Is it just me or did the graphics look very unpolished in Dragon Age 2? I mean, when looking at armours, clothes, faces, etc. I find that everything looks kinda flat and in lack of proper shadows and lightning. Also, lots of brown hues and too little details. It's just something that bothered me.
BAH! I had this whole freaking data filled statement about the hate for ME3's finish and my internet crashed and i've no intention of re-typing it all. Suffice to say i'm with a good portion of folks regarding inquisition in that after the mediocre DAO2, i'll take a wait and see approach to it.
As for ME3 I had no issues with the choices part of the ending to ME3. It made me think a lot about whether i should stick to my guns and pick the paragon ending or opting instead for the opposite choice and go renegade. I ended up going middle ground. My issues were the lack of closure after making that choice as well as the reliance on multiplayer which doesn't interest me in order to max out your War assets. Bioware addressed some of the closure but not completely(but enough to satisfy most people)nor did they address the war assets for people who dislike multiplayer with the free dlc.
Is it just me or did the graphics look very unpolished in Dragon Age 2? I mean, when looking at armours, clothes, faces, etc. I find that everything looks kinda flat and in lack of proper shadows and lightning. Also, lots of brown hues and too little details. It's just something that bothered me.
When you first arrive in kirkwall on the boat, those rocks that greet you at the entrance are so jagged and fake they look like something out of ocarina of time.
I also don't get the concept of pre-ordering. Why would you pre-order a product which you have little to no information about, a product you haven't yet seen with your own eyes, held with your own hands? I have thus far never pre-ordered any game, even not BG:EE, as blasphemous as it might sound. This does not mean that I don't support the Beamdog team, though. I will happily buy BG:EE at release. I just don't like the feeling of paying for air, so to speak. I need to see the final product being realised.
Well I work in a very stressful field and video games help me unwind. I make very good money so that isn't a factor. Like I said I didn't really care for DA2 and DLC but Bioware listened to its fans when working on DA3 on what everyone liked which was the whole DAO so I have hopes that it will be more like the original than DA2. Hope this makes me a little clearer Kitteh_On_A_Cloud.
I also don't get the concept of pre-ordering. Why would you pre-order a product which you have little to no information about, a product you haven't yet seen with your own eyes, held with your own hands? I have thus far never pre-ordered any game, even not BG:EE, as blasphemous as it might sound. This does not mean that I don't support the Beamdog team, though. I will happily buy BG:EE at release. I just don't like the feeling of paying for air, so to speak. I need to see the final product being realised.
Hence my aversion to KickStarter, too. I did pre-order BG:EE, but that was because I saw very little risk of it being a failure and thought 'why not?'. But I definitely understand why you wouldn't.
Looking forward to it actually. I enjoyed the first two games (I'm in the minority but I actually liked DA2 better *hides to dodge incoming rocks*) so I can't wait for DA3. I think people hated DA2 before it even came out because it wasn't Origins 2.0 (or 1.5). There's good and bad in both games, but I see more positive progression than negative (they just have to stop streamlining the protagonist so much).
Likely going to begin with the rogue class like I've done for every game, except I'll probably go archery instead of dual wielding for a bit of beginner's variety. Depends which file I upload first (seven saves for each origin and a Hawke for each successor).
Hence my aversion to KickStarter, too. I did pre-order BG:EE, but that was because I saw very little risk of it being a failure and thought 'why not?'. But I definitely understand why you wouldn't.
Well it depends on each Kickstarter page for me. For example I am interested to see how Obsidian's new game turns out, but they didn't give me a strong enough reason to support it for two reasons.
1) The game doesn't sound much different than a lot of other games out there that manage without Kickstarter
2) There weren't enough details to suggest it would be unique among other titles in the genre
Kickstarter makes sense if someone is developing a game a publisher would never touch, i.e. Tim Schafer's adventure game that started the whole kickstarter craze. While I am not automatically opposed to projects like Obsidian's kickstarter, I have to be convinced there is something about their game that makes a conventional developing process impossible.
@Kitteh_On_A_Cloud I can understand why you might choose not to pre order a game if you don't have a clear idea of what you're getting. In the case of BG1 EE however it would appear that it is what it says on the tin - ie an enhanced version of BG1. I loved playing that game and noted that the development team had the right backgound to create an enhanced edition. It also seemed clear that if BG1 EE was a commercial success there was the prospect of enhanced edition of BG2 EE and Planescape Torment (which is probably my favourite RPG). The cost of BG1 EE was not prohibitive and as a sign of encouragement and belief in the development team I parted with my money and pre ordered. Despite the delay in the release date I have not regretted that decision as I am firmly of the view that the game will be delivered on November 28th and that there is still the prospect of enhanced versions of the other games in due course. I fail to see the difference between pre ordering and ordering on the day of release - apart from the fact that there might be the possibility of installing and playing the game sooner via pre order. There was some talk of pre download being possible. I am uncertain if that is still the case but on that issue I am not perturbed either way.
