Dragon Age II

 PC
User Score
4.5

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 4586 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,221 out of 4586
  2. Mixed: 986 out of 4586
  3. Negative: 2,379 out of 4586
Buy On

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Meisterwerke
    Mar 12, 2011
    10
    Fantastic game, i like this. Is amazing... the only downside is that history is a little out of Dragon Age: Origins
    Good innovation by Bioware. The game innovates in many ways and the combat is amazing. The graphic quality (a full) is wonderful and unique characters.
  2. Sylvaticus
    Mar 11, 2011
    8
    Wow, I am not liking the haters on this one. The graphics are beautiful, they story is great, the combat is a bit dumbed down but I am still thoroughly enjoying this game. Isabella is a better Leliana and Alistair is a drunk in a bar. Origins was iconic but this game is great as well. My wife and I have already got 15 hours into the game each, and we are greatly enjoying it. Don't listenWow, I am not liking the haters on this one. The graphics are beautiful, they story is great, the combat is a bit dumbed down but I am still thoroughly enjoying this game. Isabella is a better Leliana and Alistair is a drunk in a bar. Origins was iconic but this game is great as well. My wife and I have already got 15 hours into the game each, and we are greatly enjoying it. Don't listen to the smelly trolls, this game is a blast.… Expand
  3. swizer
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    I liked the game ... I do not know why you are criticizing her so ... yes it is something new, but it does not mean that it is worse ... at the expense of graphics is nothing bad I can not say, if you download the patch, the graphics in the game becomes a normal By the way ... I do not care what you think at the expense of what I wrote
  4. lordofthetrue
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    This game is so epic that bring tears to my eyes!

    Everything it's perfect, story, characters, combat, world, polemic, the big pwned that the "Bioware can't go wrong" fan boys are taking. Play Dragon Age 2 it's watch the history being written!
  5. Siven
    Mar 11, 2011
    8
    Unfortunately a lot of negative reviews here are a result of an organised campaign who dont seem to have even played the game. Even some positive reviews are way OTT.

    DA2 is not a DAO clone. It isnt an old school complex for complexity sake crpg. It is streamlined and easier to use and play which isnt a bad thing. It is a more modernized approach which should bring more people into the    Unfortunately a lot of negative reviews here are a result of an organised campaign who dont seem to have even played the game. Even some positive reviews are way OTT.

    DA2 is not a DAO clone. It isnt an old school complex for complexity sake crpg. It is streamlined and easier to use and play which isnt a bad thing. It is a more modernized approach which should bring more people into the RPG fold without drowning them in complex systems some games do.

    You still levelup, place attributes and pick talents and spells. You still have a party you use and can chat too. The game takes place mainly in 1 city with several areas to it. I would have preffered more varied location though, but it still plays nice.

    Combat is a little faster than DAO and the classes are more distinct, but the essence of the combat is the same as DAO without the slow shuffling about the original had. You will need to bump difficulty up to hard for more challenge and tactical feel though, as normal is just far too easy.
    The cross class combo system is fantastic.

    The narrative story works well, and they have taken a gamble in not using the tried and tested save the world plot most rpgs use in place of a more focused diplomatic storyline which i think works well but does lack an epic feel to it.

    Graphics are fine if not spectacular, but the game does seemed like EA rushed them by using the same cave with different openings etc. Its a good RPG, but not great due to EA rushing the development time.    … Expand
  6. Conscience
    Mar 9, 2011
    9
    New, bold and engaging with addictive combat. Interesting and compelling characters, like Origins. Much more intelligent than the ads would make you think.

    Having played Origins, I was not expecting the more action-based combat to be very good, but it was surprisingly enjoyable and maintained the same level of tactics as Origins (though I admit I don't like to micromanage my party's    New, bold and engaging with addictive combat. Interesting and compelling characters, like Origins. Much more intelligent than the ads would make you think.

    Having played Origins, I was not expecting the more action-based combat to be very good, but it was surprisingly enjoyable and maintained the same level of tactics as Origins (though I admit I don't like to micromanage my party's actions). Exploring all of the side-quests, I think I got a bit too powerful by the end and had to turn up the difficulty to make it more challenging, but it was always fun.

    The plot was a refreshing change from the 'save the world from the ultimate evil' plots that you see so often in fantasy games. Make the entire story based around a single location provided a nice focus, and made the story feel much more personal.

    The explorer in me was a bit saddened by the re-use of level graphics in many occasions, but the characters, situations, gameplay and quests themselves made up for it in the most part. The graphics and environments are simply beautiful.

    Items and equipment got some nice improvements (I've always hated sorting through piles of junky items like you are forced to in some other games). The only minor point about this that I didn't like so much was not being able to customize the armour of my party members.

    In summary, this may not be a "hard-core RPG" (a fact that some people can't seem to forgive), but it's a great RPG that has a synergy of a lot of good elements that make Dragon Age 2 stands very well on it's own as it keeps you coming back for more.    … Expand
  7. mylan
    Mar 10, 2011
    9
    I like it, I will be happy to play! And I can not understand why so many negative reviews? The first game was very good, I think the second will be even better.
  8. Rongxin
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    My my, what a week It has been! Like so many others around the world, Iâ
  9. roboticsun
    Nov 1, 2011
    6
    Dragon Age 2 is still a average to good game from Bioware. After putting 50 hours in this game, I can understand why so many people hate this game, but if you calm down and try to enjoy it you will find it has its won merit. I spent 45 hours on my first play through in hard difficulty, right now still on my 2nd play through in nightmare difficulty. Story wise, I read a lot of reviewsDragon Age 2 is still a average to good game from Bioware. After putting 50 hours in this game, I can understand why so many people hate this game, but if you calm down and try to enjoy it you will find it has its won merit. I spent 45 hours on my first play through in hard difficulty, right now still on my 2nd play through in nightmare difficulty. Story wise, I read a lot of reviews saying how shallow the story is. However, I think the reason is most people are used to 'the lord of ring' formula. This game is not about slaying evil like the first game but a story through Hawke's life in Kirkwall. It seems there is no clear goal for the story, but there are lots of lore about dragon age world. The plot is simple, just about How the Ferelden refugee Hawke gains power in Kirkwall. But through Hawke's life you will find the conflicts between Qun and Chantry (the religion conflicts between human and qunari), you will know more about Dalish's and surface dwarves culture and of course you will learn more about the struggles between Templars and mages. The most engaging part of the game is Hawkes family and companions all have their own story, you wont feel they just suddenly pop out. Though the plot is pretty linear, you can still make lots of choices, side with different forces and influence how they will end including the companions. Origins did better Companion characters. Dragon age 2 is similar to Awakening. You can not interact with companions unless there are companion's quests. Of course there are a lot of quests from companions. Through those quests, you can push them to Friendship or Rivalry with Hawke based on your dialog choices. It's actually interesting to see how different they will treat Hawke as friend or as rivalry. And one thing I like about dragon age 2 is you actually can see how the companions are interacted with each other through cut scenes, also they will act differently as friend or as rivalry. To avoid the spoilers, I do not want to talk about companions in dragon age 2, but generally Origins' companions have more distinct personalities, of course you can see several cameos of them. Also the Warden in first game is cited a couple of times. as for combat, Many hardcore rpg gamers may hate this combat system. I can see the reason behind that. But generally combat in dragon age 2 is better and well balanced despite the animations. I did not play in easy and normal difficulties, because I know they are not designed for PC gamers. However, I found the hard mode is a satisfying tactical combat experience. Mages and rogues are vulnerable to physical damages and their actions will be interrupted often, so you will need to pause often and relocate them to avoid damage and use warrior to taunt enemies wisely. Boss fights will take quite a while, because of their huge amount of health and continuous reinforcements, however most bosses in the main plot are not very challenging, the hard parts are all in side quests. So it wont be very difficult to finish the game in hard mode. I played in nightmare for a few hours, it really takes a long time for a single battle, because you either have to relocate party members or kite frequently to avoid friendly fire or you have to kill enemies one by one without skills or spells with area effects. And bioware is being lazy on this, they put even more health and resistances to enemies but not working on AI, so some battles are just being tedious at the end. The environment design is the major flaw of this game. A lot of recycle dungeons and recycle music from Origins. I can see Bioware really rushed this game to be released (or EA forced them to rush). However, I probably will tolerate this, since this is really not the thing I care about. Because of the revamped combat system, I can see a lot of people will lose interests in this game, Though personally I do enjoy my first play through for 45 hours and I still have a couple of side quests I found but did not finish them. It's certainly shorter than Origins which took me 60 hours for first play through on hard mode. But this is still a good game if you really get into it. if you like party based tactical combat like dragon age origins and world of warcraft, I suggests you start with hard difficulty and most likely you will like dragon age 2.… Expand
  10. BillTheB
    Mar 11, 2011
    8
    If you are looking for a game with a good storyline and decent voice acting for the protagonist this game is great. The fighting is quick paced and the graphics are a step above the predecessor but only if you get the high res pack and run DX11. If you are looking for a Dragon Age: Origins clone with a new story then you will be disappointed. The game has the great lore of the originalIf you are looking for a game with a good storyline and decent voice acting for the protagonist this game is great. The fighting is quick paced and the graphics are a step above the predecessor but only if you get the high res pack and run DX11. If you are looking for a Dragon Age: Origins clone with a new story then you will be disappointed. The game has the great lore of the original but lacks a bit of personality as they didn't have enough time to fully develop the world around Kirkwall. I would guess that after the DLC comes out the Ultimate edition will be great and on par with the world of Thedas in Origins. All in all. I love the game and find the story gripping.… Expand
  11. FuFxs
    Mar 12, 2011
    10
    I've just completed this game and overall, I was very surprised how engaged I was with the gameplay, story and the characters themselves. I'd come expecting the worse (read the user reviews and comments from forums) but on it's own, it was very good. Thx BioWare! Well done.
  12. DraMass
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    Fantastic game. A masterpiece. Bioware as always have shown that they the best rpg developers. The combat, a plot, and characters are incredible. Game is ideal in all. Thanks for Fenris, Anders, Isabella and certainly Hawk. The original plot holds throughout all game. A one minus - repeating locations. But this isn't neccesary. I always buy your games. Thanks once again that you have made!
  13. jkprice
    Apr 2, 2011
    10
    Outstanding game. At their core, RPGs are about the characters and dialogue. The combat is good, but ultimately, this doesn't matter. These are the deepest, most interesting bunch of characters ever assembled for an RPG. Because you cannot really focus on developing more than about 3 in a single play through, it highly adds to the replayability, too.

    A few minor bugs need to be patched    Outstanding game. At their core, RPGs are about the characters and dialogue. The combat is good, but ultimately, this doesn't matter. These are the deepest, most interesting bunch of characters ever assembled for an RPG. Because you cannot really focus on developing more than about 3 in a single play through, it highly adds to the replayability, too.

    A few minor bugs need to be patched out, and if I were going to knock it a point (which I'm not), the repeating dungeon environments need to go.    … Expand
  14. Haylzorz
    Mar 14, 2011
    8
    I can agree with some of the already stated negative factors about this game, such as the combat system needing little thought or planning (unless on hard mode) and that some of the dialogue options seem a little... well, sloppy. What I will say about the graphics is that I have a high end gaming PC with an nvidia geforce gtx 570 and therefore I downloaded the hi-res texture package and II can agree with some of the already stated negative factors about this game, such as the combat system needing little thought or planning (unless on hard mode) and that some of the dialogue options seem a little... well, sloppy. What I will say about the graphics is that I have a high end gaming PC with an nvidia geforce gtx 570 and therefore I downloaded the hi-res texture package and I see little improvement. Although I find the graphics only slightly underwhelming, it is a little off putting when there's such a diverse mix between shoddy textures and higher quality ones. Some armour looks great, some looks dreadfully out dated. However this all said and done, I am enjoying the game immensly. I find the storyline involving and dramatic (without seeming to try too hard) and the party members you can recruit are all very intriguing and different. The replay value of the game, in my opinion, is very high. There are quite a few options and paths you can take and I for one am looking forward to my second character already. And as for being stuck in the city mainly, which I heard about before even playing the game, hasn't been an issue for me. The only disappointing thing I will point out is that house/cave/deeproads layouts are all reused quite a lot. Overall I think Dragon Age 2 isn't as bad as people are making it out to be. It feels much like the first game and although it does seem to have been dumbed down ever so slightly (mainly with the combat and character relationship factors) I can see it appealing to a wider variety of gamers. And you don't need to have played the first game to enjoy this one.… Expand
  15. Pinely
    Mar 14, 2011
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Dragon Age II is, obviously, a divisive game. This reviewer found it to be a net improvement over Dragon Age: Origins, primarily thanks to the improved writing, visual style, companions, and combat. However, the game is far from perfect, mostly due to repetitive environments, inconsistent difficulty, confounding item decisions, and a weak introductory level(s).

    The writing isn't for everyone, I'll admit that. I, however, appreciated a storyline that wasn't about saving the world from an enemy hell bent on destroying it. It is a well executed romp of survival, friendship, family, and politics. Bioware learned some lessons about companions as well. Origins companions suffered because Morrigan, Allistair, and Loghain were so central to the story. In DA2, each companion is of roughly equal importance (aside from Varric, who is slightly more important). Lastly, Bioware is saying more with less. Origins had characters over elaborate (particularly companions), which became frustrating. I get it Morrigan, you're a wilds apostate, I don't need you to remind me each time I talk to you. DA2 does a better job at avoiding this.

    I can't say DA2's visuals are perfect. There are still a lot of textures that are simply bad. But, for the most part, DA2 presents a consistent visual style for items, areas, and characters. It isn't Crysis, but it runs well on older machines and looks decent while doing so. Unlike Origins, it doesn't feel like every item is a generic fantasy weapon or armor.

    Combat (at least on the PC) has improved. The time it takes in between actions being queued and executed has been reduced. I like to pause constantly in combat and this seemingly small change has made combat much more fun. In Origins, I would queue up abilities, wait 3 seconds as my party gradually executed their orders, and then pause again. In DA2, I'm not waiting for very long, making combat feel more involved. There is no top down view, but being that I pause combat I never found much use for that view in Origins. Lastly, the skill trees are now actual trees, instead of linear progressions. This opens up more options for a particular character.

    Kirkwall is mostly nice, but for some inexplicably reason Bioware decided that it would be nice to reuse the same dungeons over and over again. I don't mind that it all takes place in Kirkwall, but does every freaking cave, cellar, and house in Kirkwall have to be identical? By the time you hit the third act, this becomes a bit comical.

    I've played the game through normal and halfway through hard. Bioware, puzzlingly, decided to have reinforcements appear in nearly every battle in the game. I don't mind having enemies show up mid way through a battle, it keeps me on my toes and adds difficulty to an encounter. But, they range from wet noodle to Spartan and often appear from thin air. I often find myself saving before every possible encounter because I just don't know how it will pan out, which is an annoyance.

