Dragon Age Gamespot Review

[Lonewolf]

There is bound to be a mod which will turn off level scaling and can implement specific levels for specific areas

 

[racofer]

What's a metre?

STUPID AMERICAN!!!!1

Really? Last I recall I'm from Brazil, as I've stated several times.

 

[baronjohn]

What's a metre?

STUPID AMERICAN!!!!1

Really? Last I recall I'm from Brazil, as I've stated several times.

Brazil? That's in Africa isn't it?

 

[racofer]

Yes.

 

[Freelance Henchman]

NIGGER NIGGER NIGGER

 

[Lingwe]

Really, I was aware of the level-scaling crap, but I was under the impression that they didn't go full Beth but kept it on a minimal level. And now I read this. Every possibility for me to play this game is now gone. This was the last bastion, and it's fallen. My DA torrent was actually half-finished but I stopped downloading it after reading this.

I'm sure Bioware will be very disappointed to hear that you won't be pirating their game.

 

[Wyrmlord]

Really, I was aware of the level-scaling crap, but I was under the impression that they didn't go full Beth but kept it on a minimal level. And now I read this. Every possibility for me to play this game is now gone. This was the last bastion, and it's fallen. My DA torrent was actually half-finished but I stopped downloading it after reading this.

I'm sure Bioware will be very disappointed to hear that you won't be pirating their game.

This is the last straw! I am here to pirate quality stuff! I am not consuming your crappy products again, BioWare! You have lost a dedicated customer.

 

[Grunker]

If you mean writing than it is typically Gaiderish cringeworthy. But I'm sure you mean actual LARP'ing - and you know - thanks god there is none of that in Risen.

Would you explain to me what makes Risen a great RPG then? The fucking rulesystem? Not to start the phailed discussion about what does and what doesn't constitute an RPG... Just seems to me that four fake choices at least bears with it fictional RPG, where as 1 choice bears with it nothing.

I'd rather have one response than four that do the same thing.

Why? Just curious.

And mr. Skyway, sir, remember I am a young, stupid and poor child of Scandinavia, with no knowledge of the enligsh language besides what my teachers told me. So while I know what LARP stands for, I am uncertain as to what you mean by it in this context?

 

[Darth Roxor]

I'd rather have one response than four that do the same thing.

Why? Just curious.

Because there's no faux-choice bullshit, at least it's honest about railroading you.

But ZOMG you can pretend to choose the tone!! Just how awesome is that for roleplaying?!?!?!

 

[Jim Cojones]

And mr. Skyway, sir, remember I am a young, stupid and poor child of Scandinavia, with no knowledge of the enligsh language besides what my teachers told me. So while I know what LARP stands for, I am uncertain as to what you mean by it in this context?

This is e-LARPing

 

[GarfunkeL]

Mondblut would love you Grunker

Only travel in good weather. And if you must travel when it is raining, wear a hood and robe, or fur armor if it's snowing, as if to protect yourself from the elements. If you have to travel in rain, run or find a camp or cave to wait out the storm

Eat three meals a day at the appropriate times (or less if you are poor). Breakfast should consist of grains, rice, bread or fruit. Lunch can be more bread, fruit, and vegetables. Save the meat and potatoes for dinner, along with your character's preferred alcoholic beverage.

* Once you have eaten, wait for one hour to show it takes time to actually eat--you haven't just instantly eaten your meal.

That's LARPing in Codex-context. And Bioware has always leaned towards it - where you can choose your tone but the actual answers are the same. Contrast this with Fallout, where you have difference not only in tone but in actual answers.

 

[Silellak]

Reviewers apparently can't decide if there's level-scaling or not:

http://pc.ign.com/articles/104/1041792p2.html

However, I had a couple problems with the battle system. First off, the game doesn't really scale enemies to match your characters' levels, so after a while, some fights are designed to overwhelm your party with size instead of skill.

Remember folks: at IGN, lack of level scaling is a problem with the battle system.

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

I'm also not sure it's level scaling, it could just be that leveling up in this isn't as powerful as leveling up in D&D. You get lots of stat points, but since I don't know how the combat system works those stat points might not be doing much.

 

[Volourn]

If you have/had the game, you would know exactly what stats do as it tells you in the character screen.

