Dragon Age: Inquisition

[Kradek]

I played Dragon Age: Inquisition yesterday for a few hours. I was looking forward to this game and it's the first time in a while I've jumped right into a game shortly after release. After the first few hours my review is mixed. First I should say I will still play the shit out of this game. My main issues are interface issues at the moment.

That fucking search key seems like a good idea but leads me to soooooooooo much wasted time because I use it constantly and if I get a ping sometimes it's super obvious what is pinging and sometimes..... it's not. Queue 3 minutes of me moving 3 inches and pinging again in some sadomasochistic version of hot and cold. And oh joy, I get to repeat that after running another 10 feet. Oh god I hate them for that feature. Can't I continue my blissfully unaware existence without know that something... something awesome... which is almost certainly going to be another fucking elfroot... is tantalizingly hiding nearby. Fuck you Bioware. Fuck you.

An issue I have concurrent with constantly pinging all over the place like a deranged submarine captain is that, for my hand, V is just not completely comfortable while moving around with WASD. I keep trying to move forward with double mouse buttons like I can do in WoW, which in Dragon Age puts me into freaking combat mode and stops me dead. I know I can solve this by remapping keys so queue up another 45 minutes deciding what precise key combination I want to play.

Finally, tactical mode. I'm sure someone likes the control and view this gives you over the battlefield, but what the fucking fuck? I'm so trained in WoW to zoom my camera in and out using my mouse button, which in Inquisition puts me into Tactical mode. In Tactical mode your camera view isn't any of your character's views, and I can't easily tell which character I'm controlling. It's a lot of flexibility, but I wish they just had a WoW keymapping or something, let me have my fucking zoom key back. Again something I can probably fix and will get used too.

Other than that, the game is beautiful. It has the same characterization I loved about the previous versions of Dragon Age and it looks like there are some interesting improvements in crafting. I'm not sure what to make of the war table or whatever yet. There are a lot of little mini systems that I think will add depth to the game over time; it's a bit overwhelming just jumping in. I'll still be playing a few hours a day though because, well, even with the above, it's still really fucking fun.

 

[Always_Tim]

I love this game. It has some weird quirks and it has a few bugs (although I expect most will be patched soon) but it's such a huge improvement over the previous games (especially DA2). A lot of the game mechanics take a while to really come into their own. (Some stuff doesn't open up at all until after you advance beyond Haven.) The war table is a pretty cool way to handle a lot of the side content and to show you what's happening where. And I think it makes the disjointed explorable regions feel more like a cohesive whole, with that big map showing you how they're arranged around Ferelden and Orlais.

 

[YelloMit]

I'm about 20 hours in and I must say, it is a fantastic game. The gameplay is fun and exciting. The graphics are just amazing on my PS4. The story and characters and fleshed out and interesting. I don't really have anything bad to say about this game. It is definitely worth every cent.

 

[Red7227]

It certainly has the record for the most uncomfortable looking underclothes that will never be converted into a nude skin. I personally always sleep in leather knee boots. It certainly feels more mass effect 3 than DAO, which i am getting used to. Pretty though, with wildly impractical armour and some very elegant French lassies.

I'm sure I will eventually stop thinking of it as TES VI - Orlais.

 

[RosalieDay]

There was an update yesterday or the day before that, not sure. They've added to the search function so you can easily spot where the loot is on the mini-map. Which is a nice addition because I spent more time looking for whatever was pinging, thinking I was going to miss some spectacular loots, and it ended up being a ladder or a door.

Over all the game is great. At first it was a little overwhelming. I really like how they've kept true to the Dragon Age series and incorporated styles from both DA:O and DA:2. But, I'm one of the few that actually enjoyed 2. Unfortunately, my computer barely scrapes by on the lowest settings, so I have yet to experience the beauty beyond the basics.

The only thing I feel lacking, which I may have just missed, is character interaction. That's one of the reasons I truly enjoy Bioware games, but this time around I feel it's a little short in that aspect. Then again, my 2nd play through might reveal I did indeed miss a lot of scenes/conversations.

And hopefully soon the companions and advisors wont randomly go invisible.

