Obsidian Misread the Room With Avowed 2, and It’s Going to Cost Them

Obsidian might be lining up its next big swing, and it might not be the one you expect. The chatter says the studio is leaning toward an Avowed sequel instead of circling back to The Outer Worlds right away. Let’s break what’s rumor, what’s reasonable, and where the fanbase actually is on all this.

The rumor mill

According to former Obsidian dev Chris Avellone and another well-known industry leaker on X, Obsidian is seriously considering Avowed 2 as its next push. There are also stray whispers about The Outer Worlds 2 DLC which, to be blunt, doesn’t make a ton of sense since The Outer Worlds 2 hasn’t shipped yet. File that part under noise.

• Avowed 2 is reportedly greenlit or close to it internally, with Obsidian weighing it ahead of more Outer Worlds content.
• Avowed drew a mixed response: plenty of praise for moment-to-moment gameplay, but the story didn’t land for a lot of players.
• The first game reportedly went through major course corrections during development, which tracks with how uneven the final package felt to some.
• Avowed is said to have hit around 5.9 million players, largely via Game Pass. Big number, yes. Proof of deep affection? Not necessarily.
• Obsidian is a multi-team studio, so it’s possible different groups split across Avowed and The Outer Worlds. That’s speculation, but plausible.
• Pillars of Eternity is sitting right there as another house IP, but it doesn’t seem to be the priority in these conversations.
• Fans remain split: some liked Avowed and would absolutely take a sequel; others bounced hard off the writing.
• A chunk of the audience still beats the drum for a Fallout: New Vegas follow-up, especially now that Microsoft owns both Bethesda and Obsidian.
• The "safe" commercial play might look like more The Outer Worlds, but the current rumor points to Avowed 2 being next up.

So… Avowed didn’t totally click, but we might get more of it

Avowed wasn’t a disaster, but it wasn’t the grand-slam RPG some expected from Obsidian either. The combat systems and activity loop had meat on the bone; the narrative side just didn’t hit the studio’s usual high mark. That disconnect is exactly why the idea of doubling down with a sequel will surprise some people. Then again, if Microsoft believes the first game’s best ideas can be refined and the story tuned up, a second pass could be the fix rather than the risk.

The Outer Worlds 2 status check

Quick sanity note: The Outer Worlds 2 is announced, not released. Claims about DLC for it right now are… let’s say optimistic. It’s possible Obsidian is building toward that universe in parallel, but banking on DLC for a game that isn’t out would be bizarre.

Where fans are at

The community really is split. There’s a vocal camp that enjoyed Avowed enough to want more, and another that felt shortchanged by the storytelling. The one consistent complaint you see pop up: the writing didn’t feel like peak Obsidian. On the flip side, Fallout: New Vegas remains the gold standard in a lot of minds, and there’s perennial hope that Microsoft connects the dots for a sequel. Whether that’s realistic is another conversation.

My read

If the rumor is right and Avowed 2 is moving, the logic is pretty clear: take a foundation that worked moment to moment, fix the narrative and cohesion issues, and try to turn a solid base into a signature RPG. It’s not the safe, obvious move like leaning harder into The Outer Worlds, but it could be the smarter one if Obsidian thinks they left a lot of upside on the table the first time.

Bottom line: nothing official yet, but the smoke around Avowed 2 keeps getting thicker. If Obsidian wants a do-over, I’m not mad at that — just make the story sing this time.