Dragon Age II

 Xbox 360
User Score
4.6

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 2466 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 795 out of 2466
  2. Mixed: 431 out of 2466
  3. Negative: 1,240 out of 2466
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  1. FinalRodz
    Mar 11, 2011
    1
    Bioware DA 2 is a turd. As a fan of your games and the worlds you create, I want to know. Why are you trying to turn the Dragon Age series into a Broski game? Please stick to your strengths in game design of strong RPG elements, story, and world design. YOU ARE NOT GOOD AT MAKING ACTION GAMES, KNOW YOUR LANE. I didn't even want to waste time giving a review but I was reading the reviewsBioware DA 2 is a turd. As a fan of your games and the worlds you create, I want to know. Why are you trying to turn the Dragon Age series into a Broski game? Please stick to your strengths in game design of strong RPG elements, story, and world design. YOU ARE NOT GOOD AT MAKING ACTION GAMES, KNOW YOUR LANE. I didn't even want to waste time giving a review but I was reading the reviews and the same theme kept popping up in most review scores of 9 and 10. The reviewers are giving 10s because they saw negative reviews posted and had to give a high score based on feeling bad for Bioware, even though they didn't believe it deserved a 10. Hmmm. Sounds to me like Bioware is sending in trolls or developers to inflate the user score back up.. CLASSY! Truth be told this game is marketed as a RPG and is a 2 out of 10 at that, and plays like a bad God of War/Dynasty Warriors and is a 0 out of 10 at that. Smash the scores together you get a 1 out of 10. Even though my head hurts from this game I am still WINNING… Expand
  2. UhMing
    Mar 11, 2011
    2
    Total disappointment. Combat system is probably more fun then it was in DAO. Yet still, story is completely nonexistent, 25 hours into the game, and I still do not know what am I doing in it, what for. It just is a set of unrelated quests instead of good story. AI companions are worthless, I must always spend time on controling my mates, because they can't do a thing on their own in anyTotal disappointment. Combat system is probably more fun then it was in DAO. Yet still, story is completely nonexistent, 25 hours into the game, and I still do not know what am I doing in it, what for. It just is a set of unrelated quests instead of good story. AI companions are worthless, I must always spend time on controling my mates, because they can't do a thing on their own in any ecounter, beside easiest ones.
    Button mashing, single player MMO simulator.

    I must add how bad are those tunnel levels, almost like Final Fantasy 14, just a tiny bit better. Even worse is the fact that most side story quests are done in same "tunels", just with different doors closed.    … Expand
  3. Vegakvd
    Mar 14, 2011
    2
    Okay, so first off Dragon Age Origins is my favorite game of all time. I'm 31 years old and have been playing RPGs for years but Dragon Age really was the most fun I have ever had playing one. That being said, I waited months and months, checking Bioware forums every day for little bits of info and screenshots, for Dragon Age 2. I pre ordered the Signature Edition and everything, I wasOkay, so first off Dragon Age Origins is my favorite game of all time. I'm 31 years old and have been playing RPGs for years but Dragon Age really was the most fun I have ever had playing one. That being said, I waited months and months, checking Bioware forums every day for little bits of info and screenshots, for Dragon Age 2. I pre ordered the Signature Edition and everything, I was ready for it and even went to the midnight release. I am about 80% into the game now and I know all I need to know. The game is a shadow of the previous. They stripped out so much stuff it is ridicilous. Specializations like Shapeshifter, and my favorite, Ranger, and gone. Everything is less. Combat IS better, in my opinion, and graphics are improved. that's where it stops. The story is extremely boring, the romances are shallow, and despite a few intresting twists and turns, everything is just...bland...Definitly not worth the 60 bucks I forked over and the hype surrounding it. Oh, and my biggest complant..the voiced character. I never once felt like I was "role playing".… Expand
  4. Kalaha
    Mar 16, 2011
    4
    The immersion and combat of this game is matched by nearly every consol game for the last 10 years. See what i did there? :). The folks at Bioware clearly wanted to make Dragon Age 2 accessible to the greater masses. And i'm pretty sure they succeeded in that. It just didnt do it for me. I bought this game at the EA-online store and even before i had inserted my creditcard information, iThe immersion and combat of this game is matched by nearly every consol game for the last 10 years. See what i did there? :). The folks at Bioware clearly wanted to make Dragon Age 2 accessible to the greater masses. And i'm pretty sure they succeeded in that. It just didnt do it for me. I bought this game at the EA-online store and even before i had inserted my creditcard information, i was spammed with FREE Downloadable Content - order now. order now. Already at this point, i figured something was fishy in the state of bioware. The game is filled with re-used dungeons. Even in the first act, i ran through the same mine 3 times. What the hell is that about? I wont attack the battle-system - i didnt like it, some would. The graphics actually ARE improved from the first game, but you gotta love red - since most of your screen will be filled with it throughout the game. All in all this just seemed like a rushed game. 4/10… Expand
  5. Getbusyliving
    Mar 17, 2011
    2
    Terrible game. Thoroughly disappointed. I just can't understand why they would mess with a formula that worked so well in the previous game. I won't be pre-ordering anything from Bioware ever again.
  6. hexchen1206
    Mar 26, 2011
    0
    I am really disappointed. The game seems to be unfinished, and it has no "soul". It isn't worth the name "Dragon Age". The main-story is boring, the NPCs look all the same and most of them have nothing to say.
  7. Somas99999
    Mar 11, 2011
    3
    I wanted to like this game so badly. The character voices are top notch, and their personalities are well developed, but this could not save the game. There is no real story, only about 10 individual areas in the entire game that are constantly revisited, and, on PC, the combat is simply clicking once on an enemy and watching a character perform a five hit combo repeatedly. To be fair,I wanted to like this game so badly. The character voices are top notch, and their personalities are well developed, but this could not save the game. There is no real story, only about 10 individual areas in the entire game that are constantly revisited, and, on PC, the combat is simply clicking once on an enemy and watching a character perform a five hit combo repeatedly. To be fair, using abilities does add some differentiation to combat, but, playing as a rogue at least, I found that most of the time I would find myself in a situation where all of my abilities were on cool down before the end of every battle. This was usually because each combat encounter seems to drag on to long. Most of the fights pit you against around 15+ enemies, and as soon as the vast majority are dead, reinforcements will literally rain from the sky. I went into this game expecting an RPG with hack and slash elements, what I got was God of War without all the button mashing.… Expand
  8. secretblue
    Mar 12, 2011
    0
    You're stuck in Kirkwall not because this is some new and innovated way of telling a story but because Bioware only had a year to pump this thing out. The environments are never altered, even after ten years for this very same reason. Caves, houses, and underground passages are all just one map. Some people were even fooled because you get let into a cave from a different area or becauseYou're stuck in Kirkwall not because this is some new and innovated way of telling a story but because Bioware only had a year to pump this thing out. The environments are never altered, even after ten years for this very same reason. Caves, houses, and underground passages are all just one map. Some people were even fooled because you get let into a cave from a different area or because some of the caves have stone doors when they enter. They're just trying to throw your senses off, but if you actually take the time to travel through the whole thing you'll realize it it's the very same cave you were in on multiple occasions. Also, remember at the end of Fable where you have to collect all that money? Wasn't fun, right? Well Bioware uses this same tactic, only they moved it to the beginning of the game, not the end. So you spend a good bit of time running around collecting gold before the storyline even moves forward. Speaking of storyline, this game has no real plot. You're basically just some guy/gal who goes around doing good or bad deeds. In it's predecessor you played as one of the last grey wardens in Ferelden and your goal was to collect all the treaties to gather aid for the battle against the blight. There is no well defined plot in DA2, you're just wandering around completing task. While playing there will come a time when you will ask yourself "what is the point of any of this". I'm giving this a 0 because no one should have to pay 60 dollars for a game that feels like one long DLC. I didn't hate this game because I wasn't a huge fan of the first DA and didn't expect much from this one. However, this fell below my already low expectations. The only positive about this game were the characters, but it's not enough to make this game a worthy title for your game shelf. I'm returning mine as soon as possible and purchasing something worthwhile.… Expand
  9. Diogenes4evr
    Mar 12, 2011
    4
    In a world where there already exists a Mass Effect 1 and 2 why would you buy a third; smaller, shorter, more repetitive and poorer version of it? Dragon Age is a great IP as demonstrated by Origins and DA2 could have been great. Longer and more in-depth quests with greater exploration could have made a mediocre game good; as it is the constant recycling of areas makes the story andIn a world where there already exists a Mass Effect 1 and 2 why would you buy a third; smaller, shorter, more repetitive and poorer version of it? Dragon Age is a great IP as demonstrated by Origins and DA2 could have been great. Longer and more in-depth quests with greater exploration could have made a mediocre game good; as it is the constant recycling of areas makes the story and characters carry the entire weight of this game and it's them that you will play through it for. Combat is repetitive and needs to either be more strategic or require better talent useage (the cool down times are far to long). Still very well written with solid characters and better than the majority of games out there but if you are looking for a BioWare masterpiece or a worthy successor to Origins; this is not it.… Expand
  10. 27raven
    Mar 14, 2011
    4
    Why the lack of interesting and diverse locations? Why one repeating cave and houses over and over again? Why waves of enemies spawning from the ceiling? Why the brutal requirements in DX11 in 5 year old looking game? Why no interesting and surprising puzzles? Why many other things i don't want to even remember? If it wasn't for DA:O and if it wasn't Bioware I would give 7 points but likeWhy the lack of interesting and diverse locations? Why one repeating cave and houses over and over again? Why waves of enemies spawning from the ceiling? Why the brutal requirements in DX11 in 5 year old looking game? Why no interesting and surprising puzzles? Why many other things i don't want to even remember? If it wasn't for DA:O and if it wasn't Bioware I would give 7 points but like this i fell it deserves 5 points max.
    Btw. I didn't like many things in DA:O (skill system, class imbalances) but it was still a pearl in comparison to this game.

    PS: Why so high scores from magazines? Does EA pay that well? It was the same with NFS:Shift and I completely understand people who give 0 points as a defense against so exaggerated ratings.    … Expand
  11. tuttifrutas
    Mar 14, 2011
    3
    the game is very disappointing. The graphics seem dated, the music is ok, the game-play is simplified and poses no challenge at all for experienced rpg gamers. LOTS of the recycled content. it is the same layout for all caverns, almost all houses, and almost everything has the same type of texture applied.
    But the City Hub system is the worse, i never seen so many loading screen in my    the game is very disappointing. The graphics seem dated, the music is ok, the game-play is simplified and poses no challenge at all for experienced rpg gamers. LOTS of the recycled content. it is the same layout for all caverns, almost all houses, and almost everything has the same type of texture applied.
    But the City Hub system is the worse, i never seen so many loading screen in my life. initiate quest in district A , goto hub, Loading, do quest in district B, goto hub, Loading, finish quest in district A. This system makes the game a chore. just go play DAO this one is just plain boring.    … Expand
  12. dirtyfinger
    Mar 18, 2011
    3
    Combat is ridiculous. Animation speed increased to the point that no strike animations are visible. Intended to speed up combat ... which it doesn't, since the increased speed is offset by higher monster hitpoints and swarms of enemies.
    also, combat has been "coolified", meaning that every standard attack is the 'Fallout 3' equivalent of 'Bloody Mess', meaning that a killing stab with a    Combat is ridiculous. Animation speed increased to the point that no strike animations are visible. Intended to speed up combat ... which it doesn't, since the increased speed is offset by higher monster hitpoints and swarms of enemies.
    also, combat has been "coolified", meaning that every standard attack is the 'Fallout 3' equivalent of 'Bloody Mess', meaning that a killing stab with a dagger causes humans to explode.

    unconvincing encounters with different factions ... you somehow are constantly forced to kill potential allies. also swarms of enemies, even if you're just on a evening stroll to the nearest tavern.

    also, maps get recycled over and over and over. sure, you're revisiting old locations very very often, but you'll see the exact same dungeon map on up to five DIFFERENT locations!
    Lazy!

    No, this game is a complete fail in the categories Bioware tried to improve.    … Expand
  13. drewho
    Mar 9, 2011
    0
    A total embarrassment of a game, bioware should be ashamed of themselves.
    Terrible graphics, Terrible story,do not buy this poc
  14. Voland
    Mar 12, 2011
    1
    This game is not terrible but it is so wrong it threatens the future for pc RPGs.
    It's cheap and dumbed down.
    The game mainly consist in following yellow marks on the map, to complete or to take quests, there is no real need to be able to read to play this game. Combat is not so bad, but the difficulty is. Hard is mainly easy as pie and sometimes it gets stupidly luck based or imbalanced.    This game is not terrible but it is so wrong it threatens the future for pc RPGs.
    It's cheap and dumbed down.
    The game mainly consist in following yellow marks on the map, to complete or to take quests, there is no real need to be able to read to play this game.
    Combat is not so bad, but the difficulty is. Hard is mainly easy as pie and sometimes it gets stupidly luck based or imbalanced. I've not played much of nightmare because the friendly fire thing is not well thought out and causes rage-quit.
    Ambients are copy-pasted so much you actally feel frauded when playing.
    Character lack any depth and are not even remotely interesting.

