The BW staple is choice. It's your choice to do those quests, you paid for it, you decide how to use your money.
The BW staple is choice in dialogue, not choice in whether to do a fetch quest or not.
If Bioware's staple was simply choice in whether or not to do a fetch quest, then Bioware would be indistinguishable from Blizzard who published World of Warcraft which is full of fetch quests you can choose to do or not do.
That's why it's a choice to help redcliff, a choice to collect chantry board quests, and a choice to explore planets with the mako in ME then right? They're there as options for the people who want to play them.The BW staple is choice in dialogue, not choice in whether to do a fetch quest or not.
If Bioware's staple was simply choice in whether or not to do a fetch quest, then Bioware would be indistinguishable from Blizzard who published World of Warcraft which is full of fetch quests you can choose to do or not do.
This is the problem with DAI - later BW games were more ... not linear, no, but focused of the main story. Last time completely optional exploration was seen in ME1 I believe. So, people get used to focused story and forgot how to deal with optional content. In DAi you have to make your own story by including only quests\zones you want to include. You have to switch to another play style which is not easy sometimes.
EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM. YUP. MHM
I will make a list for you, I am gonna be here awhile.
The very first feature, on every load all those codex's you have collected are supposedly read like when sitting on a toilet, when taking a dump. Because no gamer is gonna go through their journal apart from masochists. This doesn't work as intended you have few seconds to read a line, before the screen goes blank taking upto a minute of load time in blankness.
Sound, constantly not being heard as intended. Graphical textures constantly loading after the load screen to the point of freeze. Scenery with holes and places to be stuck.
Maps, there isn't a single coherent map finished within this game. Often containing so much flaw. Maps are not organic living zones. It is a map, which should read with borders and written zones upon exploration. Not endless unlabelled, dark spots into the distant horizons.
Questing has so many errors where questlines are totally bugged. The quests themselves do not know when they should be completed. Most of any questing was made like Wicked Minds and Wicked Hearts, having absolutely no coherence at all. Its acheivements are also labelled wrong.
Speech why am I constantly reapeating the same converstations endlessly, instead of those conversations ending. Most conversations are like going to the mental alzheimer ward. Conversation choices only offer explanation on direct game variations. These also have mutiple choices for the same outcomes. Explanation may have been offered for every speech used, saving you endless hours of repetitive dialogues. I expect new conversations, having no complaint on new information, or status, romance.
Aproval rating from collegaues is pointless the same things happen regardless. No wonder that they all mostly have Alzehimers and cannot remember the conversations they just had.
Abilities are bugged. Like the entire necromancer class where almost every ability within, directly clashes with other abilities, some of its abilities prolong combat after it has ended.
Resistance could not work why it need magical resistance and seperate individual magical resistances. I can only assume the numbers there are utterly pointless.
The tactical cam is a total unplayable mess best left avoided. Targetting to use any basic ability on a selected character after them firing at a target, you will have to retarget again to use all non aoe abilities, on every target, targetted, from the selected character. I have had to literally run around a dragon because the controlled character could not work out how to move, one step over to the right, without doing full flanking circles. There are so many more, but compiling any tac cam error list would be endless.
Have I missed out any features that are not flawed. I would be here all day long
I will make a list for you, I am gonna be here awhile.
The very first feature, on every load all those codex's you have collected are supposedly read like when sitting on a toilet, when taking a dump. Because no gamer is gonna go through their journal apart from masochist. This doesn't work as intended you have few seconds to read a line, before the screen goes blank taking upto a minute of load time in blankness.
Sound, constantly not being heard as intended. Graphical textures constantly loading after the load screen to the point of freeze. Scenery with holes and places to be stuck.
Maps, there isn't a single coherent map finished within this game. Often containing so much flaw. Maps are not organic living zones. It is a map, which should read with borders and written zones upon exploration. Not endless dark spots into the distant horizons.
Questing has so many errors where questlines are totally bugged. The quests themselves do not know when they should be completed. Most of any questing was made like Wicked Minds and Wicked Hearts, having absolutely no coherence at all. Its acheivements are also labelled wrong.
