380 réponses à ce sujet

[Dai Grepher]

And all the rifts you left behind, when you know you're the only one who can close them? Your man is just hoping they won't get worse, is he? And hey, if a huge horde of demons spills out of them and devastates the whole region, including Redcliffe... well, never mind, right?

 

Or maybe the party wasn't strong enough to fight those demons and close those rifts. Ever thought of that? And the level icons above the demons is a pretty strong indication that you ARE allowed to leave those rifts alone and come back later after you've leveled up.

 

I mean, did you treat the Ferelden Frostback the same way? Did you say to yourself that you just HAD to go an try to slay that dragon that's several levels above you and your party because if you don't it could burn all of Redcliffe to the ground? No. You left the area, went to Val Royeaux, came back after leveling up a little and then went after it, like pretty much everyone else here did.

 

It's the same thing with the rifts. And as far as boredom goes, leaving the area you find boring and saving it for later is a valid solution to the problem.

[Dai Grepher]

But its learned behaviour, based on what Bioware has done in the past. Progressing with the main quest in all manner of RPGs tend to lead to big events that destroy or close off entire areas. Saying its people's own fault for staying, when they have that extra baggage to contend with is just unfair. And it completely runs roughshod over the great many people who simply like to have things organized and not bounce around all over the place, racking up about 90000 quests,

 

I completely doubt that gamers have been somehow conditioned by BioWare to not leave an area prematurely, especially when there are numerous storyline hints and gameplay messages that tell you "Go back to Haven and talk to Mother Giselle", or "these demons are double your level, so come back later", or "you don't have the plant this quest calls for and this map doesn't have that plant either".

 

And even if gamers were conditioned to not leave an area, even when the game tells you that you can, then why are you mad that other gamers are telling these gamers that they are free to leave the area? I agree that gamers shouldn't be jerks about it, but simply informing someone of something, thus HELPING them, is not wrong.

 

No, it doesn't run roughshod over anyone to recommend a different style of play to someone who doesn't enjoy the usual style of play. No more than recommending a mage playthrough is an offense to those who prefer rogue playthroughs. I played the Hinterlands for hours on end and didn't get bored, yet here I am recommending the OP take a different path than I did because he got bored of the Hinterlands where I did not.

 

Also, I just have to ask, what exactly are you trying to accomplish in this thread? The OP asked for suggestions, people posted them. You just seem to be ranting about the game, but what is that going to accomplish? The game is out. It is done. You can't change the Hinterlands. You can't change what exists in the game (aside from small things with mods). So what is the point of complaining about it in this thread? And what's the point of arguing with others who are just giving advice to someone who asked for it?

[poofighter77]

I came to the forums just to see if I was the only one.. Such a bummer.  Granted I'm only 2 hours into the game but I'm bored as hell and can't be assed to pick up one more damn elfroot.  This is like a really really lame MMO.  Where is the soul of DA:O that I loved!!!!  Glad I waited for this game to go on sale, but, even at 20 bucks I wasted my money and 2 hours.

[Dai Grepher]

Just focus on the storyline, and try to get into the roleplaying aspect. Ignore the bad loot and all the pointless resource gathering.

[Lebanese Dude]

I came to the forums just to see if I was the only one.. Such a bummer.  Granted I'm only 2 hours into the game but I'm bored as hell and can't be assed to pick up one more damn elfroot.  This is like a really really lame MMO.  Where is the soul of DA:O that I loved!!!!  Glad I waited for this game to go on sale, but, even at 20 bucks I wasted my money and 2 hours.

 

You do realize that you're not supposed or expected to pick up everything in sight... right? 

 

Gamer habits are funny >.>

[Al Foley]

I came to the forums just to see if I was the only one.. Such a bummer.  Granted I'm only 2 hours into the game but I'm bored as hell and can't be assed to pick up one more damn elfroot.  This is like a really really lame MMO.  Where is the soul of DA:O that I loved!!!!  Glad I waited for this game to go on sale, but, even at 20 bucks I wasted my money and 2 hours.

DA O did not have any of the soul of DA O that you probably loved 2 hours into DA O.  2 hours in...well at least I...was barely out of Castle COusland and slogging around the Kocari Wilds.  