    I like the UI and the Skill Changes. I like how the items look. I do not, however, like how Bioware implemented Armor. First, companions have their own custom armors that cannot be changed and are upgraded throughout the game. Giving companions a unique visual style is a good thing, but removing companion itemization sucks. Second, there appear to be certain sets of armor that are clearly superior than the others during each Act. I'd like a little more variety in a game based upon the RPGs of yore. Lastly, although 5 armor classes was a bit too much in Origins, I think DA2 needs one more set to sit in between Leather and Plate.

    My final criticism lies with the games introduction. You start the game having already fled from Lothering, in a bland wasteland. You lose a companion that you haven't even really met within the first 15 minutes and you get mystically whisked away to safety. And then you do another brief area in which you sell yourself into servitude for a year. About an hour of content that feels like a complete waste of time. The fun part doesn't begin until you pick up Varric, which is a shame.

    I typed more than I intended. In spite of its flaws, I'd recommend Dragon Age 2 to any RPG fan, particularly fans of Dragon Age Origins. I feel that a lot of the negative criticism is more about how the game is perceived by players and less about actual faults. That said, it only edges out Origins by the slimmest of margins. If Bioware intends for Dragon Age to become a stable franchise, they'll need to bring some more of Origins into Dragon Age 3.    … Expand
  16. MorningStar
    Mar 14, 2011
    8
    I accept some of the criticisms leveled at this game, but some of them are just plain wrong. Graphically to my eyes this is a big improvement over the disjointed and inconsistent Origins, which looked great one minute and awful the next. With the hi-res texture pack and all the DX11 effects on it's an impressive sight in my opinion. The depth of field and motion blur are especiallyI accept some of the criticisms leveled at this game, but some of them are just plain wrong. Graphically to my eyes this is a big improvement over the disjointed and inconsistent Origins, which looked great one minute and awful the next. With the hi-res texture pack and all the DX11 effects on it's an impressive sight in my opinion. The depth of field and motion blur are especially improved over DAO. While I'm not a fan of the re-used environments they're generally more detailed than the same old caves that DAO recycled through the deep roads and half the rest of the game.

    Difficulty is a bit iffy so far for me, playing a mix of normal and hard I've found a lot of the game too easy, excepting a boss fight that took me 5 goes to get through on hard. Let's not forget this is far (FAR) better than the train wreck of difficulty in DAO that seemed to be programmed by a bipolar sitcom star. A few random encounter wolves harder than masses of darkspawn anyone?

    Anyone who expects Bioware to keep remaking Baldurs Gate for all eternity to appease the D&D crowd, or compares this unfavorably to NWN2 (I enjoyed it, but really?)

    For mine this is more of a return to KOTOR, a much better an refined return at that. It deserves the ~85% it's getting from real reviewers (who've actually played the game, unlike most of the posters here who seem to be going off the demo - a couple even admit to never playing the finished game).    … Expand
  17. CKhound
    Nov 16, 2011
    8
    This game is very very good to be honest. I know that some people throw some bad scores at it but the fact is that it does provide a very good experience. Now, having said that, i am a huge dragon age and bioware fan in general. This game is moreso like a mass effect game when you look at the speaking options in the game and also the way that you interact with things. It is stll a dragonThis game is very very good to be honest. I know that some people throw some bad scores at it but the fact is that it does provide a very good experience. Now, having said that, i am a huge dragon age and bioware fan in general. This game is moreso like a mass effect game when you look at the speaking options in the game and also the way that you interact with things. It is stll a dragon age game but it just doesnt feel like the first one at all, i 100% find dragon age origins to be one of the most fun games that i have ever laid my hands on, and even though dragon age 2 doesnt live up to it hardly, it is still an amazing game that is recommended for anyone who likes rpgs.… Expand
  18. chartinboy
    Mar 15, 2011
    10
    I honestly found this game to be a glowing success. There are certianly issues, my biggest gripe being with the slightly less manevrouable camera, but this game goes so far beyond the scope of the first game (which I also loved) and really creates an amazing experiance. The combat is faster, which has negative and positive effects because of that, and although people say "oh, theI honestly found this game to be a glowing success. There are certianly issues, my biggest gripe being with the slightly less manevrouable camera, but this game goes so far beyond the scope of the first game (which I also loved) and really creates an amazing experiance. The combat is faster, which has negative and positive effects because of that, and although people say "oh, the conversation system is just a console one now" it was exactly the same in number one, this time it just gives a slight hint at what reaction you'll get before you say it. I dont like how abysmally this game is doing review wise, as I personally beleive it is truly the best game of the 2010/2011 period.… Expand
  19. Logun24x7
    Mar 20, 2011
    9
    I never got more then 10 hours into DAO but DA2 has sucked me in. The changes made to the story presentation and more actionâ
  20. Mixon
    Mar 10, 2011
    9
    If you are fan of Mass Effect, then you will love it, like me. Bio ware you are best.
    Dragon Age 1 path to 2 part looks like Me1 to Me2. Many people forgot that is rpg means Role Play Game, when you play a role with your decisions in dialogs.
  21. maselphie
    Mar 11, 2011
    9
    I'm hearing a LOT of anti-DA2 feedback going around. Frankly, I can't understand it. It seems merely out of a fear of change, rather than if the change was a good or bad thing. When I first played the demo, I was freaked out by many things, but after finishing the game, none of those things held water anymore. It was simply me being "whoa different game is different" and none of it made itI'm hearing a LOT of anti-DA2 feedback going around. Frankly, I can't understand it. It seems merely out of a fear of change, rather than if the change was a good or bad thing. When I first played the demo, I was freaked out by many things, but after finishing the game, none of those things held water anymore. It was simply me being "whoa different game is different" and none of it made it a bad game in the end. I know the quick phrase to describe the changes is "dumbed down" -- and trust me, I hear ya. They dumbed down Mass Effect from game one to game two, and I was totally pessimistic about DA2. But you know? "Streamlined" is honestly the better term for it all. In the end, it is an amazing game. One of the most memorable RPGs I have played in a while. Is it worth it's selling price new? Yes! This is a $60 game. There's so much crap out there selling for the same price and is just a huge disappointment. This is one of those games. Please, ignore reviews and just play it for yourself. And I am not talking about just the demo. The demo is in no way indicative of the tone or experience of the main game. Look to Denerim in DA:O for a better idea of how it might feel.

    If you find you skip dialogue scenes, it might be just an okay game, because you're skipping the best part. If you're just watching your family's cutscenes with a "okay okay I'm getting a quest" attitude, then it's not going to work its magic on you.

    As a visual novel community, I can honestly say that WE will see what the developers were doing with the story and appreciate it. The hordes of action games may not see it, but I certainly did, and I will defend it rabidly. I was so surprised by how good it was. Maybe because of all the pessimism. Maybe all these bad reviews are good -- so you go in thinking "this will blow", but then blown away.

    It's a shame that it will take too damn long for people to find that out, since everyone is going to take one look at the negative reviews and decide to wait until bargain bin day. Or worse, the developers will see the negativeness and not make DLC for it. Christ. I've never wanted DLC more for any other game before. I don't want this game to be over.    … Expand
  22. CazNeerg
    Mar 13, 2011
    9
    Judged purely on it's mechanics, Dragon Age II is far from the traditional RPG that Origins was, but judged on how well it allows the player to actually embrace different roles within the story and make choices with real impact, it is easily as good an RPG as the first game in the series, arguably better. Looking at the choices offered to the player, and the impacts of those choices,Judged purely on it's mechanics, Dragon Age II is far from the traditional RPG that Origins was, but judged on how well it allows the player to actually embrace different roles within the story and make choices with real impact, it is easily as good an RPG as the first game in the series, arguably better. Looking at the choices offered to the player, and the impacts of those choices, Dragon Age II might actually offer more than any previous BioWare title. Whereas most BioWare games have essentially two directions the player can go in at any given time (generally saint or sociopath) DA2 adds a third, allowing the player to occupy the sarcastic charmer role usually reserved for companion characters.

    For me, the best part of RPGs is the ability to drive the story in different directions based on player choice. While I can get immersed in complex inventory management systems, I never miss them when they are gone, and I think that combat is at best an enjoyable extra, and at worst an annoying distraction. I judge RPGs based on the quality of the story and characters, and on how much of an impact the player can have through his choices. From that perspective, I would have to say the Dragon Age II is superior to the first game. It brings back the feeling that I got from the Origin stories in the first game, but lost almost as soon as those origins were over; a sense of connection to a character which was defined and flexible at the same time, and existed in and had substantial impact on a fully realized society. The "gather allies to save the world" plot of the first game, while enjoyable, seemed a little lazy and cliched.

    While I find the story to be much improved in the second game, I still have to knock off one point in the area of characters. One of the primary staples of BioWare games has always been the cheerful psychotic companion, from Korgan and HK-47, to Black Whirlwind, Wrex, Shale, and Jack. There is no comparable character in Dragon Age II, and the loss is strongly felt. There is also no female character of the Viconia/Morrigan type, with it feeling more like they split the Leliani archetype into two and assigned half of the personality to Merrell, and the other half to Isabela.

    As far as choices and impact go, as I said at the start, I think this is quite possibly BioWare's best offering to date in that regard.    … Expand
  23. commonperson
    Mar 16, 2011
    8
    While not a perfect game, this metacritic score is skewed due to a "backlash" over two reviews written by Bioware employees (there is currently no evidence they were doing it at the behest of their employers simply they wrote two glowing reviews and if they were close to the game they may have a skewed perspective on the content.)

    Any how, having played the game I can say whilst not    While not a perfect game, this metacritic score is skewed due to a "backlash" over two reviews written by Bioware employees (there is currently no evidence they were doing it at the behest of their employers simply they wrote two glowing reviews and if they were close to the game they may have a skewed perspective on the content.)

    Any how, having played the game I can say whilst not perfect it improves on the formula behind the first game. The first game was much of the time, at best, unforgiving but since you could drop the play slider down to easy and not suffer any loss of game play or even achievements/trophies it compensated.

    Thus far the game play does not show the same level of challenge, again a game best suited for the PC the graphical fidelity is vastly improved but even on my high end machine at times there are moments when Frame Rate drops through the basement. The load screens are much improved over the previous iteration and the story, as always, is well crafted. This is where Bioware excels.

    One short coming is the change in scenery, or lack there of. Dragon Age: Origins and it's expansions gave you a vast swath of geography to cover. Dragon Age 2 does not, you have Kirkwall and a handfull of external locations. Now the story with it's framing device is setting this up as a Usual Suspects/Noir Fantasy. The city of Kirwall is intended to be as much of a character in the game as the players. That being said it doesn't carry off as well as hoped. I have a feeling if as extensively supported via DLC as Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age: Origins was this will be remedied as more DLC comes out but right now there are anemic points where it feels like you are rehashing locations and enemies over and over.

    Combat is much more frenetic with more lifelike animations and in the case of the Xbox 360 due to a glitch button mashy game play (which isn't the case on other platforms as it still has the auto attack ability.) This will supposedly be addressed via a patch shortly. The PC really is still the premiere platform for this title, you maintain the same style of gameplay from the first game with the ability to zoom out and que commands for characters.

    They have streamlined some aspects, the ability to micromanage gear on your characters has been reduced, not removed entirely but reduced which detracts from some of the old school feel but this is an extension of the Bioware ethos which is using games as a platform for story telling. The story it's self is compelling with interesting character interactions and some genuine relationships developing in interesting ways.

    Not a perfect game but well worth checking out.

