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Post by illuminated11 on Sept 17, 2024 8:12:45 GMT
This is probably what lies behind it. Now I assume there is going to be some in game explanation why everyone is suddenly sporting magical abilities but they only really referenced Harding when it came to this and even there we await the reason she is developing them. I am puzzled why, if Solas did not drop the Veil, our companions have gained these abilities, at least the non mage ones. I assume it has something to do with the magical blade having some sort of influence over them. May be that is why everything now seems to be connected back to Rook and the companions' "magical" abilities are mainly only produced when you activate the combos. After all, they have been stressing how Rook can syncronise their abilities with comparable ones of their companions in order to enhance their effectiveness, which is something totally new they have introduced this game. Also, their individual passive abilities, like Bellara able to tell more about an item, can still be accessed via the blade even if she is not in the party at the time. So, it does seem as though everything comes back to the lyrium blade. That would at least make sense if that is the reason given in game. I don't think it has anything to do with everyone suddenly having magical abilities. Rrogues in previous games didn't actually turn invisible and warriors's scream wasn't so strong that it knocked enemies off their feet, and i doubt that warriors in DAVe posses energy weapons. Granted some of what we've seen is can be attributed to enchanted weapons/armor and some of it is definitely due to runes in Rook's dagger (like freezing enemies in warrior gameplay, for example) but i feel like for the most part it's just due to dissonance between lore and gameplay. Until I see otherwise, this is where I’m at too. Combat in Dragon Age has always had a degree of abstraction with its gameplay. In Origins you could also summon animals inexplicably out of thin air as a ranger, scattershot talent defies law of conservation of mass, and bard is one step removed from dnd bard, a magic based class. Edit: That said, Fenris had magical abilities without being a mage due to lyrium, and templars powers can be considered a niche form of magic as well (you can even have conversation with Alistair about it), so it’s certainly possible this lyrium dagger gives us special powers somehow. However I doubt those abilities will be specifically tied to flashy sfx for shield throw or whatever.
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Post by The Elder King on Sept 17, 2024 8:29:57 GMT
I don't think that the 'magical' abilities that warriors and rogues use in Veilguard are going to be explained through Solas' action, to be honest. To me, it seems much more likely that they turned up to another level the gameplay/lore separation, as the non-magical classes always had some abilities that defied lore explanations.
It'd made little sense to me, that Harding's path in the game will at least partially center about her sudden discovery of having magical abilities (with the other party member having some sort of explanation for their abilities, from Lucanis to Taash), while Rook would follow through the same issue without any dialogue around it.
The lyrium dagger being used to copy the special interactive abilities of companions *could* be indeed a sort of explanation to justify the QoL feature that they decided to go through, but I don't see the combat abilities being justified. Their reasoning, which could be very well criticized, seems centered around in wanting to make the non-magical classes appear more 'cool' in combat, and I do remember reading something around those lined in regards of the changes in for the warrior.
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Post by gervaise21 on Sept 17, 2024 8:31:21 GMT
but i feel like for the most part it's just due to dissonance between lore and gameplay. Until I see otherwise, this is where I’m at too. I'll grant you there always has been an element of suspension of disbelief when it comes to abilities. However, the sycronicity with Rook and the definite hybrid nature of companions is something new. It probably doesn't really reveal itself until after the prologue (and acquisition of the lyrium blade) because up to then we are using more basic, low level abilities. May be there is no reason given for this, just as there was no proper explanation for time travel other than "it's magic, go with it", but I would like to think there was a logical explanation for the difference in game to what we have previously experienced other than "it's the new normal game mechanics, just go with it." It's the nerd in me. Seeing as I was able to come up with an explanation for it on the fly, surely they could have done so when they have had 10 years to work on it.
