112 réponses à ce sujet

[nightscrawl]

Doctor Moustache wrote...

Honestly, I wish the books were necessary.  Just to stick it to yall haters.

*Sigh* Not everyone enjoys reading fiction. Not everyone enjoys reading tie-in material. Some people may in fact look at such materials as another way to bilk fans out of more money, and considering the path that has been taken by Blizzard, I can sympathize with those people.

I've read the novels and enjoyed them. I will buy future novels. That said, Bioware is a GAME company, not a book publisher. IMO their game material should be self-contained, and from what David Gaider wrote, it will continue to be, which suits me just fine.

Regarding Loghain, while I do wish I had read The Stolen Throne before playing DAO, as it would have given me a different perspective on him, it wouldn't have changed any of the decisions I made regarding him. In fact, if you are roleplaying your character, it should have no impact whatsoever, because your character would not know any of that information.

[Zippy72]

I want to know the outcome of the battle at Andoral's Reach? Will this battle have occurred by the time DA:I starts or will we see it/play it at the beginning of the game?

[Doctoglethorpe]

Zippy72 wrote...

I want to know the outcome of the battle at Andoral's Reach? Will this battle have occurred by the time DA:I starts or will we see it/play it at the beginning of the game?

You know thats a good question.

When I was finishing up Asunder, a part of me felt like they were presenting it as what the climax of DAI will be.  Play the game taking sides and building forces for that looming battle. 

Idk, maybe, thats just the feeling I got at the time.  Or maybe the game might actually open up to it, or it might not even happen, the Mages may escape and go underground first.  You know who's implied death at the end of the book may delay the battle at the very least, assuming the implication is not just a big tease.  Or the battle may end up being more dragged out.  What if the battle is started in the beginning of DAI, but its less of a direct fight and more a besiegement?  Something that could last weeks or even months, and the game takes place during that time. 

Speculationnnnnnnnnn.  Asunder has filled me with too much of it. 

Modifié par Doctor Moustache, 05 décembre 2012 - 02:17 .

[Zippy72]

Doctor Moustache wrote...

What if the battle is started in the beginning of DAI, but its less of a direct fight and more a besiegement?  Something that could last weeks or even months, and the game takes place during that time. 

Works for me!

[syllogi]

nightscrawl wrote...

Doctor Moustache wrote...

Honestly, I wish the books were necessary.  Just to stick it to yall haters.

*Sigh* Not everyone enjoys reading fiction. Not everyone enjoys reading tie-in material. Some people may in fact look at such materials as another way to bilk fans out of more money, and considering the path that has been taken by Blizzard, I can sympathize with those people.

I've read the novels and enjoyed them. I will buy future novels. That said, Bioware is a GAME company, not a book publisher. IMO their game material should be self-contained, and from what David Gaider wrote, it will continue to be, which suits me just fine.

Regarding Loghain, while I do wish I had read The Stolen Throne before playing DAO, as it would have given me a different perspective on him, it wouldn't have changed any of the decisions I made regarding him. In fact, if you are roleplaying your character, it should have no impact whatsoever, because your character would not know any of that information.

Personally, I don't worry about people who don't like reading, BUT, I agree that the tie in books, comics, and movies should not be mandatory reading, especially since, as seen with the Mass Effect series, quality control is a huge issue.  I would have been really, really unhappy if I had been told that I *had* to read Mass Effect Deception to know what was going on in ME3.  Luckily, that wasn't the case, and I don't think it will be the case with Asunder and DA3.

Having the extra material, when it's well made, though, is interesting to me.  I like knowing more about Maric because I read The Stolen Throne and The Calling than I could possibly have gleaned just by playing DA:O and DA2.  I like knowing Duncan and Loghain's backstories.  I understand why they can't really fit that material into the games, so having it in books or comics is nice.

A character like Cole can be introduced to players in DA3, even if they haven't read Asunder, and I'm sure there will be a way to bring people up to speed on who and what he is.  Heck, readers of the book don't even have a crystal clear breakdown of what Cole is by the end of Asunder, so we all will have something to look forward to, too.

[fchopin]

If they expect me to read books or go to Wikipedia for info then they will wait for ever.

I only read books that i find interesting and never read books for games.

[Doctoglethorpe]

fchopin wrote...

I only read books that i find interesting and never read books for games.

Thats a very silly rule.  Do you not find Dragon Age interesting? 


Let me word that better.  So if you find Dragon Age interesting, it doesn't matter because you have an absolute rule against reading a book based on another form of media?  Even if its highly rated?  Even if its written by the actual primary creator of said original material and not just the commision of some random contractor?


How silly, and kind of sad.    Your missing out. 

Modifié par Doctor Moustache, 05 décembre 2012 - 05:27 .

[Isaantia]

nightscrawl wrote...

