Dragon Age: Inquisition Patch Aims to Fix Shoddy PC Controls

[Steven Bogos]

Dragon Age: Inquisition Patch Aims to Fix Shoddy PC Controls

Dragon Age: Inquisition's first post-launch patch aims to address the shoddy controls and UI of the PC version.

When PC gamers were first offered a glimpse of Dragon Age: Inquisition [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/tag/view/dragon%20age%20inquisition?os=dragon+age+inquisition], we rejoiced the return of Dragon Age: Origins' tactical mode. Unfortunately, when we actually got the game in our hands, many PC gamers complained that the tactical mode was full of bugs, didn't zoom out far enough, and had very shoddy controls. Bioware is aiming to address this issues with Patch 2, the game's first post-release patch.

"Patch 2 is focused on stability, but does include numerous improvements and fixes across the board," wrote Bioware in a blog post [http://blog.bioware.com/2014/12/08/upcoming-patches-and-features-for-dragon-age/]. The post mentions fixes to numerous PC control & UI issues, fixes to some hitching, improved Mantle performance, and graphical glitches.

"Patch 2 includes the first range of fixes towards addressing the feedback we've received on the PC controls; it cleans things up so you'll see fewer problems with the current layout. This gives us a more stable base upon which to work. After Patch 2 goes out, our next priority is to improve the PC mouse/keyboard controls further. We're investigating how to expand on PC usability and functionality to address specific requests from the community."

Patch 2 will roll out on PC, PS3, PS4, and Xbox 360 on December 9, 2014, with the Xbox One release date still TBD.

Looking forward, Bioware promises that "We'll be creating new features and content and adding them into your game over time because we love our DAI players. Multiplayer will also be receiving regular content updates."

Good to see Bioware acknowledging and addressing the game's PC issues, but it really should have sorted these out before launch.

Source: Bioware [http://blog.bioware.com/2014/12/08/upcoming-patches-and-features-for-dragon-age/]

Permalink

 

[Vault101]

I bareley ever use tactical but whenever I did I was like "uggghhh! why can't I just pan around with the mouse like anormal person!!??" which I know you can but its tedious...it felt like I needed to use a controller

I also kind of wish I could have free mouse control with the camera, its annoying trying to get the proper view so I can close a fade rift

EDIT: oh look..its rolling out on my birthday...thanks Bioware!

 

[Adultratedhydra]

Something that controls well instead of controlling like a drunk on a unicycle in the tactical view would be wonderful and its glad to see they are working on that. The first time i went into the tactical camera it was just like. "Well this in unwieldy and it feels like theres a boat load of mouse acceleration going on." So i havent used it since but multiple battles i would have liked to as it feels clunky switching from normal view to a mage just to dispel the rifts and then go back to the PC.

 

[Imre Csete]

That's cool and all, but if the 8 skill slot limit and the lobotomized companion tactics stays in, it's still going to be rubbish.

 

[Xcaliber]

Glad that they're doing this. It was literally the very first thing I tried (and was subsequently disappointed with). Too bad I already finished my main playthrough... and also that the tactics system is too simple to really ever need tactical view.

Though perhaps this will get me to try the really hard modes.

 

[mad825]

Glad that they're doing this.

And the question on everyone's mind is: Why now and not before?

Even though this is good news, it still raises many many questions about Bioware's attitude towards PC gamers and their development cycle.

 

[Tsun Tzu]

Fiiiiiiiiinally.

Maybe I can actually get into playing it now without it feeling so damned off.

 

[small]

im glad i decided to wait before i got it. with this news they will have themselves a sale next week

 

[Xcaliber]

Glad that they're doing this.

And the question on everyone's mind is: Why now and not before?

Even though this is good news, it still raises many many questions about Bioware's attitude towards PC gamers and their development cycle.

Oh I absolutely agree. When I realized that the tac cam was restricted by roofs (and thus nothing like the DA:O tactical view), I was pretty shocked that anyone was claiming this was closer to DAO than DA2. One of my first thoughts about the gameplay was "Oh, this is still basically a console port."

In any case, I am even more convinced that I would have hated DA2, if DAI's "return to the roots" is any metric to go by.

 

[TravelerSF]

YOSH! FINALLY! Now I can at last advance the main plot without my badass, scarred warrior woman chancing her voice into Princess McGirlie Pixie Pix. Though I understand that with such an expansive game it might be challenging to iron out all the bugs, this really shouldn't happen. I do wonder if it's laziness, or if there's something to the testing process I don't understand.

 

[Adultratedhydra]

Glad that they're doing this.

And the question on everyone's mind is: Why now and not before?

