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Dragon Age 2 - [Please post in new thread]
Dashui
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Experience the epic sequel to the 2009 Game of the Year from the critically acclaimed makers of Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect 2. You are one of the few who escaped the destruction of your home. Now, forced to fight for survival in an ever-changing world, you must gather the deadliest of allies, amass fame and fortune, and seal your place in history. This is the story of how the world changed forever. The legend of your Rise to Power begins now.
Dragon Age 2 thrusts players into the role of Hawke, a penniless refugee who rises to power to become the single most important character in the world of Dragon Age. Known to be a survivor of the Blight and the Champion of Kirkwall, the legend around Hawke’s rise to power is shrouded in myth and rumor. Featuring an all-new story spanning 10 years, players will help tell that tale by making tough moral choices, gathering the deadliest of allies, amassing fame and fortune, and sealing their place in history. The way you play will write the story of how the world is changed forever.
Key Features:
* Embark upon an all-new adventure that takes place across an entire decade and shapes itself around every decision you make.
* Determine your rise to power from a destitute refugee to the revered champion of the land.
* Think like a general and fight like a Spartan with dynamic new combat mechanics that put you right in the heart of battle whether you are a mage, rogue, or warrior.
* Go deeper into the world of Dragon Age with an entirely new cinematic experience that grabs hold of you from the beginning and never lets go.
* Discover a whole realm rendered in stunning detail with updated graphics and a new visual style.
You are a Grey Warden, one of the last of a legendary order of guardians. With the return of mankind's ancient foe and the kingdom engulfed in civil war, you have been chosen by fate to unite the shattered lands and slay the archdemon once and for all.
Key Features:
* Immerse yourself in a shattered world on the brink of annihiliation
* Experience complex moral decisions that have game-changing consequences
* Sculpt your hero in your own image or fantasy
* Engage in bone-crushing, visceral combat against massive and terrifying creatures
News
07/08/2010 - Dragon Age 2 officially announced for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360! A debut trailer will be released on August 17th, 2010.
07/06/2010 - Dragon Age: Origins - Leliana's Song addon is now available for purchase!
"Assume the role of Leliana, a young bard involved in a criminal ring that deals in political secrets. Accompanying her mentor Marjolaine on a high-risk mission, Leliana soon finds herself entangled in a game of intrigue that she cannot escape with just her beauty, charm, or stealth. The only way out of this game is to kill or be killed."
05/18/2010 - The Dragon Age: Origins - Darkspawn Chronicles addon is now available for purchase!
"You now fight as the Darkspawn! The city of Denerim, jewel of Ferelden, girds itself for war. As a hurlock vanguard, you alone hold the power to make thralls of your fellow darkspawn and drive them into the heat of battle. Heed the archdemon's call--Denerim must burn!"
03/16/2010 - Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening expansion pack is now available for purchase!
01/29/2010 - Dragon Age: Origins - Return to Ostagar addon is now available for purchase!
"Your memories of the battle of Ostagar will haunt you for years to come. It laid waste to your order and claimed the lives of many great men and women, including the brash young King Cailan and your mentor, Duncan.
Now, there are rumors that a fellow survivor of the battle has escaped from captivity and is seeking the Grey Wardens' help. The time has come for the Grey Wardens to make their return to Ostagar and exact their revenge upon the darkspawn."
11/03/2009 - Dragon Age: Origins is now available for purchase!
10/22/2009 - Dragon Age: Journeys is now available to play.
It's a 2D flash game, free to play in your browser, and set in the Dragon Age: Origins world. Playing the game will allow you to earn exclusives items for use in Dragon Age: Origins. http://www.dragonagejourneys.com/
10/13/2009 - BioWare's Social Network website is now live! http://social.bioware.com/
From here you'll be able to access friends, groups, uploaded character information, and more, as well as being able to download the Character Creator. You can make a character, save it for use with the full game, and even upload your character to the Social Network website.
You can also download the Character Editor directly from the following link: http://files.bioware.com/dragonage_cc_dl/DragonAgeOriginsCharacterCreator_en.exe
Dragon Age: Origins - PC Mods
Dragon Age Redesigned - This mod redesigns nearly every single NPC in the game, including party members and major characters, to better fit the lore of the game. "Nearly every change is done purely from my understanding of sliders. I wanted each design to stay as faithful to the lore of Dragon Age, but to enhance and improve upon the originals." This mod is compatible with most other mods and includes a variety of installation options. As the author has gone through a number of redesigns for various characters, you're able to choose which design you'd like to install.
More Hairstyles - This mod adds new hair styles to the character creator.
