Dragon Age 2
| Dragon Age 2 | |||
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| Studio |
 BioWare
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| Publisher |
 Electronic Arts
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| Senior Developer |
Mike Laidlaw (Lead Designer) David Gaider (Lead Writer) |
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| composer | Inon Zur | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
March 8, 2011 March 10, 2011 |
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| platform | PC ( Windows , Mac OS ), Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 | ||
| Game engine | Lycium | ||
| genre | role playing game | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | Mouse , keyboard , gamepad | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
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| medium | DVD-ROM , Blu-ray Disc | ||
| language | German , English | ||
| Current version | 1.04 (March 2, 2012) | ||
| Age rating |
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Dragon Age 2 is the successor to the computer role-playing game Dragon Age: Origins by the Canadian developer BioWare . It was released on March 8, 2011 in the US and on March 10, 2011 in Europe. The plot of Dragon Age 2 is separate from its predecessor and occurs during and after the events of Dragon Age: Origins .
action
The plot of Dragon Age 2 is independent. Therefore it is not necessary to have played the first part for understanding. However, similar to Mass Effect, it is possible, by importing a game save from the first part, to import the effects of the player decisions made there into Dragon Age 2 , with slight effects on dialogues and the roles of certain game characters. Alternatively, one of three historical backgrounds can be selected when creating the character.
The game is about Hawke, the male or female player character. The game's story spans seven years and is told by a former Hawkes companion named Varric. In cutscenes he comments on the actions of the so-called champion of Kirkwall to his listener, Cassandra Pentaghast, and establishes connections between the events. In this narrative style, the game sections act as flashbacks.
The introduction in the form of a tutorial runs parallel to the plot of Dragon Age: Origins . Hawke has to flee with mother Leandra and the two siblings from the village of Lothering in Ferelden, which was destroyed by the dark brood. Leandra originally came from a noble family from the town of Kirkwall in the Free Marshes, north of the sea. The family flees there because they want support and the opportunity to start over. Upon their arrival, however, it turns out that Leandra's brother Gamlen has taken over the entire family property. In order to be allowed into the city at all in the face of the large influx of refugees from Ferelden, Hawke has to work for an organization for a year, which in return gives him access to the city. The introductory chapter ends when you join one of these organizations.
The first act begins after the one-year service as a smuggler or mercenary has expired. Hawke's family lives in poor conditions in Gamlen's house in the Lower City. In order to get money for his family, Hawke tries to get a commitment for an expedition into the deep ways. However, the dwarf expedition leader Bartrand refuses employment. At the suggestion of Bartrand's brother Varric, Hawke tries to buy into the company as a partner. To get the money he needs, Hawke and his up to three companions take on numerous assignments that gradually bring him closer to the city and its problems.
Kirkwall turns out to be a social powder keg. The numerous refugees from Ferelden are largely impoverished and lead a second-class life. In addition, tensions between the Knights Templar and the Magi circle weigh on the political situation. The circle complains about the numerous reprisals to which it is exposed by the order under the iron leadership of its commander Meredith. For their part, the Templars are relentlessly on the hunt for blood mages and demand strict surveillance of all mages to protect the city. Additional problems are caused by a stranded group of the strange warrior people of the Qunari, who have set up camp in the port of the city with the permission of the ruling Viscount of Kirkwall. Their goals are opaque, but with their strongly religious warrior culture they are increasingly arousing suspicion among the church and its followers. This multitude of interested parties with opposing positions creates a climate of mistrust that is increasingly burdening the city. By working in this area of tension, Hawke comes into contact with all groups and can finally work out his contribution to the expedition through various commissioned work. Hawke ventures into the Deep Paths, returns with a handsome fortune and is able to buy back the old family house in Upper Town.
Act 2 begins three years after Hawke's return from the Deep Ways. The presence of the Qunari is increasingly a problem for the maintenance of peace within the city. The Viscount therefore entrusts Hawke with the task of finding out more about the goals of the Qunari and getting them to leave the city as quickly as possible. The situation escalates through political intrigue. In search of a stolen artifact, the Qunari finally attack the city, storm the fortress and kill the Viscount. Hawke must oppose their leader, the Arishok, and free the city from the Qunari. Hawke thereby receives the title of Champion of Kirkwall .
