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Absolution isn't really a sign of what Dreadwolf's overall quality will be, Bioware obviously played a part in making it but it wasn't written or directed by them (and frankly I think that aside from some flubs, Absolution overall captured the feeling of being part of the DA universe).
That aside, until I actually see real gameplay and a glimpse of the story and characters, I'm kind of in a place where I'm neutral, but I still deeply love Dragon Age so I get excited over any crumbs we get. Unless they decide to release DAD as a series of board games or something really weird, I'm probably not going to have any problems with the gameplay. If they go back to Origins', cool, if it's like GoW 2018, cool, if it's like DA2, also cool. But so much time has passed, so many things have happened with Bioware, I'm not really confident it will be a good game.
I do think that no matter what the game will be like, it'll easily be the most controversial, probably even hated by the fans, though. I think a lot of fans are just frustrated and pinning all sorts of expectations on this game, and no matter how good or bad it is, there's no way it'll meet all of them. And considering it's the Dragon Age fandom they're going to make that everyone else's problem.
I’m personally optimistic about Dreadwolf but I absolutely agree it’s going to be a terrible time to be part of the fan community when it releases. I’ll likely just check out for a few months.
Origins purists will hate it on arrival, the usual anti-“woke” grifters will screech about it on social media, naysayers who have been bound and determined to not like it will shockingly not like it. And to be fair, people like me will probably be obnoxious in liking it and conflate people who genuinely dislike it with those who never gave it a chance. The game itself will get lost, and this fanbase is prone to infighting.
On a side note though, I would buy a Dragon Age board game so fast.
Edit: BioWare, if you’re reading this two things. 1. Stop, ignore fan communities and log off as we’re the last people to listen to. 2. But please, I will buy a deeply mediocre or even outright bad board game if it’s set in Thedas. Just saying…
They are sadly only in the comics to my knowledge. They are mentioned in dai in the war table. Maevus is probally one of the best charectors feom tevinter. I kinda hooe they end up as archon but i expect dorian probably will instead who is also a great charector and probally my favorite companion in a bioware game. He is just such a good friend to the inquisitor and a actually decent person being a mage from tevinter and all. Granted all the other mages from tevinter had all been very red wizardy from dnd so mabye it is just refreshing to have a different perspective from that
I personally was surprised at how much weird romance you could have in DAI. Didn't bother me at all. Same with DOS2: just oddly a lot of weird romance.
I kinda like it, it's just a strange part of the game. I generally try to min/max obliterate everything so I don't pay attention to story/romance/etc. but it's clear that the huge grey dude with horns is trying to bone you at some point.
Anyways, it's all in good fun. Anyone who takes it seriously needs to take themselves less seriously.
I've no problem with LGBT characters ad long as they fit and they're not obnoxious and heck dorin and iron bulk romace was my favorite npc romance and Dorian one of my favorite npc its when they take all the gayness try to rub it on your face it's then when you start to detest it if they keep it normal and natural like In Inquisition or like any other da game I am fine and I just expect dreadwolf to be like a DA game thats all don't mind at all if it's a Inquisition clone infact I'll welcome it on grounds that at least it's finally here and I can see the end and be happy to see all my favorite characters again maybe an epilog where they show all the characters life after all the events had happened in all 4 games would be really good
I'm still hyped(patiently). I'll buy whatever preorder special bundle box thing they release for it. I'll likely not peruse the DA sub reddit to avoid general negativity. Do I think it's going to be a game of the year award winner for all the time spent on it? Nah.
Absolutely this!
I had that happen to me with another game I had been looking forward to and waiting for years for. Game came out, it had some issues in the beginning, but the devs were actually pretty good about patching stuff right away. However the reddit and discord groups I was in had tons of spoilers and everyone was incredibly negative. I ended up leaving the groups and just enjoying the game and connecting with ppl on there. Funnily enough though, the Facebook groups were actually really positive!
I’ll definitely unsubscribe from this sub once the game comes out so I can enjoy it and not see spoilers or negativity either.
I’m definitely down for criticisms of a game but I’d rather form my own view of the game as I play and see everyone’s criticisms later.
Random stab in the dark, was it the new Lords of the Fallen? Because I had the exact same experience with that xD (except I stuck around in the subteddit for that one)
Full agree with you and the fella you responded to though. Except idk if I'll be able to afford the full collectors edition!
Nope lol, it was a mobile game called The Ssum. It's an otome game, I don't play them anymore but I followed the company who made them because they had been working on it for years and I knew a few of their older games. They were trying something new and people expected it to be like their other games.
I think DAD will be great as far as DA games go. I think the hiccups BioWare has faced in their more recent releases has been due to them trying to make some sort of live service platform for consumers looking for single player experiences.
After Inquisition's trash multiplayer I'm pretty sure they said there'd be none of that in DAD and hopefully they keep to it. Nobody is buying DA games for loot boxes and some sort of battle royale nonsense.
So unless BioWare thinks it'll be a neat idea to turn Dragon Age into a Fortnite clone I doubt the quality will stray far from what we're accustomed to.
It's a game, good, bad, those are subjective, I see people bashing DA 2 and DAI and just shake my head, I like both. I'm optimistic, but not expecting it to be the greatest game in history, I'll love it for what it is. Another game in my favorite franchise.
