Alright, I just completed my playthrough of Dragon Age 2 not 20 minutes ago, and have decided to record my thoughts here for all to see. Given the amount of sheer hatred or counter-hatred on either side, I thought it would be beneficial for everyone to see an objective review (or at least as much as possible, personal taste will always be a factor). Many comparisons to my opinions of Dragon Age: Origins abound.
Before we begin, some stats about my playthrough, for reference:
Platform: PC
Class: Mage
Difficulty: Medium
Graphics Quality: Medium
Gender: Male
Completion time: ~30 hours
I will be reviewing the game in many categories. These will be as follows:
-Gameplay
-Characters
-Overall story
-Environments
-Interface
-Dialogue System
-Graphics
-Art Style
-Closing Thoughts
Gameplay
In this area of the game, I was thoroughly impressed. In the first game, I played it through twice, once as a Mage, and once as a Rogue. As the mage, I was forced into using Entropy and Spirit spells, mixed with a bit of Blood Magic and healing. I say "forced" because I didn't enjoy the thought of setting all my melee allies on fire. Not to say it wasn't fun, the mage was the only class I really did have fun with in the first game. As the Rogue, optimal play for an Archer OR a backstabber was to take all the passive bonuses and sustained modes you could, and then just autoattack them to death. That is not my idea of engaging combat. I also dabbled a bit in the warrior class, but couldn't be fussed completing a playthrough. Both Sword and Shield as well as Two-Handed styles were utterly slow-paced and dull. I did a complete eye-roll whenever my mage fell in combat, because then I had to actually USE one of my boring compatriot's combat styles for the remainder of the battle.
In the second installment, combat for all classes and styles (with the possible exception of a sword and shield warrior) is far more active. Not only are auto swings far faster, but it's far more rewarding and powerful to actually use special attacks and abilities with melee classes, in addition to the mage. I didn't mind so much when my Mage fell this time (other then the fact that he did omgwtfbbq damage), because my companions were just as active and engaging as the mage was. Combine this with the lack of friendly fire outside of Nightmare difficulty, and even the mage is ten times more enjoyable, as I can be the master of flames and storms I desired from the first game.
I DO however take issue with the removal of spell-combos. They added some much needed flavor to the combat of the first game, and rewarded ingenuity. The Cross-Class combos they replaced them with, while powerful if used properly, are quite difficult to set up, and any enemy they'd be worth using on is probably immune to the disabling initial effect in the first place.
On the Normal difficulty I played the game through with, I found fights were much more challenging and hectic than the "Normal" of the first game, on a general level. Fights with nothing but grunt troops were easier than Origins, but the second an Elite or two joins the mix, it becomes much more complicated. Not to mention the "Boss" battles are INCREDIBLY hard and time consuming.
Overall, while there is the issue of my sweet spell combos being removed, the leaps and bounds the combat has taken over the first game far outweighs that loss.
Characters
While this area of the review can't be explained TOO explicitly without giving spoilers, I will do my best. For clarification, this part will deal with allies and party members. Ambient characters will be discussed in environments, and villainous characters will be described in overall story.
This area I felt was lagging behind a bit from Origins. Your party members in the first game were on the whole, better characterized. While there are a few shining examples, and these I think stand above their Origins counterparts, there are also a few bad eggs, and one that is complete fanservice and rubbish. As far as allies outside your party go, I felt it was about equal to Origins, perhaps only very slightly behind, but this is held back by the Environments which I will talk about later.
EDIT: One thing in particular I GREATLY enjoyed that I completely spaced (wrote this up at 5am, excuse me), was that instead of having one communal "camp" that your party gathers at, they each have their own home that they reside in when they're not with you. Oftentimes when you go to visit them you'll find other party members already hanging around, just chatting it up. This step above and beyond the usual "when they're with you" intra-party interaction really helped the sense of a cohesive group of friends.
