Dragon Age 2

[Gromnir]

94/100. Wow grade inflation. That's a epic score...

 

can't read the first column on page 91, but the review starts off with such misleading content that we would be hesitant to read further anyways. you does indeed start off with badass powhaz in da2, but that lasts for all of 'bout 5 minutes before your magical interlude ends and you is returned to traditional level 1 crpg status with your single quasi-useful ability. *snort*

 

maybe the reviewer only played the first five minutes o' the demo. heck, we only read the first half page o' his review, so we can't complain too much.

 

HA! Good Fun!

[sorophx]

he says it's the best combat in any RPG ever.

[Raithe]

They also include a "this is the most impressive attempt to make the decisions a player makes in a game mean something"...

 

I'm not sure whether to take this as a good sign about the whole "10 year evolution of a city depending on what you do".. or whether to automatically dump it in the "bad games journalist who doesn't really know what he's talking about" cynicism...

[Nepenthe]

94/100. Wow grade inflation. That's a epic score...

 

can't read the first column on page 91, but the review starts off with such misleading content that we would be hesitant to read further anyways. you does indeed start off with badass powhaz in da2, but that lasts for all of 'bout 5 minutes before your magical interlude ends and you is returned to traditional level 1 crpg status with your single quasi-useful ability. *snort*

 

maybe the reviewer only played the first five minutes o' the demo. heck, we only read the first half page o' his review, so we can't complain too much.

 

HA! Good Fun!

Mmh, also says the game has Securom, which has been confirmed to be false (just the review copies did).

[Monte Carlo]

Sometimes I wonder if gaming journos actually play the games they're reviewing.

[Tale]

There's nothing really dark about Dragon Age (2). I thought BG2 had much darker themes and characters...

I think Bioware's writers lack the proper sadism.

 

In fact, I feel they should be taunted for that. In hopes they can eventually be challenged to write the darkest, most despair filled, and depressing RPG of recent memory. Because somebody needs to and the only options are Obsidian and Bioware.

 

Or I've just spent too much time browsing TVTropes. That happens.

Edited March 2, 2011 by Tale

[Maria Caliban]

OXM review from BioBoards

 

Aesieru wrote...

 

The tiny snippet at the end says:

"Crazy-hefty 40-plus hour RPG experience with loads of choices and branching paths to tackle. Great characters and fan-service nods for attentive Origins nerds. Recycled dungeons aplenty make for annoying deja vu; slow start; tweaks may irk series purists. Why are nearly all humans English, dwarves American, and elves Irish?"

 

9.0 Rating

 

*Page 3 near top has a collection of snipets from review*

 

 

Romance explanation:

"Dragon Age: Origins got a lot of ink for its fearlessness in stripping its characters down to their skivvies for some rather awkward campfire flesh-pressing to depict "romance." Call us immature, but what was supposed to be poignant instead just gave us a case of red-faced grade-school giggles. Thankfully, DA II ditches the oddball uncanny-balley sex scenes for much more subtle, tasteful pairings. The result keeps its intended story-path purpose without all that goofy YouTube fodder. Thank the Maker, seriously."

 

Review paraphrasing posted for ease:

Dragon Age II's sprawling, rags-to-riches tale of the Champion of a politically busted little burg called Kirkwall is seamlessly split into multi-year chunks of in-game time.

 

The clever narrative framing device feels natural and it reinforces that the mystery outcome of the main story has ramifications that won't piece together until it's all said and done. Kirkwall has a dense web of conflicting city factions and political interests. Your path to DAII's conclusion is defined by your sympathies and disagreements with specific groups and their causes; neutrality won't get you anywhere.

 

As the game opens, you're a nobody and for the first chunk of years you'll be trying to get out of the slums your mom is rotting in, but you'll eventually move up into nobility (and beyond).

 

Through the entire story, you're asked to choose sides, between mages, templars, governments, shipwrecked Qunari warriors, and other frictions between lesser groups. These groups are important and while tracking all their loyalties that constantly shift can be tricky, amid all the politics, you'll have a group of companions that can alternatively help or hinder you in your plight.

 

Companions are the bulk of the game's emotional heft, and has a higher emphasis on relations. Your companions are influenced by your affiliation with certain or different factions and this can cause rifts, rivalry, friendship, and numerous other aspects throughout the game which are noticeable.

 

 

"For instance, the broody former-slave elf Fenris has a hardcore stance against magic users, thinking that they should all be made "tranquil".

 

 

 

Meanwhile, the militant mage and errant Grey Warden Anders won't stead for mistreatment of his peers and friends and wants to dismantle the entirety of the Templar brotherhood."

 

 

Having certain or opposing companions in your party will cause friction, especially during a crucial decision point or quest, which you may feel for the sake of relations to go with one of your companions thoughts, ESPECIALLY in a romantic situation, less the chance of more friction.

 

The qunari Arishok is an imposing figure; haunting your rise as Champion in the middle part of the game.

 

Bodahn and Sandal return, and aren't the only folks from Origins you'll meet.

