Dragon Age II (spoilers)

[Volourn]

"this game is now officially a dungeon romp."

 

All RPgs are dungeon rumps when you get down to it. I've never kited in DA2 but I have gone down to my last 1-2 characetrs though in order to beat a battle.

 

two things that really make battles tougher to manage: 1) you can't rely on spam healing anymore and 2) injuries matter way, way, way more now. No more of these wussy injuries that don't matter like losing strength for mages. You take an inury, your max hit points is lowered by 20%. You can suffer more injuries the harder the dififuclty.

 

 

"so I hear it has a good story?"

 

The story is good but I wouldn't call it beyond awesome.

[Guest Slinky]

"this game is now officially a dungeon romp."

 

All RPgs are dungeon rumps when you get down to it.

Maybe, but you really need to look narrowly to see that.

 

I found Origins really boring because of that step forward, kill the horde, rince and repeat system. And by the looks of it, with the even more tunnely maps and recycling, DA2 could be even more boring to me than Origins. Too bad, I would have very possibly liked the non-wordsavingstory much more than the story in previous Bio games.

 

And for the record, I found the combat pacing in MotB great, no constant big mobs running at you.

[Tel Aviv]

Fresh out of the deep roads and enjoying the buggery out of it so far. While the reuse of maps is grating, I'm liking that it's a city story. Feels like Baldur's Gate and Athkatla.

[Maria Caliban]

I finished the game.

 

My Hawke sided with the Templars and became Viscount without ever wanting it or trying. I killed

Anders

though given that the Divine was already planning an Exalted March on Kirkwall, he simply forced the matter earlier than it would have been.

 

I found Act 2 with the qunari to be the best one. The ending decision was a tough one and I like that BioWare pushed the PC against the wall.

 

It might have been a bit heavy handed, but I think this is the first BioWare game I've played that hasn't given the PC an easy out or simply made them the big hero who always does the right thing.

 

It's very obviously a lead up to DA III. I worry that with all the negative feedback, BioWare will return to the 'save the world against an ancient evil' plots.

[Monte Carlo]

Oddly enough, I have the collector's edition guide, and a lot of the page art is old Hurlocks.

 

Yikes! They're even recycling art assets in the strategy guide

[Bos_hybrid]

It's very obviously a lead up to DA III. I worry that with all the negative feedback, BioWare will return to the 'save the world against an ancient evil' plots.

 

This.

[Raithe]

I managed to finish my first run through last night.. Went with the sarcastic/humerous rogue approach for most of it and ended up siding with the Mages at the end.. (and because I left Bethany with "mom" during the Deep Roads, she ended up in the circle and missing as a companion for the pretty much the rest of the game..)

 

All in all, the combat style did feel quite similar to DA:O, just a bit more paced. The encounters well.. Hm, it's hard to say. They didn't have the total annoying grinding, mob feel that were in that...but some of the wave, wave, wave structure was annoying at times (and didn't always make much sense).

And then every now and again there'd be some seriously nasty beast/monster/person would be some massive health sink..

 

The city, and the whole build up of consequences (both those you could see, and those you wouldn't even guess at) was really quite good. There were times I made choices based on "yeah, this is what he would do" even knowing that it was going to come back to bite you in the ass later.

 

The recycling of maps.. Good god. I went through that first year exploring caves and they were all the frigging same..with some stone slabs sealing off different doors. That just seemed so..lazy. I mean, reusing pieces of different maps would be one thing..but it's the same..everything. Just..having you come in from different sides. Blocking off some tunnels, but still showing them on the automap... The city design was pretty damn good, but everything outside of that was (while pretty the first time you see it) is just so much gah when its the 10th time you see it..

 

Hm, I did seem to have some minor glitches towards the end of the game. A couple of sidequests and such didn't show up with map markers. And the "kidnapped noblewoman" didn't show up.. although there seemed to be a glitched "bandit leader" stood on his own who wouldn't react... But nothing that was a problem with the main storyline.

 

Edit: Oh yes, and there were an awful lot of cameo appearances of the Hero of Ferelden's companions....

Edited March 14, 2011 by Raithe

[Orchomene]

After a bit less than 10 hours in, I just want to say that the friendship/rivalry system is as bad as I imagined it was : just a bit more better than in DAO, but not enough.

 

It's not that hard to have two scales :

- positive/negative opinion

- respect/disrespect or confidence/no confidence or interest/no interest

 

I've never seen any friendship that has been built with a complete adhesion of the other ones thoughts. On the other end, I can't see a rivalry relation based on complete disagreements. It's too caricatural.

