Dragon Age

[swphreak]

I hate the tactics system. No matter what I pick, it sucks.

[Jeff]

I hate the tactics system. No matter what I pick, it sucks.

Yeah I just leave the tactics system at the default unless someone is doing something I don't want and I just micro-manage pretty much every significant battle, pausing the game ever 2 seconds to cast a new spell or use a different ability. Tactics I would recommend implementing are having your character automatically use a potion (or whatever they are called in this game) when their health gets below 25%.

[Sabretooth]

I pick the presets in Tactics and make some mild changes when needed. I like it so far, but it takes a while getting used to. That they included it is a nice thing in itself, though. Not many developers would try to make a game more complex than it already is.

[Det. Bart Lasiter]

Yeah but the default setting should be to not suck.

[Bob Lion54]

I'm enjoying the game a lot. The story has me hooked. I tried a few different Origins and seemed to have settled on an Elven Rogue/Ranger going with duel weapons...

 

I love the fact that Female PCs are actually good looking! After Oblivion, NWN2, Mass Effect... well, having an attractive character is nice. Kudos to BioWare's artists.

 

I like the combat for the most part, but I think it could be better. The cooldowns on most skills are too long, in my opinion and the fatigue system seems to leave me on auto attack in most fights... not that I have skills ready yet anyway...

 

Other than that, it's still fun and I find myself not wanting to go to bed when I should.

[Ztalker]

I pick the presets in Tactics and make some mild changes when needed. I like it so far, but it takes a while getting used to. That they included it is a nice thing in itself, though. Not many developers would try to make a game more complex than it already is.

 

I do the same...

 

Fully enjoying the game!

Although I made some mistakes leveling up....blame the D&D n00b...just got my main character (duel wielding DPS monster) herbalism tier 2...while my 'healer' party member already has tier 3.

And afterwards realising I have no clue where to get herbalism recipes or special class training...sort of lost

[DarthParametric]

I hate the tactics system. No matter what I pick, it sucks.

Indeed. It really needs a few options like "don't nuke entire party to death", "don't run into the middle of a grease fire", "don't run past a bunch of enemies to get to other enemies further away, thus aggro-ing half the map at once" etc. A more varied list of default setups would be nice as well. I'm hoping we'll see a mod that address some of the system's failings in the future, along the lines of AI script mods that have been made for previous Bioware games. As it stands, you really have to micromanage everything for every party member, which gets pretty tedious with no queue to stack orders.

 

After getting inducted into the Grey Wardens, however, I think the origin story has gone down and general RPG-ness has set in.

 

I guess the origin story itself will continue when I return to Orzammar, but that's going to be quite a while.

My first playthrough was as a dwarf noble warrior. Just started a second playthrough as a mage. I have to say I found the mage origin to be fairly lacklustre. I did spot an NPC that you run into in a later quest though, so that will be interesting to see how it plays out this time around.

 

As far as integration of the origins into the main plot, don't expect too much. You get a couple of nods here and there with a custom line or two of dialogue, but nothing extensive.

 

I've been playing them since before they had any graphics. (Yeah, I'm really that old. )

I remember playing The Hobbit text-based game at the local library on (I think) an Apple IIe more than 20 years ago. I killed Thorin with a karate chop to the back of the neck.

[Det. Bart Lasiter]

Indeed. It really needs a few options like "don't nuke entire party to death", "don't run into the middle of a grease fire", "don't run past a bunch of enemies to get to other enemies further away, thus aggro-ing half the map at once" etc. A more varied list of default setups would be nice as well. I'm hoping we'll see a mod that address some of the system's failings in the future, along the lines of AI script mods that have been made for previous Bioware games. As it stands, you really have to micromanage everything for every party member, which gets pretty tedious with no queue to stack orders.

 

My first playthrough was as a dwarf noble warrior. Just started a second playthrough as a mage. I have to say I found the mage origin to be fairly lacklustre. I did spot an NPC that you run into in a later quest though, so that will be interesting to see how it plays out this time around.

 

As far as integration of the origins into the main plot, don't expect too much. You get a couple of nods here and there with a custom line or two of dialogue, but nothing extensive.

 

I remember playing The Hobbit text-based game at the local library on (I think) an Apple IIe more than 20 years ago. I killed Thorin with a karate chop to the back of the neck.

