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[Deon]

Yes, as I said the combat is really great. A part of me which wanted some high-quality action is totally satisfied, however a complex RPG quest-loving part is not .

[Tilla]

This is so very, very Electronic Arts. Bluh

[Deon]

It's the console-market ruled world, that's what it is .

[EmperorNuthulu]

I would like to see how EA runs their dev teams, I have a feeling there is some very weird bureaucracy Q.A. aspect of it that has to meet some strange goals.

 I imagine it involves whips, carts and a temple of doom. Also thanks for this, I was thinking of getting a Dragon age game, so now I'm probably going to go for the first game instead.

[Deon]

If you like 3rd person fighting games and jRPGs, then the second one is a solid choice.

If you are a fan of the Baldur's Gate 2 and Neverwinter Nights, then you should definitely pick the first over the second.

[Shadowlord]

The bright side, this game ran much much much more smoothly than Dragon Age Origins (I've finished it to 80% and quit because too much sluttering...)

The moral of the story: If you get in a "relationship" with Morrigan, expect sluttering. Wait, no, that can't be right.

I'm definitely disappointed they decided to go this way for DA2, and thus will be watching to see how Skyrim turns out instead of getting DA2. Side note: 84 score for DA2 on PC on Metacritic currently, compared to a 3.5 user score. Apparently the critics think this is all great - hell, PC Gamer gave it a 94 ("The best RPG combat ever. Not gaming's best story, but maybe its best storytelling. Darker, sexier, better.").

[Cecilff2]

Hello EA, so good to see you

[debvon]

My meaningless opinion on the game. Possible spoilers

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I've played a ways through this and I've just entered the deep roads, I'm not sure if that's near the end or what. I sure hope not.. otherwise I'll be extremely disappointed. Looking past the amount of game content however, I'm pretty happy with it. Mages no longer look like blundering idiots wielding sticks and wearing silly hats in combat, in fact the staff attack animation is fairly badass. So are most of the spell animations. And while they also took a whole new approach on melee animation, I don't think it's.. too bad. I definitely prefer the 'realistic' take on melee that Dragon Age: Origins provided, but at least it looks nice as its own style, right?

The interface isn't terrible either. In my opinion the ability screen has been improved, so has the overall mechanics of leveling up and assigning points. As for items and inventory management, though.. let's just say that I dislike them a lot. They've practically (and I know some people are getting tired of hearing this phrase) dumbed down that aspect of the game in a painfully large way. No longer can you give your companions specific sets of armor.. no longer can you view your inventory as a sort of backpack, now it's more like a set of recycling bins containing colorless plastic. Everything about it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Combat itself is not bad or "button mashy" as some would say. It definitely doesn't have the same feel as Origins did, that's for sure. In Origins, many battles felt like the brink of death. Fighting to endure and survive waves of enemies. Looking towards my tank as if he were some sort of insanely skilled leader, my healer as if they were some godly savior. Now it's just.. an arcade game? More waves of enemies simply means more AOE and crowd control. There's no moment where I pause the game and admire the bloody scene before me. Not even when my mage is raining fire and death down upon everyone.. that in its entirety IS disappointing, but again, it's a new style that I can live with.

The travel system is interesting. While it's slightly similar to Origins, you no longer encounter 'surprises' between destinations. At least I haven't yet.. and I don't know how to feel about that. What I do know is that there are less places to travel to, and that directly relates to the amount of game content we're given. If I'm right in guessing that the map containing Mt. Sunder and the city is the only map we're given to explore, then there is definitely a LOT lacking. Are some right in assuming that DLCs will start pouring in, and expansions too? I don't know. I sort of hope so, though I know that I won't be paying for them. In my eyes I've already bought this game, and nything they release later to add to it should be acknowledged as "things they forgot to put in originally."

All in all I'm not surprised. While I do enjoy playing the game it definitely doesn't have the same feel to it as Origins did. Though I don't favor the style of it, it's not all bad. It's short and feels restricting but otherwise it's a fun distraction. A decent toy to play with while Skyrim is being created, anyway.

[diamok]

One of the first "annoying" things I actually noticed was in the dialog and character interaction.  As the pic above shows, there are multiple options (usually) for interactions...I actually really like this system for conversations/dialog.  What I do not like though, is it's the exact same format as Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2, and as I've just seen via a google search, the same as "The Old republic".

But it really isn't even that, it was the wording that made me really lose respect for what I thought was a good company (Bioware).  The wording, as in "Investigate" is used in at least ME 2 and DA 2.

Now I understand if you've got a great mechanism you want to keep using it, but at least change your word options from genre (sci-fi) to genre (fantasy) for gods sake.  Hell, who knows what other games Bioware has released and or will release with that same option.  LAME!!!

BTW, play ME 2....MUCH better game.
Take care,

[breadbocks]

Fucking EA. I got DAO with all the expansions (For the price of one game. Sweet ass deal.) the day before this came out locally. I'm glad my stop at the store was before this came out. Now I don't have to waste my cash.

[Hanzoku]

I'm a bit sad to see these reviews, mostly because it seems like Bioware has a nasty habit with their franchises that the second game is far worse then the first one, at least in recent years. I used to blame this on Obsidian Entertainment, as they would do the follow up games, but since this one is straight from Bioware, I guess it's just a habit for them now.

Anyway, I played the original Dragon Age, and I thought it was a great game overall, even if I never got into the downloadble content. I'll be giving Dragon Age 2 a miss until it's a budget game then, since I don't like paying full price for a game that I can fully beat inside 20 hours.

[MetalSlimeHunt]

Well, uh...

I guess I won't bother with Dragon Age 2, then. Thanks for warning me. I can only hope Bioware doesn't screw up Mass Effect 3.

[Pnx]

I'm not actually disappointed.
I was never that fond of Dragon Age: Origins. I think it was the level scaling that did it for me... Sure it had a nice expansive storyline, but going out, adventuring, leveling up, getting stronger. Feels utterly pointless when everything levels to keep pace with you. A level 5 character will generally fare just as well as a level 20 character. There was the brief feeling of awesomeness at the end when you get kill hundreds of grunts... But again, only because they're scaled to be that way, it makes getting a sense of accomplishment very difficult for me, and I predicted that this game wouldn't do any better... I hate being right.

[umiman]

I think my biggest problem with DA2 is the simple fact that I don't feel connected to my character at all. This is the same as in Mass Effect where I'm not controlling my persona. I'm controlling Hawke. This wasn't too bad in Mass Effect simply because my Shepard has been the same Shepard the whole series. Not to mention the cast is a lot more entertaining... for the most part.

Dragon Age Origins had me spend over 100 hours with my persona. My self created character who did so many awesome things and saved the country and what not and made all these connections etc. Now they throw me into the shoes of someone I don't care about and can't relate with. I would like to relate with him, but the plot in DA2 is so short and sparse that I'm not given the opportunity. I felt like the whole thing was a sidequest from the main Warden plot where we merely temporarily follow the adventures of a future sidekick.

Also, my Dwarf Noble Warden could kick Hawke's ass.

Pnx: I am unaware there was any level scaling to speak of in DA:O. Pretty sure that was Oblivion. I should know, I cheated like mad and never noticed any scaling.

[Deon]

There is, but it's not that noticeable as in Oblivion.