Avowed wasn't delayed "because Obsidian needed the time" to improve the RPG, but rather because "they'll use the time"

As Obsidian Entertainment continues working on Avowed for its 2025 release date, Microsoft Gaming lead Phil Spencer reveals why the RPG recently suffered a delay - and it seems it has nothing to do with quality concerns.

Originally scheduled to launch sometime this year, Avowed was delayed a few months ago to February 18, 2025, with Xbox saying it wanted  "to give players' backlogs some breathing room" before its release. Since then, not much has been said about the delay - until now, that is. Speaking in a recent interview with Game File, Spencer describes the company's reasoning behind the delay in further detail.

"We can afford it when we have the Diablo expansion, then Black Ops, then Indy [and the Great Circle]," he explains. "We didn’t move it because Obsidian needed the time. They’ll use the time." According to the CEO, the choice to delay Avowed kicked into gear after he spoke to Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty to "plan it out" and after both leads consulted "with the Game Pass team."

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Spencer says the decision then came to "make sure we pace this out a little better." It makes sense - after all, other monumental releases like Stalker 2 and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle are dropping on Game Pass day one this year. I'm sure it doesn't hurt to give the team at Obsidian more time to cook, however. With possible story endings said to be somewhere in the double digits, the RPG sounds massive.

Check our roundup of other new games coming this year and beyond for even more to look forward to.