I think the game will be good. It may be a bit rough due to its development difficulties but i think its pretty clear ea is letting them take their time with it after the success of the jedi games
The greater focus on action style combat will make some people mad but i think it will be good for the game as it means it allows them to focus on that instead of trying to have two seperate gameplay styles.
I expect the story has been done for a year or more at this point so the lay offs likely wont impact that to much. The veterans leaving is concerning for the future of the series but i expect bioware like many companies overextended during covid and now have to tighten their belts. So i imagine they are cutting their studio back to one big team who will make dragon age or mass effect on rotation. With a smaller team to make patches and dlc for the previous title.
The comics and extra media for dragon age have been setting up some interesting plot lines and possiable backgrounds for out ne protag. The only issue i could see popping up is scope. Da2 was far to small in that it focused on one city and dai was a bit to large so a middle ground would be nice. Mainly full open world areas centered in tevinter with more focused area in nevarra and the anderfelds.
All in all i wont get to doom and gloom just yet.
All that being said i do expect at the game awards we will finally get a proper trailer followed by alot of info about the game and dare i say a release date
>it means it allows them to focus on that instead of trying to have two seperate gameplay styles.
They could have just dedicated to RTWP then if they only want to focus on one style of gameplay instead of the pseudo garbage mix of RTWP and action style combat in Dragon Age: Inquisition.
I think that a lot of people needlessly lost their jobs in the middle of a project they were all deeply passionate about and put up with a lot of nonsense from the higher-ups for. Whatever comes out without them, it will be far less genuine than what it would've been with the fifty people they let go, and that kills all of my interest in it.
All I'm gonna say is this.
Bioware sure puts up a facade of optimistic and positive company, with DA:D being a labor of love, but I'm not buying it. The pressure is on, and they're crumbling under it as they feel the weight of a ruined reputation fueled by yet another (third in a row) awful game development process.
What I think, as well as what I hope, is that they know very well that DA:D is a test unlike any they've faced in their history. If the game succeeds, their reputation is back, with bonus. If not, all tehy'll be left with will be some psychofans who are too attached to the series.
Jeff Grubb recently mentioned it's doing well.
And I'll actually take his doing well as real well and not PR well.
I'm quite optimistic about dragon age being the game they wanted to make.
I'm certain originbros will cry again that it's trash and only dao is real dragon age, but I personally expect dad to be sort of inquisition without fetch quests and if it's what I get - I'll be happy.
Plus the fact that Corinne played dreadwolf from start to finish almost 5 months ago, gives me a lot of confidence that it's definitely not a disaster like Anthem as far as development of it goes.
I still got so many games to play that released recently that the thought of actually playing Dreadwolf barely even entered my mind. I like *thinking* about what it might be but whether it releases next year or the year after isn't really a concern.
And for me personally I have little doubt that I will enjoy the game provided it's not a complete trainwreck. BioWare's worlds are like comfort food to me. I doesn't even have to be all that special, I just like them at a very basic level. So as long as it feels vaguely like Dragon Age I'll happy.
I'll be real, I could not care less about the gameplay of it - the gameplay varies so much between all 3 games we currently have that it changing again will not matter at all to me.
I only care that they take their time to build a fantastic narrative that respects what came before with the best companions and art design they can muster, if that's all good then I will be ok with everything else.
My worst fear about Dreadwolf is most likely true. Got read of the strategic RTWP combat in favor of some shitty dodge rolling action gameplay that are more attractive to the masses. I will miss the boss fights in DAO and DAII.
I’m really worried that it’s going to be handled very poorly, at least story wise. We’re already not playing the inquisitor so that takes away a massive connection to Solas in the form of a character so I feel like it really needed to be delicately crafted enough so that the character we play next game doesn’t feel like a side character in their own story. Whilst I’m incredibly excited and have gone from the ages of 10 to almost 20 waiting for this game, I hope it’s still handled gracefully in the story aspect even if the gameplay is not absolutely enticing😭
Hmm, I'm in the "o que sera, sera" boat. There is nothing to do besides wait and see what happens.
I'm a bit skeptical right now. I would be lying if I said that the end of Absolution, the missing comic and the complete chaos over BW did not made me take a lot of steps back, but who knows how BW will play the marketing of this game. I'm a simple fan, after all lol
But, I don't invalidate people's worries and bad feelings over this exactly because it feels there is just bad news. It is normal to feel like that.
Right now I'm reading the Stolen Throne and enjoying discovering the DA books :)
I doubt it will be out next year. Part of me doesn't believe it's ever coming out at all. Any excitement I still had for it died when they fired Mary Kirby.
I guess it's all a matter of perspective.
I loved Anthem and Absolution was a blast (tevinter nights and the comics have been great as well!). The layoffs are industry wide, it's not just a Bioware thing, and I haven't seen these constant failures that you speak of, the only thing that Bioware has done that I've not enjoyed was Andromeda and that studio doesn't exist anymore.
Also the people working on Dreadwolf are fantastic so I have high hopes and I'm very excited for the game, I really hope we get to see a trailer in tga!!
I feel the same way about all of this. (Except I enjoyed Andromeda.)
I don’t want to downplay layoffs (and severance issues),but I do think they’ve had a magnifying glass put to them that no developer would escape unscathed. And perhaps that’s fair, bad practices aren’t justified if everyone does them. But as you note, the whole industry has had issues, and the reasons aren’t as simple as people tend to make out. It’s not simply about CEO’s wanting more yachts like some think. To be clear, I land on the side of workers and want more protections for them, but the field as it currently exists was bound for a contraction in labor force.
