Right before this past week's first story-based DA2 DLC, "Legacy," was released, I decided to do another play through to see if DA2 still kind of sucks a little.
And, I was actually surprised. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't one of the haters who hated DA2 when it came out simply because it wasn't DA1. I liked the improved combat, improved graphics, improved classes, etc. Didn't really mind that Hawke was limited to just human (rather than elf or dwarf options). I also liked the addition of a voice, which better humanized the character for me.
I did mind that they tried way too hard to "Mass Effect 2-ize" it, especially since the creative team for DA doesn't seem to have the talent that the ME team does. I also found the repetitive maps (both cave and mansion) and repetitive battles (how many times did killer spiders drop out of nowhere?) annoying, and felt that Acts 2 and 3 should've been switched, as the Arishok was as MUCH more interesting character and story than the crap with the Knight Commander...and the fact that we didn't even meet the "main" antagonist (Knight Commander) until the 3rd act proves my point for me.
Having said all of that, I enjoyed this second playthrough a lot more than the first. First time, I played as a mage and romanced Merrill. This time, I played as a rogue, romanced Isabela, gained complete rivalry with Merrill, and finished all of the side quests.
Gotta say, the rogue class in DA2 is pretty much a bad ass. Much more fun for me than the mage. And, when both Duelist and Assassin skill trees are fully upgraded, rogue is a beast. "Assassinate" is a devastating power. Very fun class to play.
Also, even though the overall story was pretty weak (because of the bad structure and missed opportunities), some of the characters were really great. Varric is a highlight of the game. His between character banter on missions is priceless. And, Fenris is a total badass. Isabela was fun, too, but not nearly as interesting as Morrigan from DA:O.
Anders isn't nearly as interesting as he was in DA: Awakenings. First play through I let him live. This play through, I killed him simply for being annoying.
I downloaded the Legacy DLC and enjoyed it. Not sure it's worth $10 but it's very obvious that they took all of the DA2 criticisms to heart. The graphics, landscapes, and maps are beautiful and the new baddies and bosses were varied and challenging.
Anyway, I think most of people's ire would've been avoided if they'd simply called the game, Dragon Age: Kirkwall, and then had a future title be the real DA2, but I don't feel that it sucks as bad as I first thought. It's a good game...not a great game...but still pretty decent.
If future DLCs and the next DA game continue to take the criticisms from fans and critics to heart and really work on the shortcomings, then I'm confident this series will recover and be very strong. Not as strong as the ME series, but it'll be a long time until any game lives up to that standard anyway.
And, I was actually surprised. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't one of the haters who hated DA2 when it came out simply because it wasn't DA1. I liked the improved combat, improved graphics, improved classes, etc. Didn't really mind that Hawke was limited to just human (rather than elf or dwarf options). I also liked the addition of a voice, which better humanized the character for me.
I did mind that they tried way too hard to "Mass Effect 2-ize" it, especially since the creative team for DA doesn't seem to have the talent that the ME team does. I also found the repetitive maps (both cave and mansion) and repetitive battles (how many times did killer spiders drop out of nowhere?) annoying, and felt that Acts 2 and 3 should've been switched, as the Arishok was as MUCH more interesting character and story than the crap with the Knight Commander...and the fact that we didn't even meet the "main" antagonist (Knight Commander) until the 3rd act proves my point for me.
Having said all of that, I enjoyed this second playthrough a lot more than the first. First time, I played as a mage and romanced Merrill. This time, I played as a rogue, romanced Isabela, gained complete rivalry with Merrill, and finished all of the side quests.
Gotta say, the rogue class in DA2 is pretty much a bad ass. Much more fun for me than the mage. And, when both Duelist and Assassin skill trees are fully upgraded, rogue is a beast. "Assassinate" is a devastating power. Very fun class to play.
Also, even though the overall story was pretty weak (because of the bad structure and missed opportunities), some of the characters were really great. Varric is a highlight of the game. His between character banter on missions is priceless. And, Fenris is a total badass. Isabela was fun, too, but not nearly as interesting as Morrigan from DA:O.
Anders isn't nearly as interesting as he was in DA: Awakenings. First play through I let him live. This play through, I killed him simply for being annoying.
I downloaded the Legacy DLC and enjoyed it. Not sure it's worth $10 but it's very obvious that they took all of the DA2 criticisms to heart. The graphics, landscapes, and maps are beautiful and the new baddies and bosses were varied and challenging.
Anyway, I think most of people's ire would've been avoided if they'd simply called the game, Dragon Age: Kirkwall, and then had a future title be the real DA2, but I don't feel that it sucks as bad as I first thought. It's a good game...not a great game...but still pretty decent.
If future DLCs and the next DA game continue to take the criticisms from fans and critics to heart and really work on the shortcomings, then I'm confident this series will recover and be very strong. Not as strong as the ME series, but it'll be a long time until any game lives up to that standard anyway.
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