Preview Dragon Age II Review Tidbits

[Brother None]

I'd love to see a major American magazine/website give DA2 a 87. 87 should, in any situation, be a great score. But to a game journalist, an 85-89 score just means a game is 'good for what it is '. Anyways, hilarious butthurt would follow.

Well, I do believe that for German magazines, the 85-89 rating is actually "good", even for an AAA. They do not suffer quite as much rating inflation as American magazines do.

 

[tetsuo]

Thats mostly true but the first game got 92% from gamestar and 91% from pc games

 

[Storyfag]

The reactions on Bioboards are precious. I just love how they delude themselves about carbon copied areas:

Maybe they mean that a lot of your quests end up taking place in the same areas of Kirkwall, like always being sent to the Chantry, or the main courtyard (or whatever) or the taverns etc.

 

[Vibalist]

The reactions on Bioboards are precious. I just love how they delude themselves about carbon copied areas:

Maybe they mean that a lot of your quests end up taking place in the same areas of Kirkwall, like always being sent to the Chantry, or the main courtyard (or whatever) or the taverns etc.

Jesus... It's always like this when you visit their boards.

 

[Brother None]

Thats mostly true but the first game got 92% from gamestar and 91% from pc games

Interesting, I did not know that. Cheers.

 

[J_C]

The reactions on Bioboards are precious. I just love how they delude themselves about carbon copied areas:

Maybe they mean that a lot of your quests end up taking place in the same areas of Kirkwall, like always being sent to the Chantry, or the main courtyard (or whatever) or the taverns etc.

Yes it's funny how they convince themselves, that even if the game is bad, it is actually good. Somebody should enlighten them, that "carbon copied areas" does not mean that quests are taking place in one city.

 

[Xor]

They'll just scream about how you don't have any proof since the game hasn't come out yet, and then forget about their comments when they actually play DA2.

"They used the same areas over and over? Awesome! BEST RPG EVAR!!!1!"

 

[Volourn]

Irrelevant.

Bunch of graphic whores.

 

[Grunker]

Irrelevant.

Bunch of graphic whores.

Damn right Volly. In this, I'm with you Bro. If the Codex likes a game, everyone else hates it because they're graphics whores. If the Codex dislikes a game, itz haz teh horibla graphix omg!

Shhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaame on ya Kodex!

 

[Sceptic]

- ...but old-school RPG players might have their problems with the flurry of activities in battles
- limited class progression with fixed skilltrees
- poor level design with one-to-one copy-pasting of whole quest areas

So combat is pure action, the character system is simplistic at best and the area design sucks... but it's a great CRPG because... erm... it has a great story and great characters?

OK.

You know, I sometimes understand why mondblut is the way he is.

 

[kris]

Their conclusion: great RPG, slightly weaker than DAO

I'm speechless. How the hell is it even POSSIBLE to make it worse than DAO?

Comne on. You can't seriously think DAO was that bad that you couldn't make something worse than it. Codex have gone a bit far in how it claims how bad DAO is.

i won't get DA2 though. Seems to have taken out the few good things and just made it worse. The origin stories, part of the game, was one of the best parts of DAO. Now we don't even get to make our own character. Just so they can make their "epic story/character".

 

[Grunker]

Their conclusion: great RPG, slightly weaker than DAO

I'm speechless. How the hell is it even POSSIBLE to make it worse than DAO?

Comne on. You can't seriously think DAO was that bad that you couldn't make something worse than it.

Yeah, it's quite easy. Both Oblivion and Fallout 3 achieves the feat without breaking a sweat.

 

[Vibalist]

For some inexplicable reason I feel like playing DAO again. What the fuck is wrong with me?

 

[Grunker]

For some inexplicable reason I feel like playing DAO again. What the fuck is wrong with me?

DA:O (the original) is a good game. There's no reason to jump on the band-wagon just because the Codex applies the retardness that #2 looks to be to their memory of one.

I'm playing through it for the third time, with a rogue. Good fun. It's no Baldur's Gate II, but then again, what is?

 

[Sceptic]

For some inexplicable reason I feel like playing DAO again. What the fuck is wrong with me?

Happens to me from time to time. It's selective memory. You remember the good bits, or more accurately the bits that hinted at the possibility of something good coming out of the game. It's also because I'm a compulsive replayer - I think I've finished every single game I played twice, except the really awful ones I couldn't finish at all. And, funnily enough, every Bioware game after BG2, which only got one completion.

Anyway, if you get the urge again do what I do: remember the deep roads, the ice temple and the finale. That's usually enough to put me off any thought of replaying.