[Sylvius the Mad]

I came to the forums just to see if I was the only one.. Such a bummer. Granted I'm only 2 hours into the game but I'm bored as hell and can't be assed to pick up one more damn elfroot. This is like a really really lame MMO. Where is the soul of DA:O that I loved!!!! Glad I waited for this game to go on sale, but, even at 20 bucks I wasted my money and 2 hours.

2 hours in, why were you picking up Elfroot at all? Did you need it for something?

[The_Shade]

This is extreme hyperbole.

 

The bulk of the relatively simple quests occur in the Hinterlands when they make most sense.

At that point the Inquisition is relatively young. At that point you are still an agent of the Inquisition who is gathering influence and power for your organization by any means necessary. It's relatively simple to know what quests have "content' as opposed to those that don't.

After the Hinterlands, each zone has only one or two true fetch quests that still have some context that allows degrees of roleplaying, like the two fetch quests in Exalted Plains that are given by a Gaspard and Celene soldier.

 

Even so, many people here completely undermine the importance those little fetch quests have on shaping the character of your Inquisitor. Sure, fulfilling a random woman's wish to release her son's ashes at the edge of the Emerald Graves may seem a trivial task, but it's still a task undertaken by your Inquisitor to realize a characteristic you have assigned for them.

 

In one playthrough, my Andrastian warrior did it out of respect for the Maker. In another, my elven mage pitied the woman despite not believing in the Maker. In a third, my dwarven rogue scoffed at the idea of doing this menial task and moved along.

 

They're even recognized by your characters. Incremental relationship changes as they see a side of your Inquisitor.

 

Honestly it feels that many people here who claim to want immersion don't even bother to do so, failing to even attempt to involve themselves in the quests as trivial as they seem.

 

You claim that the "bulk" of the quests are fetch quests. Ignoring the fact that everything can be classified as a fetch quest if you try hard enough, you'd see that this is not the case.

 

Most of your time spent in DAI is:

 

1) Exploring the areas

2) Developing relationships with your companions, advisors, and major NPCs via dialogue and action.

3) Completing the main missions of the zones (including the temple exploration)

4) Completing the main quest chain intermittently throughout the game.

5) Sealing rifts

6) Collecting materials for crafting / crafting and improving Skyhold

7) Completing trivial side content

 

It's arguable that 1) takes a significant portion of gameplay time. A lot of people here tout that they spend a lot of time doing "fetch quests" when what they're actually doing is traveling throughout the zones in order to complete them. There is literally almost no grinding in the game for completing those quests. They're simply there to guide you throughout the area as you complete the more plot-critical missions. If there are any "grindy" quests, they all occur in the Hinterlands.

Just take the Fallow Mire as an example. You have to find the missing soldiers. While doing that you can clear the marsh of undead by completing a VERY hard kill quest chain to purge the undead influences. You can find and defeat a renegade mage who wrecked havoc on the local populace. etc... You do all that WHILE exploring to find the missing soldiers. 

 

A very significant amount of time is spent speaking to those you know. How much time do you go back to Haven/Skyhold to talk to your allies? How much time do you spend assisting them? True there are some "fetch quests" involved in attempting to make them like you, but  those are purely meant to give a bump to your relationship. They take the role that "gifts" had in DAO, except they're far more nuanced and interesting. There is not much character-building by giving Alistair a runestone, but an Anti-Circle mage might take issue with helping Vivienne recover tomes for the Circle. Someone who despises running errands for people would not help Blackwall, etc..

 

Every zone you enter has a main mission to complete. You go to the Emerald Graves to cleanse the "cult" that is forming there. You go to the Exalted Plains to assist the soliders and that takes a LOT of your time, from clearing out the undead-infested barricades to saving Celene's soldiers from a trap-ridden Elven fort. The questlines in this area heavily relate to the ones in Emerald Graves, so there's some inter-zone story going on here.

Also in the Exalted Plains, you can either develop a symbiotic relationship with the Elven clan or you can go out of your way to **** them over in every shape or form from killing their sacred creatures, to plundering their structures in the name of loot, to giving the Chantry the true account of what happened at the Red Crossing. 

 

The main quests speak for themselves. 

Sealing rifts is the "primary" purpose of your Inquisitor. Complaining about doing those is similar to complaining about driving in a racing game. You're here to stop demons, so stop demons.

 

Crafting takes a major role in Inquisition, offering the character ways to develop their squad in an alternative way. This part is integrated with exploration since you normally collect materials while exploring. Still, you go out of of your way to acquire materials and schematics to upgrade your character and take an active hand in developing your character.

