2797 réponses à ce sujet

[Archangel064]

The turd is in the bowl. Seriously, what can you do to constructively change that other than flush it?

A once great dev has totally sold out, plain and simple. RIP Bioware.

[andorran]

I felt that DA2 had a great premise but didn't live up to it.  i loved the idea of the "rise to power" and the framed story but neither of these was developed very fully.  Sure, by Act 3 everyone was busy telling Hawke how important he was,  but it didn't feel like it, still reacting to everything/fetching stuff.  Kirkwall didnt seem to change at all no matter what I did.  "3 years has gone by" - really? It all looks exactly the same. The only real decisions Hawke gets to make is how rude/nice/snarky is he going to be to this NPC he's currently talking to, everything else is on rails.  The ending was anti-climactic and frustrating - just when I got to the bit where i thought "ah at last, I get some say in what happens" the game ended! Also it isnt very well explained what is happening, I had to come on the forums to find out who the interrogator belonged to and how it sets things up for the next game - sorry couldn't follow that at all.  Act 3 felt generally incoherent story-wise, the game would have felt more dramatically satisfying if you had swapped Acts 2 & 3 around ( I found the whole Qunari story much more interesting, the arishok was the most fascinating character in the game for me).

Too many similar quests with similar enemies for similar NPCs in similar (or identical) locations, I couldn't keep up with who was who and what quest I had done for them earlier in the game, so it was difficult to notice what effects I was having on the story or become engaged with all the plotlines - it would have been helpful if the quest log had kept details (particularly names) rather then just brief text on the last stage you had completed or if the codex had kept a note of completed quests or even a dialogue option that had the NPC remind you a bit more fully of who they were.

[Aermord]

There is really nothing that turns me on in DA2.

It's not that the game doesnt have its merrits, however they do not really matter to me. What matters to me is:

The story - and you made a really bad story this time. I do not connect with Hawke. I think he's a selfish bastard who only cares about gold. All the time he receives rewards, I want to be able to do things simply because I want to play a good guy without having to milk someone poor for their last money. There is nothing that makes Hawke sympathetic, there is nothing epic about his story, he is not fighting for something greater than himself. Furthermore, the choices I make doesnt affect the story.

What matters to me is also that you made something great with Dragon Age Origins and it was clear to everyone that the game was a great success. Then you remove most of what made Origins great and replace it with something different, making the game completely different. I -really- fail to understand why you would think this would be a good sales strategy.

[RamonIAm]

andorran wrote...

I felt that DA2 had a great premise but didn't live up to it.  i loved the idea of the "rise to power" and the framed story but neither of these was developed very fully.  Sure, by Act 3 everyone was busy telling Hawke how important he was,  but it didn't feel like it, still reacting to everything/fetching stuff.  Kirkwall didnt seem to change at all no matter what I did.  "3 years has gone by" - really? It all looks exactly the same. The only real decisions Hawke gets to make is how rude/nice/snarky is he going to be to this NPC he's currently talking to, everything else is on rails.  The ending was anti-climactic and frustrating - just when I got to the bit where i thought "ah at last, I get some say in what happens" the game ended! Also it isnt very well explained what is happening, I had to come on the forums to find out who the interrogator belonged to and how it sets things up for the next game - sorry couldn't follow that at all.  Act 3 felt generally incoherent story-wise, the game would have felt more dramatically satisfying if you had swapped Acts 2 & 3 around ( I found the whole Qunari story much more interesting, the arishok was the most fascinating character in the game for me).

Too many similar quests with similar enemies for similar NPCs in similar (or identical) locations, I couldn't keep up with who was who and what quest I had done for them earlier in the game, so it was difficult to notice what effects I was having on the story or become engaged with all the plotlines - it would have been helpful if the quest log had kept details (particularly names) rather then just brief text on the last stage you had completed or if the codex had kept a note of completed quests or even a dialogue option that had the NPC remind you a bit more fully of who they were.

I liked the story, but it was pretty funny at the end, after the final boss I said "Hah, I see, so THIS is the actual plot of the game, I wonder what's going to happen now..."

Game Over.


Oo

[neppakyo]

RamonIAm wrote...

I liked the story, but it was pretty funny at the end, after the final boss I said "Hah, I see, so THIS is the actual plot of the game, I wonder what's going to happen now..."

Game Over.


Oo

Then after game over, the disc ejected itself straight into your groin.

[Revakeane]

@Realmzmaster,

I guess I don't believe in there being no possibility for compromise. I think the reasons why Anders did what he did is because a) he's possessed by a spiritual entity that cannot believe in compromise and he's slipping in terms of sanity and control. I liked that how in the beginning and in some parts in the middle, Anders admitted the possibility of being mistaken in his zeal. I had hoped that this would allow a compromise of some kind.

My main gripe with the companions relationship system is that compromise only comes if you max out rivalry points. That then removes the possibility of nuance and subtlety in a relationship, because you can only attain a given outcome using one path. Most of my actions win friendship points with Anders, but I fundamentally disagree with him on many points. I therefore did not feel like our in-game relationship reflected my true choices and beliefs as I played Hawke.

