Dragon Age II

 PC
User Score
4.7

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 5052 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,397 out of 5052
  2. Mixed: 1,198 out of 5052
  3. Negative: 2,457 out of 5052
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  1. JenniferGoo
    Apr 12, 2011
    2
    The crticial reception of Dragon Age II is one of the most glaring examples of just how terrified the enthusiast video game press is afraid of upsetting publishers. They wouldn't dare tell you at what point this is a focus-driven rushed-to-market insult to video game consumers everywhere. I never played the original Dragon Age so I'm not an irate fan of the original... there is just notThe crticial reception of Dragon Age II is one of the most glaring examples of just how terrified the enthusiast video game press is afraid of upsetting publishers. They wouldn't dare tell you at what point this is a focus-driven rushed-to-market insult to video game consumers everywhere. I never played the original Dragon Age so I'm not an irate fan of the original... there is just not much to defend here. There isn't a single battle in the game (including bosses) that doesn't involve waves and waves of enemies spawning out of thin air waiting for you to mow them down. Sometimes, even when you give them a gentle whack, they explode into a dozen pieces... which I guess is suppose to make me feel like a bad ass. The entire game takes place in one city made up of a few small disconnected areas and the same two or three dungeons that are reused for the entire game. They even try to trick you into thinking this is a new area by blocking off doors you were previously able to go through and opening other ones. Why can't you go through that door you see this time around? Who knows! You just can't click on it! Look, when asked about this problem in an interview, the developers claim they had two choices: give us all original content and cut the game length down to a couple hours or reuse the same areas over and over until the game lasted twenty-five hours. If that doesn't give you an idea of how rushed this product is, I don't know what will. There is not 60 dollars worth of content here and yet so many people have already bought this game because the video game press is looking out more for themselves and not for us. The sad part of this is that underneath it all, the character interaction is great even if the overally story arc, like the rest of the game, is not well thought out at all. It's clear there were talented people working on Dragon Age II, but they weren't given the liberty or time to make this into a good product. Buyer beware.… Expand
  2. ZenToad
    Apr 12, 2011
    2
    A game so totally devoid of all the depths and charm that made the first in the series interesting that it is a wonder to me how Bioware could shove this out the door. It is so dumbed down in quests, background and especially combat that its just a travesty. I feel combat is in such a state of disrepair with teleporting waves of enemies that all tactics and thought is effectivelyA game so totally devoid of all the depths and charm that made the first in the series interesting that it is a wonder to me how Bioware could shove this out the door. It is so dumbed down in quests, background and especially combat that its just a travesty. I feel combat is in such a state of disrepair with teleporting waves of enemies that all tactics and thought is effectively eliminated from the game, all there is left is a "press whatever cooldown is ready" retardations that its worthy of a bungled flashgame… Expand
  3. Ariolander
    Apr 15, 2011
    2
    In what feels like an EA money grab the story is uninspired, the design is repetative, and the 'dungeons' have been reduced to a grind of defeating wave after wave of the same enemies. I think this is probably the worst game I have played from Bioware and will remain a dark stain on their otherwise impeccable record. Is this what EA does to their studios? Makes them creat BAD games? BADIn what feels like an EA money grab the story is uninspired, the design is repetative, and the 'dungeons' have been reduced to a grind of defeating wave after wave of the same enemies. I think this is probably the worst game I have played from Bioware and will remain a dark stain on their otherwise impeccable record. Is this what EA does to their studios? Makes them creat BAD games? BAD might be an exagguration but it is definately not worth the 80~ critic average it recieved.… Expand
  4. Lyriq
    Apr 21, 2011
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Alone, Dragon Age 2 is a decent game. It's not good, and it's certainly not great, but it's decent. As part of a franchise, however, it is a complete and utter failure. The decision to not include (for the most part) any of the characters and location that made the original shine, makes Dragon Age 2 a bland and mostly unintelligible mess. There's no clear enemy, the party members are bland at best, and combat has become so simplistic that it adds almost nothing to the game. Dungeons are repeated endlessly, characters that you don't care about are dragged on screen repeatedly, while the ones you do care about, Zevran, Alistair, Leiliana, get almost no screen time. The "decisions" you make have almost no impact on the actual game. No matter what you do, Anders will become a terrorist. And those are just the failings of the game. As a member of a franchise, there is nothing in this game that is a marked improvement from the first game. Yes, it's