1012 réponses à ce sujet

[BloatedBeaver]

I was a little disappointed. I was a big fan of Dragon Age: Origins and
since Bioware has a good track record, I was looking forward to the
sequel. But it did not live up to my expectations. They moved in a
different direction with this game. Granted, that's not always a bad
thing, but I don't think it did the material any favours in this case.



Almost everything in DA2 is like a simplified and watered down version
of DA:O. The rich detail of the world and setting has been pushed back
into the fuzzy background. The world is and, more importantly, feels
smaller. Instead, they've concentrated on flashier combat and a more
console friendly interface (ie, it's been dumbed down), no doubt seeking
to appeal more to some other demographic that DA:O perhaps failed to
attract. Also, the characters doesn't feel as fleshed out as they were
in DA:O and they fail to fully engage you. There is less customization
available for the main character (and now that I think about it, for
almost everything in the whole game) and you can't even equip looted
armor/clothes to your companions.



And the new dialogue system is markedly not an improvement. The
lush dialogue trees of DA:O has been stripped down to a standardized
scroll wheel of basic emotional responses (green icons for "good"
options, red for "bad"/"forceful" options and sometimes a humorous or
neutral option).



Now don't get me wrong, it's still a quality game with a fairly
compelling story and above average gameplay and characters. Sure, the
story is less epic in comparison with the previous game, but that isn't
really a problem for me. It just doesn't compare with Dragon Age:
Origins.

[BurntChomsky]

Stepp N Wolf wrote...
(2) Things I disliked:
Lack of Epic, the story starts with the same beginning as DA:O ,and doesn't have much of an ending. What did your character do? Move into a mansion and put down 2 urban uprisings, not exactly the stuff of legends eh? The lack of epic stands out the most just before the big final battle, when 1/2 your crew says "naw I ain't fight'in". In DA:O did I need to ask if everyone in the party was "ok" with killing the archdemon? In ME2 did I need to ask my crew if stopping the collectors was the right thing to do?

If my so called "companions" want to like or dislike my actions thats just fine with me, But to directly insobordenate a direct order, or leaving the party on their own will, is taking things way too far...

So...basically you just want the exact same story that you have seen in every other RPG?  Epic storyline where you save the world/universe, black and white heroes and villains, a leader who everyone follows without question?  I just hope that Bioware doesn't listen to criticisms like this.

Bioware, you may not have executed everything perfectly here, but I implore you to please pursue the type of storytelling you started in this game...develop this genre more, give us stories that aren't just copy/pastes of previous RPGs.  Please continue to give us characters who don't follow the main character's whims at every juncture, but act independently.  Give us realistic characters and events.  What you started in this game has the capability to widen this genre to a greater degree than ever before.   I for one believe that games can aspire to the same level of complexity, thematics, and emotional resonance as great films or books.  Everything you did here I see as a step in that direction.

[Niezabudka]

I would like to say what I like and what I do not like about DAII.
I do not like role-playing a character which is determined by someone else in advance. It has always been a great fun for me to be able to create a character on my own. Unfortunately, in this case it is not so. It is not enough that Hawke is obligatory, it is also his family that is imposed on you. Such a family must influence what kind of person Hawke is. Anyway, it always annoys me when a character blurts out with something like: “I am your beloved sister, do you recall when once ……” .
In my opinion the dialogues are stiff and boring and there are no perceptible emotions. Dialogue wheel which was really brilliant in ME 1 and 2 does not work here at all. The worst part is when Hawke starts to speak arbitrarily by himself and then afterwards at last graciously a dialogue tree appears. In such situations I really miss a dialogue system from the first part.
I cannot understand why something really good must have been modified and “improved” and moreover so completely simplified. Apparently, the idea lying behind it was not to let anyone sweat too much over the game e.g. when choosing a character or reading too much or at all (in the end it is Hawke who knows best without our help). As a result sometimes my primary goal during the game was to know the consequences of the choices from the first part because I became more emotionally tied with Gray Guard than with Hawke.
I am also amused by the fact that in order to be able to talk to a character from a team I have to run to a given point instead of just freely asking a question about something e.g. in the street.
Besides, Elves turned into aliens and Zevran into a combination of an alien and an insect………..why did you do that?

Setting the game in one place is an interesting move and practically I cannot find any fault here. The team is also a plus, there have not been so great characters so far.
And also, the plot in DAII is much better than in DA:O though in the latter you could better identify with the character you role-played.
All in all, my favorite game is DA:O.

Modifié par Niezabudka, 25 mars 2011 - 06:27 .

[Stepp N Wolf]

BurntChomsky, did I say I wanted the exact same story as every other RPG? No, I didn't. Nor did I say I wanted a copy/paste of another story. Nothing could be further from the truth. Let me give you and example of what I meant.This story could have been made epic very easily with just a few changes. Say swap Act 2 and Act 3 around.
In act two your character seeks out and removes both of the evil elements in both the Chantry/Templars and Circle of Magi. After eliminating both those element you then unite the two sides for the real enemy. The Qunari...
Act three you and your companions join both the Templars and Mages to take down the Qunari. You save Kirkwall, become the new Vicount, and have lots of kids...
OK, OK, maybe that wasn't the best example but I think you get the idea. Not a copy/paste of another story, just a story that has a start, continues to build the story to the end, and then have an end...

