Dragon Age: Golems of Grimdark ( Game news )
posted by Jason on Thu 29 July 2010, 10:14:25
More info on Dragon Age - More info on BioWare
Even while the Dragon Age 2 hype is gearing up, BioWare is not neglecting its current cash cow. Say hello to Dragon Age: Golems of Amgarrak.
Delve deep underground to save a missing dwarven expedition in search of ancient secrets for creating monstrous constructs. Only you can uncover the gruesome fate that befell them.
Put your Warden back in action and adventure through new environments, meet new characters and defeat never before seen creatures. With an engrossing new storyline and challenging puzzles this is one add-on you don't want to miss!
- Import your character from Origins or Awakening or create a new, high-level hero!
- Face an all-new terrifying creature
- Earn powerful rewards that transfer into your Awakening and Origins campaign
- An advanced challenge for even the most experienced adventurers
There are 27 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
BioWare working on DarkSpore ( Game news )
posted by Jason on Mon 26 July 2010, 17:57:22
More info on Darkspore - More info on BioWare
Gamespot learned at the San Diego Comic-Con that BioWare is lending a helping hand on the Spore action RPG, DarkSpore.
Who knew?: Maxis has been receiving help on Darkspore from fellow EA studio BioWare, which has its own established reputation in the action-RPG genre.
While I've been told that BioWare knows what they're doing, surely a Japanese developer would be better prepared to provide Maxis with what Spore fans really want to see.
Thanks to Abelon Blanchetourbe for pointing this out
There are 32 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
Dragon Age 2 isn't a Hack n Slash Game ( Preview )
posted by Jason on Mon 26 July 2010, 01:20:17
More info on Dragon Age 2 - More info on BioWare
Gamespot had a glimpse of Dragon Age 2 at the San Diego Comic-Con.
Switching over to the mage resulted in a more tactical style of combat along the lines of the first game. With the mage, we preferred pulling up that radial menu and finding the best spell to cast in a given situation. Our favorite quickly became inferno, which lets you rain fire on a radius of enemies as though you'd just called a mortar strike from the heavens. According the Laidlaw, they've worked to make sure the mage has more "wow" moments in combat like the weapon-based classes. To demonstrate, he showed a mage finishing off an Ogre by lifting him up into the air, surrounding him with a dark energy, and then exploding him into nothingness.
Overall, the combat didn't feel remarkably different from the first Dragon Age. It flowed a little more smoothly and moved at a quicker pace, but that was mostly because our talents and spells recharged quickly after using them. That could very easily have just been something BioWare tuned for this public demo--likely a lowered difficulty to help ease players back into the experience. After this admittedly brief demo, we're confident that BioWare knows what they're doing. This isn't going to be a hack-and-slash game.
There are 29 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
The Secret of Streamlining ( Interview )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 23 July 2010, 17:56:28
More info on BioWare
BioDoc Greg Zeschuk explains in this interview with Telegraph.co.uk that they're removing streamlining the RPG elements of their games to maximize the depth.
A lot of the RPG elements from Mass Effect 1 were streamlined for Mass Effect 2. Was this done to attract a wider audience?
Well I think it comes back to one of our main goals at BioWare: that we always try to improve the experience. It’s interesting, because one of the things we knew right off the bat that we wanted to do for the sequel to Mass Effect, was keep the same level of detail, but make it a bit easier to access. It wasn’t so much a case that we were going for a wider audience – we just wanted make a better game, which was easier to pick and play and enjoy. The potential to bring Mass Effect to a wider audience was a secondary consideration. The key thing for us was to make the whole thing better.
Looking at the success this system has had in Mass Effect 2, will BioWare look at making the RPG elements in games such as Star Wars: The Old Republic and the forthcoming Dragon Age sequel more streamlined too?
Yeah, to a certain degree. Like I said, we want to make each game better than the last and to a certain degree, the easier we can make the gameplay while maximising the depth of the game's detail, is something to aim for. We announced Dragon Age 2 a short while ago and of course we've been talking about Star Wars: The Old Republic for a while now – and people have had a chance to play it and probably see what some of our objectives are with the game. We try to do a lot of focus testing and usability testing with our fans. We're always trying to make our games as fun and easily usable as possible.
I'm glad to see that Greg still sticks to his principles, doing things for the greater good, to push the genre forward instead of merely aiming for more sales.
Spotted at: GB There are 25 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
Did BioWare dumb down Dragon Age ? ( Editorial )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 23 July 2010, 10:16:01
More info on Dragon Age 2 - More info on BioWare
IGN take a preview at the DA 2 combat system.
