Dragon Age

[Jeremy Ackerman-Yost]

Dragon Age went into development before The Witcher, as I recall. That thing baked for a LONG time.

But even if it hadn't.... that doesn't mean it was ripped off from the Witcher. This happens all the time. Remember when 3 asteroid apocalypse movies came out in the same year? Now we have multiple postmodern fantasies with elements of Bujold, GRRM, etc.

Ideas catch hold of multiple people around the same time, since we're all sitting in the same culture.

I'm waiting for someone to put out epic quasi-historical fantasy romances along the lines of "Lions of Al-Rassan" personally. More game designers need to read some Kay. If I'm lucky, those will come down the pike this generation of video games.

 

[John Crichton]

Hmm, lots of hate here for a videogame world that's darn engaging. Interesting.

The setting is good enough for me to be interested in picking up the dead tree version if the price is right.

 

[Lancelot]

Dragon Age went into development before The Witcher, as I recall. That thing baked for a LONG time.

A long time indeed. Although The Witcher was also baking for a long time, and the fiction it's based on has been in print for much longer.

It's possible that I set my expectations for the setting a little too high. There was much hype (pre-release) about the intricacy of the Dragon Age setting, and the effort that has gone into the background. I was just a little disheartened to see that it's [euro-centric] humans, [Witcher] elves, dwarves, dragons, mages vs knights, orcs and ogres. It's... very traditional.

I'm waiting for someone to put out epic quasi-historical fantasy romances along the lines of "Lions of Al-Rassan" personally. More game designers need to read some Kay.

On that, my friend, we can certainly agree. I'm quite fond of quasi-historical settings, which is one reason I'm a bit of a fan of the Dragon Warriors RPG (for it's skewed take on using Medieval Earth as a setting).

One thing I do like about Dragon Age's setting is the skewed versions of France (Orleis) and Italy (Antiva). Zevran's descriptions of Antivan life are so vivid you can almost smell those fine leather boots...

Hmm, lots of hate here for a videogame world that's darn engaging.

I wouldn't exactly call it "hate". I still like the game. I think it's legitimate to point out some shortcomings, while still admitting you're adicted enough to have played over 100 hours of it...

 

[JoeGKushner]

Not my blog but I agree with some of what's said here

RPG Blog II: The Anchors of Fantasy

 

[mhensley]

They put up a preview of the rogue today. Looks good to me.

http://greenronin.com/c/link.php?id=11

 

[Dire Bare]

It's possible that I set my expectations for the setting a little too high. There was much hype (pre-release) about the intricacy of the Dragon Age setting, and the effort that has gone into the background. I was just a little disheartened to see that it's [euro-centric] humans, [Witcher] elves, dwarves, dragons, mages vs knights, orcs and ogres. It's... very traditional.

Not my blog but I agree with some of what's said here

RPG Blog II: The Anchors of Fantasy

Thanks Joe! Good link. Lots of good responses too. I think this one is pertinent:

Exactly. I hear a lot of 'poo pooing' of game settings that have a 'medieval europe' flair to them. But honestly, that is a great basis to build a gaming world on. As you said, it provides a point of entry for people, enough familiarity to want to open the door. What you do with the world beyond that is what is going to make it unique (or not).

A case in point for this is the console/PC game 'Dragon Age: Origins'. I've heard several reviewers criticize the game for being to 'generic' fantasy (because it has elves, dwarves, mages, etc.). But honestly, THAT is a genre. If you change it TOO much, then it becomes something entirely different. It would be like taking a Western movie and then changing things around so they all ride giant chickens. Yeah, it may be 'different', but it isn't a 'western'.

 

[Starbuck_II]

They put up a preview of the rogue today. Looks good to me.

http://greenronin.com/c/link.php?id=11

So, to fight a rogue you need perception (seeing) and willpower (self-discipline) to not be backstabbed regularly.

Hmm, so Backstab doesn't mind if you are ranged or melee, but requires you to move to them (meaning not a good idea for ranged).
Seems to be only one attack (reminds me of 2nd editions backstab was one attack).

 

[Jeremy Ackerman-Yost]

A long time indeed. Although The Witcher was also baking for a long time, and the fiction it's based on has been in print for much longer.

It's possible that I set my expectations for the setting a little too high. There was much hype (pre-release) about the intricacy of the Dragon Age setting, and the effort that has gone into the background. I was just a little disheartened to see that it's [euro-centric] humans, [Witcher] elves, dwarves, dragons, mages vs knights, orcs and ogres. It's... very traditional.

Heh. We are on a board full of connoisseurs of fantasy settings. If we were foodies, we'd be eating obscure spices, raw molluscs, checking out the various insect dishes, etc. Once you've had the standard spread of flavors a few thousand times, you want to try the weird stuff.

That's a niche, niche, niche market. No one will ever make money writing a fantasy setting towards those who can take a sip and then discuss the authors who influenced it in detail while scrunching up their nose to keep their monocle in place.

With big development time and big production values.... you need to hit the big target.... mass market fantasy. Accessible, only pushing one or two boundaries at a time. Anything else isn't just risking your investment, it's throwing it out the window. On fire.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Wasn't The Witcher based on the same game engine driving Neverwinter Nights 1? Since that was from Bioware, I suppose aesthetic similarities are not a coincidence, even if it's a new engine.

The story-similarities are probably mostly because it's still pseudo-medieval fantasy.

 

[Leatherhead]

The story-similarities are probably mostly because it's still pseudo-medieval fantasy.

I wasn't aware "pseudo-medieval" was a genre.