[Warning: English is obviously not my native language]
[There is a TL:DR paragraph in the end for those more interested in a short version]
One day I had to come to terms with myself, I don't like games, in fact I hate games. I love stories and imagination, and I specially love being able to write my own tale in a fantasy world through this tool you usually call game.
That being said, I hope my post, despite being harsh, will also sound like a compliment since I believe the reason I abolutely hated this game is because you actually acomplished something you wanted, what I'm trying to say is that you succeeded, probably, and it also means I will probably never play another Bioware RPG, but not because it is not good or not worthy but because it is not something I can't play anymore.
Since the old ages of Bioware famous RPGs like Baldurs Gate, Icewind Dale and Neverwinter Nights I was happy because I could create and customize my characters and then write my own history, obviously some famous games like Planescape Torment did not appeal to me as I could not create me own character. But also, these games where amazing because unlike other genre I did not have to play the game to do things...WAIT I can explain, by "did not have to play the game" I mean that I did not have to press a button to swing a sword, or another to jump, also I did not have to press anything to evade, it was all automatic.
There is another point in this "did not have to play the game", and it applies to most old RPGs, you just needed a good build and a party to cover your weaknesses and the game was always easy. As far as you understood the game mechanics and took your time to explore and complete every single quest then you would become far stronger than the game expected and nothing would be a challenge... ok there were exceptions but usually you could get by it with no trouble at all, no effort, just reading screen numbers sometimes pausing and well that's it, nothing troublesome.
Why I liked this? Because I hate games, I completely hate challenge or any involvement except for character building and story and Bioware (not only Bioware of course) gave me that, plenty. I could "play" the games almost ignoring combat and focusing only in making my character reflect myself and making the choices I like (well sometimes the story was so good that I actually made characters very different from myself just because they could affect the world in an interesting way). Now it is all gone...
So yes Bioware, I'm complimenting you for making games that were utterly ultimately totally boring, I guess you don't like it as developers but hey, you made me VERY happy, I could almost say you made my life bearable. So when I "played" a Bioware game I could just sit in front of my PC and enjoy creating my characters and worlds without any kind of challenge.
I recall when I played a pure Monk with 18 Base Starting Charisma in Neverwinter Nights and my friends were like "you're insane, must have been hard", but no, not at all, I reached level 18 early and with the robe of dark moon I was kicking serious a** with a kind of useless build (could be saved with Divine Might if I wanted), but hey, the point is that I had character concept, an unearthly beautiful vain monk, lawful to the concept of beauty (could be devoted to Sune...), sorry for spending your time with this but the point is that I could create ANY character, no matter how f*ck** up the build and still finish the game with no trouble at all. (Later I came to love Lady Aribeth and dreamed of marrying her </3 )
But hey, Bioware kept their good work, Dragon Age made an amazing job in being "challengeless" to the point that I could play Awakening in Nightmare with a bare handed Arcane Warrior and succeed with minor trouble, with a more traditional build I barely would notice there were enemies trying to be crushed but my character. I could play through the game many times creating different stories and character concepts (didn't manage to finish the "support templars" save, too much against my own beliefs) and enjoying every playthrough. In fact fact even now when I play Origins I'm still amazed by how good the game is.
Then came DA2. I complained. A lot. Couldn't make my monk character anymore + all the critics everybody made. Still I played DA2 from the start to the end including every DLC for each save I had completed in Origins/Awakening/Witch Hunt. The game had major flaws but was deffinetly a Bioware game with all the stuff that made me happy through so many years except for not being able to monk my way through but I adapted and man it was worthy, Isabella, Anders, the plot, ALL amazing, love every different story I created there in fact I was planning on writting a (kind of) summarized version of my different playtroughs on DAverse talking about my characters and my decisions but then...
BOOM Dragon Age Inquisition.
First things first. You did the most marvelous job you/I/Adraste/The Maker/etc could ever dream of. Pick every, all and each of the compliments you received about this game, multiply by the number of quarks in the omniverse and it still wouldn't describe how amazing this game is. You however took away from me all the joy of playing a Bioware RPG. Everything I loved got ripped from my heart, no, I need to be precise, you took that piece of cake I was so delightly savoring and put it inside a volcano guarded by Ancient God Dragons and while I guess most people would say "HEY THAT's AMAZING LETS WORK OUR WAY TO GET THERE" for me it is just plain pain.