    The plot is (spoiler alert) "You are a champion, or you are going to be one, and haters gonna hate you."

    Thisgameisbad.    … Expand
  15. Erenthorn
    Mar 14, 2011
    0
    This an extremely sad attempt for an rpg, before continuing i will point out the first obvious flaws in the game. -Reusing the same four maps 500 times.
    -Setting the whole game in one city.
    -Enemies have a ton of HP and come in waves so the game feels longer. -Frame narrative to avoid being too descriptive about what happens between large periods of time. -Half as much dialogue, more    This an extremely sad attempt for an rpg, before continuing i will point out the first obvious flaws in the game. -Reusing the same four maps 500 times.
    -Setting the whole game in one city.
    -Enemies have a ton of HP and come in waves so the game feels longer.
    -Frame narrative to avoid being too descriptive about what happens between large periods of time.
    -Half as much dialogue, more passive interaction.
    -Millions of stupid side quests that have nothing to do with anything.
    -Dull environment bereft of life and matter.
    -Inability to customize companions allowed you to skip designing different armor models.
    -Collecting hundreds of-- literally, junk items-- to create the illusion of immersion and depth.
    -Poor character development, so you hardly care about your companions by the end of the game. -Lack of any substantial choices that have lasting effects.
    -Contrived ending, that tells you nothing, and leaves a huge gap for sub-par DLC
    -Generic UI showing a lack of creativity and effort.

    Thank You to Sharkey1337 from the Bioware forums for pointing this out. This "game" is a sad excuse for a rushed rpg that lacked any standards of innovation and i ask anyone who thinks about playing this game to not do so. At most, rent and DO NOT BUY, YOU WILL HAVE WASTED 60$ IF YOU DO. Dragon Age Origins compared to this is an absolute masterpiece and anyone who was not played it should do so over buying this short pathetic game.    … Expand
  16. assmaster69
    Mar 12, 2011
    0
    I wrote a detailed review about all the things wrong with the game earlier, and gave it a score of three. This is a revision to balance out the bioware employees and shills giving it 10s.
  17. Aerozoul
    Mar 9, 2011
    0
    I loved Dragon Age: Origins and i was hyped for Dragon Age 2. But my anticipation quickly died when i played the demo. This is not Dragon Age, this is not an RPG, this is like fast-food and junk. I am disappointed BioWare.
  18. derpyderpderp
    Mar 10, 2011
    1
    DA:1 was a good game. Sadly, EA and Bioware sold themselves out to some made up focus group to sell games. DA:1, like Balder's Gate, was popular with a group of gamer who make up a decent share of the market. Sure, it's not as large as the Call of Duty crowd, or even the Mass Effect crowd, but they make up for it in loyalty. DA 2 flat out ruins what made the original so good. It's sadDA:1 was a good game. Sadly, EA and Bioware sold themselves out to some made up focus group to sell games. DA:1, like Balder's Gate, was popular with a group of gamer who make up a decent share of the market. Sure, it's not as large as the Call of Duty crowd, or even the Mass Effect crowd, but they make up for it in loyalty. DA 2 flat out ruins what made the original so good. It's sad enough that there are no improvements, but it's worse that it's a step back. The combat is horrendous and a button masher. The story is just a set up to sell DLC so you can get a real ending. Bioware sold themselves out, trying to grab a bigger market share by forgetting their loyal customer base. Because of this, it's hard to trust them in the future. i'm already concerned about the quality of Mass Effect 3. I'm sorry, I've been a Bioware fan since KOTOR and Neverwinter Nights, but I can no longer support a company that won't support its fan base that allowed them their success. Shame on you guys for ruining a sequel to an above-average game.… Expand
  19. Skywin
    Mar 11, 2011
    0
    I really enjoyed DA1 but this one i was really dissapointed i didn't care so much , it had no tactics at all i just ran and slaughter everything lol , The storyline was crap as hell , I loved the dialogue in Da1 they pretty much took away everything i liked from DAO , it didn't even feelt like it was a Dragon age games, I think they rushed the game and made the wrong decisions..
  20. Miz3k
    Mar 19, 2011
    1
    What a total disappointment. Much like Mass Effect 2 this game fails to deliver on so many levels. About the only thing I can say I liked about this game was the combat overhaul, but after some time with the game even that became very boring and was added to the long list of cons. This game has been so over-simplified it barely resembles an RPG anymore. You can craft the appearance of yourWhat a total disappointment. Much like Mass Effect 2 this game fails to deliver on so many levels. About the only thing I can say I liked about this game was the combat overhaul, but after some time with the game even that became very boring and was added to the long list of cons. This game has been so over-simplified it barely resembles an RPG anymore. You can craft the appearance of your character as in other games of this type, but you are basically just selecting different presets. Guitar Hero and Rock Band had a more robust creation tool. Menus have been lifted straight from Mass Effect 2, and the game setup is identical, this is not a good thing. Your choices for upgrading your character are very limited, there is a difference between making your game more user-friendly and stripping down almost all customization options. Combat is reduced to hack n' slash gameplay and anyone who believes this isn't just another button-masher is diluted. You can pause the action and give commands but you never really need to. Graphics are very bland, textures are low-res and character models are questionable. The only characters who look even remotely cool are certain companions and if you look in the strategy guide you can see that the concept art for these and all other characters was better than the finished product. There are very few locations the game takes place in, an even bigger crime is that every house you enter, every cave you search, every sewer you trudge through is the exact same place as all the ones you ever have or ever will venture into in the game. It really takes away from the immersion when you are told to search for something in a cave or sewer or estate only to realize you've already been there more than once. And no, they aren't telling you that you are having multiple missions in the same locale, they are all different missions in the same recycled location visually, these places are on different parts of the map with different names and are being passed off as a new place, and Bioware is hoping you won't notice. Also there is no exploration, you walk down pre-defined paths with a few deviations here and there with expected loot waiting at the end. This is essentially Final Fantasy 13, Bioware just covered up the linearity a little better. There is no customization for your companions. They always wear the same armor and you can only buy four upgrades for them, all they do is change stats, not appearance. This is really a game all about accessorizing, the most you'll ever toy with in terms of customization is the jewelry you and your companions wear. The DLC was obviously part of the game that was withheld to make extra money for EA and Bioware, visually and story-wise it fits in too well with the rest of the game to be standard DLC. Speaking of story, there really isn't one. The first Dragon Age was so epic, the story of a hero on a quest to save the world. Here you are a refugee out to reclaim your family's name and honor. There isn't even a real villain until Act 3 and that's the end of the game. Just like ME2 this game boils down to being just a checklist. "Make sure you do these things before this time or this will happen to you." As for save-game importing, it has no effect on the story whatsoever. Certain characters show up but seem tacked on and out of place. At one point you meet a character that with the use of the import could have been your created character from the first game, however it ends up just being some generic character that has no impact on the story at all. What's bad is that in this scene you could tell Bioware thought this would be epic and dramatic and it ended up failing on all levels. Romances boil down to the same checklist formula as in ME2 as well as the rest of this game and thus lose all impact and are rendered pointless and too much effort for no real payoff. I don't know how they did it but Bioware even managed to make the Deep Roads unexciting. I also don't understand why Bioware thought the story and characters in the first game were so bad not to continue them, they did the same thing to a lesser extent in ME2. Bioware really needs to stop stripping down their games to reach a broader, less intelligent audience simply to make more money for their new overlords(EA). Once they have alienated all their fans and no longer present any value to them they will be cast aside like EA's other at-one-time golden children(Black Box for example, there are others). I know this will probably be my last trip into the Dragon Age universe, and as soon as I'm through with ME3(I have to finish the series because I'm already so invested in the Commander's story) I won't waste any more of my time with any new Bioware IPs. Oh well, at least I still have Skyrim to look forward to. Also, BEWARE! Bioware posts their own reviews to inflate their game's score, this added to everything listed above is really sad.… Expand
  21. harmattan
    Mar 10, 2011
    4
    Dragon Age 1, although not the BGII second-coming I was hoping for, offered a close-to-perfect compromise between micro-management of Inventory, Spells and Tactics and hack-and-slash action -- this is what I buy RPGs like this for. Dragon Age 2 takes a different approach: attacking is, for the most part, fire and forget, spell management is limited and inventory is over-simplified.Dragon Age 1, although not the BGII second-coming I was hoping for, offered a close-to-perfect compromise between micro-management of Inventory, Spells and Tactics and hack-and-slash action -- this is what I buy RPGs like this for. Dragon Age 2 takes a different approach: attacking is, for the most part, fire and forget, spell management is limited and inventory is over-simplified. Moreover, the story is convoluded and didn't motivate me to keep playing. Good dialogue and voice acting redeems this game a bit, but nothing can save it from it's pander-to-the-lowest-common-denominator simplicity.

    This game is definitely not worth $60, either on PC or console. Either hold out for the bargain bin or until you can find it used, or just pass (you're not missing much).    … Expand
  22. scotius
    Mar 17, 2011
    0
    This review contains no spoilers.

    Being a Bioware fan and having followed this company since their dawn, I wanted to love this game. I really wanted to love this game. Bioware is a company renowned for their compelling characters, vibrant locations and amazing storytelling. Sadly, this game has none of these things. Remember HK-47? Remember Morte? Remember the Justicar or Darth Revan?    This review contains no spoilers.

    Being a Bioware fan and having followed this company since their dawn, I wanted to love this game. I really wanted to love this game. Bioware is a company renowned for their compelling characters, vibrant locations and amazing storytelling. Sadly, this game has none of these things. Remember HK-47? Remember Morte? Remember the Justicar or Darth Revan? The characters in this game are very bland, very boring, third rate LOTR rip offs.

    The locations? Well, lets just say that the entirety of this game is played in the same 2 locations. Backgrounds and models are used and rehashed ad nauseam. This entire game feels as if it was very cheaply made, rushed and pointed towards an audience that does not like RPGs or wants them to be "simpler". The combat is half RPG and half Diablo and the end result of that unholy union is something abominable. The game will last you about 6 hours if you play through to the end. Pathetic. The graphics are not as good as Shadow of the Collossus (a game that came out just as the PS2 was ending its commercial life). It is dumbed down terribly. Also, be very aware that Bioware employees are on this site bumping it up. The reviewer "Avanost" has been discovered to be one of these already. "Anything negative you will see about this game is an overreaction of personal preference" eh?! A review is a statement of personal preference. Well done on giving it a ten, though, signifying that you think DA2 is the best that a game can become or ever be.    … Expand
  23. FaisedOut
    Mar 25, 2011
    0
    This is NOT an RPG, folks. I should've listened to the negative reviews posted here but my excitement for a new console RPG took over and I purchased it anyway. Think of this game as a "Dynasty Warriors" or the related "Samurai Warriors" game. Now if mindless hack-and-slash doesn't appeal to you, this game won't either. Funny thing is, I love hack-and-slash as well as a good RPG butThis is NOT an RPG, folks. I should've listened to the negative reviews posted here but my excitement for a new console RPG took over and I purchased it anyway. Think of this game as a "Dynasty Warriors" or the related "Samurai Warriors" game. Now if mindless hack-and-slash doesn't appeal to you, this game won't either. Funny thing is, I love hack-and-slash as well as a good RPG but this game is neither! Download the demo and you will see what I mean. DO NOT HEED ANY OF THE GOOD REVIEWS ON THIS SITE! Did they even PLAY the game???… Expand
  24. Tanis
    Mar 12, 2011
    0
    All good in Orgins is gone, this is an insult to rpg players from EA/bioware, where is the spirit from Baldurs gate?. Simply, it is dead.
    - Dialog wheel breaks any rpg experience. Good/Bad/Stupid decisions insults human intelligence.
    - No tactical view, wtf! Baldurs legacy!? ( for me the best of the battles in Origins) - UI terrible, consolized, ugly and ridiculously small for 1920x1200    All good in Orgins is gone, this is an insult to rpg players from EA/bioware, where is the spirit from Baldurs gate?. Simply, it is dead.
    - Dialog wheel breaks any rpg experience. Good/Bad/Stupid decisions insults human intelligence.
    - No tactical view, wtf! Baldurs legacy!? ( for me the best of the battles in Origins)
    - UI terrible, consolized, ugly and ridiculously small for 1920x1200 ( subtitles hurts my eyes)
    - Corridors maps once and once again, repeat maps once and once again.
    - Companions/history/inmersion far far far from Origins. ( for me the best in Origins)
    - Graphics/Art Design and Music/Effects far worst than Origins.
    - a lot of bugs/side effects in pc because is a very very bad port. (DAO was designed for PC, ME was a bad port, ME2 was a very bad port, and this is extremely bad port, whats the next bioware?)
    - very poor performance for main characters (i like me/me2 character performance but this not)
    - uninspired side quests and typical main quest, always in the same place, only the storytelling is good.
    - etc..., all good in Origins is dumped down extremely or removed.
    - this is not a rpg game, is a kick in the face from bioware for all loyalty customers who support them since their beginning.
    - From more than 900 hours in Origins and still playing to 18 hours in DA2 and uninstalled, this is the evolution for me. The worst game in Bioware history so far.    … Expand
  25. damdevildog
    Mar 11, 2011
    2
    I like most mature and experienced gamers that have some taste for a quality game so to speak am greatly disappointed in DA2, this game is so lame and cheap and i feel like i was bent over by Bio-ware and given the ol' sauseege!! Don't buy this game and waste your time and money if you have any depth at in your taste for games, it may have the type of control interface that Mass effect 2I like most mature and experienced gamers that have some taste for a quality game so to speak am greatly disappointed in DA2, this game is so lame and cheap and i feel like i was bent over by Bio-ware and given the ol' sauseege!! Don't buy this game and waste your time and money if you have any depth at in your taste for games, it may have the type of control interface that Mass effect 2 did but its nothing like ME2, not even in the same country, planet, GALAXY!! ME2 was a great game and this game is sh%t What a huge disappointment! And one more thing i would like to add (though there are about a thousand things i could go on about that i hated in this game!) is whats up with the lame ass 1990's disappearing of dead enemy's and blood or anything that leaves a hint that a battle took place just seconds before, i mean i know it's a friggin RPG and all and that they are huge games but if the Fallout series can leave battle remnants after a battle (you know i.e. bullet holes, scorch marks on walls, blood, and the majority of the bodies bloodied and mutilated, etc..)than i am sure DA2 could have because Fallout3 and New Vegas are a lot bigger and with better graphics than this piece of sh#t! It really kills the realism imo just something i hate, i was waiting for this game for a long time, what a shame!… Expand
  26. Qwik
    Mar 12, 2011
    4
    Corrupt save files just like the last one. Game over Dragon Age. The game is OK story wise but so many corrupt game saves and just bad everything. It's a big miss on their part. I wish they would have taken 6 more months and actually came out with a quality experience.
  27. DisgruntledGame
    Mar 14, 2011
    0
    I see a lot of people giving it perfect scores who have only played a few hours of the game. Well guess what? After a few hours you have actually seen the whole game. The landscape is repetitive, you never leave the starting city, and the story is dull and uninspiring. I am thoroughly disappointed in Bioware, and this release does not bode well for Mass Effect 3. There is no replayI see a lot of people giving it perfect scores who have only played a few hours of the game. Well guess what? After a few hours you have actually seen the whole game. The landscape is repetitive, you never leave the starting city, and the story is dull and uninspiring. I am thoroughly disappointed in Bioware, and this release does not bode well for Mass Effect 3. There is no replay value, and the dialogue choices are beyond basic. I can only think that EA rushed this game out the door, and after witnessing how Bioware has handled the PR disaster of rushing out an unreleased game I can no longer say I am a fan of Dragonage, or the company Bioware.

