First Impressions
 

Well I played about an hour, and wow, this game is great. I had some misgivings, which I voiced in a GD thread, but so far, none have come true.

I will quickly say that from what I have already seen, I do think this will be the RPG of the year, and I do think it is worthy of the "spiritual successor" to Baldur's Gate title.

It's *feels* like Oblivion meets Baldurs Gate. I cannot help but feeling like i'm walking around Candlekeep library. It plays very like BG, but updated, streamlined etc.

First of all, this engine is OPTIMIZED. It's sad that we now have to mention whether or not a game-engine can actually run well, but w/e. The game runs like a dream for me. Pay attention, Champions Online and NWN2. This is how you optimize engines. The thing is fluid. Not one hitch or stutter as of yet. Keep in mind I am just in the first act, after coming out from the tutorial, but so far, so good!

The graphics are really cool. It's kinda like that hybrid realism style of art. I don't know what they call it, but it is similiar to Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. When you pause this game, some things look like an actual phtotgraph. You can also swing the camera around in 3d while paused, seeing fights from all angles. This makes for some amazing freeze-frame scenes, where you can actually see spell effects hit your character in a shower of light and and see all the details of the enemies you're engaging. I fought with a fire elemental and just seeing it caught in mid-attack while paused was a game in itself.

Spells are alot from BG and IWD series, but modified in name to not conflict with the D&D license. There's a burning hands equavalent and a magic missle one too. I spied mage armor and frostfire, along with healing spells for mages. I think mages are the healers in this game - not sure yet.

UI is nice and shiny, maybe a little bit clunky - but just a little bit. Within 10 mins I was already used to the controls - intuitive mas.

Anyways, gonna go try another character see what their origin is like!

Re: First Impressions
 

<font color = mediumspringgreen>Yes. Mages can follow the "Spirit" path, I believe it was, to become healers. Bioware was trying to stay away form "Cleric Syndrome".

I just picked it up not 5 minutes ago, and put the CD in. It is installing as we speak. Boy, it's like christmas!</font> :D

Re: First Impressions
 

Yeah, they have like talent trees similiar to WoW and The Witcher, where you can dump points into and gain spells. Basically there's only one caster type and he can do all spells potentially.

Just played for another 2 hour or so, went the human noble route as a rogue. Man, rogue is alot of fun. Pickpocketting my family members etc. They can stealth, dual wield and barter. All that Rogue-ish goodness.

The only thing I would say is you may wanna turn gore down a bit. It is almost ridiculous. My characters finish a battle and then immediately go into a cutscene with everyone in my party just DRENCHED in blood. When the NPC's are talking about everyday things like the weather or how many sandwiches they ate, it just seems laughable to have them chatting pleasantly to 3 people who look like Jason the serial killer after every fight. I am fine with gore, but it's a bit too much and imo unnecessary. No big deal, just turn the switch down.

I am looking forward to mods for this game, what with such a great engine and all, I imagine this will be the next big modding affair.

Re: First Impressions
 

I just got back from the store. Gamestop didn't receive the PC version today, not even my preorder. So instead I went to Best Buy.

The retail copies came with the DLC and the Blood Dragon armor. I thought only the pre-orders got it.

I'll let you guys know my impressions when(if!) I take a break. :p

Re: First Impressions
 

Just finished the City Elf prologue.

I too made a rogue but I don't have pickpocket. Instead I took two levels in the persuasion skill and a level in the battle training skill, if I remember right.

The game does feel like Neverwinter Night in the way it plays, but for some reason in this one I prefer the camera in third person mode instead of top down.

I'm having fun so far. Before I started I wanted to have this character turn into a human hating, bitter rogue. But I got attached to the friendly npcs and became more of a rebel hero.

Also it seem they finally managed to fix the login/registration problems they were having with their website so I unlocked all the promo content and while there bought the other DLC. I'll let you guys know if it's worth it.

Re: First Impressions
 

Yes, the camera in third-person mode is so good and NON dizzying, that I can play it with no problems.

To this day, I am forced to play NWN2 in top-down for the sole reason that the alternatives were the most annoying things in gaming. In top-down mode, I missed alot of visual candy, and just a general sense of the experience is taken away.

So Bioware got this one right also. I mean, is the standard so low that we have to note optimized engines and working cameras, lol? I guess so. Either way, very impressed with DA:O, and I hope this puts Bioware back on the map in terms of fantasy RPGing.

Re: First Impressions
 

I'm playing a mage and have had zero problems with the engine and no camera complaints. I did manage to get myself stuck between a couple boxes and ended up having to go back to a previous save. Luckilly that wasnt far. Overall great first impression!

