Avowed is Obsidian Entertainment's upcoming action-RPG. The studio is widely known for its library of well-regarded RPGs, particularly its work on the Fallout series with 2010's New Vegas, often cited as an outstanding entry in both the series and genre overall. Obsidian then pivoted and announced a new epic fantasy IP, Pillars of Eternity, a CRPG that was, at the time, the most highly backed Kickstarter game, and released in 2015. A direct sequel, Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire, followed in 2018. Avowed will be set in the PoE world, rooted in its lore and history, which will naturally inform much of what players might expect to experience in it in that regard.
Avowed also marks a return to an open-world first person design, although Obsidian has taken care to point out Avowed's smaller scale compared to similar titles like Skyrim to temper expectations. Still, the studio's extremely detailed and crafted worlds, characters, and plotlines are famous, something that arguably does rival The Elder Scrolls, et al. Recently, on January 18 at the Xbox Developer Direct showcase, more was shown off about Avowed's mechanics and quest design, but little elaboration on where it actually fits within the greater PoE tale, specifically its time frame, leaving space for speculation in this area.
Avowed's Possible Place in the Pillars of Eternity Timeline
Pillars of Eternity and Avowed's Shared Setting of Eora
Both Pillars of Eternity titles take place in Eora, an expansive land composed of various kingdoms and free states, with all the colorful backstory, machinations, and political maneuvering that usually goes along with Obsidian's narratives and setup. The narrative also looks more deeply into the ramifications of a magic and soul-powered fantasy world, and the morality thereof. The original PoE was in the former colonial outreaches of the powerful and influential Aedyr Empire, while Deadfire saw fans exploring an archipelago consisting of a variety of local societies and foreign governmental interests occupying it and overseeing their respective ambitions.
Where Avowed Might Fall on the Pillars of Eternity Timeline
Pillars of Eternity's Aedyr Empire is one of the most advanced and long-ruling monarchies in its world. Avowed is stated to be set in the region of the Living Lands that's under the Empire's control, but which players have not directly visited previously. It still remains unclear when in Eora's time this will be, and this factor is perhaps more important than usual due to PoE's established events.
After the revelations discovered in Deadfire's jaw-dropping ending, the stakes were left quite high to continue on from, and its implications are not localized, but instead likely to affect the entirety of Eora. Given that, Avowed has a bigger task than most in balancing this out while being accommodating to newcomers who might be unfamiliar with Pillars of Eternity. A possibly safe but reasonable choice might be to place Avowed in the middle of PoE's events. This would allow it to feature some already seen incidents and consequences, while still leaving plenty of room for its story taking place prior to Deadfire's massive cliffhanger.
Alternatively, Avowed being far in the past or centuries into the future, while keeping the Aedyr Empire present in some manner, would also provide a number of interesting and plausible avenues. In that case, it might show the rise of the Empire and how it attained its prominent position, or in the latter, how it dealt with the wake of Deadfire's outcome. While its exact timeline remains clouded at the moment, fans can likely expect more details about Avowed leading up to its release later this year, which may eventually shed more light on the question.