The 3rd act begins again three years after the events of the 2nd act. Since the Viscount's death, Commander Meredith has been in power over the city. As a result, the tensions between the Magical Circle and the Templar Order keep increasing. The Templars put increasing pressure on the magicians. These are increasingly turning to blood magic, which sets in motion a spiral of violence. With the destruction of Kirkwall's church by the magician Anders, a companion of Hawke's, it finally comes to an open argument between the two factions. Hawke must join one of the two factions and end the conflict.
Gameplay
Unlike in the predecessor, the main character of the player is set on the human race. The player can determine gender and first name himself, but the last name is similar to Bioware's title Mass Effect with Hawke . It is used by the characters in the game world to address the main character. As a profession, Hawke can choose between warrior, villain and magician as usual, although there is no further subdivision of these classes. As you level up, the character is developed individually with the help of several class-specific talent trees. There are three special talent trees for the player character per class, of which he can optionally activate any two at character levels 7 and 14. The character development proceeds according to common role-playing principles.
As in the predecessor, the player meets several supporting characters from whom he can put together a group of up to four people. The player can exercise full control over these companions at any time, assemble their equipment or develop their values and skills according to their own ideas. Companion characters also have a talent tree tailored to them. Actions and statements of the player have an effect on the attitude of the characters through the system of influence known from the predecessor. If they develop particularly great respect or dislike for the main character, they will receive additional bonuses. The influence also affects the behavior of the characters in certain key situations.
Hawke always remains the spokesman in the dialogues. In contrast to its predecessor, the dialog system has been significantly changed and also adapted to the Mass Effect series. The choice of dialogues influences the course of the plot. The relationship to the accompanying characters can also change due to the influencing system known from the first part, again with slight effects on dialogue options and the course of the game.
The game's battles take place in real time, but can be paused at any time. The control of the game on PC and consoles differs significantly. The PC version works with a point & click interface, which generally enables a more tactical control of what is happening. On the console, on the other hand, the player directly controls a character in his group of heroes with the analog sticks of the game controller. A change between the active group members is possible at any time. The player can briefly pause the game by pressing the space bar (PC) or by calling up a circular menu (console) and, for example, take auxiliary potions or give instructions on how to move. Even with the placement of area spells, the battle is frozen until the end of the command entry. Regardless of the platform, the skills of the group members in combat can be combined with one another to particularly damage opponents. For example, the damage caused by some melee attacks is increased if the opponent was previously frozen by a magician's ice spell or stumbled by a particularly violent attack.
development
According to Brent Knowles, lead designer of the predecessor, Dragon Age 2 had a stronger orientation towards the Mass Effect sci-fi series, which was also developed by BioWare . The narration of the plot has been changed significantly compared to previous BioWare games and its predecessor. Instead of a continuous narrative, lead designer Mike Laidlaw and the responsible story designer David Gaider created a story that spans several blocks of time. In this way, the long-term effects of the players' decisions should also be able to flow into the staging and be represented. While the goal in the first part was the introduction of the new game world, the story should now also be more tailored to the main character. As inspiration for the plot, Gaider gave both real political events ( war on terror ), as well as the television series Battlestar Galactica and Firefly - The Dawn of the Serenity .
A more cinematic approach was pursued for the dialogues in order to avoid the rigid, head-fixed staging of the predecessor. For this purpose, camera angles, different perspectives, close-ups and effects were used more frequently. In the dialogues, the previous answer lists have been replaced by a dialog wheel based on Mass Effect . In order to better clarify the effect of the available answers to players before the selection, all dialog points have been provided with symbolic icons.
