Gi - Bioware‘s ex-CEO Ray Muzyka has gone on the record stating that the developer has been looking long and hard at The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim for inspiration in the upcoming Dragon Age III: Inquisition. For good reason too, as Skyrim is an absolute blockbuster game and a tremendous accomplishment. In order to take the best of what made Skyrim what it is, Bioware should get down to the very foundation of the Dragon Age series. They need to infuse the world of Thedras with the same amount of grandeur, attention to detail and almost low fantasy feeling that Bethesda put into Skyrim. (For another take on DA III read, Dear Bioware…Lessons for Dragon Age 3).
Replaying Skyrim after 13 years is a reminder of the progress made in western RPGs over the last decade, but also what's been lost.
RPGs are often huge, sprawling endeavours. With limited playtime, we have to choose wisely, so here's the best western RPGs available today.
"I started playing games yesterday" the List... Meh!
How about a few RPGs that deserve some love instead?
1 - Alpha Protocol - Now on GOG
2 - else Heart.Break()
3 - Shadowrun Trilogy
4 - Wasteland 2
5 - UnderRail
6 - Tyranny
7 - Torment: Tides of Numenera
And for a bonus game that flew under the radar:
8 - Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden
Not only glorious jank, but the idea that the story can completely change depending on what you do, or say, or side with, makes it one of the most forward thinking games ever. The amount of story permutation is the equivalent of a Hitman level but in Story Form. And it wasn't just that the story changed, no, it was that you met completely new characters, or missed them, depending on your choices. Made Mass Effect feel static in comparison.
Alpha Protocol was absolutely glorious, indeed. And it was, and still is, more Next Gen than most anything out there these days. In this regard at least.
Pity.
A new Partner Spotlight Sale is now live on the Switch eShop, including Skyrim, lowest price ever for Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, and more.
Well I suppose we can kiss the story of dragon age good bye. Dao was all about the story with a huge focus on each races origin. Da2 as horrid ad it was still focused on story. Elder scrolls is an open world game where your allowed to create your own story and they used minimal focus on the main story with 4 other ones to join it. I don't feel dragon age would work in a sandbox like Skyrim without ruining the story focus, which they already have by doing a focus multiplayer (also unneeded) and their actions with da2 and me3....I really want to have hope for this game but Bioware just never keeps their promises.
In one way I do not mind the free wheeling option in Sandbox games they are wonderfully open about what you can do. What I worry about is that Bioware fail once again to focus on their core strengths of story and worldbuilding and go for poorly implemented flashy gimmicks with unnecessary over simplification of game mechanics.
Bioware have been branching out in recent years as RPGs are a small market compared to other genres but I do no think their level of quality is or ever will be as good as times past.
They just need to expand on Origins and forget about DA2 and Skyrim. That's all fans have been asking for. I don't want to wonder about in a mostly empty world for 30 minutes before being attacked by a bear that's stronger than a dragon.
Just make DAO2 with larger maps and all will be well.
They need to look at The Witcher more than they do Skyrim, just ditch the phoney "morality" idea and have a world where your decisions matter but there's no good or bad choices, only choices. I understand why the loyalty system in DA2 was used, that made sense in the context of the story but it was still predictable and kind of lame.