Also, it did not seem to me that Fenris and Anders were using tough love on Merrill. I agree that not all of their dialogue was bullying or antagonistic, but I really didn't like how their constant comments soured the party dynamic, or how towards the end, they did not really show a desire to understand her point of view. I know with Fenris and Anders, being very strong characters representing polarized viewpoints, the notion of compromise is quite unlikely. However I would have liked to at least see how they could have come to a point in their relationship with Merrill that they would stop being so mean-spirited. Of course, it's fair enough to note that Merrill does pose a real danger to the group, but even so, I don't think it's tough love. My gripe here is that I don't think such simplistic intra-party relationships realistically reflect the course of a decade; I would think that in such a long span of time, some kind of understanding could be reached. Maybe I'm wrong, but I think the lack of an apparent sense change and progression in DA2 was one of its main weaknesses (to me at least).

[andorran]

neppakyo wrote...

RamonIAm wrote...

I liked the story, but it was pretty funny at the end, after the final boss I said "Hah, I see, so THIS is the actual plot of the game, I wonder what's going to happen now..."

Game Over.


Oo

Then after game over, the disc ejected itself straight into your groin.

Yes it did feel a bit like that! 

[xCCx RID3R]

To everyone I am sorry I know this is probably in the wrong place but for some reason its the only place I found that I could post on. The free download of mass effect 2 on the pc has it ended?? I tried days before the 30th to download it but for some reason I couldn't. Any help would be greatly appeciated.

[Cybermortis]

The ME2 offer was only for April.

[Foolsfolly]

Posted this on another thread thought it fit here as much as anywhere else:

A strong central plot focusing either on Hawke trying to rise to power with some opposition to this notion. Or a stronger focus on the mage/templar argument. One that actually works within this. Where both sides are given human view points and lack the whole "I'M INSANE!" angle. Where the actual issue and where the player stands moves the story.

But it has to be one or the other. As is DA2 isn't about anything. It's three separate stories, two of which don't wrap up anything, and as such just feels disjointed.

Now onto the technical side.

MORE MAPS!

MORE MAPS!

MORE MAPS!

They don't have to be award winning. But every fricking building should have it's own interior! Caves? Caves are in games for the sole purpose of being cheap and quick to design. Seriously, this "We could have either more maps and less content or less maps and more content" line just shows a huge problem with DA2.

It was rushed and you were undermanned.

Combat is a step in the right direction. I like the speed, I love how reactive it is to the player. It feels more connected to us now. I dig that. But it feels that this came at the price of depth.

Now I'm not going to say Origins had crazy depth. It was just an RPG and you planned out some attacks and won. Once you knew a handful of tactics you kinda stuck with them and ruled the day.

But DA2 has even less. It's not because of the lack of Friendly Fire on all but Nightmare, it's not the ninja warriors jumping down in full suits of armor. It wasn't the speed. It wasn't the over the top gore. It wasn't because it wasn't as turn-based as Origins.

Some of things have valid concerns (I personally think that tactics should be reactive to the battlefield so if an enemy force appears at your rear, it's time to change tactics...the game's not great at doing this but you can pause and move your soft characters away and place your beefy characters in the way).

But the real problem is that the enemy is stupid and too similar. They just bum rush. They're all the same 3-4 units. And it's over. And over. And over. And over again.

The enemy uses no strategy, no tactics. They're all the same things over and over. Once you realize you can simply button mash to victory then there's no need to be tactical. And raising the difficulty just increases their health and damage, it does not grant them intelligence.

We have no variety in our enemies. Many of which are just human goons. The closest strategy the game has to offer is basically summed up like this "Shut out the enemy mage quickly" and on the harder difficulties "Pin down the Assassin before he one-shots someone."

How do you fix this?

One step would be to give a moral system to the enemy. Having Elites or Elite bosses grant passives to near by enemies. Have them fight better, flank, and generally have better saving throws while in the presence of a boss. Then the player has to move against this boss (who can or can not be a coward) to weaken the whole.

The bosses need variety too. If it's just one guy with a whip with high health then every encounter will open with the players hitting them with all they got until they're dead. Cowardly bosses who hit and run, melee bosses, mage bosses, and support bosses (using buff spells on its allies, using aura spells, healing) will help break that up.

The next step would be to allow traps to come back. Traps mixed with stealth and glyphs allowed players (myself personally) to set ambushes for extremely large enemy groups. It lost its importance in the later stages of DA:O as my team could just bludgeon their way through any force, but early on I used traps and stealth rather often and rather successfully. The key here wouldn't be removing them because traps became obsolete. The key would be finding a way to keep traps worthwhile as the game progresses. Something DA:O did not do.

I'm going to blanket statement say "Get rid of dropping enemies" but I will say that scouting has its place. Just walking and having a Wild Pokemon attack happen with a dozen guys appearing out of no where for most battles isn't the greatest way to start a fight. I actually think you guys know this and so I'll move on.