I also don't get the concept of pre-ordering. Why would you pre-order a product which you have little to no information about, a product you haven't yet seen with your own eyes, held with your own hands? I have thus far never pre-ordered any game, even not BG:EE, as blasphemous as it might sound. This does not mean that I don't support the Beamdog team, though. I will happily buy BG:EE at release. I just don't like the feeling of paying for air, so to speak. I need to see the final product being realised.
Well, I had the same thoughts about backing the Project: Eternity Kickstarter, as it's a completely new project in an untested concept. However, the beauty of Kickstarter is you control your contribution, so you don't even have to end up spending a lot of money to get what could be an incredible value for the money. Then, there is the promise of rewards just for paying that reduced amount early as opposed to buying it off the shelf. That's even more value. Finally, there's something to be said for any early investor in that they are putting their money on the line to support something in which they believe. In this case, it's the continued vibrancy of RPGs and for many, Project: Eternity represents a statement that the old-school RPG is not dead and the notion that the game itself could kickstart (pardon the pun) the genre once again and get major publishers to get onboard with developing more of them. Considering the required initial investment amount is quite small, it seemed a sensible thing. Those who truly believe in it or want a larger part in the development process are able to contribute more. This is new age venture capitalism.
As for pre-ordering in general, I do not think I have ever pre-ordered a game with which I hadn't already had prior experience (meaning I've only pre-ordered sequels). I suppose it comes down to an issue of trust in the game itself and/or the studio creating it. I can honestly say I've never been disappointed by Bioware, so while I will not purchase every game they create, it's very likely I'll pre-order every Dragon Age or Mass Effect title. In addition to the goodies you can get when pre-ordering (and given that I'm not likely to expend extra money for anything other than quest DLC after release), I'm also extremely lazy and would rather not venture out of my home if possible to visit a game store. I suppose instant gratification has a bit to do with it as well, as I only buy physical games if I'm going to resell them later, and if I buy a digital copy, one can generally pre-load it as well and start playing it right away without taking time to install. Most titles I view in this manner (Bioware is in a class by itself in my book), I will never resell, so there's no point in my buying a boxed version. Even if I discount my anticipation to play these new games, despite what I consider a high price for them (although for my money, Dragon Age and Mass Effect games were worth every penny in entertainment value for my dollar), I'd choose to support the studio by paying full price for them, rather than waiting until they drop. In addition to delaying my satisfaction, I think paying someone what one thinks the product is worth is important. That's my tipping philosophy as well...
@Arveragus: I think you misunderstood my previous comment a bit, heh. I'm definitely supporting Beamdog and BG:EE and I'm excited to see it released. Yet, that still doesn't make me want to pre-order. It's just something I don't do. Mind you, if I like a game, I'm all too willing to buy expansions and such released after the release of the game, to show my support that way. In the case of BG:EE, I'll play it as soon as as it's released and I will also certainly get my paws on content after-release. Just like how I didn't pre-order Skyrim despite being impressed with it, but supported it by buying Dawnguard afterwards. It all depends on how passionate I am about a certain game, and when it comes to BG:EE I definitely am. But I'll show my appreciation after-release by remaining a loyal customer. The thing is, I used to be a passionate fan of Bioware too, but the recent failures of that company, and especially their current mentality, have put me in doubt. This made me lose interest in most of their games and stop buying DLC. (also because most of the DLC is way too overpriced for the content offered)
I respect @Kitteh_On_A_Cloud 's position re: pre-order, as the philosophy is very similar to mine. I did pre-order BG:EE because I chose to, but that is an outlier of my normal behavior. After Master of Orion 3, I will never pre-order a new game for any reason.
Caveat of 'new' is important here. Therefore, no matter what is promised, BG3 (if it comes to fruition) will be a 'I see it, first' thing.
@Kitteh_On_A_Cloud I can fully understand your position in relation to Bioware DLC. Recent examples have been pricey for what you get and not monumentally interesting either. I will certainly wait for reviews before even considering Omega. In retrospect I think that I ordered BG1 EE with the understanding that it would be available for pre download. This would have had the advantage of avoiding download delays on the day of release and merely going to the Beamdog site to activate the game. So having come home from work having the game ready to go. The pre download possibilty appears to have hit radio silence however since the delayed release date. So I suppose that I am just going to have to be patient - not one of my greatest virtues unfortunately! On the bright side however - only 2 weeks to go
I controlled my contribution to Project: Eternity. It gets the same any other pre-order or anything like it gets from me. Produce, first. Get my support, second.
I mean, there is some success in the past of the people making the game. There is also Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance in the past for some of the makers. There's no telling which of the two you'll get until it's made. I don't make enough money to buy games I don't like.