    Do yourself a favor and rent this game, it is absolutely NOT worth 60$. I'm amazed that somehow gaming companies can STILL make the mistake of releasing an unfinished product, and this is the result. As all mature gamers probably know, the review industry is entirely bought and paid for, and if you read through the user reviews I'm sure the trends will become noticeable and you well get a realistic picture of DA2.    … Expand
  28. Thylkerisis
    Mar 15, 2011
    2
    The worst RPG game, Bioware had ever done.... I am very disappointed with thic "game", lots of bug, graphics are bad. the hero is dumb and fight like a "ninja"
  29. Basques
    Mar 15, 2011
    2
    Firstly, I was always a huge bioware fan. I played all the rpg/frp games created by them (hell I finished Baldur's gate 5 times). I preordered Dragon Age 2 and I was so disappointed that I am not even sure if I'll finish the game.

    Beatiful voice acting, gorgeous graphics and sadly zero game play satisfaction. Sometimes you don't even know what's going on in the screen. It's just a hack    Firstly, I was always a huge bioware fan. I played all the rpg/frp games created by them (hell I finished Baldur's gate 5 times). I preordered Dragon Age 2 and I was so disappointed that I am not even sure if I'll finish the game.

    Beatiful voice acting, gorgeous graphics and sadly zero game play satisfaction. Sometimes you don't even know what's going on in the screen. It's just a hack and slash game with zero burden on your brain. Combats just play themselves automatically, dialogues are non existing, good evil choices are too plain with no real content in it. And on top of that, most of the dungeon maps are repetitive, copy paste, including the hidden doors and their entrances. Literally, two dungeons I visited on after the other had the exact same cave room.

    Do yourself a favour, go and buy Baldur's gate 2 and start playing it again.    … Expand
  30. nibelung
    Mar 15, 2011
    1
    DA 2 is not an RPG worthy of praise. It is not even an RPG. Its more like simplified MMORPG. Its battle system are horrendous and its storyline is no better than generic MMORPG in my opinion. The last horror I have with any RPG is the last FF series until I meet this game. To shorten my point, if you are no fan of MMOs, avoid this game. You can find better storyline and combat in genericDA 2 is not an RPG worthy of praise. It is not even an RPG. Its more like simplified MMORPG. Its battle system are horrendous and its storyline is no better than generic MMORPG in my opinion. The last horror I have with any RPG is the last FF series until I meet this game. To shorten my point, if you are no fan of MMOs, avoid this game. You can find better storyline and combat in generic MMO than this game and with all that recycled battlemap and waves type of combat, you better play a Free - to - play Korean MMOs. Seriously, its that bad. The only good thing about this game is, it have a big budget. and Dragon Age for its title. I give score 1 for sympathy sake, but that probably an insult to 1.… Expand
  31. HarveyBirdman
    Mar 16, 2011
    2
    Dragon Age 2 is a thoroughly mediocre game. But it's not the forgivable kind of mediocre -- say, where a new developer strives for greatness but falls far short. It is something much worse: it reflects a deliberate and cynical decision by a top developer to turn a quick profit by whoring a top-tier franchise. This lazy, quick-cash-in approach destroys any sense of immersion or actualDragon Age 2 is a thoroughly mediocre game. But it's not the forgivable kind of mediocre -- say, where a new developer strives for greatness but falls far short. It is something much worse: it reflects a deliberate and cynical decision by a top developer to turn a quick profit by whoring a top-tier franchise. This lazy, quick-cash-in approach destroys any sense of immersion or actual roleplaying. For example, the game features about eight mid-size maps TOTAL: Hightown, Lowtown, Darktown, the Gallows (all of which have the same cold, blocky feel), a generic cave, the coast, the Deep Roads, and a mountain. This lone cave is used for practically every single quest outside of Kirkwall. To be clear, this is not a similar cave (as in, say, Oblivion) -- it is the EXACT SAME CAVE, with various sections closed off. Adding insult to injury, Bioware couldn't even be bothered to provide a different overhead map, or close off the sections in some realistic way, like a cave in. You just find a low-res concrete wall within the door frame. (For reference for DAO fans, the entire game feels about the size of Orzimmar and the Deep Roads in the original.) The result is a boring, empty, claustrophobic game world that annihilates any sense of immersion or exploration.

    Bioware's proposed remedies for this and many other flaws (like spending the entire first act doing random fetch quests to raise money) are (1) improved combat and (2) better writing. I'll gladly admit enjoying the combat visual effects the first time my mage tore through a dozen soldiers. But after a dozen or so battles, shooting fireballs between your legs while turning a backflip becomes dull and repetitive. In DAO, there was great satisfaction in decisively taking down a room of enemies with smart tactics, knowing they would tear you apart if you just ran in and pressed A. In DA2, you just run in and press A.

    The writing is very good in spots, but can't save the game. For every well-written character like Varric, there is a cartoonish caricature like sex-bomb Isabella or a dud like Aveline. For every laugh-out-loud line, there is a wince-inducing response by Hawke. The bottom line is this: Not everyone loved DAO, but millions of people did. Those who loved it did so because it was a sprawling, unabashed, old-school, D&D inspired RPG that challenged the player and provided a genuine sense of high adventure. Bioware seems to believe it can make more money scrapping the sprawling adventure, and instead selling back-flipping, large-breasted rogues who decapitate multiple enemies with the touch of a button. That is, of course, their decision to make. My decision will be to stop buying their products absent evidence of a dramatic reversal in course.    … Expand
  32. jukejoint
    Mar 17, 2011
    0
    It makes me sad to review this game. I have loved everyone of Biowares games, but this one. Dragon Age 2 is nothing of the same game. They took a fantastic RPG and turned it into an Action/combat console game. The combat is not difficult i didn't die once on default settings, not a challenging game.
  33. UserJuicer
    Mar 20, 2011
    4
    Story is interesting, voice work is great.
    Most quests involve running through sewers, caves or country side - all of which you have seen 100 times before.
    During combat enemies come in waves. Killing 10 will almost always guarantee that 10 or 20 more will follow. The combination of the repeated environments and awful, grating combat proves the game didn't receive enough development time    Story is interesting, voice work is great.
    Most quests involve running through sewers, caves or country side - all of which you have seen 100 times before.
    During combat enemies come in waves. Killing 10 will almost always guarantee that 10 or 20 more will follow.
    The combination of the repeated environments and awful, grating combat proves the game didn't receive enough development time and has been padded beyond belief.
    Disappointing.    … Expand
  34. TerminalCraze
    Mar 24, 2011
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. DA2 is absolutely terrible. They took out everything that made the first DA fun. I want to shoot the breeze with my characters, learn about them, have real battles instead of facing endless hordes and spend time setting up their equipment (which, on easy, you barely had to do in DA:O). The characters just plain sucked too, I didn't even like Hawke. Just when I was starting to get Avelina leveled up they just killed her off randomly in the deep roads, what the heck ? Now I am stuck with that loser Anders for the rest of the game if I want a healer, and he's a murderer! If I had paid more then a $10 rental fee for this game I'd be even more pissed. You have your right to like this game, I have the right to hate it. Poor writing, lack of customization, endless recycling of boring and drab environments, just an all around bad game.… Expand
  35. Enex
    Mar 30, 2011
    3
    Disappointing, on the whole. None of your choices actually matter in the game. There is a serious lack of art in the game which leads to extreme repetitive environments and enemies. The "wave" enemies appearing from nowhere are an insult to DA:O more strategic gameplay. The siphoning off much of the game to release as DLC later is stupid. There isn't enough game there to siphon off.Disappointing, on the whole. None of your choices actually matter in the game. There is a serious lack of art in the game which leads to extreme repetitive environments and enemies. The "wave" enemies appearing from nowhere are an insult to DA:O more strategic gameplay. The siphoning off much of the game to release as DLC later is stupid. There isn't enough game there to siphon off. Overall, I'd call it a quick cash-in on a much better title. Hopefully EA will do better next time. (I'm really not even sure you can call them Bioware after this).… Expand
  36. TheArchitect
    Apr 23, 2011
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Horrible disappointment.They took everything that was good in Dragon Age Origins&Awakening and threw it out of the window.Graphics? Poor level design,recycled generic dungeons,90% of the quests are located in ONE CITY! Just terrible.Sound? Also much better in Origins,voice acting in DA2 is poor and unconvincing,music was also waaaaay better in Origins.Dialogues? The dialogue system is a very very poor copy of the Mass Effect dialogue system,with pseudoparagon and pseudorenegade answers and supposedly funny answers that usually spectacularly fail to be funny.Dialogue system in Origins provided much more to choose from and it was much better written.Party members? Extremely annoying and shallow (Varric Tethras is the only half bearable character) and you cannot change their armor AT ALL.Romance? Almost non existant options for any interesting romance,especially for male Hawke,you get to choose from retarded elf woman (Merrill) and a slut (Isabella),that is it if you dont count gay romance with Anders.Combat? One of the most annoying parts of the game,dumbed down to the console click click level catered for the very casual RPG gamers,any true RPG gamer will be extremely disappointed with the new combat system.DAO had pretty good combat system,DA2 combat system is total crap.User interface? DAO had beautifully designed user interface with detailed descriptions of items,now you get a bland black user interface that has no place in any game,let alone a fantasy game.Weapon,armor and item descriptions are also totally dumbed down.Now you actually collect "junk",way to go.Storyline,quests and ending? Unlike DAO,DA2 forces some plot developments on you,regardless of what you do or choices you make,lame.In DAO you could influence even major plot developments,often in significant ways.Now you are forced to accept certain decisions and your influence on them is cosmetics.This game is either rushed so it is half done or Bioware decided to dumb down their best RPG since Baldur's Gate to cater for wider audience,and therefore make more money for Bioware.Hopefully they will listen to the widespread criticism of DA2 and make the likely third installment of Dragon Age once again a real hardcore RPG.DA2 is a great example of what NOT to do with a sequel to a game,take everything that was good,throw it away,add horrible redesign and "new features" that are actually crap and you get this.They even managed to screw up the redesign of DAO character faces like Sandal,Zevran or Alistair.Not to mention that darkspawn now look like a joke.In some moments during gameplay I started laughing on how terrible some things were compared to DAO.I just could not believe that Bioware can screw up the sequel this much.… Expand
  37. Frorfvoid
    May 20, 2011
    0
    It's not often that a sequel comes out worse in every single way to its predecessor, yet the brilliant minds at BioWare have managed to accomplish just that with Dragon Age 2. This game is clearly rushed, likely due to the influence of EA, and doesn't even remotely resemble all of the greatness that Dragon Age Origins was known for. Try harder next time, BioWare, and you might win back myIt's not often that a sequel comes out worse in every single way to its predecessor, yet the brilliant minds at BioWare have managed to accomplish just that with Dragon Age 2. This game is clearly rushed, likely due to the influence of EA, and doesn't even remotely resemble all of the greatness that Dragon Age Origins was known for. Try harder next time, BioWare, and you might win back my business.… Expand
  38. obrion
    May 21, 2011
    0
    what a stupid game i cant beleive i brought it the music is baaaaaaaad the graphics are baaaaaaaad the story is baaaaaaaaaaaaad the whole game is baaaaaaaaaad
  39. Logikal1
    May 21, 2011
    0
    This game is so bad that I consider it unplayable. I have been a BioWare fan for a decade and I'm sad to say that this product is complete and total trash. Not being able to customize your characters armor is obscene. There is no excuse for that. Not having a tactical camera for a game that IN THEORY (and theory only) is a party based tactical combat RPG is obscene. There is no excuse forThis game is so bad that I consider it unplayable. I have been a BioWare fan for a decade and I'm sad to say that this product is complete and total trash. Not being able to customize your characters armor is obscene. There is no excuse for that. Not having a tactical camera for a game that IN THEORY (and theory only) is a party based tactical combat RPG is obscene. There is no excuse for that. Enemies randomly appearing in 5+ waves on nightmare is obscene. Swordman often literally drop from the sky. There is no excuse for that. Areas are recycled over and over. I don't believe ANY are of the game is unique. The game is trash. Don't buy it. Don't rent it. Don't acknowledge it exists. Its really not worth the frustration if you're expecting another incredible BioWare title. That being said...... I hope Mike Laidlaw never develops another BioWare game.… Expand
  40. blueweed
    May 22, 2011
    3
    my second post, and a few things happened that led me to create a metacritic account. I bought DA2 recently, I could not reconcile the quality of this game(bad) so I had gone to the web to check around and I read Laidlaw's defense on DA2 design decicions, fine...then

