2. Auto saves.. or lack of them, manay a times ive played for 30mins only to die and go all the way back to some other point, it shouls autosave when you "camp" IMHO.

Other than thats its a great story.. looks like I got an assasin on my ass =D

 

F5 quicksave, F9 load ;o

No mmorpg company to date has the interest or the creative capability to take a game like Dragon Age - and make it into an mmorpg.  It's just too much beaurocracy and suits taking developers below their potential with whimsical concepts.

We have pleaded for an adult orientated mmorpg that was interested in lore - for years.  Warhammer is a great example of having a decent cash support system (Electonic Arts and ironically Bioware)....and still can't program an archer to shoot straight when a mob is ten feet away.  Your arrow just kind of flies slowly across the screen up into the air..and sadly...down on your opponent.  So who is making these games? I can't honestly believe even the movie artists that create the opening sequence for Warhammer know lore better than the developers themselves..I mean we have a dual  wielding archer who slips out of the shadows to drop two arrows into the face mask of a marauder..then hops down from a rooftop and out melees him with..2 swords. Log into the game and you have this broken class that we've made fun of or cried over since beta.

So, as an mmorpg example and one of the most INFAMOUS architypes in mmorpg genre to this day - one of the main classes considered by a paying community - is trashed by the company known as Mythic - I mean who in their right mind would destroy a money maker like an elven archer..especially in a time when Lord of the Rings has done so well..and World of Warcraft only continues to successfully evolve??

The shadow warrior has nothing to do with shadows and cannot dual wield, or even shift weapons - just like many aspects of warhammer has little to do with any of the quality of imagination you see in Dragon Age.  Even Warhammer's assassin classes have a broken stealth mechanic as opposed to say eq 2, world of warcraft, dark age of camelot..etc. etc. They even forgot the third realm like they had in Dark Age of Camelot...which was the tie breaker to boredom and locked down sieges. - End result? A few remaining servers with low to "medium" population i fact I'll check now at Sunday night a prime play night...ok Gorfang and Ironrock are Med. Population.  Logging on to see what medium pop means for end game on Gorfang in regards to /who 40:

12 Rune Priests, 9 Iron Breakers, 6 Slayers,  5 Engineers, 10 Arch Mages,  9 Sword Masters,  3 White Lions,

6 Shadow Warriors, 13 Warrior Priests, 10 Knights, 4 Witch Hunters, 12 Bright Wizards

And that's medium population.  In Dark Age of Camelot, as a side example, the servers were merged and you have almost 1,000 level 50s on any given realm (800 + to be fair)....and that game is 8 years old. 

Had to use WAR as my example since Bioware is helping them supposedly.  God, after seeing Dragon Age, I wish they'd can the folks that are holding imagination and interns back from making the game fun and to stop sabotaging it into the ground.  At least DAoC had a golden age (2002-2004)..Warhammer is already shrinking and as we see above could easily place all parties on one server and still not touch what Dark Age of Camelot has right this very moment.

/mega sigh...wtb Dragon Age the mmorpg.

Originally posted by Kuchizaki

2. Auto saves.. or lack of them, manay a times ive played for 30mins only to die and go all the way back to some other point, it shouls autosave when you "camp" IMHO.

Other than thats its a great story.. looks like I got an assasin on my ass =D

 F5 quicksave, F9 load ;o

But that would make death completely and utterly painless!

If the Harsh Death Penalty Crowd is to be believed, nobody could possibly enjoy Dragon Age, on this point alone!  According to them, pain makes games fun.  (Bloody masochists...)

The lack of knowledge here  on the technical limitations for such an mmorpg is staggering.

It shows the amateuristic state of this industry and certainly the guys posting here.

To the guy that stated the limitations have nothing to do with his "client" PC.

Next time do me a favor: and time the loading times of your games when entering a new "episode" of your off line RPGames.

Then add the server communications, then add the uncontrollable ISP speed limitations.

Then think why that 7.2K or 10K spinning hard drive is choking when you enter a new zone with all that NEW and unexpected data that needs to interact in RT.

Case closed. DA will and can never be an MMO from a graphical standpoint.

Next.

Originally posted by GPrestige

So I've been playing Dragon Age for a little while now. The game is absolutely amazing. I can't even describe how awesome it is. It is perfect as a single player game, too... but if they (one day) made an MMO exactly like this, it would be unstoppable.