While on the subject of Bioware, Star Wars: The Old Republic went "Free to Play" today. I actually liked that game, but after my 6 month sub ran out, I just didn't have the spare cash (at the time) to continue playing. After hearing they were going FTP, I updated the game and logged back into the game. To be honest, I was not happy with what I saw. For me, it simply felt like a cash grab...they even wanted FTP'ers to pay for "extra" toolbars! That and the server merge requiring me to rename all my characters annoyed me as well. So, I simply deleted the characters and removed the game from my computer.
I've only done that a couple of times. Heck...I still have all my characters from Asheron's Call (the first one) should I wish to play that MMO again.
@Arabus13: The problem with so-called 'Free-to-play' games is that they're actually not free at all. 't least, if you don't want to play in a very restricted way or at a snail's pace, while every other player just puts down some cash to get the most overpowered weapons there are. It's abusing people's impulsiveneness (especially that of children or youngsters) and their desire for satisfaction and a 'good esperience'. Because fun costs money, you see. I've seen games which blatantly abuse this system, making the scores of rich kids skyrocket just because they dump a lot of money in a game for something virtual. The temptation is there, of course. It's the temptation that's worst, basic tricks playing with our in-born sense of greed. Humans are one of the few species who have grown an expertise out of manipulating others of their own kind. Just shows you how rotten humankind can be, I guess.
After Dragon Age 2, I don't really care about Dragon Age 3 at this point. It is highly likely that EA are just pushing for Dragon Age 3 and Mass Effect 4 to milk the hell out of both franchises.
@Kitteh_On_A-Cloud - a little harsh. They're providing a product that costs capital to create and maintain, so of course they are trying to build a model that incentivizes purchases. Without that, you wouldn't have these products. Some may seem more predatious than others, but I hardly see that as the case here.
As for ME4, DA3 - my verdict isn't out yet. I'm leaning to the 'no' on these, as ME3 had things that required multiplayer to achieve or unlock and I purposefully don't play MP with anybody but my children. I don't mind them having such things in the game, but, for gods' sake, don't make MP affect my SP playthrough!
Free-to-play is great. It allows the player to determine how much the game is worth to them without having to fork out any dollars. If it's worth their money, the developer gets the money. If it's not, they don't. I understand the frustration about competitive play, but life isn't fair. Some people have more resources than others and they get to enjoy different things. I don't see why that has to diminish the enjoyment of someone who doesn't have those resources unless competition is essential to the game. For a game that it is, I can surely see how it wouldn't be worth it for those not willing to fork out the cash, but for many free-to-play games, competition is available but it's not an essential part of the fun experience. Can't speak to The Old Republic as I've never played it, but I've played plenty of free-to-play games where I didn't feel I needed to spend cash to enjoy myself "enough" to make it worth my while.
@Kitteh_On_A-Cloud - a little harsh. They're providing a product that costs capital to create and maintain, so of course they are trying to build a model that incentivizes purchases. Without that, you wouldn't have these products. Some may seem more predatious than others, but I hardly see that as the case here.
As for ME4, DA3 - my verdict isn't out yet. I'm leaning to the 'no' on these, as ME3 had things that required multiplayer to achieve or unlock and I purposefully don't play MP with anybody but my children. I don't mind them having such things in the game, but, for gods' sake, don't make MP affect my SP playthrough!
I don't mind a developer doing that...after all they have to pay the bills just like everyone else. But when they start charging you for elements of the User Interface (toolbars, e.g.) it simply (IMHO) crosses the threshold between paying the bills and being greedy.
They're free to be as greedy as they like in my opinion. This is not a game that people *have* to play - it's not really a good game, either. My guess is that the servers will be turned off in the next year. I do wish they'd make a single-player adjustment so I can play out the stories without MMO nonsense.
There's nothing wrong with free to play games, id rather play a game for free first, and pay towards it later if I like it. Monthly fees are worse - pay a fee before you can play a game, and if you want to keep on playing, you have to pay more fees. If you stop paying you can no longer access your acount or log into the game. Free to play lets you keep on playing for as long as you like without paying, think of it more like an extended unlimited demo that you can play as long as you like without paying. If you like it, then you can pay and buy ingame items.
Also a lot of FTP games now only sell vanity items, mini expansions, or shortcut items to minor things that are obtainable in the game like Guild Wars 2, Path of Exile and DDO.
Yeah, it's going to be cool. My only beef with Bioware is how they have been muzzled by EA. It sucks knowing the damn thing is that far away but they can't share a damn thing about how it's going.
Comments
As for ME3 I had no issues with the choices part of the ending to ME3. It made me think a lot about whether i should stick to my guns and pick the paragon ending or opting instead for the opposite choice and go renegade. I ended up going middle ground. My issues were the lack of closure after making that choice as well as the reliance on multiplayer which doesn't interest me in order to max out your War assets.