Overall Story
This will again be a difficult area to cover without spoilers, but it should still grant insight all the same. The story of Hawke I must say is an intriguing one. While saving the land from the Darkspawn Blight is a grand epic tale in its own right, it does feel a bit cliche'd in a way. While the journey and all the places you visit and characters you meet create a wonderful picture of the world and country of Ferelden, and are masterfully done, a story just doesn't feel complete without a villain to match. The Darkspawn horde is nothing more than a mass of faceless, uncharacterized monsters, little more than animals. I have no more emotional stake in this fight than I do trying to save the land from a hurricane, or a volcanic eruption. It's not a fight of values, or morality, or countries vying for resources and land, it's just survival against a natural disaster at its base.
The scope of this game is far smaller than the first. Your actions are largely contained into one city/region. But this place is made to be as a true city. There is more going on in this city than anyone could reasonably keep track of. This may be as a bonus for some, a downfall for others. I for one could care less if the story is told in a town, a country, a world, or the entire universe, as long as it's well done. And here I think it is. You have an emotional stake in your party (those that are well characterized at least), your family, the fate of the city, and the struggles it faces. The villains actually have character and purpose behind their actions. And you can shape the fate of the city, for good or ill.
With the exception of the choice of antagonists in the first game however, I'd say the stories are largely equal in quality. Not scope, and scope equals quality for some. But not for me.
Environments
This is where the small scope of the game becomes a problem. While the city the game takes place in is masterfully crafted, you spend ALL of your time here, or just outside of it. You travel to these same few areas repeatedly for the entire game. The same mountains, caves, coastline, houses, and alleys. If there was one thing to be said for Origins, it's that there was always somewhere new and exciting to travel. While I was well absorbed into the storyline of the game, at times it became painfully obvious that I was having a battle with group X on the very same spot I had a battle with group Y. I can overlook it to a point, as I was having a lot of fun fighting and talking with people, but it really would have been nice to have at least a few more wilderness areas, sewers, houses, and what have you.
The ambient characters could have also used work. A lot of side quests have next to no dialogue at all, involving finding some random item, turning it in to a faceless citizen, and being rewarded with some coin and a generic "Oh, thanks for bringing me this". A lot of the time there was no way for you to even know WHO to return the item to... you just... do. Random citizens also have less ambient conversation and gossip than previous BioWare titles, which was a huge disappointment. That was a large part of what brought their environments to life for me.
This is where the game truly fell flattest in my opinion, and is the largest hang-up for detractors of the game that I hear.
Interface
The interface system is largely the same in the PC version of the game as it was for Origins. MMO style hotkey based combat, menus, and stat screens. The inventory system was streamlined a bit, which is a plus, as was crafting. There's not much of consequence I can say here. The system is adequate enough as to not get in the way. That's about it.
Dialogue System
A large issue for some people was the Dialogue Wheel and Hawke being voiced, as compared to the Warden being silent. This is almost completely preference based, but I will put my opinion on the matter. Having the silent Warden in the first game is what really killed the story for me. I felt my character was an emotionless wall that heartlessly made decisions for good or ill. It made me feel like choices were impersonal because the TONE in which something is done cannot be described in text, and sometimes reactions to your choices were fairly vague. While it IS a plus to see exactly what your character will "say", having a complete lack of tone caused a lot of problems. There were plenty of times when I thought I was being comical or sarcastic when it turned out that it was supposed to be a serious statement, and ended up gravely insulting the recipient. The Tone icons in the second game really benefit you in choosing the option that fits what you want to say, and Hawke very rarely deviated the actual speech away from the implied tone. While this is not a strength of the dialogue wheel, it IS a strength of how it was displayed.
When I roleplay a character, I don't make "me" into the character, as I wouldn't know what I'd do if put into those situations. You can SAY what you'd do all day, but if you were faced with a gigantic demon from the abyss, you'd likely either bolt in fear or just piss yourself on the spot. So I create a character on the spot. I say, what is Hawke's personality, what are his motivations and mannerisms? And play it as such. Having a voice is a huge help in creating this fictitious person that I am crafting.
This is my opinion on the matter. I cannot say if it is better or worse, as delivery method is entirely a matter of preference.
