http://www.sorcerers.net/images/news/da/da2.jpgThe website for Dragon Age 2 has officially gone live this morning. Retailers will begin taking pre-orders at 10:00 AM MST! Featured on the website is a description of some of the key features we can expect to see in the game as well as a bit of concept art, possibly showing off the new in-game art style. Be sure to watch out for the exclusive story in the next Game Informer!

Experience the epic sequel to the 2009 Game of the Year from the critically acclaimed makers of Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect 2. You are one of the few who escaped the destruction of your home. Now, forced to fight for survival in an ever-changing world, you must gather the deadliest of allies, amass fame and fortune, and seal your place in history. This is the story of how the world changed forever. The legend of your Rise to Power begins now.
Key Features:


Embark upon an all-new adventure that takes place across an entire decade and shapes itself around every decision you make.
Determine your rise to power from a destitute refugee to the revered champion of the land.
Think like a general and fight like a Spartan with dynamic new combat mechanics that put you right in the heart of battle whether you are a mage, rogue, or warrior.
Go deeper into the world of Dragon Age with an entirely new cinematic experience that grabs hold of you from the beginning and never lets go.
Discover a whole realm rendered in stunning detail with updated graphics and a new visual style.Visit the official website (http://dragonage.bioware.com/da2/).

Hmm sounds different than the first one, but also great. Can`t wait.

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Hmm. Having snooped around the website and the forums, it looks like Origins is out, in the new one. Human only, and a pre-made one at that. Like Shepard in the Mass effect games... I am thinking it might be Morrigan`s kid we get to play. There are also some rumors about switching the art-style to a more anime-like style. Probably due to the anime movie deal they make. Still, it looks like just rumors so far. But i seriously hope there is no truth to any of them. Keeping my fingers crossed!

To be honest, I am actually very interested to see what the new art style is. I felt like the art in Origins was fairly dull.

The graphics was dated, certainly. I am hoping its more like mass effect 2, graphicswise this time. I liked the realistic look to it.

Here is a bit more info on the game.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/gamehunters/post/2010/07/bioware-unveils-dragon-age-2/1

You are taking on the role of Hawke (male PC) who survived the Blight.

If that is the case than you would start off the game young 10ish and become and adult or do you start off 5 years later?

It sounds as if DA2 is more like Fable 3 or something.

I believe this post should be in the DA2 forum.

Hawke will be male of female. Allthought the artwork thingy shows a male. I was thinking about Fable as well, Munch. :) I wonder what happened to "spiritual successor" of Baldur`s Gate...

If that's true then it's pretty lame.

Think like a general and fight like a Spartan

:skeptic:

What is that supposed to mean? If it's meant to be a reference to 300 that is just silly. :lol:

I am 99 percent sure they will dumb it down lots, just like they did with Mass Effect 2. Sorry for sounding negative, but I kind of am.

Seriously, 'Hawke?' :bad: Why not 'Tigre' or 'Raptor?'

Seriously, 'Hawke?' :bad: Why not 'Tigre' or 'Raptor?'

'Raptore' - don't forget to add an 'e' at the end, it's not cool otherwise... :D

Lheppard :)

Lheppard :)

Good one Rawgrim.

Thanks.

That's funny, you can add an e to the end of almost anything. 'Lhepparde,' 'Caradhrase,' Rawgrime ...' :p

Also, to make it extra dark and edgy, there's always the o-i-r thing, like in 'noir.'

'Raptoire.' :heh:

I have high, high hopes for Dragon Age 2. Bioware will have to work pretty hard to mess this up. They just need to repeat what was great about Dragon Age, but make it bigger, deeper, and just that much more impressive.

Since they don't have an entire game engine and world to create this time around, they should be able to pull that off. They have a good track record with making sequels that blow away the originals.

Can't wait for this!

I wish I could share your enthusiasm Marceror. The fact that you can't play an elf or a dwarf really dampens my interest for the sequel (not to mention the Hawke thing).

I guess from the business side of things it makes sense to do Mass Effect with swords and dragons when the Mass Effect games have been so profitable, not a huge fan of those games though.