[Tobikun]

I for one absolutely LOVED the original Dragon Age and although DA2 wasn't as good I do feel it was still a great game. The controls were a tad awkward especially on PC so I'm eventually going to try the console version to compare. This game was very console-fied I'd say but it is still enjoyable. My main issue is with the story. I can understand the need to have the tedious odd jobs in act 1 because hey beggars can't be choosers right? But once you hit act 2 it began to make you wonder why you were doing this. I for one began to think maybe the Qunari and the Arishok would be the main antagonist of the game but then defeating them at the end I thought to myself "Okay I'm a good portion into this game and I still don't have a bad guy what the hell?" Act 3 was indeed rather epic once you got to the end. You finally get your antagonist and the fights from hell begin and you win...........and that's it. The story just ended too abruptly to me. You have all this build up of an even that changed the world and everything caused by you and your companions but then is just ends when you defeat your antagonist and they tie loose ends up as best they can. I for one felt they should've elaborated more into the story. Added an epilogue act or something so you know what happened to Hawke or where they are today. It just seemed like a slap in the face when the story ended and it just made you go "Oh this is where they are going to add in their DLC/Expansion" which I'm fine with the expanding so long as it isn't 50 different DLC. An expansion is fine but to me DLC is just an excuse to release an incomplete game. My other peeve with the story is the two factions you have to choose between. It just seems to me impossible to choose to side with one because they just seemed inherently wrong and inconsiderate. In DA:O you had reasons to possibly sympathize with each group you could choose but in 2 it just seems like choose the good side or the bad side. I don't really like that. All in all DA2 is a good game with room for improvement.

[Siduri]

I've posted my reviews above, but I wanted to update and say that I've now bought two *additional* copies of the game from Amazon for two of my girl-geek friends, who are only very casual videogamers (they both played and liked City of Heroes, but they usually don't find much to excite them in the major releases). I know in these forums that Bioware is mostly criticized for trying to appeal to a broader demographic, but as a girl gamer I really appreciate things like deep and emotional romance storylines (I also appreciate LIs who are willing to make the first move!) and I want Bioware to be rewarded for making a more inclusive game. I really hope DA2 finds success through this kind of word-of-mouth.

[Ryenke]

I've posted other reviews - but this one is for the story only. I was a bit disappointed with act 'goals' - they felt forced, unclear and uninspiring. I think just a bit more work could have invested me in those three goals or made them more cohesive. (Especially as a mage - I felt like I was trying to raise money because mom wanted a nicer house - cause I felt safe as houses in Kirkwall, myself.)
But, I have to say full props for the ending. (O.K., I admit, it would have felt better if Orsino turned to blood magic in response to a real threat - like Meredith in his face, rather than just because she was going to be coming...)
I have found that I agree with most of the game critiques and complaints except I thought the ending was fantastic. It gave just enough closure (we all fled Kirkwall, went off on our own, except Hawke and LI stayed together) - and just enough 'the storm has arrived' tension. I didn't expect how much I would like the end - but it felt fitting to close Hawke's Kirkwall story and open up the big picture 'stop/end' the war story. Loved it.

[SpartanGrug]

Despite still not being able to access certain unlockable "entitlements" listed in my profile as active I did find the game overall enjoyable.

I played as a witty-mouthed male mage with positive qualities. (Using the joking dialogue mostly with some "good" options as well) I played through on the Xbox360 (though am considering getting it on PC as well now, I want to check out that high res texture pack... *wishes I didn't have to buy things twice* -Gah, I'm so materialistic these days)

As a bit of contextual background here is a little about my gaming preferences:
I have been a Bioware fan for a while enjoying the likes of Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, KOTOR, Jade Empire and the Mass Effect series. (I'm a big sucker for Sci-Fi actually) My opinions are influenced from experience in these games, a little AD&D, Warhammer, W:40k, Fallout series, MMORPG's World of Warcraft, Age of Conan and RIFT. Also love The Elder Scrolls series and most of Bethusda's works. (Secretly wished you guys went to ZeniMax for publishing instead of EA ) I also frequently wish I could live in the Mass Effect universe. So yeah, bit of an RP geek here hehe.

Magic Combat
First off there is the obvious "wow" which is the new artistic style for magic and combat. I am very impressed with and appreciate the new appearance and feel of magic. The character animations really bring a lot of "oomph" and make magic feel a bit more exciting and melee like. Thanks for the great job on that one!

Party Tactics
I think perhaps the only downside of this new system is an apparent loss of the tactical feeling of giving orders to your companions and managing things from a commander perspective. Although the functionality is still there perhaps the presentation could be improved to better fulfill the expectations of this style of play.

For example, it would be nice to have more on screen feedback when the game is paused and using the ability wheel. Things like companion target indicators (a simple line from each companion to their current target, possibly optional enemy target indicators as well) and area of effect indicators (a simple circle or cone drawn on the ground to indicate an area of effect). Even if this was an unlockable ability in itself, it would be nice to have and help the tactic side of the game.

Main Story and Character Progression
Overall, I enjoyed it. I would say that progression seemed fairly slow at first and in my opinion this was a little degrading to the gameplay. I sometimes felt bored and pushed through primarily due to my faith in Bioware delivering eventually (established from past quality games). This was mainly due to the "backwards and forwards" nature of earlier quests running through the same dull streets with little combat.

