Game News DA Awakening News Bundle

[VentilatorOfDoom]

Tags: BioWare; Dragon Age

The best RPG since Arcanum will soon receive an expandening treatment.
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That's reason enough to link to some previews.
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<a href="http://previews.teamxbox.com/xbox-360/2513/Dragon-Age-Origins-Awakening/p1/">Teambox says:</a>
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<p style="margin-left:50px;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-top-color:#ffffff;padding:5px;border-right-color:#bbbbbb;border-left-color:#ffffff;border-bottom-color:#bbbbbb;">A lot of games are made with the goal of thinking and wondering where you can take it," says Melo. "Dragon Age is the reverse of that in a lot of respects. We have a lot of stories to tell, and Awakening is the next book.
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Let's hope you have enough bucks to afford all that Bio storytelling.
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<a href="http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3178010">1UP:</a>
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<p style="margin-left:50px;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-top-color:#ffffff;padding:5px;border-right-color:#bbbbbb;border-left-color:#ffffff;border-bottom-color:#bbbbbb;">When it's time to actually play it, I find myself in control a pre-made Warrior Grey Warden with three new characters in his party: Anders is a mage with a penchant for trying to escape the Circle Tower; Velanna is an angry Dalish Keeper who can be difficult to deal with if you're human; and Sigrun is a female Dwarven rogue who also happens to be a member of the Legion of the Dead. All of them are meant to explore different facets of the Dragon Age lore; online producer Fernando Melo notes, "It's a really interesting way, an organic way, by interacting with these characters to learn about some of those facets, rather than just drilling you with codex entries and things like that."
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<a href="http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/107/1070087p1.html">IGN:</a>
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<p style="margin-left:50px;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-top-color:#ffffff;padding:5px;border-right-color:#bbbbbb;border-left-color:#ffffff;border-bottom-color:#bbbbbb;">Awakening will feature some of the same kinds of choice and consequence gameplay Dragon Age fans will be familiar with, and according to Melo it can have a dramatic effect on the way thing develops. "You might not even realize that as you're playing the game, you're making decisions, you're enjoying the story and what's going on, and towards the end you'll realize you've made some pretty epic decisions much like with Origins. And you can't help but wonder if those are going to be reflected some point down the line."
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So you will, like, realize that you were making, like, epic decisions and stuffies.
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Meanwhile Chris Priestly explains <a href="http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/127/index/1200548/6">on the Bioboards</a> why you can't import DLC loot into Awakening.
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<p style="margin-left:50px;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-top-color:#ffffff;padding:5px;border-right-color:#bbbbbb;border-left-color:#ffffff;border-bottom-color:#bbbbbb;">Dragon Age: Origins DLC (from DAO or other prior DLC) is not available in Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening as we've already said.
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While I know some fans are not happy with this, the main reason is, due to the advanced level of Awakening, the items you want to bring in would be rapidly less effective than the materials you start with or find early on in the game. Yes, in DA:O Starfang (or similar) are very powerful, but since you can reach level 30+ in Awakening, they would be ineffectual.
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Trust me, there are heaps of cool new armors, weapons, spells, etc that you will want to use in Awakening that you will quickly learn to appreciate even more than your DLC items from DAO.
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In other news Bioware reveales an additional character, Sigrun, an dwarfen chick with a german name. The name means *victory rune* or *Rune of Victory*. Watch a <a href="http://g4tv.com/videos/44279/Exclusive_Dragon_Age_Origins__Awakening_Sigrun_Trailer/">trailer.</a>
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And finally bitmob <a href="http://www.bitmob.com/index.php/mobfeed/no-time-for-romance-a-dragon-age-origins-awakening-interview.html">interviews Fernando Melo.</a>
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<p style="margin-left:50px;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-top-color:#ffffff;padding:5px;border-right-color:#bbbbbb;border-left-color:#ffffff;border-bottom-color:#bbbbbb;"><b>The sexual relationships in Origins were another polarizing feature -- are those going to make a return in Awakening?</b>
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FM: They will not. It'll be interesting to see peoples' reactions to it, because it was by far one of the things they enjoyed. I think there was a real risk, though, of us trying to add romances in [that] would've felt tacked on. The story doesn't lend itself to it; when you play through it, you'll realize the pacing is very different from Origins, there's a real impetus to just get on and solve the problems at hand. The characters that you're playing with all have strong enough backgrounds that you would need to really invest a lot of time to turn those characters around into something that was romanceable.
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No romances? No sex? BIO why hast thou forsaken us?
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Spotted at: <A HREF="http://www.rpgwatch.com/">They called us stupid</A>

 

[Haba]

The story doesn't lend itself to it; when you play through it, you'll realize the pacing is very different from Origins, there's a real impetus to just get on and solve the problems at hand.