a little prettier and runs a little faster, but that was never the draw of the original. What Bioware failed to do in this game was continue with what made Origins great: Characters and story. Dragon Age 2 has neither. Dragons Age 2 features a save game transfer like Mass Effect 2. Unfortunately, the save game transfer has almost zero effect on the game. Mass Effect 2 could be radically different depending on your Mass Effect 1 playthrough, with characters that would otherwise be present for major events of the game being absent, or your status as a galactic agent. The save game transfer in Dragon Age 2 affects who you talk to a few times. Nothing is gained from transferring an old save. Sure, you can hear snippets of dialogue about your old adventures here and there, but they add absolutely nothing. Why Bioware chose to make Dragon Age into a franchise more akin to Mass Effect baffles me. They are radically different games, both in execution and in writing. Mass Effect was designed around one character, Shepard. Forcing one character into the spotlight of Thedas is awkward and does not fit. I can hope and pray that Bioware drops Hawke for the next game, but of course they won't. In short, do not go into this game expecting an experience akin to Dragon Age: Origins. Doing so will just set you up for disappointment. Be prepared for a mediocre experience that is untrue to the original.… Expand
  5. Nereitha
    Apr 24, 2011
    2
    Me siento estafada. Origins lo terminé cuatro veces y de este no voy a terminar ni la primera partida. Si el 3 va a seguir este camino, Dragon Age ha muerto para mí.
  6. tembel
    Apr 27, 2011
    2
    Horrible, horrible game. The recycled maps is completely disrespectful to all people who played the original Dragon Age and Origins. I cannot believe that they did such a poor and sloppy job on this game it even hurts to make a review for it. I for one am glad that a friend let me borrow it to try it and before I WASTED money on such a pile of crap. Dragon Age 3 better not be anythingHorrible, horrible game. The recycled maps is completely disrespectful to all people who played the original Dragon Age and Origins. I cannot believe that they did such a poor and sloppy job on this game it even hurts to make a review for it. I for one am glad that a friend let me borrow it to try it and before I WASTED money on such a pile of crap. Dragon Age 3 better not be anything close to this or else I will most likely never, ever purchase a game from them again.… Expand
  7. wkbag
    May 3, 2011
    2
    Totally disappointing
    Bioware should be very a shame of this cheap console port whereas, the predecessor (origin) was very good game in many ways; i.e., it was deep, complex, multiple endings and nice story.
    this sequel is very shallow and unsatisfactory in many ways; i.e., no character development, no real attachment to story, shallow and speedy combat, very poor camera, silly dialogue    Totally disappointing
    Bioware should be very a shame of this cheap console port whereas, the predecessor (origin) was very good game in many ways; i.e., it was deep, complex, multiple endings and nice story.
    this sequel is very shallow and unsatisfactory in many ways; i.e., no character development, no real attachment to story, shallow and speedy combat, very poor camera, silly dialogue option.
    it is only achievement is brighter and shiner graphics, flashy and speedy combat system which is a shame as i was expecting a great sequel to a great game but these days the greed and rush for release date became primary objective of game publishers which resulted in these kind of games which can satisfy only young ages and new gamers (didn't play great RPG titles like Oblivion, Fallout 3, The Witcher and Dragon Age: Origin)
    Few hours of play convince me that this game does not deserve the space on my HD and should be uninstalled immediately.
    If anyone want to play an RPG game should avoid this title and look elsewhere.    … Expand
  8. bear77
    May 5, 2011
    2
    this is one of the hardest reviews I think I will ever write. I am a long term fan of Bioware. I fondly remember reveling in Baldur's Gate all the way through mass effect and DA1. They are, in my opinion one of the best AAA developers when it comes to story line and polish. So the best description of my play experience with DA2 was a crushing sense of loss. I can only guess at whatthis is one of the hardest reviews I think I will ever write. I am a long term fan of Bioware. I fondly remember reveling in Baldur's Gate all the way through mass effect and DA1. They are, in my opinion one of the best AAA developers when it comes to story line and polish. So the best description of my play experience with DA2 was a crushing sense of loss. I can only guess at what brought about the changes in the level of quality. The monster spawning out of thin air, the feeling of a corridor like linear progression, wooden dialog that leaves the player feeling let down are just some of the elements that, sadly,make this the last game I will buy from Bioware purely based it being crafted by them! if your reading this Bioware earn me back!! one bad title doesn't break you, but it does cause future games to be scrutinized before purchase. as to the critic score....integrity is important...don't you think?… Expand
  9. Zerael
    Oct 2, 2011
    2
    Take everything that made Origins great and strip it out from its grandness; congratulations: you have acquired the new installment on "new" and "modern" crpg, Dragon Age 2.

