Summary
Obsidian Entertainment certainly hasn’t been shy about divulging as much information as it possibly can aboutAvowedahead of its release, providing followers with extensive deep dives into its gameplay, story, and characters in showcases and podcasts in an effort to whet appetites and build anticipation. Plenty ofAvowed’s gameplaymechanics have been revealed during these events, with one of the more recent presentations spilling more about the game’s gear upgrade system. Using a handful of materials they collect throughout the Living Lands inAvowed, players can upgrade their weapons and armor to better suit them in combat, but there may be a unique catch to it all if the system isn’t balanced well.
The idea of upgrading gear in a role-playing game makes sense, but it often encounters a pitfall thatAvowedhas just as much a chance of falling into if it’s not careful. In short,Avowed’s gear upgrade system will need to make every upgrade worthwhile in order to encourage players to thoroughly invest in and take advantage of it while it still matters, and there are a couple of ways it can ensure this happens.
Avowed’s Gear Upgrade System Needs to Be Worth Every Penny
Avowed Needs a Balanced Abundance of Upgrade Materials to Discourage Players From Hoarding Them
One of the most common issuesrole-playing gameswith gear upgrade systems likeAvowed’s run into is that their crafting materials are either extremely scarce or the risk and security of using them are not defined clearly enough to encourage players to spend said materials on upgrading their gear. As a result, players hoard their materials until the end of the game when it no longer matters, and the weapons and armor they could have upgraded are carelessly dismantled for more materials or even sold for profit. While simply filling the world with more than enough upgrade materials might sound like an easy way to fix this issue, there is still a balance to it all that would need to be considered first.
IfAvowedrecklessly throws at the player every upgrade material they could ever need, it would simultaneously reduce the reward of finding rare materials that can provide better upgrades. On the flip side, if players discover that rarer materials are far too hard to come by, they might feel inclined to hold on to those materials rather than use them on the gear they currently have. After all, if there is a piece of gear around the corner with better base stats, it would make more sense to save rare materials for that gear than to use it on something inferior. This is ultimately whereAvowedneeds to strike a balancebetween its upgrade materials and the gear players find throughout the Living Lands.
Every Gear Upgrade in Avowed Needs to Carry Its Weight
If a player invests materials and currency in a piece of gear inAvowed, it needs to carry its weight. Specifically, once weapons or armor are upgraded inAvowed, they should be objectively better than anything players might find soon after. There is arguably no greater pain than spending a pool of resources on improving gear, only for it to be immediately replaceable by a piece of gear lying in wait around the corner — unless, of course, a game is built around loot, liketheDiabloseries. This means that obtainable gear inAvowedneeds to be patiently progressive to allow the gear upgrade system to actually be something of value to players.
Avowedisn’t necessarily centered around gear and loot, but the presence of an upgrade system for gear suggests at least some emphasis on what the player wears and fights with. As such,Avowed’s gearupgrade system needs the world’s crafting materials to strike a balance between abundant and rewarding, and its upgrades need to last long enough to make each one worth it.