Speech why am I constantly reapeating the same converstations endlessly, instead of those converstaion ending. Most conversations are like going to the mental alzheimer ward. Conversation choices only offer explanation on direct game variations. These also have mutiple choices for the same outcome. Explanation may have been offered for every speech used, saving you endless hours of repetitive dialogues. I expect new conversations, having no complaint on new information, or status, romance.
Aproval rating from collegaues is pointless the same things happen regardless. No wonder that they all mostly have Alzehimers and cannot remember the conversations they just had.
Abilities are bugged. Like the entire necromancer class where almost every ability within, directly clashes with other abilities, some abilities prolongs combat after it has ended.
Resistance could not work why it need a magical and seperate individual resistances. I can only assume the numbers there are utterly pointless.
The tactical cam is a total unplayable mess best left avoided. Targetting to use any basic ability on a selected character after them firing at at arget, you will have to target again to use all non aoe abilities on every target from the selected character. I have had to literally run around a dragon because the character controlled could not hwork out how to move, one step, over to the right with out doing a full flanking circle. There are so many more, but compliing any tac cam error list would be endless.
Have I missed out any features that are not flawed. I would be here all day long
It's not an issue of the player's completionism, because several vital things are tied to fetch quests. You need to specialize? Fetch-quest! You want to romance X companion? Fetch-quest! Orlesian ball required to progress the plot further? Well, The Great Game is really The Great Fetch Quests!!
It's just awful. At least ME3's fetch-quests, for all the flak that got, could be ignored for no meaningful loss.
I don't think there's "too many" just that they were not presented in a very interesting way.
For me the main motivation for doing a quest is to experience the story behind it: the characters, the choices, interactions, and such. Otherwise, yeah I might punch out a quest if it's on the way to something more interesting. But otherwise it's just grinding.
Sadly, a great deal of the side quests (not all, but a lot) feel like grinding. I'm just going somewhere, killing a lot of stuff. Looting some other stuff, and returning. Little dialogue, thinnest of veneers for story.
If you want to see 'DAI sidequests done right" I'd say look at Crestwood. I didn't wan tto leave that zone until I'd done just about everything.
So people who play through everything in the game, is playing the game wrong? What kind of logic is that?
it's the I know better than you approch every good Op now tell BSN that they suck and then give them a grammy for being awesome
Of course I played through every quest, how else am I supposed to know if it is good or not? That doesn't mean I enjoyed every quest, or would do every quest again.
Part of designing an open world game is making content captivating. The content is supposed to be satisfying, not just busy work. Some of the content in DAI was satisfying, but a lot of it was totally forgettable filler content.
Bioware needs to find a better balance for their sidequests and filler content. IMO, the filler problem in DAI is an over-correction from the flaws of area reuse in DA2. In their effort to build a giant and open world in contrast to DA2's Kirkwall, they failed to fill up the vastness of DAI's world with meaningful and captivating content.
I'd rather have a game with 20 less hours of filler content, where the blandest and most forgettable content is curated and filtered out, rather than just having x more hours of meaningless and unsatisfying filler content.
On my first playthrough I wanted to do everything, partly due to ocd and the other part due to it being a new game so I wanted to see all of the content I could. My first playthrough probably clocked in at 130+ hours. I closed every rift, collected every shard, wouldn't leave a map til I had all the landmarks cause I like to read lore. The playthrough did feel a bit long in the tooth but it was my own fault, not the game's. My disappointment stemmed from the fact that i realized none of these quests really mattered ultimately to the story. I could have left emprise du lion under the control of Imshael and nothing would have come from that etc etc, or left the freemen to wander around raising the dead. On subsequent playthroughs I've skipped unnecessary quests mostly, or just did enough to level up. I've stopped riding around maps gathering crafting mats as that was also a HUGE timesink I did not enjoy, so I freely admit I use the vendor glitch to just dupe enough of what I need, since constantly leaving the map and going back for resources that indefinitely respawn seemed no different to me. I still like this game, and have already played through several times, enjoying the alternate dialogue from being different races or genders. I can not deny that it's like having a feast of candy, it may taste good at first but then you realize it's just hollow and empty calories (in this case fetch/side quests)
Without these little activities to pad the game out, dragon age is pretty darn short. I mean on average you spend close to 20 hours just getting to skyhold where the game in my mind actually begins. That 15-20 hours though just feels like a chore, and the most irritating part of the pre skyhold game is right when you emerge from a ruined Haven and have to trek in the snow to find your group, this part always irks me as it adds nothing to the game, no real drama or anything, it's just you moving at reduced speed for a protracted period of time. I dunno, that one part of the game just bugs me as it is the ultimate in padding, like watching a movie where the credits roll for 20 minutes before anything even happens. I don't mind there being a lot of quests, I just wish said quests had a more meaningful impact on the story is all.
