Dragon Age 2 article

[LewsTherin]

And here: [http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/141/index/3209421/9]
"I'm not really sure where the "there are only three options for dialog" impression they got came from. Perhaps it was when I showed one half of the dialog wheel with three options...which, you know, leaves another half open for...you know...other....options. *Shrug*



Also probably worth noting that we're not locked into specific icons per place in the wheel. Oh no. We have -much- more flexibility than that. We're like gymnasts."

So this might not turn out as turd-tastic as we have been led to believe. And there was much rejoicing.

Oh thank god. This already seemed bad enough, but then Irridium mentioned the impact this would have on BioWare's already poor approached to romance dialogue. Suddenly it was horrifying. This might actually be a good thing now, since it may clearly label which dialogue choices initiate a romance. Now that is an improvement, assuming they have non-romance dialogue that doesn't make you sound like a prick or have the character in-question perceive you as one (example; renegade points for telling Tali you weren't interested in her. wtf).

So I guess this just further reinforces the poor job the reporters did with this article.

I found that DA:O handled romances quite well. There were options from "Screw off" to "Lets just be friends" for rejection for the romances I've seen (Leliana and Morrigan). I'd say the article looks like nothing but IGN living up to expectations. Much awaiting the Escapists crack at it.

 

[latenightapplepie]

As for the game itself, I'm actually very disappointed with the direction DA2 is taking.

Likewise. Well, I'm not very disappointed so much as I'm a little bit anxious. I didn't really enjoy the deep, complex tactical combat in Origins, but I realise that there were others who did.

I think the game should remain deep, complex and unsimplified.

The Dragon Age franchise shouldn't be borrowing from the Mass Effect franchise. After Mass Effect 2, I believe there should be some of the opposite.

 

[Irridium]

[HEADING=1]GOOD NEWS EVERYONE![/HEADING]

Thats a really good to hear. Granted I still am rather skeptical, but at least this makes it possible its just the reporter's crappy writing.

Again, still skeptical.

Now that is an improvement, assuming they have non-romance dialogue that doesn't make you sound like a prick or have the character in-question perceive you as one (example; renegade points for telling Tali you weren't interested in her. wtf).

So I guess this just further reinforces the poor job the reporters did with this article.

Another example: Trying to just be friends with Jack. Seriously, what the fuck.

 

[Vanaron]

Spoiler

I am disappoint, bioware.

We also got to see the new conversation system. Dialogue has been simplified so that you only have up to three choices. Each choice is represented by an icon that indicates whether or it's a "good," "nasty," or "badass" choice. Good choices are represented by an olive branch, nasty by a Greek comedy mask, and badass by a red fist. This is an easy way to gauge what response your dialogue choices will produce.

............what.

I heard they were simplifying the dialogue system to be more like Mass Effects. I was disappointed by that since I didn't think Dragon Age: Origins really needed to be like Mass Effect, but I could tolerate it. But this is just stupid. Mass Effect doesn't restrict you to these specific dialogue options. What the hell happened to being neutral? What if I don't want to sound good, badass, or nasty? Can't I just have a normal conversation? This is a big step backwards. The more I hear about Dragon Age 2, the less I like it.

This passage made me lose a good portion of my interest in the game. Actually. If these changes are also in the PC version there will be a reckoning, and the Emperor's justice shall be made manifest, and the heretic shall tremble at his will.

EDIT: [HEADING=1]GOOD NEWS EVERYONE![/HEADING]
After perusing the comments, I have found a smidgen of hope linked from the Bioware forms, posts by the dev team:

Here [http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/141/index/3209421/4]
"We put up to 5 choice options and 5 investigate options per dialog node. There is also a difference between choices (where you are actually deciding something) and giving you the opportunity to express yourself in different ways (which I think is quite cool, but not something I believe we have released any details on yet)."

And here: [http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/141/index/3209421/9]
"I'm not really sure where the "there are only three options for dialog" impression they got came from. Perhaps it was when I showed one half of the dialog wheel with three options...which, you know, leaves another half open for...you know...other....options. *Shrug*



Also probably worth noting that we're not locked into specific icons per place in the wheel. Oh no. We have -much- more flexibility than that. We're like gymnasts."

So this might not turn out as turd-tastic as we have been led to believe. And there was much rejoicing.

Phew... Seriously, the dialog thing was the only thing I read on that article that made me go: "Ok... This is going to SUCK!". Everything else just reinforced my wait and see approach.

