Trespasser: Crossroads look different to Lavellan???

I've only played elf so I never saw the difference, only heard my character talk about it.

It was a nice nod to Masked Empire where we first learned that Elves see the Crossroads as much more vibrant and beautiful than other races. Though in the book, Elves also were able to move around more quickly, while other races felt somewhat hindered there.

There was a discussion in the Solas thread about this very phenomenon in the Crossroads and it sounded very similar to an actual rare genetic condition in humans called tetrachromacy.

We can say that elves have a tapetum lucidum like the way cats do that helps them see in the dark by reflecting light back from that opalescent membrane in the back of their eye. It's supported by their superior night vision that had Loghain even employ them as a Night Watch and the references to the way their eyes shine in the dark like a cat's eyes.

But a richer color vision when everyone else sees monochrome? That's something restricted to the Crossroads but it sounds exactly like Tetrachromacy. To see 100 million more shades of color. A fourth color receptor that allows you to see the red edging an otherwise green leaf, where plain white snow looks like an opal sheen instead to you. Too bad it's so rare that only women have reported it and only those who have the training to differentiate colors like an artist would. Plus the drawback of an increased chance that your children will develop color blindness.

We don't have proof as there are no elves complaining of sensitivity to color and being unable to look at garish places the equivalent of a mall or a supermarket to us. But it's still fascinating how much in game lore mirrors actual real life phenomena.

It's more than just color though. You can see in the video that the trees that had bare branches in the Trevelyan playthrough, are covered in pink leaves in the Lavellan playthrough. Elves seem to have a whole other level of perception.

Oh, that's interesting. I've never heard of the condition before. I had Fenris in one of my fanfics being able to see quite well in the dark, good to know it could be based on the lore rather than just something I thought was interesting

Yeah that didn't happen for me.

It happens for everyone, some people just don't notice it.

I would think so. Am I blind? XD

Did you watch the comparison videos? I haven't seen it for myself in-game as I've not created an Elven character, but Sera comments on it and the video is pretty clear

It's white and gold! Wait, no! It's black and blue!

It took me about five or six runs of trespasser between elf and non elf inquisitors to notice there was a change. I wasn't focused on the environment, I was focused on moving from point a to point b.

Better now than never!