    Then, I played Witcher 2. so there I made a metacritc account and gave witcher 2 a 10, and had felt responsible to give DA2    my second post, and a few things happened that led me to create a metacritic account. I bought DA2 recently, I could not reconcile the quality of this game(bad) so I had gone to the web to check around and I read Laidlaw's defense on DA2 design decicions, fine...then

    Then, I played Witcher 2.
    so there I made a metacritc account and gave witcher 2 a 10, and had felt responsible to give DA2 a 3. Witcher 2 was made from labor of love, DA2 was made from steaming pile of %$@, laziness, and lies imo. in anycase, DA2 is passe, so you better watch out Skyrim....the bar have just been raised!    … Expand
  41. Wowsa
    May 22, 2011
    2
    Disappointing, rushed, reused cash grab from Bioware/EA. Should never have been advertised as a sequel. Limited role playing, forced decisions that culminate in same ending.
  42. Topster
    Jun 1, 2011
    2
    Ladies and gentlemen, this is the result of attempting to market to the masses. The result of rushing production to "capitalize" on a loved franchise. The result of completely misunderstanding what made the first Dragon Age popular in the first place. This kind of thing is to be expected of that horrid producer EA who, let's face it, would be almost unheard of if they hadn't secured theLadies and gentlemen, this is the result of attempting to market to the masses. The result of rushing production to "capitalize" on a loved franchise. The result of completely misunderstanding what made the first Dragon Age popular in the first place. This kind of thing is to be expected of that horrid producer EA who, let's face it, would be almost unheard of if they hadn't secured the rights to make almost exclusive games for the major sports leagues so long ago. But it is NOT what is to be expected of BioWare, the company that gave us KotOR, Baldur's gate, and Neverwinter Nights. This is not a bad game relatively speaking, but the reason I give this a 2 is because of how much of an utter disappointment it is. Where to start? Dumbing down combat? The copy-pasted environments? The worse inventory system? The dialog wheel that seems more interested in telling its own story regardless of what the player chooses? Hell, they couldn't even get whether consoles had the auto-attack feature fight, which it didn't. Because nothing is more immersive than monotonously having to mash the A button the entire combat. Let's start with combat, shall we? From the very first dev interview I knew something was wrong. This sales guy said something along the lines of "Combat will be streamlined so casual players will be able to just fight their way through without the menu, but for older fans, you can still set up tactics and use the menu!" Essentially, this douchebag told us that you can succeed in combat by completely ignoring tactics and menus, but for some reason they give us the option to use them anyway. The result of this brilliant stratagem is a hack & slash Dynasty Warriors-style game where you mash A through endless hoards of enemies while even more respawn around you who, funnily, go after the closest enemies they spawn near, which is usually the mages handing out in back. Yes, this game PUNISHES YOU for relying on tactics. People say that these issues can be solved through cranking the difficulty up, but I can't fathom how this is the case, since all that accomplishes is making your squishy companions die FASTER. The environments. Need I say more? "Oh, but BW didn't have enough time! It was EA's fault!" Yeah, well I don't see how that changes the fact that after you beat the first act of the game, you have literally seen all there is to see. I wonder what else you could excuse with this logic; "Twilight would have been good if the author didn't suck!" "The Star Wars prequels would have been awesome if George Lucas didn't go insane before writing them!" The fact of the matter is that it sucks. It doesn't matter *why*, because it still does. And to touch on something one of the devs said in defense of the environments, how it was "artfully concealed"? No, it wasn't Having you enter and exit through the same dungeon 30 times from different areas is not "artfully done". Hell, they didn't even bother to alter the minimap to not show areas they block off. The inventory....Can you believe that even though they dumbed the crap out of this system, it STILL gets mired in useless crap you have to micromanage? They take away exchangeable armor for party members, they restrict what kind of weapons they can use (if you want an NPC that can use a bow you pick up, you need to pay for one.) and they don't ever let you change weapon styles. Varric can only ever use his crossbow. Isabella can't use a bow. Aveline can't use a 2h and Fenris can't use a shield. Why. The. Hell. Not? AND YET you still have to micromanage all the loot you pick up to make sure that all your party is still equipped with the best possible gear. BW has made an inventory system that is simpler AND still requires as much micromanaging as the first DA. ow do you DO that? The dialog wheel. Dear GOD the dialog wheel. I will never understand BW's obsession with that system. Why? What is so good about a circular select screen that gives you a few little blurbs of dialog you want to say before your character winds up saying something that only vaguely matches what you picked? If BW doesn't want our input, just make the game action-adventure and make the main character a handsome everyman with short brown hair and stubble who spouts cliched action-movie quotes. That's the direction they seem to have gone anyway. EA is cancer and BW is the willing carrier. Before this game, I was psyched to pick up TOR, ME3, and yeah, DA3. Now? I'm waiting for the reviews to come out before I even consider renting any of those. Vote with your money, people.… Expand
  43. Ozymandias23
    Mar 23, 2011
    0
    I'll just leave this here:

    http://www.gamecritics.com/brad-gallaway/dragon-age-ii-review#comment-38510

    btw I'm giving this a 0 to do my part to offset the 10s given by the EA/Bioware review writers.
  44. Emilia
    Dec 29, 2011
    1
    Honestly, the game is bad. Really bad. The story is slow and bland and the characters are annoying (please bioware, stop constructing dating-sims instead of making rpgs) at best, and hilariously bad at worst. The storytelling technique could be interesting, but it's really hard to tell since the story and characters are so of-the-wall bad that you just can't believe what you're seeing sometimes.
  45. Dyalad
    May 24, 2011
    4
    Dragon Age 2 seems to be an experiment to introduce Bioware's classic RPG elements to console gaming. The result is at best disappointing.

    You play as Hawke, a human refugee from a town called Lothering. Through framed narrative, you lead Hawke's life through important events of his/her life and how they shape the world. As opposed to previous Bioware titles where several decisions would    Dragon Age 2 seems to be an experiment to introduce Bioware's classic RPG elements to console gaming. The result is at best disappointing.

    You play as Hawke, a human refugee from a town called Lothering. Through framed narrative, you lead Hawke's life through important events of his/her life and how they shape the world.

    As opposed to previous Bioware titles where several decisions would affect the game storyline, the only significant change in Dragon Age 2 is in regards to companion relationships. Discussions between companions will slightly vary depending which way they perceive you, but overall, they will still offer the same missions regardless which path you chose to pick.

    And this is where this game fails miserably. Where previous Bioware titles encouraged and rewarded replays, in Dragon Age the replay value is at best poor, arguably non-existent. On a second playthrough one will sadly realize that if they decide to pick opposite options than in their first playthrough, the consequences and dialog will be the same. By that I mean; if you refuse to complete a task, it will be forced upon you. I found that excruciating and shallow.

    The game ending is probably one of the worst I've seen out there for RPGs. It left me unsatisfied, and I basically felt I wasted 30 hours or so to get an ending that I figured out within the first 5 minutes of the game. The only comparable ending dissapointement I can think of was when I ended Neverwinter Nights 2 (original campaign).

    On to combat. The initial release on console did not have auto-attack option. The combat system was extremely tedious and soulcrushing. Had I done this review prior to be fixed, this game would've deserved a 2 at best.

    Combat is an omnipresent element in the game. Combat went to a classic tabletop style in Dragon Ages Origins to a mish mash button spam that sometimes reminded me of Winter Games or something. I think that the idea was good but poorly executed; if you hit the standard attack button 4 times, the 5th attack has an animation with a flourish and does a bit more damage. The other buttons can be used to map skills. Skill cooldowns usually were at least a dozen of seconds, which felt very long when spamming the auto attack button.

    Most combat scenes, if not all, have waves of enemies. While this concept works well in certain situations, its overuse made the game extremely frustrating; the way these waves appeared was most of the time questionable and definitely mood-breaking (bandits "jumping down" from an enclosed ceiling for example).

    Enemy variety is near non-existent. There is a handful of darkspawns (3 types), humanoids, 2 or 3 types of undeads, the odd unique-style bosses, and spiders. Did I mention spiders?

    I could continue going on, but I think I went over some of the things that made me rage the most about this game.

    Anyways. If you're looking for a RPG fix, look elsewhere, because this game has nothing that older western RPGs offer out there.    … Expand
  46. spiderfish
    May 29, 2011
    3
    I would've given this game a higher review if the apple hadn't fallen so far from the tree. The combat is much improved, as is the art direction, but in all other aspects the game falls far short of its predecessor.

    Bioware loves to tout its emphasis on "story, story, story." They should know the heart of any story is it's characters, and boy did they miss the boat in DA2. There are    I would've given this game a higher review if the apple hadn't fallen so far from the tree. The combat is much improved, as is the art direction, but in all other aspects the game falls far short of its predecessor.

    Bioware loves to tout its emphasis on "story, story, story." They should know the heart of any story is it's characters, and boy did they miss the boat in DA2. There are only two interesting characters in the game: Anderson and the Arishok, who outshine the rest of the cast by several orders of magnitude. I felt no connection whatsoever to Hawke, and even less to his groupies. Why are these characters following me around again?

    We've all heard it said that the environment can be a character too. In that sense, Kirkwall is as hollow and uninspiring as the rest of the cast. Hardly anyone in the city is worth talking too. Most NPCs are stereotypes of one kind or another, and the setting loses its luster quickly. You see every environment in the game during the first act, and it's recycled for the rest of the game.

    Choices are meaningless for the most part. You can flip flop between personalities without any consequences. I found myself making conversation choices based on which of the two companion skills I'd like to have. Conversations are far less intricate and engaging than they were in DA:O, probably because the characters themselves are so underwhelming.

    Perhaps Bioware expected the more complex subject material and narrative framing to carry the game. It didn't. DA:O, a perfectly boilerplate monomyth fantasy, was infinitely better.

