405 réponses à ce sujet

[BBK4114]

Ambient: Okay - Fenris' mansion was terrible. After years there are still dead bodies, cobwebs and overturned chairs from years ago? That ruined my immersion.

To have the LI in the same place in your house every time you entered, especially when you just talked to them in "their" place. Also once they moved in it seemed really silly to have to go to the hanged man or Anders' clinic, etc., to talk to them "privately." I mean, how can the hanged man be more private?

I could bring my party in to everyone else's home but Hawke's? That made my Hawkes feel very lonely. They could be hanging out together in the room on the left with the library or something. They could've just said some of the "party banter" from the running around town thing. Even if it was static, it would've been better than them all disappearing when Hawke enters the house. That was jarring to me.

I agree with others re: the purposeless wandering of the townspeople, them ignoring battles that start (they should all run away, or - as in some other games - characters like guardsmen or noblemen/knights should join in when you're fighting thugs.)

Another that is worth mentioning again is the inappropriately emotionless Hawke in some situations.

I would like to see interrupts (a la ME2) in appropriate places like when Fenris double-crosses Hawke in Meredith's office. As soon as they left the office I was so disappointed you couldn't punch him or at least give him a good tongue-lashing.

I know some of this probably isn't what you're looking for. Oh well. It's hard for me to separate the cinematics from the story in some cases.

Modifié par BBK4114, 05 août 2011 - 05:35 .

[roundcrow]

Re: general ambience - this has been mentioned quite a few times, but I really wanted Kirkwall to change over the course of the years just like any city does. It felt very fake and immersion breaking that it didn't.

[The Serge777]

I'm a little late to this party, so some of this might have already been shared.

1) Moments where you felt like control was taken away from you by the cinematics. Were there moments where you felt 'hey, that's not something my Hawke would ever do!' that were not writing related. I realize this can be a bit odd of a concept to grasp, so let me reiterate - times where, while the lines and intent of the writing wasn't necessarily a problem, but in the context of the scene your character did something or had a particular expression that just took you out of the moment?

 It would be great to see more protagonist-centric cut-scenes that are not just based upon class, but based upon "personality."  An aggressive Hawke is far more likely to charge into the next room, ready to bust heads while the diplomatic Hawke would probably be more cautious and more observant.  

For example, in Legacy, right before Hawke and Co. encounter their first genlocks in DA2, all Hawkes kick the door in.  Frankly, I think only my aggressive Hawke would have behaved in this fashion...  My sarcastic/funny Hawke probably would have non-chalantly opened the door and then said "Oh, ****" when she saw the genlocks.  However, my diplomatic Hawke would have opened the door with purpose and ordered, "Weapons!" when he saw that dwarf being eaten alive.  In short, the cinematics, like the dialogue, would have matched the Hawke's personality.

2) Things you wanted to see more of. We've gotten some good feedback from you guys about the 5 different killing blows at the end of Legacy, and we'd definitely like to do more of that (though they may not always be quite as unique as those five, the idea that each weapon-type gets its own little flair is something we believe adds to the experience). But stuff like that.

I'd like to see more unique bosses and enemies.  There's a pretty low palette of monsters and enemies, so it feels like a lot of repeating.  The final fight against Corypheus was a great idea and, for me at least, a worth while fight. The only thing about that battle I hated was that there was no contextual reason why he couldn't be attacked while he was on the dias: you just couldn't target him.  After all, you could still target the high dragon in the Bone Pit and she was on a precipus some 50 feet or more away!  Would it have been too difficult to show him surrounded by a mystical shield or something that defied any sort of assault?

It was nice to see the return of the genlocks and especially nice to see the return of the alphas, particularly in that they were very different from their baser cousins. Still, we kept on seeing a lot of the same, which eventually results in certain enemies losing their "oomph."  I remember when revenants were real terrors in DAO; they rarely showed up, but when they did, you were in for hell.  Now, revenants are just another critter to kill.  Same with pride demons.  They were everywhere in Legacy (and a bit too visible in DAII proper)...  They little "trick" of the mirror images didn't help, and a bigger health bar doesn't scare after a while.

