Dragon Age II - Gen. Discussion and Info - Mark of the Assassin DLC 10/11 800 pts.

[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']I can't afford to wait either myself. I know for consoles it's somewhere between 12 - 2 am for PST which should translate to 3 - 5 am for EST. Ugh...[/QUOTE]


Yeah, way too late unfortunately. Whenever I wait they never put it up right at 5est, then I end up staying up another hour or so and I'm worthless the next day. Oh well it'll give me something new to play tomorrow evening. I'm sure playing the demo is going to really make me want to go back and run through the first one again. I doubt I'll have enough time to complete it before 2 comes out though.
 
in the middle of the demo as we speak, all what I have to say is battle is so much quicker....almost a little too fast for an RPG, but I will dwell deeper into the demo and see how I feel about it.


Im back, and the combat makes sense to me now, since the games throws tons of more enemies per battle at you compared to first one, it helps the pace of the game and fluidness of combat, I approve of this change, great demo but I wish they dident lock the inventory screen.
 
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This hardly feels like Dragon Age at all, to be honest.

Speaking from a Mage side of things, the combat does feel a bit too fast paced for my liking - and it definitely has me rethinking my role as a Damager. Some fights literally had me running to the side, tapping A to fire off some quick bolts, running to another side, casting a spell, running further, tapping A some more, repeat. I'm not entirely sure that it's a bad thing, it's just not what I'm accustomed to in these types of games. It was most satisfying, though, to rain down fire on a group of enemies once I got further in. Tomorrow/later-on-today, I'm going to have to try the Warrior and Rogue, as I'm sure those classes benefited a lot from the fast paced combat.

As for the visuals, audio, display, menus, dialog, and cinematics...definitely much better than DA:O. My femHawke was already rolling out the one-liners with a minute or two into the demo. It's a shame that they won't let you edit her during the demo, but it makes sense. Also, I absolutely love the ability trees now - such a great addition to the game. So was the idea of borrowing ME's conversation wheel :cool:

All in all it seems like a solid game. You can watch trailers and videos all you want, but playing the real deal is what counts - and I'm glad that it's already woken me up to the fact that the Mage isn't Jesus anymore. Can't wait to try the other classes and dialog options.
 
Finished 1 1/2 playthroughs of the demo, once as a male mage, 1/2 as a female rogue.

This game is a lot of fun. The combat is indeed very fast paced, and both classes feel responsive and useful. Warriors, from what little I played of other characters when my penchant for running ahead got Hawke killed, seem kind of slow and boring in comparison, but I think they deserve a proper playthrough to ensure I'm right. I did enjoy playing my warrior in Origins though, since he was damn near unkillable (I soloed a large chunk of the Archdemon fight with him), so I'm holding out hope for a good sword and board build.

I'm not sure if the sibling that dies is dependent on gender or class. I think it's gender, but it's still interesting that the mage sister dies on my male mage, and the warrior brother dies on the female rogue (Since you still have a warrior in the party.)

So, to sum up: Play this demo. It'll give you an idea of how nice the graphic style looks (Since so many people seem to bitch about the game's graphics), and how different (And IMO better) combat is, so you can decide for yourself if Dragon Age 2 is for you.

Personally, I can't wait for March 8th!
 
Press (A) to win!

:lol:

Beat it once as a Warrior, going Rouge next time.

No gameplay complaints so far, other than the AI followers don't really like to use their spells/skills even when added at the tactics screen.
I had to keep jumping back and forth to issue fireballs and pommel strikes.

Hope they resize the text, had a hard time reading it from 5' away on a 22"LCD.
 
[quote name='Anexanhume']Can anyone confirm that beating the demo unlocks the item for all platforms? I'm not a gold member but I'm getting DA2 for 360.[/QUOTE]
BioWare forum posters are reporting that the item is only unlocked for the platform that you beat the demo on.
 
