[Game] Dragon Age II

I love the demo, it obviously follows Mass Effect 2.
Mass Effect I and Dragon Age I had good story but were kinda dull gameplay-wise, Mass Effect II had a more indepth-feeling, you felt closer to the characters and there was better action/entertainment. With Dragon Age II Bioware did the same, it just feels more exciting.

 

After playing the demo as a Mage and Warrior, I'm definitely going mage, but since you control everybody, it's not that big a deal. All I have to say is AOE damage using a pyro mage and a rogue's arrow rain is going to be pretty fun. Playing a warrior was pretty fun, too, but I think I'll go mage this time for a change. I went ahead and bought my copy on Steam the other day and it's already "pre-loaded". Wee.

 

I've never played Dragon Age Origins but I'm really curious about these. I love Bioware though and both ME2 and KOTOR are probably some of my favorite games ever. But I'm curious on a few things.

Is this basically ME2 but in older ages? Or is it quite different?

Is it a direct sequel to the first game, like same characters and stuff, or is it just within the same universe? Should I play the first game first? And does it have a save import deal like ME2 did, where choices in the first game move on to the second?

I know there were some differences between the PC and console versions of the first game, are there any with the second? I prefer playing on consoles but if the PC version is superior ill get that.

thanks

 

It is not a direct sequel. There are a couple characters that had minor parts in the first that will be in this but not playing the first will not have much of an effect (some overall world decisions are supposed to carry over -- like who is King/Queen, etc.). This game takes place during parts of the first but continues on past where the other ended.

The sequel is much more similar to ME in that they added a dialogue wheel that is the same as ME. In the first your character didn't speak at all.

As far as PC vs console, the first was supposedly much better on the PC, but they've made some alterations to the gameplay (making it faster and requiring less micromanagement if you don't want to do that--although it is still supposed to be possible to do) that probably lessen the advantage the PC had. The original was converted into a multiplatform game well after they had started it as a PC only one.

 

Thanks! I downloaded and played the demo earlier and really loved it. Might just stick with the PC version because thats what demo I played and don't really want to risk the console ones being bad.

If I can gather the money together I think I'll get it. I could definitely see myself loving this game.

 

Yea, definitely stick with the PC version.

In fact, you should always stick with the PC version if possible no matter what game it is.

 

Apparently Bioware has released a high-res texture pack for DA2. It's just over 1 GB iirc. You'll also need a DirectX 11 capable machine to play at the highest settings (with the textures also).

 

Damn, computers get outdated so fast... After running DA on close to max, I can only run this on medium settings on a 1280x720 resolution. Forget about filtering or anti-aliasing... And it still kind of lags!

Hey, Chuck 4!

Spoiler

How is Bethany alive? It didn't seem like I could impact her destiny in any way...

 

This game has not been getting very good feedback from gamers.

Apparently they watered down the game a lot to appeal to the console users.

I am glad I passed on this one for now. I will probably try it once it is $10 or so on Steam.

 

I loved Dragon Age: Origins. My problem is that I always want to max out everything, do every mission, get evey person's side quest, max out my companions, get the "good" story, etc.

I then never quite completed the first one. Once I stop playing such an immersive game, I find it hard to go back.

I should have done what I did with Oblivion and played to "win" the game. Then go back and finish everything else.

 

How the heck are you guys activating the high res texture pack? I downloaded and installed it, but I don't see a checkbox like they say should be there. When I go to the video options and hover my mouse over the "Graphics detail" text, it says "activates the instlled high resolution texture pack", but like I said - no checkbox like the instructions say on the Bioware website. Oh well. I've cranked everything up to "Very High", so whatever I'm seeing will have to do. :grin:

 

Definitely not enjoying how repetitive some of the missions are in DA2

At least DA:O gave you plenty of varied and expansive locations to explore, DA2 is pretty much just corridor-fighter

 

I'm not very far in, but its pretty fun so far and I could see me being entertained for a while.

Though missions do seem a bit repetitive and I don't like how its not as interactive as Mass Effect. Like, most of the time you can only talk to the people you need to talk to about the quest. I wish you could interact with more people and about more than just the current mission. It may open up more as I go along though, so its a bit early to complain there. Just seems like less people to interact with.

But yeah I like it. Also I never played the first so I don't know how that affects things. I really like the combat though. What did they do to "water it down"? I know I hear its more confined this time but that seems like a narrative decision rather than anything to do with the consoles.

 

The combat was much, much slower in the first game. It was a game you really had to pause and control what each character did during combat to work properly and then it took a second or two for the actions to kick in. I thought it was pretty clunky. The sequel may be a little too fast, but it is a definite improvement in my opinion.

 

I'm enjoying it, but I've only played one hour so far. I probably wont' be able to play again until Saturday.

I do miss the ability to pick your own race like was in DA Origins. Whatever complaints about DA Origins there were, I don't remember greater control of character creation being one of them. I'm not sure why they tweaked that. The combat is very quick in this game. I feel I'll need some time to catch up and get used to it. I haven't really done any missions yet except one to get inside the city.

I have a lot of options for missions now, I believe. I also need to play around with the inventory system to make sure I'm doing everything correctly.

Some of my downloadable content is supposed to be in a home delivery box or something. I'll need to find that. I look forward to playing more.

 

The good:
-Graphics are fantastic.
-Combat is fun and brutally satisfying.
-Dialogue and having a "voice" is nice.
-Solid story thus far. Played for about 4-5 hours straight last night and completed a few quests and explored a dungeon. Unlocked all the downloadable content that came packaged with the game. I didn't pay extra but the content is worth the price.
-Cameos from DA:O characters. Sadly, no Morrigan. Whatever happened to her?

The bad:
-They killed character creation.
-They killed most of the RPG factor. Aside from yourself, you can no longer outfit your party members from head to toe. You can find new weapons for them and trinkets but they outfit themselves with armor. This was a huge drag to me. I liked being able to micro manage each of my party members in DA:O.
-You spend 95% of your time in the city and outskirts of Kirkwall. This is another big drag to me. I liked venturing across Ferelden in DA:O.

 

Should mention that I am playing on PS3.

(Side note: I know they made a lot of the changes to appeal to console players but I thought DA:O was perfect the way it was. A graphical update and the new combat system were the only real changes that could have improved upon an excellent game.)

 

It depends on your

Spoiler

class, warrior/rogue = brother dies, mage = sister dies