I think some of the minor side quests would have had more impact if the concluding conversations were done cinematically, like the more important conversations. It's true that previous DA games had minor quests with very similar fetch mechanics, but there were always cut scenes. Is that the right term? I don't mean pre-rendered cinematics, I just mean it goes from the god's eye view into something that looks like a movie. It seems like you're in the story more if the camera uses close ups, cuts, 30 degree rule, etc.
As it is, you can tell somebody you found their dead lover's phylactery with your back turned to them, and the camera shoved into the dirty cave floor, or spinning around wildly if you so choose. None of the characters do any physical "acting" except in main and inner circle quests. But seeing somebody's facial expressions and body language up close, facial expressions and body language which were chosen in order to convey emotional and dramatic content, would have made these minor quests much more memorable.
This was probably a time crunch issue. Hopefully this will be different in DLC/DA4.
The last time I tackled a post like this, I got banned for 24 hours for taunting, but...
I'm really trying to give you the benefit of the doubt here, but I just can't find anything redeeming. The Codex concept isn't anything like new, nor is it limited Dragon Age et al. It was in a lot of games, and listing them would take me quite a while, but suffice to say that, with BioWare titles, it can be traced back to Baldur's Gate. Loading screen tips not being readable in a loading screen has also been around quite a while, depending on the tip. Just a note here, but this also applies to MMOs that have them on the loading screens.
This is a bug that is not occurring for everyone. Yes, it sucks if you're getting it, but I haven't gotten it yet, in over 300 hours of gaming. The really bad part about this is that it could trace back to End User hardware configurations or drivers. I don't know that that's it, but it can be. It would sure suck to blame someone else for something that's actually the fault of an end user though, wouldn't it? Wait, I'm sorry, I forgot where I was for a minute; it's standard fare here.
So the complaint here is that there aren't mountain ranges closing off the edges of the maps all the way around the map, despite the fact that the area may not have mountains there at all?
I have run into one quest that didn't know it was completed so far, the books in Skyhold. I don't recall seeing any others. While I'm sure there are probably more, I haven't seen anything that indicates it should be "many". Do you have specific examples?
Welcome to RPGs every where, from every developer I've ever played? I'm pretty sure there's a trope for this syndrome, but I wouldn't know what it's called, but it's such a common thing that it's even poked fun at in ME 2 with "The Fan", can't ever remember that guy's name... However, since it existed back then, how, exactly, is that a major problem with the game? Most of the time, it can be avoided by the player simply remembering what lines of dialog they have already chosen.
Just no. There are scenes with your companions that you cannot get if their approval isn't high enough. If you totally ignore Sera, for example, and don't do her War Table missions, you will never get the Cookies on the Roof scene. If you're a male PC, you'll never be able to romance her either.
Bugged abilities do suck, and I have run into this. However, resistances have been working, for me. I take less fire damage when I use the tonic, and even less when I use fire resistant gear. Now, I can question this to some extent, since my assassin had 115% fire resist, and still seemed to take damage, but it was, generally, 1.
Exaggeration doesn't help your cause. Tac Cam is a pain to work with, but it's not totally unplayable. Having to move to flanking positions isn't an issue with the Tac Cam, it's an issue with tactics, and yes, they did cut those drastically. How big a deal that is, however, is subjective, because some used them a lot, others not so much. It affects your gameplay, so yes.
I'm not sure, but you sure added some things that are quite questionable, at best.
I would like there to be the full load time dedicated to me reading a codex fully. Not a single line before most of that load time is dedicated to a blank/black screen when continuing from a load that started with the option of reading a codex. Why have this feature at all, because it now has an error.
I am using standard hardware an XBOX 360. Why are textures still loading causing freezing after the load screen, which has improved slightly after patch. But I am still getting the same issues.
