Forum:Why do you guys hate DA2?

Forums: Index > Game DiscussionWhy do you guys hate DA2?

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I know that origins is awesome and stuff, but what is the big problem with DA2??? The fact that your character already have a place, a history and race pre-defined? I LOVED DAO, but, in my opnion, DA2 is pretty enjoyable and fun Archon123 (talk) 21:59, August 16, 2014 (UTC)

Truth be told, I never hated DA2, In fact that's how I started getting into Dragon age. I bought the 2nd game first before getting origins and I quite enjoyed it, enough for me to go out and buy the prequel. However one thing I did notice while playing DAO is the huge downgrade between the two games and I ended up liking both for very different reasons. Although its understandable why DA fans were upset with DA2, I would be too if I expected another awesome adventure like we witnessed in DAO but that didn't happen obviously. The characters in DA2 however made it very memorable for me and I cannot wait to experience that in DAI when that comes out. :) Luner45 (talk) 22:10, August 16, 2014 (UTC)Luner

I don't hate, actually I tremendously enjoyed it. I think its quite a good game. Having said that, the game is of course not as good as it would have been had they had the production time they deserved instead of being screwed over into just past a year by EA. As a result of that, the quality of the game suffers in several respects (recycled environments etc). - 22:14, August 16, 2014 (UTC)

I actually liked it more on Xbox then Origins, aesthetically the first game is terrible on console as the graphics are all messed up. On PC Origins is better but I still liked 2. Xsari (talk) 23:25, August 16, 2014 (GMT)

I like it better than DAO and think it's more replayable. I don't give a crap about the repeated dungeons or not being able to customize my companions. Origins is kind of a chore and slow to get started; the amount of time it takes just to get to Lothering puts me off playing it through with different characters. The story wasn't very original. It bothered me that my Wardens always had the same stiff expression on their silent faces, that is, when I actually got to SEE their faces. The color palette was gaudy, too, and it looked horrible on the consoles. Well, enough of that. I like DAO well enough, just not as much as DA2, which had better pacing, better companions, lively combat and fun banter. --Death by Cheese (talk) 22:30, August 16, 2014 (UTC)

I've played Origins 80+ times to completion and Dragon Age 2 about 30. I love both games so damn much, but I still prefer Origins and I love it for the exact reason you say you hate it for, Cheese. I adored the earthy, muddy, brown palette, which in my opinion gave Origins such a vintage and fantastical look. The graphic really made the game immersive for me. Does that mean they're good, no. I just really loved them. I find that people who say something's "unoriginal" have just seen it done too many times. For me Origins was a completely new experience from what I was used to, which was Science Fiction. I found the game's story to be really grandiose and amazing. As for companions, I think both games had extraordinary companions and banter, though I'd rather play DA2 just because of Varric. It was those merits that really overshadowed the shortcomings of Origins, for me. Such as combat, stiff models, and the repetitive, kind of unrealistic hand gestures. Origins is great, but it's not perfect. However DA2 was not as great. I think what it really boils down to is time. The game just didn't have enough time to be made fantastic. There's a lot of things Dragon Age 2 could have done better. Not just the repeated areas, which I found not to be as bad as people make them out to be. The Antagonists, no real clear cut overarching motivation, amongst other things are the really big let downs of DA2 for me. I think both games are great, but they both have faults and neither is perfect. I think Inquisition will be the best game we've ever had in Dragon Age because it feels like it's redeeming the shortcomings of DA:O and DA2. Does that mean it won't have shortcomings of it's own? Hell no! It will have shortcomings, but I hope they'll be minuscule. B.S.S.T. (talk) 22:50, August 16, 2014 (UTC)

About the antagonists: I do think there are some individual antagonists in DAO that are fantastic, like Bhelen (if you consider him one; he's a great character, either way) or Uldred. The whole situation with the Circle was just sad, poignantly so. (And I LOVE the Fade part, which seems to be fairly unpopular among fans.) My favorite, absolute favorite part of any DA game is "Nature of the Beast," and I like it because it can be resolved without a final battle. It is probably the one time in any of the DA games when I felt like my choices made a real difference. Also, DAO's weird color palette worked in the Brecilian Forest and its ruins. I get all the feels in the scene when Zathrian and the Lady part from the world. But the main antagonist in DAO, the archdemon, was incredibly disappointing. Fighting through Denerim at the end is boring and frustrating. I don't know what I was expecting out of the final battle(s), but I do know that after completing all the other main quests, the last battle paled in comparison. Of course, the end of DA2 was disappointing as well. If you side with Orsino, it was weird for him to suddenly turn. I expected something crazy was going to happen with Meredith, but the battle itself was rather easy. Fortunately BioWare made up for that with Corypheus, which admittedly, the connection to the Hawke family took a lot of suspension of belief, but Legacy itself was incredibly fun. Anyway, I, too, hope that DAI will bring us the best of DAO and DA2. It's been a long wait, which is usually (but not always) a good sign. --Death by Cheese (talk) 23:27, August 16, 2014 (UTC)

Yeah! It is more replayable and the characters are more memorable, and death by cheese, we share the exast same idea! I replayed DA2 5 times, and origins only 2... I loved both of them, but I think DA2 has more variety, its not one loooooong quest, its a lot of missions with different objectives... Archon123 (talk) 22:38, August 16, 2014 (UTC)

This topic was discussed to death in the year or so after DA2's release. The general consensus was:

