2797 réponses à ce sujet

[Grovermancer]

IMO 2 of biggest, and most important necessary changes:


1.  Stress an overarching story and keep it present in the player's awareness throughout

--  the hero's journey of Hawke, as it parallels the trials of the city, which should reflect the issues of Thedas at large
(worst case scenario:  cliched, but enjoyable, is better than 'new' but boring)


2.  Enhance and improve DAO's combat; do not go in for this 'God of War' hack n slash "consolized" combat

[anfro]

i truly feel they are loosing their rpg style. seems like mass effect 2 strayed to far away from me 1, and with how far it strayed from dao im loosing faith in bioware

[PSUHammer]

I loved all Bioware games back to BG so I am a bit of a PC "grognard" but I still liked DA2.  Here are my brief thoughts after just finishing DA2 with a 60 hour run.  I was using a sword/shield warrior on Hard.

I liked:

• New graphical style.  Was an improvement on the original with a machine running DX11 on very high.  Also appreciated the texture pack.
  
  
  
• Liked the story of Hawke...no real central drive, at first, just to survive and make a better life in a new town.
  
  
  
• Liked the framed narrative storytelling...it was different, yet effective.
  
  
  
• Liked the combat but some of the animations were overblown.  Why would someone explode if I stabbed them with a knife?
  
  
  
• DId not like the major enemy spawning during battle.  I think it is unrealistic yet I expected it over time and got used to it.
  
  
  
• I liked the conversation wheel, dialog and voice acting, for the most part.  Some characters were throw aways and a few were great (Aveline, Isabela, Varric were great).
  
  
  
• Hetro male romance options were kind of extremes...there were no middle ground options.  If Bethany wasn't Hawke's sister, she would have been the type I would have went with, personality wise.  Anyway, that is more personal preference and subjective.
  
  
  
• Actually liked that companions picked their own clothes...
  
  
  
• Cameos were meaningful and fit into the story although there are continuity issues depending on how you played DAO.
  
  
  
• Some of the inventory and crafting streamlining was welcomed.
  
  
  
• Game is mostly stable and doesn't crash out of the gate, which is a good thing these days.

      Disliked

• Inventory system.  What's up with all the junk?  Missed opportunity here...
  
  
  
• Not much armor/weapon variety
  
  
  
• Took too long to get really into your companion's stories.  Except for Varric, most hit later in Act 1 or later acts.  It made it difficult to get to know them and was confused by my friendship/rivalry gains at the beginning of the game.
  
  
  
• Recycled areas and caves.  I mean, I know it is one city...and that not changing the setting is fine.  But chairs and furniture were the same in every house?  Caves were all exactly the same with doors closed off??  Laziness folks.  At least randomize them or something.  I got to thinking "Oh, here is the boss fight room...wonder if it is a Varterral (sp?) or a big Spider this time?"
  
  
  
• Bugs....lots of quest and scripting bugs that should have been caught.  They have been caught and "fixed" by community people within days of the games release.  EA needs to devote more time to QA.  But this can be said for any game publisher these days.  It's all about rushing titles out to help the bottom line and patch later.  The save import bugs are game breaking, in my opinion.
  
  
  
• The city did not really feel alive.  There were a few people walking around, but I would have expected somthing more like the cities in Assassin's Creed...bustling with activity.  It felt like the city only held about 100 people.

There you go...had fun on my first playthrough.   ** EDIT **  I just read an interview with the lead level designer and he said this was a result of "consolitis" as they had to tone down the random people on the streets to cater to console resources.

Modifié par Hammer6767, 25 mars 2011 - 12:13 .

[Eudaemonium]

Okay, I just finished my first playthrough. I played on PC on Nightmare and it took me exactly 95 hours and 1 minute, according to my post-campaign save. This might seem a bit long, but my laptop is not that great so I basically played the game at about half the speed it should have been. The same was true of Origins, though. For reference, I played a Female Mage, and my main companions were Aveline, Fenris, and Varric or Sebastian. Anyway, my feedback. I decided to head the sections in bold and put some of my main points in italics for easy reference.