I know it is not very "Role Play" of me to expect exciting combat around every corner but there it is. Perhaps alternatives to combat could be additional character / companion progression through other means. It would be nice to have the option of hanging out / questing in a primarily combat area or going to a more subtle area which involves more diplomatic and subterfuge options to advance the character. (More options to do all of the above with the same quest would be nice too. ie. more Mass Effect style)

Dissapointment in Meril Side Quests
I chose to pursue a romance option with Meril for my first playthrough and found myself really enjoying the experience until the conclusion of her story arc. [Spoiler] With her keeper giving her life to save Meril I proceed to slay her and then have Meril kill her. We walk out of the cave to be confronted by some rather irate clansmen who attack us. We defend ourselves and make ourselves down the mountain. We then proceed to slaughter the entire Elven tribe without question or option to do otherwise. Meril seems undisturbed by this fact and goes back to her usual quirky self and that's the end of that. I found myself questioning if this was a bug or something as it completely broke immersion for me. "I'm doing all this for my clan, No Keeper! Ok time to kill all my effective family"?

Also I feel like there should be some form of significant change in her character after completing her quests. Perhaps after gaining the complete friendship or rivalry perks the characters assume new dialogue reflecting their new disposition.

A Note on Movement
Having to pull my weapon out to run at full speed gets old fast. At least have an unlockable ability or perk to enable simple full-speed movement.

Environments
The levels did seem a little bland or too clean at first though I found myself getting used to the style as I progressed through the game. I think the minimap is a little too effective. I found myself looking more at it, than the content on screen when navigating. Perhaps merging the minimap somehow into the environment itself or reintroduce fog of war onto the minimap to give a better sense of exploration. The game very much loss that sense of "haven't been here before" to me. I'd have to admit the first DA was a little like this as well but not as bad as DAII.

Artistically I think I expected a darker colour palette for the game. Let's not go Gears of War neutral grey but it would be nicer to have darker shadows. "Darktown" in particular was dissapointing. It didn't seem very visually dark at all to me.

Sound Design
Although adequete I find myself hungering for more fulfilling sound environments. Personally I'm investing more in sound quality these days as I'm hoping games in particular expand into this area and seek innovative ways to present the sound stage of gameplay and story telling.

The music was good, subtle and well merged with the gameplay and visuals in my opinion.

Sound stage was ok though I was hoping for better use of surround sound technologies. As in merged with gameplay. If I can I would like to promote / encourage further development in these areas. I did like the sounds of battle and explosions of magic but it would be nice to hear more subtle cues. Perhaps mages could chant the words to their spells, warriors could randomly yell more curses timed with their strikes and rogues could whisper minor spells of their own when they shroud themselves.

Some more combat effects would be nice too. Ringing ears for when your character is stunned or knocked down, deafening fireballs could be exactly that. Little things to bring a more immersive feel to the soundscape would bring a lot to the table.

Conclusion
I did enjoy the game so I can't deny that. Comparatively to DA:O? I couldn't say, it feels like a different game but I think overall a more positive step. I think for any sequels better conclusions to the companion side quests, more immersive sound design and a darker colour palette would be well received.

I focused on the constructive feedback side of things and so missed some of the "what I liked". Overall I'd still give the game a 9/10 for enjoyment. The combat and character systems do feel improved to me and I am not overly concerned about the final conclusions of the game being primarily the same. It would be nice to have an epic dynamic story but it is the journey which is most important to me (including a quality ending).

So thanks Bioware, I look forward to your future releases. DAII does restore some faith in your dealings with EA. Still, please be careful EA doesn't steal your soul.  <3

Modifié par SpartanGrug, 25 mars 2011 - 10:27 .

[Iakus]

I don't think DA 2 was a particularly bad game.  But it does have the disadvantage of being the immediate sussessor to a truly great game.  Possibly a modern day classic.

The single biggest problem I had in the game I didn't realize until after I'd finished the game.  In the end, none of my choices impacted teh story Varric told.  Sure I could choose how I responded to a given event, but there were very few consequences.  the only significant consequences l I could think of offhand are 1) the fate of your sibling 2) which of your companions stays at your side in the endgame.  Maybe 3) duel the Arishok or throw down with his guard too.   THough even then, he dies.  Not much change there.

Flemeth's description of destiny in the trailer was far more accurate than I would have liked.

[gad187]

Just wanted to state that despite various opinions and comments by reviewers or fans whether good or negative, I want to first of all say just about every title produced by BioWare has always been a pleasant experience. In my opinion and again my opinion what makes all your projects like DAO, DA2, or any of your other franchises stand out is the immense quality, presentation, ingenuity and moxy i've seen in your projects and or correcting flaws and dealing with critcism. Ive been a gamer for many years now with my experiences varying from atari to playstation, xbox, PC, and much more. PC being far my favorite and currently the only platform I game. But going back to my original thought despite your projects whatever platform I wanted to personally thank and review your overall performance as one of the best software developers of our time. Please continue to do exactly what you guys have been doing, to all of your staff again thank you.

[S Atomeha]

 hmm here goes nothing my first review ever:o
i played as a force/blood mage.

The game is definitely different then what Bioware usually does.  Which is nice, here i was thinking they were becoming a one trick pony .  
Story
The story is a bit strange, a bit more personal one could say. while the plot is not obvious at first it is a good plot. the world this time around is not built around the player, but rather his interactions with the world as it evolves around him.  It's the call to arms as a result of the catalyst caused by Anders, Bartrand, Hawke, and Meredith.  the evolution of a city that destroys the semblance of peace in Thedas. Qunari, mages, templars, chantry, humans, elves and dwarves packed into a city that comes to represent the tensions in the world.   While some of the quest are fetch some do bring up interesting concepts, hypocrosy, and a full on battle with wild legends(bone pit curse)


Combat
The combat is somewhat improved, it holds the same basic system but while there are a lot less spells/specs this time around i did not have to invest in moves i did not really want.  The mobs are a bit of a problem and the divergence between encounters in terms of difficulty is mind boggling.  One encounter could be easy, the next would take me hours to get through.  The random gankings of somewhat elite(lieutenat maybe? not sure)mobs are also annoying(I'm looking at you Hybris) was annoying. I ended up using a specific team for most of the game because of this.