    The sequel to the new hope for classic western rpgs is nothing more than a mediocre, repetitive and brutally simplified action oriented game with childish plot and almost nothing from the rich, mature and intriguing    Take everything that made Origins great and strip it out from its grandness; congratulations: you have acquired the new installment on "new" and "modern" crpg, Dragon Age 2.

    The sequel to the new hope for classic western rpgs is nothing more than a mediocre, repetitive and brutally simplified action oriented game with childish plot and almost nothing from the rich, mature and intriguing lore from its predecessor. But, if this change in direction was not enough, the dev team was urged to finish the game in record time... the risks taken in the change end up in a whole bunch of cloned maps, absurd situations with npcs, and literally tons of useless items and accessories. Why a talented team of developers conclude that such a change is needed in a franchise as popular and successful as Dragon Age, is something that i fail to understand.

    Definitely, not only one of the major disappointments in the recent game industry, also a clear case of a big company "buying" good reviews from specialized press.    … Expand
  10. Daymond
    May 13, 2011
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I should have known better. I saw some early signals like a mage in a melee fight in the trailer, but I decided to ignore that fact. What can I add? 17 sets of armor that no one can use, a painful experience as a mage, several characters deserving to die in the first chapter because they are flat out intolerable (starting with Carver), weak plot, recycled graphics, ruined tactics system, boring boss battles... don´t keep shielding yourself behind "critic" scores and famous people tweeting about the game, Bioware. Dragon Age 2 is a failure. And you should protect your reputation by admitting this.… Expand
  11. Magnethead
    Dec 13, 2013
    2
    Usually, I'm suspicious when everyone starts giving a game grades below 4 but this time it's fairly accurate. I assume that if you're looking at Dragon Age II, you've already played Dragon Age: Origins so that's my angle in this review. Two things characterized Origins and I'll compare those to DAII.

    Tactical gameplay: Almost doesn't exist anymore which is surprising because seemingly    Usually, I'm suspicious when everyone starts giving a game grades below 4 but this time it's fairly accurate. I assume that if you're looking at Dragon Age II, you've already played Dragon Age: Origins so that's my angle in this review. Two things characterized Origins and I'll compare those to DAII.

    Tactical gameplay:
    Almost doesn't exist anymore which is surprising because seemingly the skills are much the same for the different classes but the combat is so fast and damage based (and the removal of friendly fire on all difficulty setting except Nightmare) that the game doesn't feel tactical and complicated at all. Instead you just end up running your own character around right-clicking everything. Combat is a lot less interesting and much more repetitive. The great thing in Origins was building the party, preparing the tactic and executing it. Forget about all that here and just send the tank forward and start AOEing on him.

    Story and Character depth:
    Not even close to Origins. The story in Origins might have been slightly stereotypical but it had depth of character. Not here. Perhaps the idea behind the more fast paced combat was to focus more on the story-telling but it fails miserably. They're hurrying emotional moments, killing off characters you've just met with violins going crazy in the background. It feels like it was written by Stephany Meyer rather than anyone on the Bioware staff of old. Dialogue seems forced and trite and lines are overloaded with information they try to squeeze into way to few lines and too little time. People will literally say things like "Just because you make captain in the first year of service doesn't mean that you can bla bla bla". They want the silver tattooed elf (not actually tattoos but never mind) to blow your mind just by his cool stance leaning on a wall and sounding tough. You spend too much time talking to people who should have been a part of Vampire Diaries.

    All in all, this game fails on all levels except the immediate, graphical impression. Reused areas (to the extent where it gets embarrassing), weak story line and dialogue and shallow gameplay. If you liked Origins, you're likely to hate this.    … Expand
  12. azure12
    May 17, 2011
    2
    Dragon Age 2 has seen some big changes in gameplay since the first game, Origins. Long gone is the tactical combat system reminescent of Baldur's Gate. Instead, now it's "button = awesome", according to EA marketers. Combat tactics revolve around spamming special abilities at enemies as soon as the cooldowns wears off, making any kind of strategizing redundant. Micromanagement is put onDragon Age 2 has seen some big changes in gameplay since the first game, Origins. Long gone is the tactical combat system reminescent of Baldur's Gate. Instead, now it's "button = awesome", according to EA marketers. Combat tactics revolve around spamming special abilities at enemies as soon as the cooldowns wears off, making any kind of strategizing redundant. Micromanagement is put on the back seat in this "bold" sequel, rather, now your party members are completely automated and act on their own, and the classic party-based gameplay is nowhere to be experienced, unless the player happens play the game on the hardest difficulty. Party members act as AI-controlled side-kicks now instead of full-fledged player characters. Furthermore, friendly-fire has been removed from all difficulty levels except the hardest one, which takes another elements away from micromanagement. Obviously whoever made these design changes most likely thought a "thinking-man's" game isn't going to sell well in today's video game market, which is why the combat has been extremely streamlined and reduced (read: dumbed down) into mere hack'n'slash. The fans of the old Bioware games are surely not happy about this. Dragon Age 2 reeks of consolization. Unlike the first game, which was developed for PC for years, and then ported to consoles, DA2 is a straight multi-platform game from the get-go. This hurts the PC version the most. It is evident by changes in graphics, camera control, and the general streamlining of the game.

