Sex, Violence, and copious amounts of gore. Welcome to Dragon Age Origins.
The story is set in the land of Ferelden where once every one hundred years or so an entity called an Archdemon takes the form of a mighty Dragon and leads an army of twisted Goblin/Orc type creatures called the Darkspawn to the surface of the world where they lay waste to all who dwell there and it's up to the Grey Wardens, warriors of legend, to unite the people of Ferelden and push them back to the deep.
Before you start your adventure you'll need to make your hero. The character creation screen is very accessible with the option to do as little or as much as you want. There are a few presets for things like facial type, hair style, skin tone, and tattoos. These can however be tweaked and adjusted to make a real looker or an abomination.
There are three playable races to choose from, Elves, Dwarves, and Humans. Each have their own class restrictions, for example Dwarves cannot be Mages.
The classes are the RPG staples of Warrior, Mage, and Rogue, but it's the Origin path which is the truly original feature here.
Every character you make has its own back story, but rather that just let you read it in a character bio screen you actually get to play it which can literally take a few hours to do on its own!
I wont give away any details about the origin paths I've played because to do so would be to rob you of some of the greatest roleplaying moments I've experienced. I will however recommend the Dwarf Noble Origin.
The game itself plays very much like Neverwinter Nights and Knights of the Old Republic. It is party based with you and up to three other characters of varying races, classes and dispositions under your control. It's up to you how you play. You can take control off all of the party or micro manage every option. Bioware really has done an excellent job with the game controls for the 360 with a radial combat/action menu system accessed by the left trigger.
The combat is brutal, visceral and very bloody, it really does earn its 18 age rating in spades. At points in the combat you'll see decapitations, impaling, and the coup de grace is when time slows down and you see one of your party or even you own character perform a Mortal Combat style fatality. It really makes you want to shout "Have some of that!" at the telly.
Chinn3rs Final Verdict
While graphically reportedly not as strong as the PS3 or PC versions of the game, Dragon Age: Origins does have some really wow factor scenery. The cut scenes are expertly crafted and the story deep and involving.
Give Dragon Age four hours and I can safely say you'll want to stay with it for a long, long time.
This is by no means a short game and will require a lot of dedication to get the most out of and therefore isn't a title for the 'casual' gamer.
Be warned, here there be Dragons! I'm off to Ferelden and I might be gone a while!
Sgt Chinli