An adaptation of the comparatively small user interface of the predecessor should make the game more accessible to a larger audience, especially the console versions. The graphical backwardness in character models, textures and animations in the predecessor at the time of publication should be improved.
technology
Dragon Age 2 uses an improved version of the Eclipse engine called Lycium internally. This supports, among other things, DirectX 11 functions, for example cities and landscapes are upgraded using hardware tessellation. In addition, DirectX 11 graphics cards calculate nicer, dynamic lighting. Compared to the DirectX 9 renderer from Dragon Age: Origins, there are further optical improvements, some of which can also be seen on DirectX 10 graphics cards. Unlike in the predecessor, the dialog responses of the player character Hawke were also fully dubbed in Dragon Age 2 .
reception
The game was praised in the run-up to its publication in the trade press, which commented on it largely positively even after its publication (Metacritic rating: 82% (PC), 82% (PS3), 79% (Xbox 360)). The reception of the game turned out to be much cooler than that of the predecessor Dragon Age: Origins (Metacritic: 91/87/86). Specialized media criticized in particular the simplified combat system, the stronger orientation towards the console and mass market and a lack of variety, such as the frequent reuse of entire level designs.
Sections of the German trade press also rated the title more negatively than its predecessor after publication (critify average: 83% (PC) / 83% (PS3) / 83% (Xbox 360)). Above all, the optimization on consoles, as well as the severe trimming of role-playing game elements, was criticized. Due to the constant recycling of the same dungeon floor plan in the game, the level design was sometimes described with the terms “assembly line principle”, “boring” and “unimaginative”. The reason for the poorer rating compared to the predecessor was repeatedly cited as the obviously high time pressure in the production of the game and factors such as the stereotypical design of female characters, the effect-seeking use of blood, and the lack of exploratory stimuli were repeatedly cited.
Despite good reviews, a strong controversy arose both in the trade press and among customers about the significantly different playful orientation of the title compared to its predecessor. The customer ratings for the PC version of the game on the Metacritic rating portal were mostly negative after publication (4.1 of a maximum of 10 points on March 15, 2011). In mid-March 2011 it was announced that Bioware employees had given their own product a perfect 10-point rating on Metacritic. This has also been confirmed by the company.
Mike Laidlaw, the game's chief developer, defended Dragon Age II to the specialist media and fans by explaining the cool reception of the successor with high expectations due to the successful predecessor game. He defended the design decision made as necessary for the further development of the Dragon Age franchise, as it had given the developers more opportunities for future sequels. Bioware boss Ray Muzyka admitted in an interview that these decisions upset some fans of the predecessor. At the same time, however, you could also win new customers. From a financial point of view, Dragon Age 2 is a great success. Within two weeks, the game was sold a million times, sales doubled to two million copies after two months, according to an investor report from parent company Electronic Arts.
synchronization
In the original English version, apart from a few intentional changes, all speakers of already known characters were obliged to speak their roles again. A different recording studio was commissioned for the German version than for the first part, which is why all recurring roles have been newly cast with one exception (Anders). It should also be noted that the speaker who spoke in the predecessor Zevran, now sets the main character Hawke to music.
Downloadable additional content (DLC)
When the game was released (in accordance with the EA publisher's “ Project Ten Dollar ” marketing strategy against used buyers), the Black Emporion and The Banished Prince were already two download extensions available. After the success of the DLC program for the predecessor, however, expansions of the game were planned in advance.
In addition, various bonus items could be acquired through bonus campaigns, cross-promotion through other EA titles and participation in community activities related to Dragon Age II.
The Black Emporion
The Black Emporion is deep below Kirkwall. There the player can get a Mabari War Dog for Hawke and purchase some other magic and crafting recipes. With the so-called Mirror of Metamorphosis, it is also possible to change Hawke's appearance.
As in the first part, buyers of a new version of the game could download this content free of charge using the attached download voucher. However, the extension is also available as a chargeable download via the corresponding online networks of the console platforms or online sales platforms for PCs.
The exiled prince
This additional quest series revolves around Sebastian Vael, the scion of a murdered noble family. Hawke is supposed to help him hunt down his family's killers. Sebastian can be added to the hero group as a companion character.