A reactive environment for combat. When I type this I already hear the "oh, great explosive barrels." But you know what, explosive barrels work as a gameplay mechanic! But it doesn't have to be them. It can be anything like physics traps! Logs/boulders/rocks that tossed, rolled, or dropped onto enemies thanks to spells or abilities. These wouldn't one-shot enemies but it would stagger, hurt, and allow the player to see these items and utilize them. Of course, it swings both ways and the enemy can and should use a Fireball spell to knock a now flaming log towards the player's team whenever it can. (Edited to say: Not every battle needs these, there should be occasions not a rule of a fight.)

Spell combos were great for Origins and Cross class Combos are great for DA2. Why not have them in the same game? They do similar things, true, but Spell Combos like Grease Fire or Nightmare allowed the player to set up things that controlled the battlefield whereas CCC's feel more like a Tactics screen programming "If Enemy is X use Y." Neither system needs to be thrown away but both can exist in the same game to deepen the combat.

[Jack Devlish]

I've posted here before and have commented on and agree with most of  the DA2 criticism as to its shortcomings. I did play through twice on two systems and overall liked the experience. What I like most was the voice for main Hawke character and thier interaction with team mates, just not enough of it and or any of the rest of the game, not enough original material.I am presently playing through  DAO on the PC, having previously played through on the Xbox 360, I had forgotten just how expanseive, beautyful and origianl it was, how could the team that made that game be the same one to do DA2? DA2 maybe a 7 out of 10 on a good day but DAO is so much more by comparison that I shutter to think what was in thier mind to think this second game was on par with the first! I'm just saying really!!! After DAO this is what we get. It was because of the first DAO game that I bought two copys of DA2 for both the PC and Xbox 360, bummer, hope the expansions step it up, and what about all those great loose ends left to explore that DA2 did not even touch?

[Thirdpres]

Dragon Age 2 -  Everything and the Kitchen Sink
(Rewritten for No-Spoilers for the Constructive Criticism Thread)


Good

1.  Good story for the most part but lacking for being rushed (opinion) and lack of resources (opinion again), execution of the story is a little less satisfactory. I liked the fact that the story is around a character and not big event or enemy that ending the known world.

The time jumps are not all bad but there needed to be a little more glue with a few instances where what Hawke does matters, has an impact, on friends, business parts/enemies, city officials, and the city itself. A little more player agency.

Suggestion: cut Act 3, that is where an expansion can begin with far more focus on changes and what kinds of changes Kirkwall should encounter based on what Hawke does. An expansion that dealt with Kirkwalls many factions, their desires, and how they mesh with Hawke's would have been interesting. (Read further below for my "Moot Point" comments.)

2.  Good party interaction, probably one of the best so far from Bioware, see expanded comments in "Other" category.

3.  I liked the companion quests and most of the main, meaty, quests, except for the Dark Roads, far too short getting to the Primeval Thaig.

4.  Companions will naturally approach interesting objects in the environment while you're talking to NPCs. 
 
5.  Hide helmets.

6.  Art design is good, the colors are crisp with high contrast. The Wounded Coast scenery is really well crafted.

7. Cross-class combos are a neat idea. It adds more interaction in battles between the companion and this influence the team you build. Nice improvement.

8. Mostly good voice acting.

9. One of the few boss battles I enjoy is with the rock wraith involving strategy and visual effect but it too long.  

10.  Act 1 exploring Kirkwall for the first time is pretty fun.  When Act 2 began though, those feelings weren't rekindled, it was exactly the same city (See Bad below: re-used maps, details, etc.).

11. Qunari, Changes with the Qunari are fine by me. I remember that there are not supposed to be anthropomorphic races in DA, will that change now that the Qunari have horns and appear more beastlike? Just curious. I'll be happy to not have any other animal people in DA. (Repeated Below)

12.  Game length is good.

Not Good Enough (Could use minor tweaking.)

1.  Linear storytelling at times, felt rushed along. The Dark roads being an example.  

2.  On Love Interests. A few more dialogues once seeing each other. A date. Something to make my Hawke's romance more involving, particularly in that I've been seeing this person for years by the end of the game. Too disconnected. I'm almost tempted to stick this one in my Neutral category.

3.  Blooming Rose - Didn't like seeing Gamlen there. I did enjoy the fact that you can go there and fool around if you want to, having some surprises was funny. It would have been more fun and surprising if there'd been a little more variety in just what kind of surprises there were to be found. Having an expensive 10 gold premium surprise, ending with several nobles walking out of a room with a passed out Hawke would have been terrible and hilarious, the nobles each paying 10 gold to the madam on their way out … circa Act 2 or 3 … 8p

4.  Junk. I like the essential idea but junk took up too much space, have a separate loot bag for junk. Heck. Just call made a bag for junk, loot, and then normal items that the player and companions can use. Early in an adventurer's career you tend to find mostly cheap junk but, then as you start level up you start finding expensive loot. Just an idea. With loot, being more expensive, it could have some descriptions or pretty pictures. Being able to sell all junk (or loot if that were created) with a single button it nice.

Neutral (Could use some tweaking.)

1.  Usable, equip-able, items, I like having a fair number of items but there were times I felt like I was getting something good then finding something better just around the corner. Sometimes I'd like to not feel like I'm on a loot wheel for weapons, armor, and magic items. 