This is just fucking stupid. Single player demo for a single player game is a gold exclusive (for a week I assume). fucking retarded.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']BioWare forum posters are reporting that the item is only unlocked for the platform that you beat the demo on.[/QUOTE]

Lame. Guess I'm waiting for the demo on 360. I hope it comes out before the game.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']Speaking from a Mage side of things, the combat does feel a bit too fast paced for my liking - and it definitely has me rethinking my role as a Damager. Some fights literally had me running to the side, tapping A to fire off some quick bolts, running to another side, casting a spell, running further, tapping A some more, repeat. I'm not entirely sure that it's a bad thing, it's just not what I'm accustomed to in these types of games. It was most satisfying, though, to rain down fire on a group of enemies once I got further in. Tomorrow/later-on-today, I'm going to have to try the Warrior and Rogue, as I'm sure those classes benefited a lot from the fast paced combat.

All in all it seems like a solid game. You can watch trailers and videos all you want, but playing the real deal is what counts - and I'm glad that it's already woken me up to the fact that the Mage isn't Jesus anymore. Can't wait to try the other classes and dialog options.[/QUOTE]After going back through with the Rogue and Warrior classes, I can definitely tell that they balanced the hell out of the classes for this game.

The Rogue is non-stop with their attacks, which is a nice change of pace from the wanna-be Warrior Rogue from DA:O. You can really terrorize a group of enemies when you have people like Aveline fighting alongside you (or someone with Taunt). The
fight against the Ogre (second time around)
was a cakewalk compared to the fight I did late last night/early morning.

The Warrior is noticeably bulkier in his/her movement and attacks, but man does he/she make up for it with his/her attacks. The Whirlwind ability is absolutely brutal, and I can definitely see myself going more for two-handed Warrior than my usual Sword/Shield. I came nowhere close to dying (or even needing to use a health potion) with this class, as I basically just tanked through each wave of enemies. Very satisfying.

I also did another run through with the Mage, because I feel like me being tired at 5:30-6am affected my gameplay - and sure enough I was right. I completely dominated with the Mage class this go-around, and I did a much better job of micro-managing my allies (which is a must for the Mage). Looking back at my post, I definitely shortchanged the Mage's ability within the group and completely underestimated the chaos you can unleash with that class. I definitely see the need for a Healer in my main party, though. FemHawke Mage is still a go for day 1 annihilation :cool:

After multiple playthroughs, here's my pecking order for classes:
Mage
Rogue (dual-swords)
Warrior (two-handed)
Warrior (sword + shield)
Rogue (archery)
 
After spending some time with vanilla versions of all classes here's my assessment of the demo:

Pros:
- There's no question you are playing a sequel from Dragon Age: Origins. A sequel apparently surviving on gallons of Red Bull and an endless supply of Pop Rocks... but a meaty sequel none the less. Everything is so much more attractive and immediate than its predecessor in a dynamic yet welcoming way. I have no doubt in my mind this will provide a perfect entry point for new players to help easy them into the slower pace of Origins. I have a difficult time though awarding superiority to either of them though as I can easily appreciate the flow of both. :)

- I have to admit despite her age your mother is some kind of gorgeous. I mean... damn. There's no question where Marian got DAT FACE from and then some. Bioware must take pleasure in trolling its fanbase hard providing us such attractive yet unattainable beauties. The fact we'll control up to two of them for the entire game is undoubtedly criminal. :bs:

- The music is utterly fantastic. Thedas has matured quite a bit from Origins despite your champion's beginning. I'm looking forward to listening to the OST in its entirety which is something I can only say for a meager few in my library. :applause:

- I'm overjoyed to find the success rate of all available talents has been increased by a whopping 356%! No more will I have to factor who, what, where, when and how before I queue up an attack then pray it hits for full damage! Let's goooooo! \\:D/

Origins was infamous for requiring players (and in most cases... their prey) to stand perfectly still to ensure complete uninhibited contact for their talents. The lengthier the animation, the less likely you were awarded optimal damage. I'm thankful they decided to address this minor hiccup after all. :D

- The lack of auto attack in the demo doesn't bother me for all of the classes since it lends itself perfectly to the revamped pace of battle. Warriors and Rogues benefit greatly from it for obvious reasons but I rest assure there is only a matter of time before the allure disappears. Fortunately since a toggle for AA was confirmed months ago this problem neatly fixes itself. :cool:

- Increased emphasis on the viability and management of consumable items by dramatically increasing the cool down of healing spells was quite a clever gambit on their part. So much so I find myself a bit torn on the change personally. Substantially content but torn.