Every known cartographer doesn't draw maps with the distant horizon of blank dark spots, or littered full of dark spots, because they could not use a pen when making borders, or draw elevation. These same maps containing a multitude of errors missing locations, having doors which are open, shown as locked. Missing underground maps on the main map. Dungeon maps having extra underground maps that cannot be accessed. Almost every map has failed to label their locations.
Quests Servis Darkspawn, HIGH DRAGONS, INQUISTOR SPEACILITY, I cannot complete the game now. Many more. Broken requistions which endlessly stealing my metal, missing map locations etc etc. Wicked Minds Wicked Hearts. The elven conversations have sound issues, the approval rating degrades and cannot be raised again on the final part of the mission. The mini quests are bugged cannot fully acquire due there ridiculous design, locked doors can only be open via a rogue inquistor, they are not in the combat area. If all quests were designed like this it really is no wonder.
Speech is 50/50 on wether the same options disappear before new game events. Solas is one of the only one who has Alzhemiers but atleast he doesn't repeat himself in the same conversations, which disappear from his speech options. The choices of conversation should have been made correctly coherently to begin with. If giving the option of explanation upon game variations to game events. Why not make that process for everything, or not at all? Why are there multiple choices for the same outcome in speech, it doesn't matter what has been said if the result is the same? I am not here to pay some voice actors salary, but to play a game.
Approval rating, they approve, disapprove, so long as you have bothered talking to them, recruiting them, the same things will often occur. I would never date Sera I don't know what I am looking at. I would excommunicate her, but I want some more elixirs because I haven't made 30 yet, hoping red jenny can sort me out? Shame that the spymaster was off of the cards, but she got all jealous and I was like your dumped go get cloistered in the chantry.
Fire resistance what? I have never used. I use magical resistance instead, because there are also ice and electric dragons out there, and I don't get hurt at all. But mainly because I can also use a barrier, guard, or sheild.
The tactical cam is broken, if you think retargetting every enemy is so much fun, too cast any spell, or abilities when they are already auto attacking, is suppose to be functioning as intended? Moving single steps will often see absurd flanking manoveures, this happens constantly. The camera is so bad it is barely playable. I rarely use it, forcibly having to suffer it to defeat 4 high dragons out of 10 only.
The fetch quests are not the issue. There are as many as needed to encourage you to explore the vast zones (except the shards. **** those things).
The problem is the lack of compelling story side quests in addition to those fetch quests.
I wish I could like twice. There does need to be more connection to the main story in the optional areas.
I have a better question.
What is the point of this thread, other than insulting everyone who has an opinion different from yours?
That was either an intended insult or rant, but who am I to comment for the OP when they made the thread. Funny how you consider yourself a cut above the rest, an understatement, to your offered opinion, shown from your used quotations.
This game needed polish and input from gamers, who had run the tests first. Not the assumed reward from a convoluted mess of, unplayable, because it cannot be completed, error. Having many great idea's had they functioned as intended, a shame it was rushed off from production like so many titles of late...
Far too many fetch quests and not enough proper story side quests. Overall a pale shadow of the side quests in past iterations.
Sure its possible to skip lots of fetch quests as the power you accumulate is far in excess of the power required to unlock regions and do missions.
This isn't good or particularly enjoyable, especially when main story content isn't that bulky either. What story is there is good, it's just a shame the open world experiment didn't come off particularly well. i really hope the next game gets the balance much better between explorable areas and maintaining quality of main and side story content.
I sorta think there are too many fetch quests, BUT, not being a completionist at heart, I find it adds to replay value, and sorta helps with roleplaying. Different characters end up prioritizing different zones and different quests, and it all feels very organic that way. I don't think it's a bad thing per se that there are so many quests, but I do generally prefer the super tight quests like adamant, Champions of the Just, etc. A slightly different balance between the two would be good.
@ PocketDragon; have you tried a reboot on the One? Had the speech problem, but a reboot (unplug the console; wait for a minute, plug it back in and wait for another minute before firing it up), got rid of that problem.
I think that if the loot system was better, that it would make it all feel more worth-while.
My second play-through I'm dragging it out , I'm currently level 19 and about to do the Wicked Hearts quest. But until I either finish another main quest or kill another dragon, most of the loot I get will just be to sell, which a majority doesn't pay that well to sell anyway, and this with the extra perk for that.