    (And for the record I am not an employee of Bioware and never have been, I think instead of giving zeros to the game out of spite people should give genuine ratings on how they feel as many of these people giving zeros have never even played the game.)    … Expand
  24. Geralt
    Jun 2, 2011
    10
    How come game developers decided that if a game is successful the sequel should be dumbed down? It used to be the other way round - remember ancient great games such as: Warcraft (version II much better than I), Command and Conquer, Civilization, Myth and, Bioware own, Baldur Gate? While Baldur Gate II was a great game the sequel i.e. Neverwinter Nights was mediocre even though theHow come game developers decided that if a game is successful the sequel should be dumbed down? It used to be the other way round - remember ancient great games such as: Warcraft (version II much better than I), Command and Conquer, Civilization, Myth and, Bioware own, Baldur Gate? While Baldur Gate II was a great game the sequel i.e. Neverwinter Nights was mediocre even though the graphics were much improved. The story line was not interesting, the humor was gone, the likeable characters were gone (Minsk, Jan) - the player just walked around whacking everything that moved.
    Now, the idea of "whacking everything" in a Dungeons and Dragons type game is not new - it was perfected in Diablo II (and some other games) and rehashing it in Dragon Age II was not a great idea. I have bought the game recently and was able to finish it on "normal" difficulty without dying once (or loosing a character). Bottom line: not very interesting, too easy, too dumbed down - an overall disappointment.    … Expand
  25. Accountant
    Jul 20, 2011
    10
    Well I just got done with the game (ah the joys of the long 4th of July weekend). I am someone who loved DA:O and wrote a glowing review on it. Frankly I liked DA2 more and find it hard now to go back to DA:O anymore. I just don't really understand the hate for this game but than everyone is entitled to their views. When I play games I am looking for some good, fun times and really not anyWell I just got done with the game (ah the joys of the long 4th of July weekend). I am someone who loved DA:O and wrote a glowing review on it. Frankly I liked DA2 more and find it hard now to go back to DA:O anymore. I just don't really understand the hate for this game but than everyone is entitled to their views. When I play games I am looking for some good, fun times and really not any kind of serious challenges or overly complex tactical scenarios maybe because my real life already has all that and games to me are mechanism of fun escapism and DA2 fits the bill here perfectly. I am currently on my second play through as a mage and it's again fun so far playing a different class and I am not bored or anything. I think Bioware kind of fumbled really bad on the marketing of this game. This is not a true sequel but rather a stand alone rpg set in the world of DA:O. I guess if they would have positioned the game correctly it may not have suffered the kind of wrath it did. Now that being said the game in my view has been trashed sometimes unfairly bordering on hate for the sake of hate just because it's not a clone of DA:O. A lot has been said on this game so I am going to keep my review concise and highlight what I liked and disliked about the game. The game does have some Cons but the Pros far exceed them. PRO's: 1) The graphic engine (with the high texture patch) is leagues ahead of the original. The buildings, interiors, exteriors, dungeons, armor, cut-scenes etc. look beautifully rendered and highly detailed in my view. 2) The voiced protagonist lends a more cinematic and personal feel to the game. One of my complaints with the original game was the disconnect I felt with my silent Grey Warden and DA:O to me felt backwards coming to play it after ME2. The conversation wheel in my view makes it more stream-lined to follow the story of the quest and it is much more intriguing to see what Hawke will actually say which lends to a more cinematic feel. 3) The story line of the game feels more personal as it is the story of Hawke rising to fame & glory from rags. It doesn't have the epic feel of clear-cut good vs evil fight of the original but it does appeal to me more in the form of my (Hawke) story line amidst all the political and other schemes going on. 4) The combat system is indeed a real improvement over DA:O. I many times thought of giving up on DA:O just because the combat was slow, sluggish and boring. DA2 combat is lot more fun, faster plus the animations are real good, and funny sometimes (I can never have enough of those exploding enemies hehe). Playing a warrior in DA2 was lot more fun than it was in the original. 5) The banter between the companions is back and is better than ever. Try to put Isabella with other ladies and hear the amusing fireworks. Sometimes it's quite fun to be had. :) CONS: 1) Repeated use of the same maps. Initially it doesn't matter much but as you are in Act 2 and up you do begin to notice this. Frankly DA:O used the same recycled maps in most interior dungeons but the game did had us travel to different locations which eased the fact that interior dungeons were recycled. I think in DA2 having the player just stay in and near Kirkwall exacerbated this feeling greatly. I hope in DA3 Bioware really pays attention to this fact. 2) Limited ability to equip the party members. I am 50/50 on it. In DA:O though initially i liked dressing up my party members but later it just became a irritating hassle. I am somewhat glad they toned it down in DA2 but i think they toned it down too much. I think I should be allowed to equip my party members with basic armor and weapons of all kind without any restrictions. Bioware should address this too in DA3. 3) A bit too overt gay angles in the game. I mean it looks like almost all male characters wants to start a romance while it takes quite a effort to work on the females party members (except Isabella ofcourse). Very soon whether it was the optimal configuration or not my team members were all females hehe. In all I ended my journey of DA2 on a happier note, felt my money spent was worth it and looking forward to DLC's and DA3. Now if Bioware can combine what made DA2 great like the voiced protagonist, the new combat system with DA:O epic story line and customization options they might make amends to the offended fan base and have a hit rpg once again.… Expand
  26. FenrisPlz
    Jul 30, 2011
    10
    I understand how people are quite upset since the story is different as to the story in DAO. Never the less I loved this game, like I loved Origins. 10/10 for sure
  27. nennet
    Mar 13, 2011
    10
    оÑ
  28. Rezear
    Mar 15, 2011
    8
    Another great game from Bioware! I don't understand the people giving this game a negative review, did they even play the same game? The gameplay is far better than the slow-paced gameplay of Dragon Age: Origins and the story is amazing. Sure the graphics could be better but I think these graphics fit the game. Dragon Age 2 is a must have for every rpg fan out there!
  29. flavahbeast
    Mar 11, 2011
    9
    It's a very good game and a worthy successor to the first. I loved Baldur's Gate 1 and 2 and would love it if Dragon Age 3 had that sort of depth as far as environments and spell mechanics and NPC's are concerned. That said, the combat is a lot of fun and the streamlined combat mechanics don't take anything away from the tactical elements. I do recommend playing the game on the HardIt's a very good game and a worthy successor to the first. I loved Baldur's Gate 1 and 2 and would love it if Dragon Age 3 had that sort of depth as far as environments and spell mechanics and NPC's are concerned. That said, the combat is a lot of fun and the streamlined combat mechanics don't take anything away from the tactical elements. I do recommend playing the game on the Hard difficulty setting. Normal is pretty trivial, at least early on, whereas Hard is a challenge on par with the Infinity Engine games… Expand
  30. StanleyWoo
    Mar 14, 2011
    10
    Dragon Age 2 is the one of the best RPG is have ever played. Story is well thought and really complex. Dark and gloomy setting is incredible. Game play has noticeably improved since Dragon Age: Origins. If you are true RPG fan, you just have to play this game. Be excellent to each other. End of Line.
  31. snoeownsyou
    Apr 1, 2011
    10
    I don't really think this deserves a ten - maybe an 8, but I just can't stand the pathetic internet culture that says a game is rubbish and rates it a 0 because it wasn't as good as its successor. Yes, the environments are a bit repetitive and yes, it has been dumbed down a bit, but it was a damn fine game and it kept me interested the whole time. I'm so sick of these people who bawl andI don't really think this deserves a ten - maybe an 8, but I just can't stand the pathetic internet culture that says a game is rubbish and rates it a 0 because it wasn't as good as its successor. Yes, the environments are a bit repetitive and yes, it has been dumbed down a bit, but it was a damn fine game and it kept me interested the whole time. I'm so sick of these people who bawl and moan because a game isn't the absolute best thing they've played.… Expand
  32. Shenancalhar
    Mar 14, 2011
    9
    played DAO and all dlc and the expansion loved it all . now Ive put in 42 hours and hit lvl 22 in DAO2 and cant be happier with the game . was a bit disappointed at the start due to the format changes but some were along the way i didn't care anymore the game does a great job of pulling you in to the story and making you feel as though your decisions have a greater impact on theplayed DAO and all dlc and the expansion loved it all . now Ive put in 42 hours and hit lvl 22 in DAO2 and cant be happier with the game . was a bit disappointed at the start due to the format changes but some were along the way i didn't care anymore the game does a great job of pulling you in to the story and making you feel as though your decisions have a greater impact on the situations and the situations are having an impact upon the world .
    the new combat system is a feast for the eyes . and i for one am happy to not have to carry around a ton of crafting mats but still be able to find mats and craft items    … Expand
  33. bztang
    Mar 16, 2011
    9
    Main issues that people are having: lack isometric view (I agree), locked default face in character creator (I agree), streamlining of skills/addition of skill trees, difficulty (guess they haven't tried hard/nightmare; much harder than DA:O on same difficulty), reuse of the same dungeons/areas multiple times (I agree), launch DLC, high res texture pack + outdated graphics (this is reallyMain issues that people are having: lack isometric view (I agree), locked default face in character creator (I agree), streamlining of skills/addition of skill trees, difficulty (guess they haven't tried hard/nightmare; much harder than DA:O on same difficulty), reuse of the same dungeons/areas multiple times (I agree), launch DLC, high res texture pack + outdated graphics (this is really subjective), companions, just to name a few of the common complaints. Personally, I loved the original, but in my first playthrough of DA2, I didn't quite like the structure of the Champion's story much because the 3 Acts interrupted the immersion by focusing on totally different problems in Kirkwall, instead of an epic "the world is going to end" storyline found in DA:O. Still, I'd rate it 9/10 just because it was fun, and also because the main game ending story arc was quite surprising and satisfying, and hopefully will lead to another epic installment in this series. Also, I must mention that quite a few decisions and events that occur in DA2 produce unexpected results, some of which are much more heart-wrenching than in DA:O.

    I'm on my third playthrough and wouldn't rate a game so high if I didn't enjoy it, and DA2 is very enjoyable, if you can look past a few flaws, and stop comparing it to DA:O for PC. I'm certain that if the game was under a different IP and developer, the ratings would not be nearly as abysmal :O    … Expand
  34. Bogartnoir
    Mar 16, 2011
    9
    Days after finishing Dragon Age, I then moved to immerse myself into Dragon Age II. My main complaint was that I couldn't create a character from scratch, but that soon fell away as nearly inconsequential to the rest of the experience. My only standing complaint is the reuse of cave maps for too many missions, as well as some derivative music that seems lifted from Mass Effect 2. TheDays after finishing Dragon Age, I then moved to immerse myself into Dragon Age II. My main complaint was that I couldn't create a character from scratch, but that soon fell away as nearly inconsequential to the rest of the experience. My only standing complaint is the reuse of cave maps for too many missions, as well as some derivative music that seems lifted from Mass Effect 2. The characters, setting and immersion of the setting are what have drawn me in. The character back stories and concepts are interesting additions to the game's mythology.
    While not completely unfounded to make complaints about the game being dumbed down to be accessible to a broder audience, I think it pretty poor form to rate any game a 0 for a few changes. gamers seem to get more and more jaded as time goes on. I was very entertained and look forward to a trilogy.    … Expand
  35. Donotpushme
    Mar 11, 2011
    8
    If you are fan of Mass Effect, then you will love it, like me. Bio ware you are best.
    Dragon Age 1 path to 2 part looks like Me1 to Me2. Many people forgot that is rpg means Role Play Game, when you play a role with your decisions in dialogs.
  36. Soulfighter
    Mar 14, 2011
    10
    Don't trust the spam-reviews, this game is solid.Bioware really improved DA:O to make one of the best RPG with a story that builds well and good character development if you get past the first 5 hours. Contrary to the apparent bulk of reviewers, you cannot beat the game in 10 hours even if you rush the main quest. I took the day off of work yesterday and played for 21 hours and haven'tDon't trust the spam-reviews, this game is solid.Bioware really improved DA:O to make one of the best RPG with a story that builds well and good character development if you get past the first 5 hours. Contrary to the apparent bulk of reviewers, you cannot beat the game in 10 hours even if you rush the main quest. I took the day off of work yesterday and played for 21 hours and haven't even gotten past the initial town. Dragon age 2 is definitly one of the best rpg of this year and a must have. i recommend this game to anyone and v can't do anything about it.… Expand
  37. Agemo
    Mar 15, 2011
    10
    After seeing all these spam reviews I want to give one as well. As we all know spamming a review site about a game we really like but pretend we don't makes our e-penis grow. Hey look mines doing it right now!

    Oops gave it 10 by mistake!
  38. JxG1991
    Mar 13, 2011
    8
    Below is the first review I submitted. You can ignore that if you'd like. The reason I'm submitting this is so I can say that there's something very, very wrong here. The number of negative reviews is outrageous! And, for the most part, notice that the negative reviews get the most helpful votes while the positive reviews, no matter how well written and well thought out, get un-helpfulBelow is the first review I submitted. You can ignore that if you'd like. The reason I'm submitting this is so I can say that there's something very, very wrong here. The number of negative reviews is outrageous! And, for the most part, notice that the negative reviews get the most helpful votes while the positive reviews, no matter how well written and well thought out, get un-helpful votes. Take a look at other sites with community reviews. gamespot.com ( http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/dragon-age-2/index.html ) currently has DA2 at a 7.1 user score on PC, an 8.3 on 360, and an 8.3 on PS3. The user score for PC on g4tv.com ( http://www.g4tv.com/games/pc/64225/dragon-age-ii/ ) is at a 4.4 out of 5, while 360 and PS3 are at a 3.9 and 3.8 out of 5, respectively. DA2 currently has a user score of 6 on Gameinformer.com ( http://www.gameinformer.com/games/dragon_age_ii/b/pc/archive/2011/03/08/dragon-age-ii-pc-review-a-port-caught-in-the-middle.aspx ) and a score of 7 on PS3, 7.5 on 360. Should I go on? I'm not going to go and say this is some coordinated attack. But just look at the data and how it's dramatically skewed in the negative direction while most other gaming websites put the average score at a solid 7. Just... don't pay attention to all of this bull. Play the game yourself and make the decision. Wow... what's with all the hate? ... Whatever. These are my thoughts... Where should I begin with this game? How about combat since I see so much ranting and raving about how it's so drastically different... what? I mean really, WHAT?! How is it "drastically" different? Are you suddenly required to solve a complex physics equation prior to each attack? On consoles? Yeah sure, it's different; but this is area is for PC reviews. The same basic principals of the original still apply; see enemies, pause game, position party, select enemies, select attacks, un pause game and watch your enemies scour the ground for their skull fragments. (As for consoles, I've heard Bioware intends to release a patch of sorts to implement the auto-attack function. And if you're going to wail on about it then I sincerely hope you slam your finger in a car door. You forget that there are people working at B-Ware, and all people are prone to mistakes regardless of where they work. So far I've experienced no problems with my game. Not a one. I'd say they've done a pretty good job so far.) What I don't like about the combat is how unbalanced the difficulty can be. One minute I'm turning my foes into pincushions for my arrows, and the next minute I'm wondering how my body parts came to be scattered throughout the room. Graphics are just, meh. Not great but not terrible. Some of the characters look like they've taken a trip through the "uncanny valley" and will proceed to haunt your nightmares. Other characters don't look half bad however (Varric's chest hair anyone? woof.) Most of the environments tend to repeat themselves giving the "randomly generated dungeon" feel. But the city of Kirkwall itself isn't a bad looking place. But what's with all the gangs out at night? I suppose the guardsmen are all on there lunch break... I love the characters. I like having a PC with a voice and a personality. The silent protagonist thing from the first game was plenty fun, but giving the PC a voice, emotions, personality, and a social conscious of it's own makes me feel more like I'm projecting myself into my character. The companions are all very well written and well voiced. I might hate some of them, but I love to hate them. The story may lack depth at times. I mean all you really need to know is you're a guy/girl who's trying to start a new life in a kind of messed up place and you get tied up in politics eventually I'm sure. But it's refreshing to not have to save the world again. But some potentially amazing stories are set up in this game and it's worth it to get to know them. Just being back in the Dragon Age world is great to me. I don't know what else I can say. I like the game. I like it enough to sit here and write about it. The decision to try it out is really up to you though.… Expand
  39. kawacatoose
    Mar 13, 2011
    10
    Don't listen to all the losers who are giving this game very low scores. It's a blight coming from **** This game is a bit departure from DA:O and not a direct sequel, calling it DA2 wasn't a smart move from Bioware.

    I really like this game, story, music, combat it's all great. Try read some critic reviews they are far better than any user can give here. The reviews from rpgfan.com and    Don't listen to all the losers who are giving this game very low scores. It's a blight coming from **** This game is a bit departure from DA:O and not a direct sequel, calling it DA2 wasn't a smart move from Bioware.

