Strongholds?
[Are there stronghold in DA?]
8.4.2007 10:48 von David Gaider
We actually did consider having some kind of stronghold a la BG2. The problem was that it really doesn't fit into our story. The idea that you could stop in the middle of it all and, say, run a castle or something just isn't in the cards. It might be something we could do in the future, however, definitely.
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Just how big is Ferelden?
7.5.2007 18:58 von Cactus
Is it a big kingdom relative to other kingdoms?
7.5.2007 18:58 von David GaiderRelative to other Kingdoms in Thedas? It actually sits in the middle. It's larger than a few, smaller than a few others.
7.5.2007 18:58 von Cactus
Does it cover much of a continent?
7.5.2007 18:58 von David GaiderNo.
7.5.2007 18:58 von Cactus
How big is it in the scope of the WORLD?
7.5.2007 18:58 von David GaiderMuch smaller than in the scope of the continent.
7.5.2007 18:58 von Cactus
Has most of the world already been explored, or is the "known world" to the people of Ferelden limited?
7.5.2007 18:58 von David GaiderTo the people in Thedas, most of the world is unknown.
7.5.2007 18:58 von Cactus
And lastly, will the game take place over a small geographic area, or do you get to travel far and visit locations on different parts of the kingdom?
7.5.2007 18:58 von David GaiderIt's not the largest Kingdom, but you do get to travel to various different parts of it.
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Equipment quality
4.5.2007 13:55 von DiamondGolem
Given that DA is going to be 'low magic', I was wondering if there wny plans to include different quality items in the game. In other words, a sword that was better not because it was 'magical' but is better because of superior materials or craftsmanship. Would DA have anything like this?
4.5.2007 10:33 von David Gaider
Yes, the majority of item quality levels are due to the materials it was made with and the craftsmanship. There is such a thing as item enchantment, but that's far from common.
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Okay- so how mature is Dragon Age?
8.5.2007 16:56 von king of seals
I don't understand: "aiming for a rating" should mean you do want it, but Mary Kirby's post says they're not caring if the game gets a particular rating, which is a whole other story.
Does not compute.
8.5.2007 05:08 von David Gaider
It means we sat down early in the project and said "we're okay with this game getting a Mature rating." There are certain things you need to do when a game is intended to be Teen-rated, and that means avoiding certain situations that might be seen as too disturbing or sexually suggestive for teenagers and avoiding certain levels of violence.
That is not to say, however, that we will be actively inserting said disturbing and suggestive situations just to achieve said Mature rating. Indeed, I suppose it's possible that we may not have an actual Mature rating in the end -- it's hard for me to say, personally, as I know some of our Teen-rated games got away with some pretty risque and violent stuff as it was. Knowing what I know about some of our current content, however, I have my doubts.
All Mary and I intended to say was that we were not avoiding Mature themes at the conceptual level. We do still self-edit the stuff that we consider to be tasteless or pointless in the context of the story, and I honestly doubt we'll include nudity at all (though that's not really my decision, but more of an art thing). One has to keep in mind there's a big difference between what is "Mature", as in the ratings, and what is "mature" in terms of theme, and our aims on both these fronts are not really related.
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Descend into Dwarven halls?
14.5.2007 07:32 von David GaiderCorrect. Dwarves in DA have herd animals as well as fish to support them. They do a lot of trading out of necessity -- in fact, the dwarves originated such concepts as trade and currency. Hmm. Perhaps "popularized" might be a better term.
14.5.2007 08:17 von David GaiderAt any rate, if your notion of agriculture is solely referring to growing things in the ground, then yes... the dwarves do that too. Most of it up on the surface, though that only occurs through some shenanigans particular to dwarven culture.
18.5.2007 03:59 von Rulian
So Dwarves are well known all around as master traders then?
18.5.2007 05:15 von David GaiderThe stereotype of a dwarf to the other races would be a merchant, yes. The merchant guilds of Thedas are all dwarven, in fact. The surface caste is actually vital to the dwarven economy, though naturally those of the higher castes would never admit to that. They certainly don't think of *themselves* as merchants.
18.5.2007 15:42 von Dorateen
usually caste implies a rigid adherence to one's station in life. I would expect it to be similar to socio-economic classes, but without the social mobility.
18.5.2007 6:57 von David GaiderCorrect. Mobility is possible in dwarven castes, but it's an option available only to females (mothers, specifically)... and on the very rare occasion may be achieved by others (Paragons, but that's another topic entirely).
Still, as imported_beer mentioned, this doesn't stop a dwarf of a lower caste from becoming a hero or achieving greatness. It will always affect the positions you may hold in dwarven society, however, and how other dwarves will respond to you.
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Writing in Dragon Age
14.5.2007 04:21 von DrakhanValane
I know that BioWare has always tried to be on the side of bringing better writing to games. But do you really think it helps sell the games? How do you justify putting effort into creating languages and histories and fully developed worlds when there are examples of well selling games that put story and character in as an afterthought?
15.5.2007 06:42 von David GaiderThose are excellent questions. I have no good answer for you, however, other than "because we want to." Bioware makes story-based games, which means we have a bunch of writers on staff whereas most other developers have no such need for full-time positions devoted solely to writing. My understanding is that many developers outsource their writing or have other positions do it when it's called for. Such is simply how it is.