Companions
hmm. The companions seem to have shifted from a focus on a haunted past, to being defined and governed by faults.  Anders blowing the chantry so that mages and templars fight, Merill and her obsession with the mirror, Aveline(explains it best "you know i've been dead these past seven years? they've just released a list of the casualties from Ostagar...."), Carver well he's an ass and an idiot.  Fenris is defined by his staunch anti slaver stance yet is the cause of his own.  Varric is somewhat normal.  Isabella's er didnt deal with her enough...  The banter between them is hilarious tho, between Varric mentioning to the Dog that he's better the nanders at cards, Isabella's pornographic books, Anders and that electricity thing.... They also bring up good points on the mage/templar issues etc.  

Dialogue
I'll star off saying I don't really care for the voiced protagonist or the silent one.  Though the dialogue is great, some can be funny, and the companions opinions and ability to act is quite welcome imho.  The wheel i could do without though. i don't think it exactly belongs but it does the job i suppose.  The change in tones due to an overlapping personality is also nice.  Also things like "Oh but the Hanged Man is so filthy"

Inventory
there are too many items with the same name, the companion armor set i can tolerate. but i found myself with a large surplus of armor i can't use.  The armor is reasonably varried(considering i only could equip myself[armor sets, not trinkets those are mostly the same])

Graphics/Artistic style
Overall i have no qualms with the new artistic feel(except for obvious anime influenced things bleach like swords, Fenris's white hair), the graphics were  good.  I liked scenes approaching the gallows, or seeing the chantry blowing up.  the graphics were great.  The romance scenes are very disturbing tho. full clothed sex is not that good, id prefer if it were more in the veing of 1, or ME1.  

Things that bugged me.
recycled environments
casting seemed to get slower later on
some missing quest ex: Who needs rescuing?(who indeed?) sketchy on the details
recording isabella as my main lover tho i just had a one night stand
Lelianna not implied dead after her one epic ballad(at least give my warden a kid with her:P)


Overall it is a good game, 7.5-8 is my range.



 

[Arieswolf]

There is no way to change some of the major key points in the game. Your sibling either dies or ends up in the gallows, your mom dies, you have to kill both Orsino and Meridith. Your choices don't matter. Side with the mages, war starts. Side with the templars, war starts. One of the biggest thing that bugged me in the game, Merril decideds to smash the mirror, gives up on it, then in the next breath asks you to help her go talk to the demon to help her make the mirror work. I work to get her away from the object that took her away from her people and it doesn't matter.

[PeeTeeEm]

I thought it was flat-out brilliant, my boyfriend is playing it now and thinks it's flat out brilliant, and everyone I know who's played it except the **** who hangs out in our IRC channel for some reason thinks it's brilliant.

The people spamming scores of zero on review sites are spoiled brats.

[ShrinkingFish]

Story was excellent, definitely an improvement on the previous one. I believe it shows great growth in the game writers story telling abilities. Thought the companions were incredibly well written, from dialogue, to looks, to personality, to skill sets and technical combat abilities.

The combat left something to be desired though I believe it was mostly geared towards consul game play and didn't translate very well to pc. Even once I got used to it it was a bit off. But not a really big deal.

Enjoyed the changes to the class system, felt a real difference between rogue/warrior/mage game play and appreciated the changes made there. Made each class very distinct and eliminated cross over/in between classes which I liked.

Thought the framework of Varric telling the story was a clever way to allow for aspects of the "reality" of the story to be played with. What with the waves and waves of enemies jumping from rooftops and the like and the shear number of enemies in general. And, of course, the dragon ball z style final fight complete with transforming mecha robot combat statues. I ended up dismissing every aspect of anything that appeared unreal or too fantastic to Varric's embellishments. That is not to say that I appreciated the level of added fantasy. Felt that it turned the final climactic confrontation into much more of a joke than a climax (Like literally, I was giggling during the final fight. Kind of seemed like an odd ending considering the severity of the rest of the game).

Certain aspects of the game seemed rushed and the environments seemed to take the highest brunt of the abuse. The reuse of the same environments and chambers over and over from different angles and with a few changes was clever and worked but it definitely stuck out as being a weakness. In Origins I also came to appreciate the rich variety and detail in the environments and locals, something this game lacked, as well as the attention to detail in the facial structure of even the filler characters. I found the use of poorly rendered stock features on many of the environment characters to be rather off putting.

Also felt that, while some of the characters (like Cullen, Isabela, Merrill and Anders) came out of the graphics system update looking fantastically better, some of the reoccurring characters did not make the transfer gracefully. Specifically Zevran and Alistair. Alistair looks like he's aged terribly since the events of Origins and Zevran just looks absolutely terrible, plus his personality in 2 made him seem less like a well rounded character and more like a caricature of his former self.

Enjoyed the level of detail and the general changes to the Qunari as well as Dwarves. Hates the changes to the elves. Dragon Age 2 seemed determined to make the elves seem much more alien, and they succeeded, but I definitely preferred the distinctly more human look of the previous models. All the elves either just looked funny or looked terrible. In my opinion anyways. Except Merrill... she was darling.