• Overall Impressions: Firstly, I loved the game. It had its flaws, to be sure (more later), but in general I thought it was an amazing experience with thoroughly likeable/hateable characters, emotional ups and downs, twists, difficult choices, and fun and tactical combat.
• Playing Enjoyment: Its hard to say whether I enjoyed it more than DA:O, because I enjoyed them both in different ways. However, I definitely found it more fun to play, so building on the current play-style would definitely be an advantage.
• Combat: The Cross-class Combos were an excellent addition. However, I miss the old spell-combos. I think having a more detailed combo-system with specific skills (rather than skill effects) combining would be a good way to develop the system in future titles. In general, combat was fluid, fun and entertaining. Playing on Nightmare made some of the fights put me on the edge of my seat. The final fight of Act 1 took me about an hour and ten to defeat, and was a tremendous sense of accomplishment when I did. Some of the optional "secret" bosses were similarly fun, and the final battle was impressive and fun.
• Graphical Change: Other than the obvious redesigns (Qunari, Elves, Darkspawn) I really didn't notice much of a graphical change between the two games. The "cartoony" style impacted the  combat gameplay more than the visual appearance in my eyes. I thought the overall style was good, but considering Bioware was going for a 'unique'style' I'm not sure how well they succeeded. YMMV.
• Characters: The characters were all wonderfully written and interesting, some I loved others I hated, but I found them all engaging in their own ways. One point I have to commend the team for is the way the characters interact with one another. You get a distinctive feeling throughout the game that the characters have their own lives and are looking out for and helping each other on their own, without the main character. For me, this made your companions feel like people, who were part of each-other's lives, but who also formed part of a team, and were not merely separate individuals whose only connection to each other was through Hawke (which to me is kind of how ME2 felt with Shepard's team). The friendship/rivalry system was also very good. I also liked the static-but-upgradeable outfits. Perhaps longer introduction quests were in order though, as it almost-always takes until Act 2 to actually get to know any of the team.
• Quest Continuity: This was a really nice feature, and very appreciated. seeing the different plots develop through the years and come to a head was really interesting and enjoyable. This also goes for quests that are continuous with Origins choices. This continuity was very valuable.
• Hawke: This will probably be controversial, but for me I found Hawke to be the ideal protagonist, managing to perfectly balance (for me) player-direction with a character who really felt like their own. The icons on the dialogue wheel helped a lot with that, and allowed me to alter my mood based on certain plot decisions without feeling penalised (as I do in ME/2). However, the cinematography and voice-acting did an excellent job of bringing Hawke to life. If Hawke doesn't return in DA3 then I hope Bioware continue using the Hawke-style for future main characters.
• Music: I loved the sound-track generally (Fenris' Theme stands out to me as a particularly excellent piece), but IMO it suffered the same fate as DAO's in generally not being that memorable. I guess I'm not a major Inon Zur fan when it comes to his DA soundtracks. Also considering you put the Lake Calenhad theme in this game too, when will we finally get the damned track on an OST?

Negative points/Points for improvement.

• The Recycled areas: This has probably come up a lot, and understandably so. I am aware Bioware probably had to cut corners in the development time and sacrificed unique areas for other content. Nonetheless, the recycled areas, particularly when it comes to caves and mines (I can see all mansions, for example, having a similar structure), cheapen the impact of the overall game. I think the content/area tradeoff worked for me, but ideally it shouldn't have been an issue. I think the game probably should have been in development for another 6-months to a year in order to generate the new areas, and this would have greatly aided player experience. As a final note: Having different quests take place in the same areas are okay, however having different areas use the same map/textures/etcetera just looks cheap and detracts from the piece.
• Act Length: Now, seeing as I took an inordinate amount of time on this game, this might ring a bit hollow, but Act 2 and particularly Act 3 needed to be longer. That said, the events of Acts 2 and 3 are kind of building throughout the early/mid game, and so perhaps need less introduction. Nonetheless, a longer final Act would have been very appreciated.
• Act Number: Three Acts were good, but occasionally the jumps and initial dialogue seemed a bit abrupt. For example, without spoilers: Varric comments in his first dialogue in Act 3 on events at the Act 2 climax as if they were relatively recent, however they happened 3 years ago. For me the game needed an extra Act or two, but this just comes down to wanting MOAR. Personally, I hope Bioware does some expansion packs that add extra years in =P. I'd pay good money for that.
• Bugs: This says it all, really. One notable but annoying ones were Aveline's final armour upgrade not dropping, and Varric's armour losing all its runeslots once I finished his final quest.
• Minor Gripes: I really, really wish that the optional 'super-bosses' had unique models. That and more enemy-type variety in general: where were the Genlocks and Shrieks, for example, or the Sylvans. I'm hoping this might be fixed in expanions/DLC and DA3 in future, now that hopefully the graphical style has settled. Also !!!!MINOR SPOILER!!! the appearance of the Harvester model for a certain late-game boss was kind of a WTF moment. Considering the end of Golems had these escaping into the Deep Roads, I expected them to have a more minor and understandable role, for example as optional super-bosses or boss-class enemies in the Deep Roads !!!END SPOILERS!!!

In general, I found DA2 to be a rewarding and enjoyable experience, and well worth every penny I spent on it, despite its flaws. My issue is that a very very good game could have been a very great game. I look forward to future DLC and possible expansions.

[Vicious]

Combat - Needs to go back to the old DA:O model, slower, no waves, crowd control means something, etc.

Boss battles were fine, except some bosses [the very final boss for example] had way too much health for what it was. Only battle I felt accomplished winning was the final battle of Act 1 and the duel of Act 2 [vs a boss with reasonable health]

Act 3's final battle was an exercise in complete and utter boredom, just sitting there whittling away at the boss's health.

Swords barely do any damage, enemies generally don't react to the hits unless it takes a huge piece of damage. No blocking, just hack and slash.

What worked in combat:

2 handed was faster. thanks.
1 handed looked cool. thanks.
Staff looked awesome. Thanks.


But the whole thing was too damned fast. Realism or any attempt at making sense was thrown out of the window in favor of fast paced arcadey combat mechanics.

This is YOUR world Bioware, I implore you to try and have it a little more visceral and realistic. If you do, maybe it'll get it's own movie a la Mass Effect.

[Carlthestrange]

Pros: 
Great story
Great twists
Nice looking armour
Interesting concept (Same place as the years roll by).
Fenris.
Improved character customisation.
Great to see another High Dragon.
Love the progression of poor to rich.
Qunari were awesome.

Cons: 
Improved combat system, but could still use some work.
Prefer original Elven models. (Though keep the new accents, like them.)
Needs more locations, instead of the same sites reused over and over.
Needs more structured quests, instead of "I found this, here you are."