2.  Friendship/Rivalry System, I don't normally like metered relationships in games but having a mechanism so players can understand where they stand with a given companion is useful. The F/R allows for keeping companions around even if you're not quite friends, rather than the companion taking off on you.

I found myself taking only one or two characters (meta-gaming) on certain quests or beginning a quest with one group of companions, changing the companions out during the quest, then ending the quest with yet another change out just to avoid getting rivalry points.

I also found this system to polarize my companions. Extremism. I have mixed feelings about this. I probably ought to tryout some of the rivalries with companions but that goes against the grain for me. Finding some common ground would have been nice but then, again, the intended ending of Dragon Age 2 is all about people not finding common ground but going over the top.

3.  Combat. I don't mind having quicker combat than in DA. It's interesting to discover the new combat engine, but it gets repetitive. I do prefer the combined combat spells and skills of DA over DA2 but this is not a deal breaker for me. New rules are okay but the combat encounters, as mentioned above in the Bad section are, well, bad in my opinion.

4.  I liked the concepts for most of the boss fights in DA2, even some of those with multiple stages to them, but a little less Zerg (like with the High Dragon and I view this as a Bad boss fight owing to Zerg) and with smaller hit point pools. These battles often took too long for me to enjoy them.

5.  Dialogue wheel: I have to say that some of the dialogue choices don't always match my expectations. Once I chose a voice I pretty much stuck with it except for very compelling reasons. Sarcastic to flirty being the most common with a few angelic, diplomatic, practical moments thrown in. I think I used an angry voice only three times in as two different games.

6.  Voiced PC, lack of choice of course, costs "zots" etc
.
7. Cultural differentiation, Kirkwall doesn't seem to be very different from Ferelden, the people mostly sound and dress the same

8.  Weather, mixing it up a bit would be nice.

Bad

1.  Re-used maps, a little excessive. I understand a short development cycle will have its impact but this went a little overboard. Even with the action mostly being in Kirkwall, not a bad thing in and of itself, but the lack of change in the city over 7 years left a bad taste in my mouth.

The lack of variety in areas made the game a little less epic, not that that is always bad but with the game mostly taking place in a confined area that the player could not impact much left the experience underwhelming.

2.  Hawke having limited to no impact on events in the story.  Examples: Anders and Orsino end game.

Some of these examples are understandable but I really didn't feel much like my character was being treated as either a champion of Kirkwall or, earlier, really a poor SOB off the boat except for briefly trying to get into the city. It would have been nice to see some factions being interested in cultivating a relationship with the Champion, rather than being an errand boy/girl, see Meredith/Orsino letters and missions.  Only the Viscount seemed somewhat appreciative of the Champion.

3.  After the escape from Lothering, the game loses all sense of urgency. Lack of impending threat throughout the game makes the events of the game seem unimportant.
 
4.  Fed-Ex  Quests and Everything's a Quest. Apart from the main story it seems as if everything is a quest. A companion wants to talk to you, it’s a quest. This is likely due to the companions being in different locations when not being in the group, hence the developers need a mechanism to let the player know something is afoot. I suspect having letters turn up at your house frequently would help this out without it having to be "quests" popping up.

Since the environment in DA2 is Kirkwall, it doesn’t change much at all for all the years you're there and with fast travel most quests, particularly the find an item and give it to someone Fed-Ex quests just seem underwhelming as there isn't even anything to explore. I like quests to be a little more involved, progression toward a goal.  Most quests could only be resolve through combat. Lacking coercion or having to have just the right companion along is irksome.
I'll forgive the Fed-Ex Quests pantaloon quest, BG nostalgia strikes again. See, it still is good for something. 8)

5.  Lack of customization. I like to decide which companion will have what items and what  style of combat they use. I like non-combat skills: coercion, survival, poison, herbalism, traps, etc. DA2 shouldn't be just about combat.

6.  Eliminating coercion. I didn't like that. (I'd like options for persuade and intimidate but this is unlikely since coercion, itself, has been removed. Having to split non-combat skill points on three different skills has always been a tough thing to do; I'd just be happy to see coercion return to future DA projects).

7.  Details Missing, examples: Hanged Man bartender has the same rumors for 7 years; Essentially no one every hits on my Hawke while in the Hanged Man; Kirkwall and its NPC don't evolve in 7 years. If I get into a fight, I want civilians running away, or guards helping out. Templars going after mages in my group even if it's just a one off encounter in Act 1.

8.  Romantic scenes are almost non-existent in DA2.  There are no repeatable scenes, no hugs or kisses and no pre-battle kisses?

9.  I missed chatting with my companions. The only time you talk to them is when there is some important and scripted quest.

10.  Most consequences reflected only in dialogue and the fate of your companions rather than in story, particularly while playing the game story, and game-play.

11.  Gamlen should not be hanging out in the Blooming Rose, it seems too high priced for him. There should be a cheap gambling hall, arena-pit fighting (?), and flop-house where he hangs out. (Repeated Below)

12.  Some citizens sound happy when I return the remains of their loved one to them during side-quests.
 
13.  Elves, I don't like the change to Elves in DA2, they mostly appear ugly to me unless I avoid looking at their ears or avoid paying too much attention to their noses. Merrill seems to not seem quite as off putting as many of the other DA2 Elves which is nice.