    I really like this game, story, music, combat it's all great. Try read some critic reviews they are far better than any user can give here. The reviews from rpgfan.com and 1up are great.    … Expand
  40. Vargre
    Mar 15, 2011
    9
    Im actually quite surprised by the negative reviews of the game. The only thing I can think is that they didnt give the game much of a chance. When I first started DA2 I thought it was pretty lousy. Definitely a step back from DAO. But after playing it for a few hours I completely changed my mind. I love the game, and while I admit some elements are not as good as DAO, some are better. TheIm actually quite surprised by the negative reviews of the game. The only thing I can think is that they didnt give the game much of a chance. When I first started DA2 I thought it was pretty lousy. Definitely a step back from DAO. But after playing it for a few hours I completely changed my mind. I love the game, and while I admit some elements are not as good as DAO, some are better. The character creation is somewhat flawed, models with MASSIVE chins and tiny eyes. Almost as bad (at first) as Bethesda's. But once you play around with it you can get some nice looking models. The animations are much better. Especially for the mage. No more poky, poky with your staff. You now execute fluid spins as you shoot ice and flame from your hands. It gives the mage a much needed upgrade. Playing with an archer has become a lot more fun. Sound effects are amazing. Score is well done. And Im so confused as to why people would be so down on the story...the story is what's drawn me in and made me a believer in DA2. I would suggest playing on hard or nightmare, as normal is just a bit too easy. But hard presents a challenge, and nightmare is well...a nightmare. Plan on dying a lot if you go that route. Reviews are nothing more than opinions. DA2 is NOT that far a cry from DAO. You still need to pause, the tactics are all there. Thats simply a fact. Playing on hard/ nightmare you cannot get through without micromanaging your party. Its just not possible. The animations are fluid and well done. The graphics are almost exactly the same as DAO with some minor changes (Qunari are a bit more brutish looking and have horns for example. And elves...well, elves dont look all that pretty anymore.) There is a demo out for DA2. Play it. If you like it even a little, pick up DA2. You wont be disappointed.… Expand
  41. GDH_PAINBRINGER
    Mar 17, 2011
    8
    I have never written a review for metacritic before, but I figured this one was worth my time in order to give this game the fair review it deserves to hopefully balance out some of the incredibly harsh reviews that it seems to have unjustly gained. As a whole, I think DA2 does not live up to the massive shoes that it had to stand in being a sequel to DA1, but I still think it is a wellI have never written a review for metacritic before, but I figured this one was worth my time in order to give this game the fair review it deserves to hopefully balance out some of the incredibly harsh reviews that it seems to have unjustly gained. As a whole, I think DA2 does not live up to the massive shoes that it had to stand in being a sequel to DA1, but I still think it is a well designed game with a good combat system, driving (albiet short) plot, and plenty of reasons to play it at least once, if not more.
    First off: The combat system. I honestly can't see why so many people are complaining here. Yes, it is different than DA1. I don't see that as a bad thing though. The DA1 combat system, although brilliant at its time of conception, grew rapidly tedious as you got into the game. DA2 fixes that by speeding up combat, and making it feel a little quicker and more intense. Normal difficulty is a bit trivial, and you can easily end up treating the game as an action title if you don't turn up the difficulty, but at nightmare mode it feels a lot like the first. You have to stop and think about things, plan out your tactics well, and play the game with an overall level of skill and competence that you would expect to be necessary at a high difficulty level. Nightmare on DA2 doesn't feel any more or less difficult than DA1, I played all the way through as a mage on this difficulty and it wasn't impossible as some people seem to suggest, or too easy as others say. As a whole, the combat system does a great job of keeping the game interesting and brilliantly bloody, and the different difficulty settings allow the game to be accessible to both newcomers who just want to slash their way through some darkspawn, and veterans of tactics games that want to think a lot about a fight before they can make their way through it.
    Secondly: Graphics. Once again, I don't see why there are so many complaints here. For one, graphics are probably the least important aspect of a game. If everything else is solid, I really don't care about graphics, as long as I can tell whats going on I'm good. Even then, the graphics in this game are well done and have a very aesthetically pleasing look to them. The game does seem to have some issues if you turn it up to "very high" quality settings, however. Me and several of my friends bought this game, and we all have very good computers that should be able to run this game on very high with no problems, but all of us had to run it on high in order to avoid strange lag and crashes. When you drop the settings down to high, however, the game still looks great and I was able to play through the entire game 3 times with only two or three minor lag problems.
    Lastly: Plot. While it is very true that this game does not have the epic feel of the first title, it still tells a compelling story and tells it pretty well. Towards the end of the game looking at kirkwall and its surrounding territory does start to get a little tiring though. The story was told beautifully, using Varric as a story teller that interjects throughout the narrative gave the game a very interesting and engrossing feel. I just wish the developers had allowed you to venture around a little more. In DA1 you had a whole kingdom to explore, in the sequel you only have one city and a few areas around it. If anything, this is the only place the game loses points for me. The plot is told well, but it many ways it felt like Dragon Age 1.5, not a full fledged sequel. Things just didn't feel epic enough to live up to the first one.

    In conclusion, Dragon Age 2 is a well made game that features an endlessly entertaining combat system, shiny graphics, and a fun, well-told story that will keep you interested all the way up until the end. If anything, your biggest disappointment with this game will be that it ends too early. I know that's how I felt.    … Expand
  42. Pelala
    Mar 21, 2011
    7
    Ð
  43. SomeBuddah
    Mar 12, 2011
    9
    Never in all my days have I seen such a concerted effort to destroy a games reputation in the history of the internet.

    Dragon Age II is as good a game as Dragon Age: Origins was, in its own way. The difference in the styles of the two games are not entirely all that different, the biggest change to DA2 in regards to how its played out is the lack of full itemization for your companion    Never in all my days have I seen such a concerted effort to destroy a games reputation in the history of the internet.

    Dragon Age II is as good a game as Dragon Age: Origins was, in its own way. The difference in the styles of the two games are not entirely all that different, the biggest change to DA2 in regards to how its played out is the lack of full itemization for your companion characters and thats really about it.

    The story is fantastic, anyone who says otherwise doesn't understand that the games dynamics are secondary to the games story. And DA2 delivers, on story, in spades. Whats more the changes to the combat dynamics are so miniscule that the concerted and concentrated attempts at slagging the reputation of the game by "user score" alone seems like its been done by a huge group of angst ridden "fans" of the Dragon Age franchise that refuse to see the good of the game simply because of the few things that have been changed.

    DA2 is a ever growing, intense story that travels over 10 years of your characters life in Kirkwall. And while some may complain that the game is "smaller" than DA:O because its only in and around the city of Kirkwall most of the environments in DA2 are actually bigger than any of the environments in DA:O, instead of fighting in a tiny little area, or parts of the city being about the size of a breadbox, Kirkwall's different districts stretch out quite a bit. To compare, take the Market District of Denerim in DA: which is about the size of the village of Loethering (fields not included), as compared to the Hightown or Lowtown districts of DA:O which are comparably the size of the Brecillian Forest areas in DA:O.

    Its got just as much total play time, if you do all the quests in each act as a single game of DA:O and twice as many epic moments. In fact nearly every decision you make as you progress in DA2 will have effects and ramifications on what occurs later in the years of the game. And whats more none of these decisions have "clues" as to what the right decision is, something you do with all intention of trying to do "right" may have dire ramifications in the future of your game, regardless of your good intentions.

    This game not only has all the replay value of DA:O, it is missing a lot of DA:O's slowdowns in regards to replay value. DA2 doesn't need "Skip the Fade" mod because there are no sections of DA2 that are universally tedious. Whats more there are no sections of DA2 that are as universally predictable either, even the Fade sequence that is in DA2 is much shorter, has some fair rewards in it and some interesting differences in occurrence depending on who you take with you.

    The 720 or so people that have negatively reviewed this game have done so on the basis that the game is now accessible to people who enjoy action RPG play, and while i won't disagree with them, there are some changes to DA2 I didn't like as well, the major thing I will disagree with them on is that just because its "different" doesn't mean its a piece of trash that has fallen far short of the mark of BioWare's usual quality.

    I've been playing the game since the day of release and I still have not completed it on my very first character and I can already see, from the 3 acts I've played that there are going to be a lot of different ways for me to replay this game as I wait for DA3, as compared to DA:O where I more or less just kept replaying the SAME GAME just with a different personality, with DA2, the game can change substantially depending on the choices I make.

    DA2 is a fine platform for the continuation of the franchise and I feel that other than the itemization issues and the locked itemization for companion characters its a worthy successor to the DA franchise. Making it more exciting, giving it more replay and best of all, making me hungry for more of the story, in a way that DA:A did not do, after DA:O was released.

    Please keep in mind as you read this page that this game has been subject to a concentrated flagging by a collusion of unhappy niche RPG fans that are all part of the same group on the BioWare Social Forums, a group that was specifically formed for this purpose alone, to come to Metacritic and to drop the user score as low as they could. And as you can see even with this concerted effort theres only around 800 people as compared to the hundreds of thousands of preordered copies of DA2 that were sold.

    The game isn't perfect I give it a 9 of 10 and I do so because they did strip out some elements of RPG control that I'd have liked to have kept, but the story is fantastic, the way the game changes and morphs around your decisions is awesome, and the new combat pace is also quite good. DA2 is everything DA:O should have been, but missing a few things DA:O was that DA2 should have kept.    … Expand
  44. clarkey2003
    Mar 12, 2011
    10
    So much dislike here i thought i`d put in my 2 penny worth.. Its not excatly the same as DAO no.. but get over it. To me DA2 is like mass effect becomming mass effect 2. ok not as much fuiddling to get the right gear etc more fast paced combat and fun.. dont get me wrong im a fan of the old baldurs gate series and not a console rpg tourist. I think half the reviews here are written bySo much dislike here i thought i`d put in my 2 penny worth.. Its not excatly the same as DAO no.. but get over it. To me DA2 is like mass effect becomming mass effect 2. ok not as much fuiddling to get the right gear etc more fast paced combat and fun.. dont get me wrong im a fan of the old baldurs gate series and not a console rpg tourist. I think half the reviews here are written by peeps who have probably played the demo.. or maybe 1 or 2 hours of the game and want to flame at the change.. To me every minute or hour that passes in the game i see a lovingly created story, some seriously crazy fights and spells and just enuff rpg to keep u hooked. Yes i did love DAO.. but this is summin fresh and fun.. its damn right crazy at times and i apluad u bioware for trying to push games forward.... Now flame me if u like but there are times during DA2 it feels more like baldurs gate 2 than any game ever has.. so just because u lot have pushed this score down so low.. im gonna give it a 10..… Expand
  45. PaniCcakE
    Mar 13, 2011
    8
    So, after watching the hate for this game explode all over the internet, it has left me wondering if people actually give games a fair go these days. people complain about the difficulty been stupidly easy on anything but hard, but Bioware did say that this would be the case, saying that each difficultly was made to suit different play styles and is it even that bigger hassle to turn upSo, after watching the hate for this game explode all over the internet, it has left me wondering if people actually give games a fair go these days. people complain about the difficulty been stupidly easy on anything but hard, but Bioware did say that this would be the case, saying that each difficultly was made to suit different play styles and is it even that bigger hassle to turn up the difficulty? and about 5 hours into the game it really does start to feel like the way a dragon age game should be. now dont get me wrong, i am still disappointed in how it turned out, with the graphics especially, but it still for a game that was rushed by its producers. its a great game without a doubt.… Expand
  46. Callex
    Mar 14, 2011
    9
    What on earth? Am I playing the same game as these other reviewers? DA 2 is in no way deserving of such low scores. I think there's a clash of audiences here. If you're after pages of statistics, tedious micromanaging, played the entirety of DA1 in tactical view and consider PC gamers to be the master race, then this probably isn't the game for you. Streamlining isn't always a bad thing;What on earth? Am I playing the same game as these other reviewers? DA 2 is in no way deserving of such low scores. I think there's a clash of audiences here. If you're after pages of statistics, tedious micromanaging, played the entirety of DA1 in tactical view and consider PC gamers to be the master race, then this probably isn't the game for you. Streamlining isn't always a bad thing; the game is easier to digest overall, the voice acting is stellar, the combat feels more involved and environments are prettier. The game is by no means perfect, but a score less than 5? Ridiculous.… Expand
  47. Xalius
    Mar 14, 2011
    8
    While I do agree that the game have some rough edges, I think it's kinda a shame that the game has received such harsh reviews. I think BioWare has done it again in making a good game, the story, the new combat system and the game-play itself is amazing. I do not wish to only give this game positive words, I think it's a shame that there are places in the game where the graphics are lowWhile I do agree that the game have some rough edges, I think it's kinda a shame that the game has received such harsh reviews. I think BioWare has done it again in making a good game, the story, the new combat system and the game-play itself is amazing. I do not wish to only give this game positive words, I think it's a shame that there are places in the game where the graphics are low rendered, and it's also a shame that you cannot enter dialog with your companions whenever you wish, but other than that - Dragon Age II is a great game, and I certainly recommend it.

    8/10    … Expand
  48. Tyrielwow
    Mar 15, 2011
    10
    Dragon Age II is great sequel to Dragon Age. It feels more like Mass Effect 2, which I think was Bioware's idea. Some aspects of the game were made more simple which probably alienates some hardcore RPG fans. But for me the game feels like a novel in a book series, and I can enjoy the game and the story, rather than spend most of my time finding better equipment and leveling to survive theDragon Age II is great sequel to Dragon Age. It feels more like Mass Effect 2, which I think was Bioware's idea. Some aspects of the game were made more simple which probably alienates some hardcore RPG fans. But for me the game feels like a novel in a book series, and I can enjoy the game and the story, rather than spend most of my time finding better equipment and leveling to survive the game. All in all a great game, and I have high hopes for future DLCs and Dragon Age III.… Expand
  49. sabarta
    Mar 15, 2011
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Ð… Expand
  50. blubseabass
    Mar 16, 2011
    9
    Why would they do this? What was so broken that it needed such drastic actions? I don't understand anything...of the user complaints. Dragon Age 2 has been criticized for being too easy, dumbed down and bland. I will discuss the gameplay first, then talk a bit about the setting and story. DA2 is not easy. Yes, if you pick normal in DA2 it's easier then in DA:O, but you can go up inWhy would they do this? What was so broken that it needed such drastic actions? I don't understand anything...of the user complaints. Dragon Age 2 has been criticized for being too easy, dumbed down and bland. I will discuss the gameplay first, then talk a bit about the setting and story. DA2 is not easy. Yes, if you pick normal in DA2 it's easier then in DA:O, but you can go up in difficulty if you want a better challenge. Personally, I'm playing hard, and have met quite some interesting challenges. It's even nice that you can play the game pretty easily on normal, so that everyone can enjoy the game without the but-you-played-on-easy-shame. Just pick the difficulty that fits you, and the too easy problem is fixed. I guess it's just too hard to switch to another difficulty. I seriously don't get what's the problem with dumbed down. The skills are well distributed and tons of combinations are possible. While finishing my first game as a two-handed-weapon fighter, I was already thinking how I would make my new two-handed-weapon fighter play different. I've also been moving my characters around a lot more then in DA:O, and not just because I needed to clear the way for a mages fireball. Friendly fire has been disabled, which I applaud since that does not belong in a realtime team-based RPG. Moving all the characters in DA:O before casting AoE was just annoying imo, and I'm glad its gone. The isometric top view is gone, which makes it a little harder to move around the characters or casting AoE spells, but its nothing that hindered me from having fun. The tactics work pretty good, and the AI is very decent. I still paused the game a lot in difficult situations, which is good. Potions and healing have a much bigger cooldown, so health is a valuable resource again. The only problem I have with combat is that it's easy to kite an opponent, buying time until you can drink a new potion. It almost feels like cheating, especially if there are no ranged enemies nearby. Other then that, the combat is fun and quick while being tactical whenever you want it to be due to difficulty settings. It certainly made the game more enjoyable for me. Wrapping up gameplay, it has been one of the best for RPG's, surpassing DA:O.
    The story and setting have a hard time to hit off, but once it does, it sticks pretty well. I'm very happy with the character design and like everyone of the party. I have no idea why people would say it's so much worse then DA:O. However, getting to know a character better and finding out their likes has become somewhat more difficult. The friendship between the characters must develop over the whole game, which sometimes gives an odd feeling. Why can't I talk about an issue now? What do you even like? I don't want to wait 3 years to develop something! Because of these obvious secrets, the characters grow enigmatic, even though they're not meant to be like that. Another thing that is a bit annoying about the story is that because everything is spit into acts, your character only develops significantly at the end of each act. This feels a bit unrewarding. I'd liked to see Hawke gain a normal job, rising in ranks, rising it stature etc. not only at the end of each act. One thing that is annoying in my eyes, is the derailing of the story which is almost mandatory. The game plays in different acts, and every act has 4 to 5 main quests to proceed the story. All other 30 or so quests are sidequests. It's nice to have sidequests to know the city better, but I think they slightly overdone it. The game can be played as a collection of sidequests if you don't know where you're heading, especially in Act 1. This underlines the unrewarding feeling of character development. The sidequests can also be hard to find sometimes, leaving you with the " did I miss something?" feeling a bit to much. I have mixed feelings about the environment. Kirkwall is a great city, but "propped" down a lot. Most people seem static, and if it wasn't for the sidequests, the city might feel dead. The other environments are also pretty grey, like the bonepit and sundermount. This leaves the game in a grey tint, never being refreshing like the forests in DA:O. The graphics look pretty good, but certain animations are still to clunky. especially when two characters are interacting, the suspension of disbelief breaks immediately. The game could do with a little more ambiance. The moral choices you have to make are again suburb, and the dialog wheel, even though it influences your choices to much for my taste (I want to say A, but I don't want to break my character who mostly says B), it gives Hawke some character. THANK GOD they did not made the important choices be influenced by the wheel!
    Wrapping it up together, I enjoyed DA2 alot, and I'll keep playing it to explore different situations and tactics. It certainly has some setting problems, but it's still a lot of fun. 8.8    … Expand
  51. Agamemnon
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    The immersion and combat of this game are unmatched! A truly moving and fun epic. Anything negative you'll see about this game is an overreaction of personal preference. For what it is, it is flawlessly executed and endlessly entertaining
  52. Xabong
    Mar 18, 2011
    7
    Playing this game makes me really want to play DA:O to see what the backlash against DAII is all about. For one, I found the combat in this game to be incredibly addictive. It is extremely fast-paced, but still requires you to pause the game frequently to issue orders to your companions. Like any good RPG, there is still a great deal of micro-management to be had: stats, skill trees,Playing this game makes me really want to play DA:O to see what the backlash against DAII is all about. For one, I found the combat in this game to be incredibly addictive. It is extremely fast-paced, but still requires you to pause the game frequently to issue orders to your companions. Like any good RPG, there is still a great deal of micro-management to be had: stats, skill trees, and equipment are all still there. You can't change your companions' armor, but that seems to have less to do with "streamlining" the gameplay and more to do with taking away the ability to change their in-game appearance, since the rest of their equipment is still customizable. What is a bit annoying is that much of the game's challenge comes from it throwing waves of cannon fodder enemies at you. It does make exploring the dungeons feel a bit more like you are playing a God of War style game and I can see why many fans would be disappointed in this regard, but it didn't bother me a whole lot.