    What a waste!    … Expand
  47. Davidhowardking
    Aug 31, 2011
    2
    Bioware turned a can't-miss RPG into an easy to digest faux-rpg. It was a waste of time and money. Word is they are going to combine elements of 1 and 2 into 3. My advice is to not make a sequel if that is what they intend to do because the game will not sell. DA2 abandons all the characters from DAO and kills any sense of exploration. The new characters are tepid and the storytellingBioware turned a can't-miss RPG into an easy to digest faux-rpg. It was a waste of time and money. Word is they are going to combine elements of 1 and 2 into 3. My advice is to not make a sequel if that is what they intend to do because the game will not sell. DA2 abandons all the characters from DAO and kills any sense of exploration. The new characters are tepid and the storytelling lame. Your actions have far less impact than they did in DAO.… Expand
  48. laxleonidas
    Sep 17, 2011
    4
    Despite of all expectations, BioWare not only removed good ideas from predecessor, but also used new bad game mechanisms. Forget about tactital fighting, interesting plot and - what's most important - huge, secret world to explore.
  49. barbie
    Oct 6, 2011
    0
    I tried my best to like this game, but I couldnâ
  50. ArcticZombie
    Nov 18, 2011
    1
    I will remember DA2 as the game that officially knocked Bioware off its throne. The king of RPGs has become a fat, lazy, greedy pig of its former self. It is a dumbed-down joke of an RPG that only some delusional fanboy, or unskilled/half-retarded child could ever love. Flat, bland, recycled environments. RPG elements dumbed-down beyond recognition or removed. Lack of detailI will remember DA2 as the game that officially knocked Bioware off its throne. The king of RPGs has become a fat, lazy, greedy pig of its former self. It is a dumbed-down joke of an RPG that only some delusional fanboy, or unskilled/half-retarded child could ever love. Flat, bland, recycled environments. RPG elements dumbed-down beyond recognition or removed. Lack of detail everywhere I look. The Darkspawn don't look evil; they look like knock-off Skeletor action figures. Plastic, dead, and trying too hard to be cool for its own good. Oh, and I hate the fact that my character was already given a name. And a voice. That contributed to the loss of me feeling like I was playing an RPG. That made it feel more like an interactive movie. This game is trash. I wouldn't take it for free. Bioware, wake up and stop contributing to the destruction of society.… Expand
  51. coughxcool
    Dec 13, 2011
    0
    Whate a waste of money. I was disgusted when I realized I was never leaving Kirkwall. The party and friend mechanics were cool, but thats to be expected from any bBoware game at this point.
  52. Eowor
    Dec 13, 2011
    0
    Dragon Age Origins was announced as the spiritual brother of Baldur's Gate, an rpg in the greatest tradition of the genre.
    As has happened for DA2, strengthened by its new license falls as low as that. To make it the worst game bioware?
    On top of that, we see that mass EFFECT2 also had the race to the bottom, less than rpg, more action. But back in to DA2, the game looks better, but we    Dragon Age Origins was announced as the spiritual brother of Baldur's Gate, an rpg in the greatest tradition of the genre.
    As has happened for DA2, strengthened by its new license falls as low as that. To make it the worst game bioware?
    On top of that, we see that mass EFFECT2 also had the race to the bottom, less than rpg, more action.

    But back in to DA2, the game looks better, but we find ourselves in a smaller area, with some areas copy and paste, so an artistic research much less advanced than in DAO.
    The interface is simplistic, the inventory is ugly, I do not understand this modernity while we are in a medieval world. Our compagons wear one armor, unchangeable, innaceptable.
    The fighting tactics were great at a high level of difficulty, now, we are left with the little brother's spiritual Bayonetta, it does not reflect, is dark, no need to break tactics. Enemies out of the ground like moles.
    The story is weak, very weak compared to that of DAO. Immersion is difficult because of the script which is very poorly led. The fault also has not really charismatic fellow. Forget Sten, Alistair, Morrigan ...
    The design of the elves, Qunaris, Flemeth is really in poor taste, too offset from DAO
    The dialogue system is inadequate because not enough choice, because too Manichean. The hero is good but it speaks to the detriment of our answer choices. The world is not black or white, good or bad, the game is intended for an audience too mature to have such simplistic reasoning.
    Quests are a distressing banality, which do not grow more than that a plunge in the background, which is still good (but that's thanks to DAO).
    The soundtrack, also falls short of the first game, Mr. Inon Zur says himself: the game was sloppy
    I finished the game once, and I sold four days after his purchase, and more so because the game is much shorter than the first.
    Conversely, I always Dragon Age Origins and I remade some every 2 months

    Dragon Age 2 is an oil stain in the curriculum vitae of Bioware, I have done once, but I would be very careful next time.

    For me Mass Effect 3 will be your last chance.    … Expand
  53. Ishman
    Dec 20, 2011
    4
    Played on its own merits without any idea of DA:O this game would be quite solid.
    Having loved the original, and feeling like I was taking part in an epic quest that actually meant something, I was sorely disappointed with the follow up. Admittedly the first 10 hours or so were pretty Rad I thought, this was in part due to the fact that I was high as **** when I first got the game, but    Played on its own merits without any idea of DA:O this game would be quite solid.
    Having loved the original, and feeling like I was taking part in an epic quest that actually meant something, I was sorely disappointed with the follow up. Admittedly the first 10 hours or so were pretty Rad I thought, this was in part due to the fact that I was high as **** when I first got the game, but soon enough not even a big stack of weed couldn't improve this bland follow up. The action orientated combat didn't bother me as much as it has others, where it really let me down was the constantly repeating environments, the original had me trekking all over the place to a number of awesome locations, the sequel has going through the same old bland locales over and over. One of the few reviewers who must not have been paid off by EA put it best with "you can't have an epic storyline in your own backyard" or something like that, you get the gist. All in all its not a "bad game" in my mind, but not worthy of being the sequel to the excellent original. If you come to the game having never played the first you will probably enjoy it for what it is. Bioware really need to rethink there game plan for no. 3 especially since Skyrim is now out and has absorbed 80 hours of play time and I haven't really done jack **** so far. In summary, pay more and get Skyrim instead. Shame on you Bioware.Shame on You.    … Expand
  54. Amorphous_Blob
    Feb 8, 2012
    3
    The best thing i can say about this game is that it is relatively stable... That's it... The game play is, for the most part, more or less the same as origins except simpler and with less emphasis on tactics, due to enemies spawning all around he group during fights. The character customisation has been, inexplicably, cut down(even though in the expansions for origins it was improved).The best thing i can say about this game is that it is relatively stable... That's it... The game play is, for the most part, more or less the same as origins except simpler and with less emphasis on tactics, due to enemies spawning all around he group during fights. The character customisation has been, inexplicably, cut down(even though in the expansions for origins it was improved). Many of the more interesting spells from origins have been entirely removed and the player now lacks the ability to decide what their characters wear. Non of this would matter, however, if the story or setting was interesting. They aren't. The story is confused and dull and the same goes for te environments. The main city feels dead with little to interact with. Outside the city, much the same except here the cut-and-paste environments get more noticeable...

    To sum up, EVERYTHING about this game smacks of a lazy developer doing the absolute minimum to make a quick buck. Bioware, you owe me £30...    … Expand
  55. Ahmiran
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    The graphics seem cartoonish and while I like the art for the Qunari, the darkspawn look like clowns with a leather fixation. The environment is endlessly recycled.
    The story is disjointed. The three acts could very well be three separate stories being told. While I like the frame-narrative idea, but the implementation was poor.
    The real killer are the choices or the lack of them to be    The graphics seem cartoonish and while I like the art for the Qunari, the darkspawn look like clowns with a leather fixation. The environment is endlessly recycled.
    The story is disjointed. The three acts could very well be three separate stories being told. While I like the frame-narrative idea, but the implementation was poor.
    The real killer are the choices or the lack of them to be precise. Play the game in 2 completely different ways and you wind up with the same experience will only minor changes, your choice of character class has greater impact on the story than any other choice in the game.
    Thanks to the dialog wheel you have 3 ways of saying the same thing, yes, sarcastic yes or angry yes. It also doesn't help that what it says on the wheel isn't what Hawke says. Too often I was screaming "that's not what I wanted to say." The dialog itself between NPC's is actually very good and the only thing that kept me going through the game.
    Combat, the less said about it the best. Endless waves of generic foes which half the time seem to attack you for no reason what so ever. Too often I found myself asking who are these people and why am I killing them?
    All and all this is a poor game and nothing more than a shameless attempt to milk money off gamers. Stay away.    … Expand
  56. ButtholeSurfer
    May 19, 2012
    3
    Unfortunately for Bioware, Dragon Age WILL be judged and compared against its predecessor, Dragon Age: Origins. This is something to be expected, and this review is written with such a thing in mind.
    And indeed, compared to its predecessor, this game fails to to be equally or even half as good. The combat feels more arcade-like, the abilities watered-down and samey. For me, the worst thing    Unfortunately for Bioware, Dragon Age WILL be judged and compared against its predecessor, Dragon Age: Origins. This is something to be expected, and this review is written with such a thing in mind.
    And indeed, compared to its predecessor, this game fails to to be equally or even half as good. The combat feels more arcade-like, the abilities watered-down and samey. For me, the worst thing Bioware did was essentially eliminate what made DA: O so much fun; the need to use strategy during battles, the need to pause and plan out actions, the use of the abilities of different classes to form a strategy (for example a mage's cone of cold spell to freeze an enemy and stonefist, or a critical hit, to shatter him, and many other combinations). Another, very cheesy aspect of this game was that some of the characters' weapons and armour would automatically upgrade with their level, and for other characters you had to purchase specific upgrades. I'm not an autist by any means, but part of the fun of DA: O was setting up your characters with the correct equipment.
    Atmosphere was also another thing I found lacking in DA II. In DA: O, you really got a sense that you were fighting the Blight (especially when you were at Camp). In DA II, the story doesn't seem to have had any effort put into it, the characters feel boring and uninspired . Just think of Sten, Morrigan, Oghren, Wynne and other DA: O characters, all of which were interesting in their own way. It just feels boring.

    This is by no means a complete review, as I'm not so great at structured writing, but these are indeed my thoughts. My cents.    … Expand
  57. mnKx
    Jun 23, 2020
    4
    Coming fresh from beating DA:O and all of it expansions it makes really frustrating playing this game
    It has basically the same type of combat and commands as DA:O but executed very differently.
    The combat (and the animations) got a lot faster mostly because of the way they design the levels and the combat encounters. Instead of having all the enemies placed on the map, you will find a    Coming fresh from beating DA:O and all of it expansions it makes really frustrating playing this game
    It has basically the same type of combat and commands as DA:O but executed very differently.
    The combat (and the animations) got a lot faster mostly because of the way they design the levels and the combat encounters. Instead of having all the enemies placed on the map, you will find a small group and when you start combat they will have spawning waves of enemies that come from pretty much everywhere in the surrounding area of the encounter, which would be fine if the gameplay itself was something more appropriate to this kind of design (something like Devil May Cry or even Diablo), instead we have very generic and streamlined gameplay mechanics that doesn't fit the type of game that was supposed to be.
    The gameplay changes are probably the worst part about this sequel (even though I liked the new animations compared to the dull ones from DA:O), but another thing that buggered me the most was the reused scenarios and the way they did it, because a lot of times you would do a few missions in a row that used the same scenario but in a different part of the map, which was very bad for immersion
    There are a few things good about the game, but as a Dragon Age title is a disappointment    … Expand
  58. bunndle_of_fun
    Mar 9, 2011
    2
    ... way to go EA for turning Bioware into a factory... you should have waited another year to release this and actually make a decent game...
    steamy triple coiler....
  59. Sabiancym
    Mar 9, 2011
    4
    Yet again a company decides to "improve" their game by removing the complexity and mechanics that made it great in the first place. No longer can you equip your companions with any item you find, you now have set upgrades. The skills have also been dumbed down. Removing or merging skills like trap-making, poison making, etc.

    The combat is also a mess. A slight speed up would have done    Yet again a company decides to "improve" their game by removing the complexity and mechanics that made it great in the first place. No longer can you equip your companions with any item you find, you now have set upgrades. The skills have also been dumbed down. Removing or merging skills like trap-making, poison making, etc.

    The combat is also a mess. A slight speed up would have done Dragon Age well, but they went extremely too far with it. Animations are jerky, gore is over the top, they've basically turned it into a hack and slash RPG game.