The Exiled Prince was bonus content for new Signature Edition buyers .
Item package
This expansion from April 26, 2011 added new weapons, armor and accessories for the player character and their companions to match the three available character classes. The offer appeared both in the form of separate packages for the individual character classes and as a collective package with all content.
The legacy
In June 2011, the announcement of another downloadable content called Das Vermächtnis ( Legacy ), which appeared on July 27th, followed.
In terms of content, the player learns more about the background of Hawke's deceased father in the new quest series. He has to fight the criminal organization of the Carta to hunt him down. The venue is u. a. a former Gray Guardian prison.
Item package 2
The expansion was released on August 23, 2011 and, like the first item package, added new weapons, armor and accessories for companion characters for specific classes. The expansion also appeared either in the form of separate packages for the individual character classes or as a collective package with all content.
The mark of the assassin
The quest expansion was announced on September 16, 2011 and appeared on October 11, 2011. Together with the elven assassin Tallis, Hawke tries to find a valuable relic of an Orlesian baron. The character of Tallis was taken from the web series Dragon Age: Redemption and set to music in the original English by the actress Felicia Day .
Film adaptations
On June 7, 2010, Electronic Arts, in collaboration with Funimation, announced an anime film adaptation in the Dragon Age universe. Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seeker explores the story behind the seeker Cassandra Pentaghast. Originally announced for 2011, a postponement of the release date to March 2012 was announced in July 2011.
In February 2011, BioWare continued to work with Felicia Day to announce a six-part web series called Dragon Age: Redemption . Felicia Day takes on the role of Elfin Tallis, who is also a main character in the download expansion The Mark of the Assassinin . The first episode was released at the same time as the download expansion.
Web links
- Official website (German)
- Official website (English)
- Dragon Age 2 at MobyGames (English)
- Quest collection and more (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Brad Kane: The Writing Of BioWare's Dragon Age II: David Gaider Speaks ( English ) In: Gamasutra . Think Services. August 1, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ BioWare : Game Info: Frequently Asked Questions ( English ) Retrieved on July 13, 2011: “Dragon Age 2 is set in the Free Marches, with much of the plot focused on the city of Kirkwall, an ancient port city that was once the center of the global slave trade. "
- ↑ Brent Knowles: BioWare-Brent Year 10 (Fall 2008 - Summer 2009) ( English ) In: Private Blog . August 15, 2010. Retrieved October 22, 2011: “ I was fairly certain Dragon Age would transition towards more of a Mass Effect experience, which while enjoyable is not the type of role-playing game I play. Could I be the lead designer on such a title? Certainly ... though if I were going to work on a game adopting a set-in-stone protagonist I'd rather work on something lighter, like a shooter. "
- ^ A b c Matt London: Feature Interview: Dragon Age II Developers David Gaider & Heather Rabatich . In: Fantasy Magazine . May 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ Shaun McInnis: Dragon Age II Final Thoughts . In: GameSpot . CBS Interactive. March 24, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ a b איתמר וויסברג (Itamar Weisberg): ראיון עם דרקון (Interview with a Dragon) (Hebrew) . In: VGames , March 20, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ English translation: Interview with a dragon (Interview with DA2 lead level designer) . BioWare Network, accessed August 4, 2011
- ↑ David Hinkle: Dragon Age 2 preview: A shot of adrenaline . In: Joystiq . AOL . February 8, 2011. Retrieved July 11, 2011: "While it might appear to run on a new engine, Dragon Age 2 employs an evolved version of Origins' Eclipse engine (now called the Lycium engine internally)."
- ↑ Dragon Age 2: PC version with DirectX 11, tessellation, better lighting and more. PC Games Hardware , February 7, 2011, accessed February 15, 2011 .