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Post by gervaise21 on Sept 17, 2024 8:41:36 GMT
It'd made little sense to me, that Harding's path in the game will at least partially center about her sudden discovery of having magical abilities (with the other party member having some sort of explanation for their abilities, from Lucanis to Taash), while Rook would follow through the same issue without any dialogue around it. Harding could be explained away by some sort of reconnection with a Titan awakened by the increased magical activity and the return of the gods. Lucanis could also be explained by established lore (it is the how rather than the why that is the mystery with him). However, I am less convinced with Taash that it can be simply explained away in that manner, bearing in mind we will be confronting other members of her race in game so theoretically they all should now have the same ability (perhaps they will but what about Rook?). Rook does seem to have special abilities that go beyond simply using a few runes, despite them saying that they were just going to be a regular person this game, who just gets caught up in events by circumstance and choice, not any magical doodad. Yet, there is the lyrium dagger as a part of their kit after the prologue and in promotional material. It would certainly lend itself to explaining the changes that have taken place in game mechanics and abilities since DAI. Then once established, even if they gave that as the reason this time round, next game they won't need to because people will have got used to them as the new norm.
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Post by The Elder King on Sept 17, 2024 8:50:43 GMT
It'd made little sense to me, that Harding's path in the game will at least partially center about her sudden discovery of having magical abilities (with the other party member having some sort of explanation for their abilities, from Lucanis to Taash), while Rook would follow through the same issue without any dialogue around it. Harding could be explained away by some sort of reconnection with a Titan awakened by the increased magical activity and the return of the gods. Lucanis could also be explained by established lore (it is the how rather than the why that is the mystery with him). However, I am less convinced with Taash that it can be simply explained away in that manner, bearing in mind we will be confronting other members of her race in game so theoretically they all should now have the same ability (perhaps they will but what about Rook?). Rook does seem to have special abilities that go beyond simply using a few runes, despite them saying that they were just going to be a regular person this game, who just gets caught up in events by circumstance and choice, not any magical doodad. Yet, there is the lyrium dagger as a part of their kit after the prologue. It would certainly lend itself to explaining the changes that have taken place in game mechanics and abilities since DAI. Then once established, even if they gave that as the reason this time round, next game they won't need to because people will have got used to them as the new norm. Yep, Harding's awakening is most likely going to be explained through the reconnection with a Titan. My point was more about the fact that she seems shocked about being able to use magic, and they mentioned a few times about her needing to come around this unexpected discovery. My point is that why she's the only one that is going through this, if characters around the world, including Rook, will suddenly be able to find themselves being able to use magical abilities? To me, it seems more likely that the gameplay won't match the lore of the game, is a more extreme version then in previous games, where there were some abilities that warriors and rogues could use that defy logic. The 'magical' abilities Rook can use as a warrior and rogue won't be explained in-game but be something Bioware went for to make them look cooler. I do hope you're right, but I have little hope in that regard. On Taash, the connection between qunari and dragon blood is very likely at this point. I guess Taash's plot and her backstory will explain how she was able to unleash that potential that is possibly inside every qunari.
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Post by illuminated11 on Sept 17, 2024 9:07:08 GMT
I still think there’s a chance Taash’s ability has to do with gunpowder rather than magical connection to dragons. Although given all other companions are seemingly tied to a magical source (Davrin’s is maybe an exception, but we know from Avernus it’s possible to weaponize Warden blood) it feels less and less likely.
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Post by fairdragon on Sept 17, 2024 9:15:43 GMT
The "I'm afraid of spoilers" crowd are going underground. Only the "I'm not afraid of spoilers" crowd will be here.
Lots of spoilers to be discussed then...
What about the, "I'm only afraid of SOME spoilers" crowd? Where do we go? You have the hardest way. You will slowly navigate through the infos and musst be carfull to only find the not so spoilery parts.