And there was only one aspect to the plot that I didn't absolutely love. The fact that Meredith had the lyrium idol. Felt it was a total cop out on a brilliantly worked commentary as it divorced Meredith from her actions and gave a metaphysical explanation for her perfectly reasonable and realistic zealotry. Honestly made the entire story a little cheap and disappointing. Like I got to enjoy this really well worked out, compelling, realistic and reasonable story line just to end it on a very cheap note. Like I just had the most delicious meal I'd ever tasted and the final bite was so terrible it erased the entire memory of the greatness of the meal. Simply put, it left a bad taste in my mouth.

I think a lot of people didn't like this story because it was so narrowly focused. Which I loved.

Origins gave a very wide and explanatory storyline because it's job was to roughly define the entire world within the context to the events it portrayed. And it did an excellent job establishing the fantasy world.

Dragon Age 2 was a middle chapter that put forth the story of the catalyst that sparked change throughout the world established in Origins.

I felt like we got a great view of the normal standards in Origins and that 2 was an excellent portrait of the extremes.

I also think a lot of people didn't like the story due to the fact that your player character wasn't the most important person in the world, rather, they were just the catalyst that allowed certain events to take place as well as inhabiting a position entirely confined within the limitations of the events themselves. And because, due to the nature of the story, your character doesn't really "win". Which I actually viewed as a major strength of the game.

I think another big reason why a lot of people didn't like the story was because of how it was expressed.

Because of the limited viewpoint the story was expressed in a distinctly iceberg style.

Origins essentially spoon fed you the entire plot. Dragon Age 2 did not. It left many of the events hidden from Hawke and therefore the player.

Instead you presented us with fragments of all the information in a disjointed style and left it to the audience to unite these pieces into a whole. This requires thinking... and most gamers hate thinking (no offense to the fellow gamers out there). Side note: I LOVED it.

As such the entire story cannot be seen unless one pays very close attention to every aspect and then makes the effort to unite those aspects themselves into a complete picture.

If someone plays through the game paying attention to only what information if given when it is given and then dismisses it then yeah, I suppose the plot line would seem very hollow.

As such it is likely that the reason many people did not enjoy the story is because they simply did not understand it.



In layman's terms: I liked it.

Modifié par ShrinkingFish, 26 mars 2011 - 09:53 .

[Ingu]

Spent the first 8 hours mourning it for everything it wasn't (DA:O redux)

Spent one week calming down and adapting my expectations.

Spent 35 hours enjoying the hell out of an excellent game.

--------------

I have to say the changes carry with them faults and improvements, to name only one - the time progression gave way for excellent character development... which came across as none-existent for those people who powered through the major quests and paid little attention to banter/content. On the other spectrum, time progression meant that people's changes seemed to sudden - in particular Anders, who went from being 'whiny' to being 'insane'.

Finding a balance is hard, but overall I think this is a terrific game.

--------------------

The only problem is that it shouldn't have been the second game in a series, it should have been the first. The two games are so drastically different that to sell one based on the success of another would have felt like a betrayal to the fan of either game.

Standing alone, they're both great, but as sequels of each other, the differences will always leave something to be desired. DA2 would've gotten a better reception if it was advertised as a new franchise rather than a sequel. Shame really, since it's not a bad game. Not actually close to perfection, but definitely a good game.

Modifié par Ingu, 26 mars 2011 - 10:58 .

[JediHealerCosmin]

Most of the main aspects have been adressed (combat is good, rpg aspects lacking, re-use of the same places etc), so I'm going to try and focus more on the story.  

First of all, i liked it very much. It wasn't epic by any means (at least it wasn't for me until the very end where Hawke tells his speech), but its tragic, beautiful and artistic. It had a lot of sad moments, all the way from the prologue to the end and there were quite a few times where I felt really sorry for Hawke and company. It's a nice way to make these characters grow on us, but they are not as memorable as the ones from Origins. I felt that this was the case from the lack of conversations with them.

In Origins, we could poke at them almost every time and they would tell us a great deal about themselves. We really got to know them better, especially since they spoke about different topics, not just "I was a slave" or  "The mages are being opressed" and so forth.

The frame narrative was handled very well, and it was refreshing to see something like this implemented in a video game. It was different and it worked. Cassandra and Varric made me laugh many times and were great together. The scene where Varric takes on the slavers himself is, in my oppinion, the most memorable moment in the entire game.

The romances were... ok. I'll leave it at that mostly because none of them really touched me as much as the others in Origins or even Mass Effect. But again, they were alright. You guys at BioWare really have to be commended for making them all available for all genders. In my oppinion, that was a great move and a very nice one. Thank you.

Hawke himself is a great character. The fact that I didn't like him as much as the Warden is because he didn't feel like my Hawke. He is his own character, much like Shepard. I don't really know if this is because of the voice-over (probably not), but I found roleplaying to not be as great as Origins. I may be doing it wrong, but who knows  


Overall, it is a good game, not the best (BioWare can do waaaaaaaaay better), but worth the money.

One thing really upset me with the direction the story is going now. A minor aspect of course, but it really made me mad and I honestly wanted to shoot down a volus and use his body as a cannonball: the fact that Leliana and my Warden break up, and he is now missing...

So... BioWare informs us from the beginning that the Warden's story is over and then decide to pull a Revan?
What's next? A cannon storyline and a Dragon Age MMO? 

