Dragon Age: Inquistion

[Volourn]

"Drinking potions and casting spells in order to beat the almighty roll machine does not a game make. Or maybe its does not a fun game makes.

It isn't tactics definitely. "

 

Plenty of fun games  have been incldued these, and they add to the charm. Again, though, I'm all for LIMITED potions. None of this 99 potions in my backpckc rap.

 

 

"The DnD and usual CRPG approach lead to ridiculous situation that a typical lvl 20 character can murder an army of level 1 characters. As you climb upwards in levels the world grows boring as you're basically above everything and everyone. I always thought it was a careless way to design character progression.

 

I think the players would respond well to a game that doesn't pander to them so much. They certainly did with Dark Souls and that's a lot more sadistic than Talislanta."

 

That's silly. DnD doesn't pander to the player unless the DM (or game developer) panders to the player. A battle is challenging or not challenging based on palcement not based on how much hit points you have. I do agree that, on the surface, a character being able to mass murder many low level character is silly... whcih is why DnD has rules to deal with mass attacks against single characters so 'mob rules' can rule.

 

 

"PC's improve their skills but can never improve their hit points by normal means."

 

That can work and be fun. As an alternative. But, it isn't better or worse.

 

 

"That ensures that the combat is deadly and adds a degree of realism. Ferocious monsters stay that way because you know your chances of victory against them are slim. You have to be really clever to get the best of them and stack the situation in your favor through good role playing."

 

L0L Beat the monster by 'good role-playing'. That doesn't even make sense. So, if I role-play the perfect elven archer I'll beat the dragon no matter what? Are you kidding me? Dragons aren't beat by role-playing. Theya re beat in combat (or trickery et al in dialogue) but you can be the best role-player and steal lose. LMAO

 

Besdies,  I wouldn't want to have the player face the same monster  over and over again  and still fear death. That's silly. if you faced and defeated 5 hydras the 6th simply shoudln't be as scary or tough. That's illogical.

[NOK222]

Pre-Ordered. 

 

I have a bunch of different mounts to chose from now. 

 

Also, once again Volourn, I tip my le fedora to your epic post. 

Edited April 25, 2014 by NKKKK

[lobotomy42]

Well I can agree about the quality of Bioware romances. The influence bar mini game like in DAO is dumb and makes everything feel mechanical rather than any sort of meaningful.

 

Well, let's be fair.  You can thank Obsidian for introducing that particular innovation in Kotor 2 and NWN 2.

[BruceVC]

 

Anyone who hates 'pre buffing' hates  rpgs, combat, strategy, and tatics. Yeah, I said it.  Potions are awesome  as long as they aren't in ridiculous amounts.   Regenertaing health (barring super duper magical reasons or  related to troll like abilities as the exception) is the bane of all.

Drinking potions and casting spells in order to beat the almighty roll machine does not a game make. Or maybe its does not a fun game makes.

It isn't tactics definitely. 

 

 

So if you don't think taking potions or casting buffs can be considered an acceptable combat strategy then how do you prepare or win battles with difficult enemies?

[Nepenthe]

 

Anyone who hates 'pre buffing' hates  rpgs, combat, strategy, and tatics. Yeah, I said it.  Potions are awesome  as long as they aren't in ridiculous amounts.   Regenertaing health (barring super duper magical reasons or  related to troll like abilities as the exception) is the bane of all.

Drinking potions and casting spells in order to beat the almighty roll machine does not a game make. Or maybe its does not a fun game makes.

It isn't tactics definitely. 

 

 

Potions and other consumables are supposed to bring a strategic level on top of the tactical, so you are right that they aren't tactics.

[Monte Carlo]

Wow how can a lawyer fail to understand the difference between strategy and tactics?

 

The decision to make / buy potions in the first place, and their suite of effects, might be strategic. As might be the choice of skill 'a' to create a more effective synergy with potion 'b'. The decision to take them will be tactical.

[BruceVC]

Wow how can a lawyer fail to understand the difference between strategy and tactics?

 

The decision to make / buy potions in the first place, and their suite of effects, might be strategic. As might be the choice of skill 'a' to create a more effective synergy with potion 'b'. The decision to take them will be tactical.

 

Nah, that doesn't sound right

 

Also I'm not sure why you think that just because someone is a lawyer that makes them an expert on the semantics of the words tactics and strategy in the context of an RPG. I don't think the two are connected ....but what do I know

[marelooke]

The new combat system looks good to me from what little I've seen. But as a caveat, I did enjoy the combat, even the filler, of Dragon Age 2. Quite frankly, as long as you give me a group of characters with particular strengths and weaknesses that require some degree of micro, I'm going to have a good time.

