Avowed’s Lore Dictionary Should Be The New RPG Standard

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Although I’ve spent my childhood engrossed in role-playing games, my poor memory – much like a goldfish – has always presented a challenge when it comes to fully immersing myself in intricate games brimming with world-building and lore. This is particularly true when these games belong to established series I’m not familiar with or lack background knowledge about.

Despite efforts by developers to make reboots of established series more accessible to new players in hopes of attracting a fresh audience, I find myself struggling to immerse myself in them due to the complexity of the newly created worlds. However, Avowed stands out as an exception; it has effectively made its intricate universe understandable for people like me.

How Do Games Deal With The Problem Of Lore?

For years, role-playing game (RPG) creators have faced the challenge of making their worlds understandable for both new and seasoned players. Over time, as series expand, there’s an assumption that players are already familiar with the game’s universe, which can make it harder for newcomers to catch up. Consequently, numerous systems have been implemented, either within games or through supplementary materials, to help explain the lore more effectively.

A straightforward illustration is the codex – for many years, role-playing games (RPGs) have stored information within these. You could either begin the game with a fully stocked codex or unlock pages as you advance. I vividly recall my struggle to navigate Mass Effect’s extensive database and feeling that my brain might be on the verge of overheating and dripping out through my ears. Although they offer players in-depth insights into the lore, they also require a readiness and willingness to immerse oneself in these extensive, detailed documents.

A more engaging approach for unfolding lore within a game is by incorporating in-game documents such as diaries, audio logs, letters, or even echoes like in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. These could include tales of a Romeo and Juliet-style romance between adversarial factions. Unlike lengthy cutscenes, these smaller narratives don’t interrupt gameplay flow significantly (though pausing to read them may momentarily halt your progress), but when they align with an active quest you’re pursuing, they foster a stronger emotional attachment in the player.

In some games, similar to Baldur’s Gate 3, you may encounter knowledge checks that require a successful dice roll. These are used sparingly. On the other hand, if fortune favors you greatly, you might get to use a feature like Final Fantasy 16’s World Map, providing a broad overview of the game world.

How Does Avowed Solve The Lore Problem?

Avowed adopts a unique approach, one that’s remarkably straightforward and clear. Since I haven’t encountered any of the Pillars of Eternity series, it might seem at times like characters are speaking in complete gibberish. During interactions with NPCs, certain words will be emphasized. By clicking on these highlighted words, you can access their definition or view a record of all the emphasized terms used in the conversation and why they are significant.

In this setup, the game flows more smoothly as it avoids requiring the character to ask simple questions about the environment and then endure either lengthy explanations or being labeled as unintelligent by NPCs. Instead, it distinguishes between what the main character already knows and what the player needs to learn. This approach maintains the immersion of roleplaying and eliminates the need for players to pause the game and search for information in a manual or guidebook.

This system isn’t new – it was previously used in the Pillars of Eternity series, from which Avowed is a spin-off, and similar systems are found in Owlcat Games’ other titles, such as Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader. We even noticed an early version of this mechanic in Morrowind. However, it seems that this type of feature has become less common in RPGs today, at least not in mainstream contemporary ones outside of the CRPG genre, and definitely not in popular double-A action RPGs from the 2020s like Avowed.

It seems illogical for such a system to be confined solely to fantasy or sci-fi genres; any RPG with an extensive history could profit from providing newcomers with concise, easily digestible information. For instance, consider a Yakuza game that implemented this system and offered lore explanations about returning characters as they were encountered. This would be particularly useful given the vast array of characters in these games, even for dedicated players like myself who have invested numerous hours into the series. The complexity and expansive nature of the games and their characters can often lead to confusion, especially when there are so many titles and personalities to keep track of, and I’m only human with a limited number of brain cells!

Instead of many new installments of series simplifying themselves for novice players, let’s avoid that trend. An effectively designed in-game lore dictionary could prove useful, and it seems that more games ought to present information to players in such a manner. It’s definitely a superior choice compared to a codex.

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2025-03-11 20:05