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Gaming Dragon Age 2 Preview

Discussion in 'Article Discussion' started by CardJoe, 5 Oct 2010.

  1. sear

    sear What's a Dremel?

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    Oh, I fully admit that more complex doesn't necessarily mean better, heck, Dragon Age largely simplified the D&D ruleset by reducing the number of character classes, and it was better for it by giving classes more distinct and defined roles in the game world, as well as integrating them into the story. At the same time, turning the game from an RPG into an action-based hack-and-slasher is not at all what I signed up for; even if Dragon Age 2 is a wonderful game (which, from what I have seen, it won't be), BioWare have gone against what the original fanbase signed up for to begin with. It's not even a case of a genre shift, it's a case of them moving from a genre which is desperate for new games, to a genre which is largely oversaturated and contrary to the original's pen and paper RPG roots. This is like if you turned Ridge Racer into a turn-based strategy game.
     
  2. kenco_uk

    kenco_uk I unsuccessfully then tried again

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    Seems to a bit of a marmite game.

    I.e., brown.
     
  3. Suilebhain

    Suilebhain What's a Dremel?

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    This game so far presents as a huge letdown for me and a further indication of Bioware reaching out to the console people and moving away from the RPG tradition that made them great once.

    When Dragon Age:Origins was marketed it was as a game where your character became the central figure in a saga. YOUR character, not a pre-made persona passed on to us in something that should have been an add-on. In fact, this whole idea of giving us a largely pre-made character feels more like downloadable content than a real game. Unfortunately, it seems that Mass Effect, which was a console game before being ported to PC, is setting the tone.

    The other thing that made Dragon Age: Origins so appealing was that fact that it could be modded. Awakenings cut back on that. I suspect this game will have little to none, like Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 even less so.

    Overall, this game will have to hit the budget rack before I buy it, and no longer will Bioware get a free pass.
     
  4. Leane

    Leane What's a Dremel?

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    Now this game is being marketed as character focused, it`s a misleading tactic to hide that the primary console development will have huge negative impact on the PC version of the game.

    When a game is developed for PC `first the scaling down to a console version gives a visually better game on consoles, that when tweaked properly gives a good game on the consoles, and a game that is scaling up to a PC version is mostly a visually and even tactically a mediocre port.

    The current combat and character focus is exactly showing the environment and even character polygon budget that s very limited by the engine any way ,and primary console development .Origins probably had eternal loading times in Orzammar for example on the Xbox version of the game.On PC however bad port`s like ME2 are becoming mainstream,and the visual limits are any way there ,together with weird facial deformations and clipping problems.

    EA blessed the Sims players after the Sims2 with a game that nearly cant be modded,and is selling furniture for 80$ a set.The Hive strikes again i guess.
    Any way day one DLC`s will be there as part of EA's "Project Ten Dollar" -here :http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/eas-project-ten-dollar-explained
     
  5. Daddyfish

    Daddyfish What's a Dremel?

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    I've played DA:O for about 25 hours on the Xbox getting halfway through the game and to me it's just a less cartoony and more gory version of World of Warcraft. I'm personally hopeful for the change to a main character that comes with a backstory rather than the silent protagonist, as for me it'd feel less like WoW. It also wouldn't hurt comming up with original spell/ability names either.
     
  6. serial_

    serial_ What's a Dremel?

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    Honestly Joe, I've started to dread clicking on your articles. Each one is reviewed in such a negative light. If I'm lucky I'm treated to a sarcastic comparison to Monkey Island. Are you really so jaded by the direction that games are taking? It's so easy to point out what a game does "wrong" anymore. Ben Croshaw makes a decent living doing just that. But unless the game is somehow broken it's all subjective.

    I read a lot of baww about the game being brown in your preview. Well, if I recall correctly the first game's cast constantly belittled Ferelden for being nothing more than a muddy mess where big ugly boots were necessary. Not saying that's what was going on or not since I'm not the one who sat through the preview. However, the color choices in a game are largely inconsequential. Diablo II was the brownest game I can recall with very poor terrain variance, yet it's one of the best games ever made.

    I wish I could hear more out of you about what games do right, even if it is harder to do. I've been reading you since 2005 and you've gone a fair many paces down that road of jaded negativity.

    This just needed pointing out.
     
  7. Hawke

    Hawke What's a Dremel?

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    @serial - maybe, but read all the posts too. There is a lot of sentiment supporting the tone in this case. Mass Effecting a classic RPG is a sell out. I bet most poeple who bought DAO don't want it to to morph into another Diablo clone. Look at the waves of criticism on the Bioware's social site. Mods are going Gestapo, and locking down all negative threads (ie most of them) - and even ones that simply debate what an RPG is or isn't.

    And the voiced protagonist - didn't like that about Shepard. What he says rarely corresponded to what was written on the wheel. And (strange as this may sound) I want to role play a character that I create in my mind - it helps me to personalise and therefore connect better. I would much rather be able to play a dwarf, than be limited to human because that was all the VA budget stretched to.
     
  8. Rowland

    Rowland PC Gamer

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    Be warned...
    Dragons Age is a linear, purely commercially driven franchise masquerading as an RPG, designed to appeal to the casual gamer (wider audience). Despite excellent story-telling and narrative, don't be fooled by the RPG tag. Origins was more like an interactive story-book than a game let alone an RPG and DA 2 looks like being no different.

    These games could have been absolute masterpieces if Bioware had stuck to their principles and built upon the huge success & critical acclaim of KOTOR and developed a classic RPG experience - open world with exploration and discovery, town interaction, factions, in-depth leveling and flexible micro management then factored in the excellent story telling and dialogue.

    The direction Bioware have taken is desperately disappointing and concerning for adult/serious gamers and fans of classic RPGs. Their games are now so dumbed down & RPG-lite they cannot & should not be classified as RPG's.

    Elder Scrolls Oblivion, although by no means perfect, was a classic next gen RPG - choice of camera perspective, in-depth character choices, non linear, open world, better graphics, flexible and greater depth, larger scale and scope.. etc, which came out early 2006 !

    Nearly 5 years on and the DA franchise is nowhere near Oblivion's quality in any regard whatsoever, and that is shocking when you stop to think about it.
     
  9. omicron

    omicron Baud.

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    "Click on enemy. Wait for character to run over. Click enemy. Click enemy again. Click again. Pause, bandage. Click."

    Sure.

    Why does this look like a five year-old game? The screenshots are just hideous. DA:O suffered from a similar problem, too, especially with the character models and the incredibly lo-res textures. It's a shame, because DA:O could have been an utterly gorgeous game, and such graphical choices (presumably a limitation of the engine) are baffling.
     
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