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Post by Ice-Quinn on Sept 17, 2024 9:20:00 GMT
Sometimes particle effects make sense. Big fiery explosion? A blizzard? Sure, make it look properly fiery and icy. But shiny random particle shapes and patterns for every ability no matter what it actually does? That's just giving me a mobile game/MOBA vibe. But then again, almost all abilities look like there's some kind of magical aspect to it: the warrior shield toss actually generates an energy disk and the shield itself never leaves the warrior's arm. Titan Stomp generates a small local earthquake or some such. Energy arrows come from somewhere. Everything is a sort of magic now so everything looks flashy. Also makes it harder to spot not so great animations of course. 100% agree. And while there is a level of abstraction to it, two things can be true at the same time. Proper visual effects are supposed to do just that, visually represent, depict, convey... what that ability does. A fireball is a ball of fire. A Warrior's basic "Sword Lunge" ability, it needs to be just that, a lunge movement with your weapon. Make it fancier, spiffier (even if exaggerated) with good animation - it *does not* need to fire two energy bolts at the end of the animation, with a million fairies coming out of the tip of the sword and then a meteor rains down from the sky - that would not be a proper representation of such an ability. Stealth as "invisibility", is nothing new, not to DA or many other visual media - however (while abstract) it is a *very* appropriate way to depict it. When you're sneaking up on somebody, they can't see you". If they spot you, you "become visible", again. It effectively tells us, the player, what is happening on-screen. It doesn't get any more proper than that. It doesn't even warrant an explanation - a 5-year old would understand it. It doesn't explain, however, how a simple shield toss needs to become an energy disk that causes an explosion. The physics of it all, the fact that it magically returns to you, like a boomerang? No one cares about that. But why a warrior's move or ability looks like a mage's spell, that boggles the mind. A warrior is physical prowess, not magical talent, not flashy explosions. The Devs themselves have said, all the flashiness - it's intentional. They sought to "equalize" warriors, rogues and mages on the battlefield, to make it even, sorta (as if warriors and rogues felt/looked inferior in comparison to mages, which isn't the case). And also that they've realized that some of the hybrid classes (Arcane Warrior, Knight-Enchanter...) were most popular amongst players. And that is a rather misguided notion. It only serves to dilute the classic RPG elements that have made this franchise so special. Hybrid classes and specializations? Bring them on, they're more than welcome! But this is not doing the good they think it's doing, actually it's quite the opposite. And it actually cheapens the ability, visually, rather than enhance it. Like many have pointed out, it looks like something you'd see on mobile games, the "Fortnite" of it all. These are all things that, if they were isolated instances, I could get past, as I have many times on previous games - not absolutely *everything* is going to be to my liking, or yours, or the next person's. The problem arises (for me, personally) when I start seeing patterns, and the direction they're going with certain things, that's when I become concerned. From the whole "Megamind Qunari" debacle, the overkill cheap FX, few abilities, minus one companion, everyone's a mage, everyone's pan, everyone's this and that, Rook's super-special dagger that allows you to remotely use your companions skills from building bridges to opening lockpicks... and a bunch of other things... as a whole - it's concerning. Someone said above this goes back to Origins. I disagree, it actually goes back to Andromeda and Anthem (ex: Ryder having someone in their head, and access to Soldier, Tech and Biotic abilities... sound familiar?). You'd think BioWare would have learned a few lessons by now. In art (which videogames are), in life, in business, in relationships, in branding... everything, you have to be the loudest version of whatever you are, because then you're the only one that can offer that. By all means, evolve, learn, adapt, keep up with the times and all of that - you can't be stuck in time, nature is cruel to anything that's too slow or that's staying still. But do not lose yourself in the process. Do not try to be like everyone else. Because, that's part of the reason why loyal fans have been like "wtf is happening to my Dragon Age?" - and new/casual/potential players will watch a DA:TV trailer and be so confused, as to what the hell is it they're watching (is this a trailer for Fornite? Is it Dragon's Dogma, but not quite? Is it [insert a game's name here), but not quite?) - they don't know what to make of it. It's not one thing nor the other - just something mediocre in-between. Diluted. Weakened.
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Post by fairdragon on Sept 17, 2024 9:25:32 GMT
Hope there is a slider to tone down these effects. I hope this will be clear after the 19th. Hope the people that played the games got to see all options available.
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Post by Ice-Quinn on Sept 17, 2024 9:26:48 GMT
Also: I stand by my statement that DAI was peak Dragon Age in the spell, abilities and their visuals effects department. That game's combat got so much unfair flak. I, at this point, wish that Veilguard can be at least equal, with luck better than DAI in that aspect. Because it's not looking good right now, sorry. Hope I'm wrong...