Any RPG fan would support increasing the usefulness of everything a well stocked inventory has to offer but I can't ignore how quickly this may diminish the Healer Mage class in general. Anyone can argue the best defense is a better offense but not when your desire is to exclusively play defensively. With the new focus of combat seemingly unapologetic in its affinity toward ruthlessly overbearing your opposition with lightning fast, constant, low risk/high reward field control a standard healing Mage has little business being there. It simply cannot out heal the vast amount of damage being inflicted at such speeds forcing the player to down or upgrade to a legitimate primary support Mage (focus on buffs, protective sustains, and low cost dps) to keep up with everyone else.

Hopefully the Spirit Healer specialization dramatically increases the viability of healers rather than solidify their extinction or evolution into more action oriented supporters. When it comes to options and flexibility I prefer more of not less than in my RPGs. It's one of the main reasons I'm a devoted fan of the genre. Regardless thrusting the player to the forefront of the action for Dragon Age isn't a bad thing so long as it doesn't rule over the tactical aspect of the game with tightfisted fervor. A lot of us still enjoy planning ahead while occasionally stopping to smell the roses you know? :whistle2:k

Cons:
- The new text size and color is an absolute unapologetic eyesore for SD television owners. I can barely decipher subtitle text let alone what juicy tidbits appear on loading screens. Reading the map is a nightmare and the character interface is one size away or bright color from being completely illegible for me even with glasses. As a player who enjoys absorbing every aspect of quality lore via codex entries or knowing exactly where I'm headed the first time around I sincerely wish they had ported from Origins. Ugh... :censored:

- Rogue is without a doubt the new Mage class of this sequel in my opinion. Immensely satisfying but hardly challenging. Judging from what little time I had to play with the vanilla version (dual wield) class I'm convinced my opinion isn't likely to sway much after I get my hands on the real game. The obscene amount of DPS you reliably generate with minimal effort by your lonesome is borderline criminal.

...Don't believe me?

Upgrade to Unforgiving Chain then spam your basic attacks with any buff (e.g. Heroic Aura, Lacerate or both) backing you on an elite or boss. Follow that up with a Backstab or Explosive Strike for diabolical damsel-in-distress-hogtied-to-train-tracks results. I imagine it's only the tip of the iceberg as to the amount of field control bestowed upon this class. Utility-R-Us. Normal mobs haven't a chance against you so I pray the difficulty spikes up dramatically to combat its effectiveness or I'm afraid that play-through will be reserved exclusive for roleplaying purposes or much higher difficulties.

The Isabella "boss" fight was a cake walk as I never went below 50% health to trigger a heal spell from Bethany. I kept my focus entirely on the boss WHILE occasionally roundhousing flasks like the Power Ranger I always knew I could be to assist my team from taking damage.

El Ridiculoso thy name is Rogue. :shock:

- The increased emphasis on teamwork via talent pool and tactics (though appreciated for any RPG) becomes lost on me the split second one class adheres more closely to it than others. Regardless of your play style (DPS or Healer/Support) the demo made it painfully obvious how self sufficient both Warrior and Rogue are compared to Mage. I suspect this is due largely in part to their immediate access to low cost crowd control and sustainables while sporting staggeringly decreased cool down times and more health in the process.

As much as I love a challenge it's still somewhat disappointing coming to the realization Bioware's motivation for adopting such a wonky approach in class balance has (once again) been fueled by the need to reach out to new audiences. Genre balance however I feel was handled with the utmost care and consideration for their fanbase regardless of any balance flaw. A decision I for one applaud and appreciate immensely in comparison to the typical shock amputation of core game play elements; a formula generously applied to and most often seen in your average next-gen sequel.

