Publisher: Bioware/EA
Genre: RPG
Summary: A thief invites Hawke to help steal a jewel from an Orlesian noble's remote fortress.
Gameplay: Combat is the same as the rest of the game, save for new monsters ghasts and wyverns. There is a new stealth system for your burglary involving timing and careful angling to avoid or properly knock out guards. There are also several optional logic puzzles within the fortress for extra treasures.
Style: Although the style is the same as the rest of Dragon Age II, the lush, green forests of these Orlesian mountains are a welcome reprieve from the ever-same brown streets of Kirkwall.
Story: This DLC largely centers around Felicia Day's character Tallis. If you don't like Felicia Day, or if you don't end up liking her character (a possibility, given certain later twists), then you probably won't like this DLC. There are not a lot of options regarding how to deal with Tallis.
But if you do like Felicia Day or Tallis or don't care (I didn't know much about her when I first played this) then this DLC has something to offer. There's lots of funny lines to enjoy. The mountain meadows (despite the wyverns) are a welcome change of location.
I don't much like the ghasts, however. They don't seem to fit in well with the Dragon Age lore. This might change if more is learned later, but the fact that they haven't popped up again makes me wonder if the game authors want to forget them too.
I also enjoy the opportunity to briefly chat with Orlesian nobility, and
the sneaking is a nice change of pace, if sometimes trying. There are enough small choices to keep every playthrough from being the same even if there isn't a lot of variation. All in all, Mark of the Assassin is a fun diversion.
Saturday, December 10, 2016
Sunday, December 4, 2016
"Dragon Age II" Review
Publisher: Bioware/EA
Genre: RPG
Summary: Fleeing the Blight, Hawke settles in the troubled city of Kirkwall. As Hawke's power and influence grows, so do the city's problems. Tensions grow with stranded Qunari, and the relationship between the mages and templars becomes ever more anxious.
Gameplay: The combat is somewhat streamlined from Origins in several ways. There are less ability trees, including one for each weapon. And only rogues get to use bows (lucky ducks.)
Overall I don't have a problem with the simplification, but combat still lasts way too long because of the many waves of enemies. As soon as one bunch of enemies is defeated, more appear. I think this is because of how several stamina-or-mana recovery abilities work, but the effect is to make each fight feel two or three times longer than it needs to be.
There aren't that many locations in the game, which gets a little tiring, but it would be less tiring if there wasn't a fight every five feet. I think they threw in an encounter whenever they feared the story was getting too thin. This, again, makes the game just drag on unnecessarily.
Speaking of locations, few though they may be, I enjoy exploring the city of Kirkwall and its environs. I wish there was a bit more interaction, however. People in Kirkwall's streets often casually wander through your fiery battle with thugs unconcerned.
In non-combat gameplay, crafting now involves finding elements and using them to make runes or poisons or potions. At the easy level of difficulty, I never really used this system much.
Conversation options are now labeled diplomatic, snarky, or harsh (with occasional additional options for further questions, romantic flirts, or opportunities for a party member to have their say.) This is helpful shorthand, and Hawke will start making asides based on one mood or the other if you use it more often.
Friendships (and romances) with party members now have possibilities at both high friendship and high rivalry ratings. Also, the only way to increase or decrease this rating is interacting with that character or having them react to Hawke. This actually causes me a lot of problems, since the character has to be in the party for this, and I choose my party based on combat distribution, not who would like to save mages. Thus lots of my party members get points in both directions and end up vaguely in the middle, sometimes with sad consequences. It's a system that sounds good but doesn't work out well in practice.
Style: Although recognizably related to the previous game, Dragon Age II's art is much more stylized and angular. I like it a lot. It's very striking and the colors are rich. Lighting effects are particularly good as well. Fire and lightning and skies all look gorgeous.
I don't like the changes to elves, however (those ears are going to poke someone's eye out) and I miss being able to change party members' outfits a surprising amount. The menus are good and straightforward. I especially like the maps' listing of what quests are where.
Story: If Dragon Age: Origins is a tale about duty and Inquisition is a story of fear and faith, Dragon Age II says that sometimes, no matter what, things are going to suck. Which is true, but it's not the most inspiring or cheerful theme, and it's one of the reasons I don't like the game as much as others.
