Yep, that's right. There is no typo in the title. Dragon Age: Origins is the spiritual successor of Baldur's Gate 2, the best damn game of all time. After spending over 40 hours with DA, I have barely scrapped the surface of this epic new ip.

Being the unofficial RPG-lover of the site, it would be fitting to write more about DA itself rather than just a related diatribe. However, this isn't a review per se, this is more of a suggestion for a review with some modest impressions. How shall I put it, I will try and put things into:



Speaking of tits, Dragon Age has em' and offers a unique glimpse into the lewd with homosexual relationships, threesomes, foursomes, etc. I bet Moleaux himself would be shamed by the depth of the relational drama which unfolds in the hands of the player. Needless to say, there is a lot to do in Dragon Age Origins and the player is empowered with a feeling of being a vital necessity in a depraved world. The story is epic, though formulaic, and it carries a sense of fait accompli with the diversity in its four separate endings without sacrificing the teasing of a sequel

Of course, there are plenty of references to big brother Baldur's Gate, and the pressure to produce a "sequel" must have been intense. For example, the famous pausing system is back even though I feels unnecessary on the console version which offers a more action-oriented approach. There are still plenty of Easter eggs for the fans, like the demon Gaxkang who feels like a pussy compared to the insanely powerful Kangaxx in BG2. However, DA still brings back fond memories of the original tale, and DA is pleasingly more gritty, mature, and dark compared to big brother.



Despite the obvious references made to BG2, Dragon Age stands on its own with a solid story, a rich and varied world, and potential for some amazing interactions with one's party. Customization is the heart of DA, and although it's not as expansive as BG2, it does retain a gamut of options relating to the type of character you want to make. The spells are decent but I miss the old system where you could buy them in stores, and they had a tier-system ranging from 1 to 9. Admittedly, I am also a big sucker for combat voices and the lack of such during spell casting is mildly disappointing.



Trust me, keep the dwarf for some lulz.

Dragon Age origins does carry some faults which are inescapably linked to Bioware's past. The difficulty, as Sterling suggested, is not paced properly. Some fights will seem tediously easy while others require complex strategical thinking, a fair load of cursing, and multiple reloads. This lack of proper pacing is not unique to Dragon Age alone. Many other Bioware games have had notoriously difficult areas which overall dampens the fun. Graphically, Dragon Age, as many have noted, is kind of awful. I was hoping for something close to splendor of Mass Effect but the visual department has been neglected in favor of porting what is widely called an inferior console version.

Overall, I do not assign a score but I can recommend a range of valid scores. Given the breadth of the experience and the overall homage to BG2, DA comes heavily recommended with a few noted problems.

Suggested range of score: 85-95

Anything below 80 is ostensibly an insult.