Skip the Fade - Don't like the Fade mission, or just want to get through it quickly on a another playthrough? This mod teleports you directly to your companions instead of going through the entire section, as well as giving you all the attribute points, experience points, and codex entries you would have normally earned if you completed the Fade.
Lock Bash - This mod allows you to bash or force locked doors and chest opens, with a number of configuration options such as item breakage and stat requirements.
Character Respecialization - "This addon allows the player to reset the base attributes, specialization points, spells, talents and skills of the hero character and any of the party members to the default values and returns the remaining points so they can be spent again. The addon takes into account every bonus point the characters receive during the game including CE and DLC items, tomes, bonus points from the Fade, etc."
Madd Gift Guide - This mod edits the item description for gifts with the name of the companion it is intended for.
Gift Guide - Awakening - This is a companion mod to Madd Gift Guide that adds support for The Stone Prisoner, Return to Ostagar and Awakening.
Fenod Weapon Pack - This mod adds a number of new weapons to the party camp merchant.
Jojjo Weapon Pack - This mod adds a number of new weapons with included special effects to the game.
No Helmet Hack 1.6 - This mod makes helmets invisible "by placing helmets in the cloak slot. Each character maintains their own visibility setting. The helmets are visible on the inventory paperdoll for comparison and easy swapping."
Leliana's True Sacred Ashes Armor - This mod gives you an armor for Leliana modeled after the one she wore in the Sacred Ashes CG trailer.
Gray Warden Runic Armor - This mod gives you a powerful set of armor, three shields, and several swords as a variant of the Warden armor.
Dialogue Tweaks - This mod "changes companion dialogues for consistency, bug fixing, and adds new minor options. All dialogue is voiced by original game voice actors; these are changes to scripting, text, and dialogue conditions to make use of or correct existing dialogue." The creator suggests using the following two mods in conjunction with Dialogue Tweaks:
Alistair Dialog Patch - This mod "fixes many endgame dialogue issues relating to Alistair and his status, as well as some other adjustments to Alistair's general dialogue and romance-related dialogue."
Endgame Dialogue Fixes - This mod makes "corrections to endgame dialogue issues relating to Alistair and his status, as well as optional endgame slideshow changes to expand on the original story."
Dragon Age: Origins - Reviews & Articles
Witch Hunt the Penny Arcade Dragon Age comic
5/5 - Giant Bomb review - "However, as the sort of guy that has lovingly played an Infinity Engine game at least once every year for the past decade, I can think of no higher praise for this throwback than to say that Dragon Age: Origins leaves me feeling fairly confident I won't need to dig out the classics for this ritual next year."
9.5/10 - GameSpot video review - "If you're hungry for a fantastical original fantasy setting, an awesome story filled with memorable characters, and fun multi-layered questing, Dragon Age will fill you up. This is the RPG you've been waiting for, the one that's going to keep you up at night and invade your dreams."
94/100 - PC Gamer UK - "Roleplaying games now have a great deal to live up to."
9.2/10 - UK IGN PC - "Bioware’s achievements in all this are incredible. It cannot be stressed enough at the depth of the universe they have conjured. Every corner you look, there is a sense of age, of something old. Entire mythologies for multiple cultures have been brewed up, entire religions mapped out in their own belief systems, history that stretches back hundreds, if not thousands, of years. Cities look lived in, worn – majestic and squalid places that spill with times gone by and a sense of place. The castles look like they have been there for centuries, and truly, there is an uncertain sense that they have been. That Ferelden and its inhabitants were waiting patiently in the wings for all this time, waiting for their chance to shine. Well, like the Grey Wardens, their time has come. Let us unite then, and in the words of an old friend: We shall show those cursed Darkspawn our hearts – and then show them theirs."
92/100 - Absolute Games review - "It has everything that is sought by the most jaded fans of the genre..."
9.1/10 - Gametrailers video review
90/100 - Game Informer review - "Even more than Mass Effect, the nation of Ferelden feels like a fully realized setting with its own history, conflicts, and power groups."
8/10 - Eurogamer PC review - "In its desperation to infuse this setting with 'maturity' - be it of the sober, political kind, or the game's painfully clumsy gore and sex - BioWare has forgotten the key ingredient of any fantasy: the fantastical. Without it, you're still left with a competent, often compelling, impressively detailed and immense RPG, but it's one that casts no spell."
