820 réponses à ce sujet

[(Disgusted noise.)]

I do NOT want to be limited to playing a single racial choice in Dragon Age games ..... ever again. I have no idea why anyone would prefer to always play as a human in a fantasy rpg?

 

OP told you way back, race selection requires a protagonist to be too generic to fit in all the posibilities and it's bad for storytelling. As for why it would be human instead of elf, dwarf, or qunari... they have to actually sell copies of the game.

 

Anyway, to respond to the topic myself, I'd give anything for another Hawke style protagonist in DA4.

[Heimdall]

OP told you way back, race selection requires a protagonist to be too generic to fit in all the posibilities and it's bad for storytelling. As for why it would be human instead of elf, dwarf, or qunari... they have to actually sell copies of the game.

Anyway, to respond to the topic myself, I'd give anything for another Hawke style protagonist in DA4.

The OP is wrong to take DAI as representative of what a game with multiple race choice can be.

Remember, DAI was written and designed or a human PC, with race options added in later. We've yet to see a game with a voiced protagonist that was designed from the ground up with race options in mind.

[Fearsome1]

race selection requires a protagonist to be too generic to fit in all the posibilities and it's bad for storytelling. As for why it would be human instead of elf, dwarf, or qunari... they have to actually sell copies of the game.

 

Because DA:O was soooo generic with it's choices; c'mon that premise is ridiculous. It is all about execution. They've pulled it off with the Warden and it can be done again.

[robertthebard]

Because DA:O was soooo generic with it's choices; c'mon that premise is ridiculous. It is all about execution. They've pulled it off with the Warden and it can be done again.

It actually was pretty generic. Sans rose colored glasses, we can surf through the Origins forums and find plenty of "Why don't they acknowledge my race" or "Why don't they address me by my name" threads. Through the vast majority of the game, you are "Warden". Then there's the whole "prop" angle, where you're more something for the NPCs to look at than an actual participant. The "but we can assign our own meaning to the chosen dialog" falls flat simply because you can't. You can tell yourself that you did, but I'd bet there's more than one post that claims they meant a line as a joke, but the NPC went postal on 'em.

The reason for that latter is simple, really: A silent protagonist doesn't get any more NPC responses than a voiced one does. How many choices led to the same responses? The conversations are scripted to have preset results, and in a case where you have more than 3 lines to choose from, the NPCs may well have the same response tied to more than one. Why? Limits in technology. If they ever make a game that reads your intent when you choose a line, and then comes up with a custom response to it, instead of preselected responses, then "but we can assign our own meaning to the responses" will be relevant. Otherwise, you are still limited to what the writers give you.

[FumikoM]

I really hope that for the next DA game that BW uses the same defined personality they did with ME and DA2. DA:I disappointed (my biggest disappointment in gaming last year) me so much that I will most likely not get any more dlc's for it. Nor will I pre-order the next DA game until I know they ditched the gray dull (imo) personality type the Inquisitor has.

 

I guess one can thank the need for RP reasons for this decision. A need asked by the group who loved DA:O and hated the second game. BW tried to please both groups I guess, but in the end did not do very well in that regard. At least those that could care less about a voiced lead char or if she/he as any defined personality was pleased by DA:I.

 

I'm just gonna sit here and wait for the next Mass Effect. And since we don't have a group criticizing BW for voice acting and the personality of Shepard (as in; actually having a defined one) hopefully the next ME lead character does not receives the same treatment as the one in DA:I. Oh, and waiting for F4; finally they added voice acting...

[b09boy]

I disagree with this idea entirely. I do not want a set protagonist, at least not from Bioware when they are one of the few developers that let you create 'your' character, or at least sometimes. 

 

They're already basically set, just by being incredibly bland.  The idea being you can project personality on something that is very basic and generally neutral (or, on the occasional flipside, have a choice between comically over-the-top options).  This is a boring idea.  The Inquisitor, Hawke, even Shepard - these are not good or memorable characters (aside from a heavily renegade Shepard).  They're bland, boring, and the crux of character and story-driven epics.  I shouldn't need to explain the obvious conflict this creates.