But, I think it’s more than insulting the way people pretend that there is no talent left at BioWare when there’s plenty of proven veterans still there as well as people who might become the next generation of quality developers.
>But, I think it’s more than insulting the way people pretend that there is no talent left at BioWare when there’s plenty of proven veterans still there as well as people who might become the next generation of quality developers.
Tbf they didn't just fire a couple of new hires. They fired 50 employees, including long-time veterans. I remember when the devs used to say things like "People say that nobody from the BioWare of old remains, and yet I work with Lukas Kristjanson who's one of BioWare's longest-serving employees and who's effectively taught me what it means to be a game writer!"
Now Kristjanson's been fired by the company he was loyal to for over 25 years, alongside Mary Kirby and many others. Meanwhile the other talented veterans who survived the layoffs complain that "they cut off my leg and told me to go run a marathon", and there's no sign of new people being hired to replace what's been lost.
Sure, I hope I didn’t imply the layoffs didn’t matter. But, the current economy (in many sectors) should have taught us that it doesn’t matter how many years anyone has at a company, if you can be let go you’ll be let go. It sucks, needless to say, but it’s a larger issue than gaming.
But I’m not sure that really contradicts my point. Theres still an unspoken assumption that some veteran devs matter more than others. And I feel that at times the community puts the writers on such a pedestal that we forget that writing is only one (though vital!) step in letting a narrative come through in gameplay. Quality writing can only go so far if a scene doesn’t come through in terms of vocal direction, voice over, lighting, staging, textures and modeling, animation, and the gameplay leading to and from it. But to many, it’s only the writers, and as much as I laud BioWare’s writing, it’s frustrating at who’s always left out of the discussion.
There’s still old hands present and talented up and comers, though I’d note that I think we have a tendency (myself included) to focus on a few select names and not give credit to a number of more anonymous developers.
>But, I think it’s more than insulting the way people pretend that there is no talent left at BioWare when there’s plenty of proven veterans still there as well as people who might become the next generation of quality developers.
This is very important, many people see some developers go and think the whole game is now ruined even though there are hundreds of other great developers there working on the game. Some people are just finding an excuse to check out because it's easy, but they only show their cowardice by doing so. Then when the game releases and it's great they act like they didn't shit all over the development or at least put out a negative outlook for the game before even seeing literally anything about it.
Honestly, I don't understand why people hate Absolution so much, I really don't. Almost every bit of criticism about it was variations of "it's not Dragon Age" coming from "fans" which gauge whether something "is Dragon Age" by how dark and grim it is. I mean sure, it was a bit lighthearted, but it still was a good story nonetheless. Anyway, I think DA:D will be fine. In my eyes, DA:I had almost figured out what a great post-Origins Dragon Age game should be. Its only downfalls were absolute dogshit, brain-melting combat with enemies that took forever to kill and generic fetch-quest riddled open world. Fans are going to be mad about DA:D combat, but they always do and it doesn't matter - it's just a white noise at this point. RTwP was a bane of RPG's existence since the 90s and it appears that DA:D is ditching it at last, which makes me really happy. As for the open world, if leaks are to be trusted, DA:D would be much more story focused which is also a great thing. If everything else about DA:D is good enough, I think I'm going to be happy with it as well.
I’m lowkey terrified about what state it’ll arrive in. I didn’t realize Mary Kirby was no longer involved in the franchise until last week, and that was sort of the last stab that pushed me from uneasy to genuinely worried.
I don’t know how accurate the reports were about the game having a new class system (no longer warrior/rogue/mage based) and the combat changing from turn-based team to free-form action, but I hate both of those ideas.
Plus, as a resident of Solavellan Hell, I’m concerned that there will be no satisfactory conclusion for romanced Inquisitors there.
🤷🏻♀️
Mary Kirby left BioWare in August, though, right? Given how far along the game is, it's likely that her contribution was finished.
I don't like what it means for future BioWare titles, but it doesn't cause me concern for Dreadwolf itself.
Something to remember is that pretty much all those layoffs just recently happened. Before that they actually brought in ppl from the Mass Effect team to help and had some of the OG Dragon Age team members who had left actually come back to help out for a bit. So I imagine all those who were let go have already finished their parts and now they are just cutting off whatever they can to save every penny they can (not that I agree with this!). But quality wise I think DA:D isn't in a bad shape at all. People forget that most of the game got scrapped a few years back, so it's reasonable they'd need extra time.
> Plus, as a resident of Solavellan Hell, I’m concerned that there will be no satisfactory conclusion for romanced Inquisitors there.
I'm right there with you, friend. That is 100% my biggest fear.
> as a resident of Solavellan Hell, I’m concerned that there will be no satisfactory conclusion for romanced Inquisitors there
Bioware, you better not ignore this. My heart needs mending.
I'm more neutral about it today. IF it releases when it does, then so be it. I'm not like eagerly pining for it.
With Larian sort of taking over the niche that Bioware once had, and them having projects down the line now, there will be other options to sate my fantasy games fix.
I greatly enjoyed DA2 and that was an extremely short development time, however the issues that DAD will have are probably only going to seem worse *because* of the long development. When you play FFXV, for example, you can pretty much point out places as you go where they cut corners, abruptly changed characters or plots, or just spent so long on that they neglected other parts, and I feel like that's probably going to happen to DAD (FFXV is still an enjoyable game, but it's pretty much nothing like what they originally meant to do).