Oh. So the blight in Dragon Age: Orgies wasn't meant to be a "real impetus". Okay.

Also, legion of the dead is... dead.

 

[lightbane]

So they admit you pay for filler-content then?

 

[ChristofferC]

Meanwhile Chris Priestly explains <a href="http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/127/index/1200548/6">on the Bioboards</a> why you can't import DLC loot into Awakening.
<p style="margin-left:50px;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;border-top-color:#ffffff;padding:5px;border-right-color:#bbbbbb;border-left-color:#ffffff;border-bottom-color:#bbbbbb;">Dragon Age: Origins DLC (from DAO or other prior DLC) is not available in Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening as we've already said.

While I know some fans are not happy with this, the main reason is, due to the advanced level of Awakening, the items you want to bring in would be rapidly less effective than the materials you start with or find early on in the game. Yes, in DA:O Starfang (or similar) are very powerful, but since you can reach level 30+ in Awakening, they would be ineffectual.

Trust me, there are heaps of cool new armors, weapons, spells, etc that you will want to use in Awakening that you will quickly learn to appreciate even more than your DLC items from DAO.
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Such bullshit. That's not a reason.

And that this post was ruined by HTML is bullshit.

 

[Bluebottle]

I think there was a real risk, though, of us trying to add romances in [that] would've felt tacked on.

Not that I'm not happy that there's no romances, but have these people ever visited the Bio boards, or seen any of the mods people make for their games? Tacked on romances are those nutter's bread and butter. Bioware could make a game entirely consisting of tacked on romances, of all possible gender flavours, and the bizzaros over there would think it was a masterpiece.

 

[aries202]

1) Sigrun is not a German name, it is an old Norse name. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigr%C3%BAn
1B) Sigrun is still being used today in both Norway, and Iceland.

2)
No (new) romances in DA: Awakening screams 'ea has taken over' to me. EA must have decided that a no-romance policy were to be implemented in DA: Awakenings.

3) I don't buy Chris P.'s reason for why no dlc carry over either. The real reason seems to be that (I'd guess) that EA want to sell (more) DLC...

 

[Volourn]

The no dlc thing is dumb and illogical.

 

[VentilatorOfDoom]

1) Sigrun is not a German name, it is an old Norse name. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigr%C3%BAn

O rly? http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigrun says it's an old high german name. Which Wikipedia is right, en or de?

1B) Sigrun is still being used today in both Norway, and Iceland

Do tell, it's also used in Germany, even as we speak!

 

[Lesifoere]

1) Sigrun is not a German name, it is an old Norse name. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigr%C3%BAn

O rly? http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigrun says it's an old high german name. Which Wikipedia is right, en or de?

Neither is technically wrong. Sigrin is a Germanic name--and Old Norse is a Germanic language (ditto Icelandic, Old English, etc). As is contemporary German, obviously.

 

[random_encounter]

Dragon Age: Origins DLC (from DAO or other prior DLC) is not available in Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening as we've already said.

While I know some fans are not happy with this, the main reason is, due to the advanced level of Awakening, the items you want to bring in would be rapidly less effective than the materials you start with or find early on in the game. Yes, in DA:O Starfang (or similar) are very powerful, but since you can reach level 30+ in Awakening, they would be ineffectual.

Trust me, there are heaps of cool new armors, weapons, spells, etc that you will want to use in Awakening that you will quickly learn to appreciate even more than your DLC items from DAO.

Inadequate explanation doesn't explain why DLC items are excised entirely from the expansion, even if it is related to starting balance. A few games (such as Ultima VII: Part 2) made some effort to explain why you would lose certain items at the start than have them arbitrarily removed because you clicked on the Import Character button. As annoying as it was to lose stuff, it at least had something to do with the actual game.

 

[Genma:TheDestroyer]

Dragon Age: Origins DLC (from DAO or other prior DLC) is not available in Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening as we've already said.

While I know some fans are not happy with this, the main reason is, due to the advanced level of Awakening, the items you want to bring in would be rapidly less effective than the materials you start with or find early on in the game. Yes, in DA:O Starfang (or similar) are very powerful, but since you can reach level 30+ in Awakening, they would be ineffectual.

Trust me, there are heaps of cool new armors, weapons, spells, etc that you will want to use in Awakening that you will quickly learn to appreciate even more than your DLC items from DAO.

Inadequate explanation doesn't explain why DLC items are excised entirely from the expansion, even if it is related to starting balance. A few games (such as Ultima VII: Part 2) made some effort to explain why you would lose certain items at the start than have them arbitrarily removed because you clicked on the Import Character button. As annoying as it was to lose stuff, it at least had something to do with the actual game.