[YulanM]

I've already posted my opinions on the forums somewhere, I just wanted to add another comment on the replayability of the game, I've tried to get back into it with a warrior (previous was rogue) so I can see the different things I could have done but I just find it too boring and a struggle. Which is a surprise since I can play most games I like repeatedly. I liked the game generally, but I don't think it will ever be something I can play often, maybe in a couple of years!

[cindercatz]

OK, this is for the battle and item systems, lifted from another of my posts. I think, taken together, you'll see what I'm going for, even being in simple internet list form:

My compromise + new system for DA3 would include:
› auto-attack option at the very least, default preferably
› medium-fast speed DA2 style (but smoother, more fluid) basic combo animations punctuated by smooth finishers in a return to DA:O style gore
› large, non-copy/paste maps with choke points, high ground and coordinated defensive position AI enemy tactics
› terrain blocking for line of sight
› auto-dodge/defend ala DA:O and KoTOR
› combat lock ala DA:O and KoTOR
› context sensitive half-step/jump closing moves that automatically move to the nearest flanking position of your targeted enemy
› running/charging melee at long distance, no more stand still reactions
› priority grab for tanking ala DA2
› customizable weapon specialties ala DA:O aside from special weapons like Bianca in DA2, which are scalable
› weapon switching with actual scabbards, quivers, etc. for one ranged and one melee weapon set shoud the player equip them
› multiple character specific armor/clothes that are both visually and stat customizable using found or purchased upgrades, kind of a hybrid DA:O/Shepard in ME2 system with nice looking aesthetics ala DA2, for all characters
› elimination of non-visual accessories in favor of a high degree of primary gear customization
› a return to DA:O's stat system
› far more varied enemies of all sorts
› equivalent damage/HP ratio ala DA:O
› larger selection of spells
› mage melee ala DA2
› larger groups of enemies with no thin air respawning
› very limited, only plot appropriate waves that enter the field like actual reinforcements or shifting units
› the return of spell combos
› elimination of the CCC system, replaced with status effecting skills and status exploits ala DA:O
› boosted healing ala DA:O
› skill tree from DA2 replacing CCC with more unique skills
› a race specific skill set for the player character
› less activated buffs, more maintained and passive skills
› return of non-combat specialized talents that should also play into convo wheel checks
› even smarter set of available AI tactics
› the occasional story battle where non-active party companions fight as allies
› summoned mabari or other pet character
› summoned PC beast that can be mounted as an activated (or maintained with like 20% healing) ability that has a very long cool down or limited availability and works like shapeshift stat and skill-wise, like a halla for elves, mabari for dwarves, etc.
› isometric camera for PC players

Modifié par cindercatz, 24 mars 2011 - 06:54 .

[John Epler]

Hey folks. Keep up the great feedback! Thus far, it's been very constructive and well-considered.

I do want to touch on a point - there is a lot of feedback both here and elsewhere on the internet to go through. So if you feel as though your point is being ignored/hasn't been read, do not fret! It's just a matter of logistics and the fact that there is so much of it

But keep it coming, please!

[Terjoh83]

Havent read thru this forum, so dont know if its been mentioned before...

But whats with having Aveline look like freaking Buzz Lightyear!? I mean...have you seen her chin?? Throw in a deeper voice, and we got ourselves a man....

[NetBeansAndJava]

Overarching story / goal

This game would be much improved if there were a larger threat that built to a climax in the final act. 
You could still have the smaller threats in every other act, but foreshadowing and emphasizing a looming antagonist in the first 2 acts would have done much to improve the game’s cohesiveness.  Also, for the record, I did appreciate how this game wasn’t about saving the world – a cliché found in so many other games.

 

Change the setting

The city of Kirkwall should feel more like an organic city, growing and changing with time.  While I found it beautiful, it being static greatly diminished the importance of our actions at the end of every act and made the game feel much duller.  At the very least, there should be a change in seasons, weather, and the types of npcs found in the streets (as in beggers, vendors, random talking people, etc).

 

Combat controls

Combat controls feel clunky and oversimplified.  Targeting the ground with autolocking is very difficult and yet necessary for certain spells. Also, with the removal of the tactical camera, aiming spells far away is much harder.

 

Companion interactions

Companion interactions could be improved greatly with the simple introduction of more dialog conversations.  I miss DA:O’s campfire talking.  Even though the camp itself was dull beyond belief, the conversations made it worthwhile.  However, I will say that this game made HUGE leaps forward by having companions interact with each other during cut scenes.  Merrill and Isabella had some of the best cut scene interactions.  Having more of those would be a massive improvement.

 

Companions and the world

Companions should do more than just stand around in one spot.  They should be doing things that
will build their character.  For instance, if you don’t have Merrill in your party, then have her wandering Lowtown or Hightown doing the things her codex says she does.  This was a gripe I had with the first game as well.

 

Difficulty of fights

The game suffers from difficulty scaling.  Most fights are trivial, even on hard.  Then some boss fights become  insanely difficult or last so long as to become tedious.  A few number tweaks on health and dmg could do wonders on making fights scale better.

 

Lack of character customization with regards to skills and
gear

It’s no longer viable to build a melee mage, bow warrior, 2 sword rogue, etc.  The simplifications made to character customization are not welcomed in my book.  Part of this is due to gear requirements, as pointed out in a previous post.  With 2 major stat requirements on armor, even if you had the skills for bow shots in the warrior trees, you wouldn’t have the stats to shoot that bow and wear your armor.

