The Xbox, being the publisher of the game, is the one running the Avowed account, which recently tweeted out that the mooted project from the creators of the Pillars of Eternity RPG, which is very eagerly waited, would come to PS5 on the 14th of November. The announcements included links for the Standard and Premium Editions, thus confirming that the long-expected port of the game has taken place which was so far only available on PC and Xbox. This move is a significant turn in Microsoft’s strategy regarding its first-party titles by providing the rival platform immediate access to one of the major Game Pass games.
The news has been delivered on Twitter with a caption like this: ‘Avowed arrives on PS5 in one month! Hold your horses!’ The audience is, at least, a bit confused. They reflect the different phases that the whole drama is unfolding in a nutshell. People like Dizzaract, who are already aboard the hype train, are telling the world that the trailers are fantastic and they are “locked and loaded.” Then comes Aaron who is hinting that the game is on his list of birthday gifts next week, but sorry pal, you will have to wait for a whole month. However, if you scroll down a little you will find yourself immersed in mayhem.
Shouting the loudest and being the most prominent reply is not the issue of gameplay story or mechanics but that of the plastic disc instead. A large number of gamers are very clear about their need for a physical release. They will not talk about anything else. In fact, The7thLevel goes as far as to say “We won’t buy if there’s no physical edition.” Players such as ChristianL40883, DiehardDet, holyrustedmeta, MetroidFREAK21, and many more are merely requesting the publishers for a box with a disc inside. TimesweGame even openly demands: “We want to make it clear that there is no physical copy.”
And no wonder, the official account has remained silent on the issue. It is quite extraordinary how passionate and loud people can be when it comes to owning something they can hold physically, especially in scenarios where the game has been released solely as a digital version on other platforms for a long time. One cannot help but speculate whether PlayStation users are just different from others in their choices or if all gamers just got exhausted of having their games confined to downloads.
Conversely, there exists the other side of the tale. A few people are very disappointed over it. TR_Delight93 perceives it as a “sad betrayal.” LukasHeinzel only exclaims “Microsoft wins again,” which is quite an odd interpretation since it is, after all, Microsoft that is making the game available on a competitor’s console? But I guess it’s got to do with the bigger “console war” issues. FIRE_GANNON_NOW is even more insulting: “L game, uninstalled.” Ouch. Balman9080 even mentions the developers just to tell them “No thanks, this game is crap.” Ruthless, but still, not all games are palatable to everyone.
A few of the gamers were inquisitive and raised valid questions about the PS5 version. GOTYOUINMYWEB is interested in the PS5 Pro enhancements in very specific terms. EndymionYT wonders if now the NPCs in towns move or not. This is a deep-cut reference to the static world which the original version received negative reviews for. tzatziki is curious if it would allow New Game Plus. Then there is the whole business side of it. EddieXavier and DavidTroche19 start asking the AI in the replies, Grok, about sales numbers.
And Grok instantly gives away a bunch of estimates: ~274k copies sold on Steam, ~$16.5M revenue, total players across both Xbox and PC more than 5 million, and development costs might be $70-100 million. The comments section has turned into a mini finance report. Grok also mentioned that Microsoft is “happy with the performance” focusing on Game Pass engagement rather than sales. So, all that noise about it being a flop? At least, numbers based on an AI’s opinion say otherwise.
KryptonFactor78 is one of those that you cannot help but feel sympathy for when he is undergoing suffering with the offset thumbsticks and the necessity of buying a £150 controller. The discussion on priorities is getting louder and louder as souvlaki420 tells him to “Get a job.” A very warm welcome to the gaming community, folks. Never change.
The announcement of Avowed’s availability on PS5 makes it pivotal in every conceivable way. Microsoft’s choice has been affected by the consideration over time it is better to have their blockbuster titles everywhere on sale than through the Game Pass.
