Dragon Age

[Velorath]

Hadn't watched the trailer before. Who at Bioware decided it was good?

Actually Jeff Green (of GFW) made in interesting point by suggesting that they aren't showing off a lot of gameplay because it's hard to show off Baldur's Gate style gameplay and make it look impressive.  That doesn't really excuse how shitty the non-gameplay trailer is, but I'd have to agree that these kinds of games really are boring to just watch, especially in short clips, and when you consider that one of the biggest selling points of Bioware games is the dialogue.  Mass Effect is essentially the only game Bioware has ever really been able to show off successfully, because it's not built around the same graphics and gameplay as Baldur's Gate/KotoR/NWN.

[dusematic]

If you're too cool for Minsc, you've turned the corner from cool to douchebag. But you already knew that.

Dude get over yourself.  Stupid caveman routines are only funny if Geico is involved.  Besides, you're a kook.

[Big Gulp]

This is why I never play PnP RPGs, even though I collect them: The utter lack of taste of the RPG player crowd.

Amen.  Minsc easily rests on my top ten list of annoying game characters.  None of his dialogue is funny; it's more like a sad attempt by a gaming nerd to emulate Monty Python and the Holy Grail.  It's sad when your pale, spotty friend does it, and it's really sad when it occurs in a video game.

[lamaros]

At least in real life you can punch it out of em, eh Big Gulp?

[Big Gulp]

At least in real life you can punch it out of em, eh Big Gulp?

Huh?  Where did that come from?  I'm a pussy cat.

[Brogarn]

That kitten's preparing for evil. I own reside with cats. I know that look.

[Lucas]

Now this is very nice: 3 min. Gameplay video released (size of 323MB, already seen on IGN and other sources) :

Supposedly, if you subscribed to the DA:O newsletter and/or Bioware community site, in your mail you will get a link to a high-res version later today...or something.

http://press.bioware.com/Dragon_Age_E3_Assets/DragonAge_Video/

Very promising.

[Ingmar]

 

[lesion]

Delicious.

[Murgos]

I thought this was an MMO?  How are you pausing an MMO?

Am I completely confused?

[Fordel]

You are.

It's a single player RPG. BG, KoToR etc.

[Ingmar]

I thought this was an MMO?  How are you pausing an MMO?

Am I completely confused?

Yes, yes you are. Dragon Age is a single player RPG.

[Murgos]

Oh ok, I guess I knew there was a Bioware MMO in the works and I just thought this was it.

Now that I know it's an RPG I'm actually much more interested in it.   

[Sky]

Yes, yes you are. Dragon Age is a single player RPG.

Allegedly. It was also a pc exclusive at one point 

 

[HaemishM]

It looks like an MMO except for the pausing. The gameplay videos are nice. Still reminds me of NWN a bit, except for the positive that you control a party.

[Ingmar]

Yes, yes you are. Dragon Age is a single player RPG.

Allegedly. It was also a pc exclusive at one point 

 

Allow the gameplay video to wash your cares away in a soothing wave of awesome, Sky.

[Lucas]

Another gameplay video, similar to the "official" one, ran during a presentation at G4tv:

http://www.g4tv.com/e32008/videos/27090/Face_Time_Dragon_Age.html

At 2'57" and 3'03 we get a glimpse at what could be a skill UI and Inventory UI. Hmm, the latter seems "list based" as seen in Kotor and ME  . You can also notice the equipment slots.

Finally, the mighty return of the green square to select multiple party members. Little detail, but really welcomed, considering that in NWN 2 we got it only in later patches.

[Ingmar]

At 2'57" and 3'03 we get a glimpse at what could be a skill UI and Inventory UI. Hmm, the latter seems "list based" as seen in Kotor and ME  . You can also notice the equipment slots.

List-based is a plus as far as I'm concerned. Inventory manipulation was not the strongest thing in BG2 and its friends.

[Lucas]

At 2'57" and 3'03 we get a glimpse at what could be a skill UI and Inventory UI. Hmm, the latter seems "list based" as seen in Kotor and ME  . You can also notice the equipment slots.

List-based is a plus as far as I'm concerned. Inventory manipulation was not the strongest thing in BG2 and its friends.

IMO, the most important thing is that the size of those kind of windows is small or average, and not feel like a console port, so we don't have to shuffle and scroll down endlessy to find what we need (see Oblivion without any mod installed but also Kotor, nevermind the sorting options)

[WayAbvPar]

The gameplay videos kinda made me wee nipples hard. That ogre was sweet, and the spell effects were awesome.

[rk47]

At 2'57" and 3'03 we get a glimpse at what could be a skill UI and Inventory UI. Hmm, the latter seems "list based" as seen in Kotor and ME  . You can also notice the equipment slots.

List-based is a plus as far as I'm concerned. Inventory manipulation was not the strongest thing in BG2 and its friends.