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Post by Ice-Quinn on Sept 17, 2024 9:27:28 GMT
Hope there is a slider to tone down these effects. I hope this will be clear after the 19th. Hope the people that played the games got to see all options available. God, that would be wonderful.
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Post by jennica on Sept 17, 2024 9:36:50 GMT
Their reasoning, which could be very well criticized, seems centered around in wanting to make the non-magical classes appear more 'cool' in combat, and I do remember reading something around those lined in regards of the changes in for the warrior. It's a combination of enemies' elemental weaknesses being important and to make warriors "more visually interesting and impactful". Here's an actual quote from Discord Q&A. KFM: This question is - I understand mages having very magical-looking moves, but why do rogues and warriors also have very magical-looking moves? Was making every class look like a mage a purposeful choice?
CB: Cool, cool, cool. So it’s a multi-part answer, but yes, everything we’ve done has been with intention towards supporting the overall player experience. So I guess the first place I’d go to answer this is from a game-tuning and balance perspective. We knew that supporting multiple damage types like physical, fire, electric etc, that was gonna be an important factor in the strategic depth of the combat system, particularly as it leans into builds and the strategies you’d use to take on various enemies. It’s not the extent of it, but it’s an important part of it. So that meant that making sure the various classes in some capacity have access to some or all of these damage types. And that then means that we need to make them read visually as such on the battlefield. So the first part is about making sure you have those strategic options on the battlefield. But there is more to it than that I’d say, we also found - and I’ve heard this from a lot of you, that some of our magical hybrid classes have been amongst the favorites. My goodness the discourse around Knight Enchanter -
JE: M-hm -
CB: - So this felt like a very thematic way for us to support that goal if that makes sense, the goal of game balance but also leaning into the things that seem to resonate the most. If I was to just focus on the Warriors out there for a minute though, because we just released the warrior deep dive, we’ve actually long had a goal within the team of making them more visually interesting and impactful. We know, and I’ve heard from a bunch of you that warrior, y'know, tends not to be peoples’ first choice, but hey, any of the warrior fans out there - big props to you, because I love them, too. So this was like our chance, really, to show what a warrior can do, to make them feel like they have a presence on the battlefield that could be as interesting as some of the other classes, but I will say, I absolutely recognize that there are those of you that like, if you’re playing a melee class, you even want a pure, like, physical-based warrior aesthetic, maybe something that’s a little more grounded, you can general
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Post by colfoley on Sept 17, 2024 9:42:43 GMT
Also: I stand by my statement that DAI was peak Dragon Age in the spell, abilities and their visuals effects department. That game's combat got so much unfair flak. I, at this point, wish that Veilguard can be at least equal, with luck better than DAI in that aspect. Because it's not looking good right now, sorry. Hope I'm wrong... So far DAVG is looking a bit better. Not by much. But its there.
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Post by Ice-Quinn on Sept 17, 2024 9:48:40 GMT
Their reasoning, which could be very well criticized, seems centered around in wanting to make the non-magical classes appear more 'cool' in combat, and I do remember reading something around those lined in regards of the changes in for the warrior. It's a combination of enemies' elemental weaknesses being important and to make warriors "more visually interesting and impactful". Here's an actual quote from Discord Q&A. KFM: This question is - I understand mages having very magical-looking moves, but why do rogues and warriors also have very magical-looking moves? Was making every class look like a mage a purposeful choice?