Even though this is good news, it still raises many many questions about Bioware's attitude towards PC gamers and their development cycle.

I imagine the conversation was probably:

Bioware employee 1: Well john looks like our DRM is about to be cracked.

BE2: Yes bill we should probably actually fix the PC version since people might actually be playing it now.

As for Biowares attitude to PC? They're like most devs at the moment, It's cooler to hate on PC than it is to cater to them. It's times like these im glad CDProjekt exists.

 

[Nixou]

And the question on everyone's mind is: Why now and not before?

Probably because some suits at EA said "the game will be released 6 weeks before christmas, finished or not: you'll fix it after the suckers customers paid their tithe bought the product."

Then again, Origins was such a cornucopia on glitches (plus the interface was shitty as hell) on consoles that I can't help but feel a little schadenfreude reading about the PC woes...

 

[Fdzzaigl]

Good. I've learned to use tactical regardless, but it's mostly the annoying bugs that are the only thing to drag the game down for me.

You don't really need to spend a ton of time in tactical cam though, not even on nightmare. After you unlock specializations and get some gear, the game becomes infinitely easier because of the lolwtf damage you put out.

Which is another negative honestly, I want satisfying difficulty (it did have that before level 10).

Still, it's a great game that mostly just keeps on giving. I'm at 80 hours or so now with no end in sight (still haven't touched Exalted Plains, Emprise Du Lion and Hissing Wastes).

 

[Ferisar]

Good. I've learned to use tactical regardless, but it's mostly the annoying bugs that are the only thing to drag the game down for me.

You don't really need to spend a ton of time in tactical cam though, not even on nightmare. After you unlock specializations and get some gear, the game becomes infinitely easier because of the lolwtf damage you put out.

Which is another negative honestly, I want satisfying difficulty (it did have that before level 10).

Still, it's a great game that mostly just keeps on giving. I'm at 80 hours or so now with no end in sight (still haven't touched Exalted Plains, Emprise Du Lion and Hissing Wastes).

I will say that you're closer than you think, as those 3 aren't "large" zones.

But yeah, same gripes. Difficulty scales awkwardly, even on the higher ends, which reflects poorly on the tactical gameplay/camera since it's almost never necessary outside of key moments. If that's what they were going for, it wasn't communicated very well through the pace of the game.

I don't think it diminishes the actual game that much, but the playing thereof is a little less than satisfactory is the result. I enjoyed my first playthrough quite thoroughly, just either ignoring or under-employing some features because they seemed to stand in the way of me playing rather than enhancing my time with it. Still easily GOTY for me, but, that's me.

 

[Nixou]

You don't really need to spend a ton of time in tactical cam though, not even on nightmare. After you unlock specializations and get some gear, the game becomes infinitely easier because of the lolwtf damage you put out.

Overpowered high level characters you make a mockery of the late game are a Bioware tradition: you had it in Kotor, in Jade Empire, in the other Dragon Ages... Mass Effect 3 was the only game to avoid it (at least on the highest difficulty) because of the ton of instakilling ennemies found on Earth, (also because I loved to have my Vangard Shep finishing the Banshees with a Charge/punch combo: incredibly risky, but oh so cathartic.)

 

[Denamic]

So what about the DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_HUNG crashes that a lot of people, including me, keep getting in cutscenes and cinematic dialogues? I kinda want that fixed above all else.

 

[Somethingfake]

I'd really like it if they fixed a game *before* releasing it. You know, just to shake shit up. For once.

 

[Uhuru N'Uru]

Usual AAA Publisher bollocks, release on "The Optimum Sales Date" whatever the state of the game.
Patch later only if we must, and even though PC patch was ready long ago, we had to wait for console Patch approval.

So why is XBox One not included, MS foot dragging, is my guess and the accountants have said we are now losing too much money and XBox One isn't important enough to delay all other platforms on it's own, at this moment, it's unlikely any single platform is dominant enough for to delay the patch on the others.

Contrast that attitude to the Witcher also scheduled for November release, first delayed to february, Now set back until May, according to marketing wisdom The Death Zone for game releases.

Yet becuase the developer, probably as all developers will, wants to release a polished complete game, it gets delayed.
Difference is no Publisher telling CD Projekt Red they must release in November and screw the fans.
EA and Ubisoft are the worst, but all publishers don't care about the quality of the game at all, if they weren't trying to sell DLC, many games would never be patched at all.

It won't change until the customers stop preordering this rubbish, because they preorder, they get rubbish.

 

[daibakuha]

I'd really like it if they fixed a game *before* releasing it. You know, just to shake shit up. For once.

The game isn't broken, and is far from it. Unity and MCC are far more broken.