Graphics
I am in the odd situation of having an extremely powerful PC that can run almost every game on maximum settings, including Origins, but since Windows Vista cannot run DirectX 11 to my knowledge, I am stuck running Dragon Age 2 on Medium. While overall graphical quality is about the same as Origins on maximum, the texture detail leaves something to be desired, at least on medium. I am sure on Very High settings it's as crisp and clean as ever, but I must question the programming of the game if the highest settings I can run the game on look marginally WORSE than it's predecessor, when I can clearly handle superior settings.
I'll leave this to others who can run it on the best settings to decide.
Art Style
I enjoyed the art style of this game for the most part, especially the less ridiculously huge plate armors. Facial detail and character customization look far better than the first. In regards to the new styles of the races, I have to say I enjoy the greater variety. While it may be annoying to some that they changed racial appearances with little to no in-game explanation, it was more annoying to me that every race was the same in Origins. Humans are humans. Elves are pointy-eared humans. Dwarves are short, wide humans. Qunari are large humans. While I may not LIKE the design of some (looking at you, alien elves), I have to at least respect the fact that they made them actually different races.
The Darkspawn redesign strikes me as odd, however. While previously they DID look a bit too much like LotR Orcs, making them just be generic undead is just as bland. And I miss Hurlock Generals. They were pure awesomeness to see. An unneccesary change in my honest opinion.
Many people take issue with the new attack animations, saying they're too over the top and unrealistic. They were TOO down to earth in the first game, to the point of under-exaggeration. Nobody swings a sword that slowly. Especially the two-handers. While they may be too fast now, at least it's not a complete droll to look at. The cries of lack of realism are also a completely moot point in a world which has elves, magic, monsters, dragons, and demons. Last I checked those weren't real.
An overall improvement in the racial department, more of a take-it or leave-it opinion on the new combat animations. I for one will take it.
Closing Thoughts
While the environments hugely fell flat, and a few characters lagged a bit, I'd have to say this game stood over the first, for me at least. The speaking protagonist, villains with a face, massively improved combat, and more character driven storylines just put this game ahead of its predecessor. Not the most spectacular game I've EVER played mind you, but a solid title I'll probably play through at least once more.
Scores are pretty crap in my opinion, but if I HAD to give it one I'd say between 75-80 out of 100.
EDIT: Added a point to Character section.
Before we begin, some stats about my playthrough, for reference:
Platform: PC
Class: Mage
Difficulty: Medium
Graphics Quality: Medium
Gender: Male
Completion time: ~30 hours
I will be reviewing the game in many categories. These will be as follows:
-Gameplay
-Characters
-Overall story
-Environments
-Interface
-Dialogue System
-Graphics
-Art Style
-Closing Thoughts
Gameplay
In this area of the game, I was thoroughly impressed. In the first game, I played it through twice, once as a Mage, and once as a Rogue. As the mage, I was forced into using Entropy and Spirit spells, mixed with a bit of Blood Magic and healing. I say "forced" because I didn't enjoy the thought of setting all my melee allies on fire. Not to say it wasn't fun, the mage was the only class I really did have fun with in the first game. As the Rogue, optimal play for an Archer OR a backstabber was to take all the passive bonuses and sustained modes you could, and then just autoattack them to death. That is not my idea of engaging combat. I also dabbled a bit in the warrior class, but couldn't be fussed completing a playthrough. Both Sword and Shield as well as Two-Handed styles were utterly slow-paced and dull. I did a complete eye-roll whenever my mage fell in combat, because then I had to actually USE one of my boring compatriot's combat styles for the remainder of the battle.
In the second installment, combat for all classes and styles (with the possible exception of a sword and shield warrior) is far more active. Not only are auto swings far faster, but it's far more rewarding and powerful to actually use special attacks and abilities with melee classes, in addition to the mage. I didn't mind so much when my Mage fell this time (other then the fact that he did omgwtfbbq damage), because my companions were just as active and engaging as the mage was. Combine this with the lack of friendly fire outside of Nightmare difficulty, and even the mage is ten times more enjoyable, as I can be the master of flames and storms I desired from the first game.