I know. I should wait and see what the writters have in mind for the next installment. But I really really doubt we are going to see our Wardens ever again. Try making a happy ending once in a while guys  

Modifié par JediHealerCosmin, 26 mars 2011 - 11:28 .

[Lord Gremlin]

First, I must say that I loved the game, despite it flaws. The story is entertaining, and graphically/technically game's even better than Origins. There are issues though that bothered me. First, combat was rarely enjoyable: it's either way too easy, or way too hard. Well, maybe it's not hard, it's tedious. Bosses with ridiculously large health bar, waves of enemies spawning of thin air. Annoying. Once again I'm tolerating combat to get to the good parts, like story and exploring. Speaking of exploring... And reused caves.. With caves you really reused environments too much.  And now about story.. Some small things bothered me continuously, like blood mages attacking me and assuming I'm working with templars when I am a blood mage myself and hate knight commander & templars. This creates a strong feelings that all other blood mages are retards - like demon diminishes their IQ to something like 10-20. Serioulsy, this bothered me continuoulsy, I wanted my Hawke to at least have an option to say "you people are idiots, I am a blood mage myself and I've been killing templars while you all smelled first enchanter's farts in your circle!"
And with sister Plinth (if I spell the name correctly) - seriously, the idiotism, idiotism of situation! She's corenered by a blood mage apostate with no means to escape death... And simple walks away? You should have either let us kill her or make her gone by the time we return from meeting with Qunari. Because now this is just stupid - and makes your Hawke look like a total idiot...
With all that in mind game's still quite enjoyable and fun. It's small things, small things that makes it NOT great, just very good.
P.S. I loved savegame import feature.

[Blackveldt]

I love Dragon Age: Origins and subsequently played Awakening. I've also played many traditional RPGs like the aforementioned and Origins was an extremely well-done traditional RPG. Then I played Mass Effect 1 and 2, and ultimately Dragon Age 2 and I am completely spoiled by the voiced protagonist. I LOVE change. I cannot repeat this enough. I love how Bioware is evolving and revolutionizing the RPG and I'm a bit irked that some people don't like DA2 because they are averse to change. To break it down:

The gameplay was fun, if a bit more rudimentary than Origins. At first, I didn't like that I couldn't fit my companions with armor and the like, but then I was kind of relieved that I didn't have to worry about looking for armor and boots--I could go either way on this though. The mage class was much more fun (and didn't take forever to cast spells) in DA2 than Origins. The warrior class seemed more proficient in DA2 whereas it seemed to serve solely as a tank in Origins. I love the reach of the two-handed weapons. I liked positioning my rogue and using the specialties from Origins, but DA2 rogue was still fun.

The story in DA2 is interesting enough, but what makes it great is *how it's told*. And I think Bioware has the art of storytelling down pat. I loved, loved the personality recognition system and the evolution of the characters.

The main issue I have with DA2 at the moment is the 'Isabella/Sebastian' bug. And the fact that I somehow failed to romance Fenris. Sad. In any case, overall, I loved DA2 and there is still no other developer that comes close to bringing new things to the table as well as a compelling story. So, thank you, Bioware. I welcome change and hope they keep coming.

[Mr.Frinkle]

I thought Dragon Age 2 was a good game. It of course had some flaws (I can't think of a perfect game off the top of my head), but also some welcomed features. My main complaints with DA2 comes from the lack of relationships with people, I know what you are thinking "wait a minute? You can romance people you idiot!" The kind of relationship I'm talking about is more along the lines of "a real emotional connection". I'm talking about with my family, and even just a little more pointless banter with my companions would be nice. Not every conversation has to be a real heavy downer. Compared to DA:O I could ask Sten about the Qun, ah a nice disscussion on racial differences and a healthy religious debate, I could ask Lelliana if she wouldn't mind telling me some stories she learned as a bard, I could call Alistair an idiot, the list goes on.

But wait, I don't get to experience a developing relationship? What's the deal? I escaped Lothering with some people in tow now I'm in Kirkwall. It would of been really nice If I could of seen my life in Lothering, if I had a chance to get to know Bethany, why does she like me more then Carver? On the same note why does Carver seem to dislike me? Spending a year or a week or whatever in Lothering could of added more depth to the family and made me actually feel something when Carver died (or Bethany) I mean up until that point I didn't realize he was my brother until my mother starts crying over him. 

Also we appeared to of served at Ostagar together, perhaps we could of seen that. Spent all our time in the camp doing random little fetch quests, maybe catching a theif sneaking about the camp late at night. All the while knowing that the Warden, Alistair, and Duncan are just beyond the crumbling walls in their own camp.  It would of been nice to of actually been there and experienced Ostagar on the ground fighting a losing battle with the King, looking up for myself and seeing the beacon lit but no reinforcments coming, then fleeing home to Lothering and NOW Varrics story starts up with us fleeing the blight.

That would work for warriors and rogues easily enough, but as a mage maybe you could stay in Lothering as Carver goes off to fight, and you help deal with refugees, and deal with bandits on the road.

The same goes for the other little "breaks" in the story. I would of liked to played as a merc with the Red Iron, why DOES Meeran hate me? What was our differences? I know Worthy? Whose Tom WIse? LADY Elegent WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE!?! Playing with the Red Iron (or Athenril sp?) Would of allowed me to actually build my reputation, the number of times I've heard "You know Hawke people are talking..." and the number of times I've thought what, about me? Why? What exactly did I do?