    They went away from a lot of what made Dragon Age: Origins great. It's sad that they would insult the people who supported the first game.    … Expand
  60. Pentasurge
    Mar 9, 2011
    1
    Thanks Bioware for all the shades of brown. It's like there was a giant mystical power in the sky just **** out brown the entire time. Also, great job on all the paid reviews, does it feel good to know that everyone thinks your game is **** Oh wait, you only care about the money and profits you can make. The 2005 graphics mix well with all the brown. The dialogue is also very well writtenThanks Bioware for all the shades of brown. It's like there was a giant mystical power in the sky just **** out brown the entire time. Also, great job on all the paid reviews, does it feel good to know that everyone thinks your game is **** Oh wait, you only care about the money and profits you can make. The 2005 graphics mix well with all the brown. The dialogue is also very well written and probably took months to come up the extremely complicated and sophisticated "I want to be a dragon." line.
    **** you Bioware.    … Expand
  61. johnnypopular
    Mar 14, 2011
    0
    Congratulations EA and Bioware! Dragon Age 2 is truly a marvel of modern gaming; no story to get in the way of all that action, no tactics to get in the way of all that hacking... you even reused locations and enemies so we wouldn't get lost or confused. How dear of you! Oh and I promised myself that I wouldn't gush, but I just can't help myself... I love what you've done with theCongratulations EA and Bioware! Dragon Age 2 is truly a marvel of modern gaming; no story to get in the way of all that action, no tactics to get in the way of all that hacking... you even reused locations and enemies so we wouldn't get lost or confused. How dear of you! Oh and I promised myself that I wouldn't gush, but I just can't help myself... I love what you've done with the armor/robes- they are still color coded! Some naysayers think that they are all the same and just palette swapped, but I don't believe it, not one word! You also got rid of all those messy RPG bits like speech challenges and an overarching quest, how silly, who would want either of those? Fat nerds, that's who! But don't you worry Bioware, you are on the side of the angels, or in this case the side of ADD afflicted pre-teens, but they are kinda angelic when they are not snorting Ritalin.
    So Once again, congratulations are due to EA and Bioware! You've made Dragon Age 2 more accessible for action oriented/casual gamers! Of course in the process you forgot who your real fans were, you know those crazy RPG kids who actually bought DA1 and all those pitiful DLC snippets, but who cares, right? You got our money too! You guys should be proud, seriously...    … Expand
  62. City17
    Mar 14, 2011
    0
    Never hated a game so much ever. It's so badly designed and the fact that someone who made this game is reviewing it as a user is absolutely appalling. https://twitter.com/lewiep/status/47399904137584640
  63. mratomix
    Mar 16, 2011
    1
    Poor narrative choices mixed with repetitive gameplay and a good bit of EA chicanery to boot and this game went from being just amazing to disappointing quick. Trying to appeal to everyone, Bioware has become the puppet of EA and I for one thinks it's a shame that such a formerly-great developer couldn't distance itself from the rest of the pack and give us an experience they invested morePoor narrative choices mixed with repetitive gameplay and a good bit of EA chicanery to boot and this game went from being just amazing to disappointing quick. Trying to appeal to everyone, Bioware has become the puppet of EA and I for one thinks it's a shame that such a formerly-great developer couldn't distance itself from the rest of the pack and give us an experience they invested more than just EA's cash into. Sucks for the developers and for the gamers, not for EA, because ultimately we are the one's getting screwed raw here.… Expand
  64. kingjamesjr
    Mar 19, 2011
    2
    First off, this game had potential but somewhere down the line, someone really made some fuc up decision, this game no way a sequel to dao, I feel really sad that bioware has really drop the ball on this game, it's time for Bioware to grow some real balls and tell ea to suk it. Because at this current rate Bioware is going to lose its fan base at a rapid pace if this mickey mouse ****First off, this game had potential but somewhere down the line, someone really made some fuc up decision, this game no way a sequel to dao, I feel really sad that bioware has really drop the ball on this game, it's time for Bioware to grow some real balls and tell ea to suk it. Because at this current rate Bioware is going to lose its fan base at a rapid pace if this mickey mouse **** keeps up! Now back to this awful of a game period, this game is so simple that my 2 yr can play, I just hope that's not the market Bioware or Ea are trying to target because if it is they fail miserablely. There is nothing in this game that saids i'm the damn best rpg out there so screw everyone else! They have made some improvements but they over did it with the more i reuse the better the game will be concept. Which fail miserable again. My real gripe is this why mess with a game that could have been a great by trying to make it a action rpg which fail btw look at ff13 a massive falier. In the future, stop EA from messing with what ur company does best Good story, character that u truely love and hate,innovating character design and maps those are ur real strength in making a stellar rpg game. Oh btw, I will never by a game pre-order period from u guys any more what a shame, That u let alot of folks down with this so called sequel that suppose to top DA:O and i swear all the hype behind this title was really misleading and Ea And Bioware should be ashame of themselves Cuz actually i feel cheated cuz i bought a product that did nothing what was suppose to do most of all suppose to be entertaining. All i got was bunch of nonsense that really didn't make any sense.… Expand
  65. Cobrawar
    Mar 14, 2011
    0
    Lolz on you, if you buy this game. First off if you want the full content on release its going to cost you over 70 dollars. Story takes place mostly in one area, kirkwall. reuse of many areas in the game. graphics aren't that much better then DAO. Combat consist of nothing but spamming abilities. enemies spawn on top of you. Many bugs. This is not a Bioware quality product we all knowLolz on you, if you buy this game. First off if you want the full content on release its going to cost you over 70 dollars. Story takes place mostly in one area, kirkwall. reuse of many areas in the game. graphics aren't that much better then DAO. Combat consist of nothing but spamming abilities. enemies spawn on top of you. Many bugs. This is not a Bioware quality product we all know and love. This is a rushed ,greed game used to maximize profits for EA.… Expand
  66. PeaceWalker
    Mar 11, 2011
    0
    DON'T BUY THIS! It's one of the bad RPGs I've played in recent years. Bad story, bad characters, bad setting, inferior music (the composer himself admitted it was a "rush job"). Even years old RPG games from a PSP can beat this. DUMB, CHEESY GAME.
  67. clawbytes
    Mar 14, 2011
    3
    An insult to anyone who enjoyed the first game. How the hell can you screw up a good game? The formula to making a decent sequel isn't hard to figure out. Just simply BUILD ON TOP OF WHAT YOU HAVE. Instead, Bioware took out everything great about the first game. Players aren't given the choice to choose their own races this time around. This would be bearable, except your companions aren'tAn insult to anyone who enjoyed the first game. How the hell can you screw up a good game? The formula to making a decent sequel isn't hard to figure out. Just simply BUILD ON TOP OF WHAT YOU HAVE. Instead, Bioware took out everything great about the first game. Players aren't given the choice to choose their own races this time around. This would be bearable, except your companions aren't exactly diverse either. Aside from a shaved Dwarf that looks exactly human (save the height), an emo Elf and another popsicle stick she-elf, the rest of your team comprises of boring human characters. Let's say you wouldn't mind that either, but would you care if you spend the MAJORITY of your time doing quests in a town? I won't even go into the half-baked direction in story line. The developers clearly took a page from the 2004 Chinese movie Hero, except from the exaggerated tale in the beginning, the rest of the story becomes linear as hell. Your role in the story doesn't fare too well either. You don't become anywhere as great as humanity's savior, instead you run around town settling a petty political dispute. If that's also not so bad? You rarely fight Darkspawn this time around. All you fight are rouge mages and bandits. For the fans who insists on playing the game, don't buy it. Rent it or wait for the price to drop, which I'm sure won't take long since the game is so crappy anyways. Or if you've never played any game in the series, just get the first one. At least then you'll understand why I'm so mad.… Expand
  68. PlutoniumTiger
    Mar 16, 2011
    3
    First of all, just to clear things up, "Avanost" is a Bioware engineer. You see, as long as the critic ratings are positive, Bioware care about their "fans", & their opinions. But when the user reviews are negative, Bioware just dismiss them as an "overreaction". Thats right, we are all far too stupid to play proper RPGs - all we want is dumbed-downed drivel, but we just don't know it!
  69. Zappman321
    Mar 10, 2011
    0
    I did not like this game. I thought it was majorly dumbed down compared to DA:O, which wasn't even that good of a game. I hope Bioware can learn from this fiasco and do a much better job with the equally anticipated Mass Effect 3 title.
  70. orionstarmurder
    Mar 10, 2011
    0
    Let me start off by saying I completely and utterly enjoyed the first dragon age, so of course I was plenty hyped for the next incarnation. What I got was an obviously rushed poorly designed shell of a game. I don't think it would have been as bad if I had been informed of the dramatic changes and 180 degree gameplay and story turns. But in all honesty this is a let down. 80% of the gameLet me start off by saying I completely and utterly enjoyed the first dragon age, so of course I was plenty hyped for the next incarnation. What I got was an obviously rushed poorly designed shell of a game. I don't think it would have been as bad if I had been informed of the dramatic changes and 180 degree gameplay and story turns. But in all honesty this is a let down. 80% of the game is spent in one place no more traveling around and doing fun stuff, the main enemies from the first game have been completely redesigned and everyone in the universe apparently hasn't noticed. The level design and colors are all plain, boring, and dull. Not too mention the combat is now a button smashing hack and slash, ugh cant explain how hurt and disappointed I am.… Expand
  71. Jandei
    Mar 11, 2011
    0
    New Coke anyone? Our new formula is better than our original (seriously--just have a sip).

    Sadly, this could have been avoided. It was a matter of setting expectations and marketing this not as a sequel (as it deviates too far from the original) but as a X X of Dragon Age or Dragon Age Hero X. Although, Dragon Age 2 it's not. Crpg to Arpg in an existing IP wasn't even a risky move--it    New Coke anyone? Our new formula is better than our original (seriously--just have a sip).

    Sadly, this could have been avoided. It was a matter of setting expectations and marketing this not as a sequel (as it deviates too far from the original) but as a X X of Dragon Age or Dragon Age Hero X. Although, Dragon Age 2 it's not. Crpg to Arpg in an existing IP wasn't even a risky move--it was foolish.

    Bioware has every right to change direction, but this wasn't well coordinated or thought out. I smell EA in the mix ... and hope that the black eye Bioware has now taken will strengthen their resolve in the future. Please stay true, Bioware, please stay true in the end...

    Please don't mistake me: The devs are not at fault. It's the fault of everyone on the GTM (go-to-market) team who signed off on this. Fire them. It's a disaster.    … Expand
  72. asassin667
    Mar 11, 2011
    0
    As someone who absolutely loved Dragon Age Origins ( I completed 6 playthroughs and finished Awakenings and most of the DLCs), I am traumatized by how much I dislike Dragon Age 2. They changed things in this game that didn't need fixing in my opinion. Sorry but does anyone else hate the new look of the Dalish Elves as much as me? I can't stand the new look of the Dalish Elves. I don'tAs someone who absolutely loved Dragon Age Origins ( I completed 6 playthroughs and finished Awakenings and most of the DLCs), I am traumatized by how much I dislike Dragon Age 2. They changed things in this game that didn't need fixing in my opinion. Sorry but does anyone else hate the new look of the Dalish Elves as much as me? I can't stand the new look of the Dalish Elves. I don't think they seem more mystical as some people have said but they remind me of the horrible creatures from Avatar. It kills me that they ruined something that was visually pleasing before to something so cartoonish and weird looking. I also don't like the new combat system. It seems like mindless button mashing is all that is required. I also don't like the annoying new levelling up system. I don't feel as strong of emotional attachments to my companions as I did in the first game. I'll still play this game since I've played out Oblivion, Fallout 3 and New Vegas but I am disappointed. I hope Skyrim gives me something better to immerse myself in than this game.… Expand
  73. Toxic_Ninja
    Mar 15, 2011
    0
    I think it must have been around my 7th hour of farming 50 gold for an expedition I had no reason to go on, right around the time I was running through the fourth instance of the same god damn cave when I realized this game was unsalvagable.

    The story is garbage. The gameplay is a dumbed down version of the first one. On the plus side, they broke my favorite feature from DA:O, they    I think it must have been around my 7th hour of farming 50 gold for an expedition I had no reason to go on, right around the time I was running through the fourth instance of the same god damn cave when I realized this game was unsalvagable.

    The story is garbage.

    The gameplay is a dumbed down version of the first one.