But the big question, will Marilyn Manson return for the trailer? :P

I guess from the business side of things it makes sense to do Mass Effect with swords and dragons when the Mass Effect games have been so profitable, not a huge fan of those games though.

They actually sold more copies of DAO than ME 1 or ME 2 -I was surprised to learn that as I assumed that it wasn't as successful and that it was for that very reason they decided to go down that road with DA2.

IMO the Hawke thing is a pretty dumb move even if they had to go with a name that would work for males and females. In DAO Warden worked very nicely, they could have come up with a generic title and let us pick the name we wanted for the main character.

It would have been easy to allow Dwarf or Elf main characters by deciding that that character could have been adopted and raised by humans. Problem solved. I guess it was just too much hassle figuring out different dialogue options the way they did in DAO.

I can only hope that the game will compensate the lack of diversity with more depth but I have misgivings, some ideas look nice (actions having consequences in the world) but the whole concept is a bit like Fable. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Fable as a diversion but it's nowhere as good as DAO.

Hawke. He was a man on the edge, living the life of an outcast in a world grown too tame.


Sorry. :grin: It's just that the more I think of it, the more it sounds like the cheesiest thing I've ever heard.

So much for me getting this out...

I'm not going to conclude that a game will be bad because the main character has a rather corny name. Hawke? I'll get used to it.

This is the first I've heard about no playable Elves or Dwarves. If that's true, it's a bummer, but not necessarily the end of the world for me. I usually play humans anyways.

They actually sold more copies of DAO than ME 1 or ME 2 -I was surprised to learn that as I assumed that it wasn't as successful and that it was for that very reason they decided to go down that road with DA2.

Really? I just thought from that story that was kicking around all over the place about ME2 selling 2 million units in it's 1st week and the pace that the ME games come out at that they must have outsold DA:O. Now I have to know the official numbers :p

I have high, high hopes for Dragon Age 2. Bioware will have to work pretty hard to mess this up. They just need to repeat what was great about Dragon Age, but make it bigger, deeper, and just that much more impressive.

Since they don't have an entire game engine and world to create this time around, they should be able to pull that off. They have a good track record with making sequels that blow away the originals.

Can't wait for this!

Mutual feelings mate! DA2 look promising as they mention that it’s gonna be surpass the previous one (Dragon Age) and Star Wars: The Old Republic. New player, variety of character customization and new art style these are highlight of what to expect on Feb 2011.

There isn`t much variety in character customization though. Have to play a human male\female, named Hawke. I`d say that limits the customization quite alot.

Sorry. :grin: It's just that the more I think of it, the more it sounds like the cheesiest thing I've ever heard.

Man, that is so cheesy... :shake:

I guess the Hawke thing is not a deal breaker as it's something that most of us could get used to despite the lack of appeal of the name but not being able to play a Dwarf is really bad, my favourite DAO characters are Dwarves (I'm a big fan of Elves too).

DAO really made playing non humans cool so being stuck with a Human is a big letdown.

EDIT: More information at gameinformer (http://gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2010/07/09/five-facts-about-hawke-in-dragon-age-ii.aspx):

After yesterday's cover reveal and a few tantalizing details about Dragon Age II, fans of BioWare's epic RPG series probably have more questions than answers. The biggest mystery currently involves the new main character: Who is Hawke? You'll have to get a hold of our latest issue if you want all of the details, but we can clarify five basic facts about the central character in Dragon Age II.

1. Hawke will be a voiced character.
Unlike Dragon Age: Origins, the player's character in Dragon Age II will be fully voiced. This opens the door for a more cinematic approach to dialogue and creates an identity for the character outside of the text you see on-screen. It also eliminates those awkward scenarios where you feel like your character should be reacting, but instead just stares blankly without so much as a grunt.

2. Hawke is human.
Yes, that means that you won't be able to select Hawke's race. However, just because that one aspect of Hawke's backstory is set doesn't mean BioWare is eliminating character creation. You can still choose your class and customize your appearance. When we visited BioWare's studio, we only saw (and heard) the male Hawke in action, but the team promises that players can select either gender for the character.

