Why the Game's Title Should Have Been Dragon Age: Impositions

Shamus Young

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Jul 7, 2008
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Why the Game's Title Should Have Been Dragon Age: Impositions

We are getting used to the idea of microtransactions, but virtually forcing players to buy health potions for multiplayer with real cash is a bit too much.

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Errickfoxy

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Jul 14, 2010
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Yikes. Considering all the good things I'd heard about DA:I, I'm surprised this hasn't come up. That sounds like a very.. unpleasant system.

Beyond that "you're letting your group down" mentality, I worry that it also results in people who don't pay in falling behind their friends who do pay in, so they're even more pressured to toss some cash in so they don't keep falling behind..
 

an annoyed writer

Exalted Lady of The Meep :3
Jun 21, 2012
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You know, this article sums up what my gripes with Mass Effect 3's multiplayer mode and why it left such a bad taste with me. And to make things even more annoying, they made character progression, customization options, consumables, character acquisition, and more all randomized, dragging out the timeframe of you getting anything even close to what you'd personally prefer in-game. "Want to play a Drell Vanguard with your favorite sniper rifle and pistol? Good luck! Maybe you'll get it after a bunch of games(and even then, you need to make it past a certain wave to get anything) oooooor you can pay us MONEY! for random drop boxes."
 

SlumlordThanatos

Lord Inquisitor
Aug 25, 2014
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Errickfoxy said:
Yikes. Considering all the good things I'd heard about DA:I, I'm surprised this hasn't come up. That sounds like a very.. unpleasant system.
I'm not too worried about it. Don't get me wrong, it's a absolutely shitty thing to do, but the reason this hasn't come up by now is because no one really plays the multiplayer. I clicked on it once to see what it was, but didn't even bother to play a match.

The solution? Simple: Don't play the multiplayer. Let EA know that we will pay money for good single-player campaigns and well-made DLC, but not for potions in the multiplayer that most people don't even play.

EDIT:

an annoyed writer said:
You know, this article sums up what my gripes with Mass Effect 3's multiplayer mode and why it left such a bad taste with me. And to make things even more annoying, they made character progression, customization options, consumables, character acquisition, and more all randomized, dragging out the timeframe of you getting anything even close to what you'd personally prefer in-game. "Want to play a Drell Vanguard with your favorite sniper rifle and pistol? Good luck! Maybe you'll get it after a bunch of games(and even then, you need to make it past a certain wave to get anything) oooooor you can pay us MONEY! for random drop boxes."
I think EA was trying to make lightning strike twice here. I kinda thought ME3's multiplayer wasn't that bad. Progression sucks, but it was fun to mess around with, and there was always something reasonably cool...even if it wasn't your favorite thing.

While I can kinda justify ME3's multiplayer, with it being a shooter and all, there is no excuse for shoehorning multiplayer into Inquisition. And since it is apparently riddled with microtransations, punish EA for putting it there by not playing it.
 

cynicalsaint1

Salvation a la Mode
Apr 1, 2010
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I think the problem is being overstated - I haven't tried playing the MP a ton, but I haven't had much of a problem running out of health potions just using all of my in game money on large chests.

You can only use 2 potions in a match, so its not like the game is based around spamming potions to win.

That said, yeah MP is kind of lack luster in DA:I, but I think the "strong arm you into paying real money for potions" thing is being overstated here. There are plenty of other things to complain about it.

I mean I'm not saying your 100% wrong or anything, but the potions aren't really the sticking point, if I were going to pick something to complain about with the micro-transactions it would be in relation to how the crafting system and getting better gear works.

At this point I'm actually surprised they aren't offering Dead Space 3 style resource packages for the single player crafting system.
 

Bad Jim

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Nov 1, 2010
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cynicalsaint1 said:
There are plenty of other things to complain about it.
And for each of those other things that can be complained about, this argument can be used to shout it down. So if we spend $60 on a game that has a million things wrong with it, we shouldn't be complaining at all, should we?
 

RedEyesBlackGamer

The Killjoy Detective returns!
Jan 23, 2011
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Errickfoxy said:
Yikes. Considering all the good things I'd heard about DA:I, I'm surprised this hasn't come up. That sounds like a very.. unpleasant system.

Beyond that "you're letting your group down" mentality, I worry that it also results in people who don't pay in falling behind their friends who do pay in, so they're even more pressured to toss some cash in so they don't keep falling behind..
People have to use something to complain about it.
 

cynicalsaint1

Salvation a la Mode
Apr 1, 2010
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Bad Jim said:
cynicalsaint1 said:
There are plenty of other things to complain about it.
And for each of those other things that can be complained about, this argument can be used to shout it down. So if we spend $60 on a game that has a million things wrong with it, we shouldn't be complaining at all, should we?
... You're kind of completely ignoring my point, which is that you seem to get enough potions through regular play, without needing to spend any real money on them - so when compared to the other, larger issues, the potions really don't matter too much - you know hence the word "overstated".