For any of you who love MMOs, and haven't played this yet, try it out and I'm sure you'd agree. It has every aspect of the perfect MMO. It'd take too long for me to describe anything, but I'd like to hear from others who have tried it. What do you think? Do you think if they made an MMO like this (obviously they'd have to tweak it a little), but I mean even if the quest system was like it is in Dragon Age, it'd be awesome.

 

Anyone else agree?

 

That's basically what the new Star Wars MMO is, and it simply does not work. The things that make this game a great single player game, are the same things that would make it a horrible MMO. 

Originally posted by SignusM

Originally posted by GPrestige

So I've been playing Dragon Age for a little while now. The game is absolutely amazing. I can't even describe how awesome it is. It is perfect as a single player game, too... but if they (one day) made an MMO exactly like this, it would be unstoppable.

For any of you who love MMOs, and haven't played this yet, try it out and I'm sure you'd agree. It has every aspect of the perfect MMO. It'd take too long for me to describe anything, but I'd like to hear from others who have tried it. What do you think? Do you think if they made an MMO like this (obviously they'd have to tweak it a little), but I mean even if the quest system was like it is in Dragon Age, it'd be awesome.

 

Anyone else agree?

 

That's basically what the new Star Wars MMO is, and it simply does not work. The things that make this game a great single player game, are the same things that would make it a horrible MMO. 

I like games that encourage grouping and have an open world.

However, I think we need to wait and see if Star Wars TOR will be fun or not.

It might not be a great grouping game, but it might be a really fun game like KOTOR, only with other people online running around in the same game.

Haven't read all of the replies but just wanted to give my support for this game. The game itself has been kickass and I would recommend it to anyone. I would suggest trying out the origin stories with different combinations of classes/races that way you could find out what is best for you. I started a rogue and got far enough along that I wouldn't start over but it seems that a mage suits me more.

dragon ages really isnt THAT good.... It reminds me a bit too much of lord of the rings.

i watched the cgi trailer on youtube, and it was jaw dropping awesome, gameplay looked good too

then i saw it wasnt a mmo and didnt care. single player and/or small co-op rpgs dont hold my interest at all

Originally posted by tvalentine

dragon ages really isnt THAT good.... It reminds me a bit too much of lord of the rings.

Other than the ruins part right after your origins what exactly does it have in common with LotR?

Are people in this thread really calling Dragon Age an adult RPG? Hahahaha.

The game is good, as far as story telling goes.

There is something that might upset some gamers, this game is not really an open world explorer like Oblivion.  You do not go out to the world and walk around.  You are moving along a story line, and shipped from one restricted map to another.  You are confined to moving in set paths inside the map, much like the instances of GW during the first installment.

For those who want a "sandbox" (whatever that word means), some older open world games actually gives you the feeling of exploration, at the expense of a loose story telling.

Originally posted by lisubab

The game is good, as far as story telling goes.

There is something that might upset some gamers, this game is not really an open world explorer like Oblivion.  You do not go out to the world and walk around.  You are moving along a story line, and shipped from one restricted map to another.  You are confined to moving in set paths inside the map, much like the instances of GW during the first installment.

For those who want a "sandbox" (whatever that word means), some older open world games actually gives you the feeling of exploration, at the expense of a loose story telling.

Yes, Dragon Age: origins is not a sandbox game. That is why it can tell a fairly engrossing story. it is Mass Effect in a Fantasy setting, at least from a game play style. This is not a bad thing to me. I have enjoyed playing Dragon Age a great deal so far. Also completed the add-on for the Golem, Shale. if the DLC stays that quality this will be a great game for continued play.

Anyway, you really can't go wrong with this game unless you have not read any of the previews or reviews and have a completely different notion of what it is. A single player, epic fantasy RPG...period.

Originally posted by arenasb

Originally posted by tvalentine

dragon ages really isnt THAT good.... It reminds me a bit too much of lord of the rings.

 

Other than the ruins part right after your origins what exactly does it have in common with LotR?

a few heroes having to unite the humans, dwarves, and elves to combat a horde of (what looks like orcs) evil bad guys. I mean really all the game is missing is a volcano and a ring to throw in it. Feels like all the quests that veer off the the story i just mentioned is added for filler to make it different and add many hours of gameplay.

I think I'm going to have to purchase a copy of this game.  I see the advertisements for it everywhere!  I trust it is a great game, comming from BioWare and all.

Originally posted by dougmysticey

Originally posted by lisubab

The game is good, as far as story telling goes.