3) Moments where you noticed a lack of/opportunities for ambient storytelling. What's ambient storytelling? Glad you ask! It's those times where stuff happens around you while you're walking around, and it helps tell the story. Clear as mud. More specifically, it's those little touches like when you see guards patrolling on a wall, or a smith in a forge moving from his anvil and back again. This is something we'd like to push more in the future, and examples where you guys thought to yourself 'hey, why is X not happening?' would be useful. This last point is a tricky one - engine limitations exist. But still. That's our problem, not yours.

Well, the game almost had too little of this sort of thing.  Kirkwall's supposed to be a huge city, but it never felt huge.  It felt like a town with big buildings.  Arguably, Denerim was the same, but you did ask.   Furthermore, when combat breaks out, no one moves.  This was the same in DAO, but at least there, the guards typically came to the rescue (or to attack you).  Why were there no night patrols?  I'd love to see cities akin to what you see in Assassin's Creed.  Yes, this is a different game, but as an RPG (which needs to get rid of just a little of the recently added "Action" prefix), having a living, breathing world is key.  So, while the Deep Roads should be devoid of lots of things (aside from those awesome ecological battle encounters), certain areas in Kirkwall, a place where you spend 50% of your time, should feel like a lot's going on and that people are involved in that going on.

I'll add that I'm a huge fan of cinematic cut scenes.  In many ways, they function as the exposition that a GM in a pen-and-paper RPG reads or describes.  It would be awesome to have more of them so long as they don't take away from the story or have an impact on the kind of graphics you guys can generate.  Even though I am no longer as intimidated by a revenant's appearance, that scene when Janeka summons the revanant surrounded by four arcane horrors was awesome because of the revanent's action.  I also like the little "trick" during the "final blow" against Corypheus.  You can just barely see either Larius or Janeka behind you stumbling...  Very clever.

As a shameless plug, I wrote a list of RPG elements in another thread that I think touches on other matters more closely to writing and storytelling.  Hope it's not too presumptuous of me to include a link to that thread here.
.

Thanks! 

Modifié par The Serge777, 05 août 2011 - 07:38 .

[Gorwath-F]

My biggest complaint is that the Deep Roads expedition never felt like a real expedition. There were only 4 guys and one never even saw the progress the caravan was making. I would have liked some sort of escort cinematic and while your exploring the caverns the expedition should make some sort of progress as well. THis could be shown during cutscenes while hawke makes his way through the whole deep roads caverns.

[nitefyre410]

I can say that DA:O  and DA 2 do not very well  - IMO.  The stories are good but they did not draw me in, grab and in the words of the Immortal characte music for Marvel vs Capcom 2 - I want you Biowar to take me for a ride.
 
Lets look at Lorthering for example -  now  in DA:O  how much more of an impact on the player would it have been  to go back there and see the devastation that  the Darkspawn  left behind, to see the party reaching to it -   Lieana in front of the  burnt out remains of the Chantry,   Morrigan taken back by scene destruction before  her - Alastair and the Warden  actually seeing  what a  Darkspawn Horde how does to a town and not just an army. For me at least I was more driven  to get back at Loghain for turning a leaving me to die than Darkspawn.  Seeing him  actually  stand there give the order and then watching the King that he swore loyalty to get  crushed made the betrayal stick more. Than say hearing about afterwards  or in the case of Lorthering seeing a  skull and crossbone on the screen.  