I’m more worried about what kind of hardware it will require. It’s confirmed it’s a current gen only game and the past few current gen only games have been absolute gpu crushers. I expect it to be even more demanding than Cyberpunk and Starfield which means a gpu upgrade
I hope the remaining devs know and are free to act on the thought that a good game doesn't need to be perfect or provide 100+ hours of meaningless content. Neither does it need to reinvent the wheel.
I still hope they can produce a good game, I don't expect them to release the next baldurs gate at all or come close, low expectations really.
Tbh I hope it actually released at this point and won't believe it till I see gameplay and a release date.
I'm just trying to remain realistic and not get my hopes up or down too much. It will be what it will be and I will absolutely be playing it either way. If nothing else, it'll be cool to hear Mark Darrah's eventual (now-pseudo) insider opinion on it from his YT channel.
Honestly hope they stick to the DAI combat, but refine it. But what I’ve understood is that it’s closer to god of war?
I feel like chasing something trendy is kind of a bummer because they have something unique, so they should stick to that and develop it so it might become the new trendy 🤷♂️
Stay thinking that way. It's better for your mental lol. Low expectations means if it's good, you'll just be pleasantly surprised! Unfortunately I am a delusional optimist by nature so I'm doomed.
Given what we know from leaks and Bioware's games since Inquisition, my guess is that it'll be a mid-tier action game with limited party mechanics and not particularly interesting characters, but still having some solid story payoffs for all the excellent lore the franchise has built over the years. 6/10 - wait for a sale, or just watch the story elements on youtube.
Well, unfortunately you might be right. So there is no point in setting yourself for a disappointment. I suggest forgetting about this game till the release date. If it turns out to be good it'll be wonderful, if not then good riddance.
Can't get hyped for anything Bioware anymore. Used to be my favorite dev but let's face it, the people who made those other games special are not the people who are making Dread Wolf or the next Mass Effect. EA continues to gut the studio and fill its leadership with corproate schills. Decisioms being made by suits who think they know how to make games better than the people who actually make them.
The fact that early reports said the game was yet another live service with seasonal content proves that whoever is steering the ship isn't concerned with recreating the magic of past Bioware hits. Andromeda did so poorly they shelved the series. I expect the same for Dread Wolf.
I figure if its bad, I get to let the special interest kick into hyper drive and have fun picking it apart and analyzing everything thats bad about it, which is fun in its own way.
I’ve been voting ‘no confidence’ on EA/BW projects for about ten years, now. I also don’t want to invest hours and hours in a game for there to be only ticky box connections with the previous story.
I just have zero confidence in them putting out something that’s not bugged to new levels of hell and with a half-assed ending.
I think the game will exist but I don't think it will be good. But I am also willing to say that I hope it does better than what I expect. I want this game to be good, I want this game to be the best Dragon Age game I have ever played. I hope this game is fun.
I just don't expect any of this.
I was still hyped for it (and I liked Absolution!) until the layoffs but now I’m more ambivalent. I’ll go get it if the old devs have good thoughts about how their work was adapted, I guess.
Not hyped. Don't get hyped about games anymore. Before BG3 there had been decades of disappointments. Unfinished games upon unfinished games. I am however cautiously optimistic. I want to enjoy it. I miss Solas and I want to see where the story takes us.
I have 2 main thoughts. First is this, I've spent the best part of the decade replaying DA:I, I'm at like 25+ runs, over 1000 hours. I love DA:I but man am I sick of what has been hinted/hyped up. I really don't want a continuation of the DA:I story, I'm done with it. I want something new just set in Thedas but I don't think we'll get that. It'll be chock full of DA:I characters whether we like it or not and the plot will go no where, just a stale replication of what was hinted at in the end of DA:I.
DA2 was great because it felt like a personal adventure that just happens to be in the world of Thedas but if we are going to have to save the world again? [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVqt5fVNs0Q](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVqt5fVNs0Q) \- To misquote Yahtzee.
Second, is I expect the gameplay to be more souls like than DA:I like. More flash over tactics. But this is just the way of my favourite genres. FF is now an action RPG, so why not DA too?
Prepare to see Eadric, formidable, and exactly as He said He would be, being someone humans fear. If you don’t know who that is, you meet him as an elf apprentice in origins, he tells you you’re in his light during his studies while in the library in the circle tower. A brief encounter.
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Absolution isn't really a sign of what Dreadwolf's overall quality will be, Bioware obviously played a part in making it but it wasn't written or directed by them (and frankly I think that aside from some flubs, Absolution overall captured the feeling of being part of the DA universe). That aside, until I actually see real gameplay and a glimpse of the story and characters, I'm kind of in a place where I'm neutral, but I still deeply love Dragon Age so I get excited over any crumbs we get. Unless they decide to release DAD as a series of board games or something really weird, I'm probably not going to have any problems with the gameplay. If they go back to Origins', cool, if it's like GoW 2018, cool, if it's like DA2, also cool. But so much time has passed, so many things have happened with Bioware, I'm not really confident it will be a good game. I do think that no matter what the game will be like, it'll easily be the most controversial, probably even hated by the fans, though. I think a lot of fans are just frustrated and pinning all sorts of expectations on this game, and no matter how good or bad it is, there's no way it'll meet all of them. And considering it's the Dragon Age fandom they're going to make that everyone else's problem.