Hawke has choices, true, and can make things better (or worse) here or there for this or that person. But there are always certain dooms awaiting. Sometimes the game is well-written enough that these do feel justifiably inevitable, but sometimes they don't.
Hawke's story is told via the framing device of their friend Varric's narration as he is being interrogated. There are several amusing moments when he lies (which are unfortunately less amusing when you have to fight through them again on replays.) It's an interesting device but I think it ultimately hurts elements like the ending.
The game takes place over eight or so years, which is a great idea but lacks in the execution. Characters don't talk about things for years on end for no particular reason. The game's three acts are nicely broken up, but there is no change in Kirkwall after time passes between them beyond the Hightown sky drawing ever closer to night (admittedly a nice touch.)
The characters are, as usual, an interesting bunch. I find several of them particularly irritating, if not unrealistic. Some might find their foolish decisions and ornery opinions a plus, and favorites will certainly vary.
Conclusion: Dragon Age II is one of my least favorite Bioware games. Many of my issues are born of a short production time. Some are innovations that didn't quite work. And some things I just dislike. But for all I dislike, there is still plenty I like about Dragon Age II. It's a mixed bag, to be certain.
Genre: RPG
Summary: Fleeing the Blight, Hawke settles in the troubled city of Kirkwall. As Hawke's power and influence grows, so do the city's problems. Tensions grow with stranded Qunari, and the relationship between the mages and templars becomes ever more anxious.
Gameplay: The combat is somewhat streamlined from Origins in several ways. There are less ability trees, including one for each weapon. And only rogues get to use bows (lucky ducks.)
Overall I don't have a problem with the simplification, but combat still lasts way too long because of the many waves of enemies. As soon as one bunch of enemies is defeated, more appear. I think this is because of how several stamina-or-mana recovery abilities work, but the effect is to make each fight feel two or three times longer than it needs to be.
There aren't that many locations in the game, which gets a little tiring, but it would be less tiring if there wasn't a fight every five feet. I think they threw in an encounter whenever they feared the story was getting too thin. This, again, makes the game just drag on unnecessarily.
Speaking of locations, few though they may be, I enjoy exploring the city of Kirkwall and its environs. I wish there was a bit more interaction, however. People in Kirkwall's streets often casually wander through your fiery battle with thugs unconcerned.
In non-combat gameplay, crafting now involves finding elements and using them to make runes or poisons or potions. At the easy level of difficulty, I never really used this system much.
Conversation options are now labeled diplomatic, snarky, or harsh (with occasional additional options for further questions, romantic flirts, or opportunities for a party member to have their say.) This is helpful shorthand, and Hawke will start making asides based on one mood or the other if you use it more often.
Friendships (and romances) with party members now have possibilities at both high friendship and high rivalry ratings. Also, the only way to increase or decrease this rating is interacting with that character or having them react to Hawke. This actually causes me a lot of problems, since the character has to be in the party for this, and I choose my party based on combat distribution, not who would like to save mages. Thus lots of my party members get points in both directions and end up vaguely in the middle, sometimes with sad consequences. It's a system that sounds good but doesn't work out well in practice.
Style: Although recognizably related to the previous game, Dragon Age II's art is much more stylized and angular. I like it a lot. It's very striking and the colors are rich. Lighting effects are particularly good as well. Fire and lightning and skies all look gorgeous.
I don't like the changes to elves, however (those ears are going to poke someone's eye out) and I miss being able to change party members' outfits a surprising amount. The menus are good and straightforward. I especially like the maps' listing of what quests are where.
Story: If Dragon Age: Origins is a tale about duty and Inquisition is a story of fear and faith, Dragon Age II says that sometimes, no matter what, things are going to suck. Which is true, but it's not the most inspiring or cheerful theme, and it's one of the reasons I don't like the game as much as others.
Hawke has choices, true, and can make things better (or worse) here or there for this or that person. But there are always certain dooms awaiting. Sometimes the game is well-written enough that these do feel justifiably inevitable, but sometimes they don't.
Hawke's story is told via the framing device of their friend Varric's narration as he is being interrogated. There are several amusing moments when he lies (which are unfortunately less amusing when you have to fight through them again on replays.) It's an interesting device but I think it ultimately hurts elements like the ending.