DA 2 with the  Mage/Templar conflict  at the end -  how many more people would understand just how  desperate  First Enchanter  felt  if they  saw  him  watching/fighting   as mages that he raised sense children cut down. Hawke and party fighting a losing battle it would drive home what  drove him to his actions. The same if you choose the Templar side -  Seeing a Templar with his unit in front of  a group of Mages giving up only to watch the rest  his squad cut them down and throw up  in  his helmet or  question is what they're doing "really the right thing"  

ME 2 did  this marvelously at the Collector base  - esp. when you see either colonist or crew member  liquified .   

[Melissa Russell]

1) Moments where you felt like control was taken away from you by the cinematics.

- Backstabbing Anders. With all that we went through together, I really felt like the game wasn't paying any attention with the way it handled Anders. If that were me? If that decision, that fate, were left up to my Hawke? She'd have stabbed him in the chest. Face to face. There'd be anger and hate and love there, and the whole backstabbing scene robbed me of that. I felt very detached from the emotional potential because of that cinematic.

- Grabbing the Hawke Key in Legacy. Okay, I understand it's shiny. I understand Hawke has to pick it up. But... Who in their right mind picks up the shiny forbidden admittedly evil object sitting on the floor? Varric picked up the idol because it was treasure and he couldn't hear it sing. Kaidan/Ashley poked the ancient alien artifact out of pure curiosity. But Hawke? Hawke knows that dagger/key is evil. Why the hell would s/he pick it up? If it were me, there'd have been much more of a lead up. I would have poked it with a toe, or asked Justice to give me an opinion on it, or dared someone else to touch it first. What are siblings for, right? (LOL)

Everything else has been very engaging and pretty well spot on.

2) Things you wanted to see more of. We've gotten some good feedback from you guys about the 5 different killing blows at the end of Legacy, and we'd definitely like to do more of that (though they may not always be quite as unique as those five, the idea that each weapon-type gets its own little flair is something we believe adds to the experience). But stuff like that.

There are five different killing blows? Damn. I'll have to play it AGAIN.

I've only played as a dual-wield rogue, thus far, so the only altered cinematic I've seen have been the death-blows in the demo. That, I have to admit, was a very exciting addition: I made a note to play each class to see the different styles of finishing moves. I've just been too attached to my rogue to move on.

I *have* recently heard that there is voiced-over party commentary for combat actions, which I haven't heard in game. Sure, Varric keeps score with Hawke as to how many people they've killed, but ... I've never heard anyone bemoan a party member's death. I've only heard someone react to being revived once, as well. Are the ambient sounds too distracting for my PS3's processor, or could these reaction sound bytes occur more often?

3) Moments where you noticed a lack of/opportunities for ambient storytelling. What's ambient storytelling? Glad you ask! It's those times where stuff happens around you while you're walking around, and it helps tell the story. Clear as mud. More specifically, it's those little touches like when you see guards patrolling on a wall, or a smith in a forge moving from his anvil and back again. This is something we'd like to push more in the future, and examples where you guys thought to yourself 'hey, why is X not happening?' would be useful. This last point is a tricky one - engine limitations exist. But still. That's our problem, not yours.

I spared Bartrand's life in my most recent playthrough and, for kicks and giggles, I went back to see him. He's still just sitting there, pouting and blathering on like an idiot, repeating the same line he said last time. Honestly, I'd thought the model would have been removed from the zone after I'd spared him, but ... he's still there. Everyone else has moved on in the story and he's always there, stuck in time and begging for mercy. It's ... kind of annoying.

Also... Renegade/Paragon interrupts? I know, I know, wrong game, but there were so many times I wanted to turn around and slap Anders -- or any monologuing villain of the hour. SO MANY TIMES.

All in all, however, I'm very pleased with the ambient storytelling. I love all the little quips and phrases the party companions have while going through town. I absolutely adore that the city guards make small talk with Aveline. I kind of wish Isabela would randomly hit on NPCs, or Merrill would gravitate toward points of interest, though. LOL

[Sylvius the Mad]

I haven't played the Legacy content yet, but I will say that I find it endlessly irritating whenever my characters move from their positions (which I've chosen for tactical reasons) during a cutscene and then don't return to those positions at the end of the cutscene.

