Dragon Age II

The second installment of this franchise is nothing short of exceptional, delivering a story that is both captivating and, at times, deeply heart-wrenching. The weight of the choices you're forced to make throughout the game is staggering, leaving a lasting emotional impact and making each decision feel significant. What truly elevates this game, though, is its companions. They are the heart and soul of the experience, each bringing their own unique personalities, stories, and dynamics to the journey.

Varric, in particular, stands out as one of my all-time favorite characters. His wit, loyalty, and charm make him the ultimate companion, and I find myself taking him everywhere in the game. Whether he's offering humorous commentary or heartfelt advice, Varric is the kind of friend you want by your side, both in and out of battle.

Another aspect I adored was how the game tied itself to its predecessor. Some characters you meet in this installment make direct callbacks to the events of the first game, and those moments are nothing short of fantastic. They not only reward long-time players but also create a deep sense of continuity and immersion. The ability to import choices from the previous game was groundbreaking for me, as it made the world feel alive and reactive to the decisions I had made before. Few games at the time offered this level of interconnectivity, and it was an experience that felt truly personal and unique.

The combination of an emotionally gripping story, unforgettable characters, and the way the game respected and built upon your previous choices is what makes this installment so special. It's a game that stays with you long after the credits roll, and even years later, I find myself revisiting it to relive the magic all over again.

Dragon Age 2 leaves mixed impressions. On one hand, it offers an interesting story, although it lacks the variety of choices from the previous installment. The visual design of the characters, especially the Qunari, is satisfying. The new combat animations are impressive and add dynamism, which is a big plus for the game. However, there is one significant drawback that considerably spoils the overall impression-the repetitive locations. No matter where or when you're completing a quest, the environments will feel familiar, as you've already been to them many times before. This lack of variety significantly diminishes the overall enjoyment of the game.

Despite this, the game has its strong points. One of the highlights is the visual development of the characters, particularly the Qunari. The developers have made significant changes to the design of this race, giving them unique features that make them even more interesting. The Qunari now look not only menacing but also quite charismatic, adding depth to their presence and making every encounter with them memorable.

Another important aspect is the combat animations, which have significantly improved compared to the previous game. The battles have become more dynamic and visually striking, adding extra excitement to the gameplay. Players can enjoy fluid movements, new special effects, and powerful strikes that make every fight engaging. This aspect of the game deserves praise, as it adds more adrenaline to the combat sequences and makes them more thrilling.

However, despite all these improvements, there is one major issue that significantly detracts from the game-the repetitive locations. This is one of Dragon Age 2's biggest flaws. No matter what quest you're on or where the events are taking place, it often feels like you've already been in these areas before. Many locations, both indoors and outdoors, are frequently reused, creating a sense of monotony. This can greatly diminish immersion in the game world, as the player constantly encounters the same environments. If Dragon Age: Origins brought new surprises with every location, this game sadly lacks that diversity.

This lack of variety in locations is a serious problem, drastically reducing the overall enjoyment. For a game of this scale, it's a significant downside, as the adventure atmosphere is partly lost due to the absence of novelty in the surroundings. Despite these drawbacks, Dragon Age 2 still has its strengths.

In addition to dynamic combat and well-developed characters, the companions' storylines are worth highlighting. Each of Hawke's companions has their own personal story, motivations, and personalities, making them more than just fighters in your party. They are full-fledged characters with their own dramas. Interaction with them, just like in the previous game, remains one of the strongest aspects. Your relationships with your companions impact the story's progression, and their personal quests add depth to the game.

Dragon Age 2 also explores the theme of social conflicts in Kirkwall, particularly the tension between mages and templars. These events play a crucial role in the game, forcing players to make tough decisions that can change the course of the story. This adds more weight to the game and encourages reflection on moral dilemmas.

In conclusion, Dragon Age 2 is a game with great potential, featuring both strong and weak points. If you're willing to overlook the repetitive environments and certain monotony, the game can offer plenty of enjoyment thanks to its intriguing storyline, dynamic gameplay, and excellent characters.