The game takes place over eight or so years, which is a great idea but lacks in the execution. Characters don't talk about things for years on end for no particular reason. The game's three acts are nicely broken up, but there is no change in Kirkwall after time passes between them beyond the Hightown sky drawing ever closer to night (admittedly a nice touch.)
The characters are, as usual, an interesting bunch. I find several of them particularly irritating, if not unrealistic. Some might find their foolish decisions and ornery opinions a plus, and favorites will certainly vary.
Conclusion: Dragon Age II is one of my least favorite Bioware games. Many of my issues are born of a short production time. Some are innovations that didn't quite work. And some things I just dislike. But for all I dislike, there is still plenty I like about Dragon Age II. It's a mixed bag, to be certain.
Sunday, October 30, 2016
"Dragon Age: Origins Awakening" Expansion Review
Publisher: Bioware
Genre: RPG
Summary: As the new Warden Commander, recruit new Grey Wardens, rule Amaranthine, and investigate the strange actions of new talking darkspawn.
Gameplay: The gameplay is similar to Dragon Age: Origins, with the main addition being runes for armor (something I wish had been added to the main game.) Although a welcome idea, the application can be annoying, as high-level runes are hard to find outside of crafting millions of smaller ones (which is especially difficult if it's one of your companions that has the ability to do so, since you don't have access to them in the keep where the main rune supplier is.)
Style: Amaranthine doesn't have much more color than the rest of Fereldan, but there are some nice uses of rain effects.
Story: "Awakening" is an expansion, meaning it's longer than a DLC but shorter than a full game. It's a nice size (and something that seems rare nowadays, so I kind of miss it) for a complete, interesting story with plenty of choices without taking so long as an epic game like "Origins."
There are new areas to explore, minor quests to do or ignore, and a fascinating and lore-rich story underpinning it all. The new characters are intriguing enough I wish we had more time with them. It's also fun to manage Amaranthine, dealing with fort upkeep, complaining nobles, judgments, and consequences thereof.
Conclusion: "Awakening" offers a satisfying answer to what happens after the conclusion of 'Dragon Age: Origins" while setting up a few important things to come (and possibly more.) More importantly, it's another fun adventure in the Dragon Age setting.
Genre: RPG
Summary: As the new Warden Commander, recruit new Grey Wardens, rule Amaranthine, and investigate the strange actions of new talking darkspawn.
Gameplay: The gameplay is similar to Dragon Age: Origins, with the main addition being runes for armor (something I wish had been added to the main game.) Although a welcome idea, the application can be annoying, as high-level runes are hard to find outside of crafting millions of smaller ones (which is especially difficult if it's one of your companions that has the ability to do so, since you don't have access to them in the keep where the main rune supplier is.)
Style: Amaranthine doesn't have much more color than the rest of Fereldan, but there are some nice uses of rain effects.
Story: "Awakening" is an expansion, meaning it's longer than a DLC but shorter than a full game. It's a nice size (and something that seems rare nowadays, so I kind of miss it) for a complete, interesting story with plenty of choices without taking so long as an epic game like "Origins."
There are new areas to explore, minor quests to do or ignore, and a fascinating and lore-rich story underpinning it all. The new characters are intriguing enough I wish we had more time with them. It's also fun to manage Amaranthine, dealing with fort upkeep, complaining nobles, judgments, and consequences thereof.
Conclusion: "Awakening" offers a satisfying answer to what happens after the conclusion of 'Dragon Age: Origins" while setting up a few important things to come (and possibly more.) More importantly, it's another fun adventure in the Dragon Age setting.
Thursday, October 20, 2016
"King's Quest I: Quest for the Crown" Review
Publisher: Sierra
Genre: Adventure
Summary: Sir Graham is tasked by the King of Daventry with finding its lost three treasures.
Notes: Given the various versions and remakes this game has had over its long history (originally released in 1983, it's older than me), I wanted to clarify which game I'm talking about. I have played the original version, but not in some time. I am most familiar with the 1990 SCI remake, and that is the game I mostly reference here.
