[DTKT]

This is not going to happen. More importantly, I DO NOT want this to happen. Obsidian probably has only a little fight left in them and I rather not see them wasted on DA.

A project of that magnitude would probably save the studio from collapsing. At least, for a 2-3 years. I mean, after they ship Stick of Truth, they don't have much else.

[MartyStu]

A project of that magnitude would probably save the studio from collapsing. At least, for a 2-3 years. I mean, after they ship Stick of Truth, they don't have much else.

Call me crazy, but I have this distinct impression that they are not long from this world no matter what they do. The signs are all there, I am just waiting for the news :(

[Jibbajabbawockky]

Well, we should find out momentarily. The last two times EA put out these surveys, the game was unveiled within a month.

Out of curiosity, what games were those? I was figuring DA3 would be unveiled at the VGAs, but I suppose they could do a Game Informer cover in the next couple months and still do the VGAs for some kind of first trailer or something.

This game is gonna be terrible and get rated harsher even if it's better because critics gave a free pass to DA2 and they'll most likely own up to it.See FF13 and FF 13-2

Maybe...you did see the Dragon Age 2 DLC's get rated more harshly than DA2 even though the DLCs (while still not that good) fixed some issues the main game had. I think its just as likely your typical IGN review will be plastered with ads for it as they shower it with praise.

No problem! I loved Origins, and theoretically a lot of the people that made that game are still there right?

Not really, no. I'm sure many of the non leads are still there, the people that are actually making the game. But with Origins, the leads changed during the project since it took so long to make. So James Ohlen started out as the Lead designer and a couple years in he moved to work on TOR. Then Brent Knowles took over, but he left BioWare after seeing the direction that BioWare/EA higher ups wanted to take Dragon Age 2 (more like Mass Effect). Dan Tudge, the executive producer of Origins also left after they completed the PC version of Origins in early 2009. David Gaider is still there. But for Dragon Age 2 they had a new lead designer, new executive producer and new art director, amongst other changes. Just compare the credits from Origins to DA2- there are a decent number of changes.

But given Bioware's recent output and attitude, I don't think they have the right priorities, and I doubt they actually understand why people hated DA2 so much. And even if they did, I don't think EA would let them make the game the way it should be made. It has to have the broadest appeal possible to sell what EA needs it to sell, and I don't think we're gonna get an RPG with that broad appeal without doing away with most of what made the genre interesting.

I agree, since Laidlaw and Darrah weren't in charge of making Origins, I don't know if they know why people liked it. Certainly not everyone liked Origins and it had its share of problems. But DA2 didn't really address those problems IMO. I'm guessing Dragon Age 3 will just be a more refined version of Dragon Age 2, just with the blatantly bad aspects of DA2 ironed out- no parachuting waves of enemies or recycled content. That way they can all say "Hey we listened to fan feedback!"

NWN was built all around multi-player, the main campaign was awful.

Very true. I know people that loved NWN but thats for the multiplayer communities that formed. And going by how EA has killed off modding and player generated content of late, any possible Dragon Age multiplayer would likely be more microtransaction laden, grinding rubbish.

[SerRodrik]

Not really, no. I'm sure many of the non leads are still there, the people that are actually making the game. But with Origins, the leads changed during the project since it took so long to make. So James Ohlen started out as the Lead designer and a couple years in he moved to work on TOR. Then Brent Knowles took over, but he left BioWare after seeing the direction that BioWare/EA higher ups wanted to take Dragon Age 2 (more like Mass Effect). Dan Tudge, the executive producer of Origins also left after they completed the PC version of Origins in early 2009. David Gaider is still there. But for Dragon Age 2 they had a new lead designer, new executive producer and new art director, amongst other changes. Just compare the credits from Origins to DA2- there are a decent number of changes.

I knew about some of that, but not all of it. Damn.

I agree, since Laidlaw and Darrah weren't in charge of making Origins, I don't know if they know why people liked it. Certainly not everyone liked Origins and it had its share of problems. But DA2 didn't really address those problems IMO. I'm guessing Dragon Age 3 will just be a more refined version of Dragon Age 2, just with the blatantly bad aspects of DA2 ironed out- no parachuting waves of enemies or recycled content. That way they can all say "Hey we listened to fan feedback!"

