Rosbjerg Posted May 16, 2014 Posted May 16, 2014 Old thread here. Continued from the Random Video Games thread... It's giving them too much credit. They're just zombies. Tall zombies and short zombies. Pretty much this. In Awakenings they at least attempted to make them something more than just mindless killing machines, though I, personally, thought Bio's attempt wasn't very successful. Still, it was better than just the mindless bags of rotting flesh aimlessly roaming the lands to kill everyone that they were in DAO and DA2. In DAO and DA2, the only amount of intelligence the darkspawn showed above that of a completely mindless zombie is being able to function as a somewhat cohesive squad, to some degree. Tolkien goblins and orcs, though thoroughly one dimensional creatures, at least showed personality traits, such as greed, jealousy, and fear, that could be used to give them motivation for what they do beyond just simple bloodlust. Awakenings tried to assign some personality to darkspawn, though I found the attempt more comical than anything else, but DAO and DA2 darkspawn seemed to be driven by nothing more than a desire to kill. Anyway, maybe in DA3, the darkspawn will get fleshed out more and be shown to operate for some purpose other than just to kill? Hopefully they will go in the direction Awakenings tried to go in and do a better job of it? I hope so. I, personally, find it a lot more interesting fighting a foe that you can relate to, at least on some level, than stabbing mindless creatures of pure evil with no redeeming qualities whatsoever that you can kill without the slightest tinge of guilt (I think that's part of why zombies have become so popular in Hollywood and with game developers. They're an easy enemy to use where there is no worry about killing them being in any way morally wrong). Even when you look at a character like Jon Irenicus, who is about as evil and hateable an antagonist as it gets, there are parts of his downfall and descent into madness that you could kind of feel bad for the guy. He brought a lot of it upon himself, but you can look at it from his perspective. Yeah, I should probably clarify my only experience with the series is Origins, where they're just indistinct lumbering lumps of wrinkly flesh that charge you or just stand anchored in place and plink away at you as you charge them. Anyway, maybe in DA3, the darkspawn will get fleshed out more and be shown to operate for some purpose other than just to kill? Corypheus. Yeah, let's not forget the tiny fact of meeting one of the original Magisters in DA2. 1 Fortune favors the bald.
Gromnir Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 am gonna assume that meeting one of the original magisters were part of the dlc for da2, 'cause while our memory is thankful fuzzy regarding da2, we don't recall that encounter in da2 main game. HA! Good Fun! 1 "If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood and fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence."Justice Louis Brandeis, Concurring, Whitney v. California, 274 U.S. 357 (1927) "Im indifferent to almost any murder as long as it doesn't affect me or mine."--Gfted1 (September 30, 2019)
Oerwinde Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 am gonna assume that meeting one of the original magisters were part of the dlc for da2, 'cause while our memory is thankful fuzzy regarding da2, we don't recall that encounter in da2 main game. HA! Good Fun! You meet one in one of the DLC, and meeting him clarifies that the Architect from Awakening was one too. 2 The area between the balls and the butt is a hotbed of terrorist activity.
Gromnir Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 am gonna assume that meeting one of the original magisters were part of the dlc for da2, 'cause while our memory is thankful fuzzy regarding da2, we don't recall that encounter in da2 main game. HA! Good Fun! You meet one in one of the DLC, and meeting him clarifies that the Architect from Awakening was one too. well, that is actual kinda disappointing. oh well. HA! Good Fun! 1 "If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood and fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence."Justice Louis Brandeis, Concurring, Whitney v. California, 274 U.S. 357 (1927) "Im indifferent to almost any murder as long as it doesn't affect me or mine."--Gfted1 (September 30, 2019)
Volourn Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 The Architect is awesome. One of the best game characters ever. 2 DWARVES IN PROJECT ETERNITY = VOLOURN HAS PLEDGED $250.