It's nearly impossible to ignore the vast amount of effort put into pleasing both old and new fans of Dragon Age. Definitely something to keep in mind before and months after launch. This however doesn't change the fact Mages will be playing catch up if the later game doesn't provide them with access to a more well rounded pool of talents for self preservation purposes. :whistle2:k

- The new map is a HUGE downgrade from Origins. It's a pain in the ass to navigate for those of us playing on SD to say the very least. Thankfully with the direction arrow making its on-screen debut it will only play a factor if certain quests or areas omit its appearance. #-o

- Much to my surprise I actually find myself agreeing with the unusually fanatical members of the official forums when it comes to the size of Isabella's assets. A little reduction would have worked wonders for realism's sake. I had no idea plastic surgery existed in Thedas until now! Her chest is almost painful to look at from every angle though thankfully there haven't been any ME2-esque close ups to speak of yet. :speaktothehand:

The view from behind on the other hand is dare I say quite superb. My suggestion is any and all close ups focus on this area in its entirety at all times. :drool:

...What?

I'm happily male and she's a thick lass comfortable with being seen wearing breathable materials. I'm going to enjoy the view so lighten up. ;)

Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to start tinkering around a bit more before I eat. I'm keeping my SE pre-order for sure. March 8th can't come around fast enough.
 
[quote name='Anexanhume']Text size was a problem for ME2 as well. Bioware doesn't seem to care too much about it.[/QUOTE]

True. Fortunately it was one of the few games I didn't require subtitles to understand what the hell was going on 90% of the time. Everyone spoke clearly. Plus it's pretty difficult to get lost when you have to focus on the main story to garner any worthwhile enjoyment out of it so until now I had completely forgotten.

Well... except for the news reports on the main menu. My god were they blurry.
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']True. Fortunately it was one of the few games I didn't require subtitles to understand what the hell was going on 90% of the time. Everyone spoke clearly. Plus it's pretty difficult to get lost when you have to focus on the main story to garner any worthwhile enjoyment out of it so until now I had completely forgotten.

Well... except for the news reports on the main menu. My god were they blurry.[/QUOTE]

That's the reapers' plan you know. They come to earth, change all of our text sizes, then we fuck our own shit up. Sneaky bastards.
 
I love subtitles as I like to X through conversations most of the time. I can read faster than they can talk, so that equals less time sitting around listening and more time playing.

But I have a 50" HDTV I game on so I don't have any problems with text size.
 
I wish I would have pre-ordered this before January 11th. : /

Bwomp-Bwomp. My friend at GameStop claims that the pre-orders for those were 1 to 1... so maybe somebody won't pick up their copy (here's hoping).
 
Anyone else annoyed with Hawke's male voice? For being such a badass darkspawn slaying machine, I expected a more gruff and tuff voice. Instead he sounds like a pretty boy with a british accent.
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']After spending some time with vanilla versions of all classes here's my assessment of the demo:

Pros: ...

Cons: ...

Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to start tinkering around a bit more before I eat. I'm keeping my SE pre-order for sure. March 8th can't come around fast enough.[/QUOTE]One thing I will say (and, take it from someone who's already done it themselves in this very thread) is don't count out the Mage just yet. It took a little time for me to really get used to, and after playing with it a second time around my opinion drastically changed on it. My first run through I was almost heartbroken, as I thought I'd have to change from my beloved Mage. However, with the right abilities, the right tactics, and the right playstyle, the Mage is still a beast - and after looking at some of the later powers, it's safe to say that it will only get better with time.

Oh, and definitely agreed on Isabella. Definitely. fucking. agreed.

[quote name='thrustbucket']The demo was fun but the gibbing every other kill with the rogue was silly.[/QUOTE]I noticed that as well. It seems like they are going above and beyond the necessary effort to make the Rogue seem like the go-to class. With the Rogue, I felt like I was watching Kill Bill at times.

[quote name='Swift900']Anyone else annoyed with Hawke's male voice? For being such a badass darkspawn slaying machine, I expected a more gruff and tuff voice. Instead he sounds like a pretty boy with a british accent.[/QUOTE]Agreed. FemHawke for life - she's got the looks and the better VA :cool:
 
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[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']One thing I will say (and, take it from someone who's already done it themselves in this very thread) is don't count out the Mage just yet. It took a little time for me to really get used to, and after playing with it a second time around my opinion drastically changed on it. My first run through I was almost heartbroken, as I thought I'd have to change from my beloved Mage. However, with the right abilities, the right tactics, and the right playstyle, the Mage is still a beast - and after looking at some of the later powers, it's safe to say that it will only get better with time.[/QUOTE]

Heh. Even if they savagely nerfed our beloved class to hell and back you know we'd both find a way to break the game with them to show off. I've reserved a small amount of faith my issues with Healing Mages are simply a product of the early game rather than a nagging wound for the real deal where more variety is readily available.