CB: Cool, cool, cool. So it’s a multi-part answer, but yes, everything we’ve done has been with intention towards supporting the overall player experience. So I guess the first place I’d go to answer this is from a game-tuning and balance perspective. We knew that supporting multiple damage types like physical, fire, electric etc, that was gonna be an important factor in the strategic depth of the combat system, particularly as it leans into builds and the strategies you’d use to take on various enemies. It’s not the extent of it, but it’s an important part of it. So that meant that making sure the various classes in some capacity have access to some or all of these damage types. And that then means that we need to make them read visually as such on the battlefield. So the first part is about making sure you have those strategic options on the battlefield. But there is more to it than that I’d say, we also found - and I’ve heard this from a lot of you, that some of our magical hybrid classes have been amongst the favorites. My goodness the discourse around Knight Enchanter -
JE: M-hm -
CB: - So this felt like a very thematic way for us to support that goal if that makes sense, the goal of game balance but also leaning into the things that seem to resonate the most. If I was to just focus on the Warriors out there for a minute though, because we just released the warrior deep dive, we’ve actually long had a goal within the team of making them more visually interesting and impactful. We know, and I’ve heard from a bunch of you that warrior, y'know, tends not to be peoples’ first choice, but hey, any of the warrior fans out there - big props to you, because I love them, too. So this was like our chance, really, to show what a warrior can do, to make them feel like they have a presence on the battlefield that could be as interesting as some of the other classes, but I will say, I absolutely recognize that there are those of you that like, if you’re playing a melee class, you even want a pure, like, physical-based warrior aesthetic, maybe something that’s a little more grounded, you can general Again, it's the misguided notion that flashy sh*t = meaningful and impactful. It. Does. Not.
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Post by Ice-Quinn on Sept 17, 2024 9:50:32 GMT
Also: I stand by my statement that DAI was peak Dragon Age in the spell, abilities and their visuals effects department. That game's combat got so much unfair flak. I, at this point, wish that Veilguard can be at least equal, with luck better than DAI in that aspect. Because it's not looking good right now, sorry. Hope I'm wrong... So far DAVG is looking a bit better. Not by much. But its there. I pray to Andraste that you are right, child. 🙏
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Post by jennica on Sept 17, 2024 10:03:17 GMT
It's a combination of enemies' elemental weaknesses being important and to make warriors "more visually interesting and impactful". Here's an actual quote from Discord Q&A. KFM: This question is - I understand mages having very magical-looking moves, but why do rogues and warriors also have very magical-looking moves? Was making every class look like a mage a purposeful choice?
CB: Cool, cool, cool. So it’s a multi-part answer, but yes, everything we’ve done has been with intention towards supporting the overall player experience. So I guess the first place I’d go to answer this is from a game-tuning and balance perspective. We knew that supporting multiple damage types like physical, fire, electric etc, that was gonna be an important factor in the strategic depth of the combat system, particularly as it leans into builds and the strategies you’d use to take on various enemies. It’s not the extent of it, but it’s an important part of it. So that meant that making sure the various classes in some capacity have access to some or all of these damage types. And that then means that we need to make them read visually as such on the battlefield. So the first part is about making sure you have those strategic options on the battlefield. But there is more to it than that I’d say, we also found - and I’ve heard this from a lot of you, that some of our magical hybrid classes have been amongst the favorites. My goodness the discourse around Knight Enchanter -
JE: M-hm -
CB: - So this felt like a very thematic way for us to support that goal if that makes sense, the goal of game balance but also leaning into the things that seem to resonate the most. If I was to just focus on the Warriors out there for a minute though, because we just released the warrior deep dive, we’ve actually long had a goal within the team of making them more visually interesting and impactful. We know, and I’ve heard from a bunch of you that warrior, y'know, tends not to be peoples’ first choice, but hey, any of the warrior fans out there - big props to you, because I love them, too. So this was like our chance, really, to show what a warrior can do, to make them feel like they have a presence on the battlefield that could be as interesting as some of the other classes, but I will say, I absolutely recognize that there are those of you that like, if you’re playing a melee class, you even want a pure, like, physical-based warrior aesthetic, maybe something that’s a little more grounded, you can general Again, it's the misguided notion that flashy sh*t = meaningful and impactful. It. Does. Not. It really depends on someone's preferences. I like flashy, as you put it, shit and you don't. I agree that they should let people to disable at least some of effects tho.