Also some time spent as the Champion of Kirkwall would of been neat. I know it's more or less a title with no real legal meaning, but even so some dealing with politics maybe such as dealing with the Banns in Awakenings? Just a thought. At the least how about discounts in the stores? Actually making a profit and doing more with the Bone Pit, workers rights, new equipment? Maybe some free... uh ladies at the Red Lantern. Again all thoughts. It would of been nice to have seen my influence been used for more things in court or what have you, some more dialoge options instead of kill options. A nice quiet respite from mindless bloodshed.

Also, this really bothered me for some reason. WHY does Gamlen come from INSIDE the Gallows when he comes looking for us. Shouldn't he of walked from the docks and up the steps? I don't know why that bothers me, it just does.

[silver-crescent]

 I'm gonna keep it short and simple:
I absolutely loved Hawke, the companions (both personality and looks wise), the story, the writing, the voice acting, the romances, the abundance of interesting side missions and side characters. Also, the art style, the loading screens (random I know but they were all stunning), the combat (miles better than Origins), the skill trees, and the setting (Kirkwall and surrounding areas - sure we saw a lot of it but at least the areas looked great).

I didn't like how the ending was incredibly unfulfilling, how pointless a character Varric was, and the new inventory system, especially the being always swimming in similarly named rings, pendants and belts, about 80% of which are pretty useless. The repeated environments were certainly a flaw as well, but I dunno, I ended up just getting used to them.

I thought  it was an incredibly enjoyable game, brought down by some minor flaws but especially by a very unfulfilling ending.

All in all though, I'd easily give it a 8.5 or 9

Modifié par silver-crescent, 26 mars 2011 - 07:26 .

[Nazo]

Overall: I enjoyed it a lot. I can't wait to play it again, but I don't want to replay immediately and grow over-accustomed to it. Also a patch or two would be nice. And more game! DLC, sequel, expansion. I really enjoy the DA world and would like to see more of it.

Likes:

* Characters were wonderful, I enjoyed playing with them all and learning more about them. Which leads into...

* Good difficulty (on normal). I didn't feel forced to take certain optimal characters. I swapped my party around a *lot* more than in DA:O.

* Lots of little intra-party banter. I love that.

* Less plodding combat. Going back and watching my warrior or rogue lumber across the screen in DAO is painful now.

* New convo system. I like knowing the tone of what I'm going to say more than the specific words.

* Chapter two. The pacing, the foreign-ness of the Qun without being anvilicious or obvious 'we're Fantasy Communists!' The build up of tension, the way little quests played into it.

* Consequences of quests. I love how people I helped or hindered or ignored in earlier acts popped up later. And how sometimes, they didn't. Not everything revolves around me. (I particularly liked how some mages that I set free were caught, and I ran into them in the gallows.)

* The new look for elves and qunari. The new look & art in general. The deep roads seemed way more forbidding and epic. Cities seemed more real.

Dislikes:

* Repetitive dungeons. Sticking around in Kirkwall all game is fine, I can deal with that. But very obviously reused caves and dungeons just felt kinda lazy. (Especially the bricked up door in a cave. wut?) And confusing when bits of the dungeon showed on my map were inaccessible.

* Where did all the female dwarves go?

* Companion armor could use more tweakability. More choice would have been nice; maybe at each of the 4 improvements you have options for how you want to improve the armor. (more defense, or + rune slot, etc.)

* I wanted more conversations with my party members. They had lots of chatter with each other, but I felt there were not enough me-and-them chats.

* I miss epilogues! I understand why they might not be there, but ... I liked 'em.

* Some of the act 3 convos/plot points seemed like they needed more filling? Like Orisino suddenly going all demon. That could have been explained/built up better. Either don't have him do it, or give a better motivation for becoming a horrifying abomination than 'ok fine you want me to be a demon then I am'. The Meredith twist was well-done though.

* Bugs! please resolve some of the wonky plot issues like Merrill's out-of-place convo and imports not working out right. I have noticed a distressing tendency to *not* fix those types of issues in previous games, leaving it up to the community to make an annoying forest of mods to deal with them.

[187 Lifeless]

I think Dragon Age 2 could have been better then DA:O if they had more time. There were parts of DA2 that I thought were brillant. I loved the Arishok stuff and the decisions you could make like handing Isabella over to them or handing Fenris over to his master. While playing a "evil" Hawk, these moments reminded me of DA:O. I loved Acts 1 and 2 but I honestly thought Act 3 fell apart and upon a second playthrough realised how little my choices effected the actual storyline. I still play DA:O and Awakening now and are seeing things play out different then they did on about 4 previous playthroughs. It is amazing and I guess with a game titled "Dragon Age 2" I was expecting a equal to, or even greater, experience. That being said, the combat, in my opinion, was wayyyy better, I loved how fast I was as a rogue and how the Mages were areal force on the battlefield. The graphics were much better and that Champion Armor Set was amazing. There were alot of awesome things that kept me playing but in the end, the story and the lack of choices fell short of the original. Still...a great game! Just not as great as it's predacessor.

[skrilling]

I admit I haven't read through all the replies as there are several, so this is simply my feedback. I have one large comment and several smaller ones. I'll hit the small ones first and then hit the one that isn't just about this game, but a suggestion for improvement for anyone making games in this day and age.

There has been talk about re-using areas. Honestly, I dont mind too bad. I take the same route to work everyday, I expect its hard to make a lot of distance on foot anyway, especially when you plan on comming back to a house at the end of the day. Sure its nice to be dazzled by some artistry, but overall, it was noticed, but not the end of the world.