    The biggest complaint I have with the game are the recycled dungeons and interiors. It really takes you out of the experience when you you realize that the cavern you are exploring is structurally IDENTICAL to the cavern you were exploring a half an hour ago, or when you enter a house that is identical to your hero's house, right down to the decor. This, more than anything, just seems like pure laziness on Bioware's part. I'd also like to know why they didn't make this a more open-world style game since the vast majority of it takes place within the walls of a single city and its outskirts. Instead, you get a handful of small, disconnected areas you reach by clicking their icon on the map screen. Would it have been that hard to connect them? Graphically, the game is pretty simple. Again, it seems like this was a lazy decision made just to get the game out faster and that's really unfortunate.

    Where I absolutely cannot fault the game is its storytelling and characters, both of which make Dragon Age II an experience I'm not likely to forget anytime soon. As for the story itself, it seemed pretty unfocused and I never really understood where the storyline was headed or if it was headed anywhere at all, but the frame narrative made me much more interested in finding out what would happen next. I was also surprised at how much I came to care about all of Hawke's companions after not caring at all about anyone in Mass Effect. I commend Bioware in particular for creating a great female character in the form of Aveline and for being much more inclusive than in their Mass Effect games by including male same-sex romance options.

    I enjoyed Dragon Age II immensely despite all the recycled interior areas. Yes, the game borrows certain elements from action games, but it is still much more of a true RPG than either Mass Effect 2 or Final Fantasy XIII. Not a total success like ME2, but not an abysmal failure like FFXIII, the game is still a very welcome refresh of a genre. If Bioware has put more effort into designing the game's world, it would be an easy 9 for me. As it is, it's still recommendable because the characters and the underlying gameplay are just so good, but I really hope Bioware doesn't try to cheat us like this in the future.    … Expand
  53. jesE
    Mar 31, 2011
    9
    Great action oriented, mixed with strategy elements, gameplay, Very strong storytelling, all new development Skill Tree. Loved the ability to evade an attack like an action game combined with the need of strategic gameplay (at least in Hard difficulty setting).
    People judge not for what it is but for what it could be. Game looks a lot like Mass Effect which was a huge success.
    This game    Great action oriented, mixed with strategy elements, gameplay, Very strong storytelling, all new development Skill Tree. Loved the ability to evade an attack like an action game combined with the need of strategic gameplay (at least in Hard difficulty setting).
    People judge not for what it is but for what it could be. Game looks a lot like Mass Effect which was a huge success.
    This game can't get a score of 1. I understand for some it's a bad game, but it can't be THAT bad.    … Expand
  54. Mipharos
    Mar 12, 2011
    10
    Dragon Age II is a great game once you get past any bias you may have or false expectations over why it isn't "Dragon Age: Origins 2". I will try and keep my feedback spoiler free and focus on the core tenants of what the game offers and why I rated as I did:

    Pros: 1. Unique story-line, new characters and setting. Although you spend a majority of your time playing in one area of the    Dragon Age II is a great game once you get past any bias you may have or false expectations over why it isn't "Dragon Age: Origins 2". I will try and keep my feedback spoiler free and focus on the core tenants of what the game offers and why I rated as I did:

    Pros: 1. Unique story-line, new characters and setting.

    Although you spend a majority of your time playing in one area of the Dragon Age world, you never run out of things to do. The advancement of the story allows for deeper sense of exploration and understanding of the world you are thrust into and the impact you have on its evolution. 2. A compelling set of characters and individual back-stories to work through.

    Although it may miss some of the classic characters of DA:O, DA:2 does not fail to deliver on high-quality characters with a rich background to explore. Each one bringing with them a unique set of opportunities and challenges that you as the hero will work through as you relationship grows. 3. A plot that will leave your head rolling by the time you get to the end, with some of the best and morally challenging decisions I've faced in an RPG of this type.

    It is harder to describe the story without going into spoilers, I am now on my second play-through and my head is still spinning from the first. By far one of the better stories I've had a chance to be part of in any RPG. Every action, every relationship, every decision will lead to plot twists and turns that you just won't see coming... And in the end, all must decide....

    4. Action packed combat, no dancing around your enemies for 5 seconds before you start combat. The combat moves as fast as you do. I love what they did with the pace of combat, it gets the blood pumping and really makes you feel epic. Your characters react as quickly as you do, so you can move through fights quickly and with devastating force. At the same time, for the more complex engagements, you have the ability to take a more strategic approach by pausing combat and issuing commands to individual party members.

    5. Simplified user interface

    I love the idea that I spend far less time managing my inventory then I do playing the game, definitely one of the better features. Potions, Crafting & Armor are all simplified for players to be able to get things done without investing countless hours into organizing through tons of items you may never use. Cons:

    1. Limited environment, repetitive maps

    Sadly, where the game lacks in a large way is a true sense of open world exploration. Although the world of Kirkwall is huge in and unto itself, it doesn't quite offer you the freedom of true exploration. I can understand why it is the way it is based on the story, however I am a fan of being able to explore and this was one area that hurt. The other is the fact that several of the dungeon maps get recycled, after a time you will start to see several familiar maps come up time and time again. 2. Over-simplified armor and customization

    Although I am a fan of simplifying the armor and inventory management, I do prefer to have control over what armor my party members wear and when. I feel the game did not really offer a lot of variety where party armor was concerned.

    3. Race restriction

    Although I can appreciate the character of Hawke, I feel the limitation to human takes away from story. The story would have been equally as compelling having an Elven, Dwarf or Human protagonist but that's a personal preference. 4. Can't import a finished game

    Though not game breaking, if its a feature your hoping for it isn't there.... You finish your game and you can replay as often as you want (Obviously), but you'll have to start a new each time.

    In closing, my review is favorable and I personally feel the game excels in its own right. Although many on these posts have said otherwise, I'm not comparing it to something its not, I am rating it for the experience I had. Its a fantastic game and well worth the investment, just don't go in expecting Elder Scrolls, Fallout or any other of the Open Ended RPGs its been compared to.

    Dragon Age II is not opened ended, its a narrative with a specific plot you act out as the player. From that perspective, the game delivers on one of the more action packed thrill rides I've had.    … Expand
  55. rip1988
    Mar 9, 2011
    9
    Yeah, yeah, yeah....a slap for real fans of DA"O. Congratulations to everyone screaming "oh this is so bad, this is not DA, I want my money back...The true is this game is very good and your "reviews" don't mean anything because fans of DA:O aren't stupid enough to abandon buying game just because of this fake "zero-rate spam".
    And about game: It's awesome! The combat is more dynamic than    Yeah, yeah, yeah....a slap for real fans of DA"O. Congratulations to everyone screaming "oh this is so bad, this is not DA, I want my money back...The true is this game is very good and your "reviews" don't mean anything because fans of DA:O aren't stupid enough to abandon buying game just because of this fake "zero-rate spam".
    And about game: It's awesome! The combat is more dynamic than in first DA but it's still strategic and hard. For now I can't rate whole plot because I haven't finished it yet but for now it looks really good.
    For me it's 9,5/10 - the same as first DA. Don't trust trolls, try it on your own :)    … Expand
  56. MrKerstbal
    Mar 11, 2011
    10
    Imagine all of these reviews spoken in the voice of comic book guy from the simpsons

    (great game though, it's certainly not the same as DA:O and bioware has decided to take a different route and all that good stuff)
  57. butter
    Mar 15, 2011
    9
    Solid. Not a DA:O clone by any means and that might be part of the underlying reason for the ridiculous hate spamming. After reading a large majority I'm fairly certain many of them were 'told' to perform such an action and may not have actually played much of the game. Anyway, I really hope you can look past the pointless, childish rage spamming and give it a go. It's not a bad gameSolid. Not a DA:O clone by any means and that might be part of the underlying reason for the ridiculous hate spamming. After reading a large majority I'm fairly certain many of them were 'told' to perform such an action and may not have actually played much of the game. Anyway, I really hope you can look past the pointless, childish rage spamming and give it a go. It's not a bad game by any means - just realize that it's not DA:O; its more action oriented in the sense that the combat is faster, the customization is streamlined, and it's easier to get into and organize yourself. The skills trees (or whatever they are called :P) are great... tons of options in there for fine tuning the direction you want to take your player and your party members. Dragon Age 2 is solid.… Expand
  58. SolInvictus
    Mar 14, 2011
    8
    The Good:
    -The Characters and banter( especially Varric)
    -Animations are better (especially facial)
    -Kirkwall is not Athkala but it's far better than Denerim, and -Art Style
    -Game Play
    -Good Greek Tragedy of a story

    The Bad:
    -No iso-metric camera
    -The ending
    -The same maps over and over again
    -Combat gets repetitive
  59. SnowHeart
    Mar 15, 2011
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. While DA2 does not live up to the reputation of games previously released by the developer, it does offer numerous hours of enjoyable play. The storytelling mechanic is fun, aspects of the main storyline are intriguing and, yes, to my surprise, the combat is generally better than its predecessor (Dragon Age: Origins). But the game also has more than its fair share of warts, including the story and the rushed production schedule which shows itself in the reuse of environments. The story itself, generally one of Bioware's strengths, is sorely lacking in focus and direction. A number of different minor story paths are unfolding throughout the game and they are, for what it's worth, mostly tied up by the end and shown how they all connect, yet none of them on their own are terribly interesting and several of them are quite two dimensional. One of the "major" tensions in the game is that between the Templars, a militaristic order with the task of policing (oppressing) the city's community of mages, and the mages themselves who are frequently the target of accusations they practice particularly foul and evil magics. Unfortunately, while the leader of the templars is never shown in a particularly positive light, she does have some compelling arguments and some of her subordinates are positively good people. In contrast, the vast majority of mages are revealed to, in fact, be practicing exactly the kind of dark magic they are accused of. The only excuse the game really offers the mages is that they were "pushed" into it by the templar commander's overzealous persecution. It's a circular logic that may serve the story's purpose but ultimately rings a bit hollow.

    The game also reveals a horribly rushed production schedule. Environments are reused over and over. And I'm not talking about 90% of the game taking place in a single city. I'm talking about the "dungeons" themselves, or perhaps I should say "dungeon". There is precisely one outdoor random encounter (or "ambush") map that is reused for each such encounter. There is basically one cave map that is reused over and over again, the only difference being that certain doors may be closed or passages are blocked by rubble. There is one warehouse map, again used repeatedly for each and every warehouse. There is also one under city map, which looks a lot like a mine (including the mine cart), but doesn't make a lot of sense when that map is used for the sewers (a mine cart in the sewers, really?).

    There are plenty of other negatives as well. The lack of friendly fire in combat as well as significantly increased cooldown periods (compared to DAO) for the use of healing spells and potions argues in favor of simply spamming area of effect attacks rather than having to prioritize targets and fight strategically. Enemies now enter combat in waves, and frequently come in right behind or on top of you, tumbling out of windows or descending from the ceiling above. As a consequence, tactical positioning becomes almost pointless. Companion interactions are still entertaining but limited as compared to its predecessor, with fewer opportunities to explore their backstories and develop a sense of attachment to them.