I hate when they run out of the grease then run back into it after it's on fire

[GeneralPloKoon]

Ive been considering getting back into games just to play this game, it looks amazing!

[swphreak]

Indeed. It really needs a few options like "don't nuke entire party to death", "don't run into the middle of a grease fire", "don't run past a bunch of enemies to get to other enemies further away, thus aggro-ing half the map at once" etc. A more varied list of default setups would be nice as well. I'm hoping we'll see a mod that address some of the system's failings in the future, along the lines of AI script mods that have been made for previous Bioware games. As it stands, you really have to micromanage everything for every party member, which gets pretty tedious with no queue to stack orders.

Or they could have just, you know, programmed some decent AI for the party members instead of being lazy and making players do it.

 

Are enemy NPCs levelling up with me or what? I couldn't defeat one quest, so I left to gain a few levels. When I went back, the NPC Leader's name was still orange but I think I defeated him and his goons pretty easily.

[Star Admiral]

Apparently the level of the NPCs are set to around your level when you first enter an area. If you leave and come back later to finish the quest, they will not be changed to account for your new, higher level.

 

- Star Admiral

[DarthParametric]

I think it's a mix of some levelling with you plus some pre-levelled.

[Q]

OK, old-school BioWare heads, how does this game compare to BG2, especially in regards to the combat?

 

I had some money set aside for Alpha Protocol, but since Obsidian flaked out (once again), I'd be willing to spend it on Dragon Age if it's any good.

[Sabretooth]

I had some money set aside for Alpha Protocol, but since Obsidian flaked out (once again), I'd be willing to spend it on Dragon Age if it's any good.

I haven't played any Baldur's Gate, but if you've got money to spend for this year, Dragon Age looks like the best choice. The only other games coming close would be Modern Warfare, which is overpriced and Borderlands, which, while excellent, is not as good a deal as Dragon Age.

 

This is assuming of course, that you're talking about the year only. Because if not, you may want to hold on for the numerous awesome games coming next year before making your call. >_>

[DarthParametric]

OK, old-school BioWare heads, how does this game compare to BG2, especially in regards to the combat?

DA has its moments, but it's no BG2. Although to be fair, no game they've done since has come close IMO. To be sure, there is a dose of nostalgia factored into that, but I still dig BG2 out a couple of times a year for another run through. There's just something about it that keeps bringing me back that no other game (by Bioware or anyone else) has managed to the same degree.

 

As far as DA's combat goes, I'm not overly thrilled with it to be honest. It has far too much of an MMO mentality for my tastes. Not just the combat mechanics themselves, but class design and ability system, the AI, etc. In particular there seem to be a surprising number of deficiencies and imbalances with certain talents, classes, and specialisations. There's a thread over on the official site where one of the devs has basically admitted that the shapeshifter mage specialisation is pretty much useless and needs to be changed. It's very odd when you consider that they have been working on the game for 5 or 6 years and the PC version has been in "polish" mode for almost a year.

 

Story-wise it is mostly enjoyable, but there are no real surprises. A few of the tried and true Bioware tropes put in an appearance, as was expected. Being a new IP, it can be a bit confusing at times with all the references to places and people and official titles. The codex doesn't really help out with that very much, especially in the piecemeal way they dole it out. The ME codex system worked much better to give you an understanding of the background and universe concepts.

[stingerhs]

okay, so i'm about halfway through my first playthrough. in typical Bioware fashion, the story is what pulls you in early, even if it is somewhat predictable and derivative. as the game progresses, you see more of that same predictable an derivative story, but the way its done allows you to enjoy it without rolling your eyes at endless cliches.

 

what i'm not liking is the tactics system for the combat. its just simply too complicated to have to go in and adjust 50 different options for all your party members tactic slots. while i appreciate the ability to customize the friendly AI like that, Bioware should've done a better job of programming the AI to suit casual players that aren't looking for the "ultimate RPG experience". what makes it worse is when you're actually in the middle of a battle, and you find out that your tactics aren't set up very well. this forces you constantly pause the game just so you can go back to your tactics screen and change things up hopefully before you all die.

 

so, yes, the story is fun and reasonably well told despite its deficiencies, but combat is, thus far, an overly complicated chore. not a particularly good first impression.

 

and, for the record, i'm playing on normal difficulty.