Regarding Loghain, while I do wish I had read The Stolen Throne before playing DAO, as it would have given me a different perspective on him, it wouldn't have changed any of the decisions I made regarding him. In fact, if you are roleplaying your character, it should have no impact whatsoever, because your character would not know any of that information.

I found that for me, reading the additional material helped me roleplay my characters with more flavor. For my Cousland, the Stolen Throne was awesome. Her parents had to have been raised in the outlaw camps as well. I imagined that some of these tales of the Rebel Queen and of young Maric and Loghain were told to her as a child. She keeps the painting of the Rebel Queen instead of giving it to Sten. 

The Calling helped my mage character in Awakenings - while she may have joined the circle after Remille, the events there had to be spoken of, even if it were only just rumours. 

I find it nice to have additional lore to draw off when roleplaying my characters. 

[Metalunatic]

Just pick up your reading glasses and stop resisting an awesome book.

[nightscrawl]

Isaantia wrote...

I found that for me, reading the additional material helped me roleplay my characters with more flavor. For my Cousland, the Stolen Throne was awesome. Her parents had to have been raised in the outlaw camps as well. I imagined that some of these tales of the Rebel Queen and of young Maric and Loghain were told to her as a child. She keeps the painting of the Rebel Queen instead of giving it to Sten.

That's pretty good.

When I think of Loghain in that novel I think of the more personal aspects, and other things that shaped his motivations: what happened to his family, falling in love with Rowan, ultimate patriotism leading to great personal sacrifice. I don't think of these things as common knowledge, hence my comment. But you have an interesting way of looking at it, one that I had not considered, especially with regard to Cousland parents.

[LittleGlassVial]

How is Asunder compared to The Stolen Thrones?
I was going to read The Calling and Asunder but I didn't particularly like The Stolen Thrones so I decided to stick to the games,
I do love Dragon Age and its lore so is Asunder good enough that I should give it them another chance?

[nightscrawl]

LittleGlassVial wrote...

How is Asunder compared to The Stolen Thrones?
I was going to read The Calling and Asunder but I didn't particularly like The Stolen Thrones so I decided to stick to the games,
I do love Dragon Age and its lore so is Asunder good enough that I should give it them another chance?

Each novel is better than the last, with Asunder being the best of the three. For example, if one of your main issues with The Stolen Throne was that some of the combat dragged out a bit long, it's not so much an issue with The Calling, and not at all with Asunder.

Also, if you just want to catch up with DA after DA2 you can just read Asunder and skip The Calling if you want. The Calling is a direct sequel to The Stolen Throne, with both of those novels taking place before the events in DAO. The only issue is that a character from The Calling has a very minor role in Asunder, so if you want to catch all of the goodies, you should read both.

Modifié par nightscrawl, 05 décembre 2012 - 07:40 .

[LittleGlassVial]

Coolio I'll give them another look then.
I didn't hate The Stolen Throne I had a few problems with it like I felt near the end he started to rush it and I thought the romances weren't developed very well but I still thought it was alright.
I haven't seen anyone else with those complaints though so maybe I was just not in the right state of mind when I read it. Also I think it could have been because I read it after I played Dragon Age for the first time so my expectations were ridiculously high.

[jack253]

Having read the book I definitely recommend it for those who want to know more about events taking place between DA2 and DA:I. First of all in my opinion it shows the actual start of the mage/templar war with kirkwall being a catalyst and introduces us to two characters who are sure to play an important role in DA:I Evangeline and Rhys

[Maria Caliban]

Doctor Moustache wrote...

fchopin wrote...

I only read books that i find interesting and never read books for games.

Thats a very silly rule.

No, it's not. Tie-in games for movies tend to be bad. Tie-in books for games tend to be bad. Avoiding them is an excellent rule.

Are there exceptions to rules? Sure. If someone whose opinion I valued when it comes to literature recommended a tie-in novel, I'd check it out. If someone who had the same game tastes as I recommended a tie-in game, I'd pick it up on sale.

But yeah, the other 98% of the time, it keeps you from wasting your time and braincells.

Modifié par Maria Caliban, 05 décembre 2012 - 11:12 .

[Todd23]

jack253 wrote...

Having read the book I definitely recommend it for those who want to know more about events taking place between DA2 and DA:I. First of all in my opinion it shows the actual start of the mage/templar war with kirkwall being a catalyst and introduces us to two characters who are sure to play an important role in DA:I Evangeline and Rhys

Did someone say catalyst?

Modifié par Todd23, 05 décembre 2012 - 10:38 .

[Daerog]

Edit: Silly post about the catalyst, ignore.

Modifié par DaerogTheDhampir, 05 décembre 2012 - 10:48 .

[jack253]

Todd23 wrote...

jack253 wrote...

Having read the book I definitely recommend it for those who want to know more about events taking place between DA2 and DA:I. First of all in my opinion it shows the actual start of the mage/templar war with kirkwall being a catalyst and introduces us to two characters who are sure to play an important role in DA:I Evangeline and Rhys

Did someone say catalyst?