    Despite these flaws, there have been improvements. The graphics are better and, on the whole, so is the combat. I didn't think I would say that, but I am enjoying the combat more than in DAO. Some of the "improvements" may have been ill-advised (discussed above), but the overall tempo and artistic style of the combat is improved. And while not up to the standard of Bioware's previous work, the story itself is perfectly serviceable and will keep most players going through from the prologue all the way to the end. If you can borrow the game from a friend, I'd advise you to do that. If you have to buy it to play it, I'd wait for a price drop before taking the plunge.    … Expand
  60. Alexanderverd
    Mar 16, 2011
    9
    2 years we all (Bioware devoted fans ) were waiting this game, and at lats it is on my PC... Its hard to see that some mean and not very clever person (or group of people) has decided to spoil score of this uncommon superb game. I will not describe all than i like and that is perfectly well in new bioware game. I will simply say that it almost 10.
  61. Bigben
    Mar 21, 2011
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Game without soul.You have killed system rpg in game.Now, I am disappointed in your company.Ð… Expand
  62. Ionic
    Mar 22, 2011
    10
    I found the artwork absolutely gorgeous, and the interface extremely slick. Some things were 'streamlined' compared to the first, but I much preferred the new interface. Combat was still challenging and required strategic placement and use of skills - though I did miss friendly fire on Hard mode. I loved the new ability trees and crafting mechanics, which didn't feel like a chore. But whatI found the artwork absolutely gorgeous, and the interface extremely slick. Some things were 'streamlined' compared to the first, but I much preferred the new interface. Combat was still challenging and required strategic placement and use of skills - though I did miss friendly fire on Hard mode. I loved the new ability trees and crafting mechanics, which didn't feel like a chore. But what I really play Dragon Age for is the story. This one did not disappoint. It felt a bit slow at the start, since Act I is mostly building up your character through various tasks without really being able to see where it is going. The threads fairly quickly begin to weave together though, into very satisfying second and third acts. The story isn't quite as epic as the first one, but I think a more personal story is actually the better choice here, rather than a "save the world again" rehash. My character went through moments of tragic loss, impossible moral dilemmas, and a shocking betrayal. The new companions can give the old ones a run for their money, and having a protagonist that isn't silent is a big improvement in character interaction. Secondary characters are extremely well done; the Arishok was a particular favourite.… Expand
  63. Shanzu
    Mar 9, 2011
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I've been playing this for the last 2 days and it's really good. We can't compare it to the first, it's more action oriented, but it's still good. The graphic are good on the PC version, but the animation during dialog aren't that good, but the weren't in the first either. It deserve a better score then the average user have put, so i put high score to revamp it. STOP TROLLING !… Expand
  64. maverikki
    Mar 20, 2011
    9
    I accidentally put my original review on the xbox version which I haven't played. Instead I played this on PC.
    Once you get past the horrible inventory system and if you can get past the reused dungeons, this is a really solid game. The game is also very long and I loved the unreliable narrator. The story is about the player rising from being nobody to being the champion. The story and the    I accidentally put my original review on the xbox version which I haven't played. Instead I played this on PC.
    Once you get past the horrible inventory system and if you can get past the reused dungeons, this is a really solid game. The game is also very long and I loved the unreliable narrator. The story is about the player rising from being nobody to being the champion. The story and the characters felt really diverse and I have the feeling that there should be enough content for a second or third playthrough. This is based on my experience of finishing the game on nightmare difficulty on a mage. Playtime 60 hours but that doesn't include all the reloading I would guess.    … Expand
  65. ToPe
    Mar 17, 2011
    9
    DragonAge2 kind of reminds me of ME2 its not much like the first one, but its still a great game.
    Yeah its shorter and has no origin story, the gameplay is a lot faster.But the way it tells the story is something new and kind of cool.Buhuhu its not a Dragon Age "Origins 2" but its still a good game, better than the most common rpgs.If you not just rush the mainplot you really can enjoy    DragonAge2 kind of reminds me of ME2 its not much like the first one, but its still a great game.
    Yeah its shorter and has no origin story, the gameplay is a lot faster.But the way it tells the story is something new and kind of cool.Buhuhu its not a Dragon Age "Origins 2" but its still a good game, better than the most common rpgs.If you not just rush the mainplot you really can enjoy the game.It absolutely has its moments.    … Expand
  66. mobijoker
    Mar 14, 2011
    10
    Plus-1. Battle is must faster and responsive 2. Better graphics than Origins 3. Main character has voice
    Minus-1.Story is uninteresting 2.Repetitive environment 3. Zoom is not sufficient to get full view of battlefield 4.Companions are boring 5. Battle is easy even on hard.Button mashing is the way to win. 6.Crafting    Plus-1. Battle is must faster and responsive 2. Better graphics than Origins 3. Main character has voice
    Minus-1.Story is uninteresting 2.Repetitive environment 3. Zoom is not sufficient to get full view of battlefield 4.Companions are boring 5. Battle is easy even on hard.Button mashing is the way to win. 6.Crafting is mnimal 7.Armor customization is very minimal 8.Choices are bland and mostly without any real consequence
    So,this sums it up.The worst bioware game ever.Though a good action game,but whether its an rpg and successor to Dragon Age Origins is questionable.
    My Score: 6/10    … Expand
  67. simplegades
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    10.0 If you like the first one, do yourself a favour .... absolutely buy this game and try to avoid all the bad comments around here, your opinion is simply the best¡¡¡ don´t let this "angry mob" spot your unique experience on a great and similar game ( but not the same) to origins. Once you have managed with the new gameplay you have10.0 If you like the first one, do yourself a favour .... absolutely buy this game and try to avoid all the bad comments around here, your opinion is simply the best¡¡¡ don´t let this "angry mob" spot your unique experience on a great and similar game ( but not the same) to origins. Once you have managed with the new gameplay you have all the fun that you had with the previous game and enjoy with a new emotional and powerful story about the wonderful world of Thedas. If you choose to play in Nightmare mode you´d have a incredible challenge with all the flavour of a classic rpg like Baldur´s Gate or Neverwinter with tough battles with an urgent need of tactical choices to win. The companion and their stories are awesome like origins. The main story is ... hold your breathe, is passionate, elaborate, intriguing and is built step by step around your path, again with all the flavor of a classic rpg, you always had the feeling that you are forging a new legend , (you have a destiny to fullfil ) A lot of different side-quest with a big impact in the inmediatlely future of the game and a duration that maybe is not so long than origins but don´t have anything to envy ( nightmare mode 88 hours ).

    Don´t loose yourself this fantastic game ( unless you don´t like Dragon Age origins ) serah¡¡¡    … Expand
  68. galaktur
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    Game - disappointing year. is certainly in the game and the good moments, improvements and new approaches, but unfortunately, disadvantages outweigh all its advantages. in pursuit of excess income, usually leaves the crude product, which subsequently will only exacerbate the situation and standard condemns the continuation of game to fail. ea company should reconsider marketing policy.
  69. Senjak
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    Wow, where do I start? The characterization is fantastic. The story is genuinely thorough and engaging. The Voice talent is spot on. The Combat is tactical crazy, for lack of a better phrase. The speed at which everything happens just adds to the complexity. The only drawback is the recycled areas, but the story keeps them from being to distracting.
  70. Quadratica
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    I had some problems with Dragon Age: Origins - the story came off like it was written by teenagers who had just finished a George R. R. Martin book; the events were supposed to be dramatic or shocking, but they were more comical and predictable. The combat was difficult in the sense that it was an endurance test - a tedious exercise in patience and the amount of healing potions you wereI had some problems with Dragon Age: Origins - the story came off like it was written by teenagers who had just finished a George R. R. Martin book; the events were supposed to be dramatic or shocking, but they were more comical and predictable. The combat was difficult in the sense that it was an endurance test - a tedious exercise in patience and the amount of healing potions you were packing. I also didn't care for many of the companion characters.

    Dragon Age 2 fixes all of these issues, and more. Bioware gives your character a family, roots in the world and a reason to care from the very beginning. The story is told in amazing fashion by one of the better written and acted characters in recent years, a dwarf named Varric. It takes place over the course of a decade in a city state, allowing you to see the consequences of all your actions. Talking to other friends also making their way through the game, it's like a collection of parallel universes. You don't need to wait for the epilogue to have an impact in this game.

    The combat is a dream. I really think this is what Bioware has been shooting for with its fantasy games for 10 years now, finally realized in true form. At first glance it may appear simpler than its predecessor's - there are fewer talents, for instance; but they are arranged in unique trees and every one of them has significance. The interplay between the classes is extremely engrossing: there is real strategy here in cross-class combos, setting up your allies for thrilling maneuvers. A far cry from the first game's "strategy" of making sure you have enough potions to last the fight. The bosses are actually fun encounters, not the dreary exercises in patience they were in Origins.

    Your character has a voice, which is a welcome addition. It also has to do with the reason I feel this game has so many low reviews: people were expecting an old school RPG in the style of Baldur's Gate, and this really isn't. It's a new game, an incredible game; but it is not Baldur's Gate. Unfortunately, few people seem willing to review it on its own merits. Having disliked Origins so much, I was dreading this release but it was a very pleasant surprise and here's hoping Bioware doesn't take the negative reaction to heart and continues to make bold, enjoyable games.    … Expand
  71. senshi
    Mar 17, 2011
    9
    Anybody that gives this game a score less than 5 needs to pull their head out of the extremely dark place it has wedged itself into. We gamers have all basically agreed upon a 10 point scale for universally rating our games. 10 means this game is so utterly fantastic it will more than likely be named in the all time greatest games list, 8-9 says this game is worth playing even if youAnybody that gives this game a score less than 5 needs to pull their head out of the extremely dark place it has wedged itself into. We gamers have all basically agreed upon a 10 point scale for universally rating our games. 10 means this game is so utterly fantastic it will more than likely be named in the all time greatest games list, 8-9 says this game is worth playing even if you typically do not like this genre, 7 shows this game has potential but for some reason has fallen short of the must play scores in other words completely average. 5-6 says this game is not really worth your time or money. Now a 4 means that this game is COMPLETELY BROKEN, this is Superman 64. So everyone that is reviewing this game with a score of 4 or less is saying that Dragon Age 2 should sit next to Superman 64 in the craptastic section of your video game library. I understand some people have a problem with the direction this game took but the majority of you are acting like a bunch of whiny and spoiled little bed-wetters. Please grow up because your little crusade is quite frankly proving to the rest of the entertainment industry that games are for kiddies.

    Now onto the game. I like it! Have not finished yet as work has been hectic. The story so far seems to be highly personal and not the "we have an imminent danger knocking on our doorstep we must hurry" kind of story, I have no problem with the latter type of story and neither do I with the former they are just different. Let me say that there are things I feel were improved on and things which took a step back in comparison to origins and awakenings. I truly like the faster paced combat in comparison to origins but do miss the top down "pulled back view" that was lost from the pc version. I am seeing people gripe about the combat and how there is no tactics needed for most of the battles, well there were not very many battles in origins where tactics were needed either it is still mostly the boss battles where you feel you need to micromanage things. The speed is what I am really enjoying, especially if playing a mage. If you were a mage in origins you cast your spells then auto attack, in DA2 you cast your spells then auto attack but I look a heck of a lot cooler during the second part of this equation, which is the same for both games. The quest structure is intriguing and I do like it better than the 1 major quest per area of its predecessor. In origins it seemed you did the side quests for the major area, then went onto the major quest for the area and then onto the next major area. I am enjoying doing a portion of the major quest for the act, then some side quest sprinkled in between each scenario. I do not have a problem with the graphical style as some seem to. Elves look worse than they did in Origins but humans looks better and Dwarfs will always be ugly. The Qunari designs are very nice in my opinion as are most of the monster types. The environments are hit and miss, some look good some not so much. I do have a problem with the re-using of dungeons and interiors, just like I did for the original Mass Effect and most every game I play. I look past it and tell myself they must have pre-fab buildings in their universe as well. The spell animations are wonderful, a major step up from origins. The companions are great, nice writing so far. I have mixed feelings about the party members equipment. On one hand the character designs are wonderful and you avoid the cookie cutter appearance we had in Origins but I am old school and enjoy finding a helm and saying that definitely goes to Isabela, now it is just accessories so most equipment you find becomes vendor trash.

    All in all this game so far has been a blast and all the boo-hoo's and "you're sellouts" barking is just getting on my nerves and making every gamer on the planet look like a bunch of children. Baldur's Gate is one of the greatest games of all time, but if someone made a game today like that I would say its crap and so would you. I am not saying all of the complaints are unfounded, I have some as well, but this organized effort to hurt this game is just crazy. They told us everything they were changing, if you have a problem with the changes its because you let them happen. If you don't like them voice your complaints but don't exaggerate as the majority on the net are doing. I assure you a score of 7 hurts a whole lot more than a 2. That 2 says a vocal minority of idiots are trying to make a point, a 6 or 7 says we really got some things wrong and need to address them.

    When Origins came out I felt it was a game that deserved and 8.5 rating, I feel the same way about DA2. Once the modding community and expansions and DLC came out for Origins I felt it was deserving of a 9.5 rating, I feel confident that will hold true here as well, so long as people grow up and quit trying to cause this game to fail.    … Expand
  72. coddan
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    The PC version of Dragon Age 2 suffers from severe consolitis, most noticeably in the lack of the isometric camera known as the "tactical view" in Dragon Age: Origins.

    The game is set in the city of Kirkwall and it's direct surroundings. You will be in the actual city for approximately 80-90% of the game. This is made even worse when it becomes clear that Dragon Age 2 is a rush job. This    The PC version of Dragon Age 2 suffers from severe consolitis, most noticeably in the lack of the isometric camera known as the "tactical view" in Dragon Age: Origins.

    The game is set in the city of Kirkwall and it's direct surroundings. You will be in the actual city for approximately 80-90% of the game. This is made even worse when it becomes clear that Dragon Age 2 is a rush job. This is painfully evident in the level design. There are several caves and interiors you will fight your way through close to 10 times each, that are supposed to be different locations. By the time you finish the game, you will have thought to yourself "this cave AGAIN?" more than once.    … Expand
  73. Bioware_Intern
    May 17, 2011
    10
    Baldurs Gate, Planescape Torment and now Dragon Age 2. This pinnacle of RPG's has taken the storytelling and interactive combat to another level. Its smooth combat aided by the future generation of quicktime events proves that turn-based RPG's are a thing of the past. Extreme unprecedented level of detail makes the cities feel alive and it makes it feel like you are living in the game.
  74. Alexander1a
    Mar 16, 2011
    10
    Dragon Age II вполне добÑ
  75. povis
    Mar 12, 2011
    9
    Aw some game. i love it very much. they improved most aspects in game. i want to see it in RPG of the year award. :) and i wonder why there so many negative review from users. this game much better than previous.
  76. G00N3R7883
    Mar 17, 2011
    10
    My real rating is a 9, but I felt like voting 10 to help balance out all those stupid 0's. DA2 is not as good as DA1. But all the rage is unnecessary. There are flaws - map layouts are repeated, camera control is horrible, and the story is less epic than the first. But there is alot of good stuff here too. Party companions have good depth and personality, and Hawke's personal tale isMy real rating is a 9, but I felt like voting 10 to help balance out all those stupid 0's. DA2 is not as good as DA1. But all the rage is unnecessary. There are flaws - map layouts are repeated, camera control is horrible, and the story is less epic than the first. But there is alot of good stuff here too. Party companions have good depth and personality, and Hawke's personal tale is enjoyable with strong voice acting, and certain events had a genuine emotional impact on me. Took me 27 hours to finish which is 13 hours shorter than DA1 but still alot longer than some other games I've played recently. Please, give the game a chance, look past its flaws and enjoy it for what it is. Bioware deserve some critisism, but there is a right way to do it, and they are more likely to listen to *honest* opinions.… Expand
  77. Ezmortal
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    I must admit, that DA:2 is not what I would call an improvement compared to DA:O. But that doesnt necessarily mean, that its bad. There are a few things that put me off a little bit in the beginning. There is the combatsystem of course... lots of blood and pretty much the same every time. you kill the first bunch, then suddenly another wave appears out of thin air. then, no customisableI must admit, that DA:2 is not what I would call an improvement compared to DA:O. But that doesnt necessarily mean, that its bad. There are a few things that put me off a little bit in the beginning. There is the combatsystem of course... lots of blood and pretty much the same every time. you kill the first bunch, then suddenly another wave appears out of thin air. then, no customisable armor for the other partymembers. for me that was an extremely big annoyance. Also kinda got on my nerves when I played ME:2. but that is also understandable to some extend. In terms of story telling it is an important part that the characters wear something that reflects their status( for example evelina...if she walked around in some kind of Bandit armor, that would be kinda weird oO).
    The Story: well, people can say what they want, but I actually liked it. Sure, it is not the most complex story there has ever been, but then there arent many games that even make it as far a DA:2. I liked that a lot of the Companion-,secondary- and side quests played into the main story line to some extend. Also, you've got to hand it to bioware. even if the story wasnt all thaaat complex it was very well staged with the tension building up until the end.
    now, my final point: the thing that annoyed me the most and where I couldnt find a reasonable explanation for....WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO THE INTERFACE??!!! I mean, its not like its too complex or anything, but it just doesnt fit into the setting at all. I liked it the way it was in origins. had a nice fantasy-ish feel to it. But this?? it looks like it was designed for SWTOR or ME3 but then it was decided that DA2 desperately needed some Sci-fi elements (?????) and thats what happened.