    Bioware has made DA2 far more linear than the first DA game. The levels in this game are what you would describe as "corridor". It is a game that is supposed to be a "role-playing game". computer RPGs have generally had the pleasure of having an element of exploration to them -- a living, dynamic, open world. However, Dragon Age 2 has no exploration. Even the little things you can do, are mostly the same areas used many times over in different places, cheaply just copypasted. A big emphasis has been put on "romances" in this game, even more-so than in the previous game. Strange how a mini-game is given more thought than the actual overall game. Dragon Age 2 is a short game (much shorter than DA:O). The typical character interaction and a Biowarean type of story (which I don't even bother going into in this review) simply cannot elevate Dragon Age 2 past how weak the game is in almost every way. It is a horrible sequel after the decent Dragon Age: Origins. Bioware is truly in decline after being acquired by the Electronic Arts.    … Expand
  13. wrotos
    May 17, 2011
    2
    I,m really disappointed Abut this game. I expect good cRPG and i get game with bad history, graphics and terrible game play, Boring game, made for console,
  14. Joha
    Sep 5, 2011
    2
    While I absolutely loved Dragon Age Origins, I had too big expectations for this game. TO me it does not feel like Origins where strikes were realistic and strategy was a must. Endless spawns of enemies and anime-like combat and weapons (bigger better!) are the things that kill the game. Graphics are cartoonish and I am ok with that. As for locations, you practically see 3 or 4 differentWhile I absolutely loved Dragon Age Origins, I had too big expectations for this game. TO me it does not feel like Origins where strikes were realistic and strategy was a must. Endless spawns of enemies and anime-like combat and weapons (bigger better!) are the things that kill the game. Graphics are cartoonish and I am ok with that. As for locations, you practically see 3 or 4 different ones, since all the dungeons are the same... just with different doors open. BUt the thing I absolutely dislike about this game is the dialogue wheel where it even shows you what kind of approach is that. Where are the multiple options where you had to think to not piss some people off? Guess most of today's games are made for fast selling and 12-14 year old public.… Expand
  15. Mjolnir
    May 18, 2011
    2
    Please... please don't waste your money on this steaming pile of rushed garbage. The one-dimensional characters, weak story, lacklustre level designs, recycled meshes (and not to mention copy / pasted levels such as cave instances and dungeon instances) provide us with a concise orchestra of formulated **** It's a waste of everyone's time to discuss it further.
  16. Slumlord722
    May 18, 2011
    2
    My question is this: are the journalistic reviewers playing the same game we are? And if so, why is there such a discrepancy?

    Now, I'm not gonna lie to you, I started off liking DA:2. Graphics aren't a huge deal to me, and I thought the voice acting was pretty good. Then...then I realized I was running into the same places I had been, doing re-skinned quests for dull reasons, and I just    My question is this: are the journalistic reviewers playing the same game we are? And if so, why is there such a discrepancy?

    Now, I'm not gonna lie to you, I started off liking DA:2. Graphics aren't a huge deal to me, and I thought the voice acting was pretty good. Then...then I realized I was running into the same places I had been, doing re-skinned quests for dull reasons, and I just put the game down. It just gets boring. And that's terrible.    … Expand
  17. camoe
    May 18, 2011
    2
    This game is the biggest turd i have had the displeasure of playing lets start with the graphics they are like a game from about ten years ago when you hit someone with a sword they explode.They have used the same locations over and over again i think there is about four in the whole game.God the side quest are so boring go to that place and fetch that object go to this place and kill thatThis game is the biggest turd i have had the displeasure of playing lets start with the graphics they are like a game from about ten years ago when you hit someone with a sword they explode.They have used the same locations over and over again i think there is about four in the whole game.God the side quest are so boring go to that place and fetch that object go to this place and kill that person after about two hours of this repetitiveness you fill like slashing your own wrists.And this company has turned into greedy bastards they just bought out some DLC that they charge for some sort of clothes pack need i say more after about three hours i uninstalled it from my pc and good riddance to it… Expand
  18. IrishK
    May 18, 2011
    2
    After Dragon Age: Origins I was very excited at the prospect of a sequel. One of the best RPGs of our time could only get bigger and better, and improve in areas where the original fell short. Yes, you would think that would be the logical progression. While Dragon Age 2 does make some improvements - chiefly to the combat - it completely misses the mark in almost every other area. It'sAfter Dragon Age: Origins I was very excited at the prospect of a sequel. One of the best RPGs of our time could only get bigger and better, and improve in areas where the original fell short. Yes, you would think that would be the logical progression. While Dragon Age 2 does make some improvements - chiefly to the combat - it completely misses the mark in almost every other area. It's like the developers removed everything that made Origins... so magical.
    Gone are the dialogue choices that had risqué implications. Where before there was a grey area when it came to certain actions and their outcomes, everything in Dragon Age 2 is in black and white and signposted so the game's dialogue choices (denoted by icons) serve as a sort of moral compass, which removes much - perhaps all - of the spontaneity.
    Gone is the world where you could explore and suspend belief. I often found myself experiencing moments of déjà vu when I entered a "new" location in Dragon Age 2, and that is because many of the game's locations are reused. This completely breaks the immersion and makes the game's stages feel like a low budget panto.
    As for the game's difficulty level, you will be hard pressed to find a challenge at "Normal" level, which is the equivalent of Origins' "Hard" setting. While this may seem like a nitpick, I feel that it's important to point out because Dragon Age 2 seems to make a concentrated effort throughout to distance itself from Origins, right down to the nitty gritty little details.
    While Dragon Age 2 attempts to tread new ground, it is mired by its many bad defaults. In summary:

