MathewKumar
on - last edited on by
ElizabethS
Dragon Age II hits next Tuesday, March 8th for Xbox 360, PS3, Windows PC and Mac, and for fans of the series so far--which includes Dragon Age: Origins and its lengthy expansion Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening--it offers a lot of promise, but also a lot of changes.
The biggest change is that unlike Dragon Age: Origins, in which one of the main selling points (so much much so that it was in the subtitle) was the differing origin stories for each of the races allowing each player a unique path through the game, in Dragon Age II you play Hawke, survivor of the Darkspawn horde's destruction of Lothering who rises to become the Champion of Kirkwall. You don't get to choose Hawke's race or backstory, but (at the very least) can select his (or her) gender, appearance and class.
This decision has faced some criticism for making less distinct from the Mass Effect series, with its strong character in the form of Commander Shepard, and it remains to be seen how much it will affect the feel of Dragon Age II compared to its precessor, but do expect the title to feel quite a bit more "Mass Effecty" in general, with a Mass Effect-style conversation wheel (rather than selecting exactly what your hero says) and Hawke is fully voiced, too. At least you can use your save game from the first game to ensure what you did there sticks.
There's a genuinely intriging storytelling twist in Dragon Age II too though: the game is told using the frame narrative of a companion of Hawke's--the Dwarf Varric--retelling his legend to another. Apparently he'll occasionally lie or otherwise tell things from his own viewpoint, which is interesting, as the game continues in the quite free-form non-linear style of the original Dragon Age--you won't quite be able to go wherever and do whatever you like, but close.
Ultimately, Dragon Age II is going to feel like a pretty big departure for the series, whether or not it's set in the same world, and if you were able to play the demo that was recently released you haven't seen the half of it. However, the early word of the finished product is incredibly positive, with PC Gamer UK awarding the title 94% and claiming, "The best RPG of this decade? Nine more years will tell, but for now, yes."
Dragon Age II is available now for pre-order from Future Shop on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC/Mac.
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