I generally ignoreXboxAchievements altogether, but when I recently beatAvowed,the sheer silliness of how these digital milestones represent tasks in video games really hit home. When a major game likeAvowedis released on Game Pass, millions of players might try the game out, but relatively few will stick it out to the end. This can create several misleading impressions where Achievements are concerned. It might appear that completing a game is far harder than the percentages indicate, or that hardly any players are taking highly intuitive actions in the game. Achievements badly skew many players’ perceptions.
Some fans seek out theeasiest Achievements in Xbox video games, as if there was some kind of value in having a high Gamerscore. When Achievements were introduced for Xbox games and Trophies for PlayStation titles, I never really understood the appeal, beyond some vague novelty value, but Achievements clearly hold meaning with some players. It would never have occurred to me that a fan might choose between ecosystems and storefronts based on something as nebulous as Achievements, but clearly the system resonates with certain players. For those not bought into the Achievement life, they are often an unwelcome distraction.
Avowed’s Achievements Can Be Fun, But Immersion-Breaking
Achievements Can Make Players Second Guess Their Choices In Games
There are plenty ofgreat Fighter tree builds inAvowed, and making a straightforward martial character suited my playstyle. I was surprised that when I maximized Might,I received an achievement for maximizing any statistic, but I was even moresurprised at how rare this achievement seemed to be, clocking in at less than 5 percent at the time I unlocked it. Abilities only go up to 15 inAvowed, and the game is generous with ability points and the ability to respec for a low price. This Achievement had me briefly second guessing my choices, instead of Achievements themselves.
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When a game likeAvowedhas a very rare endingthat requires specific choices made throughout the playthrough of the story, I expect that to be a rare Achievement, not basic things any player would do in the course of beating the game.Avowedwas a perfect length, at 28 hours from beginning to end for me, soit seemed implausible that more players would not have completed its storythan the slim percentage the Achievement showed. It’s then I realized that I was spending time analyzing how other players approached the game instead of fully immersing myself into experiencing the ending.
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Extremely Uncommon Achievements Are Not Necessarily Difficult To Obtain
Avowed Learned The Best Lesson From The Outer Worlds' Biggest Shortcoming, & Obsidian’s Next Game Should Too
Obsidian is best known for its storytelling. The Outer Worlds failed to showcase this skill, with its forced humor and fear of “political” messages.
ThoughAvowedis an excellent Action RPG, RPGs are not everyone’s cup of tea. Many players who are not fans of Obsidian’s signature style of storytelling, or who do not enjoy first-person Western-style RPGs like theElder Scrollsseries and recentFalloutgames, may have still triedAvoweddue to the buzz surrounding it. These players who dip their toe into a game, but never truly engage with it certainly weigh into the numbers, meaningall Achievement percentages should be taken with a grain of salt. Even with a relatively short game likeAvowed, many players will never beat it.
For those who enjoy video games on their own terms, XboxAchievements are immersion-breaking and irksome; great game experiences likeAvowedare their own achievement.
I had every reason totry outBalataroon Game Pass, even though I know card-based games are not my forte. If any extremely simple, low-hanging fruit-style Achievements inBalataroshow up for you with strangely low completion percentages, I probably contributed towards that. One could decide to mentally adjust Achievement figures, factoring in the percentage of players who use Game Pass games as a sample cart instead of a meal.My preferred approach is to ignore Achievements altogether, as they are an immersion-breaking distraction, not a source of satisfaction.
A Game Like Avowed Is Its Own Reward
Beating A Great RPG Is Satisfying, With Or Without Achievements Popping Up
Someplayers did not likeAvowed’s humor, though it was positively restrained compared toThe Outer Worlds. I feltAvowedfound an ideal way to make use of humor to humanize its characters, not to diminish the stakes of its story. I was highly invested in seeing the story of The Envoy through to its conclusion and shaping the fate of The Living Lands. It isentirely irrational to allow an Achievement to pull me out of enjoying the conclusion of a highly satisfying game, but seeing the completion percentage still caused my heart to sink, becauseAvoweddeserves completion.
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Game Pass received an amazing day-one released RPG with Avowed. PlayStation Plus getting Dragon Age 4 next month is a solid counter for RPG fans.
Video games are a leisure hobby, and there is no wrong way to have fun with such things, butAchievements will never make sense to me. People enjoyed video games when the only achievement was a high score or making it to the end credits. There are video game fans who enjoy video games on their own merits, and others who chase Achievements and a Gamerscore, without much concern for the quality of an individual game’s experience. For those who enjoy video games on their own terms, XboxAchievements are immersion-breaking and irksome; great game experiences likeAvowedare their own achievement.