    The Good
    -Bethany Hawke
    -Some of the music
    -The new Qunari
    -Character art and detail
    -New combat mechanics

    The Bad
    -The new Avatar styled elves, with their strange Grecian noses
    -The new Skeletor styled Darkspawn
    -Repetitive environments
    -The game's time lapse, which breaks immersion when you meet characters that seem to know you, yet whom you've never met before
    -NPCs can only wear armour prescribed to them by the game
    -The new dialogue system
    -Brazen romantic dialogue that is contrived/forced on the player
    -Weak writing

    I rate this game a generous 2 out of 10.    … Expand
  19. Vortigos
    May 20, 2011
    2
    Feckless. Uninspired. Redundant. The development and marketing of this game is an affront to RPG aficionados, the PC gaming community and Dragon Age I loyalists. This game isn't bad because it didn't faithfully follow in its predecessor's footsteps or because it borrows elements from Mass Effect 2 -- it's bad on its own merits by any sane standards. Don't believe the positive magazineFeckless. Uninspired. Redundant. The development and marketing of this game is an affront to RPG aficionados, the PC gaming community and Dragon Age I loyalists. This game isn't bad because it didn't faithfully follow in its predecessor's footsteps or because it borrows elements from Mass Effect 2 -- it's bad on its own merits by any sane standards. Don't believe the positive magazine reviews for a minute; they are written by a bunch unlettered sychophants (PCGamer I am apalled) without the gumption to really put this shoddy RPG in its place. EA-Bioware set the bar so high with a truly careless and gaudy marketing campaign only to deliver so precious little. The story and setting are unprecedentedly fragmented, insipid and provincial. It's a sandbox game in the sense that the game-world is about the size of an actual sandbox (broken into narrow fragmented chunks) and the game's main and basically only setting (the tiny city of Kirkwall) is about as interesting and varied as sand. If the mildly amusing dialog in this game impresses you -- with its incessant and jarring close-up head-shots of your character "voice acting" -- you need to quit playing video games and start watching daytime soap operas. It has good combat mechanics that quickly grow tiring as you fight the same type of battles against the same type of enemies endlessly. DA2 has some good action elements but that's not nearly enough to redeem this game. After all, if we are judging it solely on the basis of being an "Action RPG" it is tiers below Diablo or even Torchlight in terms of combat and fun. This game deserves the ridicule. EA-Bioware deserve our scorn. I beg of you not to buy this game. If you unfortunately already have, at least do not buy any of its meager and pathetic DLC. Tell your friends to avoid this game. Write on internet forums. I'll tell you why -- I had a nightmarish epiphany. A talented and capable game developer had an idea for a grand and inspiring RPG only to be turned down by a publisher who offered the following advice: "can't you make it more like Dragon Age 2? That did well." We can't let that happen. Bioware needs to suffer for this sham. If they suffer they might actually risk doing what they and their customers really love… Expand
  20. Mystril
    Nov 29, 2011
    2
    The first, and hopefully last, miss-step from Bioware. After about 10 hours play time I couldn't play the game anymore, I have before noticed copy paste dungeons/tiles/textures, but NOTHING to this degree. This game is one big copy paste and, it seems, the developers have been doing ALOT of sitting around, staring into the wall, not knowing what to do. I am sorry but the combat does notThe first, and hopefully last, miss-step from Bioware. After about 10 hours play time I couldn't play the game anymore, I have before noticed copy paste dungeons/tiles/textures, but NOTHING to this degree. This game is one big copy paste and, it seems, the developers have been doing ALOT of sitting around, staring into the wall, not knowing what to do. I am sorry but the combat does not make up for it, the "improved" graphics does not make up for it, the added voice acting to the protagonist does not make up for it. Because none of these improvements actually work in any meaningful way. I was hoping for a Dragon Age II, that was worthy of the title coming from the really well made Dragon Age: Origins, but I was seriously let down here. I wish I could get my money back, but alas, I am on the pc, so I can't. I did manage to drag myself through the game and complete it, and forget it. This game is not worth your money or your time, stay well clear.… Expand
  21. MachShot
    May 30, 2011
    2
    If "Requiem for a Dream" could be made into an adaptation for a corporation instead of individuals, the main actor would be BioWare. This is a company that was legendary years ago, and somehow in the span of time following their purchase by EA it has eroded into a cesspit of bad ideas, bad production, and just plain bad employees. I'll be honest, I didn't finish the game. I couldn't. ButIf "Requiem for a Dream" could be made into an adaptation for a corporation instead of individuals, the main actor would be BioWare. This is a company that was legendary years ago, and somehow in the span of time following their purchase by EA it has eroded into a cesspit of bad ideas, bad production, and just plain bad employees. I'll be honest, I didn't finish the game. I couldn't. But let this review start off with the few good things about this heap of a game.