He's essentially harping on a theoretical problem which in practice really isn't as much of a hindrance as its being made out to be in actual play, when there are other actual issues that are. For example your performance online is much more heavily based on the gear you get which is entirely random ... and if you want to pay for gear - well that's entirely random too.
 

J Tyran

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Dec 15, 2011
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This has passed under the radar so far, first I've heard of it. I have been enjoying the game so far, its the Dragon Age sequel that DA2 could/should have been. Its got some niggles and issues but every Bioware has them, usually the good far outweighs the bad but this is pretty disgusting though.

I haven't and have no real intention to play the multiplayer, I would rather just play an MMO if I felt like multiplayer bot bashing but even then I think this is dreadful. No it won't matter to me but the fact they did this is what matters, its definitely one of the worst cases of multiplayer microtransactions cash grabbing.

I don't think even many of the worst Asian grind MMOs have tried this yet, its more like a mobile game F2P shenanigans... Except you have to buy the game for a full retail price...

Sure no-one is being forced into buying potions or playing the multiplayer but EA are selling the game with multiplayer as a significant piece of content, whether everyone plays MP or not or choose to buy potions is irrelevant as its included in the item you're buying and trying to "guilt trip" and use social pressure to get people to buy microtransactions is disgusting.

It also makes me wonder if this idea had anything to do with the removal of healing magic and the changes to the mechanics of health and healing in the game, I actually liked that but I wonder if they did so they could try and encourage health potion microtransactions in the multiplayer. Having healing mages in the single player but not the multiplayer and having the "option" to buy potions would have raised even more questions, by not having them at all it gives the impression of being a purely game design choice but after hearing about this "feature" in the multiplayer makes me wonder.

At least they didn't try to tie single player progression to multiplayer progression this time, although there is still a chance for that in some DLC or the next Dragon Age game. Some bullshit like having to have your Inquisition forces clear a bunch of ruins out to progress or get certain plot lines or equipment.

Up for some Thedas readiness statistics anyone?

cynicalsaint1 said:
At this point I'm actually surprised they aren't offering Dead Space 3 style resource packages for the single player crafting system.
Some of the crafting is a little annoying at times, maybe its because in the near future we will see DLC of "crafting packages" or Elite Inquisition resource gathering squads. It might even be to encourage simpl item pack DLCs like DA2s "mages pack" as getting good gear is annoyingly tedious at times, thing is anyone wanting to play Nightmare difficulty is going to need the good stuff (which the eight ability slots is going to hurt anyway).
 
Mar 9, 2012
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We're stepping ever closer to John Riccitiello's wet dream about charging money upfront for ammo in multiplayer...

Heck, with this we're even arguably there.
 

Something Amyss

Aswyng and Amyss
Dec 3, 2008
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an annoyed writer said:
You know, this article sums up what my gripes with Mass Effect 3's multiplayer mode and why it left such a bad taste with me. And to make things even more annoying, they made character progression, customization options, consumables, character acquisition, and more all randomized, dragging out the timeframe of you getting anything even close to what you'd personally prefer in-game. "Want to play a Drell Vanguard with your favorite sniper rifle and pistol? Good luck! Maybe you'll get it after a bunch of games(and even then, you need to make it past a certain wave to get anything) oooooor you can pay us MONEY! for random drop boxes."
ME3's model had nothing on this article and what it's talking about. Sure, it wasn't all sunshine and roses, but....
 

Something Amyss

Aswyng and Amyss
Dec 3, 2008
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Blachman201 said:
We're stepping ever closer to John Riccitiello's wet dream about charging money upfront for ammo in multiplayer...

Heck, with this we're even arguably there.
Why not? Destiny's already charging you for the rest of its story. That was another thing that was unthinkable when it was first suggested.
 

Shamanic Rhythm

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Dec 6, 2009
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With all the glowing reviews of Inquisition, I was momentarily stunned into thinking that EA had managed to release a game without one aspect of it being either broken or deliberately fucked up for the purposes of making money.

Good to see everything is back to normal.
 

Kekkonen1

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Nov 8, 2010
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Seriously, is this real? I didn't even know da:i had multiplayer. Would this be noticable to me that only wants to play singleplayer?
 

RicoADF

Welcome back Commander
Jun 2, 2009
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misogynerd said:
Wait, Greg Tito said that this game is the best game since Dragon Age 2! Is that not to be trusted?
It sounds like this is a MP only system, if Greg Tito only played SP then he would not have run into it and thus been unaware. From what I've seen this has flown under the radar and appears that most players don't even go near the MP anyway. Still a disgusting system though.
 
Mar 9, 2012
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Zachary Amaranth said:
Why not? Destiny's already charging you for the rest of its story. That was another thing that was unthinkable when it was first suggested.
I'd argue that episodic games are a whole different beast than charging real Earth currency for in-game ammo clips.