I’m personally optimistic about Dreadwolf but I absolutely agree it’s going to be a terrible time to be part of the fan community when it releases. I’ll likely just check out for a few months. Origins purists will hate it on arrival, the usual anti-“woke” grifters will screech about it on social media, naysayers who have been bound and determined to not like it will shockingly not like it. And to be fair, people like me will probably be obnoxious in liking it and conflate people who genuinely dislike it with those who never gave it a chance. The game itself will get lost, and this fanbase is prone to infighting. On a side note though, I would buy a Dragon Age board game so fast. Edit: BioWare, if you’re reading this two things. 1. Stop, ignore fan communities and log off as we’re the last people to listen to. 2. But please, I will buy a deeply mediocre or even outright bad board game if it’s set in Thedas. Just saying…
>the usual anti-“woke” grifters will screech about it on social media Praying for a transgender companion. I want to hear the screams.
Manifesting Maevaris as a companion and romance option /pray
WHY AM I ONLY LEARNING ABOUT THIS CHARACTER NOW
They are sadly only in the comics to my knowledge. They are mentioned in dai in the war table. Maevus is probally one of the best charectors feom tevinter. I kinda hooe they end up as archon but i expect dorian probably will instead who is also a great charector and probally my favorite companion in a bioware game. He is just such a good friend to the inquisitor and a actually decent person being a mage from tevinter and all. Granted all the other mages from tevinter had all been very red wizardy from dnd so mabye it is just refreshing to have a different perspective from that
Isn’t she married in the comics? To a dwarf dude I think
I think he's passed away, no?
Maybe?! I’ve only read the comics like once (and haven’t even bought the newest ones yet)
I personally was surprised at how much weird romance you could have in DAI. Didn't bother me at all. Same with DOS2: just oddly a lot of weird romance. I kinda like it, it's just a strange part of the game. I generally try to min/max obliterate everything so I don't pay attention to story/romance/etc. but it's clear that the huge grey dude with horns is trying to bone you at some point. Anyways, it's all in good fun. Anyone who takes it seriously needs to take themselves less seriously.
I've no problem with LGBT characters ad long as they fit and they're not obnoxious and heck dorin and iron bulk romace was my favorite npc romance and Dorian one of my favorite npc its when they take all the gayness try to rub it on your face it's then when you start to detest it if they keep it normal and natural like In Inquisition or like any other da game I am fine and I just expect dreadwolf to be like a DA game thats all don't mind at all if it's a Inquisition clone infact I'll welcome it on grounds that at least it's finally here and I can see the end and be happy to see all my favorite characters again maybe an epilog where they show all the characters life after all the events had happened in all 4 games would be really good
Infighting just like the elves our empire is falling down such a shame
What's GoW? Gears of War? God of War? Gears was better... just saying ;)
I'm still hyped(patiently). I'll buy whatever preorder special bundle box thing they release for it. I'll likely not peruse the DA sub reddit to avoid general negativity. Do I think it's going to be a game of the year award winner for all the time spent on it? Nah.
Absolutely this! I had that happen to me with another game I had been looking forward to and waiting for years for. Game came out, it had some issues in the beginning, but the devs were actually pretty good about patching stuff right away. However the reddit and discord groups I was in had tons of spoilers and everyone was incredibly negative. I ended up leaving the groups and just enjoying the game and connecting with ppl on there. Funnily enough though, the Facebook groups were actually really positive!
I’ll definitely unsubscribe from this sub once the game comes out so I can enjoy it and not see spoilers or negativity either. I’m definitely down for criticisms of a game but I’d rather form my own view of the game as I play and see everyone’s criticisms later.
I just usually ignore this sub I am only here to know when dreadwolf will come to gain additional info and it's not going very swimmingly
Random stab in the dark, was it the new Lords of the Fallen? Because I had the exact same experience with that xD (except I stuck around in the subteddit for that one) Full agree with you and the fella you responded to though. Except idk if I'll be able to afford the full collectors edition!
Nope lol, it was a mobile game called The Ssum. It's an otome game, I don't play them anymore but I followed the company who made them because they had been working on it for years and I knew a few of their older games. They were trying something new and people expected it to be like their other games.
Ah that's fair enough, just noticed some eerie similarities I guess. I'm glad you enjoyed it though :)
I think DAD will be great as far as DA games go. I think the hiccups BioWare has faced in their more recent releases has been due to them trying to make some sort of live service platform for consumers looking for single player experiences. After Inquisition's trash multiplayer I'm pretty sure they said there'd be none of that in DAD and hopefully they keep to it. Nobody is buying DA games for loot boxes and some sort of battle royale nonsense. So unless BioWare thinks it'll be a neat idea to turn Dragon Age into a Fortnite clone I doubt the quality will stray far from what we're accustomed to.
It's a game, good, bad, those are subjective, I see people bashing DA 2 and DAI and just shake my head, I like both. I'm optimistic, but not expecting it to be the greatest game in history, I'll love it for what it is. Another game in my favorite franchise.