Gameplay: Daventry isn't huge, but it's just about the right size that it's pleasant to explore but quick enough to get where you need to go without much trouble. The quests themselves are mostly straightforward, with some exceptions (and the legendarily ridiculous gnome name riddle, which is at least slightly less horrendous in the remake.)
Best of all, however, are the options. There are random treasures to discover and several optional quests. The main quests all have at least two if not more ways to solve them. Such variability is always appreciated and is especially impressive in such an early game.
I don't mind the typing interface in the remake, mostly because the game pauses when you type. Previously, your ability to survive might be dependent upon how fast you could type "duck."
Style: The graphics in the original are obviously rough, but given it is literally the first game with interactive graphics, it's hard to fault it. I find the remake's graphics charming and colorful.
Story: While the quest for the treasures is simple enough, there isn't much underpinning the rest of the story besides random bits stolen from fairy tales. It's fun, mind you, but part of me wishes for a more logical structure than just a random witch here and a leprechaun there.
Genre: Adventure
Summary: Sir Graham is tasked by the King of Daventry with finding its lost three treasures.
Notes: Given the various versions and remakes this game has had over its long history (originally released in 1983, it's older than me), I wanted to clarify which game I'm talking about. I have played the original version, but not in some time. I am most familiar with the 1990 SCI remake, and that is the game I mostly reference here.
Gameplay: Daventry isn't huge, but it's just about the right size that it's pleasant to explore but quick enough to get where you need to go without much trouble. The quests themselves are mostly straightforward, with some exceptions (and the legendarily ridiculous gnome name riddle, which is at least slightly less horrendous in the remake.)
Best of all, however, are the options. There are random treasures to discover and several optional quests. The main quests all have at least two if not more ways to solve them. Such variability is always appreciated and is especially impressive in such an early game.
I don't mind the typing interface in the remake, mostly because the game pauses when you type. Previously, your ability to survive might be dependent upon how fast you could type "duck."
Style: The graphics in the original are obviously rough, but given it is literally the first game with interactive graphics, it's hard to fault it. I find the remake's graphics charming and colorful.
Story: While the quest for the treasures is simple enough, there isn't much underpinning the rest of the story besides random bits stolen from fairy tales. It's fun, mind you, but part of me wishes for a more logical structure than just a random witch here and a leprechaun there.
Saturday, October 8, 2016
"Dragon Age: Origins" Review
Publisher: Bioware
Genre: RPG
Summary: As a Grey Warden, it is your duty to stand against the fearsome darkspawn. Can you gather forces against them in a land torn by conflict and defeat the Blight?
Gameplay: Within the warrior, mage, and rogue classes there are plenty of opportunities for sub-specializations, with occasional traps and easy cheats. Various tactics can be assigned to each individual party member, depending on particular you'd like to be (and what level of difficulty you're playing at and which of those easy cheats you're using, most likely.) Overall, combat is interesting, but there's just a bit too much of it in the game.
Crafting consists solely of getting runes on weapons (although you don't have to literally be holding the weapons to do so, something I wish Inquisition had remembered) and the occasional armor made of dragon bits.
There are occasional puzzles of logic. Sometimes there are extra dialogue options because of character abilities, which is always nice. Also nice is with either of these offers a different path to achieve a quest.
Style: The graphics and environments of Origins are occasionally grand, but I also sometimes get tired of seeing elements reused. Especially similar are the armor and clothes. It's hard to get excited about a new, special suit of armor, no matter how powerful, if it looks exactly like the last two.
Rich colors are generally in short supply. This is sometimes explained by the lighting, as it is often sunset or underground. This gives a nice atmosphere of doom to the game (I might fanwank the whole thing as a side-effect of the Warden's taint, actually), but it does made things a little more brown and a little less vivid.
I really like the menus, sensibly organized into subsystems. I especially like how when shopping you can use a drop-down menu to check an item against whatever any party member is currently holding or wearing. Helmets and other ridiculous hats are unfortunately always seen except in cutscenes, but at least you can turn them off there (how often I wished for that option in Mass Effect 2!)