    Well, all in all though, I still enjoyed playing it through till the end alot. I mostly forgot about those thing that annoyed me at first while I was playing ( except for the interface >:O). And I think you cant say its a bad game just because its not as good or different from the first one. If there wouldnt have been a tag on the box saying " Dragon Age 2" I bet most people here wouldnt have been half as mad about the combat system etc. It would've probably been praised a a game that found the line between traditional RPGs and Hack n' Slay games Like the Diablo.
    Its not perfect, but its still very good.    … Expand
  78. Flimblekins
    Mar 19, 2011
    10
    Is it great? No. Is it horrible? Absolutely not! It's fun, and mostly well-rounded. There are bugs and the game can be repetitive. (Worth more a 7 than an 8, but an 8 for all the h8trs.)
  79. pyradius
    Mar 14, 2011
    10
    As a caveat, I will state that I didn't even play the game without the high res texture pack. The moment I went into the options and saw that option greyed out, I went "WTF?" and within 20 minutes (including locating/downloading) this pack I was ready to go. Key system specs would be:

    Intel Q6600 2.4ghz Quad w/4GB RAM Geforce GTX460 1900x1200 Res is my min play standard even if I have    As a caveat, I will state that I didn't even play the game without the high res texture pack. The moment I went into the options and saw that option greyed out, I went "WTF?" and within 20 minutes (including locating/downloading) this pack I was ready to go. Key system specs would be:

    Intel Q6600 2.4ghz Quad w/4GB RAM
    Geforce GTX460

    1900x1200 Res is my min play standard even if I have to lower some other settings. The "Very High" setting was apparently too much for my system even with AA and anisotropic filtering off. Whatever is in that "Very High" package is hefty to say the least. Lowering this setting one notch down (And conversely turning ON the anisotropic filtering at max) found me playing the game with what I would state as much improved graphics compared to the original title.

    If you were familiar with DA, then you probably already knew that it was much more action-adventure with some token RPG elements thrown in for good measure. If you thought otherwise then you may not enjoy the sequel because it hones in even more on these elements much in the same way Mass Effect 2 shed some of the RPG undertones of its predecessor.

    You will find the talent (ability) system fairly shallow compared to most deep skill-set RPGs just as the first DA. That said, they did arrange the individual skills a bit better to allow you to pick and choose a bit more easily. That said, most of the deeper skills have pre-reqs that will require you to take some abilities whether you want them or not. All in all, I find that the character abilities and the encounters play together more nicely than the original DA.

    The Tactics screens seem quite a bit improved although I have not tinkered too extensively with these yet. The Custom Tactics have done a good job of automatically incorporating into my followers lists of tactics and I have found my followers to operate much better overall in regards to controlling themselves in combat vs. the original.

    The NPCs and monsters are still not too broad in scope when compared to say AD&Ds Monstrous Compendium, but I feel this is more artistic direction and how they wanted their world to be than any serious limitation to create monsters on their part. That said, I would like to see some more diversity in NPCs. On this subject though, I found I wanted to tear my eyes out if I saw another darkspawn in the original, whereas the mixture of blood mages, undead, giant spiders, rock wraiths has livened things up at least a little bit. In fact on the subject of rock wraiths that has been one of the first times I've seen Dragon Age try and use the environment for tactical decisions in the fight. It seems like they've taken much more advantage of 'wave'-based encounters than they did in the original but still keep them relatively fast-paced.

    The voice acting is top notch and I've found myself actually listening to the brief quips from random NPCs and actually listening to the individual stories a lot more carefully. While perhaps not as epic-feeling in scope, I have enjoyed my slow rise to power in Kirkwall as the Champion, learning about the tensions between various races and factions along the way.

    Expect a radial dialogue like in Mass Effect 2. While I have become a fan of Bethesda's Fallout 3 dialogue system for RPGs, it is not without faults either. For me, the Mass Effect 2 dialogue system just seemed a natural fit for the action-adventure with mild RPG elements that this game is.    … Expand
  80. P_Dub_S
    Mar 15, 2011
    9
    Finished the game in about 60 hours really enjoyed the game. I do miss some aspects of Origins like the level up system and inventory system for companions. But its not a deal breaker . The story was alright not great but worked. I feel this was a good sequel and helps progress the story for the next Dragon Age. Graphics wise the game looked great on my system but I would like a 3rdFinished the game in about 60 hours really enjoyed the game. I do miss some aspects of Origins like the level up system and inventory system for companions. But its not a deal breaker . The story was alright not great but worked. I feel this was a good sequel and helps progress the story for the next Dragon Age. Graphics wise the game looked great on my system but I would like a 3rd rendering path for DX10 GPU's.… Expand
  81. Morrgans
    Mar 17, 2011
    10
    Well, honestly, I can not understand why people are so worked up on the combat mechanic. I never played DA:O in the top-down view except when I need to, because I lost one of the chars somewhere. I set up the tactics and then it was the Warden only except once to get the healing spell right when I wanted it.
    And to be honest, 2handed looked way to awkward in DA:O. So ok it is a little over    Well, honestly, I can not understand why people are so worked up on the combat mechanic. I never played DA:O in the top-down view except when I need to, because I lost one of the chars somewhere. I set up the tactics and then it was the Warden only except once to get the healing spell right when I wanted it.
    And to be honest, 2handed looked way to awkward in DA:O. So ok it is a little over the top with that "rush into combat" but at least I do not need to be frustrated because Alistair got stuck on a table.
    The story so far is well written and also more down to earth (which I like). As I have not completed it yet, I can not comment on everything but a 1 is something different than that. And do not forget, even ME:2 was a nice ROLE-playing game. And nobody said an rpg needs to have combat like Drakensang.    … Expand
  82. cephalopd
    Mar 17, 2011
    10
    After playing through the game I think its a solid game. It is very different from Dragon Age: Origins, but thats not necessarily a bad thing. I feel like the game is more streamlined than Origins. It reminded me more of Knights of the Old Republic than Baldur's Gate. I enjoyed my first playthrough and and am working on my second and there will probably be a few more over the next fewAfter playing through the game I think its a solid game. It is very different from Dragon Age: Origins, but thats not necessarily a bad thing. I feel like the game is more streamlined than Origins. It reminded me more of Knights of the Old Republic than Baldur's Gate. I enjoyed my first playthrough and and am working on my second and there will probably be a few more over the next few months. So, if you are expecting a rehash of Origins, you'll be disappointed. It's a completely different game, but it's still a fun game and has plenty of merits of its own. Download the demo, give it a whirl and see for yourself.… Expand
  83. Dotice
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    Everything about this game has been improved. Combat, UI, and even the story. This is not a sequel, really. It's not Dragon Age : Origins 2.0. It's a story within a story. Pick it up.
  84. lahuge
    Mar 19, 2011
    10
    I like the game. I enjoyed it, so it was worth the money to me. I think people are being unfair. It's very much worth a purchase for entertainment. Some of what people have posted here are myths about the game, having played it.

    I think the combat in Dragon Age: Origins (the original) was overrated. This combat is much faster but still reliant on the underlying character statistics. In    I like the game. I enjoyed it, so it was worth the money to me. I think people are being unfair. It's very much worth a purchase for entertainment. Some of what people have posted here are myths about the game, having played it.

    I think the combat in Dragon Age: Origins (the original) was overrated. This combat is much faster but still reliant on the underlying character statistics. In DAO it was easy to potion spam, and be basically invulnerable, especially with the Arcane Mage class. With DA-II it is a little more difficult to have a single winning strategy. Movement seems far more important. One criticism, but it's by no means a show stopper, is the lack of a free camera or isometric few occasionally leads to oddities from the camera, which is annoying in the middle of a quite fast battle. The 'waves of attackers from nowhere' method of improving difficulty seems seems lazy versus facing NPCs and attackers with statistically determined attack profiles. Maybe there is. Doesn't feel like it though.

    The size of the weapons in the game is a bit cartoonish. It seems odd to have a grown-up plot and then have comic book style weapons. While the story falls into a few RPG cliches, it's not awful by any means. The voice acting is generally good. I thnk the game strikes a good balance between cinematic elements and interactivity. There do not seem to be as many outright deterministic conversations. The games RPG system does feel more like an MMORPG than something with its roots in tabletop gaming. Unlike say Fallout: New Vegas, which while some distance away from its GURPS roots, has that feel of total personalisation. This misses that satisfaction by hiding a great deal of the underlying derived statistics from the users, particularly with regards to enemies. This will actually please some people, who prefer MMORPG style questing. I'm neutral on the subject.

    Overall, if it weren't for the potential pricing of DLCs versus actuall add-ons, I'd say if you've got the cash it's a good few days of quality entertainment. I like it. I have yet to replay it, but I'm less hopeful of major plot differences based on my character. Simply because I don't feel the underlying statistics can affect speech/negotiations in the same way the current Fallout series does.

    Graphics wise, rather annoying to have to run beta drivers with a high-end NVIDIA card. I have installed the high-res textures pack and it does make a difference. But for a product making a point of being DX-11 enabled it hasn't got a particular wow factor and looks like a console port. It does the job though.

    Compared to many other current games I'd give this 8/10. Which is a must purchase for raw entertainment value. Rather than arguing about the particular direction they took. I like the fact it deviates and updates on DAO canon, if only because that will annoy DAO fans. I've given it 10/10 because it will annoy both DAO fans and others.    … Expand
  85. noMugop
    Mar 14, 2011
    9
    Many people give negative scores. It's like flash mob! Why u did it guys, i think many of u even dint play that game. Bioware is the legendary one in game industry. They are best of all. Never winter nights, dragon age 1,2; mass effect 1,2 ! All this games r legendary! I'm limited in my english by several words :)) but even that cant stop me! MY SCORE IS 100!!!!!
  86. TeN
    Mar 14, 2011
    9
    Okay, the real feeling of being a grey warden and the atmosphere that da:o had is not really there, but the feeling while being in battles nice. It's a somewhat dull story, but mostly all i want is to fight, so i don't see a 'big' problem. Personally i find the game to be a 7 - 8 but i rate it a 9 , because most of you people talk like this: "oh noo, it's no RPG anymore but it has becomeOkay, the real feeling of being a grey warden and the atmosphere that da:o had is not really there, but the feeling while being in battles nice. It's a somewhat dull story, but mostly all i want is to fight, so i don't see a 'big' problem. Personally i find the game to be a 7 - 8 but i rate it a 9 , because most of you people talk like this: "oh noo, it's no RPG anymore but it has become a hack and slaaaash". While some RPG elements are a bit fading from this game (which i can acknowledge) The major elements are still there.
    So if they are still there, but just a bit less, why rate it a 0 or 1 just because its not dungeons and dragons anymore?    … Expand
  87. Frankmuc
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    What a waste. This could have been a great franchise. I love DA:O very much and regret every single cent spend on DA2. In a nut shell: the graphics are obviously better, but taking a closer look it's pretty clear: money was saved in production by receycling NPCs endlessly. Females (even parents) are ridiculously sexed up in order to serve a adulescent male consumer base. The controls andWhat a waste. This could have been a great franchise. I love DA:O very much and regret every single cent spend on DA2. In a nut shell: the graphics are obviously better, but taking a closer look it's pretty clear: money was saved in production by receycling NPCs endlessly. Females (even parents) are ridiculously sexed up in order to serve a adulescent male consumer base. The controls and all relevant RPG aspects are seriosly dumbed down, "Consoleros" will find it great. Dungeons are mainly based on the same basic model reused over and over again.

    I'm sorry for every single cent and won't preorder any future Bioware Games. I despise the greed of the producers and my own naiveté. Believing Bioware would stick to the high quality standards of the series while it was able to cash in on a inexpensivly produced cash cow was plain dumb.

    I'm giving this game a score of 2.0 but metacritics system is not accepting it. (Error "Score (10.0) id must be a floating point number.") This leaves a fool taste...    … Expand
  88. johnny71181
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    Game is awesome. Combat is still tactical like in Origins, just a bit faster-paced. Still awesome story and dialogue. So it isn't as awesome as DA:O, but almost nothing can be. It is still a great game, don't listen to all the hate.
  89. Hawgh
    Mar 12, 2011
    9
    First review, excuse the rambling nature:

    Very enjoyable game. Gameplay more fluid than predecessor. Graphics better. Graphical style much less generic. Story comparable, if not better. Storytelling of the highest caliber. Characterisation and NPCs top notch. Sadly, character customisation options reduced compared to predecessor, and Bioware games in general. However, player actions seem    First review, excuse the rambling nature:

    Very enjoyable game. Gameplay more fluid than predecessor. Graphics better. Graphical style much less generic. Story comparable, if not better. Storytelling of the highest caliber. Characterisation and NPCs top notch. Sadly, character customisation options reduced compared to predecessor, and Bioware games in general. However, player actions seem to be create a greater response in the world, and makes for a more involved experience. Good game length; I finished my first playthrough in 32 hours, and there are things that I missed. Cannot make qualified review of replayability, but I can see myself doing at least two more playthroughs. Excellent pacing of story. Main complaint is the rather lacklustre content of the game's journal/quest log. Great RPG, I recommend buying it. But if ambivalent, wait until price drop and DLC-packages appear.    … Expand
  90. brightng
    Mar 14, 2011
    10
    There are things I really like about the game and things that I don't like much at all. To put this in perspective, this is the first time that I've been motivated enough to write a review for one of these games. Generally, I'm a big Bioware fan and I've been playing RPG games for close to 30 years now. So far I've played a female mage.

    What I like: 1. There are some very stark choices in    There are things I really like about the game and things that I don't like much at all. To put this in perspective, this is the first time that I've been motivated enough to write a review for one of these games. Generally, I'm a big Bioware fan and I've been playing RPG games for close to 30 years now. So far I've played a female mage.

    What I like: 1. There are some very stark choices in this game whose consequences are much more real than in past games. Before this, I've been able to predict the outcome for each choice whereas in this one I've been surprised at times. Kudos for this, because some of these choices have made the game seem more real. 2. I've also generally enjoyed the different way of presenting talents and some of the abilities that weren't there before. 3. Varric is a great character as well. He's a refreshing change from the brooding males and my only lament regarding him is that I would have liked him to be one of the characters that could be romanced. Ah well... I like Aveline as well. Merrill is not bad, though not as memorable as the DA:O.
    4. I like overall the tension between the different factions and I would have liked the game to focus on and develop these even more. Why not spend more time on Ander's side quests instead of all those "out of nowhere and only for XP" side quests?
    5. I also enjoyed that the main character was also involved in some of the banter outside of specific conversations.
    6. I enjoy the city setting and actually would have preferred that the game not go outside at all. A few more settings in the city would have given it more depth and complexity. Having the outside made both outside and inside took away from the depth of the city while not really providing a satisfying complement to it (with the few and repeated outside settings).