 

CCC

CCC was a great idea, but sort of fell short of my expectations.  You almost never have the opportunity to execute them on bosses because it’s very rare to land a status effect on a boss.  Non-boss fights rarely, if ever, need CCC even on hard.  Also, the requirements of CCC are a little too strict for my taste.  If you want to use CCC, you need to plan everything around CCC.  It would be more fun to have many more options so that any party could execute a CCC so long as you were paying attention.

Modifié par NetBeansAndJava, 24 mars 2011 - 07:26 .

[tomas819]

tomas819 wrote...

 I'm nearing the end of this game, and I just want to say I really have enjoyed it.

These features were highlights (for me):
-- Great characters: companions, NPCs, all of them
-- Fun quests
-- Absolutely awesome voice acting
-- I loved the improvements to combat and graphics
-- What an intriguing story, lots of unexpected twists and turns, slowly building over time
-- Well-written romances
-- The framed narrative really worked well for me (and, yes, I was doubtful at first)
-- Great armors: finally, mages don't have to look like dorks -- Yay! 
-- Dog the way he should have been
-- The Black Emporium was nice, too

A (very) few suggestions for improvement:
-- I would have liked more freedom over companion specs; I so wanted to make Fenris a sword/shield warrior like Aveline or Merrill a healer but couldn't.
-- I wish Bioware would finally offer an option to display one armor even if  you're wearing another
-- When I first saw the armor tabs for the companions, I thought I was going to obtain several armors per companion and that I could pick which one to display. It was very disappointing not to have any choice in how their armors looked.
-- You need to open up lockpicking (bashing [warriors], blasting [mages]) to other classes OR ...
-- You need to have lockpicking (cunning) not suck up so darned many attribute points from your rogue. 

All in all, though, it was a great game. Thanks so much! 

Just a P.S. from me. I finished my first (nice-guy mage) play-through yesterday. Now, that was almost 65 hours of terrific fun. The game had some epic battles sprinkled all through it, but the last section was just amazing.

I loved it. Loved it! And now I can't wait for some DLC and also Dragon Age 3. This game really hits the sweet spot for me: I'd give it an 8/10 (it woulda been a 9/10 with more flexible appearance/skill options for my Hawke and his companions [see above]).

Thanks again, Bioware, for an epic good time. Now, I gotta get back to my snarky warrior playthorough ... 

[Black--Hand]

Things I liked:

1. Graphics Improvement.

2. Minor characters from previous games making a comeback in a more
important role.

3. Some of the boss fights on the higher difficulties were well done,
requiring more than your typical tank and spank strategies.

4. Party members having quests for them unfold as things progress
instead of the one big quest approach of DA:O / ME2.

5. New character combat animations.

6. The dialogue wheel didn't turn out too badly. I do miss the variety of conversation options though.

Things I disliked:

1. 90%+ of the game taking place in one of gaming's blandest locations
ever created, Kirkwall.

2. Recycling of environments. I'm tempted to do a second play through to
count how many times I go to a different location, but wind up in the
same damn map. I quickly lost count.

3. Considering how much time you spend in Kirkwall, it is tiny.

4. 10 hours into the game, you have seen all the locations in the game
(see 1,2,3) which removes any sense of exploration.

5. Bland generic locations designed to be recycled + dull color palette. Although, it may just begin to seem this way after visitng them so many times.

6. The UI. I would describe DA:O's UI as "beautiful", DA2's UI simply
exists. This complaint is probably specific to PC though as I could see the new UI being more manageable with a controller.

7. The missing tactical view. It was apparently not added/removed so
that designers could focus a bit more on designing the upper parts of
areas, which didn't happen (see 1-5). Something lost, nothing gained.
Having the camera stuck behind a character makes it much harder than it
should be to carefully position your party.

8. Enemies spawning out of thin air.

9. Combat is flashy, but lacks any real substance. The exception being a 1/2 boss fights on high difficulties.

10. Being unable to change the armor of your party members annoyed me to no end.

11. Mountains and mountains of generic loot (ring, belt, amulet).
What happened to items having their own descriptions, names and icons?

12. Being unable to talk to your party members at will. This actually
made it difficult for me to develop emotion towards party members, where
in DA:O I spent a lot of time just speaking with my party and getting
to know them.

13. and more.....

To sum it up. DA:O felt like a labor of love. It wasn't perfect but it was clear that the developers were very
passionate, and it showed. I just cannot get that same feeling from DA2. There are
highlights in the game, but it has a very "pumped out" feel to it.

Modifié par Black--Hand, 24 mars 2011 - 07:33 .

[Jiso]

I personaly love the derection Bioware has been going with their most recent games. I love the new combat system in DA2 it could use some work, but over all i love it. I think its much better then the combat system in DAO but there are a few things i did miss such as the finishing moves. One thing i really hope to see in the next one is when you choose to kill someone during the dialogue, the way you actually do it changes from class to class insted of no matter what class you choose you just pull out a dagger and throw it at them or stab them. So for example if your a rogue and you use a bow, you shoot them with an arrow. Or if your a mage you blast them with fire or something. I think it would further seperate the three different classes.

[sleepytoes]

Rockpopple wrote...

I actually liked the new inventory system. Non-human mobs shouldn't drop cash. DOES NOT COMPUTE! But random loot and crap you can sell for coin? Makes sense to me.