Forgot about that little [takes deep breath] just have to block it out again.

[fchopin]

Doctor Moustache wrote...

fchopin wrote...

I only read books that i find interesting and never read books for games.

Thats a very silly rule.  Do you not find Dragon Age interesting? 

Not for a book, i never read about dragons. I like sci-fi and mystery.
I find nothing in Dragon Age that i would find interesting to read but it does make a good game.
 
The only book i read and also played the game when it came out is the Arthur C Clarke book, but cant remember the name.

Modifié par fchopin, 06 décembre 2012 - 01:10 .

[Doctoglethorpe]

Maria Caliban wrote...

Doctor Moustache wrote...

fchopin wrote...

I only read books that i find interesting and never read books for games.

Thats a very silly rule.

No, it's not. Tie-in games for movies tend to be bad. Tie-in books for games tend to be bad. 

Right there is my entire point though.

Most music is ****, most movies are ****, most books are ****, that doesn't mean you should avoid all of them by absolute rule of thumb. If a book is good, it shouldn't matter what its material is based on.  A game, its own fiction, non-fiction, whatever.  Closing ones mind is not good no matter what the subject is. 

[Doctoglethorpe]

LittleGlassVial wrote...

Coolio I'll give them another look then.
I didn't hate The Stolen Throne I had a few problems with it like I felt near the end he started to rush it and I thought the romances weren't developed very well but I still thought it was alright.
I haven't seen anyone else with those complaints though so maybe I was just not in the right state of mind when I read it. Also I think it could have been because I read it after I played Dragon Age for the first time so my expectations were ridiculously high.

Stolen Throne definitely felt a bit rushed at times.  Its clear Gaider was trying to stuff too much detail into a very long intricate adventure.  Could you imagine Origins being stuffed into 400 pages?  I can't.  He does a pretty good job but your still left with those occasional "montage" sections that leave you feeling like your missing a lot of detail.  The ending especially, relegating what sounded like a spectacular final battle at Fort Drakon to a couple pages in the epilogue was just... odd. 

I also agree the relationship development was a little shallow. 

Asunder does not suffer from those issues at all.  Its just an absolutely fantastic book.  The Calling is great to.  As others have said, each book is better then the last.  I think one significantly contributing factor is that the other books have more contained storys that take place over weeks, not years. 

Modifié par Doctor Moustache, 06 décembre 2012 - 02:46 .

[Maria Caliban]

Most books, games, and movies are not crap. They're average, not that good but not that bad.

The only reason to suggest most books are crap is to excuse the poor quality of tie-in fiction as something normal. In truth, a whole bunch of tie-in novels would never be published if they didn't have the name of a successful franchise slapped on them.

If you value your time and want to read engaging literature, cutting out tie-in novels is a great start.

[Doctoglethorpe]

Maria Caliban wrote...

If you value your time and want to read engaging literature, cutting out tie-in novels is a great start.

That saying "dont judge a book by its cover" applies here.  Don't judge a book by its source materiel, judge it by its quality.

Your stereotyping that because a majority of tie-in novels are mediocre, that they must all be so no point in bothering.  So your not even giving books like Asunder a chance. 

Its close minded and naive.  Period. 

[Kidd]

Doctor Moustache wrote...

Maria Caliban wrote...

If you value your time and want to read engaging literature, cutting out tie-in novels is a great start.

That saying "dont judge a book by its cover" applies here.  Don't judge a book by its source materiel, judge it by its quality.

Your stereotyping that because a majority of tie-in novels are mediocre, that they must all be so no point in bothering.  So your not even giving books like Asunder a chance. 

Its close minded and naive.  Period. 

Maria isn't talking about Asunder, she's talking about tie-in novels in general. To which I'd agree that yes, most are pretty darn subpar. That's not saying all of them are - far from it.

I'm sure we can conclude most films are average due to the very definition of the word average. This also means the average film has a somewhat low entertainment value. If you do not have film as your primary source of entertainment to begin with (I sure don't) then it's likely you will not bother with films until you have a reason to believe they are above average.

Somebody who doesn't want to bother with bad tie-ins - especially if they've been burnt in the past - would likely, at best, wait until people recommend said tie-in novel. They'd never pick it up on their own since they have no real reason to imagine it's going to be worth their time.

Asunder is worth people's time though, in my opinion. Certainly David's strongest book yet. Just wish he'd write moar novels instead of relegating plot to comics.

[Isaantia]

KiddDaBeauty wrote...

Asunder is worth people's time though, in my opinion. Certainly David's strongest book yet. Just wish he'd write moar novels instead of relegating plot to comics.

I just caught up on the comics after finishing Asunder. I definitely prefer the books over the comics, but it was nice to see Alistair again.