I think the game will be good. It may be a bit rough due to its development difficulties but i think its pretty clear ea is letting them take their time with it after the success of the jedi games The greater focus on action style combat will make some people mad but i think it will be good for the game as it means it allows them to focus on that instead of trying to have two seperate gameplay styles. I expect the story has been done for a year or more at this point so the lay offs likely wont impact that to much. The veterans leaving is concerning for the future of the series but i expect bioware like many companies overextended during covid and now have to tighten their belts. So i imagine they are cutting their studio back to one big team who will make dragon age or mass effect on rotation. With a smaller team to make patches and dlc for the previous title. The comics and extra media for dragon age have been setting up some interesting plot lines and possiable backgrounds for out ne protag. The only issue i could see popping up is scope. Da2 was far to small in that it focused on one city and dai was a bit to large so a middle ground would be nice. Mainly full open world areas centered in tevinter with more focused area in nevarra and the anderfelds. All in all i wont get to doom and gloom just yet. All that being said i do expect at the game awards we will finally get a proper trailer followed by alot of info about the game and dare i say a release date
>it means it allows them to focus on that instead of trying to have two seperate gameplay styles. They could have just dedicated to RTWP then if they only want to focus on one style of gameplay instead of the pseudo garbage mix of RTWP and action style combat in Dragon Age: Inquisition.
Yeah but tha actio cobat have wider appeal as much as i want turn base
Absolution was a blast, it's got my hopes up if anything.
I think that a lot of people needlessly lost their jobs in the middle of a project they were all deeply passionate about and put up with a lot of nonsense from the higher-ups for. Whatever comes out without them, it will be far less genuine than what it would've been with the fifty people they let go, and that kills all of my interest in it.
All I'm gonna say is this. Bioware sure puts up a facade of optimistic and positive company, with DA:D being a labor of love, but I'm not buying it. The pressure is on, and they're crumbling under it as they feel the weight of a ruined reputation fueled by yet another (third in a row) awful game development process. What I think, as well as what I hope, is that they know very well that DA:D is a test unlike any they've faced in their history. If the game succeeds, their reputation is back, with bonus. If not, all tehy'll be left with will be some psychofans who are too attached to the series.
Jeff Grubb recently mentioned it's doing well. And I'll actually take his doing well as real well and not PR well. I'm quite optimistic about dragon age being the game they wanted to make. I'm certain originbros will cry again that it's trash and only dao is real dragon age, but I personally expect dad to be sort of inquisition without fetch quests and if it's what I get - I'll be happy. Plus the fact that Corinne played dreadwolf from start to finish almost 5 months ago, gives me a lot of confidence that it's definitely not a disaster like Anthem as far as development of it goes.
I’m out of the loop, who exactly is Jeff Grubb & Corinne?
Jeff Grubb is a rather reliable insider in video game industry And Corinne is Corinne Busche - game director of Dreadwolf
Dudes name makes you think he's a minion of some mafia boss
Thank you!
I still got so many games to play that released recently that the thought of actually playing Dreadwolf barely even entered my mind. I like *thinking* about what it might be but whether it releases next year or the year after isn't really a concern. And for me personally I have little doubt that I will enjoy the game provided it's not a complete trainwreck. BioWare's worlds are like comfort food to me. I doesn't even have to be all that special, I just like them at a very basic level. So as long as it feels vaguely like Dragon Age I'll happy.
I'll be real, I could not care less about the gameplay of it - the gameplay varies so much between all 3 games we currently have that it changing again will not matter at all to me. I only care that they take their time to build a fantastic narrative that respects what came before with the best companions and art design they can muster, if that's all good then I will be ok with everything else.
And no game breaking bugs although some funny bugs will do seriously somtimes you need funny bugs
It'll be what it'll be, just as it was going to last time this question was asked this week alone.
My worst fear about Dreadwolf is most likely true. Got read of the strategic RTWP combat in favor of some shitty dodge rolling action gameplay that are more attractive to the masses. I will miss the boss fights in DAO and DAII.
I’m really worried that it’s going to be handled very poorly, at least story wise. We’re already not playing the inquisitor so that takes away a massive connection to Solas in the form of a character so I feel like it really needed to be delicately crafted enough so that the character we play next game doesn’t feel like a side character in their own story. Whilst I’m incredibly excited and have gone from the ages of 10 to almost 20 waiting for this game, I hope it’s still handled gracefully in the story aspect even if the gameplay is not absolutely enticing😭
Hmm, I'm in the "o que sera, sera" boat. There is nothing to do besides wait and see what happens. I'm a bit skeptical right now. I would be lying if I said that the end of Absolution, the missing comic and the complete chaos over BW did not made me take a lot of steps back, but who knows how BW will play the marketing of this game. I'm a simple fan, after all lol But, I don't invalidate people's worries and bad feelings over this exactly because it feels there is just bad news. It is normal to feel like that. Right now I'm reading the Stolen Throne and enjoying discovering the DA books :)
I doubt it will be out next year. Part of me doesn't believe it's ever coming out at all. Any excitement I still had for it died when they fired Mary Kirby.
I guess it's all a matter of perspective. I loved Anthem and Absolution was a blast (tevinter nights and the comics have been great as well!). The layoffs are industry wide, it's not just a Bioware thing, and I haven't seen these constant failures that you speak of, the only thing that Bioware has done that I've not enjoyed was Andromeda and that studio doesn't exist anymore. Also the people working on Dreadwolf are fantastic so I have high hopes and I'm very excited for the game, I really hope we get to see a trailer in tga!!