I have no problem with the ME style dialog (although I didn't mind the DAO one at all and even preferred it) cause it gives dialogs a bit more dynamicity (albeit at the cost of depth). I remain hopeful for DA2, I'm sure Bioware won't disappoint, and really the (imo) worst BW game is still better than the best CAPCOM one and I like CAPCOM games (/imo).

 

[Internet Kraken]

Now that is an improvement, assuming they have non-romance dialogue that doesn't make you sound like a prick or have the character in-question perceive you as one (example; renegade points for telling Tali you weren't interested in her. wtf).

So I guess this just further reinforces the poor job the reporters did with this article.

Another example: Trying to just be friends with Jack. Seriously, what the fuck.

Jack: Fuck off!

Seriously, why? What the hell did I do to you? Why is having sex with you somehow the magical cure for your mental problems, while any approach that does not involve a sexual relationship with the insane biotic utterly fail? It was ridiculous. Thing is, you can actually end the conversation with her and she will be pretty calm about it. But she will still tell you to fuck off less than a second later.

I found that DA:O handled romances quite well. There were options from "Screw off" to "Lets just be friends" for rejection for the romances I've seen (Leliana and Morrigan). I'd say the article looks like nothing but IGN living up to expectations. Much awaiting the Escapists crack at it.

While the game gives you the option to dismiss the romances, I'd rather not get into them in the first place. Throughout the game I just tried to be nice to Lelianna like any person with common courtesy would, yet she still somehow fell in love with me. I actually didn't even get the option to break up with her anyways since she confessed her love at the last possible moment in the game for her to do so.

Still, it was better than Mass Effect 2 in which Miranda became a love interest after 2 conversations.

 

[arcade109]

YOU WANT TO JUST BE FRIENDS!?!?!?!!? You rebel you, here's 10 renegade points


.........Ya, none of that. Mass Effect Two was good but seriously, wtf.

 

[Irridium]

Now that is an improvement, assuming they have non-romance dialogue that doesn't make you sound like a prick or have the character in-question perceive you as one (example; renegade points for telling Tali you weren't interested in her. wtf).

So I guess this just further reinforces the poor job the reporters did with this article.

Another example: Trying to just be friends with Jack. Seriously, what the fuck.

Jack: Fuck off!

Seriously, why? What the hell did I do to you? Why is having sex with you somehow the magical cure for your mental problems, while any approach that does not involve a sexual relationship with the insane biotic utterly fail? It was ridiculous. Thing is, you can actually end the conversation with her and she will be pretty calm about it. But she will still tell you to fuck off less than a second later.

And don't even get me started on how awful it would be wearing a bra made out of belts. Honestly, its bad enough to wear it in battle, but to wear it in OUTER FUCKING SPACE is just ridiculous. I could go on, but that would detract for the general Dragon Age conversation.

So in the spirit of the Dragon Age conversation, $20 says that female in the pictures is going to be a romance requirement interest.

 

[Vanaron]

Now that is an improvement, assuming they have non-romance dialogue that doesn't make you sound like a prick or have the character in-question perceive you as one (example; renegade points for telling Tali you weren't interested in her. wtf).

So I guess this just further reinforces the poor job the reporters did with this article.

Another example: Trying to just be friends with Jack. Seriously, what the fuck.

Jack: Fuck off!

Seriously, why? What the hell did I do to you? Why is having sex with you somehow the magical cure for your mental problems, while any approach that does not involve a sexual relationship with the insane biotic utterly fail? It was ridiculous. Thing is, you can actually end the conversation with her and she will be pretty calm about it. But she will still tell you to fuck off less than a second later.

And don't even get me started on how awful it would be wearing a bra made out of belts. Honestly, its bad enough to wear it in battle, but to wear it in OUTER FUCKING SPACE is just ridiculous. I could go on, but that would detract for the general Dragon Age conversation.

So in the spirit of the Dragon Age conversation, $20 says that female in the pictures is going to be a romance requirement interest.

I'll take that bet.

 

[Cody211282]

This is were they lost me.

"Today we got a taste of the new combat system with a mountaintop battle against an army of orcs. They might have been imps or goblins or demons, actually. We're not nerdy enough to know the difference."


Then why the hell are you reporting on this?

Also it looks like they are making the combat easier for the consoles, good for them, but since I play on a PC I sorta want it to stay the way it was.

 

[arcade109]

Now that is an improvement, assuming they have non-romance dialogue that doesn't make you sound like a prick or have the character in-question perceive you as one (example; renegade points for telling Tali you weren't interested in her. wtf).