2. The combat is being refined.
The combat in Dragon Age Origins was very tactical, allowing you to issue orders to the folks in your party. For the sequel, BioWare is aiming to keep that tactical aspect but also make it more action packed, if players wish it to be. Today we got a taste of the new combat system with a mountaintop battle against an army of orcs. They might have been imps or goblins or demons, actually. We're not nerdy enough to know the difference.
Different attacks are mapped to the X, Y, and B buttons of your controller (we were playing on an Xbox 360). Hawk, the hero of the game, had a typical sword swipe mapped to X, a thrust mapped to Y, and a twirl that would take down all the enemies around him mapped to B. By holding the right trigger you can access a second set of attacks, so it seems you'll have six moves available to you at a time. Each move has a recharge time, so you can't just keep mashing the X button to chop through enemies.
No, you have to mash X,Y and B to chop thru enemies. That's called tactical depth.
Jaedar is to blame for this one.
There are 124 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
Dragon Age 2 Info Recap ( Editorial )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 23 July 2010, 09:58:18
More info on Dragon Age 2 - More info on BioWare
Greywarden SteveGarbage recaps the Dragon Age 2 content of this months GameInformer issue. He's been so excited!
Page 5: “A Story in Pieces” focuses on the narrative structure of the storyline. Darrah compares the story framework as similar to the movie “The Usual Suspects,” where the story is being retold by a narrator, also similar to how the Leliana’s Song DLC is setup. Part of the story, at least, is being retold by a dwarf, Varric, to a Chantry Seeker.
The story may not necessarily take place chronologically and the narrative will allow the story to jump past uneventful periods of time – hence how Dragon Age 2 can cover 10 years of events in one game. “What that actually allows us to do is really focus on the key moments that are occurring in Dragon Age II,” Darrah said.
Spotted at: greywardens.com There are 2 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
Where the Hawke Rests ( Editorial )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Wed 21 July 2010, 11:51:41
More info on Dragon Age 2 - More info on BioWare
SteveGarbage of the Greywardens, the man who thinks everything's gonna be alright, examines the settings surrounding Dragon Age 2′s protagonist, Commander Hawke.
We also know that Nathaniel Howe squired in the Free Marches for eight years prior to returning for the events of Awakening and specifically spent at least one year in Kirkwall. Assuming he spent a good portion of his adolescent and young adult years there, we can see that life in the Free Marches returned this arl’s son to Ferelden as a somewhat cold but fiercely competent warrior. It took four of the Vigil’s guards to subdue him, he is fit enough both physically and mentally to survive the Joining and is strong enough to keep step with the Warden Commander in the quest to defeat the Mother.
The Free Marches show that life there is not going to be easy for Hawke and that the potential for both danger and adventure is high. The Marches themselves are an excellent place to mold Hawke into a warrior and a man capable of taking on heroics beyond that of normal men.
Well, it's a well known fact that RPGs are about genociding all lifeforms that are hostile, have loot or give XP when killed so I think that when it comes to a nice darkspawn genocide Commander Hawke looks like he can get shit done beyond the means of mortal men. There are 5 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
The Replay Value of RPGs ( Editorial )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Mon 19 July 2010, 11:08:00
More info on Mass Effect 2 - More info on BioWare
What would be more appropriate than to research this issue by example of two of the greatest Roleplaying Games of all time. Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2. At least such is the approach of Bitmob.
Should developers worry about how replayable an RPG is? Should it be a concern at all when what really matters is whether their fan base buys the next sequel in the series or not? More importantly, how many people replay games and what elements do most players find lend themselves to replayability anyway?
I don't know the answers to any of these questions, but I do know an RPG with replay value when I see it. And while I played the original Mass Effect, as well as Fallout 3, Dragon Age: Origins, and Alpha Protocol, all multiple times, I didn't play Mass Effect 2 more than once. One play through and the game's mysteries, mechanics as well as story, were laid bare, and I couldn't even force myself to play it again.
But beyond my own personal need to replay Western RPGs, there's also the issue of downloadable content (DLC). Bioware has pushed DLC hard for both Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age: Origins, with frequent releases that add new characters, quests, and items. And while I have purchased and played all available DLC for Dragon Age: Origins, I have yet to play any of it for Mass Effect 2.
Why is this? If the story was worth experiencing once shouldn't the DLC also be worth checking out? I think it comes down to the same reason I don't ever play action games more than once and almost never buy single player DLC for them. After I've experienced the game world, learned the controls and game mechanics, I don't want to go back.
A relatively complex Western RPG has enough depth to make experiencing it more than once compelling, and furthermore, it lends itself well to DLC, which might deepen or change the experience even more. An action game like Mass Effect 2, on the other hand, has already played all of its cards, so unless you typically enjoy playing the same experience over and over again, it holds little intrigue.