 

Relationships can make life unpleasant and awkward depending on your status with certain people, and if you decide to initiate romance it will be muddled even more, as you juke and dodge complicated decisions less your partner hate you. Choices come fast and furious, so you'll have to commit to your stance or settle for your mates being strictly platonic.

 

Companions are crucial to your emotional investment in the crafty plotline and thus you'll feel all the above is worth the effort, as their interactions have become the lifeblood of the entirety of the game and what makes it so irresistible.

 

Purists might chafe at changes in the sequel as rather than letting you wander Ferelden's wide world and kingdoms, the game's scope and storyline take a tighter and smaller focus, limiting your travels to Kirkwall and a handful of locations in the Free Marches. Dragon Age 2 does not replicate the last game's more epic feel of exploration.

 

The game will send you on a robust number of side quests, many of the dungeon journeys being set in recycled layouts such as prettier versions of the planet-based side-quests in Mass Effect, which can elicit yawns after Hour 35 of being directed to "random spider-packed cave dungeon #17", but the tradeoff is acceptable for the good looks and colorful palette that is significantly improved.

 

Inventory has undergone a drastic facelift, as you can only outfit Hawke completely, resorting to mere weapon changes for your part, and "upgrading" their armor with rune slots.

 

The game has a slow start and may leave RPG fans impatient for a quicker pace, but the game is worth not giving up on it.

 

Final statement:

 

"Most worthwhile 40 to 60 hours you'll ever love losing sleep over."

 

http://n4g.com/news/705260/pc-gamer-dragon...g-of-the-decade

 

CLEARLY, they have been paid off!

I hate that review.

Edited March 2, 2011 by Maria Caliban

[Slowtrain]

There's nothing really dark about Dragon Age (2). I thought BG2 had much darker themes and characters...

I think Bioware's writers lack the proper sadism.

 

In fact, I feel they should be taunted for that. In hopes they can eventually be challenged to write the darkest, most despair filled, and depressing RPG of recent memory. Because somebody needs to and the only options are Obsidian and Bioware.

 

Or I've just spent too much time browsing TVTropes. That happens.

 

 

Though, I think the point more is not about Bioware being either too dark or not dark enough. The point is that they are "dark but not too dark" at the same time.

[HoonDing]

he says it's the best combat in any RPG ever.

I can't wait for the review of:

[entrerix]

one thing I miss about rpgs from the golden years is that the backgrounds were often pre-rendered, and thus unique looking in most cases. This is one of the biggest failings in FF games, and is really annoying me about bioware games post infinity engine too. It's like now that the backgrounds are in 3d, the artists in charge decided that making dungeon areas look unique was too hard and just gave up and resorted to copy-paste cookiecutter dungeons, so what we have now looks worse aesthetically than stuff that was commonplace in 1999.

 

i am not a tech person so i have used the wrong words to describe what im getting at. apologies.

[Orogun01]

one thing I miss about rpgs from the golden years is that the backgrounds were often pre-rendered, and thus unique looking in most cases. This is one of the biggest failings in FF games, and is really annoying me about bioware games post infinity engine too. It's like now that the backgrounds are in 3d, the artists in charge decided that making dungeon areas look unique was too hard and just gave up and resorted to copy-paste cookiecutter dungeons, so what we have now looks worse aesthetically than stuff that was commonplace in 1999.

 

i am not a tech person so i have used the wrong words to describe what im getting at. apologies.

No, you got the lingo right.

 

Kind brings me back to the whole discussion of the level design in BW, how "the gamer completely missed the little details" and how the big empty spaces where their attempt to "manage resources" so that the characters all look pretty. Which they do, and considering that a BW game these days is 65% romances/dialog I would say that they are right, why even bother populating the levels with scattered books since nobody notices them?

[213374U]

<old geezer story>

That's... eye opening. Throughout DAO I had the feeling that they had set the right stage to tell some tragic, dark tales... and then they had gone out of their way to introduce a HeRoIC (read: win-win) way of solving quests that reversed that effort completely. Connor is a good example of this. You can have his mother sacrifice herself to perform a dangerous ritual that can save her son. Or you could risk going to the Circle to get them to do the safer version of the ritual. Only... there is no such risk. Apparently all the abomination aspires to is turning his uncle into the court's buffoon and isn't threatened at all by the heroes' actions, so it'll wait patiently for you to go get some reinforcements. Hell, you can solve the rest of the plots before going back and dealing with it and despite the sense of urgency you get through the quest, nothing ever happens. Eamon doesn't kick the bucket. Undead hordes don't ravage the countryside. The kid stays patiently in his room. This effectively renders Isolde's sacrifice meaningless.

 

The scene of the bargain offered by the desire demon is similarly cheapened. You can learn the single most overpowered specialization in the game from her, for the fair and reasonable price of an innocent's soul. Or you could, you know, unlock the specialization for that and subsequent playthroughs and then reload the game and be a hero (a dark hero if you become a blood mage). Same with the Reaver spec, etc. The game is full of these cheap choices that allow for the player to win all scenarios no matter what, paving the way for an "optimal" way through the game, and a suitably chirpy epilogue.