Exactly. I don't give them credit for fixing the parachuting enemies or the reused environments because those are such surface level problems. It's easy to correct those with a little more time and polish. But Dragon Age 2 had fundamental problems with its story and gameplay that they haven't acknowledged, and that I don't see them changing. It's so weird, because Origins was supposed to be Bioware's best selling game ever, but they keep seeming like they want to distance themselves from it.

[CadetMahoney]

Can't be worse than Dragon Age 2 ...

heh, they can try. After all there is still some interest in the franchise.

[Piecake]

heh, they can try. After all there is still some interest in the franchise.

Well, so far im liking the look of the characters more than DA2. Thats a plus, i guess

[Inorigo]

I haven't, but that's not the first time I've heard that about that game. It seems to be a problem for the "protagonist that has a voice but you still pick what he says" model. I thought Deus Ex Human Revolution did a pretty good job at not making the protagonist sound schizophrenic, but that game gave you a chunk of the actual dialogue so that you could tell what he was actually going to say.

It also starred a boring protag who barely even felt like a character. DA2 let me pick the attitude with which to respond and molded Hawke based on when and how often I picked those tones. I ended up with a smarmy character that was ultimately serious/did the right thing (in my own ethical view, of course) when the time came. And that was good enough for me.

[MormaPope]

By the time I buy Dragon Age 2, it'll be right before Dragon Age 3.

I played the Dragon Age 2 demo and enjoyed it, I then eventually bought the Dragon Age Origins GOTY edition with all the DLC. Still have to get Dragon Age 2 though.

[Valnen]

This is not going to happen. More importantly, I DO NOT want this to happen. Obsidian probably has only a little fight left in them and I rather not see them wasted on DA.

Why would it be wasted?

[Concept17]

No sign of terrible spikey concrete armor. So thats good. Artwork still bland so far though. I feel like the first game had a lot more potential than it realized, and they went in the completely wrong direction with the second game. Hopefully they get back on track.

[RealDeadOne]

Honestly I can't see this being as much of a train wreck as DA2. At worst I expect it will succeed in DA2's mission of being the Mass Effect 2 to DA:O's Mass Effect, which still wouldn't really make it good though.

At best it could not only be a complete return to IE-style Baldur's Gate esque gameplay with an excellent story full of player-controlled variables, but serve as a revival for such games and signal a new, successful direction for Bioware.

Though I expect the former and wish for the latter, logically there's a high chance that it will be exactly as bad as DA2, and a moderate chance of being even worse.

[Lancehead]

Why would it be wasted?

Probably because they can't seem to negotiate a good deal to save themselves.

[Ingueferroque]

Games design through surveys. Oh how far Bioware has fallen since BG1.

[Inorigo]

By the time I buy Dragon Age 2, it'll be right before Dragon Age 3. I played the Dragon Age 2 demo and enjoyed it, I then eventually bought the Dragon Age Origins GOTY edition with all the DLC. Still have to get Dragon Age 2 though.

You can easily get it for $20. I reccomend you do. There isn't enough DLC for the game to warrant a GOTY edition for it. Not to mention the typical hatred for it.

[Woo-Fu]

Franchise can't get any worse, kind of shocked that they're still trying.

[Piecake]

Games design through surveys. Oh how far Bioware has fallen since BG1.

Its more likely for marketing purposes

[subversus]

Well, I'll buy it if it has a good online mode.

[ilnadmy]

You can easily get it for $20. I reccomend you do.

I don't. It's a terrible game, I couldn't even bring myself to finish it.

And yeah what's up with BioWare designing the game through surveys? How the mighty have fallen.

[CaptainSchwann]

Liked DA:O due to it feeling like Kotor:Fantasy edition. I originally thought Bioware had some genuis plan of having one mainstream rpg series(ME) and then one, more traditional rpg series(DA). Boy was I wrong.

[Antiochus]

The game will only become a definite must buy if the Maker is somehow shoehorned into it. It will be worth the price of admission just to witness the resulting masterpiece or catastrophe.

[Valnen]

Franchise can't get any worse, kind of shocked that they're still trying.

1 bad game shouldn't cause you people to react this way if you're rational thinking adults.

