Dragon Age: Origins

[Jester]

Greetings Lurkers,

As no doubt many of you are aware, Bioware's new dark, story-driven fantasy RPG, the long-awaited Dragon Age: Origins, was just released. Now, I'm sure the enthusiasts assembled in this fine forum need no prodding to purchase the latest game by the most reputable developer of quality RPG products since the halcyon days of Baldur's Gate.

But what you may not know is that two of the team that developed it are Lurkers - those of you who play on the Terenas server know them - Tammorax and Jenjan.

I'm not just flackin' for the company because JJ is my brother - everyone who's played KoTOR or BG:II knows the quality level at Bioware. So I figure people are going to want to give this one a play through, or maybe several - I hear the plot can twist and turn in all sorts of interesting ways.

-Jester

[Frag]

But what you may not know is that two of the team that developed it are Lurkers - those of you who play on the Terenas server know them - Tammorax and Jenjan.

/jawdrop
Damn fine job you guys!

I'd say more, but I'm too busy playing,
~Frag:wub:

[Concillian]

Heh, I've been playing though BGII again recently. I think the first time through I didn't get through Chapter3, because the Underdark and beyond all feels completely new.

Very high quality stuff. If Dragon Age is anywhere near the logical progression it should be 10 years later, it should be quite awesome. I'll try it eventually.

[Jester]

Heh, I've been playing though BGII again recently. I think the first time through I didn't get through Chapter3, because the Underdark and beyond all feels completely new.

Very high quality stuff. If Dragon Age is anywhere near the logical progression it should be 10 years later, it should be quite awesome. I'll try it eventually.

If you're a diehard BG:II fan, then it will probably please you to know that the guy who wrote huge chunks of BG:II, David Gaider, is also the lead writer on Dragon Age.

-Jester

[Kevin]

OK so this game has a lot of interest for me, but I would like to know about system reqs. This is what BioWare said

Windows XP Minimum Specifications
OS: Windows XP with SP3
CPU: Intel Core 2 Single (or equivalent) running at 1.6Ghz or greater
AMD 64 (or equivalent) running at 2.0Ghz or greater
RAM: 1GB or more
Video: ATI Radeon X850 256MB or greater
NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB or greater
DVD ROM (Physical copy)
20 GB HD space

Windows Vista/Windows 7 Minimum Specifications
OS: Windows Vista with SP1, Windows 7
CPU: Intel Core 2 Single (or equivalent) running at 1.6Ghz or greater
AMD 64 (or equivalent) running at 2.0Ghz or greater
RAM: 1.5 GB or more
Video: ATI Radeon X1550 256MB or greater
NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT 256MB or greater
DVD ROM (Physical copy)
20 GB HD space

Recommended Specifications
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4Ghz Processor or equivalent
AMD Phenom II X2 Dual-Core 2.7 GHz or greater
RAM: 2 GB (XP) or 3 GB (Windows Vista/Windows 7)
Video: ATI 3850 512 MB or greater
NVIDIA 8800GTS 512 MB or greater
DVD ROM (Physical copy)
20 GB HD space

This is what I have
Windows XP Minimum Specifications
OS: Windows XP with SP3
CPU: AMD Operteron at 2.4GHz (it's a dual core)
RAM: 3GB
Video: NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT 256MB (maybe it's 512 I'm not at home but I got it from RTM maybe he remembers :))

and I have the DVD and HDD space of course

In the past BioWare has published min specs that were real, the game would run at low settings and in single player and be fine, I tended to wanted to have more power for the multiplayer co-op. I'm just wondering if that is still the case. Can I expect this to play well?

Not that I really have the budget to pick it up till January, but I'm interested for sure.

[LochnarITB]

OS: Windows XP with SP3

Is anyone playing on SP2? I have not installed SP3 and would really rather not. I would like to see a demo, but it sounds unlikely soon so I may need to just go for it.

[NiteFox]

Amusingly, I've built a new PC today with specs that could swallow DA:O. Really, it's just to get ready for SC2/D3 (Since Blizz does tend to aim at the low-end of system specs), but it's actually nice to ram all graphics settings up to max.

I... Well, I plan on getting DA:O, but I'm holding off for a year. Since they're planning to throw in a fair amount of DLC, this time next year we could be looking at a Game Of The Year edition. Like what happened with Oblivion and Fallout 3, and EA seems to have looked at that system and thought "yeah, we'll have a piece of that."

Also, FO3GotY for Christmas. Whoo.

[Melekal]

Ironically I've been looking for something just like this. Haven't been in the mood for yet another MMO that is basically a copy of WoW and I've told a few people the next game I play will have to be single player. This looks like it'll be just up my alley. I've missed games that don't have enough of a story line to them. Perfect timing too since wow seems to have lost much of its luster till 3.3 comes out.

I plan on picking it up in the very near future to give it a shot.

[Concillian]

If you're a diehard BG:II fan, then it will probably please you to know that the guy who wrote huge chunks of BG:II, David Gaider, is also the lead writer on Dragon Age.

-Jester

I'm a fan of everything about BGII... except the AD&D 2 magic system. That crap blows.

