Let me start with a confession: my Xbox Series S has spent most of its life pretending to be a very expensive paperweight. I’m a child of the Xbox 360 era. I bought Microsoft’s little white box hoping for that old magic. Instead I got Starfield, which disappointed me, Halo Infinite, which launched as a mess, and Hellblade 2, which arrived to shrugs. I’m not a Forza person. Even STALKER 2, a game I actually like, showed up so buggy that I needed a hotfix and a nap just to enjoy it.
Then Avowed happened. Fast-forward to 2026, and my Series S finally has a reason to light up.
It’s the Closest Thing to a Skyrim Successor I’ve Felt in Years
I love Baldur’s Gate 3. But sometimes I don’t want a 200-hour character sheet. Sometimes I want Skyrim’s blockbuster simplicity: wander off, poke a cave, fight a skeleton, and find a sword that is only slightly better than the sword I already have. That loop is magic. Avowed looked like it understood that magic.
The previews were glowing. I tried to resist them, the same way I try to resist buying snacks at the checkout aisle. I failed. Obsidian seemed to deliver a gorgeous world full of genuinely fun content. The exploration wasn't just a checkbox. It had that sense of discovery Skyrim nailed more than a decade ago.
Obsidian also has a track record of sharpening a formula without ruining the charm. Fallout: New Vegas kept Fallout 3's bones and added sharper writing and more meaningful choices. Avowed could do the same for Skyrim. That's a very exciting sentence to type.
Veilguard Did Some Things Well, but Avowed Feels Like the Antidote
I enjoyed chunks of Dragon Age: The Veilguard. It looked great. Combat was breezy. Some companions were delightful. But when the credits rolled, I realized I wanted more than a pretty amusement park. I wanted choices that actually mattered. I wanted exploration with worthwhile loot. I wanted the freedom to be a little bit of a menace.
Veilguard’s companions were so aggressively pleasant that the game sometimes felt like a fantasy HR retreat. You couldn’t really be mean. Conflict felt impossible. Romance felt like a surface-level mini-game. It was fun, sure, but it left a strange hole in the middle of the experience.
Avowed promised to right those wrongs. Your character creation choices get referenced early. Exploration is a bigger focus. And, crucially, you can be genuinely rude to your companions. I’m not saying I plan to berate my digital friends for sport. But the option matters. It makes the world feel like a place where relationships can have friction and then heal, rather than a customer service call where everyone must smile.
Here’s my very scientific summary:
| What I wanted | Veilguard | Avowed |
|---|---|---|
| Choices that matter | Occasionally cosmetic | Referenced from the start |
| Permission to be mean | Not really | Yes, and I love it |
| Exploration depth | Pretty but shallow loot | Satisfying discovery |
| Companion tension | HR-approved sweetness | Morally complex |
Finally, an Xbox Exclusive That Feels Like a Reason to Own the Console
PlayStation and Xbox have both fumbled exclusives lately. I can just about justify my PS5. My Series S, though, remained practically unused. That’s not an exaggeration. I dusted it more often than I played it.
If Avowed had existed before I bought the console, I genuinely believe I would have purchased an Xbox specifically for it. That feels like a huge deal. It also works as a wonderful tide-me-over while I wait for Elder Scrolls 6 and the rest of Xbox’s intriguing slate: Fable, South of Midnight, Towerborne, and Perfect Dark. That’s a delicious lineup.
Now that Avowed has been out since February 2025, my optimism wasn’t just hype. It gives me that old Skyrim brain itch. I boot it up for ten minutes, and suddenly it’s 2 a.m. My companions are mildly disappointed in me, and I have a backpack full of shiny junk. Perfect.
I hope other Xbox owners got more use out of their consoles than I did. For a while I felt like an outlier, not vibing with Microsoft’s recent output. But Avowed has finally let me board the Xbox hype train without feeling like I’m faking it. There’s a very real chance it becomes one of my all-time favorites.
My Series S has been rescued. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have skeletons to fight and companions to lovingly annoy. 🕹️
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