Op Ed

Hooked Gamers - Dragon Age II: The Decline of the Classic RPG.
There is no question about it, the classic cRPG is dying out. So why bring it up now then? The reason is because one of the few big developers who have remained adamant about catering for players who want to play the classic cRPG is BioWare. Their breed of cRPG was popularised with the Baldur’s Gate series just before the new millennium. This consisted of some defining aspects: detailed character creation (not just customisation); immersive character interaction; strategic-based combat that required thought and timing; and a deep, engaging story that was shaped by the player’s choices. This was a game that could only truly be experienced on a PC. It required a fair amount of work on the developer’s part, but players were rewarded greatly for their efforts and paid the developers back justly.

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Re: Op Ed
Mar 8, 2011, 09:33
Prez
 
63.
Re: Op Ed Mar 8, 2011, 09:33
Mar 8, 2011, 09:33
 Prez
 
It is certainly looking like DA2 will turn out far inferior to the original based on the demo and preview material. Maybe I'm a naive optimist, but I wonder if it really was a conscious decision for Bioware to "consolize" the classic CRPG feel of the series, or if this is essentially a by-product of other business pressures.

Though I'm not a developer, it seems logical to me that when saddled with an arbitrary deadline so close to the release of the first, that corners will inevitably need to be cut to make the deadline. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the majority of the regressive design decisions relative to the first game seem like Bioware's solution for dealing with an unrealistic deadline by which they were under mandate to have the game finished. When faced with the decision, isn't possible that they simply opted for the simpler, easier design (which we know as consolized) out of necessity?

I guess my point is that maybe this is not what Bioware wanted to do, but it was the only viable path to take because of the stringent parameters set by their publisher. In light of this, I'm not ready to call Bioware "finished" just yet. Hopefully they can either convince EA to lay off or free themselves from their grasp entirely in the future, and then we'll know.
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
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