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Post by illuminated11 on Sept 17, 2024 10:14:30 GMT
100% agree. And while there is a level of abstraction to it, two things can be true at the same time. Proper visual effects are supposed to do just that, visually represent, depict, convey... what that ability does. A fireball is a ball of fire. A Warrior's basic "Sword Lunge" ability, it needs to be just that, a lunge movement with your weapon. Make it fancier, spiffier (even if exaggerated) with good animation - it *does not* need to fire two energy bolts at the end of the animation, with a million fairies coming out of the tip of the sword and then a meteor rains down from the sky - that would not be a proper representation of such an ability. Stealth as "invisibility", is nothing new, not to DA or many other visual media - however (while abstract) it is a *very* appropriate way to depict it. When you're sneaking up on somebody, they can't see you". If they spot you, you "become visible", again. It effectively tells us, the player, what is happening on-screen. It doesn't get any more proper than that. It doesn't even warrant an explanation - a 5-year old would understand it. It doesn't explain, however, how a simple shield toss needs to become an energy disk that causes an explosion. The physics of it all, the fact that it magically returns to you, like a boomerang? No one cares about that. But why a warrior's move or ability looks like a mage's spell, that boggles the mind. A warrior is physical prowess, not magical talent, not flashy explosions. I get where you’re coming from, but I disagree with this. For one, stealth in Dragon Age is determined by dice rolls, so it is possible to stand right in front of a genlock and have them never see you. Not only that, but visual language is iterative. If you’ve seen invisibility used as shorthand for stealth before, it creates an association that reinforces and normalizes the abstraction. But if you haven’t, chances are it will feel less immersive, especially compared to traditional stealth games which usually build around sight cones and cover mechanics. I also personally don’t find martial classes very fun to play in most Dragon Age games, and a lot of people feel similar. Inquisition was only one that came close, but its combat is still wonky. So I get why BioWare tried to change that, even if they perhaps overcorrected. It does feel like there’s a lot of visual clutter in the gameplay we’ve seen. I would very much appreciate being able to tone it down, although ultimate abilities are only area where it seemed truly excessive in terms of sfx. I’ve never really felt like it equated to mobile games, but the only ones I’ve played are like slay the spire and stitch, so I’m not really in position to judge on that front.
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Post by Ice-Quinn on Sept 17, 2024 10:54:11 GMT
Again, it's the misguided notion that flashy sh*t = meaningful and impactful. It. Does. Not. It really depends on someone's preferences. I like flashy, as you put it, shit and you don't. I agree that they should let people to disable at least some of effects tho. I like flashiness, too (I play mages 90% of the time) - but when it's appropriate. Flashy for the sake of flashy, to make something appear better than it is, it's just smoke and mirrors. Doesn't make it meaningful or impactful. Only goes to dilute the formula.
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Post by colfoley on Sept 17, 2024 11:08:22 GMT
It's a combination of enemies' elemental weaknesses being important and to make warriors "more visually interesting and impactful". Here's an actual quote from Discord Q&A. KFM: This question is - I understand mages having very magical-looking moves, but why do rogues and warriors also have very magical-looking moves? Was making every class look like a mage a purposeful choice?
CB: Cool, cool, cool. So it’s a multi-part answer, but yes, everything we’ve done has been with intention towards supporting the overall player experience. So I guess the first place I’d go to answer this is from a game-tuning and balance perspective. We knew that supporting multiple damage types like physical, fire, electric etc, that was gonna be an important factor in the strategic depth of the combat system, particularly as it leans into builds and the strategies you’d use to take on various enemies. It’s not the extent of it, but it’s an important part of it. So that meant that making sure the various classes in some capacity have access to some or all of these damage types. And that then means that we need to make them read visually as such on the battlefield. So the first part is about making sure you have those strategic options on the battlefield. But there is more to it than that I’d say, we also found - and I’ve heard this from a lot of you, that some of our magical hybrid classes have been amongst the favorites. My goodness the discourse around Knight Enchanter -
JE: M-hm -
CB: - So this felt like a very thematic way for us to support that goal if that makes sense, the goal of game balance but also leaning into the things that seem to resonate the most. If I was to just focus on the Warriors out there for a minute though, because we just released the warrior deep dive, we’ve actually long had a goal within the team of making them more visually interesting and impactful. We know, and I’ve heard from a bunch of you that warrior, y'know, tends not to be peoples’ first choice, but hey, any of the warrior fans out there - big props to you, because I love them, too. So this was like our chance, really, to show what a warrior can do, to make them feel like they have a presence on the battlefield that could be as interesting as some of the other classes, but I will say, I absolutely recognize that there are those of you that like, if you’re playing a melee class, you even want a pure, like, physical-based warrior aesthetic, maybe something that’s a little more grounded, you can general Again, it's the misguided notion that flashy sh*t = meaningful and impactful. It. Does. Not. Typically in this sort of thing the only way to convey meaning has been through 'weight' and visual cues. Which since gaming is a highly visual medium as well at least until recent technology it has been very hard to purely 'feel' the weight. Like popular moment in this regard in DAO watching Sten bash a undead over the head with a skeleton that looked like a weight attack. Likewise this stuff is to is to give off predictable visual indications ot the player of what happens when they do something. Which can be a lot tougher when they are having to design multiple abilities and show AOE effects and create interesting gameplay. Like I know people have their limits here and even I don't like some of the powers or some of the effects, and I usually go out of the way to ignore the ones I don't like, but if something like blizard works then so can various explosions and even the green AOE spell effects in Inquistion. It can get a bit much at times but really the justifications are largely the same.
