Dragon Age 2

[Thorton_AP]

I may be wrong, but it seems to me that entrerix was pointing out that the piece sounds overly enthusiastic.

And I agree, it almost reads like a PR piece. Did he/she really get that much from his/her first impressions? Then the game is truly excellent!

 

Meh, some guy getting a sneak peek of a game he's looking forward to that turns out to really enjoy it probably would be pretty enthusiastic.

 

It's a fan giving a review, so I think it's obvious that one's mileage may vary in terms of accepting this as a fair and balanced review of the demo he played.

[Thorton_AP]

you may be shocked to learn that there are people who really liked BG2 but have no interest in DA2.

At least not as an RPG game.

Whatever good will Bioware had among older gamers may be slowly coming to an end.

 

You might be shocked to know that there are people that loved BG2 that also loved DAO as well.

 

 

I can agree with the meomao in that it's bold because they decided to shift the franchise away from the game formula that resulted in their best selling game to date.

[sorophx]

I still can't believe DA ws their best selling game. I mean I discovered it today thanks to you, guys, and it doesn't make any sense.

[alanschu]

they are still obsessed with BIO and their games.

where is this coming from? you keep talking about this global Bio obsession, I have yet to see a single adult person who plays Bioware games. maybe the people around me are just very strange, I don't know. but these "old timers who secretly love Bio games" are more of a myth

 

I'd wager most of our demographic is made up of people that are adults (over the age of 18).

 

I don't have specific numbers but I do know that there is no shortage of people over the age of 18 that are very excited for new BioWare games. We meet them as they wait in line at game conventions to try the hands on demos.

 

 

These are just anecdotes, and while there may be no "old timers that secretly love Bio games" I can say there are certainly old timers that openly love Bio games.

[sorophx]

by "adults" I meant people who were born in the early 80's. I don't consider a person of less than 26 years of age an "adult". because these people were little kids when BG2 came out.

 

hell, I don't think of myself as an adult. I was, what, 16 when I first played it? man, could I fully appreciate that game at that age? nope. and now you're trying to tell me that some 11-year old could. that hurts my ego, man

 

before we go into the "but they could've played BG2 only a couple of years ago" thing, this doesn't count. because playing it in the year 2000 for the first time is one thing and playing it in 2010, for example, is something completely different.

 

I hope I'm not too confusing.

[GhostofAnakin]

Just because we all act like children on here, doesn't mean we are children.

 

As weird as it sounds, Witch Hunt soured me on the Dragon Age franchise. I know it's kind of a minor thing to get all upset about, but I really disliked the way they "wrapped up" the Morrigan/Warden saga with that piece of cash grab.

 

Knowing me and my weak self-control, I'll pick up DA2 when it's out. But for now, I don't even bother with the Bio forums and have no interest in updates about the game.

[Volourn]

"I still can't believe DA ws their best selling game."

 

This is a semi myth. It's in a battle with ME2. DA had a head start by a few months though. Not counting the expansion, I'm sure the two games are neck and neck.

 

 

"by "adults" I meant people who were born in the early 80's."

 

I was born in the 70s. I was playing RPGs before BIo was even making medical software.

 

 

" I don't consider a person of less than 26 years of age an "adult". "

 

Rather immature of you to think that way. By that age, young people marry, have children, work jobs, pay taxes, got to war and die, and are 100% responsible for their actions in the eyes of the law and other adults.

 

Just because someone wasn't old enough to play BG2 when it first came out doesn't make them children. heck, i started playing RPGs that were more complex than *ANY* CRPG at 9-10.

 

 

"Knowing me and my weak self-control,"

 

No worries. That's something you have in common with 90% of gamers including myself - at least as far as games are concern.

[sorophx]

Rather immature of you to think that way. By that age, young people marry, have children, work jobs, pay taxes, got to war and die, and are 100% responsible for their actions in the eyes of the law and other adults.

that's the reason our society is so messed up.

[Monte Carlo]

:: shrugs :: If DA2 was like Origins I'd be buying it, but the action-y direction and fixed protagonist are lines in the sand for me so I'm not buying it.

 

No biggie.

 

There are some other really good games coming out.

[Volourn]

"that's the reason our society is so messed up."

 

Yeah, society was way better off when you girls were forced to marry complete strangers, when women and blacks couldn't vote, husbands could abuse their wives, etc., etc.

 

Yeah, society is so much 'worse' now. LMAO

 

 

":: shrugs :: If DA2 was like Origins I'd be buying it, but the action-y direction and fixed protagonist are lines in the sand for me so I'm not buying it."

 

*shrugs* DA2 will be absically DA1 with some changes. people talk about the differences between ME1 and ME2 but the basic gameplay is pretty much the same.

 

 

"fixed protagonist"

 

Less fixed than most games including BG series.

Edited November 2, 2010 by Volourn

[alanschu]

by "adults" I meant people who were born in the early 80's. I don't consider a person of less than 26 years of age an "adult". because these people were little kids when BG2 came out.

 

For the record I'm 29. I would be surprised if every person waiting in line to play the game was under the age of 26.

 

hell, I don't think of myself as an adult. I was, what, 16 when I first played it? man, could I fully appreciate that game at that age? nope. and now you're trying to tell me that some 11-year old could. that hurts my ego, man

 

I don't feel as though I have any issues appreciating a game like BG2 though I was 20 when I played it. However, there is a new guy recently hired that just turned 20, and BG2 is his favourite game of all time and he was 11 when he first played it. He's also a big fan of DAO.

 

before we go into the "but they could've played BG2 only a couple of years ago" thing, this doesn't count. because playing it in the year 2000 for the first time is one thing and playing it in 2010, for example, is something completely different.