Every freaking spell level has at least one "protection" spell that makes the caster immune to something and one "protection removal" spell that helps you break through the opponent's protections. A good half of your memorized spells are buff / debuff spells. Another 1/4 are spells that you cast and have no effect unless the target is affected by 2 or more debuffs lowering saving thows. and 1/2 the remaining spells are AoEs that you can't use because they don't differentiate friend or foe, and you don't want to roast your frontline fighters.

As soon as you break down a caster's protections he's complete toast due to spell failure on taking any damage. So mages are either indestructible or dead. As a result, melee / archers are either crazy powerful or completely neutered. I realize it promotes a balanced party but really, it's gotten to the point that all my mages do are cast "breach" type spells and Level 10 spells (HLA's from expansion) which all are AoEs that don't affect friendlies.

There are also some pretty cheesy loopholes in the game design, but those are easy enough to ignore (like you can stand right next to a dragon and buff your party, summon devas, set traps and cast delayed fireballs in his lair and he just stands there waiting for you to talk to him before he attacks you? Riiiight. I guess this is a self-control difficulty setting.

[--Pete]

Hi,

I'm a fan of everything about BGII... except the AD&D 2 magic system. That crap blows.

Yes. Mêlée / archers and a couple of healers makes an almost boring group and everything else I've tried makes for a frustrating group. But I love the story lines.

--Pete

[Jester]

I'm a fan of everything about BGII... except the AD&D 2 magic system. That crap blows.

Well, I've soloed my way from the beginning of BG:1 to just before the final encounter of BG:2, Throne of Bhaal with a Gnome Illusionist, so it can be done. Mages generally are underpowered - the way to get past spell protections is not to use the counter-spells, but to get magical weapons powerful enough to penetrate them (I recommend Mordenkainen's Swords). The game can be totally trivialized with several classes. Archers are absurdly powerful. Kensai/Thieves are almost comical, watching things explode from 250 damage hits, then zip back into the shadows. Paladins and fighters, with a big enough sword, are basically unstoppable. Bounty Hunters make most bosses trivial, including the very last ones. (1k damage? Yeah, that's not D&D.)

But the mechanics of Baldur's Gate long since ceased to interest me. I've played it enough times that it's all about trying funky stuff, and seeing the nooks and crannies of the incredible world.

-Jester

[Concillian]

Well, I've soloed my way from the beginning of BG:1 to just before the final encounter of BG:2, Throne of Bhaal with a Gnome Illusionist, so it can be done.

I didn't say they were underpowered, they are reasonably powerful. However, the system as a whole blows IMHO. There's way too much buffing and debuffing.

And I couldn't touch the demogorgon without a million debuff casts. Magic immune until you get a crapload of pierce magics on him. Nothing physical touches him until you tear off his buffs (stoneskin every other round?) etc... Maybe you can if you have +6 weapons, but those don't exactly grow on trees.

[Swiss Mercenary]

I'm a fan of everything about BGII... except the AD&D 2 magic system. That crap blows.

Every freaking spell level has at least one "protection" spell that makes the caster immune to something and one "protection removal" spell that helps you break through the opponent's protections. A good half of your memorized spells are buff / debuff spells. Another 1/4 are spells that you cast and have no effect unless the target is affected by 2 or more debuffs lowering saving thows. and 1/2 the remaining spells are AoEs that you can't use because they don't differentiate friend or foe, and you don't want to roast your frontline fighters.

As soon as you break down a caster's protections he's complete toast due to spell failure on taking any damage. So mages are either indestructible or dead. As a result, melee / archers are either crazy powerful or completely neutered. I realize it promotes a balanced party but really, it's gotten to the point that all my mages do are cast "breach" type spells and Level 10 spells (HLA's from expansion) which all are AoEs that don't affect friendlies.

There are also some pretty cheesy loopholes in the game design, but those are easy enough to ignore (like you can stand right next to a dragon and buff your party, summon devas, set traps and cast delayed fireballs in his lair and he just stands there waiting for you to talk to him before he attacks you? Riiiight. I guess this is a self-control difficulty setting.

HLAs break everything, as do level 9 spells. With enough Time Stops, you can cheeze almost anything. Chain Contingency, OTOH, is border-line BROKEN. I'm actually a fan of SoA-level mage combat - although I also use Sword Coast Strategems, which makes enemy mages much more defensive then in vanilla.

Pre-buffing is not fun, yes - but (IMO) playing the "Find a way to strip that Spell Immunity: Divination, so you can dispel Improved Invisibility, so you can get a Breach, before your party gets fried" is an interesting chess match.

[Rhydderch Hael]

Well, is anyone going to mention having played the game yet?

I just plodded a few hours through as a male human mage— survived the tutorial for this particular character and came through the first act of the story after three inglorious deaths (nothing quite says "PWNED!" like getting pummeled like your favorite GI Joe action figure in the hands of a 8-year old bully).

I've decided that the robe-wearing nancy-boy is not for me. I'm going back for a tin suit and an oversized knife. I still have to get used to the control scheme and party management is still altogether a new thing for me. For once, however, I'm going to shy away from playing any female characters— if romancing a partygoer is an actual option in this game, I'm not in the mood to go boy-chasing. In any sort of context.