Re: First Impressions
 

<font color = mediumspringgreen>Ah, this game is wonderful, to be sure. Dalish Elf, pumping my dexterity and dual weilding. I am a force to be reckoned with.

And I must say, I quite enjoy the NPC's you get saddled with.

*Very minor spoiler*

I laughed a good bit when Alistair said the words "Man Feelings". Suffice to say, Carth mentioned those very same ones. All one of them. ;)

*End very minor spoiler*</font>

Re: First Impressions
 

Holy Crap! Now THIS is what Neverwinter Nights 2 should have been. Amazing. And yes, the engine is smooth, and responsive without the stuttering of 'other' games we've seen. I am going to run my Rogue first. (Love my Thief games) :D

The atmosphere is really something. It really does bring back memories of Baldur's Gate. *sigh*... finally.

Bioware, this will be RPG of the year. bank on that!
More soon!! I will mess with the toolset after I beat it, and maybe make another Undermountain mod!

If this had multiplayer, it would be perfect. But hey, maybe in an expansion pack, eh?

Re: First Impressions
 

You guys got me all psyched!!! :)

Re: First Impressions
 

I just read here about issues with downloading the bonus content if you purchase the game via Steam or Impulse. Mandatory forum sign ups are involved?

I wonder if it was an EA or Bioware idea to harvest forum signups with bonus content lures. Oh, I sorry they aint forums anymore, they are "social networks".

Re: First Impressions
 

In a few days, all those extra content packs will be linked here for download (if its legal and possible) much like the BG2 and IWD extra packs were.

Re: First Impressions
 

I'm trying them all and so far I think my favourite origin story is the Human Noble one.

If you take the time to go around and talk to each of your family members, servants, and also especially if you get your "friend" to come for a sleepover, you really get good drama once the action starts. They really got me into the character.

I'm going to try a Female Dwarven Noble next, and then finish with a Daelish Elf archer and chose which Origin I want to use for my first play through.

Re: First Impressions
 

I'm pretty much doing the exact same. However, I am a little attached to mage. They're not restricted to the D&D rules so are actually quite viable in most situations.

Re: First Impressions
 

This game looks sick!!! :wow:

Re: First Impressions
 

Well spent 1 hour just playing in the Nobel Human intro....pretty sweet, but if all the intros are like this, am going to have to try them all.

Re: First Impressions
 

Be careful Playing a Dwarf with Bonus Items as you will lose them at some point with no ability to get them back at this stage.

Re: First Impressions
 

I agree. I am tempted to stop my human rogue for a few hrs and try other paths :) But naa.. I gotta go get revenge.. GRRRRR! ;)

Re: First Impressions
 

Yeah it's with the Dwarf Noble. One of my favourite origin.

There is a way to get your items back. Go in your downloadable section and deactivate the bonus items DLC. Then load your game without them, save. Go back to the main menu, re-enable them and they'll be given to your character again when you re-load your game with the save you just made.

Re: First Impressions
 

Just wondering, but, has anyone found this game to be too difficult or found the fights too tough? I am reading quite a few posts on the forums about this, and cannot for the life of me understand why.

Is it that they're just fps kiddies trying to mow everything down? You know, no pausing, taking care of their "main" char only and expecting the rest to happen on its own. I mean, anyone who has played BG to NWN to PS:T knows the value of pausing and queueing up actions. How in the hell are these people "wiping almost every fight" on normal mode?

I am not that far in myself, and am playing on normal difficulty, but everything I have come up against so far is a breeze once I watch health and queue up spells/skills. I have barely used any potions or items, instead relying on my own character abilities to mitigate or heal damage. I dunno, it just seems odd to me that anyone could experience the game this way. Challenging is great, but when they say they are dying every fight...wtf?

Re: First Impressions
 

Dragon Age: An after Action report.
The game is fun and I would give it 8 out of 10 stars for the early part of things. (Im level 5 and just finished becoming a Warden)

That being said, Im a bit disappointed by the game Engine/World. I've become spoiled by Bethesda's Fallout 3 Where every item is a real 3d object even the trash, every building can be entered and explored, every wrecked vehicle has an interior and if some punk is beating youw ith a giant Maul you can kill him and use the Maul to beat other punks.

Basically the game engine is just a souped up Never Winter Nights engine where the only destructible or interactable items are those that are scripted, where a fallen log is an impassible barrier but does not provide cover from incoming missiles....I miss being able to climb on logs and boulders and using terrain as cover. I also miss the freedom to go anywhere, even underwater...in DA you can't even get your feet wet.