 

I'm far more worried about their implementation of choice and the fact that it's hard to evaluate that without playing it yourself. Thankfully Darrah clarified the outlandish ending claim to something a bit more workable. I think that shows a bit more self-awareness than previous.

 

The only micro-managing I remember doing in DA2 was picking particular party members. I probably also occasionally made them quaff a health potion, other than that I don't remember there being much reasons for touching them all that much.

 

 

Didn't dao have "regen to max outside combat"? I see numerous people talking about it like it's a welcome reversion from da2, but the last time we've seen bio do non-regenerating health was... Kotor?

 

Yeah, I'm not sure why this is seen as a step forward other than making the game arbitrarily more "hardcore."  Wasn't it Avellone or Sawyer who pointed out that drinking a health potion when your health is low is neither difficult nor tactically interesting? To me, this should go into the dustbin of RPG features, along with "pre-buffing."

 

Whether regenerative or non-regenerative health are a good idea depends on how they're implemented. If it's more trouble to find somewhere to rest than to push through with less than maximum health then I feel it adds a tactical aspect, assuming the game is designed in such a way that going forward without maximum health is a viable option.

 

I more often find myself think "meh, he'll survive until my other character can murder the hell out of his assailant(s)" when the health just regenerates after a battle. Otoh if that's not the case I'll be a lot more careful with positioning knowing that otherwise I'm stuck with a squishy character on low health for however long it takes until the next opportunity to heal up.

 

I also find it slightly more enjoyable to come out of a battle severely bruised with the knowledge that carrying on is probably not a very good idea so I can return whence I came, heal up and go elsewhere rather than just getting wiped out. One could argue that this is possible with regenerative health as well but I feel that there a "close call" doesn't deter as much from trying to press onwards into territory above one's level anyway.

 

That said, I dislike prebuffing, I'm not psychic

[NOK222]

Deluxe editions get like three mounts. 

 

A Horse

A Halla 

And a "Bog Unicorn"

 

We also get clothes and weapons. 

[Nepenthe]

Wow how can a lawyer fail to understand the difference between strategy and tactics?

 

The decision to make / buy potions in the first place, and their suite of effects, might be strategic. As might be the choice of skill 'a' to create a more effective synergy with potion 'b'. The decision to take them will be tactical.

 

1) I drink strength potions vs. Demogorgon. Tactics.

2) I have 3 strenth potions. I can't get more. I have to kill Demogorgon, Bahomet and Monte Carlo. I allocate my limited resources between the three battles. Strategy.

[Nepenthe]

Deluxe editions get like three mounts. 

 

A Horse

A Halla 

And a "Bog Unicorn"

 

We also get clothes and weapons. 

 

Apparently the usage of the DICE engine can be seen in the obviously swedish Bög Unicorn.

[Malcador]

 

And I think this comment was fairly tasteless.

 

 

Nah, tasteless would be making a joke on South Africa and one of the kinds of crime it's known for. 

[BruceVC]

 

 

And I think this comment was fairly tasteless.

 

 

Nah, tasteless would be making a joke on South Africa and one of the kinds of crime it's known for. 

 

 Yes Malc, that's right. Jokes about rape are never funny under any circumstances. I'm glad you have finally realized that.

[Malcador]

I don't know, there was a good joke about India when they said consensual sex between men was illegal and the joke was them not being too keen on consensual sex regardless. That was a pretty funny jab. 

 

Still, nothing really tasteless about the original comment. Dating is like a game in a way and you can figure out what actions will yield the appropriate results in the person.  Granted, I think acting like that makes you a 'sociopath' to some which is 'bad', pfffbt.

[BruceVC]

I don't know, there was a good joke about India when they said consensual sex between men was illegal and the joke was them not being too keen on consensual sex regardless. That was a pretty funny jab. 

 

Still, nothing really tasteless about the original comment. Dating is like a game in a way and you can figure out what actions will yield the appropriate results in the person.  Granted, I think acting like that makes you a 'sociopath' to some which is 'bad', pfffbt.