 

[Always_Tim]

There was an update yesterday or the day before that, not sure. They've added to the search function so you can easily spot where the loot is on the mini-map. Which is a nice addition because I spent more time looking for whatever was pinging, thinking I was going to miss some spectacular loots, and it ended up being a ladder or a door.

Radar improvement helps, but I still wish ladders wouldn't ping.

Over all the game is great. At first it was a little overwhelming. I really like how they've kept true to the Dragon Age series and incorporated styles from both DA:O and DA:2. But, I'm one of the few that actually enjoyed 2. Unfortunately, my computer barely scrapes by on the lowest settings, so I have yet to experience the beauty beyond the basics.

Too bad. The game is gorgeous. (I'm on PS4.) I liked 2. Great story & characters. (Shame about the copy/paste dungeons though.)

The only thing I feel lacking, which I may have just missed, is character interaction. That's one of the reasons I truly enjoy Bioware games, but this time around I feel it's a little short in that aspect. Then again, my 2nd play through might reveal I did indeed miss a lot of scenes/conversations.

There are some issues that can cause party banter not to occur as often as it's supposed to.

I've been pretty happy with the characters. You have to move the plot along quite a bit to get to a lot of the interaction. (Quests which show the breach next to them on the war table are plot quests.) At least get past Haven.

Making the game more open world and less linear makes the interactions more difficult. But even with the Skyrimisation of the game they still handle the characters pretty well.

And hopefully soon the companions and advisors wont randomly go invisible.

Never saw that. Must be specific to the PC version.

 

[Red7227]

Making the game more open world and less linear makes the interactions more difficult. But even with the Skyrimisation of the game they still handle the characters pretty well.

It depends on the combos you have as well. Bull and Sera chat away, Varric and everybody chats away, but the rest of it is pretty staid. Vic's boobs in the rain is not worth bringing her along just because of her prissy dialogue. You need to switch though the party members at camps when things are not too desperate to see other less practical combos like Cassandra and bull.

My herald skidding down hillsides on her ass is my new favourite thing. Also the inquisition should train goats, those things are a menace.

 

[YelloMit]

I usually have Dorien, Iron Bull, and Cassandra with me and I get a decent amount of dialogue from them (usually Dorien starts it off). It really does depend on the combo of people in your party.

 

[WizofAus]

I have loved every game Bioware have brought out of late, as they always have a great story. In order to get the tapestry sorted, I made sure I went back and played the first two again, it was great fun. A couple of days ago, I finished Inquisition. 150 hours of thoroughly enjoyable gaming. There were a few bugs, and control issues, but I either adapted or used google to find work-a-rounds (new patch has fixed them).

I am going to leave it til the new year to play the second play through. I generally play most games through at least twice. In this case the first time through, the tapestry was generally that of a diplomatic good guy, and the game also played as a good guy, being nice, and only hooking up with one party member. I pretty much ran with Cassandra (my girl), Solas & Varric and found their banter to be quite entertaining. At some stage late in the game Solas kept asking Varric the same question and Cassandra became very quiet, so I replaced Varric with Cole, and Solas with the 'prissy bitch' and the conversations returned.

Second time around I plan on playing a bastard, opting for the horrible options and sleeping with everyone. Likely my party will be Bull (a cool dude), Sera (a sassy chick) and Dorian. Unfortunately, the one girl I fell in love with from the first game (Her accent drives me crazy), I wasn't able to hookup with. I'm hoping by changing the tapestry to have the hero and her not hookup that I get to bed her in inquisition.

Yes, I have no life

 

[Kradek]

So, after two weeks, I have about 60 hours of gameplay in and thought I'd comment again.

First I should say, I have 60 hours in and will likely play double or triple that before I'm done (including replays). I look forward to expansions/DLC. I haven't really found games that can immerse you in their world like Bioware since the days of Baldur's Gate and it's successors.

I should probably clarify I play on a PC. It's pretty clear the game was designed with console first in mind, then reworked for PC. I have to assume this was a business driven decision, but it definitely shows. It's a bit bothersome to me that they would go so hard core in that direction because it's an indication that's where the money is and I'd hate to lose games like this on PC; I don't want to have to play on a console. Moreover, I think the decision to make it a console first game drove decisions many people are complaining about, like dumbing down the party tactics options. Compared to Origins, the tactics options are a shadow of what they were. The menu system is another clear concession to console vs PC. It really feels like climbing up and down a ladder at times.

