Dragon Age 2

[Eusis]

Actually, now that I think about it I wonder if they're trying to go in a more Fable-esque direction? The idea of chronicling over 10 years IS a tip off, and an action RPG like that is probably easier to sell than a more traditional BG-style RPG.

[Uru]

Actually, now that I think about it I wonder if they're trying to go in a more Fable-esque direction? The idea of chronicling over 10 years IS a tip off, and an action RPG like that is probably easier to sell than a more traditional BG-style RPG.

Please dont make me sad...

[DM Kyle E. Miller]

Yeah, the details do sound a bit like what Fable III is trying to do. That worries me. The Fable series is such a joke and totally anti-RPG.

[GrimReality]

I, for one, wouldn't mind if they went the action/rpg route. I actually thought the first one was going to be an arpg until right before it came out. Plus, ME2 is a damn fine pedigree. I liked the first one enough, but it did have it's problems. WAY too many items for one. It just got so confusing, and resulted in gobs of time spent micro-managing everything. Unlike some people, I do not like this.
I have no problem with a Dragon Effect game.

[PaleRobbie]

I'm okay with a voiced character a la Mass Effect so long as they take away the Paragon and Renegade system.  I can't stand making such binary decisions.  I really like the "shades of gray" nature of Dragon Age.

I don't think we can make too much out from the art style just yet.  I would be okay with a more ethereal look.  If anything, the first first pieces have an Amano-like watercolor look that I am totally okay with. 

[Uru]

I think that The Witcher has been the only game so far to pull off "shades of gray". In DA, it was like make the merchant lower his prices or tell the people to fuck off.

[PaleRobbie]

I meant more along the lines of the werewolves in the Dalish forest, or the golems in Orzammar.  While there was certainly a tinge of evil in some of the potential outcomes, they weren't as blatant as, say, nuking a whole town in Fallout 3. 

I would really like to see DA2 incorporate choices that could really bite you in the ass.  Say for example you sided with the mages in the tower but then something bad happens as a result (maybe a really difficult fight or you could potentially lose a party member).  If you're going to give players choice then I want to see real consequence, both good and bad.  What if the golems went crazy and started attacking you if you used them during the final battle? 

[Darilon]

I would love to see some moral questions with no "right" answer. For example bandits capture 15 adults and 3 children. They force you to chose between letting the adults live or the children. If you take more than 10 seconds to choose they all die. If you get violent they all die.

In my experience in most WRPGs you are either a saint or a sinner.(ignoring The Witcher of course)

[Uru]

I meant more along the lines of the werewolves in the Dalish forest, or the golems in Orzammar.  While there was certainly a tinge of evil in some of the potential outcomes, they weren't as blatant as, say, nuking a whole town in Fallout 3. 

I would really like to see DA2 incorporate choices that could really bite you in the ass.  Say for example you sided with the mages in the tower but then something bad happens as a result (maybe a really difficult fight or you could potentially lose a party member).  If you're going to give players choice then I want to see real consequence, both good and bad.  What if the golems went crazy and started attacking you if you used them during the final battle? 

I get ya, I think this is something most of us would all agree on - we want to feel our decisions instead of being secondary to them.

[PaleRobbie]

We're hopefully going to talk a little bit about Dragon Age 2 during our podcast recording this weekend.  Not trying to pimp the show or anything, but it should prove interesting.

Okay, maybe just a little pimping...

[Parn]

I would love to see some moral questions with no "right" answer. For example bandits capture 15 adults and 3 children. They force you to chose between letting the adults live or the children. If you take more than 10 seconds to choose they all die. If you get violent they all die.

In my experience in most WRPGs you are either a saint or a sinner.(ignoring The Witcher of course)

Those kinds of situations were present in both Dragon Age and Mass Effect 2.

Perfect example in Dragon Age: the political situation in Orzammar with Harrowmont versus Bhelen.  It was a choice between nobility of actions versus nobility of intentions.  Bhelen's relentless quest for the throne as the third son in the royal family by getting rid of his father and two elder sons, as well as pursuing any actions possible to achieve power made him look like a bad guy up front, but then there's the other side of the coin: he wants to get rid of the caste system, the primary factor in why Dwarven society is in a state of decay whose influence and power is waning.  Harrowmont is a man of noble actions and appears as the good guy choice, but he stands for maintaining the status quo, i.e. Dwarven society will remain in its downward spiral because the caste system will remain in place.

Vote the ruthless progressive who wants to reform society to have equal opportunity for everyone, or vote the honorable traditionalist who will keep things the way they are.  Is there really a right answer?

[PaleRobbie]

Very good point, Parn, and I would love to see more of those kinds of choices in DA2. 

I still think we have to wait and see if these kinds of choices will have an effect in Mass Effect 3, however.  I didn't really see much cross over between ME1 and 2 outside of some dialogue, which was kind of a bummer.  Here's hoping that all of your choices will come together in a meaningful way in the final act of the trilogy. 

[Uru]

The thing I was getting at was that it didnt matter if you sided with Harrowmont or Bhelen, cause after you were "done" with Orzammar, that was it. When you beat the game you get a still image with some text saying that your choice didnt matter (ive only ever picked Harrowmont). I just want some weight to the decisions.

[PaleRobbie]

Right there with you, Uru.  Guess that means I agree with everyone here.  We need lots of moral choices, but we also want to see them play out in the context of the story and have a direct impact on what happens.  I think Bioware has a real chance to go in these desired directions by focusing on a single character.  While I'll certainly miss the personal feelings established in the origin stories, I'm excited to see what they will do with a single protagonist. 

[DM Kyle E. Miller]

What does everyone think of the new graphical style? It's definitely cartoonish. Check out Gameinformer.com if you haven't already. I'm not sure I like it more than the DA:O's graphics. It looks too much like WoW and not enough like a dark fantasy world. Perhaps Bioware is really falling.