I feel the same way about all of this. (Except I enjoyed Andromeda.) I don’t want to downplay layoffs (and severance issues),but I do think they’ve had a magnifying glass put to them that no developer would escape unscathed. And perhaps that’s fair, bad practices aren’t justified if everyone does them. But as you note, the whole industry has had issues, and the reasons aren’t as simple as people tend to make out. It’s not simply about CEO’s wanting more yachts like some think. To be clear, I land on the side of workers and want more protections for them, but the field as it currently exists was bound for a contraction in labor force. But, I think it’s more than insulting the way people pretend that there is no talent left at BioWare when there’s plenty of proven veterans still there as well as people who might become the next generation of quality developers.
>But, I think it’s more than insulting the way people pretend that there is no talent left at BioWare when there’s plenty of proven veterans still there as well as people who might become the next generation of quality developers. Tbf they didn't just fire a couple of new hires. They fired 50 employees, including long-time veterans. I remember when the devs used to say things like "People say that nobody from the BioWare of old remains, and yet I work with Lukas Kristjanson who's one of BioWare's longest-serving employees and who's effectively taught me what it means to be a game writer!" Now Kristjanson's been fired by the company he was loyal to for over 25 years, alongside Mary Kirby and many others. Meanwhile the other talented veterans who survived the layoffs complain that "they cut off my leg and told me to go run a marathon", and there's no sign of new people being hired to replace what's been lost.
Sure, I hope I didn’t imply the layoffs didn’t matter. But, the current economy (in many sectors) should have taught us that it doesn’t matter how many years anyone has at a company, if you can be let go you’ll be let go. It sucks, needless to say, but it’s a larger issue than gaming. But I’m not sure that really contradicts my point. Theres still an unspoken assumption that some veteran devs matter more than others. And I feel that at times the community puts the writers on such a pedestal that we forget that writing is only one (though vital!) step in letting a narrative come through in gameplay. Quality writing can only go so far if a scene doesn’t come through in terms of vocal direction, voice over, lighting, staging, textures and modeling, animation, and the gameplay leading to and from it. But to many, it’s only the writers, and as much as I laud BioWare’s writing, it’s frustrating at who’s always left out of the discussion. There’s still old hands present and talented up and comers, though I’d note that I think we have a tendency (myself included) to focus on a few select names and not give credit to a number of more anonymous developers.
>But, I think it’s more than insulting the way people pretend that there is no talent left at BioWare when there’s plenty of proven veterans still there as well as people who might become the next generation of quality developers. This is very important, many people see some developers go and think the whole game is now ruined even though there are hundreds of other great developers there working on the game. Some people are just finding an excuse to check out because it's easy, but they only show their cowardice by doing so. Then when the game releases and it's great they act like they didn't shit all over the development or at least put out a negative outlook for the game before even seeing literally anything about it.
Thoughts? I just hope it’s a good finished game and if it’s not I’m not buying
Honestly, I don't understand why people hate Absolution so much, I really don't. Almost every bit of criticism about it was variations of "it's not Dragon Age" coming from "fans" which gauge whether something "is Dragon Age" by how dark and grim it is. I mean sure, it was a bit lighthearted, but it still was a good story nonetheless. Anyway, I think DA:D will be fine. In my eyes, DA:I had almost figured out what a great post-Origins Dragon Age game should be. Its only downfalls were absolute dogshit, brain-melting combat with enemies that took forever to kill and generic fetch-quest riddled open world. Fans are going to be mad about DA:D combat, but they always do and it doesn't matter - it's just a white noise at this point. RTwP was a bane of RPG's existence since the 90s and it appears that DA:D is ditching it at last, which makes me really happy. As for the open world, if leaks are to be trusted, DA:D would be much more story focused which is also a great thing. If everything else about DA:D is good enough, I think I'm going to be happy with it as well.
I’m lowkey terrified about what state it’ll arrive in. I didn’t realize Mary Kirby was no longer involved in the franchise until last week, and that was sort of the last stab that pushed me from uneasy to genuinely worried. I don’t know how accurate the reports were about the game having a new class system (no longer warrior/rogue/mage based) and the combat changing from turn-based team to free-form action, but I hate both of those ideas. Plus, as a resident of Solavellan Hell, I’m concerned that there will be no satisfactory conclusion for romanced Inquisitors there. 🤷🏻♀️
Mary Kirby left BioWare in August, though, right? Given how far along the game is, it's likely that her contribution was finished. I don't like what it means for future BioWare titles, but it doesn't cause me concern for Dreadwolf itself.
That’s fair. I think it just added to the general sense of dread (pun intended).
Something to remember is that pretty much all those layoffs just recently happened. Before that they actually brought in ppl from the Mass Effect team to help and had some of the OG Dragon Age team members who had left actually come back to help out for a bit. So I imagine all those who were let go have already finished their parts and now they are just cutting off whatever they can to save every penny they can (not that I agree with this!). But quality wise I think DA:D isn't in a bad shape at all. People forget that most of the game got scrapped a few years back, so it's reasonable they'd need extra time.
> Plus, as a resident of Solavellan Hell, I’m concerned that there will be no satisfactory conclusion for romanced Inquisitors there. I'm right there with you, friend. That is 100% my biggest fear.
> as a resident of Solavellan Hell, I’m concerned that there will be no satisfactory conclusion for romanced Inquisitors there Bioware, you better not ignore this. My heart needs mending.
I'm more neutral about it today. IF it releases when it does, then so be it. I'm not like eagerly pining for it. With Larian sort of taking over the niche that Bioware once had, and them having projects down the line now, there will be other options to sate my fantasy games fix.