Final Fantasy 12 was the first game I played that had this idea, but the lootables were able to be used by the merchants and crafted into things if you got the right ones. that made it more fun. In a lot of ways, I feel dragon age become what FF12 wanted to be, although FF12 had it's own things that made it better.

Anyways, the loot system could be more fun, otherwise I'd just accept the gold. This game has too many things that make it hard to get immersed in the world, that using the loot to replace gold isn't worth the inventory space for me to get the whole "role playing" feeling from the game.

[Shadowcrazy4]

I'll probably just post things one by one because there's too much that I dont want to be distracted whilst i type.

anyways for starters i hate how lazy they went with the inventory system...it was always fun to read EACH equipment/items and learn of their origins and such...now here all you find are "rings" with different stats.

we need item descriptions back please.

i'll post more things later 1 at a time...no rush

[Malakar1]

- I think one of the biggest problem I had is technical and not in regard to the content.
Would be really nice if the game (in the future at least) stopped performing worse and worse. The more I play and the worse lags and slow downs occur. I'm only on my second playthrough and it can be pretty darn horrible sometimes.

- Talking to your companions only when it's a mission is really something that hurts the gameplay.

- More map and enemy diversity. It get really redundant to fight blood mages, undead and spiders all the time. Like a lot of people said before, reusing the same maps over and over get really repetitive. (Somehow it didn't really affect me) Having bigger, more diverse and beautiful maps would be nice.

- Combat are really cool, more fast paced than Origins (and I really think in Origins they get boring). But I think hard more was waaaaaaaaaaaaay to easy. Maybe bring back the 50% friendly fire or something like that. Nightmare difficulty was really cool though, a lot more challenging. Just like I like it.

- Graphics are beautiful and character models are great (of course it can always be better!). Some weird shadow and self shadows can occur though. I hope the next chapter will work on that a bit. Not just sit on the engine for the next 20 years like say (COD!!!)...

- Would be really nice to actually feel an impact due to your actions. Choices that actually make a difference a bit like in Origins. Sadly, some times, whatever you end up saying or doing changes nothing. The NPC will answer exactly the same way and after more walkthroughs, you can see that changing some choices won't change a thing in the end. I understand that the game had a clear storyline to follow (which was awesome) but i would be nice if the next installment of the game gave you more latitude to shape the future (like Fallout NV for example).

- Having a lot of side quests and a shorter main plot was nice, it really felt like I was actually playing ten years in the live of a champion. Having more diverse and maybe, more interesting side quests would be great. (Of course there was a lot of those, but a lot of quests were kind of boring)

In the end, I had a good time, I like the direction the franchise is taking, but there is still a lot of room for improvement.

[Shadowcrazy4]

just got mentioned

I hate how we can only talk to our team at certain points in the game...it was always great in DAO to be able to talk to my team whenever and advance romances quickly...not wait 7 years to get my first kiss from them

also makes the characters in DA2 to me useless as there was no motivation to keep them on my team...idk them...idk what their goals are....i cant even remember WHY they joined my team.

[Bluto Blutarskyx]

1- Combat.

stop straddling the fence, the sped up action is way better than dao, dao was great despite a lumbering combat system, da2 needs to make the leap and decide to go real time, or not.

Ie: spells should NOT pause the action, if the player wants to slow down and pause to aim spells, they can just do so with the wheel in pause and play. but targeting area of effect spells, and selecting a party member to heal should NOT pause the action.

2- i don't mind the spoken dialogue, i don't mind the "tone" but let me know EXACTLY what my character is going to say-

this detracts from role playing since you dont' know if what actually comes out of your chars mouth, is ultimately something that is what your build is saying.

by limiting the amount of choices to only 3 basic groups- you are cutting the ability to role play ina  role playing game.

the tone markers are fine, but there needs to be more than 3 options here. mass effect is at BEST a mediocre role playing game (with solid combat), dragon age origins was a stellar, top notch role playing game (with poor combat).

if you are going to use a dialogue wheel, at least make it one that adds to role playing in the "spiritual successor" to balders gate- not takes it away.

3- more CLOTHES, and character customization.

da2 felt like dragon age "lite" by comparison to origins. fine you want to make things more accessable, but don't think your audience is complete idiots.

i mean, part of the ability to feel immersed is bieng able to customize your character beyond the confines of a dungeon crawler like the first diablo or baldur's gate dark alliance.

clothes, unusual builds (mages using swords even if they have no skill tree or bows, etc.) or warriors using dual weild and archery are part of what adds to replayabliity.

4- more choices that control the game- in dao, even if most of it was in an epilogue, your choices affected the world- you felt as if your warden was important. thier decisions mattered.

hawkes by comparison don't seem to.

also the glaring fact that he/she could be a mage, openly using magic and dressing like a mage in a tightly controlled city was a huge plot hole.  i realize you wanted to make this game accessable to all clases and let players play as mages, but then have a reason why hawke is an exception-

the warden was an exception- and there was story behind it. hawke can freely toss fireballs in hightown or the gallows without any templar saying a word (even meredith gives a casual comment and thats it). open use of magic should cause templars to come after you.

5- bring backt he persuade/intimidate options.

its a STAT game. just becasue i can be charming but chose not to use it, doesn't mean im not. allow for a player to build it through skills.

and another thing- bring back the skills.