14.  Enemy encounters, were often a little too random, sometimes just appearing out of nowhere. I can buy some of the jumping out of mid-air but it would have been nice if you could, as a player, having snuck around on a roof-top yourself so that there is some context enemies jumping down on your party.

15.  Zerg/swarming attacks by enemies became old. There ought to be times and places for multiple groups of enemies attacking but having it happen almost every battle is over the top.

16.  Rogue enemies, seemed very overpowered. I'd cast control (petrify, cone of cold, etc) spells on them to no effect. They'd have almost no hit points left and not die after being attacked repeated via spells, arrows, etc. Disappear at will, often after being hit with enough damage to kill them, only to have them appear and serious wound and or down a companion.

17.  Enemy deaths ending in exploding bodies and blood was off putting at times. On big attacks it made some limited sense but other times it was a simple strike from someone just coming into the battle that caused the explosion.

18.  Mages, sort of, teleporting, not true. But these mages sure appear to be teleporting and I admit to not liking it. I don't mind a few exceptions but it just seemed to happen all of the time.

19.  Darkspawn, I prefer the original designs, I found them comparatively scarier.

20.   Dog Lords? Mabari are supposed to be intelligent, well treated, and not necessarily common. Maybe I'm off on this one, its lore and what's true in Ferelden might not be so in Kirkwall.

21.  Cartoony.  DA2 just doesn't seem to be the same dimension as DA, like a very similar too but different plane of existence. DA2 is just over the top at times in comparison to DA. Assassins shrugging off spell effects, huge health bars. Abominations popping out of the ground. Oversized equipment. I can forgiven something's, like Meredith. She has some strange idol that driven her insane and I assume given her superpowers.
 
22. Removal of second weapon slot. As a rogue, even fighter, I often like to start the fight with a bow and then switch to melee.

23.  Trap detection range is too small, seems most of the time characters step on traps before there's even a hint they're there. Then there were times I knew where a trap was located but owing to my companions being too far apart I couldn't get Varric in position to deal with the trap without someone running over the trap.

Other

Big Questions, Any Answers?

1. It was once said by Bioware that Elves take on the characteristics of those they're around over a period of time (pretty long but no specifics as I remember it). This is supposed to be one of the reasons Elves lost their immortality or long life-span, or whatever they think they had back during their early exposure to humans. I am wondering if Elves will start looking like Qunari if they are around them long enough, different life-span? Not needing to eat or drink so much? Just curious.

2. Qunari, Changes with the Qunari are fine by me. I remember that there are not supposed to be anthropomorphic races in DA, will that change now that the Qunari have horns and appear more beastlike? Just curious. I'll be happy to not have any other animal people in DA. (Previously Mentioned)

Moot Point but, what I think would have made for a good game and comprise on resources:

1. Cut Act 3, have the conflict with the Qunari be the ending note for the game. Introduce Meredith and Orsino during Act 2, having some minor involvement with them or some of their cohorts, in addition to adding them defeat the Qunari threat. Players would then be clued into their conflict and part of what would take place in any expansion for Dragon Age 2.

2. Take the resources from the cut Act 3, use them to make a slightly longer opening sequence detailing the escape from Lothering, perhaps have two extra npcs come along who might be useful later on in the game.

3. Have a compressed, with mini-adventures, first year of service with either the smugglers or the mercenaries. The mini-adventures would be specific to jobs for these organizations. Only allow access to the docks and the slums of the city, enlarging them from what we currently have, just an extra block or street, either part of the large area we travel through or just an extra place you travel to when adventuring.

4. Introduce npcs who will be useful later on in the game, not unlike what we have in the current game but have them each have a minor mission, or some way to get to know them rather than just telling our character we know them.

5. Introduce a few specific problems with being poor and related to Gamlen, whose seen as deep in debt and often in trouble with powerful figures, from notes left around his home. Explore options on how to deal with these problems, if player-Hawke does not want to deal with specific problems then have his/her sibling take charge and fix problems, such as: debt collector's agents, landlord, getting medicine for your mother, seeing to it that your mother has enough coin to do some limit charity work for her friends or other refugees (particularly if you still have friends waiting to get into the city), and paying off local hoods.

6. Money should be scarce, the player would have to make some very difficult choices on how to get money, not things the player (Hawke) would necessarily be proud of.

7. Gamlen should not be hanging out in the Blooming Rose, it's too high priced for him. There should be a cheap gambling hall, arena-pit fighting (?), and flop-house where he hangs out. (Mentioned Previously.)

8. Friends made could help with above problems, offering jobs or suggestions on how to make fast money. Or you could take a really rotten job as a part-time slaver, when not working for the smugglers or mercenaries. Sale some of your compatriots into slavery, those folks I mentioned helping escape Lothering for example.

9. Make it clear that the Viscount having to use up resources to keep the Qunari well feed and housed is having a very negative effect on the poor of Kirkwall, their eating up resources that should be going toward more productive and real members of Kirkwall's society, not a small army of odd foreigners.

