Dragon Age 2 Incoming. - Part 1

[X Knight]

Same, though I fully anticipate that they'll crank out at least 2-3 more really neat DLC's for DA2.

About DA3... while I understand that Bioware wants to make each installment it's own individual story, I hope they weave in more of the story lines and characters that we've already come across. Kills me when you spend an entire game learning about these very rich characters that they build... only to have those characters effectively walk off into the sunset never to be heard from again.

yeah.....I wouldn't mind seeing the companions again in subsequent games.

not necessarily as companions again, but just as characters you meet or run across in the game.

 

[iamlegend]

yeah.....I wouldn't mind seeing the companions again in subsequent games.

not necessarily as companions again, but just as characters you meet or run across in the game.

That'd work. Having old characters as companions again could be fun, but I'd never want them to force them in just for the sake of it. But knowing what's been happening to those characters would be nice.

I'm curious as to whether a DA3 would address more of whatever the hell's going on in the Flemeth/Morrigan story. We got a tiny bit of that in DA2 and between that and the results of Witch Hunt... something big's a brewing.

 

[X Knight]

That'd work. Having old characters as companions again could be fun, but I'd never want them to force them in just for the sake of it. But knowing what's been happening to those characters would be nice.

I'm curious as to whether a DA3 would address more of whatever the hell's going on in the Flemeth/Morrigan story. We got a tiny bit of that in DA2 and between that and the results of Witch Hunt... something big's a brewing.

I would imagine so......

however, I think the whole "God Baby" issue will be left alone, since not every player chose that option......

 

[Drz]

PAX Info round up on Dragon Age Franchise:

1) How battles should be fought: There is a new mantra being used by the development team while working on upcoming DLC and it involves preparation, teamwork, and positioning. They discussed how battle needs to be incredibly tactical with the player preparing his team for combat, utilizing the strength of his party-mates, and correctly placing his characters in the perfect tactical positions. More on this in a sec.
2) The Scope – A map was briefly shown of Ferelden in comparison to the entire world of Dragon Age, it was quite small. Next a map was shown of Kirkwall which was essentially a Rhode Island sized spec (the crowd laughed). Next Laidlaw showed a slide of a massive area of the map which was easily four or five times larger than Ferelden and hinted that this was the direction that the franchise was heading in. People seemed to like that.
3) Player Customization – Bioware is fully aware that players want to be able to customize their companion’s armor and appearance, and it looks to be coming back. Briefly shown on the screen was a shot of Meryll in an entirely new suit of armor with head, chest, hand, and foot slots unlocked. I think it would be a real challenge to implement as DLC, so we may have actually seen a quick glimpse of DA3 or perhaps an unannounced expansion pack.
4) On DA3 Premise – Dragon Age: Origins was about saving Ferelden from the Blight, whereas Dragon Age 2 was all about creating the conflict that fuels DA3. It was mentioned that DA2 was “the big setup” with the goal of the third game being “saving the world from…. itself”.
5) Will Hawke Ever Meet The Warden Commander ? - I’m glad this question was addressed because it really was on everyone’s mind. There were some very big missed opportunities in DA2 to have the Warden and Hawke cross paths, but it appears as though we will get our wish. Gaider simply hinted “we are perhaps so inclined (to have their paths cross)”.. so it’s coming for sure.
6) Global Conflict and a Witch : The world will be at war during the third game with both mages and templar vying for power and control. The player will be traveling to various “exotic” locations in order to try and bring the peace. Orlais and Tvinter were mentioned on several occasions… oh yeah, there was also some concept art of a certain disapproving witch standing in front of a burning barn. Witches HATE barns.
7) Protagonists: Hawke’s story is not quite done, whereas the story of the Hero of Ferelden.. is over. This does not mean that the Warden Commander isn’t an important character in the universe, just that you won’t be playing him/her as the main protagonist of the story. Gaider also hinted that the future of the franchise may rest with an all new unseen hero.
8 ) Dragon Age MMO? : Nope
9) Felicia Day and Redemption: I can’t seem to go anywhere these days without running into Felicia Day. I swear she must have the ability to replicate and teleport at will…anyway…we were treated to a quick look at Day’s new Dragon Age web series Dragon Age: Redemption and got to see a handful of shots of folks getting all chopped up and stabbed … Dragon Age style. The series looks very promising and I can’t wait to actually see the damn thing.
10) Teamwork: In the future the player will receive some sort of “party bonus” for having certain members in their party. More than just a “buff” these bonuses may stack in special ways and will exist to motivate the player to choose a particular character for their team “pick me!“.
There you have it. Those were some of the major reveals from last evening’s Dragon Age panel at Pax Prime. While Dragon Age 3 has yet to be “officially announced” I got the feeling that the team is already hard at work planning the long term future of the franchise.