6= specializations should be kept to one per character, how are you "specialized" when youc an select 2/3 of the available options?



overall da2 was an ok game, but the more i play it, the less wowed i am with the step in the right direction you took with the combat, and more thinking that dao was by far the better, more in depth intricate game.

[mojojojo37]

 I loved the faster pace combat but you lost the strategy that was involved in Origins.  There was no worry about pulling the next group of enemies or setting ambushes.  A frontal assault is fun, but if every fight is a frontal assault then it loses its flavor.  

Mage spell and spell combos from Origins was a great concept even though most were a little too powerful and should have been reworked instead of ignored.  Combos like the bubble/prison and the two stacking glyphs were too powerful, but the grease/fire and brittle/stonefist were great ideas.  I think as long as the combos work to make a crowd control spell with a little edge like in the grease/fire or sleep/nightmare combo, and not like the ultimate storm thing that was the 2 big AoE damage spells that killed everything inside of it including my party when I wasn't looking.

Also while most of the spells in DA2 were great, some just need a little help.  Going for the extra point in fireball maybe should have the knockdown that fireball had in Origins but as far as damage its fine where it is.  And can spirit bomb be like the one from the Origins trailer where Morrigan tags the hurlock on the head and pushes him toward his buddies then explodes, maybe have some spells/talent that if you use on an enemy below 10% health have that bonus effect/deathblow to it.

Enemies always coming from the sky or popping from the ground is annoying and you lose the little shock/startle that Origins had.  If I am always expecting the enemies to come in the same way its boring, but use it sparingly and it gives a fight some teeth and your heart a jump.  
Exploding bodies work in Fallout with the slow motion thing
but suck in Dragon Age.  Did many people
complain about the finisher moves from Origins? Is that why you got rid of
them?  On top of that you blatantly trick
us into thinking that finishers are in the game at the very beginning when
Varric tells the EDITED version of how you survive the darkspawn.  We all saw that Ogre get a sword or dagger to
the mouth or its body torn in half by blood magic arms(where was that spell in
the game).   

Recycled
maps needs to go!!  I can understand
using one map twice in a game, but what Bioware did was just plain lazy.  They didn’t even change where the boss/goal
locations within the reused maps.  In the
reused cave map, you knew that the boss was in that same area where that you
fought the Strider creature.  Same goes
for all the other maps.  Bioware could
have made the end of one map the starting point of another, but didn’t.  Just plain lazy.

[Wyndham711]

The things most in need of change/improvement/overhaul:

• Bring back the origin stories. It was the greatest innovation in the RPG scene in years if you ask me, and I feel its potential was still left mostly untapped even in DA:O. Perhaps have a slightly smaller number of origins for DA3, but have them be deeper and more reactive in comparison to the ones we had in DA:O. Now that the world is familiar we might also have the origins be something a bit more specific and defined than just being a random circle mage etc. Oh, and here's an idea: How about having one of the available origins be our Warden from DA:O?
• Bring back and further develop the dialogue system from Origins. I personally love silent protagonists and detest voiced ones (in roleplaying games that is). Furthermore, even within BioWare's own camp TOR and ME already develop and utilize the PC VO system, so I'm of the opinion that DA should forge its own path in the direction of silent protagonists, innovating within the traditional system and not abandoning it.
• Bring considerably more depth into the general gameplay. Bring back proper party customization, and further add to it from the level was in DA:O. Add in new, interesting gameplay systems. How about that lyrium addiction system for mages that you had at one point planned for DA:O? Or a more central role for specializations, both in terms of gameplay and in terms of storyline. And, please, bring back the tactical camera!
• Bring back the epic, grand feeling of adventure present in DA:O. This is doubly important if the next game is to be set in Orlais. Multiple different, large enviroments, a sense of travelling and experiencing new lands, even cultures.
• Be more tactful in terms of encounter design. I dislike random dragons at every nook and cranny. I mislike a random mage being able to summon dozens and dozends of demons without any noticeable effort. Lessen the amount of enemies but make each enemy more threatning by themselves. And leave the mythical beings for special occasions. Have more variety in terms of human/humanoid opponents so you don't have to resort to spamming the more exotic creatures to the point where the exotic becomes dull.
• Especially considering the increasing and intesifying competition, the DA engine is showing its narrow limits. Fairly lengthy loadtimes at every transition, limits in terms of the number of enemies on screen, immediately disappearing corpses, through and through lackluster graphics, lack of a tactical camera, empty, barren environments, lack of crowds or life or vegetation or lushness. All this takes away both from the overall quality of the game and the immersiveness of the experience. I think a change of engine, or at least an overhaul of the existing tech is in order. Perhaps licensing the Witcher 2 engine, which is seemingly the cutting edge of RPG engines at the moment, and designed specifically for the needs of the genre.
• You need more time and resources to achieve something in the caliber of DA:O, especially if your goal is to top it, which it naturally should be.

[Wearing Sunglasses at Night]

Without going into the same points of re-used areas, and para-trooping enemies, here's what else is important for me to enjoy the game even more (because I did enjoy my first full playthrough):

Companion Interaction: this has been touched on many times before but is what I think Bioware does better than anyone. Just not so much in this game. I really want to know more about all the characters. You walk in the Hanged Man and Isabela is finishing a story to Merrill. Well..let me hear that story too.

