March 8th, 2011. 9am sharp. I was standing outside the Gamestop store pacing back and forth waiting for them to open. As I sipped on my iced carmel mocha from Starbucks, there was only one thing on my mind … Dragon Age II! I had been waiting impatiently for a while now and I wanted my addiction appeased after so many months of foreplay. I was eager for Bioware to take me in again and thrill me, rapture me, seduce me, and enthrall me. I was at their mercy!
After two days of thrills and kills, I still can't get enough. I've tried every ****with different backgrounds and each time the outcome has been different. The whole story embodies your character and her history. Every outcome is different depending on your selection of responses and the way you handle situations. The game'slearningcurve and user interface is very user friendly for those new and old to the Dragon Age series. The combat is explosive, the graphics are phenomenal, the background integration is exceptionally brilliant! I love how the game wraps itself around you and makes you feel like your character.Bioware has a knack for making their fans feel so loved and they certainly put extensive time into making the game addictive,but I can't say I like Dragon Age II better than Dragon Age Origins. In fact, I am a bit disappointed in their creativity this time around. The game in itself is still addicting, but it has yet to pull me into the world as much as I was in Dragon Age Origins.
Let me explain why Dragon Age Origins enthralled more than Dragon Age II.
NO LOVE? I miss the love scenes. I really felt that the relationship, intimacy, and love story brought a sense of closeness for the player. Maybe I'maskingtoo much out of a game since I'm a female, but I truly believe that the love story made the background for Dragon Age Origins. I enjoyed being a part of their lives and reallymakinga difference. The relationshipdecisionsI made with my group mates really spiced up the RPG part of the game and Dragon Age II lacks that intimate feeling you get in Dragon Age Origins.
HAWKE ARMOR RESTRICTIONS? I wish Bioware didn't change how we could dazzle up our NPC group mates in armor. I'm certainly aware of how it saves time and money and storage, but I think the way we equipped and geared our NPC teammates, really made a difference in how we perceived our "friends" to be. I hate having to toss out an awesome dagger because it's restricted to my character who happens to be a mage and can't use it. I enjoyed being able to give that to another character if I had to.
WHERE'S THE GIFTS? I also miss giving my group mates gifts. Finding these memories and giving them to the players made it unique in the storyline aspect because we learned more about the player and their past or what they would like to have accomplished. This is what gave the game it's storyline basis and enthralled us into their lives.
CHARACTER INTERACTIONS? What happened to the traveling interactions, stopping halfway in between towns to get ambushed or because another character wanted to talk? I enjoyed learning how each character played a significant part in the game and how their background and my friendship with them could or could not effect the ending. This seems to have disappeared along with the thrill of pursuing a relationship.
I still enjoy the game enough to toss those things aside and continue to play, but Dragon Age II seems more repeatative with the same ending no matter what outcome I select. It has been two days of quest after quest with a "do this" and "get gold" status. I don't look forward to equipment or gear since 80% of what I drop gets sold anyways. In Dragon Age Origins, the game really made YOU and enthralled YOU! I find that Dragon Age II was brilliantly developed more like an expansion rather than a sub merging game. Iknow Bioware could have done better.
DRAGON AGE II VIDEOS by EPICgeekgirl