[Jester]

For once, however, I'm going to shy away from playing any female characters— if romancing a partygoer is an actual option in this game, I'm not in the mood to go boy-chasing. In any sort of context.

From my understanding, being male is not an obstacle to boy-chasing in Dragon Age, if that's the way you want to go, which obviously it is not. Nor is being female an obstacle to skirt-chasing. And unlike Mass Effect, they didn't cop out with the androgynous obviously-a-woman-but-technically-not romance option.

-Jester

[Jester]

And I couldn't touch the demogorgon without a million debuff casts. Magic immune until you get a crapload of pierce magics on him. Nothing physical touches him until you tear off his buffs (stoneskin every other round?) etc... Maybe you can if you have +6 weapons, but those don't exactly grow on trees.

Demogorgon is supposed to be the "Uh, how do I beat this?" encounter. The easy answer is to have a Bounty Hunter and a whole lot of spike traps, but that's just cheese. Any other answer is much harder, and yeah, +6 weapons and greater whirlwind are a big part of it.

-Jester

[roguebanshee]

For once, however, I'm going to shy away from playing any female characters— if romancing a partygoer is an actual option in this game, I'm not in the mood to go boy-chasing. In any sort of context.

Bioware = Obvious Lesbian Romance option.

There'll be a guy and a girl you can get regardless of your gender and there'll be a guy and a girl you can only get if you're the opposite gender. At least that's how their last bunch of games have played out.

Personally I'd only play a Bioware game if the gameplay itself was awesome, IMO they haven't been able to tell a significantly different (or even interesting) story since BG1. Plenty of other people disagree, but this is my opinion.

[Jester]

Personally I'd only play a Bioware game if the gameplay itself was awesome, IMO they haven't been able to tell a significantly different (or even interesting) story since BG1. Plenty of other people disagree, but this is my opinion.

The focus of Dragon Age is very much the story. There was, so I hear, a major push to take the writing to a higher level - the total word count is apparently staggeringly high. I haven't had a chance to play it yet (Christmastime!) but perhaps some people who have gotten into the game might have something to say on that topic.

I wouldn't presume that Dragon Age is on the same level as your standard BioWare title.

-Jester

[Frag]

I did mention playing it in the first response. Gave a bunch of Origin stories a roll through on normal, and did a bit of poking around in the first area you end up in after. Played long enough to find out that my first choice of a character (dwarven warrior, sword & board) was pretty superfluous with the starting party members you pick up, so I took things up to Hard for more of a challenge and went to a finger waver. Holy crap are mages... well... MAGES. The setting for the world handles magic in a rather believable way and I'm really enjoying taunting the Chantry.:D

It's so far been a lot smoother as a mage than either a 2h or S&B warrior, even on hard. I haven't played the rogue too much as there is this niggling little problem: A lot of 'boss' encounters start with conversation, which means you aren't able to take advantage of stealth.

As for the gameplay, it's kinda like WoW-FFTactics with a pause button, and as much as I enjoy it so far... Except for one thing; those of you who played with me in WoW know I have this particular little tic, I like to hop on my toons. Amusingly, not only is there no way to jump in DA:O, the spacebar is pause.:lol: The little 'double hop' my thumb's muscle memory has ingrained into them turns the game into a slideshow. I could rebind it, but eh.

The tactics for each party member are incredibly important if you don't want to start/stop your way through combat after combat. Defensive/Ranged/Cautious are all far better options than most of the rest, as they don't have your party members chasing after stuff. Running after darkspawn will only draw more enemies, get that toon blown to pieces and wipe you when it goes from 4v3 to 4v11+Named. The ambushes the enemies attempt to pull off are pretty good, and once I figured out how to start pulling off some ambushes of my own things went very smooth. Trap-making, a stealth character, ranged weapons on everyone, crowd control spells on your mage (Main or Morrigan) and selective kiting (for when orange-titled beastie decides that your finger waving arse looks tasty) can turn what used to be an ambush on you to an encounter where no pausing needs to be done and no one even takes more than incidental damage even against overwhelming odds.

Despite the rather tactical combat, the main focus IS the story and... it's a doozy. Not sure if it's better than the 'stories of old', but up front, it's a lot more mature than they were. Oh, flirting... damn, it's funny, especially in a teenage-romance kinda way. It's embarrassing, full of humor and a funny way to blow off some steam.

Back to killing darkspawn with mah mind!:D
~Frag

[Drasca]

The tactics for each party member are incredibly important if you don't want to start/stop your way through combat after combat. Defensive/Ranged/Cautious are all far better options than most of the rest,

Actually, those tactics are only the default settings. Like Fallout 2, and onward through Final Fantasy XII and some other games I can think of, you can edit custom AI responses / scripts to their automatic combat behaviour so you aren't micromanaging everything all the time. Its all pretty neat once you discover and tinker with it a bit. I'm still having issue with my archers preferring their dual weapon setups, but I can hardly complain as they're doing absurd damage with it.

Playing with our companion mage is ... interesting. I'll have to think of more options with it.