    On the plus side, they broke my favorite feature from DA:O, they replaced the chat system with some mass effect 2 piece of ****

    This game has zero immersion, 12 hours in I still saw no story. How can a game like this even be immersive? I mean, they recycle the dungeons so **** hard it's insane. Way to go bioware, you've gone so far down hill since your kotor and bg days. I blame EA more than you, you're not the first studio they destroyed, who else remembers westwood?    … Expand
  74. iocus
    Mar 11, 2011
    0
    Ð
  75. thelivingsauce2
    Mar 12, 2011
    3
    After playing this game I have to say it has to be the worst bioware game ever released. I have a few problems with the game one in the constant re-use of areas. The second is after I heard about EA banning a player from playing their game for calling them a devil company I knew I made a mistake in buying this game. Then I recently heard about EA and Bioware lying to their fans aboutAfter playing this game I have to say it has to be the worst bioware game ever released. I have a few problems with the game one in the constant re-use of areas. The second is after I heard about EA banning a player from playing their game for calling them a devil company I knew I made a mistake in buying this game. Then I recently heard about EA and Bioware lying to their fans about securom in their game and last I heard about how they scammed many a customer out of the Signature Edition because they were to lazy to make enough copies for their fans, but more so is how Mike Laidlaw in an interview pretty much said "people hate complex things so we must call our fans stupid under the guise we are doing what we feel is going to be better"(ok not exactly like that). Now for the game I CAN NOT stress enough how many times they re-used the same locations. The characters you can only talk to at set intervals(at each new act). I think this is the beginning of the end of bioware cause if this is the best they can do under EA then it's clear EA will continue to rush bioware's games out for the sake of making a quick buck, but hey bioware decided to merge with ea.… Expand
  76. FapFapFap
    Mar 12, 2011
    1
    EA rushed the game to capitalize on the success of the first one. This game sucks. They should call this Dragon Age 2: Errand Boy. Everything about this game is dumb down to appeal to a larger audience and to the console gamers. The interface looks like it was taken from Mass Effect. The characters are boring; where's Allistor when you need him. All the fine details of the original areEA rushed the game to capitalize on the success of the first one. This game sucks. They should call this Dragon Age 2: Errand Boy. Everything about this game is dumb down to appeal to a larger audience and to the console gamers. The interface looks like it was taken from Mass Effect. The characters are boring; where's Allistor when you need him. All the fine details of the original are gone, and what is left is a streamlined, dull, and repetitive sequel. If I wanted to play a japanese RPG, I'll play a freakin' japanese RPG. SCREW YOU EA!!!… Expand
  77. xtrmx
    Mar 15, 2011
    0
    Why I can't rate the PC version with a big fat ZERO is beyond me, bioware also paying off metacritic now?
    All has been said already, they took DA:O, deleted half of the content, "fixed" everything so it became broken, and hired a hobo on the street to write up a story to save money.
  78. Nikkol
    Mar 14, 2011
    0
    the game is abysmal. I don't care about graphics, but story and presentation is terrible. Camera, with tactical view gone, is something horrible, especially with targeting bosses in a cluster of weak enemies. Dialogues give you virtually no alternative, you are shoved into pre-made decisions. Where Origina and Awakening reacted to your char, DA2 simply ignores it completely. You canthe game is abysmal. I don't care about graphics, but story and presentation is terrible. Camera, with tactical view gone, is something horrible, especially with targeting bosses in a cluster of weak enemies. Dialogues give you virtually no alternative, you are shoved into pre-made decisions. Where Origina and Awakening reacted to your char, DA2 simply ignores it completely. You can perform Blood Magic and second later speak that Blood Magic is a sin, and all who practice it should die. Dialogue wheel is another step to console idiocy. Combat...I don't wanna even start. that's jRpg, simply.… Expand
  79. Hammerholm
    Mar 14, 2011
    0
    Absolute rubbish Bioware, I hope you learn something from the USER experience & score of this game, no matter the platform. I can't believe you'd give in to the temptation of easy made money.
  80. ArcticFox
    Mar 15, 2011
    2
    This game was made for people that don't really have any demands regarding dialogue, game-design or features in an RPG. I would rather replay the witcher 10 times than have played this even once!
  81. El_Duckie
    Mar 17, 2011
    3
    I don't say this often, but I found myself unable to complete this game. Not out of difficulty mind you, but sheer boredom. After completely ignoring their old fanbase who enjoyed the original, Bioware, and I quote, "want call of duty's audience." I.e. a bunch of ADD 12 year olds, and this shows in the changes. Gone are the skill trees in the first game, replaced instead with...nothing.I don't say this often, but I found myself unable to complete this game. Not out of difficulty mind you, but sheer boredom. After completely ignoring their old fanbase who enjoyed the original, Bioware, and I quote, "want call of duty's audience." I.e. a bunch of ADD 12 year olds, and this shows in the changes. Gone are the skill trees in the first game, replaced instead with...nothing. Something as simple as a skill tree would scare off the Call of Duty audience so they just got rid of it altogether. Combat is now hack'n'slash in Devil May Cry style, only without the fun. The graphics are awful, textures and objects are poorly rendered, but don't worry, I heard they're releasing a graphics overhaul as DLC for the low price of £14.99. Bioware seems to have it's greedy heart set on deliberately taking out features of a finished game and forcing you to pay extra for content that should've been part of the game originally.

    If you can't be bothered to read that, imagine Dragon Age I as an older brother. He has his flaws, he's hardworking, immersive and generally an interesting person to be around. Dragon Age 2 is it's younger, exceedingly simple and borderline retarded brother, who was diagnosed with ADD as a fetus.    … Expand
  82. Jealousy
    Mar 17, 2011
    0
    DA2 gone very wrong. It's no more a tactical RPG, it's just an action point & click. Example : when you are in a tavern, you can only talk to Isabella and Varric, and that's only when they have quests available. You can't interact with any of the NPCs at all. The wheel of dialogue don't do her job, sometimes you select a choice, and the dialogue is completely different and then you getDA2 gone very wrong. It's no more a tactical RPG, it's just an action point & click. Example : when you are in a tavern, you can only talk to Isabella and Varric, and that's only when they have quests available. You can't interact with any of the NPCs at all. The wheel of dialogue don't do her job, sometimes you select a choice, and the dialogue is completely different and then you get loose in the conversation, the choice have not really any impact on the story. Optionnal quest are boring, some are using the same graphic for the dungeon. Only one city ..… Expand
  83. NotTodayThanks
    Mar 15, 2011
    2
    Not good. Not good at all. Still an ugly game, so generic in the fantasy space it had to sue the word `Dragon` in the title... there are much better games out there that are basically the same, currently in the bargain bin. Go buy one of those.
  84. sugam
    Mar 12, 2011
    0
    Hay guys, I just thought I would say that DA2 is the greatest game of all time......lol, just kidding, its fail. Bioware rushed the game to milk us idiots, that's the story behind it. Repeated zones, nearly no customization, no rpg elements. Look at the combat, no CC? look at the choices to make in dialog, it MAKES NO DIFFERENCE WHAT YOU CHOSE. Are you gay? well tough, everybody wants yourHay guys, I just thought I would say that DA2 is the greatest game of all time......lol, just kidding, its fail. Bioware rushed the game to milk us idiots, that's the story behind it. Repeated zones, nearly no customization, no rpg elements. Look at the combat, no CC? look at the choices to make in dialog, it MAKES NO DIFFERENCE WHAT YOU CHOSE. Are you gay? well tough, everybody wants your bod and often tried to jump your bones.

    I would give the game a 3.0 but all the "greatest game ever" fan boy crap is all lies, so SOME ONE has to balance the games score, imiright?    … Expand
  85. Eddyward
    Mar 11, 2011
    1
    I have always been a fan of Bioware, and always backed it when people would their RPGs boring. I grew up with NWN and absolutely loved KotOR. I enjoyed Mass Effect and the sequel was also pretty good. I thoroughly enjoyed Dragon Age Origins, and Bioware shone in DA's characterisation and storyline. Dragon Age 2 pales in comparison to its predecessor. (Just for the record, this is not aI have always been a fan of Bioware, and always backed it when people would their RPGs boring. I grew up with NWN and absolutely loved KotOR. I enjoyed Mass Effect and the sequel was also pretty good. I thoroughly enjoyed Dragon Age Origins, and Bioware shone in DA's characterisation and storyline. Dragon Age 2 pales in comparison to its predecessor. (Just for the record, this is not a troll post. I've seen that many bioware employees have been accusing people of intentionally rating down DA2.)

    There are a couple of improvements, I suppose. The combat's generally a bit higher paced, and I always found DA's combat a little slow. Party members also seem to have a bit more character (in DA, Alistair and Morrigan had some character, while everyone else just seemed to have one theme which they stuck to as stereotypically as possible). The use of less party members means that you don't have people who say they want to help the Warden, but instead sit around in a camp all day everyday. It's also nice to know what effect you speech options will have.

    Now to the bad points. The textures on the characters is about the same as on DA, while the textures on everything else is somehow worse than on DAO. I get that texture quality may stagnate between games, but how can it be regressive? The voice acting is much worse and default Hawke's face looked silly. A big thing in RPGs these days is the choices you make. The only choices you get to make in DA2 are who you have sex with and whether the templars do or don't like you. You can't even choose your race. Another annoying thing that DAO didn't have (well there wasn't too much of it) was sidequests that are fetch this, collect that. I would've though the champion has better things to do. There's no continuity between what you did in DAO and what happens in DA2. I freed the mages. They don't need to rebel. And Anders was the only cool character in Awakening, and they ruined him. DAO left on a lot of cliffhangers, and DA2 didn't even mention them. I understand that Bioware is trying to set up a fantasy world of their own, but DA2 added nothing to this.

    I'm overlooking EA's and Bioware's treatment of its customers when reviewing DA2.

    I've been constantly holding out for a NWN or BG clone, and Bioware's the only company that's gonna make that, but they refuse to go back to their roots, and instead stick with action RPGs where the only thing players ever discuss is who they slept with. I can't really see The Old Republic doing well and if ME3 doesn't do well, I imagine it'll be end of line for Bioware.    … Expand
  86. Yasuchika
    Mar 10, 2011
    0
    I thought DA:O was a decent enough game, although it wasn't the baldur's gate successor I was hoping for. This game however has nothing to do with the term RPG and is an insult to the DA:O fans.
  87. Puma_Mexa
    Mar 10, 2011
    0
    Previous game was miles better. This one is just average at best, definitely not worthy of a good score. But I can see EA payed every relevant reviewer to have a descent score on Metacritic, though If you see the user scores It clearly shows the discontent of gamers about DA2, too much hype and all we got was a game where the only descent point is the combat mechanics (just at hard). EvenPrevious game was miles better. This one is just average at best, definitely not worthy of a good score. But I can see EA payed every relevant reviewer to have a descent score on Metacritic, though If you see the user scores It clearly shows the discontent of gamers about DA2, too much hype and all we got was a game where the only descent point is the combat mechanics (just at hard). Even the graphics are really bad. I have a high end PC were I can run Crysis at max at 60fps, but DA2 consumes a ridiculous amount of resources even on medium settings, and it's not like it has state of the art visuals or employs real time physics in every interaction either. I was going to give it a 5 but now. Bioware, banning a gamer and not letting him play the game just because he talked bad about your overlord, EA? That's low, and not just Activision low. See if I ever buy another game from you.… Expand
  88. Enshia
    Mar 9, 2011
    4
    After nearly 10hrs of game play I'll start with the "game is a step backwards" statement. Anyone who believes otherwise is a blind fanboy(and yes I really did and do like previous BW titles and was a fanboy). The real problems start when the game moved from a cRPG(dao/a) to a action RPG. Where your PC does lightening fast **** that makes things explode! Well I suppose if you like that,After nearly 10hrs of game play I'll start with the "game is a step backwards" statement. Anyone who believes otherwise is a blind fanboy(and yes I really did and do like previous BW titles and was a fanboy). The real problems start when the game moved from a cRPG(dao/a) to a action RPG. Where your PC does lightening fast **** that makes things explode! Well I suppose if you like that, this game is for you. There's serious problems with how bosses are dealt with. First if you attack a boss, they spawn 'friends'. Then as you keep attacking them, they spawn more, and sometimes more! This is the cheap way of making content hard. Sure I can understand having minions, but repeatedly spawning 8 groups of 10 mobs to make something difficult? No dice. The level designs are lack luster(the city itself is pretty). But you're going to revisit the same areas, again, and again, and again. Did I mention going to the same areas again? Maybe not. You will not have party conversations while out and about, nope you must goto their house/building/hideout. The difficulty scaling is messed up, no longer following a core set of rules. If you're waiting for us modders to fix the game? Well who knows, because they have yet to even say if we'll get a toolset. And the original toolset doesn't work in the game, missing assets and all that.