But I have a hard time believing a developer like Bioware is concerned with a small segment of its fan base and their need for complex role playing experiences. They see the action genre as the place where the money is, and they are streamlining their games to tap into it. If that means Mass Effect 3 or Dragon Age 2 are single shot experiences, so be it.
The only bright spot in all of this are those developers who have yet to abandon such RPGs. Bethesda Softworks, for example, the developer of Oblivion and Fallout 3, both highly replayable action RPGs, seem firmly committed to continuing to give players complexity and depth in their games. I for one will continue to give my money to the developer who does likewise, while I'll likely only rent games from developers whose games offer little replay value.
Well, a man with such an impressive RPG back catalogue certainly knows an RPG with replay value when he sees it.
Spotted at: GB There are 29 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
Examining Choice in Dragon Age: Origins ( Editorial )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Sun 18 July 2010, 10:18:48
More info on Dragon Age - More info on BioWare
Even sites like GameCritics are anaylyzing the subject of C&C now. Here they take a look at BioWare's application of C&C in Dragon Age: Origins.
Dragon Age succeeds:
I'll discuss the game's choices by talking about the good ones first. My first major quest was at the camp of the Dalish. You are given three options, side with the werewolves and kill all the elves, side with Zaithran and kill all the werewolves, or break the curse by killing Zaithran (and by extension, the Lady of the Forest) and allow the elves to live and the werewolves to live on as humans. If you were playing as a "good" character, there are basically two less than ideal options, and one choice that allows life and freedom to flourish. On the surface, this seems like typical choice, but to bring about the scenario that allows you to kill Zaithran, you have to go through a rather specific set of dialogue options. Good-guy characters are initially confronted with choosing between two terribly unjust massacres, and are rewarded for taking the time to negotiate a new solution.
The game's most complex and varied choice occurred in Redcliffe, where I actually had three sets of choices. The first was to kill Connor or free him of the demon possessing him by entering the Fade. If you chose to free him, you could do so by sacrificing his mother or by gathering more mages to increase the power of the spell. "Gathering more mages" is dependent entirely on the Mages tower quest, and if you sided with the templars, this option will not be available to you, since all the mages will be dead. It's a nice touch that makes the whole world seem very connected, and helps you realize that your choices matter. Regardless of how you choose to free Connor, at the end of the Fade quest, the Desire Demon gives you yet another choice. If you let her live, she will give you either the Blood Mage specialization, or an extra spell/talent point (there are two more options for gifts, but they're not as compelling). Even though I was playing as a good-guy, I couldn't resist the call of another spell since talent allocation was permanent, so I let her live and took my reward. I set out to play a good character, but I was successfully tempted by the demon, making this an unforgettable quest that set the standard for temptation in games (at least for me).
Dragon Age fails:
The Mages' Tower contained the most polarized choice in the game. I could either take the risk of some mages being turned into abominations and fighting against me (an event which can be prevented by using an item during the boss fight), or I can slaughter dozens of innocent men and women. Since I was playing as a good-guy, the choice was so obvious that by the end of the game I had literally forgotten that I had another option. The situation is made even less compelling by the fact that the second most important character in the game, Alistair, constantly voices his dislike for the templars, and any mages you have encountered previously have done the same. A below average ending to an otherwise interesting quest.
and they conclude:
All things considered, the game had some of the best characters and choices in gaming, and the best villain.
Well, I think that's worth a hearty r00fles, coming straight out of the depth of my intestines. Anyway, C&C is quite the topic among professional gaming journalists as of late. What's up with that?
Spotted at: GB There are 73 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
Dragon Age II: Timeline of Thedas ( Game news )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Thu 15 July 2010, 18:14:42
More info on Dragon Age 2 - More info on BioWare
Gameinformer continues to inform us. This time you may learn something about the epic historical events in the Dragon Age Universe.
Dragon Age II has gamers wondering what the future holds for BioWare's fantasy epic, but some answers can be found by examining the past. The developer has mapped out centuries of history for Thedas (the continent where the Dragon Age series takes place), and these excerpts from BioWare's timeline contain several clues as to central themes and key locations you'll explore in the series' next entry.
1195 Ancient Times: By magic and steel, Darinius seized the great city of Minrathous and declared himself Archon – both king and high enchanter. Those who supported him became Magisters, mage-lords of the realm. At Darinius’ command, they conquered all neighboring lands and the rise of the Tevinter Imperium in Thedas began.
Spotted at: GB There are 41 comments on this article. Click here to comment.
| 