    What I don't like: 1. Like many others, I feel that laziness or lack of effort gutted some parts of this game. The scenery is an obvious one and the general lack of different opponents is a less irritating but present one as well. 2. The bland nature of most of the inventory was also something that has taken much of the fun out of the game for me. It feels like this: "Magic Sword +1; Magic Sword +1.1; Magic Sword +1.2" Many of the items that we pick up just don't seem to matter. I would rather there be fewer ones that really matter. Also, why do so many of the robes look exactly the same? Couldn't they have had at least a few different models? In fact, if they didn't want to do too much designing, I would have preferred that they do the same for the main character as they did for the sidekicks (set costumes) but with, say, 5+ choices at the beginning so that one could choose. 3. The male sidekicks were quite forgettable for me. I was delighted in Origins because there were multiple people I could enjoy building relationships with, each with their own quirks that mostly did it for me. Here, on the other hand, I find the males pouty, often too similar, and generally uninteresting. Isabel hasn't really done it for me either, which is quite the thing to say since I usually enjoy that kind of sidekick.
    4. I really could do without the enemies suddenly appearing out of nowhere. It breaks the immersion for me completely at times. 5. Similarly, the endless stream would be good for some encounters to give them context, but for others I would rather have a few tougher enemies rather than the same, eventually mind-numbing, swarm.    … Expand
  91. ReiUnitzero
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    Simply the best RPG of the last 10 years, together with Dragon Age Origins.

    Incredible plot
    Incredible OST
    Incredible gameplay
    Incredible storytelling

    Bioware learns how to create games, as always.

    10.0
  92. Loki_2000
    Mar 21, 2011
    9
    Can't believe all the hate here.... Are on my second play through and not disappointed at all. Graphics are clearly improved from DAO, but the style is a bit different. Voice acting is good overall and generally on par with DAO, while the story in my opinion is better. The conversation wheel works fine and for me the voiced protagonist is much better than the silent expressionless glare ofCan't believe all the hate here.... Are on my second play through and not disappointed at all. Graphics are clearly improved from DAO, but the style is a bit different. Voice acting is good overall and generally on par with DAO, while the story in my opinion is better. The conversation wheel works fine and for me the voiced protagonist is much better than the silent expressionless glare of the warden. I didn't see the combat as "dumped" down. Its true that it's a bit easier on normal than DAO, but I still managed to die a couple of times and tactics are needed to win the harder battles - even on normal. On the downside, the combat can feel a bit rushed at times and the gore is way over the top. All in all not a perfect game, but still a great one (and just as good as DAO).… Expand
  93. Temka
    Mar 13, 2011
    10
    СÑ
  94. Brader182
    Mar 12, 2011
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Everything is great in this game!!!Meet the Best Rpg for teen years Dragon age 2!!! I love this game!! I complete the game already and i want more play it.i want more adventures,i want more dlc which tell us about Hawke s fate)))dont listen people who give negative review its all flashmob… Expand
  95. Sagabatou
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    With all these "negative reviews" I don't see where all the fuss is about. This is an amazing game! I just completed game on normal a few hours ago and now playing on nightmare mode which isn't breezing by. So far the DA2 has great story telling which kept me guessing through out the whole thing. The pause option provides you a more tactical view of the battlefield instead of blindlyWith all these "negative reviews" I don't see where all the fuss is about. This is an amazing game! I just completed game on normal a few hours ago and now playing on nightmare mode which isn't breezing by. So far the DA2 has great story telling which kept me guessing through out the whole thing. The pause option provides you a more tactical view of the battlefield instead of blindly stumbling into a fight. If I wanted to play through a 1 button hack and slash game I would be playing Dynasty Warriors. I enjoyed the dialogue very much and having options to choose from instead of a set in stone story line. The cross combo tree lets you customize how the player wants to play. Instead of just do 1 thing and 1 thing only, I can DPS with an optional support role or crowd control. I enjoy the micro of the game between characters, why only use 1 character when you can manage 4 and control what they do. Good game, lots of fun, worth your money.… Expand
  96. iamthespark
    Mar 18, 2011
    10
    MAIN PLOT: This game's storyline is a slow build, but once I got to Act 2 everything changed. I started appreciating the plot and the almost gentle progression.

    SIDE QUESTS: I dont think I've had so much fun playing the side quests before. I basically ignored most of them in DA1. COMPANIONS: (a) Voice Acting. Awesome. (b) Subplots. I like that we have subplots with them in    MAIN PLOT: This game's storyline is a slow build, but once I got to Act 2 everything changed. I started appreciating the plot and the almost gentle progression.

    SIDE QUESTS: I dont think I've had so much fun playing the side quests before. I basically ignored most of them in DA1.

    COMPANIONS:

    (a) Voice Acting. Awesome.

    (b) Subplots. I like that we have subplots with them in every act. Fenris and Aveline's subplots were very well done and definitely memorable (and funny!). (c) Same-Sex Romance: I still feel the need to thank bioware for including this again and in full form.

    (c) Romance in General. I romanced Merril, and the only thing I kept thinking was that I wish I had a chance to talk to her more. I felt as through the romance was based on very limited dialogue (more like a mass effect 2 kind of romance as opposed to DA1). BUT the romance scene itself was so well executed that I forgot about how little I spoke with her before that. The pillow talk after the scene was *great* too! Also, as it goes with romance pacing, it was strange to have Merril move in after our first sex scene, especially since we weren't really dating or anything like that. And now that we've moved in, nothing is being said about it.

    (d) Dialogue: There feels like much less companion dialogue in this game. BUT I also like that I haven't exhausted the dialogue yet either. Being able to speak with your companions of the fly was nice. Merril has very few things to say about herself, the past or the Dalish. Also, I found the flirting lines with Merril really cheesy, and only did because I wanted to proceed with a romance.

    (d) Banter. Lots of good stuff here and with the number of companions, I don't think I'll ever hear all of the banter.

    (e) Character designs. I love how distinct everyone looks and acts. The new body types are great.

    (f) Comforting Hawke. I am soooo grateful that someone asks me how I am!

    (g) Companion Interactions. Its refreshing to see the companions visiting each other and seeking their guidance. Like everyone else, I love that dog is there. The fact that now I can ask a question to my party while in conversation with someone else is a good thing.

    THE WORLD: I have no problems with being in one city, but I guess I expected the city to change more than it does. I don't mind the reused areas too much. I'm fine with there being a few places you always visit (the bone pit and sundermount) but its when I go into other places that seem very similar to each other, that's when it loses flavour for me. I would have appreciated more fantastical locations (like in DA1 Sacred Ashes quest). I will insert thought that I love the fact that mines/maps/areas have multiple exits now and that leaving a dungeon is so much easier.

    INVENTORY
    (a) Companion Inventory: The fact that I can still equip my companions with their own weapons saved the day for me. If they were completely static, it would have been boring, but I am still able to upgrade their weaponry. As for their armour, I also like the idea of upgrades. I sort of wish I'd see the upgrades though, as a different colour of armour or *something*. The fact that I didnt have to equip the upgrades myself was nice too.

    (b) Junk: This container has gotten a lot of heat, BUT it does serve a purpose. i can now mark items as junk and sell them all with one button when I get to the store, how convenient is that? Very!

    TIME JUMPS: This left me feeling disconnected from the game. I believe its because I'm not filled in on what happened during the jump with myself or my companions (or perhaps the lack of control). The game tries to remind me that 3 years have passed, but its hard to "get into" that.

    ACTION: I loved the speed and looks of the action. This game is so much fun to play, now I actually enjoy the battles unlike in DA1. The skill trees are fun as well.

    WHAT ITS MISSING
    Its hard to explain what this game is actually missing for me without saying its missing "charm" or "soul". What I think has happened to create that feeling is the mix of: 1) not enough companion dialogue/backstory/progression, with 2) the fact that I'm not sure why my companions are still following me around.

    In DA1 we were a group of people thrown together to save the world. Even though its not unique, the fact that we were drawn together and that we had that camp common space created a feeling of "we're in this together" and "us against the world" which is missing from DA2. In DA2 I just feel like "stuff happens" and maybe some of my companions will be around later. They, currently, don't feel integral to Hawke, not even my LI.    … Expand
  97. MoralityGames
    Mar 15, 2011
    10
    Don't feel as though this games deserves a 10 (an 8 would be fairer) but everybody else seems to be doing hyper-positives or hyper-negatives to draw attention to their opinions so I might as well participate. Combat: Never had a problem with Origin's combat system and was never aware anybody else did, so I wonder why Bioware changed it, but I can't help but feel as though people who areDon't feel as though this games deserves a 10 (an 8 would be fairer) but everybody else seems to be doing hyper-positives or hyper-negatives to draw attention to their opinions so I might as well participate. Combat: Never had a problem with Origin's combat system and was never aware anybody else did, so I wonder why Bioware changed it, but I can't help but feel as though people who are deeply upset about it are letting their negative impressions about other aspects of the game color their experience of an otherwise solid system. Why exactly is an intense and fast-paced RPG-party brawl with plenty of room for diversity and optimization a bad thing? And on a more positive note, the spell/ability animations are beautiful. Difficulty: The game itself flashes messages in-between loadings which often recommend you adjust the difficulty if you've reached a segment of the game that is too hard or too easy. People want a golden mean where the game perpetually hits a point where things are hard enough to feel challenged but never difficult to the extent you feel obstructed; people need to realize that video game's almost never turn out that way, and when they do it is mostly a happy development accident. And in the 8-bit era they were almost universally hard. In letting you switch difficulty modes within the game, Bioware let the player do as much as any gaming company can be expected to do. So, difficulty works fine as long as you are prepared to pull up the menu and adjust it. Story: Dragon Age II has the best paced plot and character development of any game ever made, an artistic achievement that has been completely overlooked for some reason. Telling the story in "Acts" divided over years allowed them to approach the characters and the story in a distributive way unprecedented in any game. I thought it was fascinating, but other people seem disappointed it didn't conform to the inferior Origins standard. The one thing Origins had over Dragon Age II is a larger and somewhat more epic setting, but in terms of characterization and pacing the plot Dragon Age II surpassed it. I'd be happy to explain my viewpoints more in depth to anyone who wants to inquire. Inventory: Always the weak point of a Bioware game; their inventories are either cluttered with useless objects or all options are streamlined into oblivion with equipment divided into early game and late game. They combined the Mass Effect 2 streamlined system with Dragon Age: Origin's Graphics: Graphics aren't really important to me. Granted superior graphics are consistently more aesthetically pleasing, but I think any game which combines colors and images dynamically can look good, regardless of its time period. I think that the aesthetic of A Link to the Past and Final Fantasy VI (two of the best Super Nintendo games) have a unique appeal that no contemporary title can bring to the table. Comparing 16-bit to a game like Crysis is like comparing Impressionism to Cubism; they aren't comparable and both have unique appeal. In those terms, I think Bioware's attention to detail pulls through to make a visually compelling game. The biggest point against them is that they recycle sets a lot, but that's nothing new. Bugs: The single biggest problem with Dragon Age II is also a trope of early Bioware releases; there are bugs. The ones that intrude upon companion quests are particularly grating. Prospective customers might put off buying the game until a few patches get released that address these problems.… Expand
  98. idee
    Mar 17, 2011
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. An excellent successor to DAO2. The story is engaging and the conflict between mages and templars is compelling, forcing you to make some hard decisions. The combat has been streamlined in a good way, and although I personally find some of the combat animations abit over the top, I found that it was actually better than DAO after going back to DAO and comparing.

    DAO's animations looked tortured and sluggish by comparison. I know this is what people call "realism" but seriously? The way people swing 2handers in DAO is full of defensive holes and quite unrealistic in its own way.

    People who complain about the story not being as epic or good as DAO are simply expressing an opinion coloured by their butthurt over how this game has evolved over DAO. The story in DA2 is just as unique and entertaining. You just don't get to play the hero.

    Also not being able to choose your race was negligible, having a voiced character is leagues better in terms of the role-playing experience.

    In summary i'd give this about an 8. However actually I'll rate this full marks to spite the idiot band-wagon jumpers who thinks this is the worst game ever made. GTFO and take your butt-hurt with you.    … Expand
  99. E11imist
    Apr 10, 2011
    10
    The first mistake people make regarding DA2 is to think that it is the same as DA1, the game has been streamlined for the less devoted RPG fans. This game is made for the masses, and I love it. Yes it is not as long as DA1, yes it is not as complicated as DA1, but it is still a good game which you should not dismiss because you don't like the new combat system. This game is epic, I couldThe first mistake people make regarding DA2 is to think that it is the same as DA1, the game has been streamlined for the less devoted RPG fans. This game is made for the masses, and I love it. Yes it is not as long as DA1, yes it is not as complicated as DA1, but it is still a good game which you should not dismiss because you don't like the new combat system. This game is epic, I could not stop playing since the moment I sat down to play it. Stop judging and just play, you will enjoy it.… Expand
  100. Cowson
    Mar 12, 2011
    10
    I have no idea why people are rating this game so low and saying some very outrageous things. People, don't listen to these loosers. The game is fantastic. I think the voice acting is spot on and I love how it's darker than the previous. The graphics and sound are a breath of fresh air. I can't wait to see how it progresses!
  101. Gamerplays
    Aug 13, 2011
    8
    Well now, I'll be honest to say that its quite a bit different than its predecessor. Does it mean its bad? No, its just DIFFERENT but done quite nicely. It's kinda beyond me why sequels (apparently) have to be the same as the original. Doing the same trick over and over gets dull (just look at the CoD series). If you're looking for a good solid action-rpg, DA2 won't be disappointing justWell now, I'll be honest to say that its quite a bit different than its predecessor. Does it mean its bad? No, its just DIFFERENT but done quite nicely. It's kinda beyond me why sequels (apparently) have to be the same as the original. Doing the same trick over and over gets dull (just look at the CoD series). If you're looking for a good solid action-rpg, DA2 won't be disappointing just don't expect it to be an exact copy of the original DA.… Collapse
Page:

Awards & Rankings

34
#34 Best PC Game of 2011
4
#4 Most Discussed PC Game of 2011
18
#18 Most Shared PC Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 45 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 38 out of 45
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 45
  3. Negative: 0 out of 45
  1. PC PowerPlay
    Apr 18, 2011
    90
    Moving even further from the classic RPG, strong story and clever combat are nonetheless still found within Dragon Age II. [May 2011, p.52]
  2. Gaming Nexus
    Apr 12, 2011
    58
    Despite some advancement in storytelling approach and liberal borrowing from Bioware's Mass Effect approach to gameplay, Dragon Age 2 on the PC has a lot of bugs and is populated with re-used settings that make this feel like a play performed on a stage with two sets.
    Read full review
  3. CPUGamer
    Apr 11, 2011
    85
    For a rushed product that is still battling bugs, the currently offered product still provides 40 hours of challenging and engaging gameplay. This combines to provide a good, but not great gaming experience.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »