Dragon Age: Awakening Expansion

[Sabretooth]

Ðragon Age:Origins

 

I approve of this to the fullest degree.

[jrrtoken]

Fans want a half-finished, buggy mess?

Fans want a hackneyed myriad of cliché after cliché, all assembled in a generic fantasy wrapper?

 

Oh, wait....

[Sabretooth]

Fans want a hackneyed myriad of cliché after cliché, all assembled in a generic dark mature bloody moralchoices violent gory fantasy wrapper?

 

Fixed.

[igyman]

Fans want a hackneyed myriad of cliché after cliché, all assembled in a generic fantasy wrapper?

 

Oh, wait....

 

In today's world it's practically impossible to be original. Everything you see, hear, or read was inspired by something someone else made at some point. Look at Dead Space, for example. The game is a mixture of Resident Evil's gameplay and basic plot, Half-Life's silent enviro-suit protagonist and cutscene perspective and Doom 3's environment and audio/video log narration, but it works and the game is great, fun and has an interesting story.

 

The men were truly teh sexeh. I actually lost influence with Alistair for that.

 

Something similar happened to me, but it involved bringing Morrigan along and seducing Isabela.

[Mav]

Dragon Age: Origins -- Awakening Q&A

[jrrtoken]

In today's world it's practically impossible to be original. Everything you see, hear, or read was inspired by something someone else made at some point.

Yes. I'm simply stating that the term fantasy has lost all meaning whatsoever, and is now completely lacking the "fantastic" that would presumably be the focal point of the fantasy setting. What's worse, is that I can easily list various untapped settings that wouldn't conform to medievalist and Tolkein-esque imagery, but would still be considered fantasy in a broad sense.

 

So, saying that it's "difficult" to develop a non-medievalist fantasy realm is pure bollocks, particularly if it's coming from the "industry leaders in great storytelling" that are BioWare.

[Quanon]

Why kill possessed children when you can sell them to a demon?

 

I only killed that one daemon.

 

Kitty got away and so did that one, daemoness with the templar in the tower.

On that last one, I wished I could switch places with the templar... lucky lad

 

EDIT:

Fans want a hackneyed myriad of cliché after cliché, all assembled in a generic fantasy wrapper?

 

Oh, wait....

 

I did enjoy the game, but I got to agree with you on this point.

Ever since Peter Jackson/ Weta released his version of Lotr, every fantasy thing(games etc) has to follow its more "realistic" approach.

Oblivion comes to mind and saddly it all turned rather bland. Really, I could go to France to see some nice medieval architecture.

Or Keulen, Germany, for a nice view on a gothic church. I rather have a bit more whacky fantasy back then all this, copy/ paste, give a small twist to historic styles.

[igyman]

I dunno, when it comes to the environment, the only thing that really bothers me in DA is the design of Orzammar. I don't know if it's because of LoTR, or World of Warcraft's Ironforge, but ever since those two came out the dwarven cities in every epic fantasy RPG I've played simply have to be underground and simply must have a circular architecture, comprising of several "ring" levels, not to mention the unavoidable lava surrounding that city. Other than that, I mostly liked the locations in Dragon Age.

[True_Avery]

I dunno, when it comes to the environment, the only thing that really bothers me in DA is the design of Orzammar. I don't know if it's because of LoTR, or World of Warcraft's Ironforge, but ever since those two came out the dwarven cities in every epic fantasy RPG I've played simply have to be underground and simply must have a circular architecture, comprising of several "ring" levels, not to mention the unavoidable lava surrounding that city. Other than that, I mostly liked the locations in Dragon Age.

This bugged the HELL out of me. I was with the game entirely up to this point. I can handle elves in forest, humans in a city, and Dwarves underground...

 

But to anyone who has ever played World of Warcraft, Orzammar was an architectural rip off. It was fascinating the level of detail they went to make the place almost identical.

 

Yes. I'm simply stating that the term fantasy has lost all meaning whatsoever, and is now completely lacking the "fantastic" that would presumably be the focal point of the fantasy setting. What's worse, is that I can easily list various untapped settings that wouldn't conform to medievalist and Tolkein-esque imagery, but would still be considered fantasy in a broad sense.

 

So, saying that it's "difficult" to develop a non-medievalist fantasy realm is pure bollocks, particularly if it's coming from the "industry leaders in great storytelling" that are BioWare.