[Inorigo]

I don't. It's a terrible game, I couldn't even bring myself to finish it. And yeah what's up with BioWare designing the game through surveys? How the mighty have fallen.

Can you guys read? It's most likely for marketing. They've been working on this game for too long to use a survey to make these kind of basic decisions. This stuff is in the game. They want to know what people find most appealing. Two of the pieces of character art in the survey were shown at the DA panel at PAX East, for Christ sake. They're not asking anybody to design their game.

[GlassBox]

I'm so tired of the "make the main character whatever the player wants" which usually ends up being dull and a drag on the whole story.

I'd rather have a focused main character than the wishy washy "sandbox" props that suffuce for MC's in Western RPG's these days. Yeah, BioWare and Bethesda are the guilty ones in this "game design" choice.

The likelihood of a player going through a 40 hour RPG more than once is slim anyway (let alone to try and go down different "paths" that aren't really different other than window dressing). Make the play-through strong and count for something.

[broz0rs]

I agree the Mages vs. Templar plot was getting out of hand, and reading the leaks it seems the development is headed towards that meandering war again. The first two DA games made both factions annoying, and I had very little compassion for either side. The game should go back to what made it worth playing, which are the Grey Wardens.

[Piecake]

I agree the Mages vs. Templar plot was getting out of hand, and reading the leaks it seems the development is headed towards that meandering war again. The first two DA games made both factions annoying, and I had very little compassion for either side. The game should go back to what made it worth playing, which are the Grey Wardens.

Well, Id imagine there is an interesting story to tell somewhere in that mages versus templars storyline since I dont think the actual concept is inherently bad. The problem is that their execution has been terrible.

[Paladin CL]

Please something good this time, i loved Dragon Age Origins soo much, its one of the best RPGs i have played, i loved the NPCs, DA2 is crap compared with it. I hope DA3 gets it right this time.

My hope lies in the fact that DA2 sold less than DAO even when they did all the "focus group" changes to widen the appeal.

[Clockblockers]

I want to root for bioware; but after ME3 and the BS that came from that I'm going to reserve my judgement until the game is released and the community (read GAF) makes a decision. For now my trust is gone, now all I have is tempered optimism.

[AnathemicOne]

The only thing I'm looking forward to with DA3 is the OT, DA2's was hilarious.

[Bowdz]

No awesome button, no deal. I NEED MORE AWESOME BIOWARE.

[Mxrz]

By the time I buy Dragon Age 2, it'll be right before Dragon Age 3. I played the Dragon Age 2 demo and enjoyed it, I then eventually bought the Dragon Age Origins GOTY edition with all the DLC. Still have to get Dragon Age 2 though.

Its worth the $20. Gaf/Net sort of overreacts to how it turned out since they changed focus and the combat/equip from DA:O. It has its flaws (wave combat, overly used tiled dungeons) but what game doesn't? The first 2/3rds were great, and the characters--for the most part--are among Bioware's better efforts. That last chapter is pretty awful, but its short at least.

[deviljho]

[TheChaos]

At best it could not only be a complete return to IE-style Baldur's Gate esque gameplay with an excellent story full of player-controlled variables, but serve as a revival for such games and signal a new, successful direction for Bioware.

Sadly I think the Baldur's Gate roots are long gone for Bioware. Based on what the developers have already confirmed what will be sticking around (Voiced protag, wheel, no toolset, etc.) It will be based much more on DA2.

[Jibbajabbawockky]

The first two DA games made both factions annoying, and I had very little compassion for either side. The game should go back to what made it worth playing, which are the Grey Wardens.

I think BioWare or the Dragon Age writers aren't very good at making factions that don't end up seeming like unlikeable extremists. Its fine if you don't like a character but you should at least be able to see where they're coming from. After recently playing Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines that was especially apparent- you have characters all over in that game with selfish motivations and they might not be terribly likeable but they feel authentic and believable.

The Witcher 2 does this very well with people like Henselt or Iorveth or Saskia. Henselt is a terrible person but he's a decent ruler. You might dislike him personally but he can get stuff done. Contrast that with Dragon Age 2 and they simply have both sides of the mage/templar conflict end up turning into insane demon monster boss fights.