So I like the game but am not blown away by the Engine.

Re: First Impressions
 

I just played a part of the game and... you just touched something that really bothers me with this game. The AI sucks badly. They do chaotic stuff in combat, and no matter what you do, setting up their tactics (only 2 slots without feats? BAD!) or behaviour or queueing up orders, they never seem to be doing what you want. I want them to attack something? They do but suddenly stop doing that and don't bother attacking anything else. I want them to auto-attack something else? They chase it and get seperated and die. I click another character to queue up actions? The one I just had controlled suddenly loses all coherence and starts doing its AI routine, which as I just mentioned is stupid. I wish this game had AI disabling just like BG or NWN2. At least then the chaotic real time engine would be a bit controllable.

Other things that I noticed:
-game engine is well optimized and runs like a charm. No overdone bloom, no disgusting use of HDR, but it just looks good, especially in tactical camera mode.
-writing is okay (not great), plot is generic fantasy boring, voice acting is atrocious so far with disjointed lines that feel really artificial and the characters are flat and give no reason to care for them. Especially the dying family member scene in the noble start... I just wanted him to die and get over with the silly drama for characters I don't care about.
-inventory works cool with 'shared pool' of stuff.
-I'll mention it again: all semblance of tactics go out the window with this chaotic engine with really crummy AI. It is WORSE than NWN2.

And another thing: I'm playing a rogue. How do you backstab/flank attack whatever? I'm always seeing the same amounts of damage regardless of flanking, stealth etc. The manual wasn't very helpful.
EDIT: so my char is showing the proper backstab animation when I'm flanking (you gotta be at the black part of the target circle) but it hardly does any more damage than normal. Is that because I'm using daggers?

Re: First Impressions
 

You get more tactics slots as your characters gain levels, as well as to the right of the tactics window there's a behaviour drop down with different ones including some that are less aggressive. Personally I like how my tactics are set up and I have no problem with how my characters use their skills.

Make sure your characters aren't in hold position mode because if they are melee they will cease attacking if the target moves out of range.

You're way too early to judge the story if you're just at the origin part. That's not even considered the prologue yet. Also you really need to read the codex entires if you want to get the most of the story. Their setting is really well thought of.

Re: First Impressions
 

I too have found no real AI issues, other than yes, my rogue does sometimes not attack automatically and I have to actually queue up an action for her. But this is all. I too am not that far in so can't say for sure if there are major issues or not. So far though, I am fine and haven't even had to mess around with tactics (by default they are filled in for you). I will let you know if I do start to see an issue with this later on.

Hey btw, anyone know a console command to kinda respec the extra tactics I got via skills/points? You know, where you get to add points and then get more than the default. I accidentally took them thinking they were something else, and am fine with the amount of slots I had but could use the points elsewhere. I just don't wanna bork my game or anything so am looking for a quick, safe console command.

Re: First Impressions
 

I think I've found the problem with the AI. Default behaviour does what I want sort of. I can manually issue orders and they'll follow it, but I cannot seem to queue anything (move and then attack for instance, second order will overwrite). But additional combat tactics ruin everything. If someone is set to use Dirty Fighting on a condition, for instance, they will do that even if you just told them to go stand over there as soon as you switch characters to give orders. It is better to manually activate such powers, but I think it is fine for sustained powers.

Also, the camera restriction to "controlled character must be in screen" is really really annoying. The way combat works still doesn't hold up to NWN2 imo, though cooldown abilities instead of once/day is good, because it works better with RT engine. In the end it is enjoyable, but mostly because it is not so easy as the latest rpg's.

Flanking attacks still seem to do negligent bonus damage.

Re: First Impressions
 

Right, you can't queue anything, like you can in NWN 1 and 2. Well, you can queue one thing but no more than one. That I did notice immediately. Move and attack you can do by simply clicking the attack on an enemy, and your char will move within range and then perform the attack/spell. But to move somewhere "odd" and then attack, no, you gotta hold their hand with that (such as rogue backstabbing). These things I can live with, personally.

This engine and game are in their infancy. And for something so young it is very well polished considering everything else. It already runs better than most games I have played at launch. But I notice little things too, I mean, in your inventory you have a built in "Equip Compare" mod that shows what you are wearing in comparison to what the item you are viewing. That's an awesome touch. Then you have "party inventory" as opposed to one for each player, items are universal for ease of use. Usually games don't come with fine tuning like that until patches or expansions later - if they come at all.