 

[Vibalist]

For some inexplicable reason I feel like playing DAO again. What the fuck is wrong with me?

DA:O (the original) is a good game.

But Grunker my friend, it really isn't. It may have a decent story and a couple of companions that can be fun to talk to (though many here would disagree with that too), but the gameplay is simply awful. I've never been so bored as when I forced myself to fight through trash mob after trash mob on hard, slowly realising that my attempts at playing this game as a tactical game amounted to nothing, as there's really nothing tactical to the gameplay at all. Just spam the same abilities over and over against Darkspawn horde #596 as you trudge your way through the deep roads, Brecilian Forest and all those lame random encounters. Oh, and the fucking camera. I tried playing with the isometric view at all times, but it was so frustrating being unable to zoom out, as you couldn't see those stupid archers firing at you unless you went back to the over-the-shoulder view.
Combat was 80% of the game, and since combat sucked so hard 80% of the game sucked as well. The rest was pretty mediocre and sometimes downright uninteresting, like going to Denerim and discovering the city had one district.

Happens to me from time to time. It's selective memory. You remember the good bits, or more accurately the bits that hinted at the possibility of something good coming out of the game.

Yeah, I think you're spot on about the selective memory thing. You see, whenever I think back on DAO I think of this awesome feeling I had before I realised the game was shit. That sense of an adventure lying ahead of you, which I also had when I started playing BG2 and Planescape. It was so cool looking at the world map and imagining all the cool things that lay ahead of you. Then I played for a while and realised that the difference between DAO and then BG2 and PST is that the latter two managed to deliver in this area, providing me with a world I felt was adventerous and exciting to explore, whereas DAO didn't, with its complete lack of creativity in terms of everything from gameplay to story to setting to artwork. It was just dull and lacking in any sort of magic.

Anyway, if you get the urge again do what I do: remember the deep roads, the ice temple and the finale. That's usually enough to put me off any thought of replaying.

Yup.

 

[Grunker]

But Grunker my friend, it really isn't. It may have a decent story and a couple of companions that can be fun to talk to (though many here would disagree with that too), but the gameplay is simply awful. I've never been so bored as when I forced myself to fight through trash mob after trash mob on hard, slowly realising that my attempts at playing this game as a tactical game amounted to nothing, as there's really nothing tactical to the gameplay at all. Just spam the same abilities over and over against Darkspawn horde #596 as you trudge your way through the deep roads, Brecilian Forest and all those lame random encounters. Oh, and the fucking camera. I tried playing with the isometric view at all times, but it was so frustrating being unable to zoom out, as you couldn't see those stupid archers firing at you unless you went back to the over-the-shoulder view.
Combat was 80% of the game, and since combat sucked so hard 80% of the game sucked as well. The rest was pretty mediocre and sometimes downright uninteresting, like going to Denerim and discovering the city had one district.

Suffice it to say, I disagree. I find the gameplay quite fun (obviously, you have to play on hard/nightmare difficulty). On the high difficulty "spam abilities and hope for the best" is not a viable strategy, period . I'm not even playing this game from a storyfag-point-of-view, 'cause the story and characters are pretty bad in my opinion. Overall I agree with VD's review except for his praise of the characters, and his claim that it is the best RPG since Arcanum (I think that tribute goes to Bloodlines, The Witcher, and KotC before there's any chance of Dragon Age even being mentioned).

No, I think the combat is actually pretty fun. Trash mobs or no trash mobs. And the combat system is not at all as simple as the 'dex makes it out to be. I agree with the sentiment that it could be a lot better, but it's not too shabby. It has a wide range of abilities and options.

On this playthrough, I'm playing without a mage, and the game really changes based on that premise.

Anyway, I'm having fun with it... It's what I'd call an okay game (good for what it is hurr durr).

 

[Vibalist]

I did play on hard, and while I'm probably simplifying things a bit by saying combat is just a matter of spamming abilities, I don't think it's actually too far from the truth. There may be some tactics involved in using the right abilities at the right time, having your mage target his spells at the right enemy and using the right potions before fighting a certain monster, but it's just so light compared to earlier games in this genre. The amount of options you have tacticswise in DAO are very limited in comparison to other games, like good old BG2 (which hardly set a high standard for tactical gameplay).

And even if hard or nightmare mode does prevent you from simply spamming abilities, it does so in the cheapest way possible, by increasing enemy hitpoints and the damage they deal. It's such an easy and artificial way to increase difficulty.

 

[Serious_Business]

No, I think the combat is actually pretty fun. Trash mobs or no trash mobs. And the combat system is not at all as simple as the 'dex makes it out to be. I agree with the sentiment that it could be a lot better, but it's not too shabby. It has a wide range of abilities and options.