The patch this week helped though. The highlights on the map after a ping basically eliminated my main issue with the ping for loot system. At least I don't feel like an idiot anymore turning NESW trying to find out what the holy fuck is pinging. I wish they would add an option to set certain things NOT to ping. Anyone who has followed a river or shoreline knows what I'm talking about (fuck you spindleweed!). The patch also added the ability to turn OFF mouse wheel putting you into tactical mode. Thank god for that!

Tactical mode is pretty much a wreck though. I wish we had more intelligent ways to direct our party without resorting to ultra micro management, or mostly foregoing it entirely and just controlling one character at a time. I would really think the AI could handle moving out of the Dragon's Breath on it's own. Because you know, FIRE HURTS! Then again, having spent countless hours watching presumably actual real live people controlling their characters and STILL STANDING IN THE FIRE in MMOs, I guess I shouldn't expect too much.

It's easy to get lost in this game though. I find myself running around zones doing shit and forgetting why I came there in the first place. There are some bullshit quests but there are a ton of fun ones as well. Even doing a whole lot of side stuff, I still feel like I'm *missing* things, and that's a pretty huge accomplishment for a game. I find myself thinking about making decisions the game requests of you in another direction in subsequent gameplays. I love the environments and the music. Seriously, how many times have you sat around in a tavern in a *game* to listen to the end of the bard song.

Anyway, rambled enough for now.

 

[WizofAus]

I should probably clarify I play on a PC. It's pretty clear the game was designed with console first in mind, then reworked for PC.

I'm a PC purist, and at times can't believe that many companies that found fame and fortune on a PC are forgetting that it was the PC user who they should be thanking for their early successes. I think Bioware is one company that you can tell do make the effort to give PC players a unique experience, and for me that is most evident in the video/graphics settings. I've seen video game ports that on booting up have horrible graphics, and the disappointment continues when, eager to improve what I see before me, I select video options and find none of the options I expect.

I I have to assume this was a business driven decision, but it definitely shows. It's a bit bothersome to me that they would go so hard core in that direction because it's an indication that's where the money is and I'd hate to lose games like this on PC; I don't want to have to play on a console.

I understand your concerns, once it was apparent that games were heading in that direction I also found myself contemplating my belly button and shouting 'why?'. But, I can understand, they do lose a lot of money through pirating, and video games are a huge market. If it means they can keep making these wonderful games, and I get to enjoy these epic stories then I am not going to begrudge their decision.

The patch this week helped though. The highlights on the map after a ping basically eliminated my main issue with the ping for loot system. At least I don't feel like an idiot anymore turning NESW trying to find out what the holy fuck is pinging. I wish they would add an option to set certain things NOT to ping. Anyone who has followed a river or shoreline knows what I'm talking about (fuck you spindleweed!)

I can't help but laugh. I didn't quite reach your level of frustration, but I would love to know how much of my time was spent looking around everywhere to try and locate wtf is pinging, only to realise it was a ladder, or something else I wished was an option to switch off. As I had completed it before the first patch my eagerness to collect everything died off as the frustration set in, to the point where nearing end game I'd given up. I definitely didn't invest in extending the range.

It's easy to get lost in this game though. I find myself running around zones doing shit and forgetting why I came there in the first place. There are some bullshit quests but there are a ton of fun ones as well. Even doing a whole lot of side stuff, I still feel like I'm *missing* things, and that's a pretty huge accomplishment for a game.

Open World games, best invention yet. Better than indoor plumbing or even gaming platforms.

 

[WizofAus]

Favourite Companions so far, Sera, Iron Bull and Dorian.

Reasons below.

Spoiler

I'm a female Qunari in a relation with Sera, whose brilliant articulation when explaining things is wonderfully funny regardless of who she is speaking to. The other two, Dorian (gay) and Iron Bull (flexible) seemed to have found company in each other's arms. It's so funny because Dorian is a Vint who likes confidentiality, and Iron Bull is a Qunari who loves to share their sex life with everyone.

