Xbox Game Studios have a lot of titles without release windows right now. Aside from the Perfect Dark reboot and The Outer Worlds 2, there's also Avowed on the way from Obsidian Entertainment. Since Outer Worlds 2 is an Obsidian project, as is the Early Access title Grounded, it's no surprise that Avowed has avoided the spotlight so far. Even so, it seems some information about Avowed may have made its way out thanks to a reputable insider who claims to have seen Avowed's recent progress.

Windows Central editor Jez Corden recently claimed that he has seen Avowed's progress and expects the game to release sometime in the first half of 2023. That's big news for fans eager to see Obsidian's newest fantasy RPG, but it's also important because of Microsoft's other upcoming RPGs. Playground Games' Fable revival doesn't have a release date either, and for some time now it's been unclear how Fable and Avowed will accommodate one another. If Corden's guess about Avowed's release window is accurate, fans may have a better sense of when Fable might come out.

RELATED: Avowed's Biggest Competition May Be Starfield, Not The Elder Scrolls 6

Scheduling Avowed and Fable

avowed

In a YouTube interview, Corden claimed that he saw a functional build of Avowed sometime around May 2021. Corden says he got a good look at Avowed's combat and magic system in the build, which makes it sound like Obsidian has already made a lot of progress. Because Avowed's status was strong in the middle of last year, Corden expects more news about the game to start coming out in 2022, leading up to a release in early 2023. That window is just an educated guess, but it sounds plausible since Starfield would probably like to keep the attention of Xbox users for a couple of months after Bethesda releases it in November.

An early 2023 release window would also say a lot about Microsoft's order of fantasy RPG releases. Fable and Avowed probably won't release around the same time, since then the Xbox RPGs would be competing directly. A late 2023 release target for Fable also makes sense because Playground Games has been hiring lots of developers for major positions since it was announced. If Playground is still tweaking Fable's development team, Fable probably needs more development time than Avowed.

RELATED: What to Expect From Obsidian Entertainment in 2022

An Emerging Xbox Calendar

A fairy landing next to a skull and a rusty sword in the forest during the Fable 4 announcement trailer

It's impossible to say for sure if Corden's guess will be accurate, but there's one more clue that suggests he might be on the right track. In November 2021, tons of Microsoft games saw their release dates potentially leaked through Nvidia GeForce Now, including Avowed and Fable. According to those leaks, Avowed would release in December 2022, while Fable would take until October 2023. While the specific dates are likely just placeholders, they could hint at the windows Microsoft has in mind. Avowed's late 2022 date lines up pretty well with Corden's early 2023 estimate, and Fable's leaked date seems especially plausible with that being the case.

Microsoft's long-term Xbox Series X game release schedule is murky, and odds are it will only get clearer in bits and pieces over time. It's clear that the Xbox Series X's upcoming games need a lot of work to live up to their ambitions, so they'll keep moving slowly for the foreseeable future. If nothing else, fans have leaks and insider tips to potentially clue them on Avowed and Fable's future. Hopefully Avowed will make a triumphant return sometime in 2022 in order to buy time for Microsoft's other fantasy RPGs.

Avowed is in development for PC and Xbox Series X/S.

MORE: How Fable's Reboot Should Handle the Heroes' Guild