But with the relation mechanism in DA2, you can't see a real friendship being built like that : if you have a complex relation based on part of agreements and part of disagreements, that's the same thing as if you just are complete strangers.

[Tale]

Might finish today, probably not. Got House and Stargate Universe to watch. But I'm close enough to the end that I'm fairly certain Flemeth isn't going to show up with an army of daughters, despite the trailer. Am I wrong? And I don't see Morrigan's portents at the end of Witch Hunt playing a role. Are they going to hold that back for DLC or is it going to be a plot that might get explored in two years, if it doesn't get forgotten?

[MrBrown]

I'd say in some other game, seems to be beyond DA2's scope.

[Azure79]

What made you decide with the Templars Maria?

 

Also I agree Anders is a petulant man-child. He was ok in Awakenings, but in DA2 I kept wanting to hit him, especially near the end.

[Orogun01]

It's very obviously a lead up to DA III. I worry that with all the negative feedback, BioWare will return to the 'save the world against an ancient evil' plots.

I think that they had that in mind before DA2, Witchhunt was quite a bit of foreshadowing to this end.

[Hell Kitty]

After a bit less than 10 hours in, I just want to say that the friendship/rivalry system is as bad as I imagined it was : just a bit more better than in DAO, but not enough.

 

It's not that hard to have two scales :

- positive/negative opinion

- respect/disrespect or confidence/no confidence or interest/no interest

 

I've never seen any friendship that has been built with a complete adhesion of the other ones thoughts. On the other end, I can't see a rivalry relation based on complete disagreements. It's too caricatural.

But with the relation mechanism in DA2, you can't see a real friendship being built like that : if you have a complex relation based on part of agreements and part of disagreements, that's the same thing as if you just are complete strangers.

 

I like the system in DA2 so far a hell of a lot more than the original. I'm currently in act 2, and after the sex scene with Isabela I questioned her regarding her previous relationships and eventually got the option to tell her something she wasn't happy to hear. She left looking rather sad, but the exchange scored me some friendship points, which made total sense. She brushed off the observation, but my "getting" her made her happy, even if at the time she wasn't willing to admit I was right. In DAO you tell people what they want to hear or you lose points.

 

One moment I quite liked was when trying to help Aveline on her quest for love she mentioned me and Isabela, and Hawke just stared at the ground for about 10 seconds before deciding "Perhaps we aren't the best example".

[Tale]

Finished today. I... have a hard time caring about Orisino or Meredith. Orisino for his "I could be a respectable character, but I'm just going to randomly become a super-evil boss battle with only the barest of foreshadowing." And Meredith for her "I'm totally frickin nuts, RAWR!" I fear that my second playthrough, when I see the characters I'll only be able to think "Oh look, it's dumb and dumber." As exemplars of the final conflict of the game and the one upon which future titles will be expected to continue, and the characters on the title screen, this strikes me as a failure.

 

It was simply senseless. A complete waste. You've got two characters, who could have been given relateable or at least understandable motivations, driven into conflict, but instead they are both simply batty. Why? It's like Bioware, in an attempt to create realistic motivations in grey and grey morality setting, over and undershot the mark by instead focusing only on base emotions that turned it into black and black.

 

You can do better, Bioware. I know I've been a decrier, but I believe you can do better.

Edited March 16, 2011 by Tale

[Volourn]

And, they do - just not with the two big bozos.

[Azure79]

Finished today. I... have a hard time caring about Orisino or Meredith. Orisino for his "I could be a respectable character, but I'm just going to randomly become a super-evil boss battle with only the barest of foreshadowing." And Meredith for her "I'm totally frickin nuts, RAWR!" I fear that my second playthrough, when I see the characters I'll only be able to think "Oh look, it's dumb and dumber." As exemplars of the final conflict of the game and the one upon which future titles will be expected to continue, and the characters on the title screen, this strikes me as a failure.

 

It was simply senseless. A complete waste. You've got two characters, who could have been given relateable or at least understandable motivations, driven into conflict, but instead they are both simply batty. Why? It's like Bioware, in an attempt to create realistic motivations in grey and grey morality setting, over and undershot the mark by instead focusing only on base emotions that turned it into black and black.

 

You can do better, Bioware. I know I've been a decrier, but I believe you can do better.

 

I agree. Both of them were underwhelming and just plain crazy. At the end, I really wanted to kick them both out and rule the place myself. Is there an option for that if you make certain choices along the way?

 

I sided with the mages because I don't think any group should have the right to 'annul' another group, especially for something they weren't directly responsible for.

[Tale]

Spoiler warning, even though this is the spoiler thread.

 

To become Viscount, you need to side with the Templars.