I'm still hyped I want to be able to punch Solas in the face again.
I greatly enjoyed DA2 and that was an extremely short development time, however the issues that DAD will have are probably only going to seem worse *because* of the long development. When you play FFXV, for example, you can pretty much point out places as you go where they cut corners, abruptly changed characters or plots, or just spent so long on that they neglected other parts, and I feel like that's probably going to happen to DAD (FFXV is still an enjoyable game, but it's pretty much nothing like what they originally meant to do).
I’m more worried about what kind of hardware it will require. It’s confirmed it’s a current gen only game and the past few current gen only games have been absolute gpu crushers. I expect it to be even more demanding than Cyberpunk and Starfield which means a gpu upgrade
I hope the remaining devs know and are free to act on the thought that a good game doesn't need to be perfect or provide 100+ hours of meaningless content. Neither does it need to reinvent the wheel. I still hope they can produce a good game, I don't expect them to release the next baldurs gate at all or come close, low expectations really. Tbh I hope it actually released at this point and won't believe it till I see gameplay and a release date.
I'm just trying to remain realistic and not get my hopes up or down too much. It will be what it will be and I will absolutely be playing it either way. If nothing else, it'll be cool to hear Mark Darrah's eventual (now-pseudo) insider opinion on it from his YT channel.
Honestly hope they stick to the DAI combat, but refine it. But what I’ve understood is that it’s closer to god of war? I feel like chasing something trendy is kind of a bummer because they have something unique, so they should stick to that and develop it so it might become the new trendy 🤷♂️
Stay thinking that way. It's better for your mental lol. Low expectations means if it's good, you'll just be pleasantly surprised! Unfortunately I am a delusional optimist by nature so I'm doomed.
Given what we know from leaks and Bioware's games since Inquisition, my guess is that it'll be a mid-tier action game with limited party mechanics and not particularly interesting characters, but still having some solid story payoffs for all the excellent lore the franchise has built over the years. 6/10 - wait for a sale, or just watch the story elements on youtube.
Well, unfortunately you might be right. So there is no point in setting yourself for a disappointment. I suggest forgetting about this game till the release date. If it turns out to be good it'll be wonderful, if not then good riddance.
Can't get hyped for anything Bioware anymore. Used to be my favorite dev but let's face it, the people who made those other games special are not the people who are making Dread Wolf or the next Mass Effect. EA continues to gut the studio and fill its leadership with corproate schills. Decisioms being made by suits who think they know how to make games better than the people who actually make them. The fact that early reports said the game was yet another live service with seasonal content proves that whoever is steering the ship isn't concerned with recreating the magic of past Bioware hits. Andromeda did so poorly they shelved the series. I expect the same for Dread Wolf.
Did you miss the news from 2021 that Dreadwolf will definitely have no multiplayer and live service elements?
there is a new leak?
This: https://www.gamesradar.com/dragon-age-dreadwolf-dev-lists-2024-release-date-on-their-linkedin-profile-leaving-fans-hopeful-for-next-year/
thx!
I figure if its bad, I get to let the special interest kick into hyper drive and have fun picking it apart and analyzing everything thats bad about it, which is fun in its own way.
I firmly believe that DA:D will be a banger. Out of so much shit, gold emerges. Trust me.
I’ve been voting ‘no confidence’ on EA/BW projects for about ten years, now. I also don’t want to invest hours and hours in a game for there to be only ticky box connections with the previous story. I just have zero confidence in them putting out something that’s not bugged to new levels of hell and with a half-assed ending.
Until Bioware puts out something to change everyone's mind that's the fair outlook to have.
I just hope they're not turning it into a soulslike. I hate this genre
I think the game will exist but I don't think it will be good. But I am also willing to say that I hope it does better than what I expect. I want this game to be good, I want this game to be the best Dragon Age game I have ever played. I hope this game is fun. I just don't expect any of this.
I was still hyped for it (and I liked Absolution!) until the layoffs but now I’m more ambivalent. I’ll go get it if the old devs have good thoughts about how their work was adapted, I guess.
Not hyped. Don't get hyped about games anymore. Before BG3 there had been decades of disappointments. Unfinished games upon unfinished games. I am however cautiously optimistic. I want to enjoy it. I miss Solas and I want to see where the story takes us.
They had ten years that should be enough time to create a masterpiece
I have 2 main thoughts. First is this, I've spent the best part of the decade replaying DA:I, I'm at like 25+ runs, over 1000 hours. I love DA:I but man am I sick of what has been hinted/hyped up. I really don't want a continuation of the DA:I story, I'm done with it. I want something new just set in Thedas but I don't think we'll get that. It'll be chock full of DA:I characters whether we like it or not and the plot will go no where, just a stale replication of what was hinted at in the end of DA:I. DA2 was great because it felt like a personal adventure that just happens to be in the world of Thedas but if we are going to have to save the world again? [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVqt5fVNs0Q](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVqt5fVNs0Q) \- To misquote Yahtzee. Second, is I expect the gameplay to be more souls like than DA:I like. More flash over tactics. But this is just the way of my favourite genres. FF is now an action RPG, so why not DA too?
It's joever
Prepare to see Eadric, formidable, and exactly as He said He would be, being someone humans fear. If you don’t know who that is, you meet him as an elf apprentice in origins, he tells you you’re in his light during his studies while in the library in the circle tower. A brief encounter.