IMO, the most important thing is that the size of those kind of windows is small or average, and not feel like a console port, so we don't have to shuffle and scroll down endlessy to find what we need (see Oblivion without any mod installed but also Kotor, nevermind the sorting options)

please please please remember the category tab bioware.

[Margalis]

Looks pretty bad to me, but I know this kind of game isn't made for me. Totally generic western art style, generic sound effects, lame English accent smack talk - I'm sure LOTR nerds will eat this up.

[WindupAtheist]

Needs more weeaboo androgyny, eh?

EDIT:  I'm unenthused as well, but mostly because I've had it up to fucking here with "pause, give orders, unpause, view fight" combat systems.  It didn't look like anyone was controlling any of those characters directly, and I'm done putting up with that.

[Big Gulp]

Needs more weeaboo androgyny, eh?

EDIT:  I'm unenthused as well, but mostly because I've had it up to fucking here with "pause, give orders, unpause, view fight" combat systems.  It didn't look like anyone was controlling any of those characters directly, and I'm done putting up with that.

Yeah, I still prefer the old style gold box combat systems.  Takes longer, sure, but the combat is more under your control.

[WindupAtheist]

Personally, I much prefer to control my alter-ego directly in real-time while my party members do their own thing in a way that's intelligent based on their gear and skills, just because it feels more exciting and cinematic to me.  But yeah, I can see where you're coming from.

WUA sweeps
Kobold is killed
Kobold is killed
Kobold is killed

[Sky]

A lot of my concern come from playing Mass Effect. While technically you could pause and give orders, it just never gelled, and the squaddies were constantly doing stupid shit. KotOR was a bit better, but imo nothing has been as tactical feeling as BG2 was. Freedom Force was more the lines of control than anything Bioware did later.

The gameplay videos look ok, it will probably be a cool game. Being able to zoom the camera out to a BG-like viewpoint is a good start. I've just thinking recently that the move to 3d hasn't been paying good dividends to the rpg genre.

[Sky]

DRM announced: disc check only.

http://daforums.bioware.com/viewtopic.html?topic=677056&forum=135

Hi Everyone,

I have some good news to pass on to you today that answers one of the most frequently asked Dragon Age: Origins PC questions.

We’re happy to announce that the boxed/retail PC version of Dragon Age: Origins will use only a basic disk check and it will not require online authentication. In other words, the retail PC version of the game won’t require you to go online to authenticate the game for offline play. We have chosen not to use SecuROM in any version of Dragon Age that is distributed by EA or BioWare.

Some other cool stuff that we hope you’ll like - we have already launched the Dragon Age toolset beta, which offers developer-grade tools, and we’re looking forward to what fans will create with it. We’ll also be supporting the game with a ton of great downloadable content that will be available for purchase after the game’s release. Together these features will provide some very cool reasons to go online with Dragon Age: Origins.

We’re really excited as we head towards the release of Dragon Age: Origins this fall on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC, so keep an eye out for more news as we’ll be providing you with more details shortly.

Stay tuned for more coolness to come…

So don't pirate it, assholes.

[Yegolev]

So don't pirate it, assholes.

But they will and we will get more Starforce.

[Yoru]

That message is almost word-for-word identical to the one announcing the lack of SecuROM on The Sims 3. I smell the fetid hand of corporate PR.

[Mosesandstick]

As someone who still hasn't played Mass Effect because of copyright protection... I am happy 

[Stormwaltz]

Also: Green Ronin is making a pen & paper version.

This was as much a surprise to us (the ME2 writing team) as anyone else.

[Samprimary]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SuJ5T9sfAA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5hwznpjtUE

terrible motion capture, failed lipsync, worrying appearances of shitty fantasy

add to that, the first syndrome of EA acquisition. disastrous marketing campaign. like utterly disastrous

having trouble holding out hope for this fucker.

[rk47]

How long has this game been in development anyway? Are they even using a new engine?  For more in depth preview I'd go to gamebanshee anyway. Gives me a nice idea on how the character point system works.

[Lucas]

I can't stand this ridiculous "new shit" campaign any longer; and silly over the top violence; and characters talking to each other in a tavern with litres of blood on their face for whatever reason; and horrible marketing music. And "epic" used thousand times. Did I mention the music and the blood and teh sex as the very definition of "mature, dark and gritty"?

Geeze, release the damn game (which I'm very looking forward to, but did I mention the music the blood, teh sex the new shit as lame vehicles of marketing?)

Ok. Signing off.

[Stormwaltz]

How long has this game been in development anyway? Are they even using a new engine?

I wrote the first draft of the Human Noble Origin in September of 2004. It was prototyped in the NWN engine.

DA went through three engines that I know of; NWN for prototyping, a "next gen" engine that - to my knowledge - was never completed, and the current one, which may be an offshoot of the second one. I only worked on it for three months, so I can't say.