Dragon Age 2 - Bonus Content Announced

Chris Priestly, in this thread on the Bioware Social Forums, announced bonus content for Dragon Age 2. Without sounding to much like an ad for Bioware, the bonus content will be:
The Lion of Orlais, (a shield) and the Fadeshear (a sword) and The Black Emporium.

By visiting the Black Emporium, players will be able to use the Mirror of Transformation and change their appearance. They'll be able to find exclusive magic and and crafting stores. And they'll find a whistle allowing them to summon a powerful Mabari Hound in battle.

You can read more it about the bonus content here.
All who buy the game get The Black Emporium, while the sword and shield are only available to those who pre-order -as well as the people who bought the Signature Edition. I bet, though, that the sword and shield will be released as DLC later…
More information.

So The Black Emporium is the "Shale" DLC of DA2.

Yes, it appears so. Very annoying that just days after the Signature Edition closes, suddenly Steam preorders open up. I also dislike these different bonus items for different groups. Item X for BestBuy, item Y for preorders before Jan 11, item Z for buyers from Gamestop between 11:59PM and 12:00 if their last name starts with a "T".

This time they don't seems to have different bonuses for different stores. The only difference is between the Regular and Signature (which is the collector edition if I understood correctly).

Strange that Steam didn't want to offer the Signature version "at a discount" though.

I was exaggerating, of course. I don't see why it would be Steam that didn't want the SE but it's academic now anyway.

Bioware has most annoying marketing ploys !!! They are going to tire there FANS with DLC next. Im not getting involved with it, if i hear its a decent game i will purchase the Ultimate. But as a fan of Bioware games , there is no way anyone can enjoy the release of their game . Impossible !

Despite being skeptic about the route the second game might have taken, I took the plunge and pre-ordered the Signature Edition some days ago. Thus, it looks like I'll get this from the start.

However… I can't say I'm overly enthusiastic about the way Bioware handles these things. I sometimes imagine their marketeers, after the game is finished, sit around a table with the creators and go: "So, what content can be, you know, cut from the game and then sold separately for ten bucks? The stoney bastard? Right… Oh and you made a sword with an obscure name? People will probably pay for too that you know…".

That said… DA:O contained a lot of content from the start, even without Shale and Soldiers Peak etc. (Wich I suspect have been subjected to such a process).

Exclusive magic? Ugghhh…..

This kinda thing puts the player in a strange position. Order now to get the mobslayer +20, guaranteed to mow your way thru the game.

The bonus content may not be much fun after all. You rush to get these "bonus" items, but if it's just a bunch of overpowered items - you just skate thru sections of the game easily instead of getting a challenge out of the game. Fun? that's questionable

If you read the thread, posters are just bubbling over in ecstasy over being loaded to the teeth w/ this gear right out of the gate. It would be really funny (conspiracy theorist) if all this stuff was original content in the first place that's been given to them as "bonus" stuff anyway. What a laugh Bio'd be having then, I sure as fuck would be laughing my ass off at these people thanking me left and right and singing praises to me over it.

I`m trying really hard to enjoy DA:O at the moment, but since learning about all this DLC nonsense I don`t know what to think anymore. They pissed all over the game balance.

Was this last battle really hard? Or was I meant to have some items that I do no have? I don`t really think they even care anymore…

And it`s hardly a conspiracy theory, of course these days all DLC is pre-planned (the whole game written around it, in a fashion) so you can call it original content…but for PREMIUM users, not some cheapskate rabble like me….