Bioware addressed some of the closure but not completely(but enough to satisfy most people)nor did they address the war assets for people who dislike multiplayer with the free dlc.
Like I said I didn't really care for DA2 and DLC but Bioware listened to its fans when working on DA3 on what everyone liked which was the whole DAO so I have hopes that it will be more like the original than DA2. Hope this makes me a little clearer Kitteh_On_A_Cloud.
Likely going to begin with the rogue class like I've done for every game, except I'll probably go archery instead of dual wielding for a bit of beginner's variety. Depends which file I upload first (seven saves for each origin and a Hawke for each successor).
1) The game doesn't sound much different than a lot of other games out there that manage without Kickstarter
2) There weren't enough details to suggest it would be unique among other titles in the genre
Kickstarter makes sense if someone is developing a game a publisher would never touch, i.e. Tim Schafer's adventure game that started the whole kickstarter craze. While I am not automatically opposed to projects like Obsidian's kickstarter, I have to be convinced there is something about their game that makes a conventional developing process impossible.
I can understand why you might choose not to pre order a game if you don't have a clear idea of what you're getting. In the case of BG1 EE however it would appear that it is what it says on the tin - ie an enhanced version of BG1. I loved playing that game and noted that the development team had the right backgound to create an enhanced edition. It also seemed clear that if BG1 EE was a commercial success there was the prospect of enhanced edition of BG2 EE and Planescape Torment (which is probably my favourite RPG). The cost of BG1 EE was not prohibitive and as a sign of encouragement and belief in the development team I parted with my money and pre ordered. Despite the delay in the release date I have not regretted that decision as I am firmly of the view that the game will be delivered on November 28th and that there is still the prospect of enhanced versions of the other games in due course. I fail to see the difference between pre ordering and ordering on the day of release - apart from the fact that there might be the possibility of installing and playing the game sooner via pre order. There was some talk of pre download being possible. I am uncertain if that is still the case but on that issue I am not perturbed either way.
As for pre-ordering in general, I do not think I have ever pre-ordered a game with which I hadn't already had prior experience (meaning I've only pre-ordered sequels). I suppose it comes down to an issue of trust in the game itself and/or the studio creating it. I can honestly say I've never been disappointed by Bioware, so while I will not purchase every game they create, it's very likely I'll pre-order every Dragon Age or Mass Effect title. In addition to the goodies you can get when pre-ordering (and given that I'm not likely to expend extra money for anything other than quest DLC after release), I'm also extremely lazy and would rather not venture out of my home if possible to visit a game store. I suppose instant gratification has a bit to do with it as well, as I only buy physical games if I'm going to resell them later, and if I buy a digital copy, one can generally pre-load it as well and start playing it right away without taking time to install. Most titles I view in this manner (Bioware is in a class by itself in my book), I will never resell, so there's no point in my buying a boxed version. Even if I discount my anticipation to play these new games, despite what I consider a high price for them (although for my money, Dragon Age and Mass Effect games were worth every penny in entertainment value for my dollar), I'd choose to support the studio by paying full price for them, rather than waiting until they drop. In addition to delaying my satisfaction, I think paying someone what one thinks the product is worth is important. That's my tipping philosophy as well...
Caveat of 'new' is important here. Therefore, no matter what is promised, BG3 (if it comes to fruition) will be a 'I see it, first' thing.
I can fully understand your position in relation to Bioware DLC. Recent examples have been pricey for what you get and not monumentally interesting either. I will certainly wait for reviews before even considering Omega. In retrospect I think that I ordered BG1 EE with the understanding that it would be available for pre download. This would have had the advantage of avoiding download delays on the day of release and merely going to the Beamdog site to activate the game. So having come home from work having the game ready to go. The pre download possibilty appears to have hit radio silence however since the delayed release date. So I suppose that I am just going to have to be patient - not one of my greatest virtues unfortunately! On the bright side however - only 2 weeks to go
I mean, there is some success in the past of the people making the game. There is also Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance in the past for some of the makers. There's no telling which of the two you'll get until it's made. I don't make enough money to buy games I don't like.
I've only done that a couple of times. Heck...I still have all my characters from Asheron's Call (the first one) should I wish to play that MMO again.
As for ME4, DA3 - my verdict isn't out yet. I'm leaning to the 'no' on these, as ME3 had things that required multiplayer to achieve or unlock and I purposefully don't play MP with anybody but my children. I don't mind them having such things in the game, but, for gods' sake, don't make MP affect my SP playthrough!
Also a lot of FTP games now only sell vanity items, mini expansions, or shortcut items to minor things that are obtainable in the game like Guild Wars 2, Path of Exile and DDO.
http://investor.ea.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=707298