 

I disagree that it'd be different.

 

 

Many of the term tester QA staff are big fans of BioWare games (which is probably why they apply) and many of them are big fans of both DAO and BG2. The average age of this staff is around 24-25.

[entrerix]

I may be wrong, but it seems to me that entrerix was pointing out that the piece sounds overly enthusiastic.

And I agree, it almost reads like a PR piece. Did he/she really get that much from his/her first impressions? Then the game is truly excellent!

 

Since the person who has written the original post is me, I can assure you that it's not a PR piece and just suggesting it, it's a little bit insulting.

 

I'm not enthusiastic: too old for that. I've only said that the game look good and promising and that I like the general direction of design more than DA:O. For me DA2 seems to be better than DA:O under most aspect and I do not say it because of fanboysm (again, too old for that) but only because I do not like DA:O a lot in terms of gameplay (DA:O is a good game but not my favourite Bioware's title).

 

Having followed the development of DA:O and DA2 since the beginning, I allready know a lot of things and I was able to use the demo to test all the things I've read along the way. Moreover, I played the demo twice. They're just my opinions and you could have different ones: I'm not a journalist and I only express a very personal view.

 

Btw, I'm sorry for my english but english is not my native language. For the poster who has questioned the validity of my opinion because of my prose/gramatic, try to write in italian and we will se what you'll pull out...

 

i was indeed suggesting that the writer of the original article (meomao) perhaps was too fanboyish to be trusted based on the way the article was written. I didn't mean to insult your english (i thought it might have been written by a kid actually) I didn't realize you were not a native speaker so of course you get a pass on the phrasing issues (my italian consists of: lasagna!).

 

i re-read the article and think a more appropriate response than saying you were untrustworthy would have been to say:

 

"Nice preview but unfortunately it doesnt help me much because its written by someone who did not like the combat/rule system in DA1. I liked the combat and rules in DA1, I just thought there was WAY too many combat encounters. I hope someone with a similar outlook to my own posts a preview so I can better judge what my own reaction will be.

 

It's good to hear that the dialogue is on par or better than that found in DA1, because I liked that quite a bit, I hope we still have a wide variety of responses to choose from during dialogue though, cause I vastly prefer that over the good guy line/bad guy line found in mass effect."

 

so yeah, i was a bit hasty and judgmental meomao, sorry if i offended you.

 

edit: i was 18 when BG2 came out, i definitely appreciated it, though i thought planescape torment was better, and I liked DA1 quite a bit, but think the game has poor replay value because the endless fighting gets a little stale, if DA1 had 1/4 the fights the game would be an A+ imo.

Edited November 2, 2010 by entrerix

[meomao]

so yeah, i was a bit hasty and judgmental meomao, sorry if i offended you.

 

No worries, I know that my english is very limited but since I explained that I'm italian at the beginning of the post, I hoped for some kind of tolerance. At least I hope that my review is understandable.

 

My opinion about your doubts:

 

Combat: Honest, if DA2 plays on PC like the Xbox version and you only want another DA:O, then you ain't going to like DA2 because there are many changes.

 

Dialogue: as far as I was able to see playing the demo, the dialogue wheel works in a different way than ME2. It's not Paragon and Renegade, but more about choiches and consequences. Hawke felt less fixed than Shepard. A lot.

Edited November 2, 2010 by meomao

[Slowtrain]

I don't know how old I was when BG2 was released. What year was it?

[Volourn]

You must be too old to remember it. Alzheimer's must be kickin' in, 'ol pal.

[RPGmasterBoo]

Why the discussion when we know BG2 > all, including DA2.

[Humanoid]

I exhausted my supply of Slowie is old jokes in 2003.

[Monte Carlo]

I don't know how old I was when BG2 was released. What year was it?

 

It was 2000. We really need to have a birthday party for it.

Edited November 3, 2010 by Monte Carlo

[Nepenthe]

Why the discussion when we know BG2 > all, including DA2.

 

You know what, I'm pretty much in agreement with you, but probably from a different point of view. I agree that Baldur's Gate 2 is probably the best game I will ever play (though there are some games that I consider to be really close to it), and that DAO wasn't even half as good. I also think that on its own merits, DAO was a pretty good game, but certainly not one of those that are close to BG2. Still, I'd probably place it in the top 15-20 games I've ever played, and am also looking forward to seeing what the sequel delivers...

[funcroc]

Off-screen gameplay footage at Lucca Comics & Games

[Maria Caliban]

I think BG 2 was a good game but I don't agree with the level of idolization it recieves. I rank Planescape, Bloodlines, Deus Ex, and the new Fallout as all being better than BG 2.

 

Off-screen gameplay footage at Lucca Comics & Games

 

The movement and combat animations look better than DA:O, though even less realistic.

 

I see a number of old warrior moves... with glitter. Like you glow a bit or your weapon sparkles before each one.

Edited November 3, 2010 by Maria Caliban

[Labadal]

I'm glad they finally showed off a group of 4 fighting. It still looks unpolished, but they still have a few months to fix everything.

[sorophx]

Still, I'd probably place it in the top 15-20 games I've ever played

oh man, I feel sorry for you so many great games in the last 20 years. Origins couldn't make it into my top 50 even if it begged.

[Nepenthe]

Still, I'd probably place it in the top 15-20 games I've ever played

oh man, I feel sorry for you so many great games in the last 20 years. Origins couldn't make it into my top 50 even if it begged.

Yeah, I was aware of your opinion.

[sorophx]

nonono, you got me all wrong, it's not "my" opinion, I'm just curious what are the other 14-19 games in your top

Edited November 3, 2010 by sorophx