Hm. If Aveline's been confirmed not to be a romance, then yeah. Varric's not going to be romancable. I expect many threads to come up requesting a romance for him in Dragon Age III since there's no way he can actually die unless the story continues after Varric's narration.
Dragon Age 2
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A recording of the live chat that happened yesterday. Includes a nice, long clip from the beginning of Isabella's intro:
http://greywardens.com/2011/02/dragon-age-2-live-dev-chat-recap-finished/I gotta say, Isabella looks pretty damn awesome.
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FemHawke's voice can be heard in the live chat. For those interested in just that, here are all the instances where FemHawke speaks up:
DvViu42U1MM
Guess I'll be hearing it a lot~
There's a great lighthearted vibe around here, because no matter how serious we might get, we're all together because of some magical pirate.
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Why, Silence. Are you making a fem!Hawke?
And if you are, are going to go the bi route with Isabella?
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Why, Silence. Are you making a fem!Hawke?
And if you are, are going to go the bi route with Isabella?
I generally give both routes a try in games that offer them, but as a rule, in story driven video games where I can make my own character, I tend to make them women on principle? I really like strong female characters - protagonists all the more so. In pretty much the entirety of gaming, female protagonists are a far and few between - and the ones that aren't just T&A are a rare breed indeed. I'm as red blooded as any guy, but you get to be the young, tough, trash talker Don Juan REEL AMERIKAN HERO in pretty much every genre there is. Variety is the spice of life!
I find when I play, say, fem!Shep, or give the female route a try in Persona 3 Portable, I look at things from an entirely new perspective. It's fun, it's interesting, it's insightful! Here's a pretty excellent article which sums it up handily: http://kotaku.com/#!5598679/what-i-discovered-from-gaming-like-a-girl
Personally, male!Shep bored me to tears. Shaved head intergalactic space marines are snoozeville. His voice actor didn't help. Jennifer Hale MADE Mass Effect, for me. And made the experience much more interesting.
As far as the bi route goes, possibly! It'd be pretty hot, right? But who knows, I could surprise myself. I'll have to see what feels "right" for the character. I was aiming at Leliana on my first fem!Warden playthrough, but freaking Alistair. Freaking Alistair.
You understand.
There's a great lighthearted vibe around here, because no matter how serious we might get, we're all together because of some magical pirate.
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FemHawke's voice can be heard in the live chat. For those interested in just that, here are all the instances where FemHawke speaks up:
DvViu42U1MM
Guess I'll be hearing it a lot~
Hmm…Gotta admit. I expected a voice that was a lot more distinct. At the least, it doesn't have the 'Wow. I wasn't expecting that kind of voice.' that M!Hawke surprised me with. I'll probably do at least one playthrough with F!Hawke as well.
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I generally give both routes a try in games that offer them, but as a rule, in story driven video games where I can make my own character, I tend to make them women on principle? I really like strong female characters - protagonists all the more so. In pretty much the entirety of gaming, female protagonists are a far and few between - and the ones that aren't just T&A are a rare breed indeed. I'm as red blooded as any guy, but you get to be the young, tough, trash talker Don Juan REEL AMERIKAN HERO in pretty much every genre there is. Variety is the spice of life!
I find when I play, say, fem!Shep, or give the female route a try in Persona 3 Portable, I look at things from an entirely new perspective. It's fun, it's interesting, it's insightful! Here's a pretty excellent article which sums it up handily: http://kotaku.com/#!5598679/what-i-discovered-from-gaming-like-a-girl
Personally, male!Shep bored me to tears. Shaved head intergalactic space marines are snoozeville. His voice actor didn't help. Jennifer Hale MADE Mass Effect, for me. And made the experience much more interesting.
As far as the bi route goes, possibly! It'd be pretty hot, right? But who knows, I could surprise myself. I'll have to see what feels "right" for the character. I was aiming at Leliana on my first fem!Warden playthrough, but freaking Alistair. Freaking Alistair.
You understand.
Ahahahahahaha! Yes, very true. Oh Alistair. :wub:
Maybe you'll go for Anders, then. It depends on your fem!Hawke's stance on the Chantry, I think.
But yes, Jennifer Hale pretty much blew it out of the water. MaleShepard wasn't BAD, but he wasn't distinctive. It looks like man!Hawke and fem!Hawke are more balanced, voice-wise.
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Thanks for all the news posts guys.
Origins was one of my most played games this gen and can't wait for 2. I can't believe less than a month away…
Pre-ordered the sig edition in january.