So back a few paragraphs you will notice that in some games, but most specifically Origins, I could play in any difficult level, ok, The Reaper was a PAIN, even in easy, but later I got how to work my builds and even my Legionnaire Rogue could kill it while putting on a makeup for an Orlesian Royal Party. In DA2 I mostly played normal it was boring, but boring when you hate combat is not good, it is PERFECT. Your games had awful combat and that is exactly what made them amazing. Sorry, I did want to offend you but I need you to understand me and I need you to understand that I know that it was not good and that you made it good, I know that what I'm complaining about is all about my preferences and not about the actual quality of the game.
In DAI casual is so hard that I go to sleep in depression after some hours of gameplay (seriously). WAIT this is another thing I have to explain to make sense, no it is not hard at all, the only thing that actually killed me was a dragon that attacked me by surprise, other fights did not offer me a challenge yet I'd rather die a thousand times in DAO than winning in DAI. Now, why is that? In DAI combat is hard not because it is challenging but because you have to actually fight, you have to move, you have to evade, you have to "action game like" attack. Good bye boring clicks hello actual combat. This makes the game amazing in a sense, but for me it completely ruins any possibility of joy. From boringly clicking my way to victory and focusing on building my character and history now I have to spend time combating. And you all know how much combat there is in this game.
Now what I have in my computer is a dagger that pierces my heart everytime I play the game. While I'm in Haven talking to my companions or wandering in the Orlesian grounds I couldn't describe how amazed I feel. I had a dialogue with Solas (already watched the ending thus my interest in him) that was by far the most amazing talk I had with a companion about the Fade, it felt magical. But then I have to engage combat... ouch. It even ruins the exploration aspect of the game since when I go to a region I have to worry about being able to take on the enemies and stuff like that, oh yeah, and the dragons.. and giants... f*ck my life.
Hey I undertand what you did there and I have to compliment you for doing that it is amazing for most people. You made a game that if you're into it these thing I complained about would actually make you feel even more into the world, the thrill of exploring, of having to discover a world with its dangers, you made it actually feel like it as an epic adventure. I can't congratulate you enough for creating the greatest RPG game ever. Seriously, I couldn't name any game nearly as amazing as DAI, but the game just isn't for me.
So I got to the point I wanted. "The game is not for you? STOP PLAYING IT! YOU DAMN BASTARD!" - Yes, that would be the wise course of action. But Bioware, Dragon Age Inquisition, I hate you all with all my heart, seriously I hate you, I hate you so much, I will eventually get over it, after all I understand it is a selfish position but for now I'm 100% pain. The pain of having to go through so much disgusting stuff to build my character and my world feels excruciating. I sincerely don't know how to deal with it and that's why I'm posting. You took away from me my dream of continuing my story in Thedas, you took away my dreams of crafting my personalized armor, well, not exactly took away like in forever, but like in so far away from me that I can't picture myself reaching it.
Why would you get my into this amazing world of Thedas just to release a game that I feel physical pain when playing it? (Yeah I know I'm sick and messed up but you really didn't know how much I anticipated this game, how much you made me love Thedas.) It is cruel and I still did not accept in my heart that I will have to endure all this pain everytime I want to tell a new story (for DA:O/A and DA2 there were 7 full playthroughs I don't think I can make even one in DAI, surely not 2, 3 only if Illmater bestowed +300 will saves against frustration and 4 or more not even if Ao promoted me to major deity status).
>>>>>>>>>>>> [TL: DR] So I could only ask you a thing: Add a "Story Mode Difficulty" in a next patch. Please. Comparing to casual it would be something like 10% hp for normal enemies (so that normal fights are almost instantaneous), 30% for elite enemies (so that they still make you notice that they exist), Dragons and Bosses can stay as they are since if someone engages a dragon it is because they want a challenge so deal wih it and bosses, well, as I said the game is not exactly hard, it is troublesome, but troublesome in bosses is ok, I just hate it that every minor fight makes me actually having to engage combat, nothing to complain about few plot fights being hard (specially because they aren't they are just troublesome). Did I use the word troublesome? Sorry, just checking. <<<<<<<<<<<<<
Retour en haut