There is something that might upset some gamers, this game is not really an open world explorer like Oblivion.  You do not go out to the world and walk around.  You are moving along a story line, and shipped from one restricted map to another.  You are confined to moving in set paths inside the map, much like the instances of GW during the first installment.

For those who want a "sandbox" (whatever that word means), some older open world games actually gives you the feeling of exploration, at the expense of a loose story telling.

 

Yes, Dragon Age: origins is not a sandbox game. That is why it can tell a fairly engrossing story. it is Mass Effect in a Fantasy setting, at least from a game play style. This is not a bad thing to me. I have enjoyed playing Dragon Age a great deal so far. Also completed the add-on for the Golem, Shale. if the DLC stays that quality this will be a great game for continued play.

Anyway, you really can't go wrong with this game unless you have not read any of the previews or reviews and have a completely different notion of what it is. A single player, epic fantasy RPG...period.

Indeed this is a good game, with a rich storyline.

I am currently playing Dragon Age and I am enjoying it.

Like others have mentioned, the game is rather hard and requires tactics and thought.  I greatly enjoy the game for that.

As for it being an awesome MMO, I am not so sure.

First of all, MMO's are supposed to about the community, where that community tells the "story" of the game.  DAO is all about ITS story where the player goes along for the ride.  Sure, it is an awesome ride, but it DAO's story none the less.

The large number of cut scenes and voice overs is cool, but in an MMO, it could become a hinderance.  There are times in Aion, where a cut scene has made me feel "removed from the action" and given how in depth those of DAO is (up to 10 minutes if you follow all the dialoge), you would see a lot of players "frozen in time" as they read and respond to these "Instanced" convos.

The DAO camp, aproval and gift giving system (core to the game) would be rendered moot in a game where the other party members are played by real, live players.

That said, there are things that DAO brings to the table that MMO's can benefit from:

Solid and creative world design.  While a medieval fantasy world, the lore is excellent and is engaging.  Most MMO worlds are totally boring.

Interesting, varied and thought out quests that are more than "kill X" or "deliver that."

A world where the mobs actually have a place and role in the world and its lore other than to be wandering around, merely waiting to be mowed down by grinding players.

Smart, varied and NPC's with agendas that actually respond to you in a logical fashion based on how you interacted with the NPC.

Depth, style, and a world that is intriguing to explore complete with secrets and parts that must be revisited.

The requirements for tactics in combat and the fact that the "easy button" often does not exist in DAO.  In short, many MMO's could benefit from content that is chalenging, varied and requires some thought. 

I guess I would vote that Dragon Age is not itself good MMO material, but should serve as an excelent  source of inspiration for upcoming MMO titles.

Originally posted by tvalentine

Originally posted by arenasb

Originally posted by tvalentine

dragon ages really isnt THAT good.... It reminds me a bit too much of lord of the rings.

 

Other than the ruins part right after your origins what exactly does it have in common with LotR?

 

a few heroes having to unite the humans, dwarves, and elves to combat a horde of (what looks like orcs) evil bad guys. I mean really all the game is missing is a volcano and a ring to throw in it. Feels like all the quests that veer off the the story i just mentioned is added for filler to make it different and add many hours of gameplay.

You are the type of person who reads the last chapter of a book first right?

Have you read the Lord of the Rings? From your description there I don't think you have.

“To win you've got to stay in the game.”

“Friends are helpful not only because they will listen to us, but because they will laugh at us; Through them we learn a little objectivity, a little modesty, a little courtesy; We learn the rules of life and become better players of the game”

I don't think it would make a good mmo but it would be awesome if you could play some form of online co-op like Borderlands has.   Combining that with the ability to create your own content only makes it better.

As for DA:O being too linear and therefore not a "proper" rpg, well, thats bullshit.  The early days of rps, pen and paper games like DnD, were controlled by the dungeon masters meaning you couldn't just go off and do whatever you wanted.

Originally posted by arenasb

Originally posted by tvalentine

Originally posted by arenasb

Originally posted by tvalentine

dragon ages really isnt THAT good.... It reminds me a bit too much of lord of the rings.

 

Other than the ruins part right after your origins what exactly does it have in common with LotR?

 

a few heroes having to unite the humans, dwarves, and elves to combat a horde of (what looks like orcs) evil bad guys. I mean really all the game is missing is a volcano and a ring to throw in it. Feels like all the quests that veer off the the story i just mentioned is added for filler to make it different and add many hours of gameplay.