    Sound track is pretty good, some would say its generic medieval lore stuff but that main theme almost makes you think that your about to play a great game.

    Combat for rouge classes has improved in some ways, now an entirely useful class.

    Now for the things this game is horrible at. The games idea of difficulty is just more enemies that spawn behind you. The game's idea of a plot was lead by a woman who the internet has widely renamed as "Hamburger Helper" who's past works make Sonic the Hedgehog/Twilight crossover fan-fiction look like Pulitzer prize winning literature. The main plot has no real presence until the end of the game if the summaries I'm reading are true. To save processing power the game's non-vital NPC's in the ONE city available have facial graphics comparable to that of Morrowind (on lowest graphical settings). Again I'll say that this game has ONE town, so don't expect exploring anything to be a part of the game. It recycles dungeons and textures to the point where you think Greenpeace would give them a happy face sticker. it's "art design" is just a graphics reduction. It's dialog is focused on either being respectful, a jokester, or a prick with no actual effect on dialog results. It's romance is focused purely on being respectful to the homosexual community, but to the extent that would disturb even a San Francisco pride marcher with the realization that in BioWareLand it's biologically normal for the majority of people to be bisexual. And to top it off, the lack of correlation between professional and user reviews demonstrates "incentive" offered by EA for better reviews, and virtually all 10 ratings of this game can be traced directly to staff members on the BioWare forums if you just Google their username.

    This game tried to appeal to all demographics. The result was pissing of all but the most stupid of people. An RPG that tries to get "Call of Duty's audience" according to their chief employees is about as stupid as a radical communist trying to get the libertarian vote. And to think I was a fan of Mass Effect in the past, it's obvious now that the final installment of that trilogy however won't even be worth a pirate. BioWare is but a shell of the business they once were, its sad really.

    Note that if you forget every RPG you ever played in your life, and if you devote weeks of your life to bioware forum indoctrination and END OF LINE banter (head over there if you want to understand that), you can brainwash yourself to thinking its a decent game if you already made the unfortunate mistake of purchasing it.

    One point for good music and one point because I still remember when BioWare made great games.    … Expand
  22. merl
    Jun 7, 2011
    2
    Epic fail. It is boring, simple and unfinished (I mean gameplay), and, yes, I'm fan of the DA:O. May be (if the name of the game does not contain words "dragon age") I'll give another score, little better...
  23. cy3
    Jun 18, 2011
    2
    It's easy to forget this game is supposed to an RPG. Most of the time spent is running around with no sense of purpose killing repetitive enemies by repetitive means in repetitive locales. An RPG is supposed to be richer than a straight action game, but this "RPG" feels too hollow to bother with playing at all, much less compare to other RPGs. The dialogue is not engaging. The visualsIt's easy to forget this game is supposed to an RPG. Most of the time spent is running around with no sense of purpose killing repetitive enemies by repetitive means in repetitive locales. An RPG is supposed to be richer than a straight action game, but this "RPG" feels too hollow to bother with playing at all, much less compare to other RPGs. The dialogue is not engaging. The visuals offer no excitement. The rest of the game makes the experience feel more like work than play, and not in the good, rewarding way that RPGs are supposed to. Time and money spent in this game can generally be considered wasted.… Expand
  24. Frottle
    Jun 26, 2011
    2
    This game is probably one of the least entertaining games I have ever played in my gaming career, and that's saying something considering the large library of games I have completed. But, even with sheer force of will, I couldn't stand to continue past Act 1 in this game. The game had no reason to urge you to continue playing. Combat was sub-par, and was boring and consisted of rightThis game is probably one of the least entertaining games I have ever played in my gaming career, and that's saying something considering the large library of games I have completed. But, even with sheer force of will, I couldn't stand to continue past Act 1 in this game. The game had no reason to urge you to continue playing. Combat was sub-par, and was boring and consisted of right clicking on an enemy and sitting while your character attacked. The story was too bare bones to even be considered worth using, and wrapped itself up nicely, 1/3 of the way into the game. There was simply no lasting conflicts, the game could have ended at the end of Act 1 and nothing would have changed. And then dialog is another problem in this large list of "Why Dragon Age 2 is terrible". Hawke simply shows little to no emotion when speaking, even if you chose a dialog option from the limited "Nice, Funny, Mean, Details" dialog wheel that seemed like it would provoke some emotion in this solid concrete wall.
    Overall, Dragon Age 2 is a bad game that should not have made it to the floor at all, due to many many flaws and very little points of redemption.    … Expand
  25. ShtKck
    Jul 7, 2011
    2
    Dragon Age Origins was years in the making. Truly the spiritual successor to Bioware's claim to fame, the Baldurs Gate Series. Dragon Age II however, was made in considerably less time, with considerably less foresight. This is a wonderful example of two steps forward, one step backwards.