3. Hawke didn't just survive the blight...he escaped it.
As the Grey Warden from Dragon Age: Origins was fighting darkspawn, Hawke was living in Lothering. Fans will remember that the small village was raided and destroyed (an event that occurred off-screen in Origins), and Hawke was one of the survivors. However, rather than stay and fight the darkspawn menace, Hawke flees Ferelden and heads north.

4. Hawke is the Champion of Kirkwall.
Kirkwall is a major population center in the Free Marches, a collection of city-states north of Ferelden. This means that at least some of the action in Dragon Age II will be set in Kirkwall itself, though Hawke will also spend time in other areas of the Free Marches. What exactly Hawke does to earn the honorary title of Champion, however, is up to you.

5. Hawke drives the story.
Dragon Age II is not about killing an ancient evil or about quelling another blight; Hawke is the driving force behind the narrative. Over the course of the game's 10-year timeline, players' actions and choices will determine Hawke's history, relationships, and regrets...all in service to answering the larger question: Who is the Champion of Kirkwall?

1. I don't know about you but I hate reading a line and then having to listen to the voice over. It is bearable when the voice acting is stellar (think Leliana's Song DLC) but it's a pain when it is not.

2. Really sad. Dwarves and Elves in DAO were incredibly cool.

3. Hawke the "hero" took the easy way out and just fled... That is a really heroic start indeed. I guess helping the Grey Warden fighting the Blight was not a priority or maybe he was in such a hurry that he didn't stop long enough to meet the Sten or Leliana, let alone the two remaining Grey Wardens in Ferelden.

4. It means that Hawke is the Champion of Kirkwall no matter what you do. I enjoy playing rotten bastards so I guess my Hawke will become the Champion of Kirkwall for leaving a bloody trail behind him and swindling merchants.

5. Character focus is good although that bit sounds a lot like Fable. I wonder about the game being really epic if the hero is not going to face any "ancient evil" or if he keeps running away from trouble like he did in Lothering.

Thanks for posting this info Cara. I guess we know Hawke isn't Morrigan's child now. I wonder if that storyline will surface in DA2. It ought to.

With respect to Hawke escaping the Blight, and later becoming a hero, I can think of a variety of scenarios to explain this order of events. Perhaps Hawke was too young to fight during the Blight. I'm sure the experience of escaping the Blight itself will become a major factor that shaped him/her into a hero. Or in other words, Lothering simply wasn't Hawke's time to stand out. Sometimes heroes are made, not necessarily born.

EDIT
I don't know about you but I hate reading a line and then having to listen to the voice over. It is bearable when the voice acting is stellar (think Leliana's Song DLC) but it's a pain when it is not.

Since I'm currently playing, and loving, Mass Effect 2, I've grown rather fond of the cinematic approach. Hearing Shepard talk, emote, gesticulate, etc, and hearing his name spoken by others, well, it really adds a dynamic to the game that by comparison is sorely missing from Dragon Age. Shepard is his last name, so I was still able to give him a first name -- Brandon Sheppard, much to my son, Brandon's, delight.

In ME2, unlike The Witcher, you don't choose dialogue options only to hear them repeated verbatim. This was awkward in The Witcher, and BioWare must have learned from it with ME2, as they only provide a 2 - 5 word "direction" in the dialogue choice on screen. Once Chosen, Shepard responds in character, and it works very well. Hopefully DA2 will use a similar strategy. Still, I can understand your disappointment Cara with having your race options taken away.

Thanks for posting this info Cara. I guess we know Hawke isn't Morrigan's child now. I wonder if that storyline will surface in DA2. It ought to.

With respect to Hawke escaping the Blight, and later becoming a hero, I can think of a variety of scenarios to explain this order of events. Perhaps Hawke was too young to fight during the Blight. I'm sure the experience of escaping the Blight itself will become a major factor that shaped him/her into a hero. Or in other words, Lothering simply wasn't Hawke's time to stand out. Sometimes heroes are made, not necessarily born.

That is true and you make a good point about becoming a hero and not just being born one but still I bet that's the kind of choices most of us like to make when playing or creating a character. I'd hate having a gamemaster telling me that my character just fled without giving me some real reason for acting like this and that is no different.