So I guess this just further reinforces the poor job the reporters did with this article.

Another example: Trying to just be friends with Jack. Seriously, what the fuck.[/quote]

Jack: Fuck off!

Seriously, why? What the hell did I do to you? Why is having sex with you somehow the magical cure for your mental problems, while any approach that does not involve a sexual relationship with the insane biotic utterly fail? It was ridiculous. Thing is, you can actually end the conversation with her and she will be pretty calm about it. But she will still tell you to fuck off less than a second later.
[/quote]

And don't even get me started on how awful it would be wearing a bra made out of belts. Honestly, its bad enough to wear it in battle, but to wear it in OUTER FUCKING SPACE is just ridiculous. I could go on, but that would detract for the general Dragon Age conversation.

So in the spirit of the Dragon Age conversation, $20 says that female in the pictures is going to be a romance requirement interest.[/quote]

I'll take that bet.[/quote]

Well they said that your characters sister is gonna be a mage so I think that who the chick is........ But don't rule out the romance interest, it would definatly garner some publicity lol jk

 

[Internet Kraken]

And don't even get me started on how awful it would be wearing a bra made out of belts. Honestly, its bad enough to wear it in battle, but to wear it in OUTER FUCKING SPACE is just ridiculous. I could go on, but that would detract for the general Dragon Age conversation.

So in the spirit of the Dragon Age conversation, $20 says that female in the pictures is going to be a romance requirement interest.

You mean this one?

I'm guessing that's either a villain or Morrigan 2.0 (though one could argue that they are both the same). I'm leaning towards villain due to the black color and random spikes. Amusingly, her outfit is not as impractical and out-of-place as Jack's, considering Jack is in a game where everyone wears bulky armor, weird "future" clothes, or skin tight jumpsuits.

Here's a question; where the hell is she supposed to be in that picture? The smokey badlands?

 

[Mimssy]

We also got to see the new conversation system. Dialogue has been simplified so that you only have up to three choices. Each choice is represented by an icon that indicates whether or it's a "good," "nasty," or "badass" choice. Good choices are represented by an olive branch, nasty by a Greek comedy mask, and badass by a red fist. This is an easy way to gauge what response your dialogue choices will produce.

............what.

I heard they were simplifying the dialogue system to be more like Mass Effects. I was disappointed by that since I didn't think Dragon Age: Origins really needed to be like Mass Effect, but I could tolerate it. But this is just stupid. Mass Effect doesn't restrict you to these specific dialogue options. What the hell happened to being neutral? What if I don't want to sound good, badass, or nasty? Can't I just have a normal conversation? This is a big step backwards. The more I hear about Dragon Age 2, the less I like it.

That's the single worst thing they could have done to the game (in my opinion). I HATED that about Mass Effect. It's boring, obnoxious, and for me kills the game. I'd rather have a silent character than be given such a god-awful dialogue system.

 

[saphirekosmos]

Actually on the bioware forums the lead Dev and writer came out and said some of the things he said were wrong.

 

[arcade109]

Actually the gray haired chick is Flemeth. Apparently she is gonna be in this one also even though I stabbed her in the face in DA:O. According to Gamestar and the DA wiki at least.

 

[TsunamiWombat]

Dragon Age was a stellar game but lacked a tactile element. Gameplay was the simple issuance of orders, and could be run on autopilot with properly assembled tactics. As no point did I feel, or have I felt, like an epic hero, except in the rare cases the plot divested my character of their party.

Dragon Age needed something more visceral to draw players into the experiance, and a more action oriented approach is the way to go.

Simply put, this article is atrocious. The writer is snide and ill informed. The article in Game Informer does a great job of explaining, and showing, what is changing, and WHY.

Point 1: Bioware doesn't want to "improve the graphics". They want to improve the visuals - this means, not a souped up engine, but a change in art design. The screenshots i've seen seem to favor a sheened, unoutlined appearnce, not unlike a graphic novel. Fear not, as the game does not appear to be HEAVILY stylized, so it's not completly removing itself from the 'realism' it portraye befor.

Point 2: This "preview" is of the 360 vers, which is being designed from the ground up for the 360 specifically. There will be no porting this time. Which means the new input system is specifically intended to make the game more accessable on the 360. The PC's systems and input will be entierly different, likly utilizing a similar approach to the first.

Point 3: The new named and voiced protag with the ME style dialogue system is intended to bring the system forward. The voiceless protagonist system was antiquated and an immersion breaker. The ME system, which is NOT as simplistic as this previewer is making it out to be, gives the cast an anchor to work with and makes for a more visceral gameplay experiance.