Also, I'd suggest that you somehow design your cutscenes to open with the characters walking to a position in the room rather than just magically appearing wherever you guys decided they should be in the cutscene. Too often I appear to enter a scene from the wrong side, or with the wrong character in the lead, and then the cutscene starts and I lose all perspective because everyone's relative position has changed.

I'll get back to you once I've reassembled my computer and played Legacy.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Oh, in DA2 there is one scene that jumped out at me. At the end of Act I, Hawke picks up that glowing Lyrium idol in the Deep Roads. Varric should have been the one picking that up (and since's Varric's a forced companion there, that could have been done), because I thought picking it up without checking for traps first was insanely reckless behaviour on Hawke's part.

But Varric's a Rogue. Maybe he checked for traps; I can't know that. As such, Varric picking up the idol wouldn't have bothered me.

[Meeszy Alexy]

One thing that personally irritates me is how Anders gets the most attention in the entire game (and DLC) while other characters are shunted to the side as if they're not important enough and get less dialogue. I also felt like the game was trying to force me to romance him, what with the insane amount of flirt icons and the fact that you're forced to flirt with him or get rivalry. My Hawke(s) has no interest in sleeping with him, why did a) s/he have to be forced into making such a decision so early on and Why does the "No thanks" option have to be so cold? Can't he/she just say "I'm not sure, we've only just met" or "This is a little early to really say..."

But I'm getting off-topic. My point is, next DLC/expansion, can Anders have less focus? How about more focus or depth or something from other characters that are hardly touched while we have to listen to Anders' New Drama all the time.

A good example is Fenris. I was slightly disappointed when I heard that Fenris hardly got any dialogue in the DLC (especially with that stuff about the Magisters in that DLC, I thought he'd say more than he did), as he doesn't get much of anything in the game as it is. His "Alone" quest felt rushed, and there wasn't much after he apologises and makes it up to Hawke for leaving all those years ago/for being bitter/whatever. He's got a lot of potential, and it's hardly explored. He's just there as Anders' opposite. (In experiences, that is.)

So, in conclusion, I'd like more Fenris, or more Aveline (we don't hear much about her, save for little snippets), or more Isabela (you hardly hear much about her life unless you romance her) or maybe even Varric. (We don't hear much about his past, after all.) Maybe a character DLC like Leliana's Song next time?

</rant> Agh, just realised this is kinda off-topic. *goes back on topic*

...the cutscenes are generally okay, but one particular cutscene that bugged me was Best Served Cold as something about it seemed so forced that it didn't feel right. Maybe it was the overall quest, but there wasn't much going on, cinematic-wise. It just seemed rather forced and over-dramatic.

I'd like more cutscenes like Aveline's introductory cutscene, where the camerawork was perfect and you could tell exactly what Aveline and Wesley's relationship wasjust by that one little scene. You could literally show the scene, stand-alone, with no context as to what happened before and after, and you'd still know and feel for Aveline. That scene always moves me (and makes me go "GO GO AVELINE KICK ASS")<3 That sort of cutscene is a mark of good storytelling.

Modifié par Meeszy Alexy, 05 août 2011 - 11:24 .

[savagesparrow]

A moment that took me out of DA 2 proper was when you choose what to do with Anders--I ended up being convinced by Merrill's argument, that he should be allowed to live so he could try to make up for his mistakes. And yet, when I speak to him before the final battle, he's all "Thank you so much for supporting me!" --There should really be some sort of "fist to the face" option/interrupt. It is needed.

---In regards to immersion, one thing I found awesome about having the voiced protagonist was that your Hawke can now participate in the party banter. I like that this was continued further in Legacy, where most of the members of your party were commenting on something together. Made it less awkward for Hawke and that third person to ignore what the other two were talking about.

