• Welcome to the Fantasy Writing Forums. Register Now to join us!

Dragon Age series

Philip Overby

Staff
Article Team
I'm glad to hear so much positive response for Inquisition because I think Origins was so awesome for its time and looked like the next great series. Then Dragon Age 2 seemed to disappoint so many people. Even though I did like the battle system more, the story and world seemed a bit weaker. I've heard nothing but good about Inquisition so far, except for some complaints about the Hinterlands (the opening area I guess).
 
Now here's irony for you. Origins was a bit too grimdark for me, so I wasn't going to get Inquisition. Then I read this article about how Inquisition ruined the series by making it less grimdark, and now it actually sounds fun. (Now to save up for a computer that can run it . . .)
 
Last edited:

Mikelo

Acolyte
I am about 30 hours into Dragon Age: Inquisition. Love it! I was hooked on Origins, found DA2 just meh--but BioWare is back in form with this one.

To answer the original questions:

1. Usually a mage, sometimes a fighter just to see the Templar side of things. I avoid rogues, only because I like being in the center of the mage/Templar conflict.

2. I played through with a human, but tried out all the races in Origins.

3. Love the Quanari--and Iron Bull is a brilliant character--but I won't be playing one. Those horns would only make me long to play a tiefling . . .

4. I romanced Zevran in Origins. We were good together--but now I'm completely captivated by Dorian in Inquisition. Even if (er, when) I play through a second time, it's going to be rough to go with someone else. I'll feel like I'm cheating.
 
Last edited:

Rinzei

Troubadour
I'm looking forward to playing Inquisition. I hope to get it for either Christmas or buy it myself after Christmas. I finally played 2 and in that game I romanced Anders. He was cool but I like Alistair a lot better.

Look out for Cullen and The Iron Bull then. And maybe Blackwall, now that I think about it. But really, Cullen. Just. Yes.

The game is amazing. It's huge in an overwhelming sort of way. The amount of content they've created for this one is unbelievable. I don't think it's possible to even come close to seeing it all in one playthrough.

The story is great so far, and while I don't find it incredibly original, it's very well crafted and feels truly empowering. Choices are hard, with never a clear right and wrong, and they almost always have consequences.

Writing and characters are up to the usual BioWare standard, maybe even better.

Overall, great game. Probably my GOTY for 2014.

Yes to everything you just said. I'm really enjoying it and feel like running the Inquisition is more productive than my actual worklife. XD I'm having a hell of a time picking which companions to pursue, the take with me, etc. because I really like them all. Well, except Sera. Don't get me wrong - she's a great character. She's just not the kind of character I like.
 
I bought it! YAY!!!! I got the 360 version. The graphics are okay but the story is awesome so far. I have met Cullen and he's cool but honestly, Alistair is soooooooo much better. Cullen isn't that good looking in my opinion. I haven't met blackwall or iron bull yet though. So I might like them better or maybe not I don't know. Sooo looking forward to it!
 

Philip Overby

Staff
Article Team
Just got this a couple of days ago. I really like it so far, but yeah, the Hinterlands...People told me about them, but I'm already getting sick of that area so I plan to leave sooner rather than later so I can get back to the story which I've been told is pretty stellar.
 

Mikelo

Acolyte
Just got this a couple of days ago. I really like it so far, but yeah, the Hinterlands...People told me about them, but I'm already getting sick of that area so I plan to leave sooner rather than later so I can get back to the story which I've been told is pretty stellar.

Ah, the Hinterlands. Just when you think you're done with them . . . .
 

Mindfire

Istar
I'm playing Dragon Age 2 (yes I'm really late don't judge me) so that immediately afterwards I can pop in my shiny new PS4 copy of Inquisition. The anticipation for Inquisition actually improves the Dragon Age 2 gameplay experience, believe it or not. I might do another run through Origins. Alas, I never finished my second character in Origins due to a combination of frustration with my computer's way subpar specs and being distracted by Mass Effect.
 