You can upgrade potions and grenades for various effects and purposes. Many times those upgrades are integrated into character development. Is it not better that they are separated?

While exploring, you can collect materials in order to craft those upgrades. Speaking as an RPG player, when I found the first "Crystal Grace" I was happy as hell and went back to Haven to get the upgrade for a potion I wanted.
Crafting gear acts as an alternate form to acquire upgrades for your character. You can develop them in any way you wish and create your own unique style. 

 

Only after all this do I consider the time spent on fetch quests. Even the most basic of "fetch quests" from unlocking astrariums to collecting shards have relevance. The former gives you detailed codex entries regarding previously unknown lore and history, while the latter gives you character upgrades in a concentrated location to serve as some game-spanning mystery to solve. What's the deal with Solasan?

 

Is anyone going to claim that fetch quests took MOST of their gameplay time? They're lying. In fact I'd make the bold claim that the same people who call DAI a "fetch quest extravaganza" also dislike exploration and would prefer linear quest chains like in DAO.

 

That's fine, but DAI was marketed as an exploration-heavy game. As I said before in a previous post, this is how the game is. It's not a fault, so either deal with it since you bought it, or move on to another game that is more aligned to your interests.

 

Fantastic post. 

[Aren]

Yes, and I love that. Too often, games give the PC authority and infuence for no reason (DAO, for example).

On this point, DAI is expertly done.

What?

My authority in DAO at the beginning was just above a man-child and a swamp witch,nothing more,everything else  i crafted for my warden unlike The mr glowing hand everything was under a golden dishes for the Quisquisitor.

Unless you was reffering about the group of Ostagar,when the warden and not Alistair comand the group,well is not my fault if Duncan trusted me more than him.

[German Soldier]

No personal offense for the DA fans,but i genuinely believe that this franchise has an identity crisis,there were too many radical changes into the structure of the three games.

This is not something bad not by any means as i do believe that a game need to update,and open world seems to be the next mantra for these kind of games,still what bluff me about this franchise is the poorer vision of story overall,between it's chapters.

I played only the 1st game(without any Dlc or the expansion) which was a stand-alone,i killed my character and then went off to vegas,away from this franchise.I returned just to see the progress of the story only to realize that the events of the Dragon Age seems to revolve just around some npc supermages,with the templar-mage war reduced to be just like a little schermish and the Wardens completely villifined to the point of ridiculous,i take that they were a shady organization,but i believe that they went too far,they ruined them just to pampering the players ego with the Inquisitor and the Inquisition.

[Kabraxal]

 

No personal offense for the DA fans,but i genuinely believe that this franchise has an identity crisis,there were too many radical changes into the structure of the three games.

This is not something bad not by any means as i do believe that a game need to update,and open world seems to be the next mantra for these kind of games,still what bluff me about this franchise is the poorer vision of story overall,between it's chapters.

I played only the 1st game(without any Dlc or the expansion) which was a stand-alone,i killed my character and then went off to vegas,away from this franchise.I returned just to see the progress of the story only to realize that the events of the Dragon Age seems to revolve just around some npc supermages,with the templar-mage war reduced to be just like a little schermish and the Wardens completely villifined to the point of ridiculous,i take that they were a shady organization,but i believe that they went too far,they ruined them just to pampering the players ego with the Inquisitor and the Inquisition.

 

Have to disagree on the vision for their story... they have hints and implications scattered throughout every game, to the point that in DA:I it is only beginning to become apparent why so much is going wrong so quickly.  I am absolutely fascinated by what could possibly be the root of the issues and am impatiently waiting to see where the story is leading to.  They seem to have a goal in mind, which is no surprise given the depth of lore they have even outside of the game. 

[Aren]

 They seem to have a goal in mind, which is no surprise given the depth of lore they have even outside of the game. 

They are just creating things out of nowhere,i will not be surprised to see lore about unicorns in the next installment.

[correctamundo]

Just because you can't do more with the role-playing does not make it not doable.

[VelvetV]

But it's impossible to play the game without delusion or ego. There's no way someone who denies being the Herald would actually still carry on with this, unless they're a maniac who simply believes they deserve to control and overpower everyone "just because". The fool at least believes the Maker gave them the right.