Take NWN2 for example, I went back and played it there last week, and gave up within a few hours. Whatever they did to the aurora engine seems to be irreversible. The thing still groans under scripting and spawning, while load times take an eternity and the AI seems not to have improved at all. Yet NWN1, while it is old, is very well optimized now, yet after 2-3 years NWN2 is still falling behind.
I uninstalled it, despite my best intentions to play the thing through, I simply could not do it. "Clunky" doesn't even describe my experience. Then DA:O came along, and now I doubt I will ever pick up NWN2 again. This game is where its at imo. Man, EA have done well this year, Sims 3 and DA:O alongside the lukewarm success of WAR.

Re: First Impressions
 

I thought it was standard to farm A.I. out to the community anyway. ;)

Re: First Impressions
 

I've started both the Magi and Human Noble Origins, I don't know yet which I'll finish the game with first.

So far I like the amount of humor in the dialouge, writing is on par with what I expect from a Bioware team. A few scenes did miss their marks.

I also enjoy the original world and various takes on fantasy conventions. It avoids being overly cliche while remaining familiar.

This all adds up making it fairly easy to get immersed into the setting from the beginning.

Re: First Impressions
 

Lots of discussion here about the game engine. The BG games are a VERY tough act to follow and Bioware have done very well with this game in that you can make it look like the Baldur's Gate games. In fact it's brilliant because while waiting for the spiritual successor to BG I have all been playing Oblivion, The Witcher, Morrowind (again!) and got used to running camera over shoulder and DA:O does both brilliantly!. My big worry about this game was that it was going to take itself too seriously and lose the humour of Baldur's Gate. Have just completed The Joining as a Human Noble and nothing hilarious yet, but the signs are good. Who can forget the Gnolls in BG......."Die, scum....Woof!" and your first meeting with Imoen, "Hey, it's me, Imeon!", The Flaming Fists, peasants standing around scratching their behinds....

Re: First Impressions
 

I got the game a few days later than most here.

A combination of late release dates in Europe and postal strikes in the UK did not help.

I can't say I'm happy. All the video scenes make me think I'm watching a movie rather than playing a game. At lower levels the parties can easily get overwhelmed by a mass of enemies. This seems to be down to luck as enemies can hit, or not, without warning as the party moves out of a safe area.

I know I can rig party tactics and I am doing that. However, I am finding it very frustrating. It's not that I want to blast through it but because I have to back off and reload so many times that it is getting annoying.

Re: First Impressions
 

Space Bar is UR Friend...mmmkay :thumbsup2:

Re: First Impressions
 

Yes you must pause to play this game. No exceptions. I mean, some fights you will pull off live, but it is mostly back to the BG and IWD days of pausing and queueing actions.

As far as cutscenes go, I kinda agree with you. I am not fond of them, but since NWN's 2 these are the new thing. I don't like completely losing control of my character *everytime* I talk to an NPC, with everything suddenly in cinematic mode and big black broders. Dramatic scenes fine, but every second NPC, not so fine.

I confess, sometimes I find myself pressing escape through the predicatable cutscenes just so I can get to the action. Don't get me wrong, I love all the content here, and the fact that so many NPC's actually have a voice...I just miss the old conversation windows with NPC voiceover. I wish there was an option to toggle it. Something like "disable cutscene cinematic view" and I would gladly take a transparent conversation box from NWN1.

Re: First Impressions
 

Actually, KOTOR did it before NWN2.

Re: First Impressions
 

Oh. Never played it so wouldn't know.

Re: First Impressions
 

Just catching a break from playing and thought it was time to drop my ten cents on the game...


I agree that this looks like RPG of the year - I have 3 ongoing games atm - my mage is level 11 and is by far the easiest to play. Graphics are awesome - I especially like the *pause game and look at the spells go off in the face of that fucked up creep*
On the other hand pausing with my rogue also has some interesting *pause effects* ---> blood ´n gore FTW*

I found something else that is interesting - if you combine spells you can get some unexpected bonuses from it - Happened by accident for me and I was *woooot the hell was THAT?"

As to the DLC content - I had to adjust my services.cms so the Dragon Age updater starts automatically as that is mostly what is the cause of the problems.

Re: First Impressions
 

Yeah there are spell combos. The instruction manual mention it but doesn't spoil them.

Re: First Impressions
 

That is news to me. Unless you mean like, icing them then shattering them etc. Or do you mean something else?

Re: First Impressions
 

Mixing certain spells together can create new spells.

Re: First Impressions
 

It is annoying how many effects and abilities are just not documented well. I STILL don't know what backstabbing does exactly.

Re: First Impressions
 

I think it's a guaranteed crit. Or at least they hit in the same range.