"Avowed contains realistic violence against intelligent species."

[Kindred Spirit]

What the hell is this? Aside from the generic fantasy RPG pitch words...

The developers describe the content like this:

Avowed contains realistic violence against intelligent species. It also contains realistic violence against wildlife and fantastical creatures. Vulgar language is used throughout the story containing mature themes, drug and alcohol references, and sexual references. The player may also participate in drug and alcohol use with their companions.

Baby's First RPG?

Here is the content description for New Vegas:

Welcome to Vegas. New Vegas.
It’s the kind of town where you dig your own grave prior to being shot in the head and left for dead…and that’s before things really get ugly. It’s a town of dreamers and desperados being torn apart by warring factions vying for complete control of this desert oasis. It’s a place where the right kind of person with the right kind of weaponry can really make a name for themselves, and make more than an enemy or two along the way.
As you battle your way across the heat-blasted Mojave Wasteland, the colossal Hoover Dam, and the neon drenched Vegas Strip, you’ll be introduced to a colorful cast of characters, power-hungry factions, special weapons, mutated creatures and much more. Choose sides in the upcoming war or declare “winner takes all” and crown yourself the King of New Vegas in this follow-up to the 2008 videogame of the year, Fallout 3.
Enjoy your stay.
Key Features
Feel the Heat in New Vegas! Not even nuclear fallout could slow the hustle of Sin City. Explore the vast expanses of the desert wastelands – from the small towns dotting the Mojave Wasteland to the bright lights of the New Vegas strip. See the Great Southwest as could only be imagined in Fallout.
Feuding Factions, Colorful Characters and a Host of Hostiles! A war is brewing between rival factions with consequences that will change the lives of all the inhabitants of New Vegas. The choices you make will bring you into contact with countless characters, creatures, allies, and foes, and determine the final explosive outcome of this epic power struggle.
New Systems! Enjoy new additions to Fallout: New Vegas such as a Companion Wheel that streamlines directing your companions, a Reputation System that tracks the consequences of your actions, and the aptly titled Hardcore Mode to separate the meek from the mighty. Special melee combat moves have been added to bring new meaning to the phrase “up close and personal”. Use V.A.T.S. to pause time in combat, target specific enemy body parts and queue up attacks, or get right to the action using the finely-tuned real-time combat mechanics.
An Arsenal of Shiny New Guns! With double the amount of weapons found in Fallout 3, you’ll have more than enough new and exciting ways to deal with the threats of the wasteland and the locals. In addition, Vault-Tec engineers have devised a new weapons configuration system that lets you tinker with your toys and see the modifications you make in real time.
Let it Ride! In a huge, open world with unlimited options you can see the sights, choose sides, or go it alone. Peacemaker or Hard Case, House Rules, or the Wild Card - it’s all in how you play the game.

Obsidian... what happened to you?

[John Fromthegarden]

But can we consume the flesh of our defeated enemies ?

[Charola]

You're reading the description of adult content, man.

The game description is different.

Welcome to the Living Lands, a mysterious island filled with adventure and danger.

Set in the fictional world of Eora that was first introduced to players in the Pillars of Eternity franchise, Avowed is a first-person fantasy action RPG from the award-winning team at Obsidian Entertainment.


The Living Lands is an island where the air hums with ancient magic, the flora seems to move with a mind of its own, and the ground beneath your feet shifts with secrets waiting to be unearthed.

Now, the Living Lands faces a dire threat—a mysterious plague that defies nature and reason, spreading chaos across its sprawling wilderness.

As an envoy of Aedyr, you are sent to investigate, but what begins as a mission of duty soon becomes deeply personal—you feel as though the land recognizes you and is pulling you toward something greater. The choices you make will ripple across the Living Lands, shaping the fates of its people, its creatures, and even yourself. But beware, for every decision carries weight, and the forces you encounter will not hesitate to test your resolve.

Can you navigate the tangled web of intrigue, power, and danger to uncover the truth? Can you save this unknown frontier and your soul from the forces threatening to tear them asunder?

The Living Lands is a place that feels foreign yet somewhat intrinsic to you as it feels the island itself is calling out to you for help. Explore an island home to many different environments and landscapes, each with their own unique ecosystem.

Mix and match swords, spells, guns, and shields to fight your way. Dig into your grimoire for spells to trap, freeze or burn enemies, bash them with your shield, or use range bows to attack from a distance.

Companions from a spread of species will fight alongside you, with their own unique set of abilities. From a former mercenary to an eccentric wizard, they will be part of your journey with your choices shaping them as you help them with their quests.

[Kindred Spirit]

Originally posted by Charola:

You're reading the description of adult content, man.

The game description is different.

[quote=Welcome to the Living Lands, a mysterious island filled with adventure and danger.

Set in the fictional world of Eora that was first introduced to players in the Pillars of Eternity franchise, Avowed is a first-person fantasy action RPG from the award-winning team at Obsidian Entertainment.


The Living Lands is an island where the air hums with ancient magic, the flora seems to move with a mind of its own, and the ground beneath your feet shifts with secrets waiting to be unearthed.

Now, the Living Lands faces a dire threat—a mysterious plague that defies nature and reason, spreading chaos across its sprawling wilderness.