 

You are the type of person who reads the last chapter of a book first right?

Have you read the Lord of the Rings? From your description there I don't think you have.

havent read the books, i'm more of a movie goer. Also i said it "reminded" me alot of LOTR. I didnt say it was just like it. I mean the blight look oddly familiar with the orcs in LOTR, and the first battle in the game reminded me alot of the battles in LOTR.

Originally posted by coffee

Im enjoying DragonAge also, take me back to bauldergate only without the constant CD swapping.

two issues I have..

1. IT BLOODY HARD! sadly I did not take Morgain down the healer path and only just have and even with just 1 heal spell its becoming more managable. Allistair is next to usless to.

2. Auto saves.. or lack of them, manay a times ive played for 30mins only to die and go all the way back to some other point, it shouls autosave when you "camp" IMHO.

Other than thats its a great story.. looks like I got an assasin on my ass =D

 

Make sure you do broken circle first next go around, get a healer specced mage.

Originally posted by tvalentine

Originally posted by arenasb

Originally posted by tvalentine

dragon ages really isnt THAT good.... It reminds me a bit too much of lord of the rings.

 

Other than the ruins part right after your origins what exactly does it have in common with LotR?

 

a few heroes having to unite the humans, dwarves, and elves to combat a horde of (what looks like orcs) evil bad guys. I mean really all the game is missing is a volcano and a ring to throw in it. Feels like all the quests that veer off the the story i just mentioned is added for filler to make it different and add many hours of gameplay.

I might be coming at it from a different perspective, having read the Dragon Age books beforehand, but the DA story and lore is quite a bit different than LotR.  Yes, it does have the 3 races you mentioned (although their backgrounds and positions in society are completely different), and yes the darkspawn do look similar to the LotR movies' portrayal of orcs.  Beyond that though, there really isn't much similarity.  The Blight is a recurring event, not a single "ultimate" war, so the "volcano and ring" concept doesn't apply.  I think if anything, the dark fantasy style of this story is closer to the Witcher.

Yes the first big battle scene is very  similar to Lord of the Rings and I said as much. I think it might have even been an homage to the books (or movies depending on your view point). Bioware tends to do this in their games (the human noble origin has a rat killing scene, poking fun at Baldur's Gate series).  Darkspawn look like demons to me, even the ogres look like devils rather than traditional ogres. Yes Dragon Age has a lot of cliche fantasy elements but I find they incorporate it into the world in typical Bioware's style very nicely. In fantasy there is only so many ways you can say an orc is an orc, all of it has been done before but what seperates it from the rest is the way the tell the story.

With Dragon Age if you don't like story driven games you won't like this game. Is it linear? Sure it is, although you do have some freedom of where to go and such, similar to how Baldur's Gate was. I do feel like I am in a choose your own adventure book but a very well done one. To me it's been a long time since I have enjoyed such a game. It's a nice departure from all of the recent mmo's that I have played which are just mindless killing with weak game goals and gear grinds. In fact I'd say that mmo's are inferior games, the only thing they have over other games is the social aspect.

Originally posted by arenasb

Yes the first big battle scene is very  similar to Lord of the Rings and I said as much. I think it might have even been an homage to the books (or movies depending on your view point). Bioware tends to do this in their games (the human noble origin has a rat killing scene, poking fun at Baldur's Gate series).  Darkspawn look like demons to me, even the ogres look like devils rather than traditional ogres. Yes Dragon Age has a lot of cliche fantasy elements but I find they incorporate it into the world in typical Bioware's style very nicely. In fantasy there is only so many ways you can say an orc is an orc, all of it has been done before but what seperates it from the rest is the way the tell the story.

With Dragon Age if you don't like story driven games you won't like this game. Is it linear? Sure it is, although you do have some freedom of where to go and such, similar to how Baldur's Gate was. I do feel like I am in a choose your own adventure book but a very well done one. To me it's been a long time since I have enjoyed such a game. It's a nice departure from all of the recent mmo's that I have played which are just mindless killing with weak game goals and gear grinds. In fact I'd say that mmo's are inferior games, the only thing they have over other games is the social aspect.

I confess I love DA:O so far.

The only bit that irritates me is, most of the map are locked to me at teh start, so I cannot just walk out and feel there is a world.  I have no problems following the lovely storyline.  They actually have a few starting stories for each race/origin composition.  But still... give me a world like Oblivion, where I can just walk out and roam around, and die if I run into the lich or dragon.

I love DA:O, so far.