    Dragon Age II removes many of the classical RPG elements in order to streamline it into a Mass Effect    Dragon Age Origins was years in the making. Truly the spiritual successor to Bioware's claim to fame, the Baldurs Gate Series. Dragon Age II however, was made in considerably less time, with considerably less foresight. This is a wonderful example of two steps forward, one step backwards.

    Dragon Age II removes many of the classical RPG elements in order to streamline it into a Mass Effect type best seller. What fits one series doesn't work for everything. There are a inane amount of reused environments which are generic and sterile. Everything is rushed, between the lack of character interactions and the "when is it going to end type" story.

    They swore up and down that they didn't forget where they came from while making the first Dragon Age, and for the glimpse of time, maybe they didn't. But.. Alas the memory is gone again.    … Expand
  26. Daematune
    Aug 26, 2011
    2
    It's extremely unworthy, so unworthy it should not possess the "Dragon Age" title. Mostly everything about the game is either extremely underdone or just extremely bad, seriously. Bioware tried way too hard on attempting to make this game successful. If I were to explain what went wrong with this game I'd be writing this for hours, don't buy it, stick to Origins if you must. Bioware hasIt's extremely unworthy, so unworthy it should not possess the "Dragon Age" title. Mostly everything about the game is either extremely underdone or just extremely bad, seriously. Bioware tried way too hard on attempting to make this game successful. If I were to explain what went wrong with this game I'd be writing this for hours, don't buy it, stick to Origins if you must. Bioware has always been a developer that you could trust with the uniqueness and success of their content, their trust has most definitely been shaken.… Expand
  27. Emblis
    Jul 23, 2011
    2
    Dragon age 2 is not a bad game, it is just an all around complete let-down from DA:O. Had the title not been Dragon Age it would have been a decent game but as a sequel to one of the history's best RPG is just do not hold up at all. The combat system has been simplified to and the story is uninteresting and frankly a bit hard to follow at times since there are no clear plot to follow.Dragon age 2 is not a bad game, it is just an all around complete let-down from DA:O. Had the title not been Dragon Age it would have been a decent game but as a sequel to one of the history's best RPG is just do not hold up at all. The combat system has been simplified to and the story is uninteresting and frankly a bit hard to follow at times since there are no clear plot to follow.

    Just about everything that DA2 do, DA:O did much better. Origins got a better combat system, more interesting story, deeper characters and dialogues. The only thing I can say was better with DA:2 was the idea that times moves forward so you can see the results and outcomes from all your chooses.

    Dragon Age 2 is a major disappointment, I recommend staying away from it. Now, if you excuse me, I am going to play some Dragon Age:Origins.    … Expand
  28. krkbomb
    Jul 26, 2011
    2
    When compared broadly to other video games, DA2 is far above average. But when you compare it to other Bioware games, or to Dragon Age: Origins, one of Bioware's best, this game is far below anything else in the lineup.

    The combat is rendered meaningless by long cooldowns on essential spells, poor mana-efficiency, and ridiculously high respawn rates, making hack-and-slash builds the only    When compared broadly to other video games, DA2 is far above average. But when you compare it to other Bioware games, or to Dragon Age: Origins, one of Bioware's best, this game is far below anything else in the lineup.

    The combat is rendered meaningless by long cooldowns on essential spells, poor mana-efficiency, and ridiculously high respawn rates, making hack-and-slash builds the only real option (and you can forget about healing). The respawn rates are the breaking point here, because it ruins virtually every other aspect of the gameplay, because why put any effort into killing things if a million more are going to spawn when they die?

    The RPG elements are equally meaningless. The decision to automatically move items to the "vendor trash" bin in your inventory only highlights that you really aren't making any decisions, you're just playing a game on rails. Throughout the game it is painfully obvious that some items are intended for you while others are useless. About the only thing you have to recognize is whether or not an item fits your class, and usually this is done for you by making it impossible to equip another class's gear.

    The look of the game is pretty, but too cartoonish to be taken seriously, and the texture resolution is appalling. The environments are boring and repetitive (MOST areas in the game were literally recycled assets). The general aesthetic is just ridiculous: a blend of "DARKER AND EDGIER ZOMG" and japanophilic anime-envy.

    The worst problem with this game is that, unlike previous BioWare games, the player is provided with no real choice and is instead placed on rails through a storyline that really is not all that compelling. Cutscenes continually interrupt the story, only to force you to watch two people sitting in a room and talking about nothing in particular, while the main story meanders around with no real goal or purpose for your character. The "light/dark" or "paragon/renegade" system or whatever is meaningless to the story as well. Instead, your dialogue choices determine what tone of voice you will use to say EXACTLY THE SAME THING and take EXACTLY THE SAME ACTION. Your choices range from sarcastic to dry to caustic. And that's a bit of a stretch since all your choices are basically the same blend of these three.

