Dragon Age: Inquisition - Editorial @ Forbes

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Forbes has a new article for Dragon Age: Inquisition were they call the game a possible video game catastrophe for 2014. Now do you agree with him, or is he wrong?

I’m actually really excited for Inquisition. Everything I’ve seen about the game so far looks great. Multiple playable races are back, as is an optional top-down tactical view. The game looks gorgeous, and promises even more customization options than Origins. And, perhaps most importantly, it’s been in development for quite a while already, so we don’t have to worry about this being a rush job like Dragon Age 2.

All the hopeful signs point to a great single-player RPG; but there’s plenty of reasons to worry that this will not be the case, if only because of BioWare’s recent problems at bat.

Of course, for BioWare to salvage its good name and restore its brand, Inquisition needs to be a great game. It must be head and shoulders above anything they’ve done in years, and stand up to the competition—The Witcher 3 in particular. EA and BioWare need to hit this one out of the park. They simply can’t afford another disaster.
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I tend to think that it will either be amazing or awful. I'm leaning towards amazing based on what I've seen, so far. The tactical style of combat seems to be back, the first person role-playing seems to be back (as opposed to DAII's ME-style third-person role palying) and it looks like the long development time is back, which is really important.


Having said that, there were a number of things about DAII that I really enjoyed. The personal story and narrow scope were a nice change, and Act 2 was actually really good. Act 3 was a rushed mess, though. The reusing of assets made it feel repetitive at times, and the waves of weak enemies to smash with your awesome button were tedious. The lack of exploration was a shame as well. If Inquisition can combine all the best things about each of the first two games, I expect to be very happy with it.
 
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I agree with the author of the article: DA3 is critical to BioWare at this point. A lot is at stake here, so failure is not an option. That being said, it is looking rather good, but that doesn't mean much until we actually get to play it.
 
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And I agree with you Maylander :) The good news is that devs were allowed extra year to polish this game. So maybe (just maybe) BioWare really does want to recoup the reputation they have lost with DA2? But yeah, once bitten…

PS - I have a funny feeling that the hype surrounding Witcher 3 might have had something to do with this…
 
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As far as I'm concerned, it's over for Bioware already.

That doesn't mean they can't make a decent game with great looks and interesting mechanics.

But a game with a heart and soul won't happen. It takes a level of passion that I just can't imagine being on the team at this point. You can't buy that - you have to find the right talent at the right time, and such talent would never be allowed to flourish under their current approach.

If it does happen - I'll be more than happy to admit I'm wrong and eat any number of hats.
 
Pushing it back was one thing-- pushing it back as much as they did may hurt them. It may make the game better, but I'd imagine it will also hurt their bottom line. There will be a glut of games being released 3rd/4th quarter 2014. Just think if we had a Q1 release for this?
 
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Looking at the recent alpha gameplay video, and the various BW representatives interviews, I keep thinking that this game looks great. Nevertheless the little voice in the back of my head keeps saying something just ain't right here.

For one thing I can't see it being economically feasible for DA:I to deliver all they're promising. Skyrim total costs exceeded 90 million; GTA 5 exceeded 250 million; GTA 4 exceeded 100 million; Tomb Raider exceeded 100 million; These numbers only make sense for games with mega sales. Skyrim for example exceeded 10 million sales in about one month, and has now surpassed 20 million.

EA can't count on anything close to mega sales to justify investment costs. They can hope but that's it. So realistically we're looking at game content substantially less than would fit in the picture painted by BW to date. And/or multiple and expensive day one dlc (almost guaranteed IMO) which will more less cheapen the overall game reputation.

How they handle gay/bisexual romance will also make a difference. I honestly more or less expect a pretty strong gay rights manifesto approach rather than a gay rights inclusion approach. There's nothing wrong with either approach but the manifesto approach is IMO a turn-off to enough ppl that it will negatively impact sales, while the inclusion approach probably would have no negative sales impact. I just don't see BW buying into an inclusion approach.

So i see less overall content than expected; more up front consumer costs, and more dlc costs that play out over time; with an overall negative impact on game sales and reputation; meaning no great incentive for EA/BW to invest in expensive and high quality add-ons to DA:I.

EA/BW might just pull out a super great game that can justify high development costs via content and word of mouth. But realistically I think the name of the game has to be cautious expectations at this point.

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How they handle gay/bisexual romance will also make a difference. I honestly more or less expect a pretty strong gay rights manifesto approach rather than a gay rights inclusion approach. There's nothing wrong with either approach but the manifesto approach is IMO a turn-off to enough ppl that it will negatively impact sales, while the inclusion approach probably would have no negative sales impact. I just don't see BW buying into an inclusion approach.

A gay rights manifesto? Can you explain why you think they would do that?
 
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A gay rights manifesto? Can you explain why you think they would do that?

Actually I said gay rights manifesto approach as compared to a gay rights inclusion approach. Quite different in nuance, and pretty clear in meaning, particularly in context. I also said there's nothing wrong with either approach. At any rate I chose my words carefully and with the expectation that they would be read and understood by objective adults.

What is it that you don't understand? And can you share any of your own thoughts on the subject or do you only wish to quibble over mine?