[Rake]

I'm enjoying the combat so far 25 hours in, although it has its imbalances. However, my main beef so far has been the story, maybe I haven't gotten far enough, but it feels like there is no main plot. To me, the game feels like each village is its own little DLC pack, each have their own little story, while fun; don't encapsulate me to the degree an epic main story that evolves constantly over time does.

 

Aside from that, the level design is fantastic, all the battles have been fun (so far), and the majority of the dialogue is well written, especially the massive codex.

[DarthParametric]

what makes it worse is when you're actually in the middle of a battle, and you find out that your tactics aren't set up very well. this forces you constantly pause the game just so you can go back to your tactics screen and change things up hopefully before you all die.

The tactics system is pretty useless to be honest. Doesn't matter how you have it set up, you really have to micromanage everything regardless.

[Laar_Dha]

I never really got very far with Baldur's Gate; I found it frustrating to manage my party and I didn't care for the combat - I was always stuck behind one party member or another. I much prefer Dragon's Age. It takes a while to get the hang of the tactics system, but I find it works extremely well for me. I always "micromanage" my party to some extent during combat anyway, and this way I don't need to do so all the time. The more I play with it and try different things, the better it gets. I'm still switching between easy and normal modes on this first play through. Some of the higher ranked opponents are pretty tough, but I suspect that will be a good thing and keep things from becoming too easy in later replays. So far I am really impressed with this game and am thoroughly enjoying it.

[DarthParametric]

The difficulty is pretty uneven in places. A lot of the toughest fights are random encounters and side-quests. Wolves seem to be the bane of many people's existence if the official forums are anything to go by.

[Sabretooth]

The difficulty is pretty uneven in places. A lot of the toughest fights are random encounters and side-quests. Wolves seem to be the bane of many people's existence if the official forums are anything to go by.

 

I can attest to this. I just died to some mutant dog and his 3 or 4 hounds. After that, I cleaned up a party of Darkspawn and licked their bones.

[Q]

I haven't played any Baldur's Gate <snip>

You should. BG1 isn't that great, but I still found it fun and there are mods available that make up for it's worst shortcomings (like the interface). It's best to think of it as a prequel to the main event. BG2 is nothing short of the best game that BioWare has ever produced by a significant margin. The combat is both tough and thrilling and the spellcasting system (sequencers FTW) is incredible. The graphics are of the type that really don't age (like PS:T; same engine) and the story isn't bad, either.

 

As a whole, these two games and their expansions combine to make an awesome super-game as you take your PC from Level 1 weakling to Level 30+ demigod. It's just so much fun.

To be sure, there is a dose of nostalgia factored into that, but I still dig BG2 out a couple of times a year for another run through.

Same here.

 

And as far as having to micromanage your party in combat, well, that's nothing new to me. Not micromanaging was a good way to get your entire party wiped out in BG/BG2.

[igyman]

Well, today I finished my first playthrough (Dalish Elf Warrior). My extremely positive opinion of the game is unchanged despite the difficulty thing. I won't post any spoilers, so you'll just have to finish the game yourselves to find out what happens.

Anyway, tactics, haven't really used it. Didn't need to. I just picked the right party members (at least those I felt were a good combination), gave them good equipment and let them show those darkspawn who's boss. One other thing that I haven't actually done until the very end of the game *prepares for massive eye-rolling* is player character specialization. Even when I did finally choose the Berserker and Templar for my elf (since I failed to unlock Reaver), I didn't use the abilities that come with them - again, didn't need to.

I guess that's enough for now - time to get back to the game and see what other endings my elf can have.

[Parmenides]

I'm not sure how it's in the spirit of Baldur's Gate except that it's a Bioware game. All their games seem the same to some degree. Combat is more tactical. The magic and skill system is vastly superior to any DnD game. I always hated that warriors had to wait for the mages to rest to re-memorize their spells in previous games. If you know the right spells, you might find mages to be overpowered.

 

Maybe it's also like BG in that it is dark. My wife probably wouldn't like to know that I'm playing a game where I'm talking to the demon possessed.

 

One of the biggest things, is that the people do seem very real. The world is very immersive.

[Ztalker]

I can attest to this. I just died to some mutant dog and his 3 or 4 hounds. After that, I cleaned up a party of Darkspawn and licked their bones.

 

Same here....tough wolves indeed...genetically modified obviously