- ↑ Metacritic : Average rating of the PC version , based on 45 articles. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
- ↑ Metacritic : Average rating of the PS3 version , based on 52 articles. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
- ↑ Metacritic : Average rating of the Xbox 360 version , based on 75 articles. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
- ↑ Metacritic : Average rating of the PC version , based on 67 articles. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
- ↑ Metacritic : Average rating of the PS3 version , based on 41 articles. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
- ↑ Metacritic : Average rating of the Xbox 360 version , based on 68 articles. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
- ↑ Critify.de , average PC rating, accessed on August 4, 2011
- ↑ Critify.de , average PS3 rating, accessed on August 4, 2011
- ↑ Critify.de , average Xbox360 rating, accessed on July 17, 2011
- ↑ cf. this z. B. Marc Sauter: The two in the name is out of place WTF column: Dragon Age 2 or the beginning of the end . In: PC Games Hardware . Computec Media Group . March 12, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ Stefan Weiß: The Dragon Age 2 in the test: The controversial role-playing game heats up the minds . In: PC Games . Computec Media Group . March 12, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ Sebastian Thor: In short: The first part was much, much better . In: Gamona . Webguidez Entertainment GmbH. March 9, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ Jörg Luibl: Test: Dragon Age II . In: 4Players . freenet AG . March 9, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ Sebastian Thöing: Dragon Age 2: The Avanost Files - Did Bioware Intentionally Manipulate Ratings? . In: GameStar , IDG , March 15, 2011. Accessed on July 13, 2011. “However, it looks worse with the user reviews. Here the game comes in at 4.1 out of a maximum of 10 points. "
- ↑ Andy Chalk: BioWare Employee Busted in Dragon Age 2 Review Scandal - UPDATED ( English ) In: The Escapist . Themis Group. March 15, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ Florian Eitel: Does Bioware manipulate user ratings? Dragon Age 2: Did Bioware Manipulate User Ratings? . In: PC Games Hardware . Computec Media Group . March 15, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
- ↑ cf. z. B. BioWare's Mike Laidlaw: A defense of Dragon Age II Interview , eurogamer.net, March 11, 2011 .
- ↑ Laidlaw, Mike: Thank You! ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . BioWare Network, June 2011, accessed August 4, 2011.
- ↑ a b Wesley Yin-Poole: Dragon Age 2 DLC to address fan feedback ( English ) Eurogamer.net. June 17, 2011. Retrieved July 3, 2011.
- ↑ Jim Reilly: Dragon Age II Sales Top 1 Million - BioWare celebrates with free copies of Mass Effect 2. ( English ) In: IGN . News Corp . April 5, 2011. Retrieved October 22, 2011.
- ↑ Electronic Arts : Electronic Arts Reports Q4 FY11 and FY11 Financial Results ( English ) In: Official company website . May 4, 2011. Retrieved October 22, 2011: “ Crysis 2, Dragon Age 2, and Dead Space 2 each sold in more than two million units. "
- ↑ Andy Chalk: The Dragon Age 2 Preorder Bonus Cavalcade Continues (English) . In: The Escapist , Themis Group, January 12, 2011. Retrieved March 22, 2011.
- ^ Daniel Raumer: Electronic Arts - ... fights against used games . In: GameStar , IDG , February 18, 2010. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
- ↑ Electronic Arts : Dragon Age II: The Legacy DLC . In: Official website . July 8, 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
- ↑ Electronic Arts : Dragon Age II DLC: The Mark of the Assassin . In: Official website . September 16, 2011. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
- Jump up ↑ Antonio Balcazar: Dragon Age: Redemption - RPG web series in progress . In: PC Games . Computec Media Group . February 15, 2011. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
- ↑ Electronic Arts : BioWare and FUNimation Entertainment Sign Anime Movie Deal for Award-Winning Dragon Age Franchise ( English ) In: Official company website . June 7, 2010. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
- ↑ Benjamin Jakobs: Dragon Age Anime not until 2012 . Eurogamer.de. July 28, 2011. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
- ↑ Mike Snider: Felicia Day breathes fire into 'Dragon Age' series . In: USA Today . Gannet . February 15, 2011. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
- ↑ Electronic Arts : Dragon Age II: Mark of the Assassin DLC Launches Today ( English ) In: Official company website . October 11, 2010. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
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