---Also loved how Legacy let you have those ME-style viewing options, so you could look over and see the scenery or see enemies moving around up ahead. Aside from giving us a chance to appreciate the scenery (which was really quite lovely, by the way, especially some of the inner prison structures), it was awesome because tactically, it gave you an advantage in that you could see some of what to expect up ahead. It'd be cool if this kinda thing was employed a bit more in the future games--like, if Hawke went up to one of the miscellaneous lookout posts/archer areas, they could see up ahead there's an ambush waiting. It's another kinda cool thing for the players who want to spend a little extra time exploring around.

---Loved the bit where Hawke closes her eyes and thinks about what Leandra would've said. Really, really beautiful moment. Very well done.

---Also want to add that townspeople running away from battle or taking cover or something would be nice. Can't tell you how many guys I've stabbed either over NPCs, or in some cases, through NPCs. Very, very weird.

---It'd be cool too to have some of the Athkatla-style ambient sounds, like hawkers yelling about their sales or guardsmen wishing citizens good day, kids playing tag or mummers playing a show. More people gossiping about the latest events, or when Hawke starts get more famous having people go, "Issat her? Do you think it's her?" and maybe have them hush when the Hawke goes by (she is a celebrity after all).

---While I think it's kinda funny and oddly appropriate that Fenris doesn't clean his mansion over 3 years, it'd be cool to have Hawke/Varric/Isabela make some sort of mention about Fred the Corpse that's been happily rotting in that corner, or maybe how Aveline's been getting complaints of "foul humors". Seems weird that =none= of them would comment on it.

I really want to say that I appreciate how much more character interaction there is in this game, and again, continued on into Legacy. I love that the party feels like it actually gets to hang out outside of battle, so I can't wait to see what you guys do to further this end. Keep up the awesome work! ^^

[C Trayne]

overall i loved everything about DA2... for the most part. I felt very involved with my hawke and the story i was taking him through however there were a few things in particular that i really loved and some things i really didnt like...

-i did notice some instances where my hawke might have said things i didn't want him to without me being able to choose... i really liked how if you tend to answer one option more than the others then it changes various scenes later making some of the things hawkes says a little more sarcastic or aggressive, however, i wish it would be able to notice who you were talking to... example, i was playing a hawke who was generally a very sarcastic individual except for family, LI, and closest friends who he treated with respect and love. obviously however there were far more dialogues outside these 3 so i was an overall sarcastic and at the end of the game when i was closing the relationship with Isabella, she expresses her love and all and my hawke says something like "well as long as you don't stab me in the back"... i was like "WHAT" because that was not the response i was hoping for at all lol

-things i want more of??? how about hot keys... playing on the xbox 6 spell buttons isnt nearly enough and having to cycle through the LT menu can be a pain... idk how to fix maybe use the d-pad or the bumpers for more buttons idk.
-another thing i want to add is more finishers. The legacy ones are cool but i think we need upgradeable spell and attack finishers for a flashy way to end long waves of fighting.. I.e. the crushing prison finisher on an ogre was cool and should have been implemented way more... i loved seeing the hands come from out and rip it apart and wanted to do it more and more every time i saw it.
-better cut scenes... there were many scenes that seemed to be very intense and dramatic but hawke seemed to react... well he didnt seem to react. When anders goes all glowy and either almost kills or does kill that girl, or when the templar kills the captured qunari hawke doesnt do anything except watch... i want to see more action in the cutscenes, even having him draw his weapon would have been something especially if it was about defending a LI or close friend.

-As for things in the background i wanted to see... well theres really only one thing that kind of annoyed me about the background NPC's and that was how they didnt react at all to a giant fight going on in the streets... i could be attacked by 20 mercs or slavers and theres a guy sweeping the floor 5 feet away... really? no reaction at all come on

anywho thats my intrepertation of the game and anything i didnt mention i loved. great game, great story and great characters will definetly be eagerly waiting DA3

p.s. a little more LI interaction wouldnt hurt

*edit* ok last thing, interrupts would be awesome too, to be able to choose when hawke makes an impressive action or something

Modifié par C Trayne, 06 août 2011 - 12:33 .

