No matter how important or popular they are, no one person is responsible for a video game being big, popular, and well-received. Games are oftentimes made by scores, if not hundreds, of developers, but a lot of gamers may associate one person with the studio the most. For example, it’s impossible to think Bethesda without thinking about Todd Howard or Pete Hines, Naughty Dog without Neil Druckmann, or Epic Games without Tim Sweeney.
For Obsidian Entertainment, that association goes to Josh Sawyer. His experience at Obsidian, as well as prior to it, has led him to work on some of the biggest RPGs out there, such as Icewind Dale, Neverwinter Nights 2, Fallout: New Vegas, Pillars of Eternity, and The Outer Worlds in some capacity. More specifically, Sawyer was the project director and lead designer for Fallout: New Vegas, known for later publicly releasing his own mod for the game. Pillars of Eternity is also his creation, having convinced Obsidian to use Kickstarter to fund the project, and it set records at the time.
With all of this in mind, there is a secret project at Obsidian Entertainment led by Josh Sawyer (while also maintaining his role as studio design director). This project has been mentioned once or twice in passing, but it has not been officially showcased. Thanks to these mentions, there are a few things fans know about this project, even if it’s not too much. It is secret after all.
Obsidian Entertainment and Josh Sawyer’s Project
Some context comes from other figures at Obsidian Entertainment. Since its acquisition by Microsoft, the studio has proven to be a busy beaver. Right now, for example, fans know that Grounded is still getting support, and both Avowed and The Outer Worlds 2 are in development. Obsidian Feargus Urquhart once joked that the studio has between one and forty games in development.
Obviously, there are not forty games in development, but Avowed, The Outer Worlds 2, and this project make at least three. There could be more at some stage, but that’s the bottom line. Grounded’s Adam Brennecke once said that Obsidian has several big RPGs in development, and that means this project could be another big RPG. It’s not definitive but it’s also a specialty of the studio, so it wouldn’t be surprising.
The first direct mention came after the announcement of Avowed. As many know, Avowed shares a world with Pillars of Eternity, and many were surprised to see that Sawyer wasn’t directly attached. He dabbles in a lot of things in his role as studio design director, but is not a major part of this project. His response at the time was that he does have his own project, it’s just not Avowed.
This led some to believe that it could be The Outer Worlds 2, but that too has since been announced. He’s not directly attached to it either. The most recent comment of this project came recently in a response to a viral Twitter trend about the last 5 games someone has played. Sawyer answered, but also mentioned that he’s played the unreleased Avowed, The Outer Worlds 2, and his project.
This means they are all in a playable state, but key context is missing. To what extent they are playable isn’t answered, meaning it could be anything from a small test sandbox to a concrete area or beyond. Based on this information, it does seem like it could be the furthest away. It was mentioned shortly after Avowed but has not received an official announcement. The Outer Worlds 2 was announced before it.
It's not the safest bet, but of three, it may be the furthest behind in development. Avowed has been quiet for the past year, and The Outer Worlds 2 was very self-aware about its state when it was announced. Based on this, fans know that it has been in development for a year, but it could also have started before then or perhaps even before the Microsoft acquisition. The latter seems unlikely, but at the same time, it’s still a headscratcher.
As such, Josh Sawyer’s project, should it live to see the light of day (considering the nature of video game development) is likely far away. Avowed could be out before fans hear of it in a public matter. Or perhaps it’ll come sooner. The only thing known for sure about it is that it’s Sawyer’s project, it's in development at Obsidian, and it has been kept hush-hush.
Speculation About Obsidian Entertainment’s Secret Project
From here on out, it’s tinfoil hat territory. While it could be anything, many fans know what it isn’t and have had ideas on what it could be. For example, while it seems obvious, it’s not Avowed or The Outer Worlds 2. That also helps eliminate possibilities based on Obsidian’s catalog. Another one it’s not is a South Park game, as while Obsidian made The Stick of Truth, a new South Park game has already been confirmed at an in-house studio.
Others think that it could be Pillars of Eternity 3, and there’s a real possibility there. However, with Avowed taking place in Eora, it seems unlikely the company would be working on two games based on the same IP at the exact same time. Based on this, and based on Obsidian’s backlog, it’s possible to narrow down further possibilities.
The most likely situation seems to be that it’s a new IP. Obsidian has been working on a ton of games in this vein lately, such as Grounded, The Outer Worlds, and Avowed (sort of), and it would make sense if he led his own new project to help define the future of Obsidian. As it is also the most catch-all possibility, the likelihood of this seems higher.
Looking at rumors can take fans into further tinfoil hat territory. Because Obsidian worked on KOTOR 2, because Lucasfilm Games is back and pushing Star Wars games for the post-EA contract world, and because one of those Star Wars games is rumored to be an Xbox exclusive, it would make sense if Obsidian worked on a Star Wars game. It may not be KOTOR 3, but it’s right up Obsidian and Sawyer’s alley.
The only thing that may potentially undercut this is the fact that Sawyer joined Obsidian after KOTOR 2, but at the same time, he wouldn’t have needed to. On the flip side of this coin, if there is a special reason that Obsidian hasn't announced this game yet, it could be related to EA's exclusivity contract. If, and it's a pretty big if, Obsidian Entertainment is working on a Star Wars game, there are certainly a couple of stipulations there.
The Biggest Obsidian Entertainment Rumor: Fallout New Vegas 2
Lastly, many look at Fallout: New Vegas as the crown jewel of the franchise. Outsourced to Obsidian by Bethesda, Fallout: New Vegas hit all the right marks for fans, who have wanted a sequel/spiritual successor from Obsidian for many years. Rumors about Fallout: New Orleans or Fallout: New Vegas have reared their heads so often that it could arguably be the most common rumor on the internet. It’s incredibly unlikely that Obsidian is working on this, but if there was someone for the job, it would be Josh Sawyer.
It's worth mentioning that, when Bethesda was acquired by Microsoft and joined Obsidian under its umbrella, someone asked Obsidian if it meant Fallout: New Vegas 2 was a possibility now. Obsidian replied with a text-based shrugging emoji, but because this is already way out there, it’s worth pointing out that Obsidian did not have to respond. It did anyway.
The chances of a new Fallout game happening at Bethesda are high, as a proper Fallout 5 would likely come from there. At the same time, with Starfield releasing in 2022, Fable releasing before The Elder Scrolls 6, and TES6 looking at the mid-2020s in the most giving estimates, Fallout 5 is easily years away. What better way to keep the franchise alive and well this decade than to set up a deal here and get fans a long-wanted and long-rumored game.
Again, so little is known about Obsidian’s project, and it could prove to be completely unrelated to anything the company has done before now. A brand new IP/game from New Vegas and Pillars of Eternity’s Josh Sawyer is exciting on its own, and all the potential possibilities are just icing on the cake. It’ll be interesting to see what comes of this project, but that too can be said of Avowed and The Outer Worlds 2. If anything is certain, it’s that Obsidian is quickly becoming the RPG studio to watch.