Dragon Age: The Veilguard - A woke disaster? Yep!

[Mola Ram]

If I remember right Origins was already in heavy development by the time of the EA buyout so EA couldn't stick it's dick in too much with the actual meat and potatoes of the design of the game. They still did retarded shit like the Marilyn Manson marketing campaign and the scummy DLC, but that was about it.

As soon as the game was finished and EA had full control of the IP though, they immediately started to run it into the dirt.

Origins was in development for something like 7 years, much of which was devoted to writing background and worldbuilding -- one reason I tend to believe claims that the elven gods were always intended as an endgame-level storyline.

Has it ever been conclusively established that EA was responsible for shoving a Commander Shepard style PC into the series with Hawke? Looking back over the decline of the series, I think that decision more than any other was responsible for it going so off the rails.

 

[Deus Exica]

one reason I tend to believe claims that the elven gods were always intended as an endgame-level storyline.

I also believe this to some extent. It's the one thing that remains logically consistent through all the games, though I am sure that they would have been better in whatever their original concept was.

Has it ever been conclusively established that EA was responsible for shoving a Commander Shepard style PC into the series with Hawke?

I don't remember anyone ever saying EA made them do it, but it tracks. I also remember chief complaints about Origins at the time was that it did not have a speaking protagonist like Mass Effect, since the wheel was still unique somewhat at the time, though voiced PCs in RPGs were not.

 

[Mola Ram]

I also remember chief complaints about Origins at the time was that it did not have a speaking protagonist like Mass Effect

I pray that BG3's success will convince game companies that RPGs don't need voiced protagonists; it's one of the worst trends in gaming.

 

[God of Nothing]

one reason I tend to believe claims that the elven gods were always intended as an endgame-level storyline.

disgusting

I also believe this to some extent. It's the one thing that remains logically consistent through all the games, though I am sure that they would have been better in whatever their original concept was.

the elves are weak, pathetic, and stupid forest niggers who do absolutely nothing

one-off codex entries with no actual representation or relevance in the game world you're playing through do not a good plot element make

Besides, we all know there's no game after Origins.

 

[Deus Exica]

I pray that BG3's success will convince game companies that RPGs don't need voiced protagonists; it's one of the worst trends in gaming.

I wouldn't hold my breath. There are people who unironically defend Fallout 4's speaking protagonist and dialogue system. We live in a vastly illiterate world.

one-off codex entries with no actual representation or relevance in the game world you're playing through do not a good plot element make

I think the old elf gods thing could work, but the way it wound up being done was terrible. Bioware turns every bad guy into a Saturday morning cartoon villain with a deep voice who literally does shit like *evil laugh*.

I always preferred the origins of the Darkspawn and the old gods remain shrouded in mystery.

Besides, we all know there's no game after Origins

Might as well not be given how tonally different the series became with Inquisition. 2 still has some of that edge and the compelling lore, but misses the mark.

Inquisition is when the series became happy go lucky high fantasy DnD adventure. Veilguard was just the final nail in the coffin to me.

 

[moocow]

I wouldn't hold my breath. There are people who unironically defend Fallout 4's speaking protagonist and dialogue system. We live in a vastly illiterate world.

I hated that shit. The only redeeming feature of it was that the voice actor (the male one at least; I dunno about the woman) did a good job on the reads for all the "sarcastic" responses.

The best VO in the game was that crazy-ass robot assistant in Nuka World though:

Literally every theme park worker on this planet would love to talk to guests like this.

 

[BlankSpaceBaby]

I wouldn't hold my breath. There are people who unironically defend Fallout 4's speaking protagonist and dialogue system. We live in a vastly illiterate world.

That's the problem with modern AAA games for the most part: too much emphasis on flashy but empty cut scenes (sometimes to a point where the game is basically a movie with occasional breaks for you to do some minimal playing) and other jangling key distractions. You can tell that these games are made by committee, involving people that have zero interest or knowledge in storytelling and world building.

Having said that, I'm neutral on voiced protagonists. Male Hawke was great when it comes to sarcasm due to how theatrical Nicholas Boulton got, and I like Meer's Shepard, but the voiced protagonists of the next two Dragon Age games are so bland and forgettable. The Inquisitor and Rook really do embody the soulless, empty blank slate nature of these two characters.

At least with the voiceless Warden, the player can imprint their own interpretations of that character. Also, the lines in Dragon Age: Origins have more personality than all the monologues from the Inquisitor and Rook.

 

[Prophetic Spirit]

I wouldn't hold my breath. There are people who unironically defend Fallout 4's speaking protagonist and dialogue system. We live in a vastly illiterate world.

The acting isn't bad at least.
But you are right. Many trends are from Mass Effect. Franchise was a blessing and a curse at the same time.
I prefer the same lines from FO3 ported to FO4 without voice if it.