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Post by jennica on Sept 17, 2024 11:35:43 GMT
100% agree. And while there is a level of abstraction to it, two things can be true at the same time. Proper visual effects are supposed to do just that, visually represent, depict, convey... what that ability does. A fireball is a ball of fire. A Warrior's basic "Sword Lunge" ability, it needs to be just that, a lunge movement with your weapon. Make it fancier, spiffier (even if exaggerated) with good animation - it *does not* need to fire two energy bolts at the end of the animation, with a million fairies coming out of the tip of the sword and then a meteor rains down from the sky - that would not be a proper representation of such an ability. Stealth as "invisibility", is nothing new, not to DA or many other visual media - however (while abstract) it is a *very* appropriate way to depict it. When you're sneaking up on somebody, they can't see you". If they spot you, you "become visible", again. It effectively tells us, the player, what is happening on-screen. It doesn't get any more proper than that. It doesn't even warrant an explanation - a 5-year old would understand it. It doesn't explain, however, how a simple shield toss needs to become an energy disk that causes an explosion. The physics of it all, the fact that it magically returns to you, like a boomerang? No one cares about that. But why a warrior's move or ability looks like a mage's spell, that boggles the mind. A warrior is physical prowess, not magical talent, not flashy explosions. I’ve never really felt like it equated to mobile games, but the only ones I’ve played are like slay the spire and stitch, so I’m not really in position to judge on that front. I play Genhsin Impact and with an exception of some elemental reactions it is less flashy than DAVe and quite a few other PC/console games. And tbqh, i feel like if BG3 wasn't turn based then it will look the same as DAVe in terms of SFX. Like, in BG3 i sometimes have trouble of seeing a character, because of all effects lol. But because your characters and enemies don't attack at the same time, it doesn't look as flashy as DAVe.
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Post by illuminated11 on Sept 17, 2024 12:04:57 GMT
I’ve never really felt like it equated to mobile games, but the only ones I’ve played are like slay the spire and stitch, so I’m not really in position to judge on that front. I play Genhsin Impact and with an exception of some elemental reactions it is less flashy than DAVe and quite a few other PC/console games. And tbqh, i feel like if BG3 wasn't turn based then it will look the same as DAVe in terms of SFX. Like, in BG3 i sometimes have trouble of seeing a character, because of all effects lol. But because you characters and enemies don't attack at the same time, it doesn't look as flashy as DAVe.
lol you should’ve seen it in early access, when you could set everything on fire. Thankfully they corrected that real quick.
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Post by sjsharp2010 on Sept 17, 2024 12:14:16 GMT
Again, it's the misguided notion that flashy sh*t = meaningful and impactful. It. Does. Not. It really depends on someone's preferences. I like flashy, as you put it, shit and you don't. I agree that they should let people to disable at least some of effects tho. Yeah I like flash yto os owil llikel ykee pi tturned on. Bu tmos tgames hav eoptions to turn stuff lik ethis down or off.I woul donl ytewak thos eif i timpacted the games performance. I do hope it won't on my system though but we'll see.