Rest assured I completely agree vanilla dps and support hybrids are Fan Tested - Origins Approved in the demo. I'd be a fool to claim Beth wasn't catching wreck in every. single. one. of my demo runs with the standard Fireball and attack spam alone. Upgrading made it painfully apparent how much of a field day I'm going to have with this game on Normal which is why I'm cranking it up to Hard come launch.

On a totally unrelated note I think you should re-tier Rogue Archer asap. Seriously. It completely supports what I said earlier about the class in general. Stagger + solid normal attack base dmg + huge base damage for long range status altering talents = AW/BM approved.

Oh, and definitely agreed on Isabella. Definitely. fucking. agreed.
Click to expand...

Your patented smiley fits me well. :cool:
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']Heh. Even if they savagely nerfed our beloved class to hell and back you know we'd both find a way to break the game with them to show off. I've reserved a small amount of faith my issues with Healing Mages are simply a product of the early game rather than a nagging wound for the real deal where more variety is readily available.

On a totally unrelated note I think you should re-tier Rogue Archer asap. Seriously. It completely supports what I said earlier about the class in general. Stagger + solid normal attack base dmg + huge base damage for long range status altering talents = AW/BM approved.[/QUOTE]For sure. There's no way they're going to hold me back from using the Mage, especially now that I've found an even better build for myself after going through it for PC. I can't wait to totally abuse that class when the game hits, and not have to stick with what the game gives me. I believe that it is just the fact that it's a demo and it's the early game that is holding back the Mage's potential somewhat. Two weeks, though, and the chains come off :D

I thought I was done with the demo (at least for today), but your Archer challenge has me going back in one last time.

[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']Your patented smiley fits me well. :cool:[/QUOTE]:lol:

It's even more ridiculous when you have both her and femHawke next to each other. Slap on the cool shades for future back problems up ins :cool:
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']I thought I was done with the demo (at least for today), but your Archer challenge has me going back in one last time.[/QUOTE]

Let's just say I only got hit once during the entire Isabella boss fight by a random Elite Warrior who was then Evade stunned into a Stunning Shot massacre. Once I added Glyph of Paralyze and Heroic Aura into the mix I honestly felt sorry for the game. Between the Glyph and my entire team swarming him I could hardly call it a fair fight. The guy couldn't move an itch without getting punished for it. What's worse is Taunt forced his support hordes to completely ignore me. Stonewall is just... man... it's a tragedy Aveline isn't LI material because it's equally amazing. You don't even want to know badly the Ogre got it before we got there. The shear power of their AOE is breathtaking and because of it my Archer runs have been the fastest out of them all without question.


:lol:

It's even more ridiculous when you have both her and femHawke next to each other. Slap on the cool shades for future back problems up ins :cool:
Click to expand...
LMAO!

Nothing short of a Kirkwall Gone Wild scenario indeed. ;)
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']Let's just say I only got hit once during the entire Isabella boss fight by a random Elite Warrior who was then Evade stunned into a Stunning Shot massacre. Once I added Glyph of Paralyze and Heroic Aura into the mix I honestly felt sorry for the game. Between the Glyph and my entire team swarming him I could hardly call it a fair fight. The guy couldn't move an itch without getting punished for it. What's worse is Taunt forced his support hordes to completely ignore me. Stonewall is just... man... it's a tragedy Aveline isn't LI material because it's equally amazing. You don't even want to know badly the Ogre got it before we got there. The shear power of their AOE is breathtaking and because of it my Archer runs have been the fastest out of them all without question.[/QUOTE]Wow, without even seeing this post before I ran through again as an Archer I think we ended up with about the same experience :lol:

The ogre fight lasted what feels like 45 seconds - absolutely tore that thing to shreds. My final fight with Isabella was just as brutal as what you described: having the entire room on lockdown, with arrows raining death from above while I launched fire-packing arrows right in the middle of the Glyph of Paralysis that entangled nearly everyone.

