We'll start with continuing the Penny Arcade theme as BioWare's blog [url=http://blog.bioware.com/2009/09/04/an-i ... /:10ke3z5j]has an interview[/url:10ke3z5j] they did with Penny Arcade's Tycho about Dragon Age (I find that an delightfully nice twist; the game developer interviewing the player about playing their game). Here's an excerpt:
[quote:10ke3z5j][b:10ke3z5j][BW][/b:10ke3z5j] What attracted you to working with BioWare on Dragon Age: Origins?
[b:10ke3z5j][Tycho][/b:10ke3z5j] I felt certain that, as part of my work on the project, I would be given a playable copy!
[b:10ke3z5j][BW][/b:10ke3z5j] And what did you think of the Dragon Age setting?
[b:10ke3z5j][Tycho][/b:10ke3z5j] I have to admit that I read [url=http://us.macmillan.com/dragonagethesto ... e:10ke3z5j]The Stolen Throne[/url:10ke3z5j] in advance of playing it, so between that and the [url=http://dragonage.bioware.com/:10ke3z5j]official site[/url:10ke3z5j] I had a pretty strong primer. The world-building is much stronger than you’d guess from the existing videos – the Chantry in particular, but also the relationship between the Templars, the Circle of Magi, and the unauthorized gutter magic of the wilderfolk. For lore nerds, the game’s Tome of Knowledge is something you can easily get lost in.[/quote:10ke3z5j]
Next up is a [url=http://www.sorcerers.net/Main/Articles/ ... p:10ke3z5j]preview at Sorcerer's Place[/url:10ke3z5j]. Here's an excerpt that gives a bit more light on the event that BioWare held:
[quote:10ke3z5j]I had the honor of being offered a chance to attend a press event hosted by BioWare, in Edmonton, Canada, during August 12 to 14. With BioWare being kind enough to offer a free hotel room, and being taken out on the town, as well as a chance to get an in-depth look at the game, this opportunity was just too good to pass up. Teresa Tyndorf and Erik Einsiedel were our gracious hosts. Some of the game's developers, including the Lead Developer himself, Michael Laidlaw, were on hand to give as a taste of what we can expect in Dragon Age. Also present were many representatives from various gaming magazines and game sites. Sprinkled throughout the events were social occasions, such as a tour through West Edmonton Wall. But the real emphasis was for us to experience first-hand the features, the process behind creating, and the joys of playing Dragon Age. All in all I'd have to say that I played the game for probably about 10 to 12 hours over the course of the event that took me fairly deep into the first chapter. We were also given several in-depth demos of the game features, as well as some of the creative processes. It will be an impressive product that will come out in November, I can say that much.[/quote:10ke3z5j]
Perhaps a stranger site to offer a [url=http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm?f ... 1:10ke3z5j]preview for Dragon Age: Origins[/url:10ke3z5j] is MMORPG.com. Strange because Dragon Age: Origins doesn't have have multiplayer, let [i:10ke3z5j]alone[/i:10ke3z5j] that it's anywhere near an MMO. In the following excerpt they explain:
[quote:10ke3z5j]When Bioware invited MMORPG.com out to Edmonton to see Dragon Age, our first question was "why?" Dragon Age is not an MMO, it doesn't pretend to be an MMO, and there is absolutely nothing online about it. So what brought us there? According to Bioware, they wanted to show it to a wider audience and thought that specifically MMO players would find it to be a complimentary experience. Fair enough.
"Dragon Age has strengths where World of Warcraft has weaknesses," noted Executive Producer Mark Darrah, and "World of Warcraft has strengths where Dragon Age has weaknesses."
And it's a fair point. Fact is that MMOs don't do a good job of making the player the hero. Bioware is all about story and the player character is at the center of it all. At the same time, games like World of Warcraft obviously bring people together and put them online. Dragon Age, at least at launch, has no online gameplay.
So, we buckled down and looked at Dragon Age for what it was. What we found was classic RPG, a game that has as much in common with Baldur's Gate as it does Oblivion. If you've missed the way RPGs used to be played, this game will be a welcome change.[/quote:10ke3z5j]
Note that the article has a couple of spoilers though. The worst of which they warn you about (with a "skip the next few paragraphs), relating to the human noble origin. But even before that they have a few more minor spoilers for the origin.
More spoilers are in the first two paragraphs of [url=http://www.fangoria.com/features/horror ... l:10ke3z5j]Horrocade's (P)review[/url:10ke3z5j]. The article clearly warns you with a "spoiler alert" and an "end spoiler" so it's easy enough to skip. And skip those two paragraphs I did because from the forum posts I get the impression that the spoilers are quite massive (going beyond the origins and into the story itself). The rest of the article is spoiler-free; here's an excerpt:
[quote:10ke3z5j]What truly impressed me about this game, though, was the living, breathing world. The incredible cut scenes—combined with the VO work—all melded together into what I perceive to be the first true interactive animated feature. As I played, the world of DRAGON AGE: ORIGINS took on a life of its own. The interface faded away. Battling the Darkspawn became part of my duties. Interacting with the denizens—deciding what to say to them—figuring out what choices I would make… I felt like I was truly engaged by the world.
I will reiterate my opening statement: DRAGON AGE: ORIGINS looks to be the best game I’ve played in years. I have only played the first eight hours or so, but I am salivating to complete the game. I am looking forward to spilling more blood—looking forward to kicking some demon ass—and looking forward to getting back into the world of DA. I may never return![/quote:10ke3z5j]
What strikes me about all these previews is how unanimously positive, if not jubilant, they all are. Based on the reviews this does look like it might be the best roleplaying game to come out in a long while. But one tries not to get their hopes up too high (oops, too late).
In addition to the previews it seems that Amazon has a listing for [url=http://www.amazon.com/Calling-Dragon-Ag ... 4:10ke3z5j]the next Dragon Age novel[/url:10ke3z5j] by David Gaider. And by looking inside the book you can read the first six pages (which I haven't done yet; I'll read them when I get the book). The first book was quite entertaining and I'll be looking to pick this one up as well once it's out.
And the official Dragon Age Wiki now has [url=http://social.bioware.com/wiki/dragonag ... r:10ke3z5j]a listing for Templars[/url:10ke3z5j], which is one of the Warrior class specializations you can pick up later. Good stuff.
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