Somehow I completely lost my post from earlier in the week--it's completely gone, unfortunately because, like an idiot, I didn't have a backup. Given that situation, I'll be repeating some of that information here, along with the usual new content (it's noted for those who want to skip it). I had hoped for another combat video or something similar this week, but it appears as though we'll have to wait for GamesCom. As always, beware of spoilers below, and if you spot any errors or omissions, please let me know!
I covered some things from the PC Gamer article in the deleted post, but I missed some elements, so I'll provide a complete breakdown (the information is via Dualshockers):
Red Lyrium is an anti-magic substance... an opposite force to normal (blue) Lyrium.
This explains its association with the Red Templars.
Tactics are in (automated AI settings as described by the writer) and apparently you can set how much mana a mage companion can keep in reserve and at which HP threshold would a companion use a heath potion.. so looks like more grained control over tactics.
After clearing parts of an area you can set up camps in that area, they give you access to scouts and you gain power, the resource you spend on operations.
Certain parts of a map can be locked until you clear other ones.
You can mark certain areas as operation points on the map so that you can deal with them when you return to your base of operations, Skyhold.
You manage your operations through the war table in Skyhold, and by doing so you get resources like gold and loot or agents, some of the operations are tied to the main plot like an operation involving the chantry in Val Royeux.
Some operations are resolved instantly and some require you to pick an advisor (Cullen, Leliana or Josephine) to resolve them, they're unavailable while conducting the operation.
There's a new resources besides power (which you spend on operations) which is called influence.
You can skip recruiting most of your companions and you can kick them off the inquisition at almost any time
You’ll pass judgement on NPCs who come through Skyhold a-la Awakening. He mentions the son of a barbarian leader you killed coming to the castle gates and chocking a dead goat against the walls which is some kind of ritualistic insult for killing his kin. You can decide whether to give him and his followers weapons and exile them, put him in stockade or a third choice. Judgment sequences as a way of getting players to reflect further on their decisions.
The Dales Highlands: Apparently a mysterious blizzard has hit the area and it seems to be the work of the Red Templars
This seems to be Emprise du Lion from the description.
The Ferelden Bogs: An undead swamp.
The Exalted Plains: A grassland with myriad of abandoned fort
This location was revealed previously.
Skyhold: Your castle and base of operations, the writer compares it to the Normandy in ME albeit much bigger. Inside there is a tavern, stables, a courtyard, kitchens, a dungeon (you can imprison people there) and the war table.
The Still Ruins: A crumbling temples with demons and Venatori Cultists.
Chris Carter at Destructoid says the tactical camera in DAI is superior to the one in DAO.
Lady Insanity, in her breakdown of the combat video from last week (about which more below), mentioned that there are 19 regions in Ferelden (Crestwood is one, with Old Whitter's Farm as a location within that region) and 16 which she guesses are in Orlais; whether these various regions are separate places we can travel too, or else simply parts of larger areas, I'm not clear on. I'm assuming it's the latter.
I mentioned Believe It's theory not long ago about the plot of DAI and I've finally had the time to thoroughly go through the 12,000 word piece. Boiling it down, he believes the old god Razikale is the antagonist, while The Forbidden Ones (of whom only Ishmael, seen in The Masked Empire, and The Formless One--Flemeth by this theory--remain) have captured Hawke and the Hero of Ferelden in order to allow chaos to consume Thedas and result in the merging of the Fade and the real world. There are a lot of individual parts to this theory and there are elements I agree with, however, it does have a couple of fundamental issues:
1. I have a hard time believing the devs would use an archdemon (or Old God, if Razikale remains uncorrupted), so soon after DAO, as the main enemy; Razikale is also not likely to be described with dread as "the Elder One" by Alexius in E3 demo
2. As interesting as the ideas behind The Forbidden Ones are, it does seem a bit far fetched (in terms of story) that demons, whose dead partners (Gaxkang and Xebenkeck) were optional side quests in previous games, are the key to something as momentous as the disappearance of previous player characters
Despite those two problems, there are a number of things that I agree with:
1. The Warden's disappearance is not voluntary; it's hard to imagine our Hero (assuming s/he survived) would disappear by choice (that decision would also violate the principle of a game focussed on player-choice)
2. Hawke's disappearance is tied to the Warden's; this is implied by Leliana at the end of DA2 and makes a great deal of sense thematically
3. The two heroes of the previous game were captured or removed to allow the chaos of DAI to ensue
4. The Forbidden Ones (those surviving) will impact DAI in some way; with the previous appearances it's an easy thing to imagine
5. The mage-templar conflict is not the main plot of the game (something tacitly confirmed by the E3 demo, in my opinion)
ShoddyCast achieved it's patreon goal to produce DA videos, although I'm not sure when the video series will begin.
As mentioned in the lost post, Dragon Age Keep has revealed you can currently have a maximum of five game states saved for DAI (although this limit could change).
In the lost post I broke down areas with the combat video (ignoring the obvious shots of areas we've seen before, specifically the Hinterlands, the Western Approach, and the Drakon's Rise location, which must be part of Emprise du Lion); oh, we also have Avvar's confirmed in-game. Back to the breakdown:
This area (filled with undead) seems to be the Ferelden Bog (note the Mabari statue and in another shot you can see actual swamp).
I'm not sure where this sylvan location is--it seems a little rocky for the Exalted Plains and doesn't seem to have enough trees for The Emerald Graves.
This could be Halamshiral, but if not, clearly somewhere in Orlais.
It's hard to say where this subterranean area is; Lady Insanity guessed the Deep Roads.
Griffin Vacheron wrote about both DAI and Witcher 3 and while he's positive about both, one thing stood out to me:
anytime something sounds remotely like Lord of the Rings on paper, I can’t help but roll my eyes until it’s actually been pulled off
I'm never quite sure what to make of people who make this criticism, which echoes Metro from a few weeks ago. Vacheron is certainly welcome to be disinterested in that style of epic fantasy, but it seems like an unnecessary poke at fans who enjoy it (which I'd wager includes the bulk of DA fans).
In the lost post I took a look at Amanda Lange's abstract about the tendency of gamers to make "good" moral choices and her irritation with the fact. I won't rehash my analysis, but to recap my thoughts: it's an interesting discussion, but she doesn't actually justify her argument or establish a reason why games need to change. Personally, I do think games are better off with varied choices, including those that are morally gray, but I don't think there's any prerogative for gamers to play like she does (or anyone else for that matter).
This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)
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