I also like playing as females if the option is there but I'll always go male first.
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Also, we have Fenris's voice as well for anyone who's curious.
W4u8iHMXlgE
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@HiroVoid:
Also, we have Fenris's voice as well for anyone who's curious.
W4u8iHMXlgE
Is that the same voice actor as Balthier from FFXII?
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Is that the same voice actor as Balthier from FFXII?
Just found Balthier's voice. Yep. Sounds right. They even have the same accent in both games.
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Holy fuck. HOLY FUCK! IT IS!!!!!!!!!
That's Gideon Emery! Balthier from FFXII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OMG, the Bioware forums must be EXPLODING right now. rushes off
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More Awkward Zombie comics about Dragon Age?
More Awkward Zombie comics about Dragon Age.
There's a great lighthearted vibe around here, because no matter how serious we might get, we're all together because of some magical pirate.
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More Awkward Zombie comics about Dragon Age?
More Awkward Zombie comics about Dragon Age.
XD Alright. The traps I always found funny simply because of how easily you seemed to shrug them off, and everyone seems to have just acted like their shoe just got stuck on something.
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Must be those Dragonscale boots everyone is sporting.
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I don't think I have ever willingly made a character of opposite gender. Now I am giving this possibility a chance. Nonetheless, Isabella is huge.
Wait, people actually liked Alistair?
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Where have you been? Alistair has a fantatical fan-girl following.
Of which I am one. cracks knuckles
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Alistair is awesome. A little whiny, but you SHUT YOUR WHORE MOUTH
There's a great lighthearted vibe around here, because no matter how serious we might get, we're all together because of some magical pirate.
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Speaking of Alistair, Bioware made a semi-official announcement today by way of some screenshots.
Looks like Fenris and Merril are semi-confirmed as romance options:
http://greywardens.com/2011/02/a-thedas-valentine-romance-in-dragon-age-2/#more-11219Ahh, Elven Love. But still Bioware, GIMMIE ANDERS ALREADY!! And/or Sebastian!!
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Speaking of Alistair, Bioware made a semi-official announcement today by way of some screenshots.
Looks like Fenris and Merril are semi-confirmed as romance options:
http://greywardens.com/2011/02/a-thedas-valentine-romance-in-dragon-age-2/#more-11219Ahh, Elven Love. But still Bioware, GIMMIE ANDERS ALREADY!! And/or Sebastian!!
I like how they show more M!Hawke chest and F!Hawke cleavage then the actual LI.
Speaking of which, F!Hawke certainly seems…endowed in that image unless it's just another case of awkward camera position. Looks like she could give Isabella a run for her money.
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Don't look at me like that, I liked Alistair too… in a party with either Morrigan, Ohgren, Shale or Zevran. You know.
Actually, I believe, I always kept Alistair in the party since he was a perfect tank for my elven rogue Warden.
@HiroVoid:
Looks like she could give Isabella a run for her money.
But Isabella is huge.
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Also, this thread in the Bioware forums has Dev. posts to let you understand the characters better.
http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/141/index/6046067
Edit:Short impressions.
Isabella: Awesome.
Anders: Yikes.
Merrill: Seeing why she'll probably be cast out of her clan.
Fenris: Manly. Never thought i'd say that about an elf. -
Those short stories were pretty cool.
The waiting is killing me!
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@HiroVoid:
Also, this thread in the Bioware forums has Dev. posts to let you understand the characters better.
http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/141/index/6046067
Edit:Short impressions.
Isabella: Awesome.
Anders: Yikes.
Merrill: Seeing why she'll probably be cast out of her clan.
Fenris: Manly. Never thought i'd say that about an elf.Poor Anders. :sad:
Don't worry, mage. My Hawke will make everything better.
And of course Fenris is manly. He's voiced by Balthier.
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Bioware is making a six-part web series with Felicia Day (The Guild) called Dragon Age: Redemption.
http://dragonage.bioware.com/da2/feliciadayBoo. Yeah.
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Felica Day on Jimmy Fallon talking about The Guild and Dragon Age: Redemption, includes mini-trailer:
http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/video/felicia-day-2-16-11/1295315Jimmy seems like a closet geek.
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Felica Day on Jimmy Fallon talking about The Guild and Dragon Age: Redemption, includes mini-trailer:
http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/video/felicia-day-2-16-11/1295315Jimmy seems like a closet geek.
He's actually not very in the closet about it.
He's played video games on his show; had game developers and producers on before. He's probably one of a few really genuine AND open game nerds on TV.
