Obsidian's Avowed, now available in early access, has players exploring the Living Lands and encountering magic, peril, and surprisingly, romance. While Obsidian previously stated Avowed wouldn't feature a dedicated romance system, opting instead for "thoughtful relationships" with companions, early access reveals at least one companion, Kai, develops romantic feelings for the player character.
This contradicts earlier statements by Avowed game director Carrie Patel, who, in an IGN interview, explained their decision to avoid a traditional romance system: "We are building thoughtful relationships with our companion characters," Patel stated. "Ultimately, I personally am a fan of making that an option, but I feel like if you're going to do it, you really, really have to commit and make sure that you're giving all to fulfilling that in a way that feels both true to the character, but also creates an engaging player experience. So not something we're doing for Avowed, but I wouldn't say never."
However, early player reports and reviews indicate a romantic subplot with Kai is present. Significant spoilers for interactions with Kai follow. Readers wishing to avoid spoilers should stop reading here.
Warning! Avowed spoilers ahead!