However, rather than stay and fight the darkspawn menace, Hawke flees Ferelden and heads north.

That bit hints that Hawke was old and capable enough to stay and fight but that he/she decided not to. If Hawke had been a kid then this part wouldn't be so embarrassing.

That is true and you make a good point about becoming a hero and not just being born one but still I bet that's the kind of choices most of us like to make when playing or creating a character. I'd hate having a gamemaster telling me that my character just fled without giving me some real reason for acting like this and that is no different.

I can understand where you're coming from with this. The Origins in Dragon Age were great because they allowed you so many possibilities. The focused, cinematic approach with Hawke doesn't lend itself as well to this sort of variety, as any deviation in background probably necessitates that a huge number of dialalogue options be modified, and voiced. I imagine that the single background option voiced for male and female is already going to be a massive undertaking.

So in contrast to Origins, it appears that in DA2 players will be forced to accept the pre-determined background, and make Hawke "theirs" based on the options they choose in the game itself. At least this won't be a surprise.

That bit hints that Hawke was old and capable enough to stay and fight but that he/she decided not to.

Point taken.

So in contrast to Origins, it appears that in DA2 players will be forced to accept the pre-determined background, and make Hawke "theirs" based on the options they choose in the game itself. At least this won't be a surprise.

Given the information currently available that is a very sensible analysis.

I hope the increased immersion will make up for the lack of customization and choices at character creation.

Some posters at the Bioware social site pointed out that if Hawke is indeed a Mage then it will make things complicated down the line and require more dialogue options and also an explanation (is Hawke supposed to be a Circle Mage or an Apostate?) I guess that they couldn't get rid of Mages the way they got rid of Elves and Dwarves since Mages are very popular and that there would have been an outcry if they did (the community is already divided as it is as many posters are already annoyed by the absence of non humans and I certainly don't like the idea of being limited in this way).

We shall wait and see how things turn out. The emphasis on choices and the Hawke persona can be great if they do it right. But that won't be easy for the devs. They really need to come up with very good ideas to flesh out the Hawke character or it will fail miserably.

I would have liked DA2 to be an enhanced version of DAO instead of a totally different game. Let's hope they'll tie up some of the loose ends.

I still wonder why they ditched the Grey Wardens, although that may end up being a good move as fighting Darkspawn can be pretty dull after killing a few thousands. Not to mention the fact that with the Archdemon defeated there is only a limited number of tricks they can use (Awakening is a good example).

The Free Marches, the main setting of DA2, is said to be a "collection of independent city-states" and it looks like it can be a nice place for some adventures bringing together warfare and politics since Hawke is supposed to become "the single most important character in the world of Dragon Age..."

well I'll be damned

Bioware: Dragon Age Is More Successful Than Mass Effect (http://www.megagames.com/news/bioware-dragon-age-more-successful-mass-effect)

Well. Dragon Age was released on PC, Xbox, and PS3. Mass Effect wasn`t released for PS3, I think.

Dragon Age was also released on Mac, according to the article.

well I'll be damned

Bioware: Dragon Age Is More Successful Than Mass Effect (http://www.megagames.com/news/bioware-dragon-age-more-successful-mass-effect)

Told you so. ;)

I have complaints. I like many here have played bg1/2 Planescape Torment. ICWD 1/2. Kotor 1/2 jade empire, mass effect 1/2, Nwn 1/2 and dragon age.

The storey in dragon age is great, the game play is not up to standards. I confess I expected D&D style combat and am Very disappointed that it was far more hack and slash.

When I see how NWN2 stand to 1, Kotor2 stands to 1, Mass effect2 to 1, I am worried that Dragon age 2 will stand like that to dragon age 1.

Graphics oke, story, voice-casting ok. But game-play...... Or RPG elements. If it goes the same way as mass Effect 2....

So I am not going to pre-order, not going to do anything with this game and not going to visit that army of mindless(console players) fan-boys/girls that form the bulk of the bioware boards today. If it gets high PC reviews, fine.