 

[Red7227]

Well it certainly deserves an award for the biggest plot hole in the history of games, but its very pretty with more than a little S.T.A.L.K.E.R. in its play style, which is certainly no bad thing.

I've now reached about 100 hours, and its time to retire it for a while.

And no, I'm not going to mention the plot hole, pm me if you really want to know.

 

[Lainie_]

I am currently trying to platinum this game on ps4 ... Wish my luck. I did manage it for skyrim. Not a trophy whore just some games I like to platinum so you can say " I did EVERYTHING"

 

[Red7227]

I am currently trying to platinum this game on ps4 ... Wish my luck. I did manage it for skyrim. Not a trophy whore just some games I like to platinum so you can say " I did EVERYTHING"

That requires a level of commitment that I lack. Good luck sweetie

Its still kinda fun, but it just goes on and on.

 

[opalc0coon]

I haven't played this yet but I really REEEEEEALLY want to. I loved Origins. I don't have a console for it right now or a good enough computer. :crybaby: :crybaby: :crybaby:

 

[Red7227]

I haven't played this yet but I really REEEEEEALLY want to. I loved Origins. I don't have a console for it right now or a good enough computer. :crybaby: :crybaby: :crybaby:

Its a very good game. i just wanted Isabella back.

 

[waogo]

Do I need to have finished Origins, etc, to get anything in this game? Or 2, for that matter, though, I'm likelier to skip 2, despite my fear of Origins thanks to having a stroke after I shut it off one day.

 

[Red7227]

Do I need to have finished Origins, etc, to get anything in this game? Or 2, for that matter, though, I'm likelier to skip 2, despite my fear of Origins thanks to having a stroke after I shut it off one day.

Not really. Its all linked of course as far as the story goes - its about 10- years after Origins - and there is an option to record the events of the previous games as far as you want them to influence Inquisition, but you can ignore the whole thing and go with the default game.

 

[RosalieDay]

Do I need to have finished Origins, etc, to get anything in this game? Or 2, for that matter, though, I'm likelier to skip 2, despite my fear of Origins thanks to having a stroke after I shut it off one day.

This is what the Dragon Age Keep is for. Inquisition doesn't have the option to import a save game. So while making your major story choices through the tapestry, you'll get an idea of the story lines for both Origins and 2 and how they tie in to Inquisition.

Even if you've never played Origins and 2, it's not hard to follow.

 

[opalc0coon]

Do I need to have finished Origins, etc, to get anything in this game? Or 2, for that matter, though, I'm likelier to skip 2, despite my fear of Origins thanks to having a stroke after I shut it off one day.

The second one sucked, I don't even remember what it was called or anything. Skip it. You don't have to finish the first two.

 

[Red7227]

Do I need to have finished Origins, etc, to get anything in this game? Or 2, for that matter, though, I'm likelier to skip 2, despite my fear of Origins thanks to having a stroke after I shut it off one day.

The second one sucked, I don't even remember what it was called or anything. Skip it. You don't have to finish the first two.

There is only one reason to play DA II

 

[Kradek]

I ended up doing two playthroughs. Through patches, Bioware cleaned up a lot of my technical issues with the game, except for tactical mode, which remains a complete disaster. I ended up playing it largely as an action RPG with a pause feature. Other than that my last real complaint with the game is that it's just not challenging even on nightmare. Once you pass the Haven battle on nightmare, there isn't really anything that you need to build a strategy for. Like many Bioware games, you scale much too quickly to god mode. I'm still waiting for the RPG to come along that has a story like Bioware can put together, combined with the challenge of a WoW heroic raid. Or mythic or whatever they're calling it now. I've toyed with the idea of playing a solo nightmare run just to scratch my itch for a challenge, but then you lose out on too many other great parts of the game.

Still might do it though, the game is beautiful, with fantastic characters and a great story. That's what you play Bioware games for.

