Dragon Age Origins Review November 09, 2009 Jacob Vandy

Dragon Age Origins Review

Page:: ( 1 / 6 )

There were seven Old Gods, great winged dragons that were said to have ruled over the ancient world. Scholars assume that the Old Gods must indeed have been real at one point, but most agree that they were likely actual dragons – ancient high dragons of a magnitude not known today, and impressive enough to frighten ancient peoples into worshipping them. Some even claim that these dragons slumber as a form of hibernation, not as a result of the Maker’s wrath.

To date, four of the Old Gods are said to have risen as corrupted archdemons: Dumat, the first and most powerful, was slain at the Battle of Silent Fields. Zazikel fell at the Battle of Starkhaven, Toth died at the Battle of Hunter Fell, and Andoral was felled by Garahel, the legendary Grey Warden, at the Battle of Ayesleigh.

The archdemons have been identified only after years of argument among scholars, and to this day it is unclear whether the archdemons were truly Old Gods and not simply dragons. All that is known is that the darkspawn hunt for them deep underground. If they are truly the Old Gods, as many scholars believe, then we have only three Blights remaining. When all the Old Gods have risen and been slain, however, what will happen? Will the Blights end forever, and humanity earn forgiveness from the Maker at last? We shall see.

- - From The Old Gods Rise Again by Sister Mary, Chantry scholar, 8:50 Blessed.
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Gameplay

Page:: ( 2 / 6 )

Similar to Knights of the Old Republic, you can only have 3 other NPCs in the party with you at one time, but you accumulate a larger staff of players with varying skill-sets to complement your own. Don’t worry about having to train them all, because companions you don’t use will be automatically leveled so that they don’t fall behind. Speaking of leveling, character development is far simpler than the old D&D system. You still have an array of base attributes like strength, dexterity, willpower, etc., but then you have a handful of skill proficiencies (combat, survival, crafting), and finally a variety of spells/talents that are class dependant. If you don’t want to bother with all of this, you can enable the auto-level option that will allocate points as is appropriate for that character’s build.

These aren’t the only things this game borrows from KOTOR, the general model of combat is also very similar, able to be carried out in real-time or by pausing the action to give orders to your party members. The ability to queue up several actions for each is sorely missed, though. Everybody has health points, but you also have stamina or mana depending on your class. All of them will regenerate very quickly outside of combat, but you must rely on potions or spells to replenish them at more than a snail’s pace while fighting. If a character falls, he may be resurrected by a spirit healer, or else will revive after the battle is over with a random injury. Of course, if your entire party falls, it’s game over.

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Gameplay (cont.)

Page:: ( 3 / 6 )

While the game world is rather large, it is not one contiguous environment. Instead, there are several cities, towns, and other areas that you access using the world map. There is no consistent measure of time, so travel is essentially instant, save loading times. However, chance encounters may occur along your route, with anything from a traveling merchant to a group of ambushing assassins showing up unexpectedly. As the existing DLC proves, this disconnected manner of presenting locales makes it easy to add new, different locations, and is sure to be taken advantage of by modders.

There are plenty of items and equipment to trade in Dragon Age, many of which are sporting unique attributes and/or appearances. You gain a bonus for wearing a complete set of the same type of armor, such as chainmail or studded leather, while certain weapons have slots in which to place runes that will add bonus damage or other special effects. It’s very easy and worry-free, too, since it doesn’t cost any money to install a rune and you can switch them around as often as you like. You’ll also find various materials that are used to create potions, poisons, and traps by a character with the appropriate skill. Gift items are clearly labeled, and you should make use of them, but anything else that doesn’t seem to have a practical purpose can be sold to vendors for extra coin.

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Controls

You are able to move about with WASD or by right-clicking on the ground, moving the camera around by holding the right mouse button. The default is a typical third-person “exploration view,” but you will find yourself sometimes wanting to zoom out to the isometric “tactical view.” From this RTS-like perspective, it’s easier to see enemy positions and formulate how you should proceed. Beyond that, you have the usual RPG fare such as a quickbar for easy access to skills and items, as well as various hotkeys to open menus like inventory, quest journal, map, character sheet, etc.

The Tactics Menu is used to assign directives to the AI that will be carried out when you are not in direct control of that party member. You specify a condition and the action that should be taken when that condition is met, i.e “use a healing item when your health drops below 25%.” It’s a neat idea, but you have only a limited number of tactic slots, as determined mostly by the Combat Tactics skill. This is a terrible thing, because you’ll often find yourself with fewer slots than abilities or other actions you want to assign to them.