We were talking about this on Skype a few nights ago and must say I agree with this to a certain degree.

 

Sabre brought up the idea to take these generic fantasy characters to do a more modern day rendition of them. Its been done (*cough* final fantasy *cough*), but I still think it'd be refreshing enough to be a lot of fun. I dunno, I've always had fun with games that mix modern tech with magic.

[Sabretooth]

In today's world it's practically impossible to be original.

 

Impossible if you've got a budget larger than $1000, it seems. Indie games lately have been a font of originality - try playing Braid, World of Goo, The Void, Machinarium, Defcon, Darwinia, AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! - A Reckless Disregard for Gravity, or Crayon Physics Deluxe.

[Quanon]

Well, not to say these Indie games are bad, they do rely on a gimmick, sort of... Their very basic and not so overly complex as a game as Dragon Age.

 

Note, that I don't think that's whats wrong though, but I don't think you can compare it just like that.

 

Anyway, it's time some company dethroned Bioware from the RPG genre. Or they need a lot of new talent, to kick out the eldar members, who seem to create the collect the 4 things RPG main quest.

[Drunkside]

As long as it makes money, EA doesn't care.

 

Fixed that... Not that bioware wouldnt make the games for money(come on, do you do your job to make other people happy?), but im blaming the gigantic evil corporation behind them

 

"Fans want a hackneyed myriad of cliché after cliché, all assembled in a generic fantasy wrapper?"

 

Yeah, i agree. If i made a fantasy game, there wouldnt be dwarves, orcs and dragons. A few elves that are on the state of an animal maybe, but the majority of the population would be human. And no mages! Shamans sound better, all kinds of rituals and enchantments and curses > direct magical intervention... fireballs bah:p

(couldnt figure out how to add several quotes to one post theres probably a button for it somewhere but im tired and lazy...)

[Quanon]

The button is at the bottom right of every post. Named: "add to multi-quote.

Just next to quote&reply, quick reply.

[stoffe]

cliché ... generic fantasy ... original

I would assume that a lot of fantasy worlds/games have the same repeating elements (with a twist here or there) for the simple reason that it works and it is what most people would expect, and are somewhat familiar with.

 

Not everyone plays games like a movie critic, demanding something revolutionary from every one to get excited. Different does not always equal Good, and neither does Familiar equal Bad. Some people just play games to have fun, and how original the story or setting happens to be is likely not as much key factor in deciding the Fun as how good the gameplay, execution and storytelling is.

 

Personally I don't mind if a game parrots something that has been done before as long as it is fun and entertaining to play. And I think that Ðragon Age is just that. Sure it has dwarves, elves, dragons and magic in a medieval setting, but so what? It works.

[Quanon]

Mmm, its more the commercial and hypeing around the games that does the damage.

It's just silly they're selling this as NEVER BEFORE have you seen such EPIC FANTASY stuff.

 

Just silly, of Bioware to sell this as the next best new innovationg RPG game, it's NOT.

Now of course, they need to promote it, but they could do it differantly.

 

Anyway, guess its a mixed bag, it doesn't look bad, has good gameplay. Some nice, funny dialogue with party members. Still, in the end, IMO, it stays a bit more bland.

 

It's odd, because I didn't have that with Mass Effect, go figure

[Sabretooth]

Well, not to say these Indie games are bad, they do rely on a gimmick, sort of... Their very basic and not so overly complex as a game as Dragon Age.

 

Note, that I don't think that's whats wrong though, but I don't think you can compare it just like that.

 

Anyway, it's time some company dethroned Bioware from the RPG genre. Or they need a lot of new talent, to kick out the eldar members, who seem to create the collect the 4 things RPG main quest.

 

Then look at Planescape: Torment. It was much deeper than Dragon Age and managed to be not only original and fantastical, but also touched upon metaphysical and philosophical topics. Fallout is also a good example - in a genre dominated by elves and dwarves, Fallout not only successfully shifted setting to a believable post-apocalyptic world, but created a trademark presentation style.

 

Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines - sure vampires aren't original, but they're great to play in an FPRPG because a complex world of vampire politics hasn't been done before. Before it, Troika also took an excellent spin on the high fantasy genre by fusing Steampunk with it to create an amazing world of Victorian language, flintlock pistol-weilding elves, airships and orcish fighter pilots.