Regards.

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Ah forgive me, I thought you might just simply answer the question instead of dancing around it with semantics. Never mind...
 
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Ah forgive me, I thought you might just simply answer the question instead of dancing around it with semantics. Never mind…

You're forgiven. But really, I was expecting to hear your thoughts as I have already shared mine.

I didn't understand why you mentioned semantics btw (Were you referencing the fact that you asked about a single phrase taken out of the actual context in which it was used? Do you regularly ignore significant portions of other peoples' sentences, along with other sentences in the same paragraph, in your quest for understanding? Not really a great technique btw). Perhaps if you could explain that and also what it is you didn't understand to begin with.

I actually expected that you would just simply answer the questions I asked rather than avoiding the questions and changing the subject.

Do you answer questions yourself or only criticize others? Do you have any thoughts of your own that you can share? Do let us hear your thoughts (and please avoid any semantics or dancing in your answers…).

Regards.

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Well that's two posts and counting, and you're still avoiding the original question. I guess I can see where this is headed.
 
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Well that's two posts and counting, and you're still avoiding the original question. I guess I can see where this is headed.

But I did answer your question. To clarify, I pointed out that you misconstrued what I actually said. Sorry if you didn't like that answer. It does, however, happen to be true.

So it is you, not I, who has answered nothing in your two replies.

So, to be clear, what didn't you understand about what I actually said to begin with? Second, what are your thoughts on the matter?

I've shared my thoughts. You have shared none. I await your answers.

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But I did answer your question. To clarify, I pointed out that you misconstrued what I actually said. Sorry if you didn't like that answer. It does, however, happen to be true.

So it is you, not I, who has answered nothing in your two replies.

So, to be clear, what didn't you understand about what I actually said to begin with? Second, what are your thoughts on the matter?

I've shared my thoughts. You have shared none. I await your answers.

Ok, I'll play your game.. even though you've done nothing but blow hot air while continuously editing and re-editing your posts. :)

Allow me to rephrase the question. - Why would Bioware take a gay rights manifesto "approach" with DA: Inquisition?
 
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Prior record. Gaider has - in my personal assessment - spent the majority of his interviews, forum posts and blogs talking about gay issues / derivatives of these issues, and deriding the "privileged white male" etc. It makes me feel uncomfortable not because I'm a privileged white homophobe, but because he seems to be obsessively preaching and bashing the drums just a little too much. He is either unaware or unconcerned that his rhetoric and attitude is baiting me into an adversarial stance on the issue. It's not a place I want to be, but he's painting me into that corner. FWIW I thought DA2 was 'manifesto' rather than 'inclusion' and there has been little to no admission of any mistakes in that game (other than what we see in 'deeds' now with the tactical camera returning etc).

There are dozens of great books, films and plays where I went in with view A but went out with view B because of subtle presentation of a viewpoint that took me along rather than cattle prodded me down the story with it. Gaider seems to like his cattle prod.
 
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I see were this is going, and it wont end well. I will alow the discussion to continue, but keep it civil please. I also don't want ten pages of off-topic replies again.:paranoid:
 
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There's virtually nothing I can add to Gaxkang's explanation. Going by past history the BW approach has tended toward overkill — and it can have the effect of creating disharmony rather than promoting harmony.

As to Gay and Lesbian love, my view is that if any human feels more loved and accepted, we are all better off. There are just too many people who feel left out; who feel that they don't belong. If any one of us feels more loved, they are better off, and everyone around them will also be better off. If they feel loved by virtue of gay or lesbian love; so what? People around people who feel loved and accepted are still all better off. That spreads further with the result that society as a whole benefits.

By the same token, when love and sexuality is treated in a combative manner, the benefit can be weakened and can even become detriment. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, as the saying goes.

IMO Gaider does tend to come on too strong and is too combative at times. IMO Gaider is a bit of a troll who seeks publicity by combatively promoting controversy at times. He gets publicity but tends to alienate ppl at the same time. Not the best way to maximize video game sales IMO.

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Interesting. I don't feel that being given the option to pursue a gay romance is the same thing as promoting it.

That said, DA2 is the only Bioware game I haven't played yet, so I have to assume that's the "past history" that's being referred to. I certainly don't think that topic had anything to do with DA2's sales though.

As far as Gaider is concerned, quite frankly, I have zero interest in anything he has to say. Simply because he doesn't seem interested in going in the direction (gameplay-wise) that I would like to see Bioware go.
 
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If I was looking for a serious treatment on part of the human condition, the last place I would look would be in something made by a suit-controlled developer like Bioware.
 
Interesting. I don't feel that being given the option to pursue a gay romance is the same thing as promoting it.

That said, DA2 is the only Bioware game I haven't played yet, so I have to assume that's the "past history" that's being referred to. I certainly don't think that topic had anything to do with DA2's sales though.

As far as Gaider is concerned, quite frankly, I have zero interest in anything he has to say. Simply because he doesn't seem interested in going in the direction (gameplay-wise) that I would like to see Bioware go.

Agree with both your points JDR. And in DA2, same as in DA:O, you have an option to pursue a gay romance. But you can have heterosexual one if you so choose.
 
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