Ah, the standard WTF!ness of an expansion.


Where you average bandit will probably have better equipment than most of your end-game crew from the original game. Yes, even the munchkin-ed ones.

 

[Micmu]

DLC ain't be importable because they intend to make and sell NEW, BETTER expansion-compatible DLCs for retards, you morons.
Same goes for "romances" or whatever XY most popular features.

There's nothing illogical and stupid about it.

 

[Pliskin]

DLC ain't be importable because they intend to make and sell NEW, BETTER expansion-compatible DLCs for retards, you morons.
Same goes for "romances" or whatever XY most popular features.

There's nothing illogical and stupid about it.

Gameplay =====================> Capitalism

 

[Arcanoix]

A lot of games are made with the goal of thinking and wondering where you can take it," says Melo. "Dragon Age is the reverse of that in a lot of respects. We have a lot of stories to tell, and Awakening is the next book.

$40 expansions? No thanks. I remember when expansions were $29.99, pre-Empire Arts (EA) that is.

Let's hope you have enough bucks to afford all that Bio storytelling.

No. But my approval of piracy even toward BioWare games continues to incline.

When it's time to actually play it, I find myself in control a pre-made Warrior Grey Warden with three new characters in his party: Anders is a mage with a penchant for trying to escape the Circle Tower;

Wasn't there an apostate who escaped already who had practically the same face and voice actor? Minus the Dalish tattoos and skin-head look.

Velanna is an angry Dalish Keeper who can be difficult to deal with if you're human;

RACISM TOWARD HUMANS!? O LAWDY, Dark, and DEEP!!! Oh how the penetration hurts...

and Sigrun is a female Dwarven rogue who also happens to be a member of the Legion of the Dead.

Mark my words, there will be a way to fuck her. But only if you're human, gotta push that multicult factor.

All of them are meant to explore different facets of the Dragon Age lore; online producer Fernando Melo notes, "It's a really interesting way, an organic way, by interacting with these characters to learn about some of those facets, rather than just drilling you with codex entries and things like that."

I'd rather have C&C and a Codex than a forced, linear path and no Codex.

Awakening will feature some of the same kinds of choice and consequence gameplay Dragon Age fans will be familiar with, and according to Melo it can have a dramatic effect on the way things develop.

1 or 2 extra lines of dialogue, same end-result, etc.

"You might not even realize that as you're playing the game, you're making decisions, you're enjoying the story and what's going on,

I liked how my story ended, it made me wanting more, not wanting something so different with over9000 linear facets of exploration.

and towards the end you'll realize you've made some pretty epic decisions much like with Origins.

This is one of those things that has bothered me. Having acquired all of the achievements, and with Return to Ostagar being one of the lamest of the DLCs, I'm pretty sure the direction that the game is headed is down. Don't get me wrong I liked the ending, but no matter what, the Archdemon dies. I wanted to fucking tame that bastard, ride it around, eat Morrigan and her unborn child, "NOMNOMNONMNOM"-style.

And you can't help but wonder if those are going to be reflected some point down the line."

But will the outcome be any different? Doubtful. The only big difference in the endings would be if the player sacrificed themselves. And you dumbasses are going to cut that out of the story entirely. Why make a choice available if you're going to just retcon it? Oh that's right, because it's the more important choice with a more urgent consequence. No problem, douchebag.

So you will, like, realize that you were making, like, epic decisions and stuffies.

^ What he said.

Meanwhile Chris Priestly explains why you can't import DLC loot into Awakening.

Fun Fact: It's not that I dislike that kid, but he had me banned from the BioBoards after having been around for the last 9 years. (NWN, pre-SoU) Don't be surprised if I'm a little more hateful than usual toward topics regarding him.

Dragon Age: Origins DLC (from DAO or other prior DLC) is not available in Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening as we've already said.

So all of that money I spent on DLC, and I won't be able to use it in the expansion? Fuck you EA-BioWare, fuck you hard and stick it down your throat...

While I know some fans are not happy with this, the main reason is, due to the advanced level of Awakening, the items you want to bring in would be rapidly less effective than the materials you start with or find early on in the game. Yes, in DA:O Starfang (or similar) are very powerful, but since you can reach level 30+ in Awakening, they would be ineffectual.

Trust me, there are heaps of cool new armors, weapons, spells, etc that you will want to use in Awakening that you will quickly learn to appreciate even more than your DLC items from DAO.

And that really doesn't fucking matter - I want what I paid for, and you're taking it away from me. From here on, you're not getting a fucking penny. I supported your DLC bullshit for long enough because of the quality and support. That quality went to shit with Return to Ostagar, and the support is now being stripped bare. What about Shale, dumbass? It's not all about GEAR AND UBER FUCKING WEAPONS, and I happened to actually LIKE Shale. BioWare you're so fucking incompetent these days.