 

KotOR II - an uncertain, dark tale that evaded conventional RPG storytelling. It not only managed to be original on its own, but brought that freshness to an increasingly tired world of Star Wars. Kreia alone is one of the most original and interesting characters in video games.

 

Thief. First-person was (and still is) synonymous with mindless sci-fi monster shooting. Thief changes that, an intelligently written story, a semi-steampunk setting and gameplay that focuses on staying hidden and using stealth. It's a refreshingly original gameplay experience. Even today, only the Splinter Cell series has come reasonably close to good stealth.

 

Portal. I don't even need to expound on it - a (what appears to be) sentient, malfunctioning robot runs twisted mental tests on a test subject who is presumably a prisoner in the facility. The sheer character of GLADoS is original, as is Portal's gameplay and sense of humour.

 

Mirror's Edge, while being a flawed game was also on the right track conceptually. A challenge that centred around escaping combat running at full speed. Parkour-based running-and-jumping first-person gameplay set in a beautiful stark white world - that's originality amidst a sea of games with (as Yahtzee described) Dystopia Brown and Gunmetal Grey.

 

POKEMON. One of the most phenomenally creative game designs I can think of. An alternate world inhabited by magical creatures who can be trapped in small devices and then be used partly as pets, partly as cocks in cockfighting tournaments. No epic quests, no dragons, no elves or dwarves, and yet all RPG.

 

It's really not that hard. Or at least, it isn't as hard as Dragon Age seemingly makes it out to be. What does Dragon Age bring to the table? Blood? "An epic world with its own people and languages populated by different races"? Dragons? Moral choices?

 

To be fair however, Sandal is awesome.

[igyman]

This bugged the HELL out of me. I was with the game entirely up to this point. I can handle elves in forest, humans in a city, and Dwarves underground...

 

But to anyone who has ever played World of Warcraft, Orzammar was an architectural rip off. It was fascinating the level of detail they went to make the place almost identical.

 

LIke I said, it's not the only RPG. Drakensang is another example of a great RPG with an interesting story and setting and yet they simply had to put dwarves underground and in a city that resembles Ironforge even more than Orzammar does. Why couldn't they simply put dwarves on a mountain, the city itself being outside and somewhere in it would be an entrance to dwarven mines, or something.

 

try playing Braid, World of Goo, The Void, Machinarium, Defcon, Darwinia, AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! - A Reckless Disregard for Gravity, or Crayon Physics Deluxe.

 

Played Machinarium and it was awesome. What amazed me the most was that it was done completely in Flash.

 

To be fair however, Sandal is awesome.

 

QFT

[Taak Farst]

It looks awesome - ..but in my opinion that price is ridiculous, and on top of that u have to pay for the dlc's?? my god EA are certainly fightin the recession.. It's ridiculous, you are spending near enough £100 or $100 on the one game..:S

[Astor]

It looks awesome - ..but in my opinion that price is ridiculous, and on top of that u have to pay for the dlc's??

 

Not really ridiculous. £20-25 has always been the going rate for expansion packs.

 

And all the DLC except Soldier's Peak and Return to Ostagar are free (so long as you own an original copy), so it's not like they are screwing every penny out of people.

 

Of course, you can always vote with your wallet.

[JediAthos]

I may simply wait until the price drops which I'm sure it will do eventually. I've found the game to have enough replay value that dropping $40 on an expansion isn't that crucial right now.

[Laar_Dha]

40 bucks for an expansion? No problem. Dragon Age has been worth every penny for me. Let's see $70 for the Collector's Edition - have played about 500 hours (so far) - pretty darn cheap for entertainment these days. Despite some of the gripes out there, I have had few problems either. Bugs have been few and for the most part minor. This is the first RPG since KOTOR that has managed to hold my attention so well. I'm still finding new things that I missed after several tours.

[Darth333]

I would assume that a lot of fantasy worlds/games have the same repeating elements (with a twist here or there) for the simple reason that it works and it is what most people would expect, and are somewhat familiar with.

 

Not everyone plays games like a movie critic, demanding something revolutionary from every one to get excited. Different does not always equal Good, and neither does Familiar equal Bad. Some people just play games to have fun, and how original the story or setting happens to be is likely not as much key factor in deciding the Fun as how good the gameplay, execution and storytelling is.