    Without spoiling anything, the ending is actually a pretty good piece of story-telling, but the problem is, since you have absolutely no control over you character's speech or actions, this ending will either be:

    completely satisfactory (yay, FINALLY something interesting happened)

    or

    UTTERLY TERRIBLE (why did I even bother playing this?)...

    depending upon what you were trying to do. They would have been better served to simply discard the dialogue and alignment systems altogether and let the player experience the story in the way BioWare clearly intended.

    Overall, the game was generally playable but usually unpleasant throughout, and while the ending was somewhat interesting, it also left complete disappointment at the game's overall shortcomings, and guaranteed that I would never play this game or any other Dragon Age game again. I would write off BioWare entirely after this, but instead I think the ideas they were working with in DA2 were promising, just poorly executed and a bad fit for the Dragon Age franchise. Mass Effect 2 is a good example of similar ideas with better execution in a franchise better suited to those concepts. Here's hoping that they find their way again for ME3 and their Star Wars MMO.    … Expand
  29. Gjefflin
    Aug 2, 2011
    2
    I've been playing RPG's for over 22 years starting with Legend of Zelda and my first PC game in 1992 "Ultima Underworld". I've played games before that were bad because the developers didn't know what they were doing. In this case however, it was sheer corporate greed that turned what could've been a great Bioware game series into something unrecognizable and not up to snuff with ANY ofI've been playing RPG's for over 22 years starting with Legend of Zelda and my first PC game in 1992 "Ultima Underworld". I've played games before that were bad because the developers didn't know what they were doing. In this case however, it was sheer corporate greed that turned what could've been a great Bioware game series into something unrecognizable and not up to snuff with ANY of Bioware's past games. Had they not packaged this as "Dragon Age 2" and instead called it perhaps...."Dragon Age: Kirkwall" and charged half the price I wouldn't have been as upset as I was due to the fact that I wouldn't have been "expecting" a game that was to be if not as good as DA:O...hopefully better. I have no patience with gaming companies that put out rushed, sub-quality games and expect their fans to shell out full price for it because they're expecting the same quality of the game that they played previously. "Turd" sums up my feeling of being "taken" for my money. Here's my "constructive criticism".

    "DA2 was not the worse game I've ever played. But it was certainty among the most disappointing. The more cartoony graphics, repetitive use of maps, dwellings and dungeons, the extremely poor character development, the confusing ending, the frustratingly restrictive character inventory (Not being able to use any weapon, armor or ability to outfit any of your party members) the ridiculous spawning of mass enemies out of thing air to create the illusion of difficulty was in my opinion a complete and utter embarrassment and a rip-off to fans of the original Dragon Age game. On the positive side, I did like the fact that vendor trash was easily recognizable and you could sell it all in one shot. There was also one story (The serial killer) that was very well written. Outside of that, this was definitely one of Biowares (Actually the only one I can think of in their history as a gaming company) failures. I am trying to keep faith in Bioware games going forward as everyone makes mistakes. Time will tell. I will NOT be buying any DLC until i see lots of critic and player reviews.    … Expand
  30. Pitelk
    Aug 19, 2011
    2
    I feel very generous today so I will give a 3 to the game. If you have played DA:O don't bother to play this. It is far below expectations and it does not match DA:O in any point... If you have never played DA:O then DA II can be considered an average game with nice graphs, which you can use to kill some spare time... As an RPG sucks.. you done even have control of your parties armor!!!I feel very generous today so I will give a 3 to the game. If you have played DA:O don't bother to play this. It is far below expectations and it does not match DA:O in any point... If you have never played DA:O then DA II can be considered an average game with nice graphs, which you can use to kill some spare time... As an RPG sucks.. you done even have control of your parties armor!!! Dialogs... suck if you are over age 12..story.. the same...… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

36
#36 Best PC Game of 2011
5
#5 Most Discussed PC Game of 2011
19
#19 Most Shared PC Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 45 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 38 out of 45
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 45
  3. Negative: 0 out of 45
  1. PC PowerPlay
    Apr 18, 2011
    90
    Moving even further from the classic RPG, strong story and clever combat are nonetheless still found within Dragon Age II. [May 2011, p.52]
  2. Gaming Nexus
    Apr 12, 2011
    58
    Despite some advancement in storytelling approach and liberal borrowing from Bioware's Mass Effect approach to gameplay, Dragon Age 2 on the PC has a lot of bugs and is populated with re-used settings that make this feel like a play performed on a stage with two sets.
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  3. CPUGamer
    Apr 11, 2011
    85
    For a rushed product that is still battling bugs, the currently offered product still provides 40 hours of challenging and engaging gameplay. This combines to provide a good, but not great gaming experience.
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