I'll start by saying that I my original rating for Dragon Age 2 was a solid 6/10.
I loved the graphic update, the combat, the characters, the dialogue, and many of the side quests were really well done. That wasn't the only good things about the game but it's the easiest to summarize.
The parts that really aggrovated me to no end was the lack of inventory management for my companions, the lack of talking to companions more often, and the plot.
The plot was weak; damn near non-existant. It lacked drive and focus. It lied to us at every turn. This was not the story of Hawke's rise ot power, Hawke never gets power. Even if you become Viscount you wouldn't have noticed you'd become Viscount until the achievement unlocked, it's just rolled into Varric's final cut-scene. Hawke isn't the most important person in all Thedas, that was Anders! He started the war, Hawke was just standing too close to Meredith and Orinso when it happened to ignore the event.
But upon replaying the game certain opinions have changed while others stand firm.
- Compairing Origins companions to DA2 companions isn't fair. I generally believed after my first playthrough that the Origins crew were better. I liked Varric and I thought Isabella was funny from time to time, and that was it. The second playthrough allowed me to appreciate the new guys more. I liked the contradictions in their personality and actions (Merrill), their drive and conviction (Anders, Aveline), and generally the fact that every companion is deeper than they originally appear. Granted, same can be said about the Origins crew (and they're funnier and more likable) but I no longer look at it as a black or white; Origins or 2 fashion. Both are good, just different.
-Side Quests don't bother me as much. The first playthrough I kept waiting for the plot to get kicked into high gear. I waited for Flemeth to show up with her army of mages, or the Qunari to lash out, or someone to launch an investigation into that forgotten thaig. SOMETHING to be plot important. A plot that only came to the fore once Anders blew up the Chantry at the end of the game. It was that waiting for a big plot to emerge that ruined any enjoyment of doing simple side-quests. Once that anxiety was removed and I knew the plot was thin, some of the side quests were more enjoyable this time through.
-I hate reusing maps even more. A second playthrough will only make your map fatigue worse.
- Playing as a Mage is no Different than playing as a Rogue/Warrior. You'd think a story that's focused on Mages vs Templar would reward/punish/change depending on if you're a mage or not. But there's no punishment for being a Blood Mage in a game that goes out of its way to demonize the demon-afflicted mages.
- Act Two is King. I enjoyed Act 2 a lot on my first playthrough but I enjoyed it even more on the second. From the moment the act kicks off to the moment you're standing over the body of the Arishok everything is golden. It had drive, real stakes, and when it was all said and done you had the horrible feeling that it was all so easily avoidable. It was great. Plus it has the mission with your mother...
- Friendship/Rivalry is Brilliant. Thought I enjoyed it the first time, LOVED it the second time. Half the group hated him and the other half loved me. I even had a rival romance with Merrill that actually worked slightly better than the Friendship romance, in my mind at least. More freedom to acting like you want Hawke to act and still have all the companions kicking around and not dead in a Circle tower or next to a pot of ashes.
- Hawke is Better than the Warden. First playthrough, eh. I'm playing the game. Hawke's likable enough. Second playthrough as a smart-ass Rogue and I see the new Dialogue system is great. Certain lines are changed to match your dialogue history, so the Rogue was funny and a smart-ass both in combat and in dialogue. It was so cool to see the change in character. I felt like this guy really was reflective of how I play, whereas the Warden was a blank. Hawke had a changing behavior and personality. I dig that.
- Romance is Out the Door. This is every DA2 romance: Flirt. Do their side quest. Flirt. Sex. Wait three years before you talk again. Do their side mission. Flirt. Wait four years before you talk again. Do their side mission. Tell them you love them before you charge the enemy. End. Wow...that...is sad. I had Merrill move into the mansion and whenever you click on her to talk she just says, "I think Sandal is watching me." Wow, that's romantic and deep. This is a problem for all characters any way since you rarely talk to them and when it's not strictly about a side quest its often about nothing at all. It felt like conversations as a whole took a step back from Origins where we asked tons of questions and really got to know the characters. Exception to this rule is Aveline, I get the feeling I know her quite well.
- Too Much Left for DLC/DA3. The mirror, Flemeth, the actual war we were talked up about having for DA2, the thaig below the Deep Roads, the Profane, the god child, the war with Orlais, everything about Sandal and the magic coming back, the fact that the 'great change' was coming 7 years ago and still hasn't shown up. It just feels like anything that could have led to the plot being interesting was cut out so some other project could be more interesting. As is we do side quests, stop the qunari, and then fight in the first battle between mages and templars. The climax of the story is like the Inciting Incident in a larger story and that screams 'they're milking me' to me.
- Nothing Changes. The game only takes place in Kirkwall yet nothing in Kirkwall changes. This makes the 3 year jumps feel more like day-and-night changes or possibly a week later. But not 3-4 year jumps. No one ages, no map changes, there's not even a change of seasons. What's the point of framing the narrative and giving year jumps if there's no difference between years other than which side-quests are availible?
- The Plot is Still the Weakest Aspect of the Game. Even full well knowing that the plot is a thin one that relies almost entirely on side quests that are sorta related to the general theme of the plot this plot fell apart. It's just not enjoyable. It's too abrupt, we know too little about the heads of the different sides, and we're led too much to one side of the arguement. Basically, this time around I realized that if there's a canon ending it's siding with the Templars. The whole game has you interacting with blood mages and abominations, there's not a single good mage in the whole game. But there are good Templar like Thrusk who goes out of his way to help mages...and ends up killed by those he was helping. Meredith's paranoia is spawned by a plot object who's only purpose is to drive characters crazy whereas Orinso is actively researching and studying forbidden evil arts like Blood Magic and necromancy. Despite feeling really good about DA2 on my second playthrough the ending still left me feeling...nothing.
I sided with the Templar this time and got more information on the Knight-Commander like what happened to her sister and everything, but all that character development is wasted the moment the idol makes her crazy. And there's no closure to anything! The true climax of the game feels like it's the end of Act 2 because that at least had an ending of a storyline! What was wrapped up by the Act 3 finale? The idol? Looks like shards of it could still exist and we saw that a shard is just as powerful.
Overall, I liked the game better the second time. I liked the characters more, the side quests more, and it was less of a let down. But the plot is still too unfocused and the arguement is too one-sided (You never not get burned by letting a mage live).
My original rating of the game would have been 6/10 but I liked it better this time and I think the more reasonable rating would be a 7/10. Is it a big difference? I think so. It's not as bad as I originally thought but the story is still tattered shambles. I eagerly look forward to a DA3 perhaps this time with a central plot, I don't have to kill some great Ultimate Evil to have a plot. I just want something to work towards that makes the game enjoyable.
Modifié par Foolsfolly, 18 mars 2011 - 11:50 .
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