Oh well, maybe that's why you sold out to EA, milking your funds dry on some sci-fi shooter shit-fest(s) (ME/ME2) only to be acquired by the Wal-Mart of the gaming industry is something most (if not all) other development studios need to take note of.

In other news Bioware reveales an additional character, Sigrun, an dwarfen chick with a german name. The name means *victory rune* or *Rune of Victory*.

It'll be so fucking AWESOME when they add Quick-Time Events to virtual sex....

The sexual relationships in Origins were another polarizing feature -- are those going to make a return in Awakening?

FM: They will not. Blah blah blah, I'm a Pete Hines look-alike, act-alike, prude-alike, and fucking douchebag who is driving Gaider's intellectual property into the pile of shit that I just forced out from that banal feces-producing space between my ears.

 

[Arcanoix]

I think there was a real risk, though, of us trying to add romances in [that] would've felt tacked on.

Not that I'm not happy that there's no romances, but have these people ever visited the Bio boards, or seen any of the mods people make for their games? Tacked on romances are those nutter's bread and butter. Bioware could make a game entirely consisting of tacked on romances, of all possible gender flavours, and the bizzaros over there would think it was a masterpiece.

 

[Monocause]

...

too long and too angrycuntish;dr


I'll pirate it, and if it's good, I'll buy it. I've neither bought nor pirated any of the DLCs anyway, so I don't really care.

Though I imagine people who spent hard cash can be... disappointed.

 

[aries202]

I'm mostly worried that the no ability to use dlc in Awakening will be a backlash to Bioware (and EA). People tend to get testy when they don't get to use what they've paid for in their games. As one fo the results, I don't want to pay Bioware money for the DLC. I'll wait till there is a Game of the Edition available, thank you very much.

Bioware's Victor Wachter started a Q and A thread about Awakening at the Bioware Social Forums:

http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic ... ex/1321833

For those wondering about the dog, here is the answer:

What happened to my dog? Is he dead?
No, your dog isn’t dead. Your faithful hound is still out there. He’s just not on this adventure. We wanted to introduce new characters in Awakening and although Dog doesn’t speak – the loveable mutt still needs a lot of cinematic attention to bring to life. So we spent our time on new characters that are more tightly integrated into the story.

 

[Volourn]

"Why make a choice available if you're going to just retcon it?"

Kinda like FO1 and 2, right?

Thieves, btw, are scumbags. If you are a thief, you are a pathetic loser tool. And, no, this decision about DLC items - as much as I dislike it, I seriosuly doubt it'll effect BIO that much.

As for the price of expansions, expansions have always ranged from $30 to $50. TOB for me was near $50 if not more when it came out. *shrug*

 

[Monocause]

this decision about DLC items - as much as I dislike it, I seriosuly doubt it'll effect BIO that much.

I think otherwise. The Stone Prisoner and Warden's Keep are perhaps worth it, but those who paid for phat lewt are going to be pissed they can't use it anymore - and won't buy the next phat lewt that Bio drops.

 

[BlitzKitchen]

If you are a thief, you are a pathetic loser tool

Tools of what? The Devil? People who buy this crap are the real tools. Steal it, Try it, Throw it away. Don't support the capital over quality system of corporations.

 

[Rhalle]

I think there was a real risk, though, of us trying to add romances in [that] would've felt tacked on.

Not that I'm not happy that there's no romances, but have these people ever visited the Bio boards, or seen any of the mods people make for their games? Tacked on romances are those nutter's bread and butter. Bioware could make a game entirely consisting of tacked on romances, of all possible gender flavours, and the bizzaros over there would think it was a masterpiece.

 

[dragonfk]

I think there was a real risk, though, of us trying to add romances in [that] would've felt tacked on.

Not that I'm not happy that there's no romances, but have these people ever visited the Bio boards, or seen any of the mods people make for their games? Tacked on romances are those nutter's bread and butter. Bioware could make a game entirely consisting of tacked on romances, of all possible gender flavours, and the bizzaros over there would think it was a masterpiece.

WTF??!!

Also

FFFUUUU-

 

[Xor]

I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favorite thread on RPGCodex.

 

[Overweight Manatee]

You guys may be reading the "no romances" announcement the wrong way. I expect that Bioware is cooperating with modders in the community to deliver an expansion in which you can fuck any thing and every thing. No time for that pussy romance shit, just straight hard sex. Innovashon! Extreme! Dark and Gritty!

 

[Clockwork Knight]

I...no. No. Noo. NO

NO