[smashbrawlguy]

The class-specific killing blows are nice, but they don't really convey the scale of what you just accomplished. I mean, you just had this huge, epic battle with evil incarnate, and then you kill it, just like that. I walked away from Legacy feeling like "Another day, another insane mage. No biggie.", but I want to feel like "I killed a darkspawn so evil that the Wardens can't even touch it. I am a total badass."

[Macropodmum]

One of the ambients that did make me giggle was when you go back to the De Launcet mansion after letting him have his night with the tavern wench...more of that would be good

Modifié par Macropodmum, 06 août 2011 - 02:19 .

[Terraforming]

The cinematic scenes I had problems were cases where I felt that Hawke just didn't respond to the situation with anything more than apathy.

Like Sister_Helen said, I had problems with the scene in Legacy where Anders is trying to control himself and Hawke is just standing there, looking down at him. It really felt very cold. Especially since my Hawke was at 100% friendship and in a romance with him. I would have liked to have seen her step toward him, kneel down beside him, something more than just stand there.

Another scene I wish had had more interaction was when my Hawke was reunited with Bethany at the end of Act 2. I adored Bethany, she was always in my party, and I wanted Hawke to seem genuinely happy to see her sister. I know the Qunari situation was going on, but still, I would have liked to have seen a quick hug or something. This is especially the case for Circle Bethany who was hurt and sprawled on the ground. My Hawke would have done a lot more than just casually saunter up to her and stare.

Of course, I really don't know how those situations could be handled, since the cut scenes seemed to have been made to convey the personalities of all three Hawkes without making a player feel incredibly removed from their characters. I mean, I'm sure there are lots of players who might dislike my personal desire to see Hawke be more touchy-feely with the characters she cares about.

Modifié par Terraforming, 06 août 2011 - 03:04 .

[LadyJaneGrey]

Thanks, John!  I'll try to be more comprehensive when my head hurts less.  Until then...

1)  In Legacy, there's a cutscene in which Hawke kicks the door open right into a roomful of darspawn.  It looks neat and all, but it doesn't really jive with a sneaky rogue character.  Another "um, that's not my character moment" is Hawke's stabbing and then stomping Orsino: if Hawke's a mage, she should use magic.  Glad to see classes/favored weapons are acknowledged in Legacy.  Oh, and the fixed reaction to Isabela's suggestion in the Chantry annoyed me too.  I don't care that she (or any other NPC) is flirting or saying something - as long as my character doesn't have a fixed reaction.

2)  Sorry this isn't more positive, but...I don't really care about super-awesome-flashy-killing-move cutscenes as long as they don't contradict my character's or other NPCs' weapons choice (glares at ME2).  Even the Legacy ones I admire in a detached "that must have taken time" sort of way.  Mostly it yanks me from the experience of the party working together as a team to bring down a baddie.  It's even worse when Hawke's down for most of a fight only to bounce back up to kill a monster a companion spent two minutes taking down. 

3)  Ambient storytelling?  The first thing that springs to mind is if twenty gang members are attacking an area, civilians should be running away or cowering in a corner, not calmly staring at the same patch of ground.  Another big one is if the story calls for many people and/or a crowded part of town, make sure enough people are present.  You can't keep telling us the Alienage is overcrowded and poverty-stricken while at the same time showing us a huge courtyard with a pretty tree and *maybe* eight elves who aren't doing much of anything.

Also, NPCs should be found conversing or interacting with each other from time-to-time; it makes them feel like they have their own lives and evolve.  How cool would it have been to find Bran and the Viscount conferring in hushed tones in the office?  Or hear that Viscount's guard finally scream "you've kicked your last wall" and the "slam" when he throws the disobedient man out.  Or seen the Chantry sisters give food to the orphans and then the children scamper off.  Or even watch a hooker pick up a client and lead 'em to the Blooming Rose?