BruceVC Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 Epic post Volourn XD "Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss” John Milton "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela
Serrano Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 (edited) The Architect really was a good character it's just that he and spider-woman didn't get enough screen time. What he had going for him is that he's not a moustache twirling villain and his cause is something people can empathise with easily while still putting him at odds with the player. I also really liked that he was counting on the player to spare that Hurlock who would go on to spread the Darkspawn plague that he created, thereby winning even if he himself died. It's nice when the villain has a plan that might actually work so again, I genuinely think he was one of the better villains in Bioware's roster who was wasted like Meredith in DA2. Edited May 17, 2014 by Serrano 1
tajerio Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 The Architect really was a good character it's just that he and spider-woman didn't get enough screen time. What he had going for him is that he's not a moustache twirling villain and his cause is something people can empathise with easily while still putting him at odds with the player. I also really liked that he was counting on the player to spare that Hurlock who would go on to spread the Darkspawn plague that he created, thereby winning even if he himself died. It's nice when the villain has a plan that might actually work so again, I genuinely think he was one of the better villains in Bioware's roster who was wasted like Meredith in DA2. Yeah, he's got a very interesting concept. I also liked that the choice to let him live or to kill him is an actual choice that I would debate, unlike 90% of the choices in the Dragon Age series (at a conservative estimate). On the one hand, he's killed a bunch of people, doesn't seem to really understand or perhaps even care about collateral damage, and wants to forge a civilization out of a bunch of twisted creatures that are basically anti-life. On the other hand, the Blights are really terrible, so it would be good to try to prevent them, and he's had some success in bringing a bunch of twisted creatures that are basically anti-life to actual sapience and morality. I flip-flop on that choice all the time, and I kinda hope BioWare uses him or his ideas again, even if they have to ignore people's past decisions.
Meshugger Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 Original magisters? Whu? The ones that created the very Darkspawn? Was that cut from the orignal campaign in DA2? "Some men see things as they are and say why?""I dream things that never were and say why not?"- George Bernard Shaw"Hope in reality is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man."- Friedrich Nietzsche "The amount of energy necessary to refute bull**** is an order of magnitude bigger than to produce it." - Some guy
PK htiw klaw eriF Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 Original magisters? Whu? The ones that created the very Darkspawn? Was that cut from the orignal campaign in DA2? Does this mean there will finally be a broodmother romance? YOUR PRAYERS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED BSN! 1 "Akiva Goldsman and Alex Kurtzman run the 21st century version of MK ULTRA." - majestic "you're a damned filthy lying robot and you deserve to die and burn in hell." - Bartimaeus "Without individual thinking you can't notice the plot holes." - InsaneCommander "Just feed off the suffering of gamers." - Malcador "You are calling my taste crap." -Hurlshort "thankfully it seems like the creators like Hungary less this time around." - Sarex "Don't forget the wakame, dumbass" -Keyrock "Are you trolling or just being inadvertently nonsensical?' -Pidesco "we have already been forced to admit you are at least human" - uuuhhii "I refuse to buy from non-woke businesses" - HoonDing "feral camels are now considered a pest" - Gorth "Melkathi is known to be an overly critical grumpy person" - Melkathi "Oddly enough Sanderson was a lot more direct despite being a Mormon" - Zoraptor "I found it greatly disturbing to scroll through my cartoon's halfing selection of genitalias." - Wormerine "I love cheese despite the pain and carnage." - ShadySands
Nepenthe Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 Original magisters? Whu? The ones that created the very Darkspawn? Was that cut from the orignal campaign in DA2? Yes. And a good thing it was, since the dlc content, with the more time it has, was vastly superior in playability to the core game 1 You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
Serrano Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 Too bad Exalted March was cancelled because I do think if they'd just cut out the waves and re-used areas an expansion would have won a lot of people over. 1
