Avowed, a first-person RPG from Obsidian, mixes and matches several RPG standards in its approach to companion characters and its story. Before getting into the details, an interview this week with game director Carrie Patel and gameplay director Gabe Paramo revealed the following basics about Avowed's companion and party management:

Avowed takes place in the Pillars of Eternity's CRPG, but its approach to companions and party management is similar to Mass Effect and Obsidian's Fallout: New Vegas. They may help you in combat, but they do not give you detailed instructions or control you directly.

"They have moment-to-moment gameplay combat capabilities," Paramo said. 'They also have the ability to interact with their environment outside of combat. And they can be commanded to exercise those abilities both in and out of combat.

"We don't want players to feel like they have to micromanage their party," Patel said. 'So, yes, they certainly have the ability to do that, and it's very helpful. But we don't want them to feel like they have to pull up pause and move them around every 30 seconds. [Like in "Baldur's Gate 3," you won't be walking by a hand sticking out of a portal, shrugging it off, and leaving yourself to Gale's fate.

"You can join them a little earlier or a little later, but they will all be in the party by a certain known point in the game," Patel said, "which makes them a little more involved in the events and conversations and all the action that is happening. We can involve them a little more intricately in the events, the conversations, all the action that's going on."

As was recently well-received in "Baldur's Gate 3," the party camp will be a place for "heart-to-heart" conversations. But don't expect romance. Although it didn't come up in the interview, it is not Obsidian's taste, nor is there an "approval system" that allows companions to like the player character.

"There is definitely quest-based interaction [with companions] and each has a personal arc. As with all of our games, talking to them through [that arc] and influencing a particular course or another will shape their story and perhaps how they see some of their personal challenges."

"We did not adopt a rigid approval system. We didn't want players to feel like they had to make the "right" choices to keep their friends. So it's not about maintaining their approval, but getting to know them, building a relationship with them, finding commonalities and strengths, so they learn something from you, the player character, and you get a little of their perspective on the world.

The interview also revealed Avowed's combat, which seems to follow Vermintide, and its "classless" level system. Xbox also posted a commentary by Patel and Paramo on the recently released gameplay trailer for Avowed.

A release date for Avowed has not yet been confirmed, but it is scheduled for release this fall.