[Lee80]

I never felt the inquisitor was boring or generic as some people seem to think.  Though if he/she is generic I'm okay with it as it felt more like I was playing a fantasy version of my own self-and not an established character that I may not even like.  I really prefer the way inquisition and Origins did things.  

 

I still loved DA2 though, and will play DA4 no matter what, but my preference is Dragon Age Inquisition's approach. 

[DarthEmpress]

I would rather play the Inquisitor or the Warden than Shepard or Hawke.  Choices are important.  Shepard and Hawke often ended up delving into a set persona that I just couldn't get into.

[salzgurken]

While I really like the idea of having the option to choose your race I have to agree that while it wasn't necessarily terribly excecuted it sure as hell awakened that major disappointment feel deep within you   Hence why I'm willing to let the races go, just please Bioware if you're going to do it at leave us with voice and body type options to choose from and nice hair   plz

[RawThunderHustle]

If DA4 is in the works then I would rather be my Inquisitor if we're going to fight Solas, It should be between the 2 of them instead of a new protagonist.

[AresKeith]

If DA4 is in the works then I would rather be my Inquisitor if we're going to fight Solas, It should be between the 2 of them instead of a new protagonist.

 

Who said it would be Solas the new protag would be up against?

[Rekkampum]

No. No. No. No.

I prefer race selection, and we have to remind ourselves that DA II's story is a self-contained one literally happening in one single place over several years. It makes sense to have a set protagonist in that instance. Broader stories with multiple race options offer more flexibility when it calls for it, and the origins for the races in Origins were some of the coolest elements of the game and why I grew attached to my character.

 

Also, Dragon Age games each focus on particular stories in its mythos, not one central character like in Mass Effect, so the idea you're proposing, while novel, likely wouldn't necessarily fit in the grand scheme of things. I think it's better to simply continue to strike the balance they have with races that have their own specific backgrounds - as they did in DA:I.

[JJDXB]

Between Humans and Elves you've probably got 80% of all the Inquisitors being made and played.  Compromise, have a choice between an Elf Slave and a Human Soporati or Laetan.  You'll only need one voice actor, since the elves, like Fenris and his sister, have the same accent as their masters and there aren't any Dwarves or Qunari protagonists to require an American one.  This saves you enough time and money to fill out the origin stories a bit more. 

 

Although, I expect this kind of compromise will only infuriate both sides of this discussion

[Rappeldrache]

There are enough OTHER games whitch make this, Best example: The Witcher. But there a not a lot of games witch give you the freedom to CHOOSE. To choose the character and some things IN the game, too. (All right, I would love some more choices at the ending ... )

 

I like Dragon Age like DA:O and DAI. And we see how sucessfully DA2 was with this "Hawke / Shepard idea". When DA2 was released I remember that most of the people where angry that they could NOT choosee. This was one of the "strongest" point of criticsm (in the forums). Now you make a thread like this ... I would laugh hysterically as Bioware-Designer. Sorry.

 

What works for a Action-Roleplaying like Mass Effect will not work for Dragon Aeg witch is famous for "decision".

 

 

Only my personal opinion.

[Rekkampum]

There are enough OTHER games whitch make this, Best example: The Witcher. But there a not a lot of games witch give you the freedom to CHOOSE. To choose the character and some things IN the game, too. (All right, I would love some more choices at the ending ... )

 

I like Dragon Age like DA:O and DAI. And we see how sucessfully DA2 was with this "Hawke / Shepard idea". When DA2 was released I remember that most of the people where angry that they could NOT choosee. This was one of the "strongest" point of criticsm (in the forums). Now you make a thread like this ... I would laugh hysterically as Bioware-Designer. Sorry.

 

What works for a Action-Roleplaying like Mass Effect will not work for Dragon Aeg witch is famous for "decision".

 

 

Only my personal opinion.