 

To be honest that joke is about the fact that India has a major problem with rape, its almost inculcated in some parts of the culture. So that joke is highlighting this problem

 

Its not the same type of joke about rape or abuse of women I am referring to which makes light of this serious issue. For example there is "joke" I have heard that goes

 

" what do you tell a women with two black eyes" ..."nothing, she has already been told twice"

 

That's tasteless and not funny

[Drowsy Emperor]

The India rape frenzy the media stirred up is epitome of bombastic and misleading journalistic work. The rate of rape in the US is 28 to 100000 individuals. The worst indian city has a rate of 10 at same sample size. Even with severe under-reporting it is questionable whether the rate of rapes in India is higher than the US. The UK has 23 at same sample. Sweden has 53.

 

These are US Department of Justice statistics.

 

I have no particular affinity towards India but I hate this type of slander, rifling through other people's dirty laundry while knee deep in your own crap.

[Orogun01]

To be honest that joke is about the fact that India has a major problem with rape, its almost inculcated in some parts of the culture. So that joke is highlighting this problem

 

Its not the same type of joke about rape or abuse of women I am referring to which makes light of this serious issue. For example there is "joke" I have heard that goes

 

" what do you tell a women with two black eyes" ..."nothing, she has already been told twice"

 

That's tasteless and not funny

A joke is meant as coping mechanism to breach a subject without or with limited consequences, it isn't meant to be taken seriously or to be a reliable source of information. Of a joke the only thing you can accurately say is whether is funny or not.

 

The jester was the only one allowed to tell the king the truth and get away with because he was joking, if the king was so offended by the joke that he killed the jester it was an unspoken confirmation  of it being true. Might I say that  people who seem to have an issue with a joke getting too real should really stop killing the jester and try to fix some ****.

 

[Malcador]

The India rape frenzy the media stirred up is epitome of bombastic and misleading journalistic work. The rate of rape in the US is 28 to 100000 individuals. The worst indian city has a rate of 10 at same sample size. Even with severe under-reporting it is questionable whether the rate of rapes in India is higher than the US. The UK has 23 at same sample. Sweden has 53.

 

These are US Department of Justice statistics.

 

I have no particular affinity towards India but I hate this type of slander, rifling through other people's dirty laundry while knee deep in your own crap.

True, then again reports of authorities having a comical attitude towards the crime also helped out the frenzy.

[Drowsy Emperor]

 

The India rape frenzy the media stirred up is epitome of bombastic and misleading journalistic work. The rate of rape in the US is 28 to 100000 individuals. The worst indian city has a rate of 10 at same sample size. Even with severe under-reporting it is questionable whether the rate of rapes in India is higher than the US. The UK has 23 at same sample. Sweden has 53.

 

These are US Department of Justice statistics.

 

I have no particular affinity towards India but I hate this type of slander, rifling through other people's dirty laundry while knee deep in your own crap.

True, then again reports of authorities having a comical attitude towards the crime also helped out the frenzy.

 

 

Indian authorities are lax about everything. I'm not justifying them, just saying how they operate.

[marelooke]

The India rape frenzy the media stirred up is epitome of bombastic and misleading journalistic work. The rate of rape in the US is 28 to 100000 individuals. The worst indian city has a rate of 10 at same sample size. Even with severe under-reporting it is questionable whether the rate of rapes in India is higher than the US. The UK has 23 at same sample. Sweden has 53.

 

These are US Department of Justice statistics.

 

I have no particular affinity towards India but I hate this type of slander, rifling through other people's dirty laundry while knee deep in your own crap.

Those statistics to me say more about how acceptable it is for a woman to go to the authorities about it (and be taken serious) than about the actual number of rape crimes that happen.

[Elerond]

The India rape frenzy the media stirred up is epitome of bombastic and misleading journalistic work. The rate of rape in the US is 28 to 100000 individuals. The worst indian city has a rate of 10 at same sample size. Even with severe under-reporting it is questionable whether the rate of rapes in India is higher than the US. The UK has 23 at same sample. Sweden has 53.

 

These are US Department of Justice statistics.

 

I have no particular affinity towards India but I hate this type of slander, rifling through other people's dirty laundry while knee deep in your own crap.

 

When you compare crime statistics from two different countries you should also take account how those countries document their crimes and if there is lack interest from official to write crimes down.

 

Sweden for example has high number rapes in it statistic because they mark every reported rape as crime in their statistic, where many countries crimes are counted by number of charges raised, which can mean that rapes aren't documented if there is nobody charged for it and that serial rapist that has raped several women or rapists that have raped same woman several time is only one mark in statistics. And then there is always that fact that in many countries women don't report that they have been raped because they fear social stigma that it brings. 