10. Have a scene or two in the Hanged Man where the player and companions get a chance to explore their sexuality, chatting about dating-habits, picking up on NPCs or being picked up on? Provide insight into your companions and a chance for people to make some of their personal interest in your Hawke clear, or clearer.

Aside from what I posted above, the rest of the game would essentially stay the same with some minor modifications such as attempts at blackmailing the player if they did some unsavory things for money back when poor and maybe a few options for adding content (workers, entertainers, furnishings) to your fancy mansion.

[Kilshrek]

This rather just came to mind.

The FF series had some very memorable songs, Portal had the most memorable song in gaming history, if you disagree then well you're just wrong, and Portal 2 kept up the tradition with a less catchy but still serviceable song.

DA needs an actual theme song, made specially for the game, and not that I don't like F+Machine, I LOVE THEM, I'd rather the game have a unique song. That can help give it identity more than 10 darkspawn redesigns.

Right now DA 2 is "that game with those 4 dungeons?".

[MorseDenizen]

can you please do something with the locking quick bar? It is probably my biggest issue with the game, grayed out portraits that cant interact, sticky tool tips that linger in the cutscenes... Really distracting during a battle paused or not...

[Felix Golden]

Waves = horrible, horrible, horrible, (did I mention horrible?) Game design.

Got to the point where I just cheated so I could blow past the fights to get to the nuggets of story...

I dont want to sit in the same damn rehashed room for the 15th time fighting wave 5 of 10.

[Aurgtangfovr]

Wow it’s nice to see how much criticism is here. I hope Bioware would hire someone to dig through >87 pages of fan complains  
Anyway…

Combat

DA2 wins with combat, fails with encounters. 

I would like to see actually challenging enemies.
I think it’s already clear that having the same tides of enemies is boring. Having super tough elites/bosses is not fun either. Everything after deep roads for me was just - AvelineLock the leader – focus fire – AoE adds – focus fire… proceed till it’s dead. Battles become just boring at the mid game. Intangible assassins and teleporting mages just add to frustration. 

I would like to see more Set Up To Kill It battles, where you should figure out the way to knockdown and eliminate  enemy. DA2 was this close to such battle with Nathaniel & Ogres. Still, without any signs of what is coming I just used all the traps on first darkspawn waves. Such a waste…
 
Exploration

Random fedex quests are out of place. They had no value. Stripped off of any exploration those quests just don’t make any sense. Having big glowing arrow pointing to the guy whos pants you just found is just silly. Clear objectives are fine, but given the info in the journal, the map arrow is just over the top. It would be ok, if fedex unfolded into something bigger, otherwise it breaks what was left of immersion. 

Just cut the number of yellow arrows in half. It would require a bit of work on locations and journal (teach player to read!), but would give much more satisfaction to the player in the end, imho. 

Companions

Companions should not be just their quests & sex scenes. Both are fun, true. But I want to feel that those guys are something more than bunch of plot devices. I get fnd/rvl points with them, but it really doesn’t matter till end game. I end up romancing everyone just to see what they had to say, not because I felt like it was good or even appropriate thing to do (is Merrill 18 by elven standarts?). If I could talk to them on current matters it would make them much more believable, who knows, maybe even likable.

I don’t think that players need long expository dialogs; it could be just party banter (with PC) or actual dialog at their home base. Just to feel that your companions have their own opinion and lives beyond their primary objective. 

Also why is it a quest if follower demands attention? It’s not the only way to inform the player. If someone wants, (s)he can just pop up in any part of the city (upon entering) and ask for a visit or just talk to Hawke. It’s shouldn’t be so hard to script generic cutscene on fixed places around the city. And it’s better then receiving “Talk to Anders!” in the quest log.

Story

For most time it didn’t matter what dialog option you’d chosen or which side you took. You would just kill it… whatever it was. In The End it doesn’t matter what you have chosen. Boom! - everyone dies. Suck it up, loser!

Forced failure is BAD. It’s a cheap move. If you use it once it’s forgivable. If you use it dozen times it becomes dull and uninteresting. What’s up with killing everyone Hawke intends to save? Is it a Big Anvil of Morale? Looks like “meh, don’t even bother” from here. 

Time leaps were interesting idea. “Straight to action” - understandable. But the way it was implemented… it just doesn’t work. When time pass people change, something changes. Yet Kirkwall stands still for 7 years with everyone being frozen while Varric pushes FF button. Whatever changes remains unseen to the player.

What you end up with is lack of motivation. Stripped from the natural "struggle to survive" scenario, you presented with out of the sky objective: go to the Deep Roads. The most dangerous place in Thedas, and it’s the best option for the Hawke to raise money for what? Bribes? Can’t we just leave? Or get a job? 
Then you get dragged through the story to the point when it ends with a cliffhanger.

It’s really not that difficult to turn the story into more engaging and keep player neckdeep in his decisions. There were so many times I thought “Oh, that thing would hit me later…” And then nothing happened. Killing the murderer, saving viscount’s son, starkhaven mages. Even Loose Ends quest could have brought some consequences.  

Well, it’s a rushed game. Still not bad one. Hope for better siquel&DLCs ahead.   