 

Gotta disagree. The largest criticism I noticed while here was that the game was clearly rushed, right down to the overused tiles and textures in dungeons.

[RawThunderHustle]

Who said it would be Solas the new protag would be up against?

I'm only assuming given that Corypheus was dropped on the Inquisitor's lap after DA2.

[Rawgrim]

For one, silent protagonists are a dead archetype. Thankfully, it seems BioWare has finally come to this conclusion and discarded any chance of ever having a dumbfounded main character awkwardly staring at everybody else while they talk for 50 hours.

 

Secondly, multi-race selection with multiple backgrounds is bad for game development and storytelling. When there are so many variables and possibilities to consider, it dilutes and cheapens the overall story. The reason Shepard's story and even Hawke's story were so engaging is because they were more defined. However, in that definition, we also had more flexibility to shape their personality.

 

You can't do that with a silent protagonist or a main character who can be four different races with a dozen different backgrounds. There's just too many variables and not enough defined points. Giving players more choice and freedom negatively impacts the overall game and the story BioWare can create.

 

Thus, I believe the next protagonist in DA4 needs to be more akin to Shepard/Hawke and less so to the Inquisitor/HoF.

 

So basically what you want is for the developers to create a character for you. The opposite of what rpgs are all about.

[atamajakki]

I've abandoned hope of Bioware ever putting as much effort into a dwarf protag as they did in Origins. Aeducan and especially Brosca were fantastic, while Cadash felt like a complete joke. Don't even get me started on how terrible Adaar was.

We get it. Dragon Age is a series about elves and then humans, in that order. Don't bother tacking on other options if you're not gonna do it right.

[Mr.House]

Really, the race selection should just be elf and human since those races get effort put into them.

[leadintea]

Really, the race selection should just be elf and human since those races get effort put into them.

 

Yeah, I'm not a huge fan of dwarves, but they do get shafted pretty often in the DA series.

[Eelectrica]

The way they ended it, race selection is a must next game. Hopefully it's there from day one so all races get equal treatment.

I've just started trespasser with my Qunari inquisitor, so it'll be interesting to see what different dialogue I get from my Elven one.

[StaceysChain]

I agree the problem with the Inquisitor is that it never felt a real person. He was characterized by the title he had. He is the Inquisitor and nothing else. Being human, elf, dwarves or qunari didn't change anything. Before DAI I was in favor of multiple playable races but now i'm so against it because it results in a dull protagonist. I adore elves in fantsy setting but really there is no point in being one if the story barely recognize you as one.

If restricting our choices for the proganist is going to deliver a deeper character then I'm all for it. In the ME forum part I wrote against multiple playable races for the next ME game.

 

I disagree. I felt much more attached to my Inquisitor than I ever did for Hawke because he felt like my character, not a character that was previously defined by Bioware where I had an input now and then. I was able to choose my Inquisitor's race and background, and use my imagination to fill out the blanks, which I couldn't do with Hawke (I suppose you couldn't do it much with the Warden either - but at least I had much more of an input with that character). I also like that you could choose what your Inquisitor could say and in doing so define his personality and what he was thinking, instead of just choosing one trait like with Hawke - I know you can still choose dialogue options, but it still didn't feel like 100% my character for me. And the story does recognise your race quite a few times in the game, but maybe Bioware couldn't fully take advantage of it since they added the race options late. Maybe they can if race selection is in DA4 (which I hope dearly).

[atamajakki]

The way they ended it, race selection is a must next game. Hopefully it's there from day one so all races get equal treatment.
I've just started trespasser with my Qunari inquisitor, so it'll be interesting to see what different dialogue I get from my Elven one.

I'll give you a hint; not much!

All I remember is a single throwaway comedic line during Vivienne's spa day.

[Iakus]

Really, the race selection should just be elf and human since those races get effort put into them.

If the next game really is set in Tevinter, a dwarf protagonist would be really interesting though.  They're like, the only non-mages in the Imperium that don't get treated like blood batteries.