Weapons and Armor: I'm guessing that my 5-star armor, belt, sword, rings, etc became a 1 star because of all the hits it took during fighting. I mean, look - there's a 5 star ring with the same stats as my 1 star that I'm wearing. OK - let me go to a Smith and get it repaired back to 4 or 5 star then. Better yet, let me repair it myself with some of the "junk" in my inventory. Give me a quest to learn how to smith, or have one of my companions smith, or find a blacksmith, if you don't want me to have that ability right from the start.

Companion relationships: The romances were a series of 3 or 4 one-liners through two Acts (Act 1 didn't seem like it counted very much). Ugh. The rivalries played out better than the romances, and were more interesting. OK, granted, I only did one so far but it was boring and didn't really seem to fit the character I romanced. Especially the completion of said romance. Disappointing

I liked the ending because I like where this is going to lead. The cameo in this one is one of my favorite characters and I hope to see more of ALL the characters from the end. Without going into Spoilerville - I can see how Bioware might be able to incorporate multi-player in DA3 now, if they choose to go down that path. At least the comment at the very end made it seem like there's a possibility to see multiple storylines continue in DA3.

[Cybermortis]

JohnEpler wrote...

Hey folks. Keep up the great feedback! Thus far, it's been very constructive and well-considered.

I do want to touch on a point - there is a lot of feedback both here and elsewhere on the internet to go through. So if you feel as though your point is being ignored/hasn't been read, do not fret! It's just a matter of logistics and the fact that there is so much of it

But keep it coming, please!

It is good to know that someone is taking the time and trouble to show some interest in the problems players have with the game as is. With the greatest respect you will, I hope, understand if I don't expect anything to come of the ideas posted here. Unfortunately when it comes to Dragon Age two you seem to have given yourselves a reputation for saying a lot and doing very little. 

This is not intended to be or sound like an attack on Bioware, just an observation that if you want to restore confidence in your games you'll have to do far more than ask for opinions or take these comments to heart for Dragon Age 3. Right now I may not be alone in half-feeling that this thread is a mixture of play-testing DA2 and ideas for DA3.


Apart from the self evident patch for known technical problems, I think the next steps should be;

Releasing a download that adds additional maps to the game, to partly address the almost universal complains about overuse of areas.

A download that addresses the grinding aspect of act one. For the first one or two larger quests that would allow the player to get the required money faster than is the case, and without having to do all the smaller quests. Since new VO's are almost certain to be impractical at this point, these quests could be posted on the chanters board. You should also consider putting the 'find and return' quests on the chanters board too, Either the items that are found not appearing unless you took the quests, or the location of the person you return the item to not appearing until you've read and accepted the quest on the board.

Modifié par Cybermortis, 24 mars 2011 - 11:24 .

[har69]

Constructive criticism , ahh, where to start

Should start by saying right from the first paragraph that I really detest the way DA2 has progressed as a series,I
never posted regarding DO:O : that was a mistake - it wouldnt have mattered but I would now feel better.
Feel free to disagree with the following as it only my opinion and the following wall of text is purely for my own
bitter amusement (its only a game though so i should recover quite well) 

COMBAT MECHANICS
Ignoring my own distaste for the redesigned animations (first play as an archery speced rogue limited this thankfully)
My basic problem is the ability of every class to dash in hit the npc and dash out again ,this to me
totally changes the feel of the combat from DA:O - DA:O had its own flaws , slow 2 handed attacks and slowly
edging towards/around enemy npc's among others - but this one alteration effectively turns this game for me
into a action rpg not a party based rpg with limited strategic options,this allows you to kite every single close
combat npc forever (excluding assasins who in my opinion bar the quick stealth recharge should be the norm
albeit with a chance to miss occasionally) - I would prefer if the combat penalised you if you leave combat with
an enemy or at the very least you have to use an ability to avoid the damage ie stonewall or backflip for example.

classES
I've read elsewhere on the forums that Biowares goal was to differentiate the classes more , I will freely admit
that in the first game I saw no real point in a dual wield warrior in comparision to a rogue dual wield except
from a purely roleplaying point of view but instead of changing the abilities to provide the required nuances they simply reduced the options.
The omission of a secondary set of weapons is also I think a mistake  , the first game allowed all party members
to fight from a distance thus giving you more options,this could have been built on ie your warrior using a bow at start of combat changes to sword a bit late and has his defence rating lowered until he equips his close combat gear.

ABILITY TREES
Locking ability trees to specific party members or main characters is a terrrible idea unless the specific branch is designed to enhance a predetermined character design for an npc.
Example
I can't think of one reason why healing should be restricted to Anders only or force mage to the player character ,
sure Anders as a bloodmage makes no sense and can be argued against but other generic restrictions only
limit the choices of different party builds available.
The ability trees taken as a whole are pretty much on a par with DA:O some of the trees though where a lot
better than others giving actual separate branches - I would have preferred a system where the level restrictions
themselves acted as the restraint not a specified number requiring the purchase of abilities I have no interest in.
This change would need to be managed with say a variable in level requirements depending on number of talents already picked in that tree to limit the overpowering ability to pick just the best ones only.