It looks like I'm going to have to do my Mass Effect thing and play through as every class, since each one seems to have its nasty-ass combos that you can pull off. Kudos to BioWare for already making me think "here goes another 300+ hours of my life" :cool:

[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']LMAO!

Nothing short of a Kirkwall Gone Wild scenario indeed. ;)[/QUOTE]I just want to hear/see Varric's version of the tale :)
 
Hmmm didn't like the first Dragon Age game on the Xbox (worst combat system ever....), but I have heard they improved it in this one....I'll see for myself when I play the demo tonight
 
[quote name='seanr1221']You unlock some items for finishing the demo, right? I was so tired last night I had to stop.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, if you finish it you unlock Hayder's Razor. You can check your registered game promotions on social.bioware.com to make sure you unlocked it successfully. I didn't get any kind of in-game notification.
 
Cool, thanks. Tried the rogue, but stopped shortly into it as I wasn't having as much fun as a two handed warrior. Warriors are always my favorite to play in these games, Im glad the combat is so much better.
 
I finished once as a rogue female, the game played SO fast, it seemed like a action game. I enjoyed it so much more than DA:O. The graphics, especially the faces and other assets were impressive. Going to play through once or twice more..
 
Some further thoughts:

-The VA for the male Hawke sounds like Ralph Phines. I'd have assumed it was him but there is no way they would have paid what he would cost.

-I'm still bothered by Rogue's backstab blasting enemies into chunks of meat. Really? Is this quake? I'm all for cool fatalities and finishing moves, but make them rare so they stay cool. I gibbed or cut in half nearly every enemy I killed.

-This game feels close to a God of War with RPG elements. I have actually always wished for such a game, but they should have taken it further and just made it that.

- Did anyone else notice how rushed and buggy seemed? The explanations under each class in the class selection screen had different grammar/punctuation for male/female of the same class. Subtitles kept popping in and out of existence, especially in the end cinematic. Animation pops galore are back, classic bioware.

-From DA:O I was used to tapping the back button whenever there was a codex entry picked up to go right to it, that doesn't seem to work here. In fact, from codex to leveling up, it seems like stuff is buried deeper in the pause menu than before.

- Are there no different types of potions? I noticed there were just lyrium, stamina, health - period. And they are all on long timers. I assume that is to inject difficulty into an otherwise pretty easy hack and slash?

- Does crafting still exist?

-Still sticking with my preorder but if the demo is to go by, will probably need to play on hard, not normal, to really enjoy it.
 
Downloaded the demo last night but didn't have a chance to play it. Will try it out later on tonight. I hope that it'll drive me to play DA: O since it's been sitting on my shelf, neglected.
 
Man, the BioWare boards are in full-on civil war mode over this demo. :) It's both funny and kind of sad to see all these PC players frothing about how Dragon Age has been reinvented to appeal to Call of Duty and Madden players. Frankly it didn't feel that different from Origins to me, just a streamlined and polished update, with some some smart cops from the Mass Effect series-- which suits me just fine.
 
I'm not understanding a lot of the hate either (well... yet) but such a split among their fanbase was bound to happen. This isn't a ME1 - ME2 level change IMO; it's a fresh coat of paint, new body, full tank of gas surrounding a refurbished engine. If I'm mistaken then the DA team have attained an expert level grasp of camouflage. My only nagging concerns at the moment are difficulty, class flexibility and length. If the game plans on laying "ass up, face down" for Origins vets then it's not too much to ask for meaningful content in copious amounts to balance it out. I would feel much better if the devs came out and said the character stats in Kirkwall were deliberately boosted. You'd have to be completely new to the game to not dominate that fight with the options given to you.

If that much control is available at such a meager level then Maker help them all because I'm about to go honey baked ham hold the pimento loaf on this sequel. No question.
 
DA:O felt like a chore to play, this doesn't.

