Dragon Age 2 - Five Facts About Hawke

GameInformer magazine has the exclusive on the Dragon Age 2 reveal but they've kicked up a few tidbits for the website. Five Facts About Hawke:

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

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

More information.

I don't like him to be overly active and voiced.

What did the Avatar say? Name, job, bye. It was enough, for it was YOU, YOU where the Avatar. Not some premade voice and premade char and premade reactions. What exactly you said as the Avatar was in your mind!

I preferred it that way. When a "hero" is saying too much, its no longer me, its just some dood I watch over the shoulder, and thats no longer a RPG.

Originally Posted by elikal
I don't like him to be overly active and voiced.

What did the Avatar say? Name, job, bye. It was enough, for it was YOU, YOU where the Avatar. Not some premade voice and premade char and premade reactions. What exactly you said as the Avatar was in your mind!

I preferred it that way. When a "hero" is saying too much, its no longer me, its just some dood I watch over the shoulder, and thats no longer a RPG.

Totally agree. Reading a book (or listening to an audio-book) is not roleplaying.

Hmm… it seems they only dropped the ability to chose a race and the origin (which is unfortunate but not unlike most RPGs anyway) and added voice acting.

DA had a predefined last name as well… though it was never mentioned in the game

Also

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

Sound fine… I don't see why it would limit "roleplaying" to the extend of making the experience the equivalent of "reading a book"


+ That "Dragon Age II is not about killing an ancient evil"… I have to see it to believe it… Considering that is pretty much precisely the story of every RPG I've ever played (except perhaps from PS:T and that other one)

Originally Posted by wolfing
Totally agree. Reading a book (or listening to an audio-book) is not roleplaying.

Well, apart from those "solo adventures", maybe.

I don't know whether this kind of medium is actually common elsewhere ?