Avowed, Obsidian Entertainment's upcoming fantasy RPG, includes a surprising optional romance featuring Kai, the game's poster boy. Despite pre-release denials from the studio, players can develop a romantic relationship with Kai after completing his companion quest, 'Battle Scars'. The romance is not as explicit as in games like Baldur's Gate 3 or Mass Effect, but it adds another layer to Kai's character arc and provides a unique experience for players.
Avowed 's companions can be romanced by the player character, a surprise given multiple pre-release warnings from Obsidian Entertainment that we shouldn't expect that feature. While not a full-blown Baldur's Gate 3 or Mass Effect-style romance with nudity at the end, the romantic subplot we've confirmed is an intriguing addition to an already compelling companion quest .
Josh Sawyer, a prominent developer at Obsidian, has long expressed disdain for romance options in games, arguing they often devolve into objectification and crass wish fulfillment. When Obsidian has included romance, it has usually leaned towards the tragic or subversive, like playing wingman for Parvati in The Outer Worlds.Obsidian explicitly denied the inclusion of romance in Avowed multiple times leading up to its release. 'We are building thoughtful relationships with our companion characters,' project lead Carrie Patel stated last January following Avowed's first gameplay reveal. 'Ultimately, I personally am a fan of making that an option, but I feel like if you're going to do it, you really, really have to commit and make sure that you're giving all to fulfilling that in a way that feels both true to the character, but also creates an engaging player experience. So not something we're doing for Avowed, but I wouldn't say never.' We haven't seen the full resolution, but there's an optional romantic element to your relationship with Kai, Avowed's poster boy and a new addition to the 'hall of fame' when it comes to... well, let's just say he's popular. After completing Kai's multi-act companion quest, 'Battle Scars', there's a debrief conversation back at camp. Afterward, I encountered a dialogue option: 'I feel like we've really gotten to know each other, haven't we?' in Kai's general dialogue tree. This initiated a conversation where you could affirm your friendship with Kai or express a desire for something more. And Kai reciprocates, essentially saying 'let's talk more about this after the final boss.' There might be another conversation down the line to fully commit, but my hunch is that this choice will primarily play out in Kai's Fallout-style epilogue card when I roll credits. Again, not Baldur's Full Monty territory, but an explicit part of Kai's story, and largely in line with what we saw in Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire's romances.What remains uncertain is whether there's any backend approval system that affects whether or not you get this option, as I'm the only one on the PC Gamer team to have seen it so far. Furthermore, we don't know if both male and female characters can pursue Kai, or if he's only interested in men. There are also indications that fellow companion Giatta might have her own romantic subplot. We'll need more progress in our playthroughs and broader player feedback to confirm these details. However, the possibility that Avowed might only have one romance revolving around a gay shark-man feels incredibly resonant and authentic to me. That's gaming, baby.
Avowed Obsidian Entertainment RPG Romance Kai Companion Quest Fantasy
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