And, like an armorer working at his forge, dock workers and laborers should carry packages and stack them; house servants should be seen dusting the books or sweeping the corners of mansions.  Heck, use the same animation for a mother sweeping her front steps while children play tag in the street.  Throw in a few prowling cats; give the poorer areas a few chickens.  If we're near a farm, show a couple people hoeing and give a few people baskets of grain/apples or buckets while a cow grazes lazily nearby.

Basically, make the world feel like it could exist without the player character.  DA2 felt like I was in a play production where I was supposed to accept the sets to further Hawke's story rather than interacting with a world that could truly exist.  Y'all can fix this - I want to keep playing in your sandbox. 

[LadyJaneGrey]

Macropodmum wrote...

One of the ambients that did make me giggle was when you go back to the De Launcet mansion after letting him have his night with the tavern wench...more of that would be good

Yes!  Reward exploring the cubbies of the game.

[Aggie Punbot]

I think DA2 needed more acknowledgment of a mage Hawke/Anders/Merrill/Bethany. Were there rumors about them? Fear? Awe? Suspicion? I can see why the average Kirkwaller wouldn't talk about Anders much since he was running a free clinic and all, but the other three have no excuse for having their abilities ignored by everyone, especially if they exercise them in public.

[esper]

1. As many have said in Legacy, kicking the door open looks cool, but is something my diplomatic mage would never do. Personality cutscenes in such as that would be great. And as other also has said if you are in a romance with Anders it seems cold not to react to him clutching his head and beggin you to make it stop.

On the note of Hawke doing things that my character would never do. In wayward son, when the slaver is pointing the knife at Fenriyel, my canon Hawke always try to talk the slaver down since she fears for Fenryels life - and Fenris always destroy it by going 'grr.. slavers must die'. The problem is that when the battle is over Hawke is like... 'I know that they wouldn't kill you to Fenryel'. It is cool that companions can meddle and destroy your plans when you do something that is against them, but... I would really like Hawke to react to companions meddling instead of just pretending that they never did it.

2. class spefic killing blow/ weaponstyle specific killing blows is cool. Of course it would be cooler if it also noticed which schools of magic Hawke has, my Hawke is a support mage and only have chrusing prison and the blood magic spells as attack spell, so it is a bit weird seeing her kill stuff with ice and thunder - but I know that perhaps is demaning to much.

3. Fighting in the docks is NOT an opportunity for a random passerby to flirt with Carver. Normal citizen should flee when there is battle. And having the LI moving in where a nice touch, but couldn't they move around a little - at least into the bedroom if you are entering the mansion at night?

[Jarcander]

1) Only wait, what? moment I can recall was the Massacre of Merill's tribe, but that was hardly the cinematics fault. I think someone already said that the game could've used unique expressions for sarcastic Hawke, rude Hawke and so on. Having different dialogue depending on your attitude itself is already amazing, but it could be complimented with different expressions and mannerism.

2) I quite liked the way my archer dealt with the boss in Legacy. Truly classsy. Of course in Dragon Age you would make cool killing blows against normal enemies as well. I shall use the finishing move with a two handed sword as an example. Your character would spin to face away from enemy and impale the creature with stab of the sword. It was pretty memorable and never got old. More of that stuff.

3) Distinct lack of civilians in Kirkwell during Qunari rebellion. Sure, some got dragged off to the palace, but there are a lot of people in Kirkwell.

[deamon deathstone1]

A thing that bugs me in the cut scenes is the hands. Your talking to Isabella and first thing you think is, Boobies and then her hands get in frame and suddenly I'm thinking Granny?

Hands without gloves look like old people hands, which looks weird on young people.