As an envoy of Aedyr, you are sent to investigate, but what begins as a mission of duty soon becomes deeply personal—you feel as though the land recognizes you and is pulling you toward something greater. The choices you make will ripple across the Living Lands, shaping the fates of its people, its creatures, and even yourself. But beware, for every decision carries weight, and the forces you encounter will not hesitate to test your resolve.

Can you navigate the tangled web of intrigue, power, and danger to uncover the truth? Can you save this unknown frontier and your soul from the forces threatening to tear them asunder?

The Living Lands is a place that feels foreign yet somewhat intrinsic to you as it feels the island itself is calling out to you for help. Explore an island home to many different environments and landscapes, each with their own unique ecosystem.

Mix and match swords, spells, guns, and shields to fight your way. Dig into your grimoire for spells to trap, freeze or burn enemies, bash them with your shield, or use range bows to attack from a distance.

Companions from a spread of species will fight alongside you, with their own unique set of abilities. From a former mercenary to an eccentric wizard, they will be part of your journey with your choices shaping them as you help them with their quests.

I didn't quote that because aside from some place names that could be used to describe most RPGs. The only thing comparable was the content warning.

[monster_urby]

Kingdom Come Deliverance II:

The developers describe the content like this:

The game contains frequent depictions of violence, killing, brutality and blood. Furthermore coarse language and crude humor is used in an extensive manner. The player will further come across adult themes, alcohol as well as sexual activity and nudity.

This appears to be a standard thing some developers choose to include.

[Mechaballe]

Originally posted by John Fromthegarden:

But can we consume the flesh of our defeated enemies ?

Yes? Thats so ething you can do IRL too so its a very realistic feature. :)

[Charola]

To me it's very similar, one describes the Chaos that is New Vegas and the other writes how The Living Lands is literally a living and exotic island.

[Kindred Spirit]

Originally posted by monster_urby:

Kingdom Come Deliverance II:

The developers describe the content like this:

The game contains frequent depictions of violence, killing, brutality and blood. Furthermore coarse language and crude humor is used in an extensive manner. The player will further come across adult themes, alcohol as well as sexual activity and nudity.

This appears to be a standard thing some developers choose to include.

I think it just shows how well corporations have squeezed out all of the humanity from a product until they have soulless tokenism, as you'll usually not see such things - and you didn't for New Vegas.

It's like having a warning on an FPS "Warning, you are shooting people."

Who are these for? The HR department, who are now in part developing the game from the back seat. As much as I liked New Vegas, I couldn't make it through the corporate overprocessing by council for Outer Worlds. The game worked best as parody instead of using parody, which is a shame since it did have style. At some point, the DOOM music kicked in...

[DrZann]

Originally posted by Kindred Spirit:

Originally posted by monster_urby:

Kingdom Come Deliverance II:


This appears to be a standard thing some developers choose to include.

I think it just shows how well corporations have squeezed out all of the humanity from a product until they have soulless tokenism, as you'll usually not see such things - and you didn't for New Vegas.

It's like having a warning on an FPS "Warning, you are shooting people."

Who are these for? The HR department, who are now in part developing the game from the back seat. As much as I liked New Vegas, I couldn't make it through the corporate overprocessing by council for Outer Worlds. The game worked best as parody instead of using parody, which is a shame since it did have style. At some point, the DOOM music kicked in...

If you say so.

[donut32]

sounds like an ESRB rating of some kind.

it should come with this:

"Warning. Combat looks 15 years old and boring."

[Quillithe]

Yeah Steam probably just requires this for any game rated M

Here are some more

Mature Content Description
The developers describe the content like this:

The game contains frequent depictions of violence, killing, brutality and blood. Furthermore coarse language and crude humor is used in an extensive manner. The player will further come across adult themes, alcohol as well as sexual activity and nudity


The developers describe the content like this:

Gameplay consists of frequent combat scenarios with characters using their weapons to slash/stab enemies

Looks retroactive too

The developers describe the content like this:

POSTAL 2 contains Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Mature Humor, Sexual Themes, and Use of Drugs and Alcohol.


Huh maybe it's not strictly required DOOM 2016 actually doesn't have one but

The developers describe the content like this:

Similar to DOOM from 2016, DOOM Eternal will contain Blood and Gore and Intense Violence.


Oh okay maybe postal 2 was readded to steam after 2016

[Kindred Spirit]

Originally posted by Quillithe:

POSTAL 2 contains Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Mature Humor, Sexual Themes, and Use of Drugs and Alcohol.

That was from a few years ago, yep. Seems rather ESRB-like as The Outer Worlds' page of the same.

I wonder how Modern Obsidian would describe using a cat as a silencer.

[Quillithe]

I bet that's under either Intense Violence or Mature Humor.

[Silaf]

Well New Vegas description is more poetic Avowed one is simply standard.

I have to argue in favor of Avowed on this one since the function of the description is informing parents about the content of a game not writing a book.

[@%thesock10150alpha49]

Anybody that *needs* a warning like that should be locked in a MW2 voice lobby for a week. I guarantee they come out a better, if more jaded, person.

[Quillithe]

Originally posted by @%thesock10150alpha49:

Anybody that *needs* a warning like that should be locked in a MW2 voice lobby for a week. I guarantee they come out a better, if more jaded, person.

I think it's kinda reasonable parents know what is in M rated games their children are trying to talk them into


Which is the primary point of these warnings obviously