Forum Overview :: Dragon Age 2 :: It actually was that bad.

[quote name="Hans Clastorp"][quote name="jeep"]not so much contributing to the frontpage thing as pointing out the truth: the demo sucked, the beginning bit (which is the demo) sucked, waves of raining ninjas sucked, the cutscenes sucked, map reuse sucked, end-of-arc railroading sucked, irrelevant plot choices sucked, weak power paths sucked, the gameplay itself was just tolerable, once again the rogue was the most fun class to control in battle and bioware made no attempt to change that maybe 7.5 or something[/quote] I think we needed The Witcher 2 to provide some context for what an action-RPG in 2011 should be. After playing through that, DA2 looks even worse that I thought at the time. I can't think of any metric in which DA2 comes out ahead, or even close. In terms of combat, DA2 is unchallenging MMO shit. Witcher 2 is kind of fiddly, and you really have to learn the animations to know when you can act, but it's challenging and strategic, giving a real sense of satisfaction when you make it through a tough battle. It doesn't hand-hold, and has no problem letting you fail if you don't pay attention. Everything in DA2 is so straightforward and abstract that nothing has any sense of weight or realism -- everything is refined and simplified to make sure the player is never lost or confused. DA2 environments were dull and uninspired, with totally linear paths to walk down, and the blatant reuse of dungeons was an embarrassment. Some of the outdoor scenes were ok, but nothing special. Witcher 2, on the other hand, is gorgeous. Best dynamic weather effects since Far Cry 2. Lots of variety, each location has a really unique feel, with lots of little details to explore off the track. The world in general in Witcher 2 feels alive, with your decisions actually making a major impact on how things unfold. Though this is, inevitably, kind of an illusion, it's a successful illusion. DA2 had such a dearth of content that they had to make sure that you hit every single set-piece, meaning all decisions were obvious window-dressing. I started playing Witcher 2 again to see how things would be different if I made other decisions and explore more of the side quests, and I've found that I missed at least half the content. I deleted DA2 off my computer immediately after my first playthrough. In general, Witcher 2 felt like it was made by people who understand how to tell a story, and had an interest in making something beautiful. Dragon Age 2 felt like it was made by suit-wearing business drones interested in moving units. Fuck Dragon Age.[/quote]