Edited March 16, 2011 by Tale

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

I have something to admit, and I'm somewhat ashamed.

 

I like the combat. And the game doesn't look half bad when you get used to it. Art style still blows. Also the premise is actually kinda interesting - Mages vs Templars.

 

Sorry.

[MrBrown]

It's very obviously a lead up to DA III. I worry that with all the negative feedback, BioWare will return to the 'save the world against an ancient evil' plots.

I think that they had that in mind before DA2, Witchhunt was quite a bit of foreshadowing to this end.

 

A Bio dev said that when they started DA2, they had two ideas in mind as a general concept; one easy to do, and one hard to do. They ended up choosing the hard one for DA2.

 

I assume a follow-up to all the foreshadowing would be the easy one.

[Maria Caliban]

What made you decide with the Templars Maria?

 

Also I agree Anders is a petulant man-child. He was ok in Awakenings, but in DA2 I kept wanting to hit him, especially near the end.

It was a hard decision, especially as I played an apostate.

 

1. Even if the Templars didn't call for a Rite of Annulment, the populous might just march on the Circle.

2. That damn Circle was crawling with blood mages and malificar. While I personally believe it's better to spare the innocent than punish the guilty, my PC does not.

3. The Exalted March the Divine was considering calling on the city. If the Circle wasn't Annulled, they'd probably send an army to Kirkwall.

 

My PC's hope was to kill the mages in the Circle and figure out how to put Cullen in charge.

 

In my current playthrough, my PC will side with the mages as Hawke's sister is part of the Circle.

 

However, I find Act 3 something of a letdown after Act 2.

 

It was simply senseless. A complete waste. You've got two characters, who could have been given relateable or at least understandable motivations, driven into conflict, but instead they are both simply batty. Why? It's like Bioware, in an attempt to create realistic motivations in grey and grey morality setting, over and undershot the mark by instead focusing only on base emotions that turned it into black and black.

 

You can do better, Bioware. I know I've been a decrier, but I believe you can do better.

They can do better. They did do better in this very game with the Arishok.

Edited March 17, 2011 by Maria Caliban

[GreasyDogMeat]

I ran into some massive Merril quest bugs in the final act.

 

 

I didn't allow her to take the artifact in act 2, which she apparently hated me for, but decided to move into my house as a love interest. In act 3, she is acting like she can fix the mirror. Seems odd, but OK I go with it. Go to Sundermount, defeat the keeper, kill everyone in Sundermount... and then... that is it. No comment, no nothing. The quest just vanishes and there is no dialogue to signal the end of the quest. Also have a quest to rescue someone's daughter on the coast but nothing to be found there. Am not happy.

 

[MrBrown]

The bug in Merril's quest in Act 3 seems to be the only major bug so far. But it is kinda nasty. Basically, the scene with Merril that should play at the end of the quest, is played first in Act 3, before the quest even starts.

 

There's been a bunch of other bugs people are reporting on the Bio forums, but this seems to be the only one that is universal. The others seem to be platform or condition dependant.

 

People on the DA wikia are also saying some abilities don't seem to work as described, but haven't done any in-depth research so far.

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

The bug in Merril's quest in Act 3 seems to be the only major bug so far. But it is kinda nasty. Basically, the scene with Merril that should play at the end of the quest, is played first in Act 3, before the quest even starts.

 

There's been a bunch of other bugs people are reporting on the Bio forums, but this seems to be the only one that is universal. The others seem to be platform or condition dependant.

 

People on the DA wikia are also saying some abilities don't seem to work as described, but haven't done any in-depth research so far.

I'm pretty sure Virulent Walking bomb doesn't work.

[Orogun01]

The bug in Merril's quest in Act 3 seems to be the only major bug so far. But it is kinda nasty. Basically, the scene with Merril that should play at the end of the quest, is played first in Act 3, before the quest even starts.

 

There's been a bunch of other bugs people are reporting on the Bio forums, but this seems to be the only one that is universal. The others seem to be platform or condition dependant.

 

People on the DA wikia are also saying some abilities don't seem to work as described, but haven't done any in-depth research so far.

I'm pretty sure Virulent Walking bomb doesn't work.

It doesn't, also the casual Hawke in the middle of battle it's annoying.

Don't know if anyone else had this but right in the middle of a fight Hawke decides to sheathe his/her weapon and call it a day while the rest keep the fight. At which point to resume the fight you would have to keep spamming attacks otherwise he goes back to casual. Truly annoying.

[Azure79]

Yeah, I ran into the casual Hawke bug. Pretty annoying.

 

Also how come Merril has that accent when none of the other Dalish, who she lived her whole life with, don't?