[aries1001]

Again, I'm not sure this is ambient storytelling or what you're asking about, but I feel that the glowing combat cinematics makes it a a lot harder to see what actually takes place on the battlefield. The sparkling, colourfull and well done cinematics (or maybe animations?) actually hinder me from positioning my characters, because I can't see a thing...Not fun. It would also be helpfull, if we good get the tactical view back again, of it can be be done in the Eclipse engine.

As for ambient storytelling; last night, I played DA2, I went to Fenris's place. And as others have noticed, the place still look like a mess. It would stand to reason, would it not, that Fenris had cleaned up a little or much...

As for people going about the business, please remember that the DA games are not Oblivion or Skyrim. And I did notice in my playthrough last night that poeple did wander about Kirkwall...

[Leoroc]

I loved any scene where my **** rogue Hawke through her knife and killed someone. The qunari in bondage and feynriel quests the most memorable. I never saw anything like that in my mostly good mage or mostly sarcastic warrior playthroughs. I also like the paragon/renegade triggger actions in me2 for reference.

[Wowlock]

I have no problem with the cinematics as long as it won't be ''You kind hearted Hawke saved the kitten '' when I wanted to be witty and throw a stone at the cat so it would fall down

I liked the Mass Effect's interruptions too, you know Paragon or Renegade interruptions that changes the dialogue significantly.

About the ambient storytelling, I really like to see more of them...instead of some people standing in the corner and being another addition to the textures but do their own thing, talk about their own stuff or the deeds you have done.

The thing I really liked the Hanged Man...you felt the crowd kinda evolving within every act and their dialogue add flavour to the game. I would like to see more of that around town really.

Legacy was cool in that retrospec. Companions felt more engaged with the story ( rather than being your pets to kill mobs ) and the killingblows are always welcome..

[Wulfram]

(I've not got Legacy)

I'm not sure whether this is cinematics department, but the subtitles sometimes seemed like they were showing too much at once. If there's a dramatic pause, then I'd rather not have what follows that dramatic pause be on the same screen as what preceded it.

[ZabiGG]

I kind of had a hard time putting my finger on it, but here it goes. I hope it makes sense.

First off, I enjoyed DA2 for what it was and I will not bash the game. It has strengths and weaknesses, period.

I'm a story/atmosphere-oriented player, not a hard-core RPG fan -- I play all kinds of games and enjoy variety. What I truly loved about DAO cinematics was their scope, their epic nature -- like that battle at Ostagar: arrows flying, the fear and dread on everyone's faces -- and the magnificence of some landscapes. I loved having it tug at my heart and senses not only story-wise, but visually also.

In my opinion, this epicness, that "Oh Lord, wouldn't I just stop there and indulge in the view" or "What a heart-wrenching moment!" awe is what is lacking from DA2.

Of course, my DAO copy is heavily modded, but there was nothing more rewarding to me than stopping by a beautifully setup lakeside or a vertiginous height to have a chat with a companion, or kiss or hug my LI before a defining moment or a life-or-death fight.

I would also very much enjoy more cinematic interactions with companions. Having them comment if you die during a fight is great, but a movie blurb with your LI you rushing at your side when you do would be a total hoot.

I agree with Lady JaneGrey on a lot of points, but I really wanted to focus on the cinematic aspect of the game.

I miss the variety of finishing moves I could get out of my character in DAO (using a mod, of course). And, if it's set over such a span of time, the world should evolve and change, at least a tad.

But in the end, I think you guys should aim for more contextual than aesthetic cinematics, scenes that enrich interactions and move the story forward or hint to something to anticipate instead of just placing us in the heart of things without an explanation.

I actually felt a bit let down by the lack of cinematic intimacy you feel with your "best friends" and love interests, but also with the world as a whole. But I guess, that has more to do with story than cinematics themselves.

More variety in colours and textures in different environments might be good, and animation is key in making the world feel alive and immersing. But attention to detail and mood, a grander, more saga-ish, more heroic scale, might just make things even better.

My two cents anyway