Dragon Age News Thread

The issue I have with this article is that it assumes creating a character from scratch and customizing him or her is just a way for a character to project their power fantasy by making them a self-insert. That's not how I've ever played any of the DA games at all. For me, the point of role playing is indeed to put myself in someone else's shoes and act/react/behave as they would/assume their beliefs but I also want to be the one to create that character -- I don't want the devs creating it for me. (That's one of the reasons I never got into the Witcher as fantastic as it seems.)

I loved that Hawke was a powerless refugee with a family fleeing the Blight and that it's a personal story instead of a grand, save the world epic.. The companions are my favorite. The concept is incredible. I did not like that Bioware railroaded me into being a human with one of three set personality types that severely took away my agency to create the character I wanted. I wanted Bioware to give me that premise but allow me to customize a character as I see fit and then role play as if I am that character accordingly. There's no reason (other than the fact that it was a rushed game) that we could not have been an elf or dwarf from Lothering fleeing under the same premises (though the nobility angle would have had to be adjusted depending on race, but again, that boils back to short time constants Bioware was under.) If others want to make a character as a self-insert, so be it, that's their prerogative and that's what's most fun for them. Allowing character customization allows players to either play as a completely different character or as themselves and I don't see what's wrong with that. 

This is one reason I've been moving toward playing as male. I've realized that, when I play as my actual female gender I'm more likely to self insert. But I want to ability to customize my guy (or gal) to look however I want, and then imbue them with whatever personality through dialogue and other choices.


"Imagine an RPG in which you aren’t able to hand-craft your own posse of adventurers, fussing over everything from eye colour to movement modifiers, but must do your best with the character or characters you’re given."
No, I don't want that. I also find the use of the word "posse" to be interesting. The only RPGs I've played have had the player customizing their own character, and then associating with or recruiting various NPCs that were created by the devs. That quote makes it sound like the player has control over everyone. Is that the case for some games?

[edit] I've realize that this part might be referring to stats and skills and such, as we can do with Dragon Age. I tend to forget about those as components of a traditional RPG since I primarily just focus on the roleplay aspect of that for my own character. Everything else is just to make way for the combat.

To me, that aspect of it it wholly different from Hawke as the person who failed. It was fine that Hawke failed, and it's fine that any "hero" can fail. I just want it to be MY hero.


“I really like how, in Japanese RPGs, you don’t make a character—you are given a role to play,” says Kate Holden. “Whether you like it or not, that’s the person you’re playing and you need to empathise with that to get the most out of the game.”
Then people can go play a JRPG. There can be value in having different genres for different players who want different things. It's great that JRPGs are associated with certain things, just as WRPGs. I don't see a reason for that to dramatically change the overall nature of the WRPG. Despite the author's pronouncements that DAI was "shallow" and "toothless," it did exceptionally well, monetarily speaking. That says something. The author goes on to praise the Witcher games, and those are fine for people who want to play them, but there should ALSO be those games where the player has more control over their own PC.


[edit]
Also, that freedom of customization is one way that RPG developers are able to allow the player to have a wider range of appearance, or be LGBT. Aside from a FEW developers that are willing to take strides, I don't see the general trend of having a straight, white, cis male protagonist (like Geralt from their praised Witcher series) going away anytime soon.

These views don't make me pleased that Kennedy is freelancing for Bioware, lest those ideas infect them.

"Gotta catch... 



I DON'T HAVE ENOUGH POKEBALLS FOR ALL THOSE BEARS!"

That was my first thought as well

BUT BEARS. Even all his Tauros are just small group comparing to bears.

I was going to reply briefly here, but the reply kept getting longer and longer, so I moved it to it's own thread here: bsn.boards.net/thread/4131/gamer-article-future-hold-rpgs

All I'll leave in this thread is my question: What the hell does "bodding" mean?

I actually have been leaning towards playing female characters for precisely the same reason.

Alexis Kennedy 🕯 ‏@alexiskennedy
Should I enthuse about what a great week I've had at BioWare Edmonton with all these exceptional humans

1. now, while I def remember
2. after cocktails

Allan Schumacher ‏allanschumacher
We've never met but I saw you around! People speak highly of you and they are mostly not crazy. Hope you had fun!

John Epler ‏@eplerjc
was great to see you! Hopefully it isn't -too- long until the next time.

dot1qtpi ‏@dot1qtpi
No romance panel with @mike_Laidlaw at Pax this year? Truly we are in the worst timeline #bringback2016

Mike Laidlaw @mike_Laidlaw
I’m only ever a special guest. Gotta keep the rotation fresh.

Mike Laidlaw @mike_Laidlaw
I mean, I hope there’s still a panel!

Yeah, he actually says the combat progression forms a good core, and mostly just seems to want to expand beyond that.

Alexis Kennedy 🕯 @alexiskennedy
My favourite word is 'apophasis'


- Okay, I had to look this one up... 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apophasis
"A rhetorical device wherein the speaker or writer brings up a subject by either denying it, or denying that it should be brought up.[3] Accordingly, it can be seen as a rhetorical relative of irony."

You are right, and I read that part too hastily in my irritation.

I also wish that there were more ways to resolve situations outside of combat. MotA DLC had an interesting time experimenting with that, as was most of the Wicked Eyes Wicked Hearts mission. However, I think both of those non-combat things have mixed reviews from players, with some hating it and some liking it because it was different. I don't think there is a way to win for all players with those kinds of things.


As for the author of the piece, given that he is a white male, I think I'm allowed annoyance at his thinking that character customization -- "fussing over everything from eye colour..." -- isn't important and meaningful for a great many people, especially as he goes on to praise Witcher whose protagonist is a white male, just like he is, and just like the majority of protagonists have been through most video game history.

R and M @randmoser
I had a weird dream where dragon age/fade & @neilhimself 's American Gods +Endless were mixed together & real.

Mark Darrah ‏@biomarkdarrah
Yes.
Dream.