live up-to 190.

It sure seems like Josh Sawyer wants nothing to do with this series anymore, and given the amount of work he poured into it I can't blame him.

I played a pugilist. It was great fun. There's a bit of hide-and-seek behind objects to get enemies to come closer, but otherwise it was way more fun than my hacker.

"You have two companions with you at all times" Companions are mandatory.

The problem as I see it is that Obsidian's best stories are those told by the player. There's a lot of impinging on role-playing opportunities in that you have to play human or elf, there are no classes, your employment status is set, apparently you took an oath, and you have to have two party members with you at all times.

It's very likely that if Avowed is commercially successful, all of the cool rpg mechanics of Pillars (personality reputations, races of different heights, classes with original class mechanics, backgrounds, etc.) will get sanded away forever from the franchise. Just like with Elder Scrolls.

https://www.pcgamer.com/avowed-rpg-obsidian-preview-magic-interview/ https://www.pcgamer.com/avowed-open-world-skyrim-rpg-size/ https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2023/06/11/obsidians-avowed-is-coming-in-2024/ You have an established role as the imperial envoy, but your "personality, appearance, and philosophy and vibe you bring to that role is up to you as a player to decide" You can play as a human or an elf, but not other races It's purely singleplayer—no co-op The world is lightly systemic: think water and lightning interactions, but not the ol' bucket-on-the-head trick You'll have two companions with you at a time, with their own combat specialties and, of course, personalities There are several ability trees to progress through, and you won't be locked to a particular class or playstyle You will level up, but the focus is on unlocking abilities rather than putting points into stats to grow stronger Avowed went from a 'very interested' to 'nah'.

Looks like I can safely nope out of this one.

Much like western numerals, Japan struggles with romantic letters order. I pray for them everyday.

Wash the AI named Nikola?

Not gonna lie, I was kinda hoping it was a cooking channel.

As he should. I hate tanking.

Well, apparently there are 2 dumb franchises this year: Atlanta and Detroit 'cause both burned 1st round picks on running backs.

If this was Blizzard, I'd believe it.

These autumn season trades are only worth it if you do win a Super Bowl. I don't expect we will.

ME3 upon release is the only time I ever called in sick to play a game. An hour in and I was wondering if I should pretend to be magically cured and just go to work.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure English translation released today. Now all the Trails games up through Trails of Cold Steel 4 are available in English. Azure is the second and final game in the Crossbell arc, and imo the second best Trails game up through CS4.

Already differentiating from the Rhule era of overpaying for quarterbacks by overpaying for a quarterback.

Doesn't Lost Girls Wendy engage in incest?

I have not. I'll check it out when I get home.

Been playing Hogwarts. Not gonna lie, I haven't had a game perform this bad on PC since Cyberpunk at release. On an RTX 3080ti. Fun game but not a great port. I Also found the (few) complaints about diversity in a game world that has instant tellaportation is kinda ridiculous.

First week of the Ex-Ex-XFL in the books. Offenses were bad this week, but the St. Louis Battlehawks had a crazy comeback using the league's unique extra point and onside kick rules.