There's a great lighthearted vibe around here, because no matter how serious we might get, we're all together because of some magical pirate.
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Nice. I wonder if he's played Dragon Age?
Bioware has sent a Call to Arms. 1 Million for the Demo:
http://greywardens.com/2011/02/one-million-strong-more-demo-dlc/#more-11288If the goal is met, we will be rewarded with two DLC items, two tomes that give money and XP when read.
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After reading the GameInformer preview I can officially say I'll get this (depending on reviews) after finding out that you actually control what you character does in combat instead of just pressing a button and waiting to see whose ass gets kicked.
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Gamespot has a sit-and-play with Mike Laidlaw, going over a chunk of Fenris' recruit mission:
http://www.gamespot.com/shows/now-playing/lol. For a lot of the dialogue scenes I could only think, 'SHUT THE FUCK UP MIKE AND LET ME LISTEN TO GIDEON EMERY!!!!"
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So I've played the demo. Twice now, actually.
The game keeps freezing up after I finish the fight with the big monster and the "real story" begins. Suffice to say, I'd really like to see what else the demo has to offer (and an unlockable weapon is such a tease).
Anyone else having issues?
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I didn't have any freezing issues, though I did have to reinstall Direct X11 inexplicably. Demo was fun, for what it was. I wish there were more conversation opportunities though. I also wish BioWare's servers would stop getting slammed so hard, so I can actually get credit for having done this thing.
I find that I inevitably have SOME sort of problem when trying to play a Bioware / EA game on my computer though: usually in the form of a bajillion bugs or lockup issues. I've never not. Not for this demo, though.
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Just finished the demo, no freezing occured, and it was quite awesome. Happy to have a hero with a voice, lack of that was one of the few things I didn't like in Origins. Battles are much more lively compared to Origins but it didn't bother me because I'm not hardcore micromanager. Can't wait to play the real deal.
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Ahh, got it working. Two words, window mode.
raises Hayden's Razor in triumph
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Am I the only one who's really disappointed? The ME dialogue is already painful enough but you can't even zoom out properly and the battles go way too fast. This might work with action-oriented games but DA was and will always be an RPG only (to me at least). What's it with Bioware and their wasting of potential? This is like NWN addons all over again. DA:O has worked so well there wasn't any need to change that much. And if they really want to do something new then how about better graphics for once? This is painful to look at seriously. Well, I won't waste my money on Dragon Effect.
Anyone else disappointed with this game already?
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I'm ok with it so far.
I didn't really care for Origin's take on dialog. Lord knows how many people just used walkthroughs or guides so they didn't have their people leaving/trying to kill them. As for combat, I'm ok with the new faster pace (btw, I'm playing it on PC). As a mage character I was constantly pausing the game to pick the best targets for my spells, so at least that part of the game is still there for me.
I'm still fairly optimistic at this point. Nothing deal breaking for me.
LOVE AND PEACE
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This post is deleted!
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I'm ok with it so far.
I didn't really care for Origin's take on dialog. Lord knows how many people just used walkthroughs or guides so they didn't have their people leaving/trying to kill them.
" I said something nice why are you mad at me?"
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I mostly agree but I was already somehow disappointed with the first Dragon Age. To clarify; my apex of rpgs are planescape torment & baldurs gate 2.
In terms of storyline, characters ..ok this is plenty unfair, since very likely no game will surpass planescape torment ever in that respect.. (maybe kotor 2 could have *sigh)
My beef is mostly with: "only you & your team of heroes that join you at the drop of a hat to fight against body horror orcs from under the earth"
It is well orchestrated DA (,.. MA & MA 2) but also extremely conservative.But my biggest problem is the combat system, it also is so boring! to me combat in an rpg should be complicated, and some encounters should require preparation, forward planning ie. a valid strategies to succeed (with as few resources as possible).
I kinda don't want to win against fire elementals without spells & potions of fire protection.
ok..the unmodded combat system in bg2 was pretty imbalanced/cheesy but still has soo many more variables/states that influenced each other.
for example the undead variations in bg 2: skeletons warrior, mummies & vampires
skeleton warrior: immune to most magic, immune to piercing, high dps
mummies: slow, tough against blunt, prone to fire, nasty sickness that can kill your guys during resting
vampires: fast, can charm/confuse your guys at range, melee level draining attack that is really really annoying & dangerous
I guess everyone will agree that depending on enemy concentration very different tactics/preparations are required.