So I met Iron bull and Blackwall. They're cool but honestly, I miss Alistair. I saw him in the 'future' as king which confused me because in Origins he came with me and denied his kingship.
 

Rinzei

Troubadour
Did you double-check all of your choices in the Keep before locking the World State? It doesn't always import all choices like-for-like. You need to double-check them.

Honestly, Alistair is a hard act to follow. :) Give the guys (and ladies ;D) some time - they're all interesting in their own different ways. I know most of the ladies also like Blackwall, but he wasn't for me. I don't want to say why because I don't want to colour anyone's impressions of him. (And spoiler tags don't appear to be working.)

My favourite so far as been Dorian. Oh course, I can't romance him at present because he doesn't like my boobs. :/ Et tu, Dorian?
 

Smith

Minstrel
Question. I've been desperate to play Inquisition for months, but since I got it for the holidays, it's sitting on my desk unloved and unopened because I never finished DA:O and I haven't even touched DA2. Is it 100% necessary, would you say, to play the previous games? I did try to pick up DA:O again last night, but as I was halfway through the game (Brecilian Forest as the last obstacle to the Landsmeet) when I quit several months ago, I'd forgotten a lot of why I was playing, which only made it more tedious. I know a bit about the lore and don't mind brushing up, but it seems like I'd want to know all the little decisions that might affect things.

Additionally, are any of the DLC more or less necessary? I have no way to afford buying expansions, so it would suck if any of them were super important to anything in Inquisition.
 

Black Dragon

Staff
Administrator
You don't need to play the first two games to appreciate Inquisition. My wife never played them, and she is loving the new game.

Also, there are no expansions that are necessary to play Inquisition.
 
I wouldn't know about DLC, but I'd say if you want to go straight into Inquisition, go ahead. Appreciating its story doesn't depend on finishing Origins (although some of the world events are).

Of course some immersion in the world always helps. You might try putting Origins back on and playing it a few hours more as a refresher course, or maybe put it on Easy and try to race through the rest of the game. (Tip: don't go anywhere near the final quest without Wynne or someone else who can raise the "dead" on your party. You don't get to switch.)

Actually, DA2 might be as important as Origins for stepping into the Inquisition story. (Well, one big event at the end is, and there's a popular playable character you can play there first. I'm still pretty early in Inquisition, so the story might start tying into other events a lot more.) I think DA2 is a better game than most people give it credit for, it's just got some specific weaknesses and isn't DA Origins, but if you aren't a completist it's not worth delaying the big game for it. (Okay, maybe an hour or two to meet how certain characters introduce DA2...)
 

Smith

Minstrel
Thanks for the answers, guys. I tried to play through more of Origins, if only because I didn't want it to be anything like Mass Effect where the second and third games would have been abysmal if I hadn't imported a save, but then I realised I really don't care about the outcome of Ferelden or my character all that much (only really care about Alistair), and it makes me feel terrible because I really wanted to like DA:O. I've heard a lot of mixed messages about DA2, but I'm going to play it anyway to see if it's any good, and to familiarise myself with its plot and characters enough to understand anything that might pop up in Inquisition.

I'm sure if I wasn't so eager to get started on Inquisition the desire to redo Origins and form a second opinion would roll around again, but that'll have to wait.
 

Rinzei

Troubadour
DA2 will be infinitely quicker to get through that DA:O. I love the story of DA:O, but damn if I didn't struggle to get through it. The first time I was so relieved to finish. The first half just seemed to drag on for ages. Then I found out midway that I couldn't get the ending I wanted because of the origin I picked. Didn't care though - until they said that our DA:O games would affect DA2. So I had to play through it again. Managed to beat it with the ending I wanted - no subsequent attempts at playing have been successful. I think I stopped at Ostagar on my third try and just gave up.

I managed through DA2 easily. I know a lot of people really like DA:O over DA2, but the ease of play and accessibility just made it appeal to me more, despite all of its faults. It's probably a good one to do at least. DA2 starts are the beginning of the Blight in DA:O pretty much and then spans 10 years of time. DA:I takes place 2 years later, and the events of DA2 contribute to the plot of DA:I.