When the majority of your gear is better if you make it yourself, then the super awesome schematics should be more available to earn. Notice I don't say easier to get, but there is no way to even know how to grind for them. The main quests give loot but by the time you get to it your inventory is beyond past full with other stuff that you'd like to sell to make some money but can't because there's no way to leave a main quest to go to a merchant.
The side quests keep me going because it gives me something to do while I dread anticipate starting the next main quest.
@ PocketDragon; have you tried a reboot on the One? Had the speech problem, but a reboot (unplug the console; wait for a minute, plug it back in and wait for another minute before firing it up), got rid of that problem.
I am using a 360. ONE is a gimmick play the tape, and well after what they said about keeping a closed system community, I don't know I am gonna bother with ONE for FF15. Not enough to warrant it atm oh not so shiny graphics real game breakers. The speech is often going ridiculous on the diplomat who seems to fastforward her dialogues at times. Wicked hearts and wicked minds the Elven conversations are 50/50 they are often incomprehensible wisphers with no sound. Sometimes the music will stop.
Did you mean? Where indviduals and inquistion colleagues are constantly offering the same choice of conversation until game progression. I.E I can relearn all about their heritages or other conversed information which doesn't go away. I do not mind status reports, romance, progression, or opinions, but the same dialogues is tedious when certain other collegues exhaust those options.
I like the side quests because they give me a reason to explore ALL of the game, if I want to do so. And I do, for now. 
I do know that later, if I want to play a quicker, more streamlined game, I can skip most of the side quests, get just enough power to progress the main quest, and still beat the game.
I do wish that side quests, did not involve insane jumping skills, because I still like to do them at this point, but I'm not very good at making my PC into an acrobat. 
Well, considering Bioware past games and other open-world action rpgs (Skyrim and the Witcher), it's just a shame thinking how DAI could have been with a little more dedication. Is DAI better than crap? Sure? It's gold? No way. But it could have been the best DA.
Of course, for someone who plays Skyrim and the Witcher, two games I can't stand. I guess it explains it all. In fact I wish I had research teams to do surveys on DAI and the other games the people who like it play. I guess people mad at Inquisition like myself are people who actually liked the kind of games Bioware used to make, who cared, because they were all we had, I mean, not specifically the Bioware games, but that kind of game Bioware did so well.
And I am almost sure that people who like Inquisition take joy in playing other things, various, that is the only reason I could think for someone not hating Inquisition changes. People who play pure action no RPG things like Witcher, Skyrim, Jade Empire and things like that. Anyway, let it be clear I know it concerns only my preferences still I'd really like to understand how can someone not miss stats, skills, talents, everything we lost... Also I can't even begin to imagine how can someone like action, real time combat, these things. So it is like a person telling you they like eating ****, that it tastes like heaven... I just can't understand. I can even understand liking being stabbed, electrocuted, tortured, anything, but liking action is way too much masochism.
Well, kinda. It's because they want BG 3 in DAI, maybe. Or because they expect BG and got DA.
DAI probably is even less DA than it is BG3. That is if DAI was somthing. DAI is the closest to being nothing, having no identity at all that you can get.
Dear Bioware, people need more carrots - not more freedom.
I am using a 360. ONE is a gimmick play the tape, and well after what they said about keeping a closed system community, I don't know I am gonna bother with ONE for FF15. Not enough to warrant it atm oh not so shiny graphics real game breakers. The speech is often going ridiculous on the diplomat who seems to fastforward her dialogues at times. Wicked hearts and wicked minds the Elven conversations are 50/50 they are often incomprehensible wisphers with no sound. Sometimes the music will stop.
Did you mean? Where indviduals and inquistion colleagues are constantly offering the same choice of conversation until game progression. I.E I can relearn all about their heritages or other conversed information which doesn't go away. I do not mind status reports, romance, progression, or opinions, but the same dialogues is tedious when certain other collegues exhaust those options.
Have you tried to clear your cache and getting back online? Most of the times these kind of problems happen with TU's not downloaded as they should.
At least ME3's fetch-quests, for all the flak that got, could be ignored for no meaningful loss.
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