I think they did a good job.

Probably not day one for me, too busy with other games, unless Amazon throws us a credit bone.

If not, nothing I want comes out until April 19th (portal 2) so I'm sure I can find some deal by then.
 
[quote name='seanr1221']DA:O felt like a chore to play, this doesn't.
[/QUOTE]

Glad to hear that. Looking forward to trying out the demo tonight.

Definitely not day 1 for me as I still have to play Awakening and all the outside game DLCs for the first one. Then I'll need a couple months break from WRPGs before I'm up for another one.

Was thinking of waiting for an ultimate edition, but honestly I think I'd rather buy DLC bit by bit. It's overwhelming to play these games and all the DLC at once as I get burnt out and end up slogging through it over 6 months etc. Vs. something like Mass Effect 2 where I bought near launch and just played the DLC as it came out and never got tired of it like I did with Dragon Age or Oblivion or Fallout 3 where I was slogging through the whole enchiladas all at once.
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']My only nagging concerns at the moment are difficulty[/QUOTE]
That's another weird thing, you have people talking about how the demo was a brainless "Press A to win" fest and other people talking about how the demo is way too hard and it took them six tries to beat the ogre...

Personally I sailed through it with a 2H Warrior, didn't have a single character death and only had to use two or three health potions in a pinch. And I make absolutely no claims at being "good" at the game. I played Origins exclusively on Casual because the combat strategy didn't particularly excite me, I was more interested in getting to the next bit of story.
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']Glad to hear that. Looking forward to trying out the demo tonight.

[/QUOTE]

Your complaints about DA:O sounded similar to mine, so I think you'll like it.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']That's another weird thing, you have people talking about how the demo was a brainless "Press A to win" fest and other people talking about how the demo is way too hard and it took them six tries to beat the ogre...[/QUOTE]

The logic behind such comments escapes me for those supposedly so intimately familiar with Origins combat. The core game play hasn't disappeared but been sped up drastically. From what I've seen thus far when it comes to adhering to the same rules of engagement these changes are purely cosmetic. It's faster - that's it. This is due largely in part to elevated damage scaling combined with an increased enemy spawn forcing players to adopt a more immediate almost visceral response to various threats on the field. This makes it noticeably easier for Origins veterans who have adopted the necessary skill set for proper threat assessment and effective micromanagement.

Consistent damage dealing and field control have always equated success in Dragon Age. The sequel simply chose to offer you a free ride to your destination instead of going through the potential hassle of hailing a taxi of the same make and model car. Contrary to their popular belief it did not force you into the car against your will at gunpoint in broad daylight yet. No one is forcing you to abuse certain abilities, remain on lower difficulties, or play the game a certain way to my knowledge.

Any complaints aimed at the difficulty of the game because of this approach is extremely viable. Any complaint aimed at the "lack of tactics" required e.g. "thumb + A button = victory" for all classes is completely asinine. Any complaint aimed at the potentially reduced complexity of tactics required for success is the sign of a reasonably sane person I'd like to chill with sometime.

Mindless basic attack spamming won't win you every battle by your lonesome. This much of the demo is crystal clear. In order to solo as such you will have to know enemy type and placement of every battle, heal at some point, develop methods to avoiding or deflecting damage consistently. You will also have to boost your DPS to compete with your opposition since talent utility isn't an option. Oh, and still reserve a substantial amount of time and effort to properly manage your inventory, collect equipment and configure your stats to ensure your overall survival.

Anyone who says this game has gone south of its tactical roots is either a complete f*cking idiot or never played Dragon Age in their lives. Otherwise they'd try pulling that "OMG WHOLE GAME IS AUTO ATTACK + WARRIOR = VICTOLY!" bullshit because they somehow managed to a Casual play-through. :roll:
 
The combat is indeed very fast.

I can never really get into RPGs unless I play them from the beginning. Combat seems better than the first, so I assume I will like it. I pretty much played DA:O as an action RPG, since I found it nearly impossible to keep guys from charging enemies and walking straight into AOEs. I also remember after cutscenes your guys all appearing in a tight group ready to be destroyed by AOEs.
 
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