I believe the combat was more balanced in DAII than DA origins. One could expect to win a dual the arishok with nearly any character if correctly built, though some would do better in a dual than in the grand melee that is the other choice and vica versa. This is expected and adds a small amount of variety.

Now for the big issue.

There has been talk about the sexuality of the characters. I believe most of these arguments are missing the real problem. It doesn't matter what someones orientation is, those arguments are just a scapegoat for what people are trying to express. The real issue with this game and others is the matter of social-intelectual firepower.

In the day of Facebook, Twitter, (and the list goes on), people crave social interaction and challenge that goes beyond the levels they usually see everyday. The characters in DAII are a bland, flat, predictable piece of cardboard compared to the brilliantly crafted mahogany of the origins cast.

In particular, the two intelectual powerhouses of origins, (Allistar and Morrigan), are unavailable due to plot circumstances. Those particular cast aside, the mental sparring between great minds is, in this day and age, as exhilerating as would be the battle between Halaster and Elminister (if I'm not mistaken, the two most powerful mages of Neverwinter Nights lore). People crave this.

One comment you'll hear about DA origins is that it has the best dialoge of any game ever (though some people make convincing arguments for Fallout 2 given the day and age it was made). Many of the great games that people really hold onto involve exploring, challenging, or upseting the accepted social order. The fallout series was already mentioned (a side note, many people felt Fallout 3 was a letdown for the same lack of social firepower), but others include the Shivering Isles expansion of Oblivion, certian aspects of the Gothic series, one could argue the Hitman series acheives social victories not through speach but through body language and appearance, and I'm sure I'm forgetting many more. One of the biggest pulls of MMO's is social challenges inherent in having that many people in one place.

If you made a game that incorporated all the difficult sociology/psychological questions of recent times (I mean the HARD questions, like the stanford prison experiment) , all the masters/PhD theses and test platforms for proposed theories about how the human organism interacts and make the player navigate through all of that, I believe the fans would thank you for it.

Incorporating an architecture where social-intelectual "victory" can be achieved, where victory is defined by the player, is something that many games have touched on, but none has come so close as DA origins. In origins, you're goal could be to make Allistar's life misserable. Your goal could be to attempt to go from nothing to being the queen of Ferelden (and unfortunatly not become the default ruler of Ferelden by getting Allistar killed). You can save or doom entire locations (a hint of Fable in that last one as well).

This is why people feel a sense of loss when playing DAII. They were hopping it would be like DA origins in these respects.

[dano525k]

Strange feeling to like this game and at the same time be super disappointed.


DAII did alot of things as well or better that DA:O but at the same time seemed very obvious and shallow to me.  The plot & characters imo were solid but the overall game was missing so much.


Overall the game seemed to very much be...go here kill a bunch of baddies, go there kill a bunch more rinse & repeat with (well done ofc) cut scenes in between.  In Origin's you had things that broke this up a bit that you had to figure out, like the fade(not everyone's favorite, I know), Kitty's puzzle, the bridge puzzle, riddles, the weird ritual with the jug in the eleven ruins etc.  Even chatting with your companions, besides being a good way to get to know them, was a mini game of sorts which brings me to my next problem with this game...

I wanted to like all the companions...they all seemed like good characters and what was there was written well I thought but aside from maybe Varric, I didn't know them or care about what happened to them really.  Not being able to talk to them except when they needed something and sent for you was the problem I think.  I like how some dialogue was set to trigger at certain parts of the game(in Origins I always used it up too fast) but missed talking to them about whatever, whenever like you could in DA:O...it really helped to make them endearing and memorable, for me at least.  Some blend of both systems could be ideal?


The lack of choices was pretty shocking to me too...I tend to go at my first play through without spoilers so there I am ready to start another Hawke that was going to save her mother and stop Anders from blowing up (I realized the need for it plot-wise but thought something else may have been written that could have the same effect) the Chantry...well, I was quickly disabused of those notions of course and didn't really see a reason to play it again.  What could I really do differently that mattered?  Listed as a "key feature" on the DAII website  "Embark upon an all-new adventure that takes place across an entire decade and shapes itself around every decision you make"   I'm sorry but it didn't seem to me to be true at all.  


There's some other little things I didn't like/missed from the original but those are my biggest issues and I don't have the heart to go on anymore than I have with complaints. 


So on a more positive note...


I liked the new combat movements.  The dialogue and story were good and at some times wonderfully written.  I thought it was interesting that companions had their own motives...so much so that they would do things at times that Hawke could not control/avoid.  It was frustrating and I'm not sure I personally liked it but it was interesting and surprising at least.  Loved Varric's storytelling ^ ^


Camoes, for the most part were good...Zevran's running around holding his own against the Crows & Leliana has become something in her travels it seems, was cool seeing them both.  Alistair....well, I said I was done with complaints so I leave this alone.


 Also, the "junk" that alot seem to dislike, I really didn't mind.  We are always picking up useless things in games, at least it's being called what it is this time.  Because I neglect my inventory at times, it was actually helpful. If I'm in the middle of something and out of room there's a whole column of crap I don't need & wont sell for much anyway.  Real easy to just destroy all the junk and move on.


In conclusion, it was a pretty fun game and I didn't want to stop playing until the end.  It just has no replay value for me.

Modifié par dano525k, 27 mars 2011 - 02:22 .