I DO however take issue with the removal of spell-combos. They added some much needed flavor to the combat of the first game, and rewarded ingenuity. The Cross-Class combos they replaced them with, while powerful if used properly, are quite difficult to set up, and any enemy they'd be worth using on is probably immune to the disabling initial effect in the first place.
On the Normal difficulty I played the game through with, I found fights were much more challenging and hectic than the "Normal" of the first game, on a general level. Fights with nothing but grunt troops were easier than Origins, but the second an Elite or two joins the mix, it becomes much more complicated. Not to mention the "Boss" battles are INCREDIBLY hard and time consuming.
Overall, while there is the issue of my sweet spell combos being removed, the leaps and bounds the combat has taken over the first game far outweighs that loss.
Characters
While this area of the review can't be explained TOO explicitly without giving spoilers, I will do my best. For clarification, this part will deal with allies and party members. Ambient characters will be discussed in environments, and villainous characters will be described in overall story.
This area I felt was lagging behind a bit from Origins. Your party members in the first game were on the whole, better characterized. While there are a few shining examples, and these I think stand above their Origins counterparts, there are also a few bad eggs, and one that is complete fanservice and rubbish. As far as allies outside your party go, I felt it was about equal to Origins, perhaps only very slightly behind, but this is held back by the Environments which I will talk about later.
EDIT: One thing in particular I GREATLY enjoyed that I completely spaced (wrote this up at 5am, excuse me), was that instead of having one communal "camp" that your party gathers at, they each have their own home that they reside in when they're not with you. Oftentimes when you go to visit them you'll find other party members already hanging around, just chatting it up. This step above and beyond the usual "when they're with you" intra-party interaction really helped the sense of a cohesive group of friends.
Overall Story
This will again be a difficult area to cover without spoilers, but it should still grant insight all the same. The story of Hawke I must say is an intriguing one. While saving the land from the Darkspawn Blight is a grand epic tale in its own right, it does feel a bit cliche'd in a way. While the journey and all the places you visit and characters you meet create a wonderful picture of the world and country of Ferelden, and are masterfully done, a story just doesn't feel complete without a villain to match. The Darkspawn horde is nothing more than a mass of faceless, uncharacterized monsters, little more than animals. I have no more emotional stake in this fight than I do trying to save the land from a hurricane, or a volcanic eruption. It's not a fight of values, or morality, or countries vying for resources and land, it's just survival against a natural disaster at its base.
The scope of this game is far smaller than the first. Your actions are largely contained into one city/region. But this place is made to be as a true city. There is more going on in this city than anyone could reasonably keep track of. This may be as a bonus for some, a downfall for others. I for one could care less if the story is told in a town, a country, a world, or the entire universe, as long as it's well done. And here I think it is. You have an emotional stake in your party (those that are well characterized at least), your family, the fate of the city, and the struggles it faces. The villains actually have character and purpose behind their actions. And you can shape the fate of the city, for good or ill.
With the exception of the choice of antagonists in the first game however, I'd say the stories are largely equal in quality. Not scope, and scope equals quality for some. But not for me.
Environments
This is where the small scope of the game becomes a problem. While the city the game takes place in is masterfully crafted, you spend ALL of your time here, or just outside of it. You travel to these same few areas repeatedly for the entire game. The same mountains, caves, coastline, houses, and alleys. If there was one thing to be said for Origins, it's that there was always somewhere new and exciting to travel. While I was well absorbed into the storyline of the game, at times it became painfully obvious that I was having a battle with group X on the very same spot I had a battle with group Y. I can overlook it to a point, as I was having a lot of fun fighting and talking with people, but it really would have been nice to have at least a few more wilderness areas, sewers, houses, and what have you.
The ambient characters could have also used work. A lot of side quests have next to no dialogue at all, involving finding some random item, turning it in to a faceless citizen, and being rewarded with some coin and a generic "Oh, thanks for bringing me this". A lot of the time there was no way for you to even know WHO to return the item to... you just... do. Random citizens also have less ambient conversation and gossip than previous BioWare titles, which was a huge disappointment. That was a large part of what brought their environments to life for me.