 

My character didn't consider herself Herald but wasn't a power-hungry person, either. Her motives were natural, ranging from basic survival (Cory will kill you sooner or later for the mark you've got) to being helpful to others in danger of being overpowered by your own enemy. I never felt power or control or authoritarianism, on the contrary, she was way too modest. It even annoyed me because I had a hard time imagining someone like that leading a huge organization.

 

I'd say the reading of this almost "blank" character might depend on our own motivations. I'm a pretty passive person lacking ambition, so unless a character is presented as wildly ambitious, I pretty much always feel like they don't care for power. Etc.

 

Another reason would be the voice. I tracked down my feeling of her being "too modest" to the voice I chose in the beginning. Were it a bit more confident, maybe I'd think something else. But the voice is so... ordinary. No energy can be heard in it! No person vying for power would speak like that.

[VelvetV]

It doesn't matter what you personally want. Or me. You're still changing religions, entire countries, the nature of major organizations, etc.. You're not some humble hunter surviving for your life. You've willingly played something on the level of Genghis Khan, Moses, Muhammad, and Napoleon. Whatever you think personally, your actions are telling everyone you have the power and authority to do it. You're still the herald in everything but name. It gives all the weight and momentum behind your every move, even when you deny the title. It's like having your cake and eating it too. 

 

I just can't see it that way. Maybe society sees my character this way, but that image is something artificial and distant for me. I always felt that the character was so modest and incompetent that all "power" came from: 1) her image of Herald; 2) skills of her advisors who managed the Inquisition. Yeah, she supposedly made some political decisions, but I always felt that she adhered to advisors. Basically, she was merely an image of an organization, while its mechanism was propelled and directed by others.

 

The fact that we feel so different about the game makes me think I'm right in thinking that personality influences how we feel about it. I'd actually be very happy to feel like my inquisitor is a charismatic person with leadership qualities, but I can't. That's not what I see for myself in the game.

[correctamundo]

We're not that different, are we? I stated above I'd rather be more investigative. I don't fantasize about power on this level. It's why I struggle with finding a fun role here. This game caters to our baser instincts. Power fantasy. I'm not really into it... for now, I guess.

 

 

As for charisma though, that doesn't matter. It doesn't matter who you are. You could be a complete grump, and you're still a dictator. 

 

Is that all you see in a person? A job title? I have found that there generally is more to people than that.

[VelvetV]

We're not that different, are we? I stated above I'd rather be more investigative. I don't fantasize about power on this level. It's why I struggle with finding a fun role here. This game caters to our baser instincts. Power fantasy. I'm not really into it... for now, I guess.

 

 

As for charisma though, that doesn't matter. It doesn't matter who you are. You could be a complete grump, and you're still a dictator. 

 

I think we aren't very different, but for some reason you see a game catering to power fantasy whereas I cannot see that. On the surface yes, you manage a powerful organization. But when you play there's no real sense of your character being powerful. Not for me. So in essence, I think you want to see the game how I see it, then you could play an investigator, and I want to see the game how you see it, then I could play a charismatic leader (who I think fits in the plot better than a modest character that I perceive).

 

It's kind of sad we can't exchange our perception.

 

P.S. As for charisma, you can be a charismatic grump, or you can be a pathetic grump... Or you can be someone normal, someone who lacks uber-confidence and can't put up an interpersonal fight with people who shine politically, like Vivian. I feel like my inquisitor is like that and it's a shame...

[VelvetV]

edit: If you have suggestions though, I'm happy to listen.  I just don't know what to do with this game.

 

I described how I see my character as a comfortable image for an organization and how advisors manage everything. This doesn't work for you?

 

Your own character, being as polarized as you describe, is pretty interesting. Maybe you could go with the flow and rather than figure out with certainty who he\she is, play someone who is torn? Wanting power, but wanting to be good. I find that an interesting and realistic internal conflict and a rich opportunity for role-playing.

[correctamundo]

How did you even construe that's what I care about? If I really had a choice, I wish I could disband the Inquisition and go off and just be a person. I want to do what that priestess suggested. But I feel even more constrained in this game than I did the others. It's harder to escape the fate of "job". It seems a lot easier to be the Warden or Hawke.. especially with this Calling cure for the Warden.

 

And yet you ignore everything but the job. But anyway there are games out there that lets you play just a person with or no power really. In DAI you take on the role of the inquisitor that is true but you are also a person outside of the monsterkilling job.