 

[Red7227]

I ended up doing two playthroughs. Through patches, Bioware cleaned up a lot of my technical issues with the game, except for tactical mode, which remains a complete disaster. I ended up playing it largely as an action RPG with a pause feature. Other than that my last real complaint with the game is that it's just not challenging even on nightmare. Once you pass the Haven battle on nightmare, there isn't really anything that you need to build a strategy for. Like many Bioware games, you scale much too quickly to god mode. I'm still waiting for the RPG to come along that has a story like Bioware can put together, combined with the challenge of a WoW heroic raid. Or mythic or whatever they're calling it now. I've toyed with the idea of playing a solo nightmare run just to scratch my itch for a challenge, but then you lose out on too many other great parts of the game.

Still might do it though, the game is beautiful, with fantastic characters and a great story. That's what you play Bioware games for.

Yup, I still think mass effect 2 was overall better than mass effect 1 gameplay-wise, but its all been downhill since Origins. DA 2 is ridiculously bad (Right Mopuse to attack with no real option to change it) and inquisition still lacking in comparison to 1. I like the party mechanics of origins and didn't want the retarded conversion of mass effect instead in Inquisition. That said, I suspect a lot of people had trouble with it, which is why it got dropped in Inquisition.

 

[Kradek]

Played through the new Jaws of Hakkon DLC over the long weekend. I liked it! The zone is gorgeous. I spent some time in the Avvar village just looking out over the coastline. It's hard to imagine the amount of work that goes into some of these things; the details are incredible. One thing that struck me is they didn't seem to skin the new weapons though. On my box they just showed up as glowy whiteish weapons.

Story was decent, about as expected for a DLC. I noticed there is now a storage box in Skyhold, along with the ability to tint your armor, but I'm not sure that didn't come with a patch.

Played through on nightmare, and the difficulty was a step up from Inquisition, meaning, I only facerolled most of the time, not all the time.

One thing that blows me away is people complaining that this is not enough for the price, not worth it for the price, etc. I don't understand these complaints. It's fucking $15. That's appetizers for dinner for two. The DLC is definitely worth it.

 

[RosalieDay]

Guess I better start a new play through!
I had heard of the DLC, but I completely forgot (shame on me!).

Off to Origin I go!

 

[Always_Tim]

I noticed there is now a storage box in Skyhold, along with the ability to tint your armor, but I'm not sure that didn't come with a patch.

Storage and the item tinter came in Patch 5.

I'm looking forward to the DLC when it comes out on PS4 in a few weeks!

 

[Lainie_]

Anyone try a playthrough on nightmare yet? I am almost done my regular playthrough picking up all the regular trophies, and thinking of trying a nightmare play next... hmmm I wish your characters level would carry through.

 

[Kradek]

Anyone try a playthrough on nightmare yet? I am almost done my regular playthrough picking up all the regular trophies, and thinking of trying a nightmare play next... hmmm I wish your characters level would carry through.

The biggest difficulty on Nightmare is getting out of Haven. After that, it's not too different than other modes. Or Hard at least, I've only run through on those two modes.

 

[Kradek]

I played through the last two DLCs, The Descent and Trespasser this weekend.

Both are incredibly short. Maybe 8 hours between them both? I normally don't mind paying for content, but when I consider Jaws, Descent and Trespasser took a small fraction of the time I took in the original game, yet cost 75% of the original price, I'm a little irked. Then again I can think of it from the opposite side, there was so much gameplay in the original that you could think it over-delivered for the price.

That said, Trespasser at least resolves the cliffhanger at the end of the original game (sort of). Story/lore nerds will probably love Trespasser the most of the three content DLCs. Personally, I think Jaws was the best of the three, and I enjoyed Descent as short as it was. I'm ambivalent about Trespasser mostly because it's so short and because the cliffhanger resolution was mostly telegraphed from the original game.

They yet again deliver on crazy beautiful zones to poke around in. Trespasser ends with a sequence where you're just running though some ruins in a bit of a race and I kept wanting to stop and poke around and just check it all out. There is another zone in Trespasser that has a large castle/temple type thing in the center of a lake in a valley that I just stood gawking at for a while. I don't want to spoil Descent's ending so I won't mention much, but I found myself wanting to spend some time looking around the last zone in that one too.

So I guess the wait beings for DA4!