 

[God of Nothing]

I can't begin to tell you how great it feels to have Awakening abilities in the base game. Battle Spirit Healer Wynne is a godsend in damage and healing, Leliana can do some actual damage with her bow other than being a buff bot with Song of Courage, and I can use more of the broken warrior abilities to spam moves or instant kill annoying mobs.

 

[BlankSpaceBaby]

Those skills in Dragon Age: Awakening are meant to break the game anyway. They assumed that you have already min-maxed your Warden and didn't sacrifice them, so porting them over means that your character is already walking OP.

So, the only way forward to become even more OP.

You haven't experienced the Super Saiyan in Dragon Age until you're a Spirit Warrior Archer that out-archers the Rogue archer: continuous spirit damage that ignores enemy armor with the first buff Beyond the Veil, and the fourth passive gives you attack and movement speed increases. Since Stamina potion is a thing, you don't even have to worry about losing too much stamina with the Beyond the Veil buff on.

 

[God of Nothing]

>Fighter Archer
how horrifying

 

[Prophetic Spirit]

>Fighter Archer
how horrifying

Man, that shit was broken as fuck with the attack speed bug.
Warrior Archer is basically a abomination, but can't surprass the full buff arcane warrior. That shit is wack.

 

[Gravityqueen4life]

How about making games people actually wants to play instead of lecturing them about privilege? They fail to realize most "anti-fans" are ex-fans that felt betrayed beacuse the devs decided to chase a larger audience that dont even play their games.

 

[LazyLizard]

View attachment 7441429

How about making games people actually wants to play instead lecturing them about privilege? They fail to realize most "anti-fans" are ex-fans that fell betrayed beacuse the devs decided to chase a larger audience that dont even play their games.

it's insane how many game devs/companies have golden gooses with diehard fanbases and just do everything they can to alienate their fanbase so they can virtue signal to a tiny minority that mostly won't even buy their game...

 

[BlankSpaceBaby]

He yammers more about games he has no longer any role in, than about his present games.

 

[moocow]

"anti-fans"

Is this nu-speak for "haters"?

Yes, people gloat when asshole developers who act like assholes end up eating shit when their games flop after ignoring fan input. That's not an "anti-fan" though. That's a "dissatisfied customer." Whatever happened to their GDC lecture encouraging them to "turn fans into fanatics"? You can't do that if you keep driving your fucking fans away.

How fucking crazy is it that Walmart treats displeased customers better than these prima-donna game developers? I only return things to the retail store at a rate of about 2 years to 1 product, but I've still never once had a retail worker call me a bigot for expecting a product to function.

 

[Chapalapachapa]

they should do good games that sell well and people like instead of going out of business imo

 

[Ishtar]

https://www.thegamer.com/dragon-age-mass-effect-alix-wilton-regan-interview/

Woah, no shit Alex. There isn’t going to be another DA game.

(Still, wow-she does actually have an impressive resume).

 

[Weltraumfürst]

Has it ever been conclusively established that EA was responsible for shoving a Commander Shepard style PC into the series with Hawke?

I'm not so sure that it was EA meddling anymore, I think EA just gave them a tight deadline and overblown revenue goals. So they modeled the game more after the more successful Mass Effect series. I imagine replacing the more exhaustive dialogue trees with the more straightforward dialogue wheel helped with the deadline, because it's a simpler system.

Now of course I don't know, but it appears that EA was/is more hands-off than we thought back in the day.

 

[Ishtar]

one-off codex entries with no actual representation or relevance in the game world you're playing through do not a good plot element make

I can't believe you didn't realize you are supposed to read the codex entries. If you don't a lot of what happens "in the game world" makes no contextual sense.

I think the old elf gods thing could work, but the way it wound up being done was terrible. Bioware turns every bad guy into a Saturday morning cartoon villain with a deep voice who literally does shit like *evil laugh*.

Origins itself establishes that the elven gods and the gods of Tevinter may be connected-in the Dalish Origin, its noted outright the cave is of human origin but its filled with elven artifacts, and the werewolf lair likewise.

There were fan theories in 2009 equating the old gods to the elven gods.

one reason I tend to believe claims that the elven gods were always intended as an endgame-level storyline.

Fen'harel returning was planned, Solas as a character was invented to fill that point on the outline. It seems...the veil coming down was the original outline.

My general guess is the original outline looked something like this.

1. Origins(same as)
2. DA2 would be expanded to show more chantry politics, an exalted march.
3. Inquisition was part 3-collapse of the chantry, Fen'harel returns, instigates indirectly widespread political crisis.
4. Dreadwolf(ish)-Tevinter-Qunari war, more exalted marches, probably some sort of magical apocalypse-ending with the veil falling. With veilguard roughly being the latter half here.

It may have been changed, and the executors are an interesting wrinkle-but the general outline-escalating political and magical crises in Thedas leading to an apocalyptic changing of the very nature of the world is alluded too as early as Witch Hunt. And every game after.