 

[X Knight]

PAX Info round up on Dragon Age Franchise:

awesome news!!

the thought of DA3 being even greater in scope than DAO and DA2 is........

 

[Drz]

awesome news!!

the thought of DA3 being even greater in scope than DAO and DA2 is........

Yeah it seems to stop the Mages and Templars (keyword: Templars, since they left the Chantry) the protagonist will travel alot of continents, one could assume it's Tevinter Imperium (where else would Mages feel safer?) and Orlais mayhaps? So you got a "Templar" or well "Chantry" Orlais with Mage Tevinter.

More DA3 info:

They've detailed the companion armor system for Dragon Age 3. You can fully equip your followers again, but it doesn't change their appearance.
However, they're also adding more ways to change the appearance of your followers through a separate system.

 

[X Knight]

so.......you can add different armor parts to your followers.......but it won't change change their appearance directly??

but you can change your followers' appearance by choosing "full outfits" for them??

 

[Drz]

Basically you can get gear to upgrade the stats, but instead of ugly random gear you can get sexy cool gear like Merrill's armor when you romance her, well all companions got a new outfit when romanced, but Merrill's was the best.

 

[Slushy]

Is it me or does Hawke sound like Daniel Craig?

 

[El Bastardo]

I think it's you.

 

[Drz]

Tomorrow we should receive an announcement/reveal on DA2's next DLC which based off this Facebook picture is Dalish elf related. I do remember Bioware's blog talking about how Dalish Elves gather every 10 years for a meeting, but that never happened in the game so i guess they wanted it on DLC.

 

[X Knight]

Tomorrow we should receive an announcement/reveal on DA2's next DLC which based off this Facebook picture is Dalish elf related. I do remember Bioware's blog talking about how Dalish Elves gather every 10 years for a meeting, but that never happened in the game so i guess they wanted it on DLC.

can't wait!

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/exclusive-debut-dragon-age/720938

Sounds very Kasumi/Stolen Memory-ish so far.

 

[Drz]

Felicia Day is in it, tho i was kinda hoping for more Dalish elf themed, but i guess we will still get that. Looks intriquing. October 11th!

We are very pleased to announce the next Dragon Age II story based DLC, Mark of the Assassin!

http://social.bioware.com/forum/Dra...-II-DLC---Mark-of-the-Assassin-8334842-1.html

Hawke
meets a mysterious female Elvin assassin named Tallis, voiced by the talented Felicia Day, and joins her to steal an ancient relic from an Orlesian Baron in his well-guarded estate. A cross between Varric and Isabela, Tallis is a rogue who introduces a new fighting style to add more variety in combat. Get up close and personal with her deadly skills or stand back and pick off enemies with her ranged combat abilities.

Mark of the Assassin features new items, new enemies and monsters and new environments as well as giving players the opportunity to experience a new, tactical way to play with the return of Stealth gameplay. Plus, along with the new environments and monsters, you will learn more about the Orlesians and Qunari.

Mark of the Assassin will be available for download on the PC, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 on October 11 for $9.99 or 800 Microsoft points.

We learn about the Qunari, sweetness!!!!

 

[X Knight]

cool!!

so we get a new companion??

 

[Drz]

The companion is only for the DLC parts.

 

[X Knight]

The companion is only for the DLC parts.

it would be nice if she'd be like Shale and you could use her in the main campaign......

 

[Speedball]

 

[Drz]

New info from Bioware Pulse:

• Mark of the Assassin fits in with the main game and can be started at any time in Kirkwall. Progress in the game will be reflected in the DLC
• Mark of the Assassin is slightly longer than Legacy as there are lots of side quests and fiendish puzzles
• Tallis will be a companion only for the duration of Mark of the Assassin. This is for "a number of reasons."
• There's some "extra stuff" for certain characters, particularly those who have any connections with Orlais (such as Aveline). The DLC will also explore the inner workings of the Qunari. Laidlaw tells fans to "expect revelations" and there will be moments at the end which will make players surprised.