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Post by sjsharp2010 on Sept 17, 2024 12:27:55 GMT
I’ve never really felt like it equated to mobile games, but the only ones I’ve played are like slay the spire and stitch, so I’m not really in position to judge on that front. I play Genhsin Impact and with an exception of some elemental reactions it is less flashy than DAVe and quite a few other PC/console games. And tbqh, i feel like if BG3 wasn't turn based then it will look the same as DAVe in terms of SFX. Like, in BG3 i sometimes have trouble of seeing a character, because of all effects lol. But because your characters and enemies don't attack at the same time, it doesn't look as flashy as DAVe.
Yea hsom eJRPG' sca nb equite flashy a lo tof th eFinal Fantasy' sare maybe no tt oth eexten to fVeilguard but they have their moments. End of the day it is what it is. Presonally I lik ethe look o fi tbu tI can se ewhy som ema yb eput off by it.
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Post by Sartoz on Sept 17, 2024 12:55:42 GMT
During DAI development, when Mike Laidlaw was asked why you can't "add this...", "mod that...." to the game, his answer was: (paraphrasing here) "your requests take time, resources and money". At the end, he said "Bio does what's best for Bio".
Regarding the SFX firework discussion up-post, that last answer summarizes Bio's stance. Corrine mentioned there are many levers added to this game to give players options. Hope that another SFX control lever can be added.... but I won't hold my breath.
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Post by gervaise21 on Sept 17, 2024 12:57:04 GMT
It's a combination of enemies' elemental weaknesses being important and to make warriors "more visually interesting and impactful". Here's an actual quote from Discord Q&A. Again, it's the misguided notion that flashy sh*t = meaningful and impactful. It. Does. Not. I like flashiness, too (I play mages 90% of the time) - but when it's appropriate. Flashy for the sake of flashy, to make something appear better than it is, it's just smoke and mirrors. Doesn't make it meaningful or impactful. Only goes to dilute the formula. I tend to play mages or rogues, actually because I'm not so good at melee, so I can stand back and fling spells/arrows or sneak around and catch the enemy off guard, whilst someone else did the dangerous melee work. Also, the warrior companions always seemed good enough that after playing through once, I knew I didn't really need to be one myself. However, in DAO and DA2 I still felt I needed my warrior companions. It was usually a case of having one companion from each class with me and I just doubled up with one of them. Of course, you also needed people from each class, particularly rogue, because of traps and locks to pick, etc. DAI was the first time I felt confident to break from this formation and for side missions I might well run without a tank or without a rogue because you no longer had to pick locks but could just bash stuff open (without damaging what was inside) and there were no traps to detect and disarm. So, in some ways I feel they were moving towards this hybrid type of party even back then and because you didn't have to have a balanced party, perhaps they took that as indicating people didn't favour warriors. Yes, Knight Enchanter rocked because it was so overpowered. The solution would be not to reproduce such an overpowered mage next time round, not make every warrior a mage hybrid. Arcane Warrior was enjoyable in DAO but it didn't mean I could do without my warrior companions, just allowed a variation in how we approached battles. Regardless of what Solas maintained, Knight Enchanter was nothing like the Arcane Warrior I had previously played. I have to admit I was less inclined to play a warrior on one of my play throughs with DAI because of the limitation to just one specialisation. Previous games I found experimenting with the different classes more enjoyable because of being able to have at least two specialisms (or more in DAA) with an extensive list to choose from, so there could be lots of mix and match. This was a drawback I found with all the classes in DAI because essentially I could do without whichever companion I was replicating with my specialism. That was never the case with DAO, because I could ensure that at least one of our specialisms was different and, of course, in DA2 the companion specialisms were unique to them. Whilst they are reproducing the latter in DAV, by making the effectiveness of their build dependent on syncronising with Rook, I don't really get that sense of them having their own unique skills and abilities which I need for our team to be effective, they are just power boosters for Rook. They say they wanted to encourage the use of all companions but I get the sense that, except where they are compulsory for a mission, it will be possible to just focus on one or two companions and maximise their build to work effectively with my own. Thanks to the lyrium blade and associated runes, I can just swap relevant damage in and out as it suits me.
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