They should try to model more characters after Loghain from Origins. He still came across as a bit of a nut in the game, but he didn't resort to some goofy supernatural boss fight and you can uncover that he had sound reasons for what he did, but he just got in over his head.

I will be curious, though: Mike Laidlaw front and center for the PR, or hidden behind the curtain?

Probably front and center. Its either him or David Silverman. Laidlaw seems to mean well, but in so many interviews he gives he seems so phony.

[Darklord]

I even hate seeing his face in an image. What an awful, piece of shit character.

[Goldrush]

Disappointed that the mage-chantry plot is the focus again. I love how DA2 did not dwell on the blight, exploring other aspect of the universe. I'm surprised the demon (don't remember the proper term) is not taking center stage.

[Chinner]

not surprised they're copying ME2. although the game does have a vocal minority the majority of gamers seem to love it. i imagine da3 to do quite well.

[DocSeuss]

Says "Hello Bioware comrades" Edit: Also, there is only one awesome way to write an inquisitor character and i doubt Bioware has the balls to hire Abercrombie to do it right.

Eh, The First Law was pretty damn pointless. Like, you finish the trilogy and you just feel yourself going "okay, so... why did I read that? Despite all the things that happened, nothing happened." Abercrombie isn't bad at writing, but his idea of bringing things full circle is actually just not changing anything.

[Sotha Sil]

Eh, The First Law was pretty damn pointless. Like, you finish the trilogy and you just feel yourself going "okay, so... why did I read that? Despite all the things that happened, nothing happened." Abercrombie isn't bad at writing, but his idea of bringing things full circle is actually just not changing anything.

Yeah, that's pretty much how I feel about his books.

Hope Laidlaw won't handle the PR this time, for Bioware's sake. He's terrible.

[Nirolak]

http://www.onlysp.com/2012/08/19/art...-dragon-age-3/

[Trigger]

I hope the reveal is soon. For better or worse, I'm interested to watch what happens.

[Meatvillain]

I like that logo.

[Santiako]

That looks like Army of Two 3's W.

[GillianSeed79]

Dragon Age: Unreal Tournament

Cannot unsee something that looks like Unreal font with that logo

[DocSeuss]

Why is it that in every thread we have these ridiculous hyperboles. Its really getting old.

Dragon Age 2 had twenty items you could get through various pre-orders, special editions, cross-promotions, and playing Dragon Age Legends, while it cost nearly $900 to pick up all possible DLC for Mass Effect 3 on launch, so yes, it's ridiculous, but only because it's not extreme enough.

You do know she also wrote from Dragon Age Origins, right?

She wrote one of the most disliked sections of the game: Orzammar. You know, the one with the town crier who yelled "Epic fail!" and the insane dwarven woman who couldn't rhyme and an unconvincing dwarf lesbian eloping session. People like DAO in spite of Hepler, not because of her.

Yeah, that's pretty much how I feel about his books.

I really wish Bioware would have a senior guy/project lead who is well-versed in both narrative and gameplay principles. I believe Scott Lynch, author of The Lies of Locke Lamora, has a pretty good background in this.

Or, y'know, they should just say "hey, Obsidian, we'd like you to make our next Dragon Age game."

[inky]

Return to Castle Dragon Age 3

[Patryn]

I seem to recall Bioware giving an interview around the release of Dragon Age: Origins where they said that it would never become a fantasy Mass Effect. Did I imagine that interview?

[ciridesu]

I'm really not feeling the plot, though I also think the DA universe is kind of boring, though 1's overall story arch was still good - should just leave out all the mage/templar/chantry stuff

Return to Castle Dragon Age 3

yeah this lol

[SerRodrik]

I seem to recall Bioware giving an interview around the release of Dragon Age: Origins where they said that it would never become a fantasy Mass Effect. Did I imagine that interview?

No I'm pretty sure I remember the same thing, something about not wanting to Mass Effect-ify Dragon Age. I know for sure I read an interview where they said that they tried a dialogue wheel and voiced protagonist while developing Origins and decided that they didn't think it would work for the series.

Heh.

[DieH@rd]

If its not like DA1, then I don't want it.

[Inorigo]

http://www.onlysp.com/2012/08/19/art...-dragon-age-3/

It begins.