I had high, high hopes for this game. I adored the first game and pre-ordered this game months before the release date. The initial trailers blew me away, and rarely have I anticipated a game more. Unfortunately, this made the letdown all the more frustrating. DA2 is not a bad game, but neither is it nearly as good as its predecessor. Furthermore, after the epic and Grandiose scale of the first game, this game seemed to add little to the overall scope of the world of Dragon Age. The Graphics have seen a wonderful improvement. The characters are still great and you can delve into each character's current and past life. Overall, the game is highly polished and feels smooth. The tactical battle system feels a bit faster, but basically the same.

With that said, I have some major gripes with DA2. First, you don't have control over your party members armor. This drives me nuts, and I find this change from the first game inexplicable. Second, and much more confusing is that the world is significantly smaller than Origins. In Origins, you explored a continent filled with castles, caves, mountains, villages, and cities and tunnels under the Earth. The world was diverse and rich with life and history. In DA2, the entire game is in the city of Kirkwall and a few surrounding areas. Third, and the most irritating, is that the game designers reuse the same areas over and over and over. When I found myself in the brothel and then later a noble's house, and they had exactly the same rooms with the same layout, it made me want to punch the game. Not to mention, that you enter 15 different caves, and each cave is simply the same set piece being reused constantly. On top of that, you find yourself running around the same parts of Kirkwall over and over and over and over and over. Thank God that the quests have quite a bit of variety, but at the same time, I found myself wanting a centralized interested story to keep the game moving. Hawke is a fun character, and his/her voice acting is terrific, but again the game finds itself wanting in the plot department. Also, all of the supporting characters are well-developed and easy to care about.

Overall, the game is very well-made. Most of its faults come from comparing it to the first, which again, was a much better game. I expected this game to be an 11/10, but sadly it falls somewhere closer to an 8/10. I will continue to play Dragon Age games, but unfortunately this game put a damper on that desire.

I'm 10 starring this game to do a little to counter the negative pile-on; it has a bad reputation but it's actually really worth a play, especially now at the price it tends to go for these days. I'd actually give it about an 8.

Is it as good as the first one? Nope. As open as the third? Nope. Is it short? For an RPG, yes. Are the maps recycled? Oh yes, I would call this the most deserved complaint of the game.

On the other hand, it has a decent plot (especially if you read the accompanying books), genuinely wonderful, well written companion characters ranging from adorable, to charming, to absolute anti-hero, a customisable protagonist who you can play in multiple ways (think Commander Shepard only with the addition of a third snark-master playstyle alongside paragon and renegade), the voice acting is fantastic, really engaging and actually pretty star-studded to be fair, it isn't long enough to get overly grindy, the graphics are dated now but their cartoonish style tends to fit well with the overall tone, the battle system is fast paced and has a fair amount of variety in difficulty depending on your settings, but most of all the whole thing is just *fun*. It hearkens back to the days when games didn't pretend to be sports or services - when they were immersion into a different world (and no teenagers claimed to have had relations with your mother), when they did dare to be a bit silly but still knew when to reign it in when the action got going. Honestly - if you've never played it don't be put off by all the negativity, just give it a go. Yeah buying it at full price (plus DLCs) when it was new only to find out that you could finish it in a week was annoying, but it's only about a tenner now for the whole lot, what's to lose?

Dragon age 2 you plays as Hawke who rises to power in the political chaos of Kirkwall. Dragon age 2 kinda took a step down from the first. Well the story isn't as engaging as the first and the story is slow the choices still are good unfortunately you don't really get to see the consequences of your choices you only get it mentioned once in the story. Your companions still have great backstories that have great quest that really change your characters hold character they can start out as the nicest person ever but depending on what you do they can change to someone who shuts themselves off from the world. Unfortunately combat got bad all it is that enemies keep spawning literally out of thin air it's just wave after wave which isn't very exiting. Overall could have been a better game but still fun to play.