Gromnir Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 Original magisters? Whu? The ones that created the very Darkspawn? Was that cut from the orignal campaign in DA2? am glad it weren't part of da2. is the reason we disliked the andraste's ashes stuff from da:o. bio starts with a religion that is relying on faith. doubting thomas, who gets a bad wrap btw, would be most unsatisfied with the religion bio presented at the start o' da:o. 'course then we gets bio's version o' the holy grail and you gets to actual interact with the ghosts of andrastes' less-than-12 apostles/disciples. ok, that ain't a good approach if you is trying to keep your world's deity remote. holy relics with actual magical powers? still, in a world with magic, you can chalk up the glowy, heal-anything urn as just another magic bauble... and perhaps interacting with the ghosts of andrastes' apostles is a hallucination resulting from the temple o' the ashes being at high altitude... got altitude sickness and some bad wine? dunno. andrastes' ashes is bad for keeping deity remote, but you can clumsily tap-dance 'round that questionable inclusion. but to include in the game the magisters who knocked on God's front door and brought doom 'pon humanity for their temerity is just so darn wrong if you is trying to keep deity remote and religion a matter o' faith. architect were an interesting enough character. why bio felt need to retroactive make him a major religious figure baffles us. guess they want EPIC finale to the dragon age series. end blights once and for all and get Maker's autograph on your collector's edition box of goodies? perhaps a final dlc wherein you gain andraste as a companion and can romance her... fight the Maker for her affections? bruce and chris might wet themselves over that. HA! Good Fun! 1 "If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood and fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence."Justice Louis Brandeis, Concurring, Whitney v. California, 274 U.S. 357 (1927) "Im indifferent to almost any murder as long as it doesn't affect me or mine."--Gfted1 (September 30, 2019)
aluminiumtrioxid Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 andrastes' ashes is bad for keeping deity remote, but you can clumsily tap-dance 'round that questionable inclusion. but to include in the game the magisters who knocked on God's front door and brought doom 'pon humanity for their temerity is just so darn wrong if you is trying to keep deity remote and religion a matter o' faith. They seem to take more of a "these things exist, but religion is still wrong" stance. 3 "Lulz is not the highest aspiration of art and mankind, no matter what the Encyclopedia Dramatica says."
Serrano Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 Especially when people try to peddle their belief's door-to-door. Bloody magisters.
ShadySands Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 I don't remember too much from that DLC Something about the Golden City already being black and corrupted when the magisters got there or some such Free games updated 3/4/21
Nepenthe Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 I don't remember too much from that DLC Something about the Golden City already being black and corrupted when the magisters got there or some such Looks like you didn't remember even that part right! You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
HoonDing Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 (edited) Ancient evil guy from DA2 DLC will turn out main bad in Inquisition? Edited May 17, 2014 by Drudanae The ending of the words is ALMSIVI.
aluminiumtrioxid Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 I don't remember too much from that DLC Something about the Golden City already being black and corrupted when the magisters got there or some such Looks like you didn't remember even that part right! Strange, I remember the same. What was it then? "Lulz is not the highest aspiration of art and mankind, no matter what the Encyclopedia Dramatica says."
Tale Posted May 17, 2014 Posted May 17, 2014 I don't remember too much from that DLC Something about the Golden City already being black and corrupted when the magisters got there or some such Not exactly. "The light. We sought the golden light. You offered... the power of the gods themselves. But it was... black... corrupt. Darkness... ever since. How long?" It seems it was written to be intentionally ambiguous. Corypheus isn't exactly a clear speaker. His statements could mean it turned black when they arrived or it was black already. "But it was black" implies there was no golden light. "Darkness ever since" implies they weren't, but it changed. The only conclusion is that you shouldn't read too much into what he says. 2 "Show me a man who "plays fair" and I'll show you a very talented cheater."
Nepenthe Posted May 18, 2014 Posted May 18, 2014 I don't remember too much from that DLC Something about the Golden City already being black and corrupted when the magisters got there or some such Not exactly. "The light. We sought the golden light. You offered... the power of the gods themselves. But it was... black... corrupt. Darkness... ever since. How long?"It seems it was written to be intentionally ambiguous. Corypheus isn't exactly a clear speaker. His statements could mean it turned black when they arrived or it was black already."But it was black" implies there was no golden light."Darkness ever since" implies they weren't, but it changed. The only conclusion is that you shouldn't read too much into what he says. I read it as more or less supporting the legend directly. 1 You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
Raithe Posted May 18, 2014 Posted May 18, 2014 This half makes me want to pick up the dlc and replay Dragon Age 2 again. Hm, much as I enjoyed aspects of it, yeah, I can't really feel up to it in summery weather. 1 "Cuius testiculos habeas, habeas cardia et cerebellum."
ShadySands Posted May 18, 2014 Posted May 18, 2014 3 different people all with different takes on what happened. Who says Bioware can't do ambiguity 3 Free games updated 3/4/21
Nepenthe Posted May 18, 2014 Posted May 18, 2014 3 different people all with different takes on what happened. Who says Bioware can't do ambiguity That DLC WAS probably their best work since, well, I dunno, ME1? 1 You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
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