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

It says STRENGTH MAKE YOU HIT BIG MONSTER HARD, but what I'm getting at is 30 strength much better than 20 strength? In D&D I knew the mechanics behind it so I knew exactly what I was getting going from 18 STR to 20. In this I have no idea how much impact increased stats actually has.

 

[Volourn]

Are you a fuckin' idiot? Why not actually read the entire screen, and press some fuckin' buttons while you are at it.

 

[Grunker]

Mondblut would love you Grunker

Only travel in good weather. And if you must travel when it is raining, wear a hood and robe, or fur armor if it's snowing, as if to protect yourself from the elements. If you have to travel in rain, run or find a camp or cave to wait out the storm

Eat three meals a day at the appropriate times (or less if you are poor). Breakfast should consist of grains, rice, bread or fruit. Lunch can be more bread, fruit, and vegetables. Save the meat and potatoes for dinner, along with your character's preferred alcoholic beverage.

* Once you have eaten, wait for one hour to show it takes time to actually eat--you haven't just instantly eaten your meal.

That's LARPing in Codex-context. And Bioware has always leaned towards it - where you can choose your tone but the actual answers are the same. Contrast this with Fallout, where you have difference not only in tone but in actual answers.

Oh my. That IS bad. I once stumbled upon a topic started by a guy who was going to replay Oblivion:

I'm going to roleplay this time, so no fast-travelling...

:shock:

I never knew such stupidity excisted. Now I know what to call it, too. Thanks.

I never did that in a Bioware game, but you are at least correct when you compare fake dialogue choices with it. I will have to think hard to invent an argument that prooves you wrong.

 

[GarfunkeL]

Point being, LARPin is something that you do inside your mind, roleplaying is something that the game acknowledges. If you LARP in Oblivion and walk everywhere, it doesn't matter because the Daedra gates will just sit there - the invasion never proceeds until you reach key points in the main quest.

Similarly, in most Bioware conversations it doesn't matter if you LARP Jedi Jesus or Obnoxious Cuntwad Mr.Dickface, the NPC reaction is identical or in the very best case (depressingly rare), you get some flavour-text, "Oh so you are the asshole. Well, I guess we still need your help scumbag"->normal quest conversation continues.

That culminated in Ass Effect and the two LP's (paragon/renegade) done here by RK47 clearly illustrate how fake the large majority of the "choices" there are. If you haven't read them:

Start with male renegade http://www.rpgcodex.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=33923
and continue with female paragonhttp://www.rpgcodex.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=34444

 

[Grunker]

L00P.

You don't have to repeat yourself, sexy. I understand

I've concluded that you're almost right. The one difference being, when you LARP, the game doesn't care at all. Nothing within the game will change. If you choose a different reply in a Bioware-game, you get a different reply from the NPC. This, however, is such a minor detail, that overall, you're right.

But, so far you're only right about most of their games. I haven't played DA:O yet.

 

[Difera]

I wonder what the fuzz is all about, BG2 also had level scaling... I remember playing the ToB expansion and every petty thief that attacked me had +5 gear or something.

 

[GarfunkeL]

I wonder what the fuzz is all about, BG2 also had level scaling... I remember playing the ToB expansion and every petty thief that attacked me had +5 gear or something.

Try again. They have +5 gear no matter what your level or gear is.

 

[Grunker]

I wonder what the fuzz is all about, BG2 also had level scaling... I remember playing the ToB expansion and every petty thief that attacked me had +5 gear or something.

That's not levelscaling, santa.

 

[Clockwork Knight]

Not level scaling, but still doesn't explain why petty thieves are carrying +5 gear*. Isn't that the same problem with level scaling (making shit enemies more powerful to still be a challenge)?

*"they stole it from other adventurers" isn't an acceptable answer

 

[Grunker]

Not level scaling, but still doesn't explain why petty thieves are carrying +5 gear*. Isn't that the same problem with level scaling (making shit enemies more powerful to still be a challenge)?

*"they stole it from other adventurers" isn't an acceptable answer

Well, ToB sucks major donkeyballs, so I'm not gonna defend it. However, levelscaling sucks because it annihalates the meaning of your own level. As long as your level has no meaning within the game, because enemies are just going to be same level as you no matter what, you gain little change in gameplay as you level up.

This is not the case with ToB. The problem here, is "realism" within the meta.

 

[coldcrow]

This is e-LARPing

By the gods... Now I have seen it all
Is this serious? Please say no.