..imho DA combat is mmh pretty bad, it keeps you occupied ok, but once you know fighter on the elite, mage disables ranged, rogue attacks what attacks mage is a pattern that pretty much always applies.Long story short I expected a lot of DA, and now not so much, DA 2 will be a good game but in my eyes certainly not a great one.
Has anyone else noticed that the DA2 main hero being able to open portals to the fade, strongly implies that he is possessed by a demon?
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Has anyone else noticed that the DA2 main hero being able to open portals to the fade, strongly implies that he is possessed by a demon?
I think so to, but I think his/her evil fiery eyes and the ability to rip monsters in half with incoporeal hands from the darkest pits of hell were more of a giveaway.
LOVE AND PEACE
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The "ripping in half" move is a new Mage spell, apparently. I don't know if it requires demon possession or not. Probably blood magic.
Angry Joe and his friend play some of the DA2 demo:
http://www.blisteredthumbs.net/2011/02/angry-joe-plays-dragon-age-ii/Joe is of the opinion that they should make this multi-player. To which I say, "NEVER!!!!!!!!!!!!" Dragon Age does NOT need to be multi-player, ever. Let them conserve all that memory space for more story/gameplay/whatever. Not every game needs a multi-player, and a game that's as story-focused as DA is certainly doesn't.
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Borderlands multiplayer worked mainly because it didn't have the luxury of having a compelling/engaging story or proper characterization how anyone thinks games should buck these element just so people can get in on the fun together I dont't know.
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After seeing the demo it feels pretty much like a Mass Effect reskin. (Like they did with Kotor & Jade Empire)
..oh well, it's still gonna be good.
The possession thing: it was kinda a really big deal to enter the fade in DA 1 with requiring a blood sacrifice or lyrium.. and now it goes whops there you go your personal ripkillportal.
Unless they break their continuity you have to possessed.. by a I guess not so nice demon, and that is pretty interesting. -
so I played the demo, and is Dragon Age 1 like Dynasty Warriors too?
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Having never played Dynasty Warriors I can't say, but in DAO the combat wasn't as fast-paced. It's the same at it's core, though.
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I really want to like part 2 for I enjoyed most of the first installment, albeit the lack of creativity considering enemies, gear and so on was a bit disappointing. But then again I know BioWare doesn't want to make another NWN or Baldur's Gate so I can overlook that. However the whole change in the fighting and dialogue system takes away the very essence of every rpg, it's not about fast action and pace but carefully thinking through the way you act in your environment.
I don't know maybe I'm just expecting too much. The whole industry changed after all most games aren't very story-oriented anymore because they can make up for it with better graphics (yet DA disappoints in that aspect too). Still I miss the good old days when a RPG really deserved its name because it required, well, role-playing. Maybe I'm just a geek I dunno :getlost:
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DA (and yes, even Mass Effect) still seems pretty damn story-oriented. Bioware is one of the few studios out there that really cares about it's writing.
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DA (and yes, even Mass Effect) still seems pretty damn story-oriented. Bioware is one of the few studios out there that really cares about it's writing.
Well, I don't say DA:O wasn't story-oriented enough because the origins story were implemented well throughout the game. However in the second game everything is already pretty much decided, your name, your race and your origins are already set up. The only thing you can decide is pretty much whether you want to be a guy or a woman the rest comes automatically with you choosing your class and so on. I don't know the whole setup is pretty stale in my opinion and not your classy RPG. To each their own though most people probably don't care all that much and will play it regardless because they are fond of DA:O and want to see how it goes on. But I will have to wait if part three -should it come to that- will change ways once again otherwise this franchise isn't for me anymore.
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After playing through the demo I really think there's a lot of potential. My single worry is that the difficulty of the PC version may get easier. It seems more action driven than DA:O. I have hope, though, that the higher difficulty levels still require the pause and dictate method that made me love the first game. It all seems flashier, cleaner, and less buggy, which is all great, but I really hope the challenge isn't sacrificed at the advanced end for those improvements.
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From what I hear anything over Normal you DEFINITELY need to pause and command.
Perusing the Bioware forums has dug up something interesting. Now, Anders apparently has a new voice actor. Fangirls were a little up in arms over that (they love Greg Ellis, as do I), but when pressured for the reason for the change, apparently the devs can't tell us cause it's a spoiler. And if you look at the full list of voice actors Greg Ellis is still listed. Damn, just what is going on with Anders!?
And in a non-sequitor, here's a funny fanart from the Bioware Grande Artiste, Aimo:
http://aimo.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d3aawtt
