Nonek

Thinking about it the enhanced edition of Assassins of Kings is probably the standout for myself in 2012 as well, nothing really stood out as vividly or immersed me so completely in terms of the lore, characters, subtleties and choices offered.

The God in the Cup: Somewhat of a trickster deity born from the discovery and consumption of alcohol, his/her remit includes revelry, lust, fertility, inspiration and the health that comes from using alcohol to purify water. A very ancient and pervasive being who might actually look kindly upon the drunkard, and whose worship though frowned upon as rude and uncouth by the more moralistic and city born, is heartily embraced by country folk. Beer/cider/mead/wine blessed in his name is proof against poison and is commonly used at sowing time to annoint the fields and wish them strength and vigour as they grow. A more natural Dionysus.

Ideally i'd like the elves to be non existent, much prefer different cultures, races and creeds of humanity.

One has found that chopping people up with axes in reality leads to a certain amount of disgruntlement, thus the need for escapist virtual homicide. Joking aside, for oneself it's probably a certain desire for escapism, necessitated by disillusion or perhaps boredom with the modern world. Life sometimes seems a little too easy and regimented, then again "may you live in interesting times" and all that.

Looking at the Celtic illustrations I wouldn't really mind if there were Glenfathan runes/tattoo's of warding or somesuch that protected the body like armour, though dispellable perhaps, like when Arnie storms Thulsa Dhooms lair in Conan the Barbarian. Something that's not in any way as good as stout plate harness but has the advantages of aiding stealth and being not so expensive, the poor barbarians choice I suppose when he can only afford an old padded vest or whatever as protection.

Which reminds me I thought the "beat with the ugly stick" trait in Arcanum was quite fun, nice mechanical advantages and disadvantages. Only work if we have seperate charisma and beauty stats however.

Never minded the companion timed quests in BG2, thought they were well handled in the main. I suppose you could have the big quests only activating once certain other objectives have been completed, like dispelling the eternal battleground in the Witcher 2 essentially opening up the endgame of chapter 2, before which you're free to come and go as you wish. Or you could have certain quests and dungeons only be attempted once, and if you fail or retreat there are consequences and potentially other questlines open.

I really liked the tutorial in Temple of Elemental Evil, sometimes boot it up now and again just for fun. Would be fun to meet tutorial guy later as an npc or companion.

Never was much of a fan of Dragons Lair.

For more nuanced antagonists try Fallout, Torment, Arcanum, the Sith Lords, Mask of the Betrayer, Alpha Protocol, New Vegas and Dungeon Siege 3. They're all made by the folks at Obsidian, so I personally have no fears regarding this issue. Indeed when they did present such antagonists in the persons of the King of Shadows and Darth Nihlus, they were still a far step away from what you describe. The King of Shadows was the perverted guardian of a long dead empire still trying to fulfill his now twisted purpose, while Nihlus was a pathetic addict, easily betrayed and outplayed by his former master.

The protagonist witnessed a life changing nay world shattering event, some fool poured the milk before the tea, and thus was wiped from existence by the gods. Rightly bloody so.

It's not that bad.

As a sideline venture they can pursue a career as a bouncy castle?

Maybe they could have specific enemies, for instance when approaching the sea they could be assaulted by peaceful Druids trying to roll them into the waves, or angry one legged sailors weilding harpoons when they have naval adventures?

I didn't realise that the Little Britains Got Talent television program was so popular as to have a community.

I'd agree that the humanocentric focus of Dragon Age 3 is a mistake, Both Ferelden and the Free Marches were not shown to have any interesting cultural significance, though told by the journal we were not shown any degree of Ferelden cultural uniqueness, which stood out all the more obviously when put in contrast against the fascinating Dwarven and Qunari species. Then again this is probably forced upon them by player feedback and their "cinematic" approach trumping gameplay or features, and considering the highly acclaimed response to the Mass Effect trilogy who can blame them. I doubt EA would peremptorily close all of their Bioware studios, if in decline they will slowly be whittled down and die out like all the other studios that the publisher has closed down over the years.

Erm wouldn't the old Buff coat be gaining popularity around this time period?

I'm afraid that I couldn't play something that looked like that, too childish in concept (that's not meant to be insultive, I just find that art style extremely unappealing) sorry. Most jrpg's i've played i've found to be quite adolescent and simplified, certainly not as nuanced or subtle as say Dead Money or Njal's Saga, they seem to prioritise style over substance. Only my opinion however, may be wrong.

I'm sorry but if I were Allfather Odin and I saw such things being made under my name i'd send Thor to smite the makers about the heads and shoulders with Mjolnir, that's horrible. Sorry not a fan of the japanese comic thing, is it Animu/Minga?

I think they should have Linnorm, great wingless serpents with eyes that spellbind the weak of mind and poison like fire in their jaws. Their mailed hides should turn blades like the stoutest iron, and their voices contain the terrible wisdom of too much knowledge, gained over centuries stewing in their own pits of greed and hate.

I'd tut.

I'm thinking these Glenfathans have quite the insular society where such practises might flourish, as a barbarian seems to be a touch anachronistic for what we know of the rest of Eternity. I suppose you might equate them to the highland clans surviving in Scotland while the rest of Great Britain moved farther away from tribalism, and we all know that our kin north of the border are still a bit tasty with their knuckles. Worst scrum i've ever been in was against a team of Glasgow lads, and apparently the old highland charge was dreaded by the redcoats. Suddenly struck me, Grampy Bone and Sulik, Obsidian's already touched upon this.

The Obesity thread got me thinking (when not posting bad jokes), what if one of the societies in Eternity believes that they can take the strength of a soul through one simple act? That doing so is honouring the dead and keeping the ancestral spirits appeased, and they do this through the ritualised eating of flesh. They might even extend this to the strongest of enemies they face, so that their feared reputation as cannibals and monsters is actually their highest showing of respect to worthy opponents. Would that be judged as evil and misguided, and what if it actually worked, that there were dead talkers who could call upon the souls of the long ago consumed to advise and protect the tribe? Make for one hell of a moral quandry.

Yo mamma so fat light can't escape her gravitational well, ah yeah.

I wouldn't bother Anubite, a few of us agree that Dragon Age 2 is a bad game (in our own opinion) so why bother either defending it or hating it. Move on forewarned and forearmed, while it's useful to pinpoint your own preferences so that you can avoid unwise future purchases, there's nothing you can do about past ones. Then again Winter is Coming so a nice ball of hate boiling in the gut can keep one deliciously warm on those long nights.