If you'd rather forgo the games, there are a few articles and videos people have made up to get you up to speed without playing. I know Kotaku did an article, and I'm pretty sure there was a 2-hour youtube video going over the whole thing floating around somewhere.
 
Last edited:
Different strokes, I guess.

For me, Origins was long but a perfect storm of epic energy, and it felt "just grim enough" for me. (Although, my only true complaint with DA2 is the extra-grim plot: instead of choosing who else pays the price for saving the world, you're usually choosing which side you were pleading with before both go bad.)

Still, I'm wishing Inquisition had a little less Skyrim in its DNA. It's got a great story and all, but you can only spend so long trekking across wilderness (or stuck behind mountain ranges, :mad:) before the quest you're trying to get to feels a little diluted. Sometimes want some steenkin' pacing.
 
Last edited:

Smith

Minstrel
In the end I bloody loved DA2. I can see why some people might be disappointed after Origins, but I loved the characters, the conflicts and the build up of Hawke the refugee to Hawke the Champion of Kirkwall, and I got to romance a character I actually cared about. I'm very happy I played it, and I'm even more eager to play Inquisition.

But wouldn't you flipping believe it? After agonising over it and playing DA2, making all my choices for an Origins playthrough and updating the Keep, I finally, at long last, am ready to play Inquisition... and my internet is broken, can't import the darn thing into the game. So annoyed. My internet provider sucks.
 
I'm about halfway through the game, so this might be a spoiler for some and a don't-spoil-it-for-me guess to others, but:

Anyone else noticed how the game's demons seem to scale up faster and further than most other enemies? Soldiers and other mortal foes can get fairly easy to beat, but each rift brings out an ever-nastier combination of wraiths, Terrors, and worse.

It's been disorienting to cope with, although I finally noticed one of the loading-screen tips that changes the odds a bit. But it's also fun world-building: a Team of Heroes just gets too good for random troops to hurt, but those troops are still there, while an extra-dimensional threat just keeps getting more menacing.

Call it one of the fantasy versions of "Spider-Man still takes time for muggers." Or the exact opposite of how Skyrim let dragon raids devolve into nuisances!
 
Ok honestly, I would say, to get the full story and truly get into the games you need to play origins and 2. 2 was kind of disappointing to me but it was essential to the story because,
It's the story of how the mage rebellion began.
and if you don't play 2, it's kind of like you don't really know what's going on or who the characters are talking about as far as Hawke is concerned and also the hero of Ferelden from Origins and Anders from 2. They give you a codex on the Hero and I think theres one on Hawke but the one on Hawke isn't important because
You meet Hawke in Inquisition and you learn all about him/her. (which kind of made me angry because you don't get to meet the Hero.) And later
You have to choose whether to keep Hawke alive or Alistair alive (made me so mad!!! :mad2:) (and if you haven't played Origin you don't really know who he is and he is also the king if you chose him to rule in the first game and in the default world.)
So the first two games are essential to get into the story and really enjoy all of the references to the first two. You can play DA:I without the first two games and you can enjoy it but I can guarantee you will enjoy it even more by playing the first two games. Just so you know and that anyone else is wondering also answering Smith's question from my perspective. :)
 

Rinzei

Troubadour
You have to choose whether to keep Hawke alive or Alistair alive (made me so mad!!! :mad2:) (and if you haven't played Origin you don't really know who he is and he is also the king if you chose him to rule in the first game and in the default world.)

Not in every World State:

Alistair is only the Warden along with Hawke if he stayed a Grey Warden. If Loghain became a Grey Warden and lived, it's him. If neither of them were alive/Grey Wardens (King, Dead, Drunkard, etc.), it's a man named Stroud, whom is the one that helps Bethany/Carver become a Grey Warden in DA2 in the Deep Roads. You probably won't remember him (that's if you even met him! Bethany/Carver didn't have to become a Grey Warden), which makes the decision a lot easier...
 
Last edited:
Top