    I could carry on with the spell changes, and several other things but there's no real point. I'll say this, if you want to buy the game wait for the super-ultra-deluxe version, where you won't be nickeled and dimed over DLC. And hopefully by then we'll have a toolset, and be able to fix this horrid game.    … Expand
  89. Eikinskjaldi
    Mar 14, 2011
    0
    The worst sequel i ever played. Perhaps developers planned this game for dumb heads? 3 variants of answers in dialogs, poor armor and weapons arsenal, stupid, oh sorry, idiotic combat system, absolutely predictable story and a lot of other "great" innovations...
    Am i sleep or this guys really developed the greatest rpg games in past?
    Also, about magazines score - Are U F Kidding? 9/10 -    The worst sequel i ever played. Perhaps developers planned this game for dumb heads? 3 variants of answers in dialogs, poor armor and weapons arsenal, stupid, oh sorry, idiotic combat system, absolutely predictable story and a lot of other "great" innovations...
    Am i sleep or this guys really developed the greatest rpg games in past?
    Also, about magazines score - Are U F Kidding? 9/10 - for what? O_o
    2.0/10.0 - enough for this "masterpiece"    … Expand
  90. lelloraff
    Mar 11, 2011
    0
    Dragon Age 2 it's painful! I liked Origins for its great dialogues, variety of environments, graphics realism, charismatic characters, possibility of choices. Dragon Age 2 have nothing of that!
  91. vandro
    Mar 12, 2011
    0
    Less races, less skills, less hours of gaming, but more jumping, more killing, more speed. Meant to be a casual game for casual gamers. But looks like a game for people who like tu run amok.
  92. ikatomas
    Jun 8, 2011
    0
    A pale shadow of bioware's old titles. Lazy Coding, bad scripting, no appreciation of the RPG genere, linear plot, DA:O, BG, KOTOR were classics. This one is too. A Classic embaressment of piss poor effort.
  93. Tomtzor
    Jun 20, 2011
    3
    This is not a role-playing game, it's a dumbed down piece of sh*t!
    How could you do this to the Dragon Age franchise EA?!
    Shame on you! You can't talk with any of the characters (except when the game allows you 1 out of 100 times ) You can't customize anything basically! The story is crap, the characters are crap. But goddamnit! It's Dragon Age! I pushed through and enjoyed parts of it, I    This is not a role-playing game, it's a dumbed down piece of sh*t!
    How could you do this to the Dragon Age franchise EA?!
    Shame on you!
    You can't talk with any of the characters (except when the game allows you 1 out of 100 times )
    You can't customize anything basically!
    The story is crap, the characters are crap.
    But goddamnit! It's Dragon Age!
    I pushed through and enjoyed parts of it, I must admit
    I did not mind the changes to combat so much, it was pretty engaging, and the interface was really neat!
    But the rest is just an on-going train-wreck of quick cash-in of a franchise
    I'll go nuts if they do the same with Mass Effect 3!
    Cmon Bioware! You are the rpg kings!
    Bring it next time!    … Expand
  94. Lawlimnator
    Mar 14, 2011
    3
    Visual: 3/10. Too much junk that bugs me.
    Pros-
    1. They're in hi-def (that's to be expected nowadays, though). Cons- 1. Ground mapping re-used over and over and over. I know this can be real-to-life as far as buildings go, but why are all the caves and mountains the same? 2. Certain people from past games physically changed way too much. 3. Hair. I keep seeing hair do things it    Visual: 3/10. Too much junk that bugs me.
    Pros-
    1. They're in hi-def (that's to be expected nowadays, though).
    Cons-
    1. Ground mapping re-used over and over and over. I know this can be real-to-life as far as buildings go, but why are all the caves and mountains the same?
    2. Certain people from past games physically changed way too much.
    3. Hair. I keep seeing hair do things it shouldn't. While I forgive hair falling through bodies and the like, I can't honestly say I'm pleased about the hair on the back of the elven leader's neck overlapping her collar. Or in other parts, not being connected to her neck at all. It's little wonder half the characters have short or pulled up hair in this game.
    4. Rarely, but sometimes, I can see the audio not having great lip sync. 5. Most non-important characters are replicas (or close to it) of someone else. I don't just mean the horde of enemies you're cutting through, I mean anyone that doesn't have much screen time. Like character A from side quest B looks too much like character B from side quest A.
    Audio: 6/10
    Pros-
    1. Voice acting on main characters is always good, and overall, I only had one character that really bugged me, voice-acting wise.
    2. The main character (i.e. YOU) actually talks. Thank God we're out of the silent savior age of games.
    Cons-
    1. A lot of times, I felt like I'd heard "this music" somewhere before. Obviously they wrote the music for the game, I'm not saying they ripped off some major motion picture, but it's just generic. Being that music is important, this one hits worse than the usual cons.
    2. Not enough background noise. We're in the mountains, is the wildlife dead? Where's the wind and splashing water on the coast?
    Game Play: 2/10
    Pros-
    1. Combat flows better than the original.
    2. Warriors actually do stuff to have top dps, not just dual wield and eat all their stamina with sustained buffs.
    Cons- 1. It's hard to justify more than one mage. Their cooldowns are just too long, all you want is the brittle for your warriors/rogues.
    2. Gearing sucks. I agree with locking us based on the primary stat (Strength, dexterity, or magic), but not so much the secondary one (constitution, cunning, or willpower). Not all my warriors are tanks, some of my mages might be blood. I guess the rogue one doesn't really matter, cunning is useful.
    3. Interaction sucks. I liked in Dragon Age when I couldn't tell how they might like my reaction based on a pretty picture in the middle. For the most part, this isn't too bad, but it seriously tosses you insta-romance. There's no struggle there, and I hate it.
    4. I can't think of many games that require me to constantly pause in combat to beat a boss. The tactics menu is still a joke.
    5. Depending too much on user addons, which are hard to put out without an updated addon creator.
    6. Can't change my allies actual armor, just upgrade it. Even then, I can't honestly see a difference. Maybe I need all four upgrades, but there should be intermediate steps at least.
    7. I know this doesn't bother everyone, but I hate not having everyone in my active party. I guess they'd better fix 4 first, otherwise I'd be pausing every half-second.
    8. Why can't everyone have a specialized talent tree? It sucks that I have to choose from four characters to be on my team because the other four don't get a character-specific talent tree.
    9. Combat is way too repetitive. 10. Story is too linear. When I think successful RPG, I think of things like Morrowind with a much more open-world environment.    … Expand
  95. dgrey
    Mar 17, 2011
    0
    This game represents exactly what is wrong with the video game industry these days. What's more is that developers are attempting to inflate the scores of these games by creating fake reviews (see "Avanost"). For that, and the fact that this game is a travesty, I'm giving the game a 0.
  96. Skyduke
    Mar 18, 2011
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. First of all: if you thought this game was going to be a successor to Dragon Age, my advice to you is: don't buy it. You will be sorely disappointed. It has nothing of the depth and immersion of the first game; the dialogue is trite, and there is little to no party interaction (you can't even chat to your companions at a camp, for crying out loud...).
    The quests are very much disconnected; there is no central theme to it, like there was in the first game. There is no overarching goal. You are basically just doing random, WoW-like quests. The "main" quests make little or no sense, and I'm honestly not sure your choices matter that much, except for one or two major exceptions. To give you an idea: I sided with the mages: Orsino turning to blood magic when we had been killing all the templars and had been supporting him all the way made no sense at all.
    Now, I'll just tell you what I think the good and bad points are:
    Positive: Faster, more reactive fights (with the downside that they are now a little too fast; feels a lot like button mashing to me, and waiting for your cooldowns...). Your choices do have real consequences on the plot/setting/companions.
    That's it.
    Negative: Watered down story, which at times will make no sense at all. Feeling of disconnection and "just wandering around".
    Very little meaningful party interaction.
    Quite a few bugs left.
    Ending was very unsatisfying: no summary of what happens to the participants depending on what you did during the game.
    No truly horrific elements, like the Deep Roads in the first one.
    Trite, often juvenile, canned dialogue. "Steer my boat" Hurhurhur!!!
    Graphics are actually worse than the first (all things equal).
    Canned, cut-and-paste repetitive dungeons with no character.

    All in all, I am really disappointed. I expected much better.    … Expand
  97. L0RDNIK0N
    Mar 23, 2011
    2
    The Good: The name
    The Bad: The game
    The Ugly: The elves

    Hardly an RPG at all. A disgrace to the title Dragon Age. Poorly built, uninspired and shallow gameplay with predictable characters and anime style combat. Almost complete garbage. Beats looking at a blank screen, but not by much.
  98. Epicmaster
    Jun 17, 2011
    2
    Very Unsatisfying RPG game in general, story did not take full advantage of the depth possibility of frame narrative, The Game is full off little things that make it less of a deep RPG and more of an action adventure game. The ending of the game is probably the worst of any RPG i have played. I only finished this game because of the commitment I had from finishing DA:O.
  99. brisbanesimon
    May 17, 2011
    0
    I am so disappointed in this game,went out and brought it as soon as it was released,there was no love put into the making of this game there are sloppy textures everywhere and the world seems to be populates by poorly realized idiotic characters,shame on you bioware I will be thinking twice about buying any product that you release in the future
  100. cainx10a
    May 17, 2011
    0
    I played through the first Dragon Age and its expansion pack, Awakening for a total of 300+ hours, and plan to play more of it over the coming years. Dragon Age: Origins was one of the best RPGs I played in my life time (25 y/o gamer who has played every games in BioWare library). Dragon Age 2 is a mediocre game that is undeserving of the high score given to it by professional reviewers,I played through the first Dragon Age and its expansion pack, Awakening for a total of 300+ hours, and plan to play more of it over the coming years. Dragon Age: Origins was one of the best RPGs I played in my life time (25 y/o gamer who has played every games in BioWare library). Dragon Age 2 is a mediocre game that is undeserving of the high score given to it by professional reviewers, and its legion of fanboys and fangirls who remind me more of twilight fans than mature and honest people. From the unscrupulous BioWare employee who would go as far as accuse The Witcher 2 of plagiarizing its source material (being the Witcher's book itself) for which it was given consent to (how do write something like that is beyond me) to others who are adamant their game is good, and will pay no heed to the complaints of the product, this is a game whose developers only care about hearing praises rather than meaningful criticism, and are eager to shut down everyone who say otherwise. -Story- I love the story, it's an interesting concept to move away from the usual RPG cliche of Epics. Here we live in the small clothes of Hawke, an immigrant to the city of Kirkwall and how over 7 years of Hawke's life, his actions will affect the lives of Kirkwall multi-racial population. It's a personal story... I enjoyed it, a lot. The relationship is great too, the fact that they went with everyone is a Bi is a good move, too bad that'snot the case in real life, but hey, that's what games are for right? ESCAPISM! yay! I would say, if you can ignore every of the gripe I have about the game, go for it. My score of 0 is a biased one, because I had a bad time, a horrible time even, playing it. But there's one major problem the story have. This coincides with the gameplay section, but bare with me on this part, along the road like any good RPG, you will befriend people who will either be your biggest admirator, and loyal kickass buddy. There will always be the other guy, who questions your every choice and is a plain pain in the butt, but hey, you need a warrior on the team. That doesn't sound so bad? Until you look at their skill tree, and the fact the guy who is a crucial member to the team (hint -healer-) decides to be a douche, now you are left with an option, role play (it's an RPG right) and leave him behind. Or not role play, and keep him in the team, and ruin the story for you because your party is lacking skill wise, and the story itself follows the path you wish it did not,.


    -Gameplay- This is where the major problem lies. Gameplay in DA2 yells LAZY in my ears. From enemies that follow a strict archetype, you have your warrior, your rogue, your mage, your archer. That's it. No imagination, at all. The rogue templar is no different than a bandit rogue. How does that make sense, a fully armored rogue should not even exist, they fact they are even harder to deal with than the average templar is just stupid when they can murder your Mage in one strike. How, please, tell me BioWare. Add to that enemies wave, and it stopped making sense, a year ago.

    Add to that, the fact no one bothered to test the different difficulty levels and see whether they are playable or not. Hard was a fun romp until a certain boss fight that was immune to backstabbing (important positioning move), and blam, the useless countdown abilties I had, all used up, and taking another year to cool down, and now my entire party was as useful as that mentally challenged kid ... minus his super powers. Then there's map design, they are all awful, and they are recycled. This is an RPG game right? I am in kirkwall, does every basement and mansion have to look the same? Seriously. Every goddamn cave look the same. Every side quests bring you to those same locations over and over again.

    DA2 gameplay is broken, frustrating on the harder difficulties (way too easy on the normal/easy one), and is pure lazy game development.

    -Presentation-
    Sure, your main characters look beautiful. The environments too. The other NPCs you interact will are good looking too. Then you do a bit of exploring, then you start finding there are some weed here and there, ugly NPCs, people we are not supposed to interact with. You know, beggars, peasants. Should have seen the look on their faces, like they were from the 16-bit era (it's right there before Kitten Age, and after Goat Age ... 16-bit Age). Kirkwall kinda remind me of Braavos from A Song of Ice and Fire, with the massive statue in front of the city. That's about it. The end-game armor for the hero is pretty, the fixed armor design for your companions is a great idea, I understand the logic behind preventing the player to equip the NPCs with rags when they are their own being, and the choice of wearing small clothes ... or not (ISABELLA!!!) is well, their choice.

    - Replay Value -
    Dragon Age: Origins 300 hours and counting
    DA 2: 38 Hour Campaign ... DONE ... UNINSTALLED


    -Conclusion-
    I did not have fun.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

67
#67 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2011
3
#3 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2011
19
#19 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 75 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 55 out of 75
  2. Mixed: 19 out of 75
  3. Negative: 1 out of 75
  1. GamingExcellence
    Aug 3, 2011
    85
    I'll give Bioware points for trying to do something different in their world, but they really did have it right the first time in terms of character building and the scope of the story.
    Read full review
  2. Gaming Nexus
    May 1, 2011
    75
    Faulty game mechanics and disappointing maps, combat scenarios and storyline direction aside, Dragon Age II still has a surprising amount of intrigue hidden beneath the blemishes. The depth of character relationships, as well as the complex nature of the world of the Dragon Age franchise are a savior to a game that would otherwise forever be remembered by its mistakes.
    Read full review
  3. Game Chronicles
    Apr 22, 2011
    90
    Above all, it seems like Dragon Age II is an experiment. If you're a fan of the first game and expect a direct continuation, either in story or mechanics, you'll be disappointed. If you're not willing to put up with some rough edges and some mechanics that don't quite work as intended, you'll end up having a hard time. But if you're going for a game that has some of the best storytelling in RPGs in a while, or you're looking for a BioWare RPG to tide yourself over until Mass Effect 3, you won't do much better right now than Dragon Age II.
    Read full review
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