Modifié par Aurgtangfovr, 05 mai 2011 - 08:12 .

[Kissing the pink]

Well im not going to **** foot about, I think, compared to DA Origins, DA2 is a pile of poop! All it is now is a console game, yet again ripping off the PC fraternity and selling them a half done game to make as much money via consoles!
The game is far too linear, no areas to explore, the caves are EXACTLY the same, graphics suck so as to allow it to work ok on a console, apart from Merril and Isabella, the rest of the characters suck.
As you can see im very very disappointed in this game, I've played it once and i'm already bored, where as DA Origins, I've lost count how many times I have played that. EA suck along with whoever took their advice in Bioware!

[Kissing the pink]

OMG, they wouldnt let me use the work ****foot! if this is out again its the same as a cat, then foot! how stupid!

[They call me a SpaceCowboy]

I was just playing the Redcliffe village quests in DAO again. Talk to Teagan, get some backstory for what's going on, talk to Muirdock, Get Owen working, promise to help his daughter. Talk to Caitlen, find her brother. Get green sword, or don't, give them money or don't, talk to Bella, get Lloyd to join the militia, or don't. Help Bella or don't.

This all within 30 minutes or so. THen it hit me. Those 30 minutes were still interesting to play through, more so than all the NPC interaction in DA2 put together. (not counting party banter etc.)

I hope for next game they'll put more of this back in.

[Savber100]

The biggest problem of DA2 is simple.

I'M NOT THE MASTER OF MY OWN FATE.

In DA:O, it wasn't perfect but at least I choose MY story as I made the multitude of choices offered.

In DA2, I was forced to follow an already preset storyline with little difference being made of my own fate.

Hawke is not me.

My Warden is me.

This is a RPG... a game where I'm suppose to ROLE-PLAY not watch a story unlock as I work on the next mundane task.

[ChickenDownUnder]

My Review of DA2

[Lumikki]

Aurgtangfovr wrote...

Exploration

Random fedex quests are out of place. They had no value. Stripped off of any exploration those quests just don’t make any sense. Having big glowing arrow pointing to the guy whos pants you just found is just silly. Clear objectives are fine, but given the info in the journal, the map arrow is just over the top. It would be ok, if fedex unfolded into something bigger, otherwise it breaks what was left of immersion. 

Just cut the number of yellow arrows in half. It would require a bit of work on locations and journal (teach player to read!), but would give much more satisfaction to the player in the end, imho.

I just comment this. You can turn them off in game options. Or are you actually try to tell others how they should play they game?

My point is that option is better than trying to force others play the way you self like. That includes also game developers as thinking how the game should be played and not giving other options.

Example for me the arrows did not bother me, but any number flowting in game screen does. Like friendship and rivalry numbers. They interess me as much as dogs droping.

Modifié par Lumikki, 06 mai 2011 - 09:35 .

[Leanansidhe]

Well, since I'm on my 12th play-through, I figured it was about time for me to write down a review, rather than keeping it all in my head.  I thought that might be helpful.

Things I love about DA II in no particular order.

-Voice Acting-  After Mass Effect, having the Origins protagonist be silent seemed like a serious step backward.  I appreciate having a voiced pc this time around.  Also, the voice actors were stellar.

-Static Outfits- I was one of those people that had a hard time seeing where my party members were in Origins, because they looked exactly the same as the enemies.  Now I can tell at a glance where they all are.  Also, it gives them some individual identity, so that’s a plus in my book.

-Waves-  I’m sure I’ll be called an idiot, but I liked the waves.  They kept me on my toes.  Me:  “Ho hum, more bandits to kill.  Hey!  Why is Anders dying?!”  Cue Back to Back

-Animations-  The new animations, particularly the mage ones, were very good.

-Ability Trees- The ability trees are really, really nice.  You can make so many different builds, all of them viable.  They really give you some great character customization options.

-XP Chunks-  I really liked how you get XP in chunks, now, for killing groups of enemies.  I can’t really tell you why, other than I just find it…cleaner, for lack of a better descriptive.

-Combat-  Fun, fast, & intense.  Enough said.

-Map Navigation- The world map was both artistic and convenient.  The in-game map was handy and unobtrusive.  As a matter of fact, the new UI was excellent.  You could see at a glance how your other party members were doing, and it didn’t interfere with the game play.

-Kirkwall- The city was both beautiful and intimidating.  Did I have a problem having most of the story take place there?  No, I didn’t.  I play DDO.  I’m used to being stuck in Stormreach, for the most part.  What I don’t get is people who say it was empty.  Were they just not paying attention?  There was plenty going on.  Any more and load times would have been doubled.  Are the people who are complaining from big cities? Because I live in a small town, and Kirkwall seems full of bustling activity to me.

-Crafting-  The new crafting system is great.  I didn’t craft much in Origins, other than some lyrium and health potions, because I didn’t want to have to tote around a bunch of stupid ingredients.  Now I’m a crafting fiend.  

-Friend/Rival System-  If this had existed in Origins, maybe I wouldn’t have hated Morrigan so very, very much. [smilie]../../../../images/forum/emoticons/lol.png[/smilie] 
Having the option to disagree with your party members, without being penalized, is great.  Actually having the dialogue change depending on which side of the divide you’re on, is wonderful.