 

Personally I don't mind if a game parrots something that has been done before as long as it is fun and entertaining to play. And I think that Ðragon Age is just that. Sure it has dwarves, elves, dragons and magic in a medieval setting, but so what? It works.

 

QFE at 500%.

 

DA is just what I need right now. When I get back home after work, I am looking for something that is just plain fun and that allows me to change my mind without too much thinking: DA meets all my expectations in that regard.

 

In comparison, MoTB, despite its good story, made gaming after the end of a long work day a real pain due to its Greek tragedy aftertaste (and maybe the horrible camera controls too).

 

 

I admit that when I watch a movie I am much more difficult but a movie doesn't last 60-100 hours or so...

 

 

As for those complaining about the price of the expansion...per hour of gameplay it is not so bad...especially when compared to the price of a movie in a theater!

[Mav]

lol dwarfs

[Quanon]

Then look at Planescape: Torment. It was much deeper than Dragon Age and managed to be not only original and fantastical, but also touched upon metaphysical and philosophical topics. Fallout is also a good example - in a genre dominated by elves and dwarves, Fallout not only successfully shifted setting to a believable post-apocalyptic world, but created a trademark presentation style.

Late to reply

I haven't fully played these games, so I'll take your word on it that their dang good and beat Bioware games on every part!

 

Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines - sure vampires aren't original, but they're great to play in an FPRPG because a complex world of vampire politics hasn't been done before. Before it, Troika also took an excellent spin on the high fantasy genre by fusing Steampunk with it to create an amazing world of Victorian language, flintlock pistol-weilding elves, airships and orcish fighter pilots.

 

Played Vampire: the setting was, still is pretty unique, most other vampire games out there are more or less a rip off of White Wolfs setting.

THough, the game main focus is this old ancient coffin... made believe.

But still a great deal of the suspense is about this ANCIENT thing.... So

originale for a 100% ? Not really.

 

Can't comment on the Steampunk game, it's only these last years this genre seems to be popping up everywhere. You should look up Warmachine, a fun miniature game. Which combines magic and steam engine driven robots

 

KotOR II - an uncertain, dark tale that evaded conventional RPG storytelling. It not only managed to be original on its own, but brought that freshness to an increasingly tired world of Star Wars. Kreia alone is one of the most original and interesting characters in video games.

I love KotorII, but it's still collect 4 things at the basis of its story. Ofcourse they did a nice job on it

 

Portal. I don't even need to expound on it - a (what appears to be) sentient, malfunctioning robot runs twisted mental tests on a test subject who is presumably a prisoner in the facility. The sheer character of GLADoS is original, as is Portal's gameplay and sense of humour.

 

Portal is fun, but in all its a puzzle game, relying on the gimmick of creating 2 portals. Sure there's a whole world and story bit build around it... but that's like for most games

 

POKEMON. One of the most phenomenally creative game designs I can think of. An alternate world inhabited by magical creatures who can be trapped in small devices and then be used partly as pets, partly as cocks in cockfighting tournaments. No epic quests, no dragons, no elves or dwarves, and yet all RPG.

Okay, the setting is unique and played most games, but in the end it doesn't play much differant then most Asian RPGs. YOu walk about, get randome encounters. Its turn based etc.

 

Story? Not so much, but the fun is in collecting and leveling your creatures.

 

It's really not that hard. Or at least, it isn't as hard as Dragon Age seemingly makes it out to be. What does Dragon Age bring to the table? Blood? "An epic world with its own people and languages populated by different races"? Dragons? Moral choices?

 

To be fair however, Sandal is awesome.

 

See, Sabre, Bioware doesn't seem to be doing much orginale with its games. But infact most games aren't what you that originale from the get go.

 

Why do I enjoy Bio games? Most of them are always nicely done, its a full package. Its a finished job, it plays smoothly and I get fun out of it. I also know what I'll get from them. Perhaps in your view that's the bad part.

 

You know what they do and they don't seem to change that.

 

Anyway, I just don't think all this Bio bashing has much basis on what some of you throw out there. Settings aside, most games offer the same.

 

Oh, I don't find the list you posted was games I hate, I enjoyed most of them. And their certainly games to be considered TOP of the bill

[Ztalker]

I dont know what it is with this game...

 

I deinstalled it for Mass Effect 2, after only 1 playthrough. Don't know.

Back to WoW

 

Anyway, expansion looks good. Maybe my first playthrough epic warrior can go and do some damage there.