The People of Dragon Age: Origins – An Interview with Sten, Wynne and the Tower Guard
Dragon Age: Origins - Screenshots
Dragon Age: Origins - PC System Requirements
Windows XP Minimum Specifications
* OS: Windows XP with SP3
* CPU: Intel Core 2 (or equivalent) single core running at 1.4Ghz or greater
* AMD X2 (or equivalent) running at 1.8Ghz or greater
* RAM: 1GB or more
* Video: ATI Radeon X850 128MB or greater
* NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB or greater
* DVD ROM (Physical copy)
* 20 GB HD space
Windows Vista Minimum Specifications
* OS: Windows Vista with SP1
* CPU: Intel Core 2 (or equivalent) single core running at 1.6Ghz or greater
* AMD X2 (or equivalent) running at 2.2GHZ or greater
* RAM: 1.5 GB or more
* Video: ATI Radeon X1550 256MB or greater
* NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT 256MB or greater
* DVD ROM (Physical copy)
* 20 GB HD space
Recommended Specifications
* CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad 2.4Ghz Processor or equivalent
* RAM: 4 GB (Vista) or 2 GB (XP)
* Video: ATI 3850 512 MB or greater
* NVIDIA 8800GTS 512 MB or greater
* DVD ROM (Physical copy)
* 20 GB HD space
* OS: Windows XP with SP3
* CPU: Intel Core 2 (or equivalent) single core running at 1.4Ghz or greater
* AMD X2 (or equivalent) running at 1.8Ghz or greater
* RAM: 1GB or more
* Video: ATI Radeon X850 128MB or greater
* NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB or greater
* DVD ROM (Physical copy)
* 20 GB HD space
Windows Vista Minimum Specifications
* OS: Windows Vista with SP1
* CPU: Intel Core 2 (or equivalent) single core running at 1.6Ghz or greater
* AMD X2 (or equivalent) running at 2.2GHZ or greater
* RAM: 1.5 GB or more
* Video: ATI Radeon X1550 256MB or greater
* NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT 256MB or greater
* DVD ROM (Physical copy)
* 20 GB HD space
Recommended Specifications
* CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad 2.4Ghz Processor or equivalent
* RAM: 4 GB (Vista) or 2 GB (XP)
* Video: ATI 3850 512 MB or greater
* NVIDIA 8800GTS 512 MB or greater
* DVD ROM (Physical copy)
* 20 GB HD space
Xbox Live, PSN & Origin: Vacorsis 3DS: 2638-0037-166
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It seems like they would be better served releasing it in another month or two once everyone has wrapped up ME2 and FFXIII.
Then again, I'm using my $10 Amazon credit from my FFXIII preorder on it, so what do I know?
- The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (2017, colorized)
Was it value, or some bugs, or just a terrible story? I don't know what would actually make me not purchase it, but I'd still like to know. :P
A perfect example of this would be Warden's Keep. Everyone was excited about the prospect of being able to reclaim the place, upgrade it and use it as a base of operations, ala the Suikoden series. Instead, you get a campfire, a box and some merchants standing outside. It doesn't even let you go back in once you're done.
The Warden's Keep expansion as a whole was 'good' when you consider the lore, the armor and the talents you walk away with, but it's unrealized potential kept it from being great.
Back to Awakening - they did acknowledge that if you were really into Dragon Age and the world of Thedas, then you'll enjoy Awakening because it introduces and expands on some really interesting plot developments. Which is something I'm definitely looking forward to.
Also, don't forget that if you're like me and are playing on the PS3, and haven't even gotten a chance to play Return to Ostegar, they have confirmed that you will be able to transfer items from that DLC along with your character when you port it over to Awakening. This goes for XBOX and PC versions as well.
I seem to recall reading that Bioware had DLC scheduled for the next 1-2 years, but all we've really seen so far are a few extra items and Return to Ostagar (which was late). Oh, and of course Warden's Keep (which I forgot about because it came with my copy of the game.) I'm looking forward to the expansion, but I was hoping to see what Bioware could do with more the more recent form of DLC.
They're not exactly the same audience. Aside from one being an action WRPG and one a JRPG, Dragon Age is definitely aimed at the PC crowd and FFXIII at the console crowd. The console versions were slapped together rather quickly, probably at EA's insistence to hit a wider market, but as you can see from the DLC and patch support for the console versions, they are definitely focusing on the PC platform. They're both RPG's, sure, but they're both aiming at different parts of the RPG market.
It's $5 for maybe 45 minutes of play time. You kill a bunch of darkspawn, get some new gear that was owned by
I was holding out a vain hope that RtO would be rolled into Awakenings, which would make them both a bit more worthwhile (though Awakenings does seem worth $30 for the PC on its own, so I'm likely buying it anyways).
So far, from Warden's Keep you get to keep the Power of Blood talents. Stone Prisoner doesn't let you keep anything but lets you experience the awesomeness of SHALE! And Return to Ostegar lets you keep the items. I'll likely play through it tonight.