-Story-  I think the story is excellent.  It’s nice to get away from the usual “Hero’s Journey,” and try something new.  It’s funny, because for years, you guys were yelled at for using the “BioWare Formula” and then when you try something different in ME2 and DAII, you’re still being yelled at.  My advice?  Ignore the idiots, and make the games and stories you want to.

-Dialogue Tones-  I saved the best for last.  Having your character’s personality change depending on the dominant tone you use is genius.  It makes replaying the game so much fun.  The icons were also very, very helpful.  I didn't actually say something mean to someone when I didn't mean to.  When I'm mean to Sebastian, I'm doing it very deliberately. [smilie]../../../../images/forum/emoticons/ninja.png[/smilie]


Things I didn’t care for in DAII.

-Quest Items- Where are they?  They’re not in your inventory.  They don’t show up in the journal.  How are you supposed to know how many Qunari swords you’ve gathered already?  Did you remember to buy Varric’s Signet Ring?  You can’t tell.  Since these items are actually the most important things in the game, I would think that you should be able to view them somewhere.

-Quest Item Descriptions-  Please bring them back.  They were fun, entertaining, and informative.  Remember the Glamour Charm in Origins?  “Oooh Shiny!”

-Nature Spells- Seriously, where are they?  Granted, there weren’t a whole lot of them in Origins, but now they’re totally gone.  Yeah, Merrill has a few, but your mage is out of luck.

-Elves-  I’m sorry, but I just can’t get used to the new look.  They look like emaciated little aliens.  If we ever get to play an elven protagonist (DA IV: The Search for Arlathan!) it going to be really hard for me.  A little more tweaking?  Please?[smilie]../../../../images/forum/emoticons/blushing.png[/smilie]

-Trap Detection- The range on the trap detection seems a little small.  You almost need to be right on top of the things to notice that they’re there.  When I’m playing a rogue, it’s not really a problem.  When I’m not, it can be.

Me:  “I know there’s a trap around here somewhere.”  SNAP!
Varric:  Someone’s left a surprise for us.”
Me:  “Sigh.  Yeah, it’s attached to my ankle.”

-Balance- You shouldn’t need to totally respec your character to fight one boss. The build you usually run with is fine, no, GREAT, against everything you’ve run into.  And then comes the Arishok fight.  You spend 15 minutes running around like a chicken with your head cut off because if you get hit even once, you’re dead.  It’s annoying.  That whole fight is annoying.  I’m not saying I can’t do it.  I’ve beaten him on hard difficulty with an Entropy, Spirit, Spirit Healer, Force Mage.  What I’m saying is that it’s NOT FUN.  And did I mention that it’s annoying?  Because it is.

-Specializations-  We need more. I would personally really, REALLY like to have the Bard spec back.  It seemed tailor made for a rogue archer, which is what I almost always play.  We need something for an archer.  As far as I can tell, only the Assassin spec is really any good for them, and it’s still not a perfect fit.  It would be nice to have something for them specifically.

-Varric’s Fourth Armor Upgrade- Who’s idea was it to put something so integral in a quest that doesn’t exist for a lot of people?  Or, in my case, doesn’t work.  I have Awakening, Nathaniel is always alive, and yet the quest doesn’t ever appear for me.  As a matter of fact, most of the plot flags don’t work. If you’re going to tout the game for having a world that revolves around your decisions, then those decisions need to work.  None of my mage boons carried over, none of my non-Alistair romances carried over, hardly any of my minor decisions in Origins and Awakening seem to work. You need to get the plot flags in those two games cleaned up.  It should have been done a long time ago.  Where was I?  Oh, yes, please put Varric’s 4th armor upgrade in the Haunted quest…where it should have been in the first place.

-Inability to Disarm- This is the thing that bothers me the most.  I take a lot of screenshots.  I almost always play a rogue archer or a mage, which means I almost always have giant sticks attached to my back.  I like to take my weapons off, so my various giant sticks don’t obscure the faces of the people I’m trying to take a screenshot of.  There I am, trying to take a screenshot of the Fenris kiss during endgame, (yes, I know it’s silly) and he’s got a giant bow covering his face.  I reload, take my bow off, and suddenly he’s got a dagger hilt obscuring his face.  I can’t win.  It’s sheer stupidity that we can’t remove our weapons.

I'll just leave this here...


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In conclusion, the pros definitely outweigh the cons.  And, frankly, all the the cons but two, are fairly minor nitpicks on my part.  All in all, I think DA II is an excellent game.

I know this is a gigantic post, so thanks for your time.

*edited for formatting problems*

Modifié par SKRemaks, 06 mai 2011 - 05:12 .

[Kissing the pink]

I still havn't changed my mind, DA2 is a cowpat, and Bioware/EA should take heed. Guildwars is the sort of scale for a pc game, not pandering to baby consoles!

[Realmzmaster]

@Kissing the pink,

No one is trying to change your mind in this thread. People giving constructive criticism as to what they like and did not like about the game.
If you have made up your mind nothing said here is going to change it.