Story: While the overall story of defeating an army of evil monsters is nothing special, Dragon Age Origins really shines in the details. Well-named, it offers an introduction to a rich world full of fascinating characters. With six options for character origins, all with different possibilities for relating to the story to come, Origin excellently sets the stage for the following emotional choices and sometimes-tough decisions easily based in character.
Origins is a tale of duty, but how your character chooses to react and deal with their duty to defeat the darkspawn is up to you. Many choices are up to you, but with the fallout of others' poor decisions all around you, making them may not be easy.
Conclusion: Dragon Age: Origins is still one of my favorite games. While I could wish it was a bit brighter visually or the combat a bit shorter or more exciting, it succeeds in the areas I care about most. It offers a rich story with many opportunities for character choices in a fascinating setting.
Genre: RPG
Summary: As a Grey Warden, it is your duty to stand against the fearsome darkspawn. Can you gather forces against them in a land torn by conflict and defeat the Blight?
Gameplay: Within the warrior, mage, and rogue classes there are plenty of opportunities for sub-specializations, with occasional traps and easy cheats. Various tactics can be assigned to each individual party member, depending on particular you'd like to be (and what level of difficulty you're playing at and which of those easy cheats you're using, most likely.) Overall, combat is interesting, but there's just a bit too much of it in the game.
Crafting consists solely of getting runes on weapons (although you don't have to literally be holding the weapons to do so, something I wish Inquisition had remembered) and the occasional armor made of dragon bits.
There are occasional puzzles of logic. Sometimes there are extra dialogue options because of character abilities, which is always nice. Also nice is with either of these offers a different path to achieve a quest.
Style: The graphics and environments of Origins are occasionally grand, but I also sometimes get tired of seeing elements reused. Especially similar are the armor and clothes. It's hard to get excited about a new, special suit of armor, no matter how powerful, if it looks exactly like the last two.
Rich colors are generally in short supply. This is sometimes explained by the lighting, as it is often sunset or underground. This gives a nice atmosphere of doom to the game (I might fanwank the whole thing as a side-effect of the Warden's taint, actually), but it does made things a little more brown and a little less vivid.
I really like the menus, sensibly organized into subsystems. I especially like how when shopping you can use a drop-down menu to check an item against whatever any party member is currently holding or wearing. Helmets and other ridiculous hats are unfortunately always seen except in cutscenes, but at least you can turn them off there (how often I wished for that option in Mass Effect 2!)
Story: While the overall story of defeating an army of evil monsters is nothing special, Dragon Age Origins really shines in the details. Well-named, it offers an introduction to a rich world full of fascinating characters. With six options for character origins, all with different possibilities for relating to the story to come, Origin excellently sets the stage for the following emotional choices and sometimes-tough decisions easily based in character.
Origins is a tale of duty, but how your character chooses to react and deal with their duty to defeat the darkspawn is up to you. Many choices are up to you, but with the fallout of others' poor decisions all around you, making them may not be easy.
Conclusion: Dragon Age: Origins is still one of my favorite games. While I could wish it was a bit brighter visually or the combat a bit shorter or more exciting, it succeeds in the areas I care about most. It offers a rich story with many opportunities for character choices in a fascinating setting.
Thursday, October 6, 2016
Five Best Endgames
A good game ending may be hard to find--but equally hard to find is a good endgame. The preceding sentence to an ending's punctuation, too often an endgame is a joyless slog of mindless, difficult combat, or simply deficient in wrapping the game up for the coming finish.
But this post is for the good ones. These endgames are fun, exciting, and, one way or another, draw everything to a perfect close.
But this post is for the good ones. These endgames are fun, exciting, and, one way or another, draw everything to a perfect close.
Tuesday, September 27, 2016
Five Best Game Endings
Well, I've discussed worst endings. Far more difficult, of course, are good endings. What makes a good ending? Well, the game's plot must be concluded satisfactorily--no cliffhangers that leave half of the game unexplained, no abrupt twists of tone, no petering out of the story. Often, the chance to see how I affected the game world for better or worse with various actions throughout the game is a plus.
As before, this is a list of the best endings of games I have personally finished, and it is the endings themselves I am rating, not the endgames (that will be another list. Someday.)
As before, this is a list of the best endings of games I have personally finished, and it is the endings themselves I am rating, not the endgames (that will be another list. Someday.)
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