Yeah, so fuck your opinion. The combat system is simple - why? Because every encounter comes down to the same patterns. There is no variation in ennemy types, and once you have basic strategies figured out, it's just a question of spamming them. I don't think you can argue agaisnt this. The game is basically a MMO with control over multiple characters. Every character has a mechanic role (tank, damage dealer, healer, crowd control) that makes the entire thing feel lifeless and automated.

As time goes on I find that I'm less critical and anal about my games. I just don't care anymore about having high standards about video games. I've been playing Might and Magic recently, which by all accounts should be a terrible mindless grind, but I'm enjoying it anyway. I don't think I could replay DA again though. I've been wondering why - I think the answer is as follow. First of all, bad story gets in the way. But also : bad gameplay. This game is bad. It doesn't even work as a dungeon crawler. You just don't care when you find loot or new abilities. It's all the same crap. But isn't it all the same crap on a game like Might and Magic? I don't think so. Basic care about different enemy types helps a lot. Also : progression and exploration, something every Bioware game fails at. I guess BG2 had that going on for it, which explains why it was the better game. But think about it - how hard would it have been to give us more loot, more enemy types? Apparently a lot, because Bioware is Bioware.

But then, the problem this game and every Bioware game suffers in the gameplay department is this : it's a waiting game. Fights are about watching animations and waiting for them to end. There's very little involvement about what you're doing. Click. Watch fighter attack. Spell. Maybe. Wait. Zzzz. Fucking christ. Seriously man, you have shit taste.

 

[TalesfromtheCrypt]

Personally, my tolerance treshold for shitty combat and writing is VERY high. Of course I recognize games with good combat and writing, but I enjoy the occasional turd aswell. I even had fun with Neverwinter Nights 2, and that's saying a lot. Supbar writing and combat in BG2 never bothered me.

My main gripe with modern Bioware games is how small, lifeless and uninteresting everything is. I mean BG 2 had a frikkin huge ass city with several big and diverse districts plus all the other detailed locations you could go to. You had unique descriptions for most of the more poten magical items and weapons, and while most of the stories were silly, it kinda drew you into the gameworld.

But modern Bioware games? The main hubs consist of 4 or 5 areas, one tavern/cantina and some other locations that only exist because they are part of a specific quest. Take Mass Effect 2 for example. What a wasted opportunity the Citadel is, supposedly a big-ass space station with douzens of races and millions of individuals living there, and then you get what? Some small and uninspired areas that you can explore within 10 minutes max. Starting with KOTOR locations in Bioware games have become so limited, every level consist of one or several interconected tubes, with invisible walls blocking you from exploring the fake vistas in the background. There really nothing left to explore.

 

[Xor]

Personally, my tolerance treshold for shitty combat and writing is VERY high. Of course I recognize games with good combat and writing, but I enjoy the occasional turd aswell. I even had fun with Neverwinter Nights 2, and that's saying a lot. Supbar writing and combat in BG2 never bothered me.

My main gripe with modern Bioware games is how small, lifeless and uninteresting everything is. I mean BG 2 had a frikkin huge ass city with several big and diverse districts plus all the other detailed locations you could go to. You had unique descriptions for most of the more poten magical items and weapons, and while most of the stories were silly, it kinda drew you into the gameworld.

But modern Bioware games? The main hubs consist of 4 or 5 areas, one tavern/cantina and some other locations that only exist because they are part of a specific quest. Take Mass Effect 2 for example. What a wasted opportunity the Citadel is, supposedly a big-ass space station with douzens of races and millions of individuals living there, and then you get what? Some small and uninspired areas that you can explore within 10 minutes max. Starting with KOTOR locations in Bioware games have become so limited, every level consist of one or several interconected tubes, with invisible walls blocking you from exploring the fake vistas in the background. There really nothing left to explore.

I think you hit the nail on the head.

When you get down to it, modern Bioware has gotten pretty lazy in terms of area design. I think technology has a lot to do with this - it's a problem many modern companies have. I could tolerate linear corridors, but the combat system is just bad. It's broken on a fundamental level. There should have been at least twice as many classes with twice as many abilities each for the game to have any chance at variety.

Also, every time I think about those god damned fucking kill animations I get irrationally angry. Waste my fucking time, Bioware. Let my party die because I can't interact while the animation is firing and my healer gets killed. Fuck, that pissed me off.

 

[Volourn]

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Brother None]

Heh. I think you broke Volourn, guys.

 

[Crooked Bee]

 

[commie]

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!

You fucking cunt.