 

Of course you can still roleplay and purposefully make calls that get people killed needlessly, but then when you are told by Alistair that "there could have been another way!", you know he's telling the truth. He's not na

Edited March 3, 2011 by 213374U

[Lady Evenstar]

<old geezer story>

That's... eye opening. Throughout DAO I had the feeling that they had set the right stage to tell some tragic, dark tales... and then they had gone out of their way to introduce a HeRoIC (read: win-win) way of solving quests that reversed that effort completely. Connor is a good example of this. You can have his mother sacrifice herself to perform a dangerous ritual that can save her son. Or you could risk going to the Circle to get them to do the safer version of the ritual. Only... there is no such risk. Apparently all the abomination aspires to is turning his uncle into the court's buffoon and isn't threatened at all by the heroes' actions, so it'll wait patiently for you to go get some reinforcements. Hell, you can solve the rest of the plots before going back and dealing with it and despite the sense of urgency you get through the quest, nothing ever happens. Eamon doesn't kick the bucket. Undead hordes don't ravage the countryside. The kid stays patiently in his room. This effectively renders Isolde's sacrifice meaningless.

 

The scene of the bargain offered by the desire demon is similarly cheapened. You can learn the single most overpowered specialization in the game from her, for the fair and reasonable price of an innocent's soul. Or you could, you know, unlock the specialization for that and subsequent playthroughs and then reload the game and be a hero (a dark hero if you become a blood mage). Same with the Reaver spec, etc. The game is full of these cheap choices that allow for the player to win all scenarios no matter what, paving the way for an "optimal" way through the game, and a suitably chirpy epilogue.

 

Of course you can still roleplay and purposefully make calls that get people killed needlessly, but then when you are told by Alistair that "there could have been another way!", you know he's telling the truth. He's not na

[Hurlshort]

I told Alistair to shut his trap, killing the mom was the only way and he needed to get over it.

[Tale]

Stuff

That was my complaint about DAO. I think I harped on it enough that I have to let it go, now. But I agree.

 

However, there was ONE instance that did have that. The Dwarven choice. Harrowmont is clearly the ideal choice, but the epilogue of that ending is fairly negative. Bhelen, the tyrant, turns out to be progressive. Even knowing he's progressive, he still murders a fair man for your choice. I think whoever designed that plotline and choice should be given more responsibility. So either you can choose to be a kind and honest person to end up with a Orzammar in civil war and isolated or you can help a tyrant and murderer free the casteless.

Edited March 3, 2011 by Tale

[Hurlshort]

I thought the dwarf story line was also fantastic as a dwarf commoner. You are basically choosing between your sister and Harrowmont.

[Orogun01]

Stuff

That was my complaint about DAO. I think I harped on it enough that I have to let it go, now. But I agree.

 

However, there was ONE instance that did have that. The Dwarven choice. Harrowmont is clearly the ideal choice, but the epilogue of that ending is fairly negative. Bhelen, the tyrant, turns out to be progressive. Even knowing he's progressive, he still murders a fair man for your choice. I think whoever designed that plotline and choice should be given more responsibility. So either you can choose to be a kind and honest person to end up with a Orzammar in civil war and isolated or you can help a tyrant and murderer free the casteless.

It boils down to the fact that the Dwarven system is ****ed up and that greed, "greed is good"

I thought it was a realistic outcome, the best intentions and kind hearted choices shouldn't always lead to good outcomes. That's not the way the world works after all.

[entrerix]

i never had big problems with the story and events in dragon age, just the level design, encounters, and system mechanics.

 

i'm expecting to feel the exact same way about DA2, but will probably like the level design and encounters even less.

[Malcador]

So, game's leaked for PS3 and Xbox already apparently.

[Niten_Ryu]

So, game's leaked for PS3 and Xbox already apparently.

 

*Ralph Wiggum*

 

Console game leak!?!

That's unpossible!!!

 

Oh well, maybe I'll watch Dragon Age 2 "let's play", at least I can skip combat parts of the youtube videos.

[Orogun01]

So, game's leaked for PS3 and Xbox already apparently.

And us PC folk are still waiting as usual, even with leaked games.

[Malcador]

Oh well, maybe I'll watch Dragon Age 2 "let's play", at least I can skip combat parts of the youtube videos.

 

I did that for Modern Warfare 2, best way to save $60

[Raithe]

Heh, if the trend continues.. maybe Rockstar will go back to releasing PC games...

[entrerix]

if the majority of people are playing on console, it makes some degree of sense that pirates would try to get that version first right?

 

i don't really pay much attention to how that all works though, it may be completely random

[Zoraptor]

It's because in order to pirate the console versions you just need access to a disk from whatever source- fabrication plant, review copy, early stock delivery. Historically the same would be true for PC but the one thing the move towards activation has actually achieved is the tendency for PC games to be pirated day 1* rather than day < 1 as the exe andor other essential files aren't present on the physical dvd making early disk images a rather pointless download. On 360 and now PS3 if one has a modded console there's nothing to stop one playing early, so long as one isn't the sort of gibbering moron who goes onto Live/PSN while playing (in which case one would doubly deserve the inevitable ban or bricking which results).

 

*Practically it's still less than day 1 for some regions due to the staggering of release dates.