At this point, a clip was shown of Tallis speaking to Hawke. Hawke chose to flirt with her, after which she introduced herself and revealed that she was searching for Hawke, as they had an invitation to Château Haine (note that Hawke was Champion in the clip). Tallis told Hawke that she needed to relieve the Château's owner of something he "had no right to possess." For this, she needed Hawke's aid. A cut-scene plays, before Hawke's party arrives at the Château. The Orlesian Duke introduces Hawke as an "honoured guest." The clip then ended.

• Tallis uses daggers but her fighting style will switch between ranged and melee (she will throw the daggers and is not an archer). She has her own tree and her abilities are useful against mages.
• Mike admitted that in DAII, there was too much focus on fighting, and in the future (including DLC) the team wanted to ensure that there were more ways to resolve combat situations than going in all guns spells blazing. Stealthy rogue gameplay will be useful in Mark of the Assassin.
• Tallis will not have friendship or rivalry points, but there will be different approaches to take when dealing with her. These approaches will affect the gameplay and some key choices.
• The duke who is seen in the trailer lives in an area of the Free Marches which is infested with wyverns. These wyverns are new enemies.
• Mike named his favourite character as Leliana as an all time favourite, but loves Aveline and Isabela due to their relationship. He loves female rogues.
• There will be lots of character interactions and banter besides combat.
• Siblings can return for the DLC.
• While the DLC does not add a huge amount to the overall flow of the DAII storyline, there are titbits along the way.
• Some areas encountered are "quite big", similar to the Korcari Wilds from Dragon Age: Origins.
• Characters who have history with Orlais or the Qunari will have "extra goodies".
• Feedback from Legacy factored into the DLC, as did general DAII feedback. For example, there was positive reaction to optional puzzles, so they were brought back.
• Revelations in the DLC will "plant some seeds."
• There will be more Cassandra. She features in the DLC and has some great lines.
• Hawke will not get to dance at the party at the Château Haine, though there will be chances to interact with Orlesian culture. Mike then said he would be lying if there were not "the most exotic of hams."
• Combat and sneaking sync well together.
• Companions will flirt with Tallis, and Carver has not lost his "thing for elves."
• In the long term, there are ambitions for a hybrid between archery and dual-wielding.

 

[iamlegend]

Awesome that they had the foresight to tie the DA: Redemption stuff into the game. Great marketing and it'll also leave a ready made character for DA3 in Tallis if they want her.

Intrigued by a lot of the stuff they're talking about. I figured that they'd consider revisiting the Warden's story again, since people have been clamoring for it. Completely understandable that they don't want to go back to the Warden as a player character, but fans don't really like big mysterious endings that leave story lines unfinished (which is what we got unless you went all noble with your Warden).

Not sure how the tactics and positioning thing will play out... Not as excited about that, in part because of how poorly things like that can shake out if built wrong. I hate having to pause combat to put stuff like that together.

 

[X Knight]

New info from Bioware Pulse:

sounds great!!

could this also be a sign that Orlais will play a bigger role in DA3 ( that seems to be the logical direction )?

 

[Drz]

In PAX they showed DA3 will have more continents than DAO had, so i think DA3 might be about Orlais + Tevinter, because you'd consider the Mages wanting the Tevinter's assistance in defeating the Templars, and the Chantry needs to get back in control with the Templars. Cassandra will likely be the "most important ally" to DA3's protagonist.

 

[X Knight]

In PAX they showed DA3 will have more continents than DAO had, so i think DA3 might be about Orlais + Tevinter, because you'd consider the Mages wanting the Tevinter's assistance in defeating the Templars, and the Chantry needs to get back in control with the Templars. Cassandra will likely be the "most important ally" to DA3's protagonist.

cool!! and that's why, I'm actually more excited about DA3 than any new DA2 DLC content.......lol

I'm curious to find out who the DA3 protagonist will be........

btw.....in DA2, did they ever establish if Hawke's Dad was a Blood Mage?

 

[Speedball]

No, they never say he was blood mage, but judging from how Bioware made pretty much every mage a blood mage in DAII, sure, sure why not.

 

[Drz]

Hawke's father was used to use Blood Magic once in his life because the Grey Wardens threathened to kill Leandra if he didn't cast a binding spell, but otherwise Papa Hawke taught Bethany and Mage Hawke to never allow magic control you and so forth.