Of course, I realize none of you actually care about this. Failboys will always cry fail, haters will always hate. You'll swear up and down how horrible this game has become until it comes out, at which point you'll buy it and have a higher then average chance of loving it, because it's motherfucking Bioware, and they don't make bad games.

OH, AND KOTAKU HAS A MUCH BETTER ARTICLE

http://kotaku.com/5585473/dragon-age-2-following-in-mass-effects-footsteps

 

[Fire Daemon]

I'm glad that Bioware are implementing their patented wheel system because if you want to go voiced dialogue that is the way to go but I'd still rather for the main character to not be voiced. I don't get how it was an all important immersion breaker, I felt that it added to the immersion of the final product. In Mass Effect I automatically select Paragon or Renegade without paying much attention to what was going to be said because I'd already envisioned what my character would be like.

In Dragon Age however I would read through every dialogue option and wouldn't always choose the good or the bad but rather pick what best suited the situation and what I would personally say in that situation, more immersing myself into the game. The lack of voice acting further emphasized this but not making me feel like I'm watching Shepard or however talk, but that I'm the one talking. This is probably what made me really like Dragon Age and it's a shame that I wont see it in the sequel but oh well, I'm sure it'll still be a good game.

I just hope that the story is better than the first one.

EDIT: Oh and that article is a piece of shit. I was linked to it from TvTropes last night and I still can't get over how IGN could publish something that bad. I know that IGN sucks but you'd think someone would look at it and go 'this is a piece of shit, fix it' or your fired. What sort of a dipshit says that they aren't nerdy enough to know the difference between an orc and a goblin on a fucking review for a fantasy videogame? Great job insulting those that actually know about what you're reporting on.

 

[Lizardon]

OH, AND KOTAKU HAS A MUCH BETTER ARTICLE

http://kotaku.com/5585473/dragon-age-2-following-in-mass-effects-footsteps

These people haven't even seen the preview yet they sound more informed than the others.

I didn't like what I was hearing about the combat till but they're keeping the PC combat the same and only editing the console combat.

I think telling us which is the good/bad options is a bad idea as you will no longer have to work out how a character would respond to your commets based on how they've been characterised. There is a part in Awakening when you're talking to the elf (I forget her name). She was sad because her mentor didn't make her a Keeper. I told her I thought she wuld have been a great Keeper (the good option) and she yells at me for assuming to know more than her teacher.

 

[hazabaza1]

EDIT: [HEADING=1]GOOD NEWS EVERYONE![/HEADING]
After perusing the comments, I have found a smidgen of hope linked from the Bioware forms, posts by the dev team:

Here [http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/141/index/3209421/4]
"We put up to 5 choice options and 5 investigate options per dialog node. There is also a difference between choices (where you are actually deciding something) and giving you the opportunity to express yourself in different ways (which I think is quite cool, but not something I believe we have released any details on yet)."

And here: [http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/141/index/3209421/9]
"I'm not really sure where the "there are only three options for dialog" impression they got came from. Perhaps it was when I showed one half of the dialog wheel with three options...which, you know, leaves another half open for...you know...other....options. *Shrug*



Also probably worth noting that we're not locked into specific icons per place in the wheel. Oh no. We have -much- more flexibility than that. We're like gymnasts."

So this might not turn out as turd-tastic as we have been led to believe. And there was much rejoicing.

Oh, jesus fuck, thank you so much for posting this. I got really disappointed all of a sudden, but now I feel much better. Thanks again.

OT: With the other subjects, 1) That article was shite on a stick. "Durr, maybe it were ocrs, ah dunew, I jus leik cutten thungs"
And 2) Didn't Bioware say that they were making the game more hack-and-slashy for consoles only, and PC keeping the tactics based combat? I think I read about that a while back somewhere.

 

[Ironic Pirate]

GI was implying that the PC version would have combat more or less like the first game.

Consoles would get the ARPG treatment.

Lemme see if they have the article up online...

 

[MarsProbe]

Actually the gray haired chick is Flemeth. Apparently she is gonna be in this one also even though I stabbed her in the face in DA:O. According to Gamestar and the DA wiki at least.

Flemeth? That can't be right surely. Considering Flemeth was rather old, not to mention the fact that a number of DA:O players may remember Flemeth

Spoiler

turning into a dragon and doing her best to kill the party

.

Also, just what is up with the left arm?

Anyway, quite liking the look of the box art for the game, at least it looks better than Mass Effect 2's vanilla packaging...