By not allowing you to set as many tactics as you want, you’re forced to be more involved in micro-managing every character, or else you won’t meet your combat potential. You should be paying some attention to your companions, since there are some things you cannot tell them to do on their own. Some might say it’s fair to have to dedicate several skill points in order to effectively automate your allies, but on the other hand, shouldn’t the AI be doing such things independently to begin with, at least on lower difficulties?

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Consolitis?

None!

Seriously, this game is PC-first, and it shows. The interface, the controls, the graphics… we even have quicksave! The only thing I noticed that was most likely inspired by console necessity was the in-game DLC and online profile management. This makes it very easy to download and install extra content without closing the game, though you will need to quit to the main menu. It would be better if you didn’t have to go to the website to redeem codes or buy silly points, but still.

Graphics

Page:: ( 4 / 6 )

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Sound

Dragon Age features 100% spoken dialogue. Any time a character talks to you, it is heard, not read. Well, you can turn on subtitles, but you get the idea. With 144 actors total, each of the main characters can have their own, including your companions and other major players in the story. Some also do several voices for other smaller parts, but it was not noticeable except for the dwarves done by Steve Blum.

Giving a voice to every character in the game is a lot of work, but it was done very well. The result is an experience far more immersive than a game like Oblivion, where every NPC aside from Captain Picard and Alex Trevelyan sound the same as the rest of their race. Ambient conversations between party members can make exploration very entertaining, but there are a handful of phrases that are annoyingly repeated both in and out of combat.

The sound effects and orchestral score end up taking a backseat to the extensive voiceovers, but they aren’t lacking at all. Combat noises sound good, as they should, since they’re what you’ll hear the most. Sword clanging against sword, shield banging against armor, or my favorite, sword penetrating armor and slicing the poor bastard inside. Grunts, groans, and growls emanate throughout man and beast alike, interrupted by shouts, screams, and howls. Throughout it all, the larger-than-life battle music eggs you on to victory with war drums and booming crescendos.

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Ballistics Report

Page:: ( 5 / 6 )

Pros

Visceral combat provides a tactical challenge for those who seek it. Upping the difficulty level requires more thought be put into micro-managing your battle strategy, while Easy and Normal allow you to charge through with your party on auto-pilot.

Meaningful choices lead to many story branches and real consequences. A reckless decision could lead to the loss of an affected companion or worse.

The story and dialogue are well-written and compelling. The huge cast of voice actors bring it all to life. There is lots of humor where appropriate, and sometimes where it’s not.

Unbelievable amount of discoverable lore. Hundreds of codex entries are unlocked in your journal as you progress, or by finding associated items or books. If you’re the reading type, you’ll be very pleased.

Literally tons to do. If the main quest isn’t daunting in scale enough, there are a boat-load of side quests and exploring is encouraged.

PC version was given a lot of attention. Superior graphics, interface, and controls are to be found. Mod tools have been released already that allow you to create your own levels, quests, cutscenes, and more.

Cons

AI can be a bit dense. Pay close attention to the directives you assign them, as you might be responsible for undesired behavior. Pathfinding could use improvement.

DLC teaser characters seem out of place. Quest-givers exist even if you don’t own the content, and a dialogue option prompts you to purchase. I’m sure it seemed like a good idea at the time and was probably meant for console players, but it harshly yanks you right back to reality.

Quest bugs are plentiful but largely inconsequential. Many quest items won’t disappear from your inventory like they should. If you happen to make a choice that results in a quest-giver not being around anymore, the task remains in your journal, unable to be completed. No game-breakers or anything major like that, though.

Combat Tactics skill. It’s useless for your main character, who you will undoubtedly be controlling the most. It artificially limits the number of tactic slots, which are used to automate AI behavior.

Final Verdict

Page:: ( 6 / 6 )

FiringSquad says:

It took me 53 hours to beat Dragon Age for the first time… very few other single-player games have claimed as much of my life. Not only that, but according to the in-game statistics, I’ve only completed about half of what the game has to offer! I’m pretty sure it’s counting alternate story paths and the remainder of the 6 origins in that overall percentage, though, as well as at least a few side quests I probably missed. Still, that it takes that long to play through and yet makes me so eager to try a different class and explore alternate choices says a lot about how addicting and fun it is.

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