I am a little miffed though, because this announcement does kinda prove that they could import the DLC items, they're just chosing not to.
What?
MS releasing broken DLC, Sony not certifying the same DLC for months, the patch taking ages to get certified... It's been a pretty bumpy road.
How is that not BioWare's fault?
I mean, I suppose you can fault MS for releasing broken DLC in a way. But isn't the bigger culprit BioWare for making broken DLC?
And Sony not certifying the same DLC for months? Wouldn't that be a good idea considering the DLC was already shown to be broken once?
And a patch taking ages to get certified, again, BioWare made broken DLC, I don't think it taking longer for them to push through other changes would be unexpected.
Just saying that, it's not going to cost them as many customers as potentially breaking their game again or making them start over maybe weeks after release because the patch that allows other DLC items to be imported is finally certified. And, to keep the different platforms somewhat aligned, the PC version just doesn't get the patch regardless of it not needing to be certified.
What have I done to myself!?
STEAM
This is why I still game on the PC. The patch that Bioware released for Dragon Age was superb and made the game so much better, plus other niggling problems (respec, camp storage, bad party member stat-choosing before they joined, etc) were correctable by mods.
I'm not particularly sure if Bioware should be blamed for the broken DLC, even though they made it, because to my understanding the problem was caught beforehand and so the DLC was not supposed to be released. Then MS released it. I don't quite understand why it took them so long to get it together and release the un-broken DLC, but then I'm not a programmer.
Pure speculation, of course.
Awakening was handed off to a smaller team, was it not? The lead writer is one of the DLC guys, not David Gaider.
We don't know is exactly the point. I'm just saying that there's a possibility that it isn't DA 2. Bioware have been big on franchise expansion as of late, talking about MMOs and spin-offs and even pursuing other genres.
Well yeah, I was just pointing out it's possible it's DA2, because we don't know how long the main team have been done with the original. My guess is that it is another expansion - it still falls in the 2 years of DLC and expansions they were planning for DA, and when this was initially leaked on an EA release schedule, it was 'New Dragon Age title'. If it was a sequel, pretty sure it would have said sequel.
I feel like the engine could use some updating. I'm not by any means a graphics whore, but there is way too much clipping in DA:O, and the engine in general looks a few years out of date. I don't know if they can fix those kinds of things in 1.25 years. I'm not saying they can't, but I'm not holding my breath either.
I'm also wondering if they can do justice to a 50+ hours story with that kind of timeline.
They already said DA2 should look a lot better than DA1.
It's not entirely the same thing, since I assume it's a lot easier to create new content with the Dragon Age toolset, but I would definitely like to see DA 2 take a leap similar in scope to that of Baldur's Gate 2, and I don't think they'll accomplish that just a year after the original.
And they've made statements to the fact that Dragon Age's universe is cool because they can set one in any place or time.... Yeah, mark my words, DA2 probably won't use your decisions. It'll be an all new game taking place somewhere completely different.
Edit: Found one of the quotes here:
Edit: I mean, as far as I'm concerned, that's just more evidence towards the fact that this won't be DA 2, 'cause I gotta assume they want you to be able to import your character and continue that story. So they're pulling out all stops to make this a multi-game franchise before that happens. Hell, they even talked about a freaking MMO today.
I mean, that's fine. But it's just words.
Bioware generally gets the benefit of my doubt, because they make excellent products. And they certainly proved they can squeeze the juice of an engine by way of Mass Effect 2.
But it also took them two years to do that. Not saying they can't do it, because ME is a different animal. But I just don't see it happening in the projected timeline.
Especially when the original was in development for like 5 years. Heh, original.
Though I can see them having enough time to make something the scope of Mass Effect by that time, Dragon Age was a lot bigger. I can't see them putting together a game as big in that time.
They made a huge deal out of the Origins tagline because they are what made the game unique. Play your character's backstory then having the consequences recur throughout the game instead of ME1's just picking two things from a menu that are irrelevant to 95% of the game.
And you are assuming a hell of a lot about importing characters to continue the story. Most of the little bit they have said about a possible sequel is exactly the opposite. Gaider has said a direct sequel is highly unlikely. They have created a huge world with lots of plotlines and do not want to be tied to one area or story.
Edit: I don't mean to sound snarky; I don't even necessarily want a direct sequel, but I'm pretty sure I read that they wanted to do something with character progression across games back when the Origins name was announced, but I'll be damned if I can dig it up again. If I'm wrong, I apologize.
That said, there are several things pointing towards them wanting to make a bunch of Dragon Age titles that aren't necessarily Dragon Age 2.