LEVEL DESIGN/CAMERA
Not taking into consideration the reuse of caves etc as this has been discussed thoughout the forums I felt that the main maps where generally well done if a bit sparse in detail,the sense of vertical scale from looking up to the citiy towers or down into the dalish village is good.
My main problem with the overall design is that it seems to have led directly to a limitation in camera options,the total removal of  an isometric view (sorry I'm a pc user and biased) was unfortunate although understandable but I really do not understand the locking of camera views onto party members , a free roam camera would in my opinion go a long way to remedy an inherent lack of flexibilty in party management (Bioware I have no problem
tabbing back and forth between party members or pausing etc but an overview of where eveything is would be
apreciated now and again - it is at the minute still meant to be a party rpg? a low blow but this change annoyed )

ENEMY NPC's and My DOG
Other than enemy variety which i felt was lacking but is possibly due to time constraints shall we say , the removal
of design features such as webbing from spiders or overwhelm from hounds which where present in the first game makes very little sense to me - this provided variety in encounters and helped avoid the requirement of
mobs of low powered yet boring enemy npc's
Variations should have been expanded ie some hounds charge , some overwhelm etc pretty lame examples but
I'm not a game designer.
Above directly leads onto an annoying reduction to my faithful flea bag of a mutt , why did you choose to castrate him and turn him from a preivously restricted half companion to a summonable meat shield - pretty much useless to a two handed warrior and semi useless to any other class save as an extremely brief cameo role.

VARIC/PLOT
Liked the framed narative especially amusing when Varic enters a particular dwelling in Act 2 although i personally think that the story is very heavy handed in its railroading.

Two examples would be described hopefully spoiler free as  -
1.A certain lady double crosses you and you confront her in a way/place as shown in game that logically should provide you the option of chopping her and escorts in bite sized chunks for my faithful mutt - if the plot requires you to keep her alive dont put her in a position where killing said person seems like a reasonable choice ie show her with a larger escort so that implication is stronger that killing her would be a bad idea.
2.End Game - separate choices leading to same result is not really a choice , I would expand unpon this but without spoilers I wouldnt know where to start.

Overall story arc in my opinion makes no sense at all if playing an apostate , I would rather have no option for a class than one that breaks immersion every time I walk , fight or speak to a templar or near one.
The first game had a story plot excuse ie Grey Warden exempt from circle/chantry ,  what was Mage Hawks
excuse ? in a story that was discussed as a more personal quest this totally kills for me immersion in the game,
Kirkwell is the last place any sane mage would stay.

Consequences to choices where in my opinion very limited I would for example like a choice similar to the
options given in 'The Witcher Werewolf Quest - save him dont get special upgrade , kill him get upgrade.
Note this is not a 'The Witcher' is better thread , its far more a hack and slash game but this one point I felt
was pretty good - it allowed a bit of roleplay ( the son in redcliffe was similar but had a get out of jail free card
unfortunately , the urn of sacred ashes was a lot better , pity the berserker talent was awful)


DIFFICULTY LEVEL/SPAWNS
Played the game on nightmare , adjusted level down at end of Act 1 , figured out how to beat Boss but could not
face hour long fight time - this is worst way to increase difficulty please do not do this again.

This word 'Harder' does not mean what  I think you think it means
Bioware (anyone reading this other than Bioware , although I doubt it
and I apoligise if you did , need not get offended or defensive) In my
opinion this
is a poor design choice , difficulty levels should equate to harder enemies with more abilities not just more hit points.

Spawns - Refrained from commenting on other posts on forum but this feature in other threads is really annoying
,waves are not tactical ,holding back ability use for next wave is not tactical , the constant waves reminded me of the end fight at denerim in the first game - a somewhat workable approach to give an illusion of being a powerful
end game character cutting his way through a horde of enemies.This was okay  ,  I did not want an entire game
based on this premise.

COMPANION ARMOR/LOOT
I really dont mind locking styles down for story purposes ie Aveline's Guard Outfit but a more substantial
upgrade system would be nice aswell as a couple of options in case one particular oufit annoys ie panties
for fighting in ( this is not a request for downloadable outfits )
If you dont have time,resources or inclination to provide a variety of different items and armor etc please just
go the whole way and change the system to a Jade Empire type of thing it would be less immersion breaking
than generic ring 69.
Yes I liked Jade Empire but that was a single player rpg with limited henchmen support (my description only)
and I have no real interest in seeing what is a party based rpg being reduced to this.

VOICED MAIN CHARACTER
I don't like it as I am now confined to the chosen voice actor and this is a bit hit and miss , I could hate it , an option
to turn only the main characters voice off would be a compromise , and would be simple to do.

PARTY BANTER
Improvement to DA:O , some amusing comments by companions to each other.

SPEECH WHEEL
Really dislike paraphrasing , show the full text please and drop the inflection widigts beside the text , I can read just fine and like to have the illusion of thinking through the response,maybe  I will make a mistake but  i don't want smiley faces etc beside each option , its slightly patronising.

SUMMARY
For an Action RPG i think that disregarding the reused areas (poor) and the transformation from a reasonable
attempt at a Party Based RPG to a more main character and henchmen affair to be okay , its not a 2.5 rating
, from 1-10 I would rate it 6ish not including the bugs at present in the game
I will end this overly long and most likely badly spelt rant , disregarding my numerous other dislikes including but not limited to redesign of graphics generally ( i like the qunari though) on a relatively downbeat note that it is unlikely that the next game in the francise will proceed in a direction which will appeal to me personally and this my first post will likely be my last  , it will almost certainly be my last preorder and I fully expext to see Dragonage 3 if made , on the shelves within 18months and that this trend in the series will continue in my opinion downwards
to less overall customisation and options.