This is where the game truly fell flattest in my opinion, and is the largest hang-up for detractors of the game that I hear.
Interface
The interface system is largely the same in the PC version of the game as it was for Origins. MMO style hotkey based combat, menus, and stat screens. The inventory system was streamlined a bit, which is a plus, as was crafting. There's not much of consequence I can say here. The system is adequate enough as to not get in the way. That's about it.
Dialogue System
A large issue for some people was the Dialogue Wheel and Hawke being voiced, as compared to the Warden being silent. This is almost completely preference based, but I will put my opinion on the matter. Having the silent Warden in the first game is what really killed the story for me. I felt my character was an emotionless wall that heartlessly made decisions for good or ill. It made me feel like choices were impersonal because the TONE in which something is done cannot be described in text, and sometimes reactions to your choices were fairly vague. While it IS a plus to see exactly what your character will "say", having a complete lack of tone caused a lot of problems. There were plenty of times when I thought I was being comical or sarcastic when it turned out that it was supposed to be a serious statement, and ended up gravely insulting the recipient. The Tone icons in the second game really benefit you in choosing the option that fits what you want to say, and Hawke very rarely deviated the actual speech away from the implied tone. While this is not a strength of the dialogue wheel, it IS a strength of how it was displayed.
When I roleplay a character, I don't make "me" into the character, as I wouldn't know what I'd do if put into those situations. You can SAY what you'd do all day, but if you were faced with a gigantic demon from the abyss, you'd likely either bolt in fear or just piss yourself on the spot. So I create a character on the spot. I say, what is Hawke's personality, what are his motivations and mannerisms? And play it as such. Having a voice is a huge help in creating this fictitious person that I am crafting.
This is my opinion on the matter. I cannot say if it is better or worse, as delivery method is entirely a matter of preference.
Graphics
I am in the odd situation of having an extremely powerful PC that can run almost every game on maximum settings, including Origins, but since Windows Vista cannot run DirectX 11 to my knowledge, I am stuck running Dragon Age 2 on Medium. While overall graphical quality is about the same as Origins on maximum, the texture detail leaves something to be desired, at least on medium. I am sure on Very High settings it's as crisp and clean as ever, but I must question the programming of the game if the highest settings I can run the game on look marginally WORSE than it's predecessor, when I can clearly handle superior settings.
I'll leave this to others who can run it on the best settings to decide.
Art Style
I enjoyed the art style of this game for the most part, especially the less ridiculously huge plate armors. Facial detail and character customization look far better than the first. In regards to the new styles of the races, I have to say I enjoy the greater variety. While it may be annoying to some that they changed racial appearances with little to no in-game explanation, it was more annoying to me that every race was the same in Origins. Humans are humans. Elves are pointy-eared humans. Dwarves are short, wide humans. Qunari are large humans. While I may not LIKE the design of some (looking at you, alien elves), I have to at least respect the fact that they made them actually different races.
The Darkspawn redesign strikes me as odd, however. While previously they DID look a bit too much like LotR Orcs, making them just be generic undead is just as bland. And I miss Hurlock Generals. They were pure awesomeness to see. An unneccesary change in my honest opinion.
Many people take issue with the new attack animations, saying they're too over the top and unrealistic. They were TOO down to earth in the first game, to the point of under-exaggeration. Nobody swings a sword that slowly. Especially the two-handers. While they may be too fast now, at least it's not a complete droll to look at. The cries of lack of realism are also a completely moot point in a world which has elves, magic, monsters, dragons, and demons. Last I checked those weren't real.
An overall improvement in the racial department, more of a take-it or leave-it opinion on the new combat animations. I for one will take it.
Closing Thoughts
While the environments hugely fell flat, and a few characters lagged a bit, I'd have to say this game stood over the first, for me at least. The speaking protagonist, villains with a face, massively improved combat, and more character driven storylines just put this game ahead of its predecessor. Not the most spectacular game I've EVER played mind you, but a solid title I'll probably play through at least once more.
Scores are pretty crap in my opinion, but if I HAD to give it one I'd say between 75-80 out of 100.
EDIT: Added a point to Character section.