[Nepenthe]

 

The India rape frenzy the media stirred up is epitome of bombastic and misleading journalistic work. The rate of rape in the US is 28 to 100000 individuals. The worst indian city has a rate of 10 at same sample size. Even with severe under-reporting it is questionable whether the rate of rapes in India is higher than the US. The UK has 23 at same sample. Sweden has 53. These are US Department of Justice statistics. I have no particular affinity towards India but I hate this type of slander, rifling through other people's dirty laundry while knee deep in your own crap.

Those statistics to me say more about how acceptable it is for a woman to go to the authorities about it (and be taken serious) than about the actual number of rape crimes that happen.

There's also variance in what is defined as rape by law.

[Drowsy Emperor]

 

The India rape frenzy the media stirred up is epitome of bombastic and misleading journalistic work. The rate of rape in the US is 28 to 100000 individuals. The worst indian city has a rate of 10 at same sample size. Even with severe under-reporting it is questionable whether the rate of rapes in India is higher than the US. The UK has 23 at same sample. Sweden has 53.

 

These are US Department of Justice statistics.

 

I have no particular affinity towards India but I hate this type of slander, rifling through other people's dirty laundry while knee deep in your own crap.

Those statistics to me say more about how acceptable it is for a woman to go to the authorities about it (and be taken serious) than about the actual number of rape crimes that happen.

 

 

Even so, without a statistic of some sort there is no argument other than "CNN said so" or "Indian media said so" and the discussion goes back to what you or I "believe" which is totally irrelevant in the long run. You believe they're under-reporting, I'm inclined to believe that too. But I'm not inclined to believe that the statistic is significantly larger and all the media is doing is pointing fingers without having facts to support them, only presumptions.

Edited April 25, 2014 by Drowsy Emperor

[BruceVC]

 

To be honest that joke is about the fact that India has a major problem with rape, its almost inculcated in some parts of the culture. So that joke is highlighting this problem

 

Its not the same type of joke about rape or abuse of women I am referring to which makes light of this serious issue. For example there is "joke" I have heard that goes

 

" what do you tell a women with two black eyes" ..."nothing, she has already been told twice"

 

That's tasteless and not funny

A joke is meant as coping mechanism to breach a subject without or with limited consequences, it isn't meant to be taken seriously or to be a reliable source of information. Of a joke the only thing you can accurately say is whether is funny or not.

 

The jester was the only one allowed to tell the king the truth and get away with because he was joking, if the king was so offended by the joke that he killed the jester it was an unspoken confirmation  of it being true. Might I say that  people who seem to have an issue with a joke getting too real should really stop killing the jester and try to fix some ****.

 

 

 

Fair enough but a joke can also be used to demean or ridicule  a certain demographic or social issue. And I still fail to see how that's funny?

[213374U]

 

Wow how can a lawyer fail to understand the difference between strategy and tactics?

 

The decision to make / buy potions in the first place, and their suite of effects, might be strategic. As might be the choice of skill 'a' to create a more effective synergy with potion 'b'. The decision to take them will be tactical.

 

1) I drink strength potions vs. Demogorgon. Tactics.

2) I have 3 strenth potions. I can't get more. I have to kill Demogorgon, Bahomet and Monte Carlo. I allocate my limited resources between the three battles. Strategy.

 

While this is relevant from a theoretical standpoint, in my experience, in practice it's not. In all party-based games I've played since the IE came out, after a short, unforgiving and frustrating start, I was consistently swimming in potions, scrolls, wands etc, rendering the strategic element of resource allocation meaningless. This is partly due to the fact that most of the cookie-cutter encounters (filler, to tie in with my previous post) don't require that you expend any of your non-renewable resources and the instances where the difference would be noticeable are few and far between. And even then, it's not a requirement, but simply something that will increase your chances of avoiding a reload. Last time I went to grab the Ring of Gaxx, I didn't even have to use my valuable Protection from Magic scrolls because I got lucky with the Mace of Disruption. So much facepalm.

 

Pre-buffing is bad design because it's gamey and grounded on trial-and-error and metagaming. The best buffs are usually short-duration so you absolutely must delay applying them until you really need them, but in CRPGs you never know when that is until you have died and reloaded. There is no way to gather clues about what type of protections you are going to need to beat certain boss, and you cannot research likely enemy tactics and force composition in advance. A first-time no-reload BG2 challenge would be next to impossible to complete—not necessarily because it's difficult but because it's very unforgiving and eventually you are going to fail a save for an effect you hadn't accounted and buffed for.

 

Some people don't have a problem with trial-and-error gameplay but I find it hard to incorporate into my roleplaying.