• The overly-repetitive use of areas (real estate is not so bad in Kirkwall that every villain/cult/magic psycho can only ever rent one of two caves or the same warehouses).
• The story railroading (which felt like a smack in the face given how much we were told that our choices mattered). In the end, the lack of direction or true villain left the story feeling flat. Throw in the way that the story after the destruction of the Chantry, everyone seems to go crazy for the slightest reason (I'm talking about Orsino going Harvester despite Hawke siding with the Mages and obliterating Templars).
• That the game felt like an obvious beta (a presumed 18 months of production due to the need to carry on from the success of Origins isn't enough time to complete a game. Compare this to Origins having 4 years of development and Inquisition's 3 years).
• A general feeling of what we got wasn't what we were told we'd be getting (Mages getting Deathblows, such as the one used to kill the Arishok, while it does exist in-game, is only used against large humanoid enemies, such as Ogres. The number of Ogres you fight in DA2 outside of Legacy can be counted on one hand).
• Way too many wasted story opportunities. What was it about Kirkwall that was causing so many people to go insane? Why did so many Tal-Vashoth choose to abandon the Qun?
• While Legacy did somewhat redeem DA2 with an interesting and engaging story, with a challenging boss battle, it was also reflective of what was wrong with DA2. Mark of the Assassin felt like the final nail in the coffin for the game, especially as many felt that Bioware was trying to pander to the community with what felt like a Mary-Sue fanfic character in Tallis. At the time, many felt that Tallis wasn't a character, but Felicia Day playing Felicia Day, who could get away with anything because she was essentially the flavour of the month.

Time has mellowed a lot of people about the game, but for a lot of them if it had been a standalone game, it would have been a decent game but as a sequel Dragon Age 2 felt quite poor. For more than a few, it didn't even feel like a sequel but rather a sidestory.--Madasamadthing (talk) 23:30, August 16, 2014 (UTC)

I liked Mark of the Assassin personally, the environments were gorgeous and it was nice to see Orlesian culture in more detail and the Qunari angle was certainly intruiging. I honestly didn't know who Felicia Day was when I first played it through so I just thought of her as a way to take a different look at the Qunari (doubly so if you play MotA after act 2). I don't know, maybe if I knew her beforehand I would have felt differently with that baggage.

The point about pandering is interesting though. Especially given how people were simultaneously saying "They don't care about what we want" at the same time. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

- 23:40, August 16, 2014 (UTC)

Haha, yes. The simultaneous complaints about pandering and ignoring their fans has always confused me. --Kelcat (talk) 00:08, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

I remember a couple of years ago David Gaider said he had to step away from the fan community because they were getting to be hostile. Of course, that just set off more disgruntled fans, but I see where he's coming from. At some point, as fans, we need to take a huge step back and just let the writers and developers make the game they want to make. We can be critical without needing to be in on every. single. detail. involved in their creative processes. --Death by Cheese (talk) 00:25, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

I can certainly empathize with him. I generally try to avoid the forums and comments like the plague because the vitriol and bile is just too much.

- 01:07, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

It is. I won't touch BSN because of it. I know there are plenty of decent people there, but the Hate Machine was so ugly after DA2 came out that I just couldn't be there. --Death by Cheese (talk) 02:04, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

You'd be surprised. The Josephine forum was really nice from what I seen and they talked about some touchy things. B.S.S.T. (talk) 02:21, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

From everything I've seen and heard about the Josephine fans, it's encouraging to see that kind of positivity coming from the community. --Death by Cheese (talk) 02:29, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

They're kind of nuts, but I'm one of them, so take that as you may. They're really a nice bunch of people. Probably reflects the Character they love so much. B.S.S.T. (talk) 02:35, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

I believe that the reason was disappointment, those people who had played Origins and been waiting for the sequel expected it to be just that: a sequel - Dragon Age (Origins) 2. Instead they got a game that focused more upon things such as combat and less about the storyline. In a sense Dragon Age 2 had the wrong fanbase (not that it is their fault). Caspoi (talk) 00:39, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

That's the best way I can think of describing the game -- disappointing. I liked the game. It was a good a game. Coming off of Origins however made it feel lacking. Some people treat DA2 like they would the Risen sequels. Some advocate it as the better game (though I've never really had a conversation with any who have, I know that opinion). But like the others have said, the fans' reactions to the game have mellowed over time. The only people who really put it down are those who heard about how bad it was from the community when it was first released and have refused to play it to this day, or played it with the list of flaws in their mind, pointing it out to themselves whenever they can, and thus ruining their experience, at least from what I've seen. Primary Faction (talk) 02:24, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

I don't? I liked DA2. Enough to play it through completely around a dozen times. I didn't care for them reusing the same exact cave map and just blocking off some areas to make it "different", but it didn't ruin the game for me. 67.61.238.119 (talk) 03:01, August 17, 2014 (UTC)

I don't hate DA2 but I don't consider it anywhere close to Origins level. taken on it's own merits DA2 is a pretty good game, but compared to Origins it comes off as being very shallow. it's got almost zero replay value (the few choices the game offers make little to no difference to the playthrough) and especially the lack of a toolkit hurt the game immensely since it meant much less content. BioWare/EA also hyped the hell out of it only to deliver a rushed cash-in. a more thorough (and humourous) explanation of my thoughts can be found at http://rayvio.wordpress.com/2014/02/27/4/ Rayvio (talk) 03:26, August 17, 2014 (UTC)