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Dragon Age II is officially done. Well, OK, the game proper has been finished for a year, but now BioWare's closed up shop on its DLC factory in favor of bigger (and hopefully better) things. The developer is fully aware, however, that Origins is far-and-away the favorite child in its dysfunctional fantasy family, and it's aiming to right the sequel's unfortunately numerous list of wrongs. So, where to begin? Why, with you, of course – assuming you A) played Dragon Age II and B) are capable of forming opinions.
“While we will still be keeping an eye out for any issues that might crop up in DAII and supporting the community should any emergencies should arise, we’re moving the entire team’s focus to the next phase of Dragon Age’s future,” wrote executive producer Mark Darrah in a post on Dragon Age's official forums. “We’ve been thinking a lot about Dragon Age – what it means, and where it could go. This past year, we’ve spent a lot of time both going back to the 'BioWare vault' of games and re-examining them, and looking at some new possibilities that today’s industry allows.”
“With that, the next thing for the Dragon Age team members and I to do is hear from you, and not just on the forums, or Facebook, or Twitter. We’ll be attending a number of conventions and gatherings, including PAX East in April. The most valuable thing we can get out of those meetings is to hear from you on those same topics – what does Dragon Age mean to you, and where would you like to see it go? We’re excited to hear what you have to say!”
So go! Say things! On that note, what will those things be, exactly? What does Dragon Age mean to you, and how did DAII merrily skip away from that, off a cliff, and into the Valley of Eternal Sadness? Or do you think DAII doesn't deserve quite as much flack as it takes?
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burntham77
March 21, 2012 at 2:55pm
Combine the deep game play of DA1 with the better graphics of DA2. Make the combat a teeny bit more exciting, but not the frantic pace of DA2.
Do not reuse areas. At all. Take the time, do it right. Don't rush things.
Give us less active abilities. While I appreciate a lot of choice in terms of spells and skills, it was very hard to manage the hotbars of Mages. More passive abilities and ability upgrades and less activated abilities would help that.
Also, connecting the story more to the original would help. DA2 was fun, but it just had almost nothing to do with the events of the DA1.
Both games had plenty of memorable characters, so keep that up. Female characters with big cleavage is a nice touch, but try not to over do it.
Origins set up such an interesting world, only to have it abandoned in the second game. That was a big let down.
bling581
March 22, 2012 at 9:56am
"While I appreciate a lot of choice in terms of spells and skills, it was very hard to manage the hotbars of Mages"
Yeah that's true. I played DA2 through to the end 3 times right after it came out and haven't touched it since, but I distinctly remember this. I thought mages were a little more dynamic and interesting in DA2 then they were in Origins. The Force Mage was especially fun to play.
dethduck
March 20, 2012 at 2:40pm
Step 1) Make an RPG, not a console style "Action RPG".
Step 2) See "Dragon Age: Origins".
Step 3) See step 2.
jaymz668
March 20, 2012 at 11:42am
My biggest problems were the falling from the sky extra bad guys to fight and the reuse, reuse and reuse of maps that were identical from location to location, but the minimap never showed how some areas were blocked off. It left me feeling like I missed a lot... did I? I don't know!
bling581
March 20, 2012 at 9:51am
If they want to know what not to do just read through all the rage posts about DA2. I'm not sure I could really provide any solid suggestions on what to do right. I really enjoyed some aspects of DA2. The improved graphics were nice and I loved the way they redid the skill trees. I liked the faster paced combat to some extent, though it was a bit unrealistic. Watching your rogue jump all the way across an entire area to get to the enemy is ridiculous. The weapon swing speeds were also off the charts. Find some medium between Origins and DA2. My biggest beef was the lack of size and repeated use of the same dungeons.
noobstix
March 20, 2012 at 1:30pm
I pretty much feel the same way. I only completed one playthrough but I pretty much got the gist of the pros and cons of DA2. Sure it might not have been as great as DAO but I really liked how the combat was sped up. I didn't have to spend 5-10 minutes trying to kill an orc because my DEX stat was too low or that the animation really made damage a DPM (damage per minute) than a DPS. Also, my GPU had survived one whole playthrough (which was around 33 hours, the same length I spent on ME3). But yeah, the recycling of like 8 or so maps (each with a different section opened or closed) really felt like Hellgate: London all over again. I'm actually gonna go back and replay DA2 with all the updates and DLC as my playtime plans for ME3 have been scaled back.
Supall
March 20, 2012 at 6:39am
Don't let EA force you to cut corners on Gameplay. The developers make the game that make the publisher's money. DAII disappointed many people because it was a game that didn't live up to the awe of DAI. And after the fiasco with how they ended ME3's trilogy, BioWare is on the verge of losing the faith of its loyal fans who are now starting to doubt BioWare's ability to create a great game.
shommy2002
March 20, 2012 at 6:58am
oh cry me a river... yes DA2 was disappointing but ME3 was anything but. 90% of gamers are little crying bitches who didn't get their way and wanted Shepard to live. ME3 ending was great and they just wanted to see a generic ending where the hero saves the day and lives to tell about it.
darkcloud2973
March 20, 2012 at 10:56am
After weeks of avoiding all ME3 articles until I get a chance to play the game, I would just like to say thanks for the spoilers with absolutely no warning on a completely unrelated article.
Supall
March 20, 2012 at 9:47am
I said how they ended the trilogy, not the game itself. If ME3 was a standalone game that wasn't impacted by anything else, yeah, it would've been a great ending. But when all of your choices in ME1, ME2, and ME3 are boiled down to three cinematics and an open-ended storyline, you're left with simply "WTF was that?"
Brad Nimbus
March 20, 2012 at 6:36am
The biggest problem I had with Dragon Age II was that it didn't follow the characters from the first game. I wanted to be my grey warden from the first game, not some random I know nothing about. Once I got a few minutes into Dragon Age II I had my first fight and WTF were they thinking?? I haven't played since.
Fecal Face
March 20, 2012 at 8:45am
I think BioWare said (or hinted) that each Dragon Age game is supposed to be a new character, but your previous characters can still appear / be mentioned in later games