Does that make our stories necessarily better? I'm not sure. We learn a lot as time goes on, I think, but making story-based games with a lot of writing is difficult... and I think you'd find plenty of developers and fans alike who would argue that having a lot of writing in their game isn't even desireable, that story is best told through other means.
The fact that lots of writing and detail is hard to justify is even something we face in Bioware. Frankly, when hard reality rears its ugly head, it's usually Design that takes the hit first. Why? Because at such times you need to justify the benefit that features bring to the project in real terms... and how can you? It's very easy to play the fanboy (and we developers do that quite well ourselves, trust me) and rail against the impact such changes might have on the quality of our dream game, but sometimes there simply comes a time when "because we want to" isn't quite enough. No project is going to have everything you want, ever, and the only way to do anything in game development is to realize that you have to live with the fact that the game that gets released is always going to be somewhere between the game you really wanted and the game it had to be. Then you learn and move on and hopefully take those lessons to the next game.
The moment, however, we make games without any of the "because we want to" and solely to achieve some perfect gestalt of economic performance -- well, then you're not a game developer. You're a factory worker. This, at least, is my opinion.
14.5.2007 04:21 von DrakhanValane
Also, what writing inspires what you write in DA that isn't the typical (or even the atypical) fantasy fare? 15.5.2007 06:42 von David Gaider
I have a certain fascination for good dialogue. I would say that Joss Whedon in particular is an inspiration (as some people have noticed), primarily because he conveys a lot of character in his quirky dialogue without much exposition. My big enemy is exposition. I tend to overindulge, especially since the game medium encourages explanation. 23.7.2007 05:26 von Ferret A Baudoin
I have a theory that as computer game technology effectively plateaus (the point where you can display many photorealistic models in a great environment and everyone is animated convincingly) that story is going to start becoming a larger component of many genres - not just RPGs.
I think bells and whistles really help sell some genres, but once those become incremental instead of revolutionary from iteration to iteration then developers will have to start throwing something in that distinguishes their game from their competition. And that's often going to be memorable characters, situations, and story.
I think this trend can already be seen with story seeping into FPSes (arguably RTSes, as well). But as a story-loving kind of guy, perhaps my theory is wishful thinking.
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does character age matter?
17.5.2007 11:52 von Inhuman one
NPC's get to react on character's race and gender but not yet on age sadly. I really hope this will change. Young characters might feel less attracted to an old person, people might be more carefull with an old character or might think the old people are an easy prey. Others might respect the wisdom of the elderly.
18.5.2007 05:24 von David GaiderThe assumption in DA is that you are playing a character that is relatively young. You do start at level 1, after all, and are hardly a grizzled veteran.
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How does Religion Affect World View?
22.5.2007 02:50 von Klakka
Will my religion (it plays a large part in the game...) affect how other people view me, and therefore, affect how I am treated - what quests I am offered, what prices I am offered in stores, etc?
22.5.2007 05:45 von Mary KirbyGenerally, no. With a few exceptions, most people will just assume you belong to their religion.
22.5.2007 02:50 von Klakka
Will those of other religion(s) try to convert me? - If I am of the frolicing in the field religion, will those in the writhing in the temple religion want me to join up?
22.5.2007 05:45 von Mary KirbyThis depends on the religion. There's one really big church in TheDAS, and if you don't belong to that, then yes, it will try to convert you. The other religions? Not so much.
22.5.2007 02:50 von Klakka
How interconnected is religion and politics?
22.5.2007 05:45 von Mary KirbyMore than it should be sometimes.
22.5.2007 02:50 von Klakka
Is there more than one religion in a given area?
22.5.2007 05:45 von Mary KirbyNo, there are actually not a whole lot of religions.
22.5.2007 02:50 von Klakka
Is this a polytheist or monotheist religion or society?
22.5.2007 05:45 von Mary KirbyThis depends on the society. The major human religion is monotheist. The dwarves are ancestor-worshipers. Some of the elves are polytheists. Not that many, though.
22.5.2007 02:50 von Klakka
Do those of religion A necessarily view those of religion B as heretics who must be killed or converted? (and vice versa)
22.5.2007 05:45 von Mary KirbyWell, the dwarves don't try to convert anyone. If your ancestors had been worth venerating, you'd have been born a dwarf, obviously. The elves don't try to convert anyone either, because their gods are not on the best of terms with them right now. The big human religions, however, absolutely do.
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a couple questions about companions
22.5.2007 02:14 von Sooky
it was mentioned before that if you dismiss characters from the party, they leave, never to be seen again. I was wondering if that had to be the case... It might be interesting if you actually bumped into them again.
22.5.2007 07:07 von David GaiderConsidering that there's no reason to dismiss a character unless you really don't want them hanging around, no -- there's no reason to bump into them again. Not unless the plot calls for it. Which it would in one case that I can think of, but not otherwise.
22.5.2007 02:14 von Sooky
Will the player be able to control the classes/skills/abilities NPC's take when they "level up" (or however this mechanic is being implemented).
22.5.2007 07:07 von David GaiderThat's the plan, yes.
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Cultural exchange in DA
22.5.2007 14:41 von Radisshu
Which will be the dominant species of thedas, though? I suspect humans
22.5.2007 05:12 von David GaiderCorrect.
22.5.2007 14:41 von Radisshu
and if that is the case - how much cultural exchange will there be between the species? Will people go "oh, a dwarf. how common." or "OH MY GOD, A DWARF. SH*T" or "What a short man!"?
22.5.2007 05:12 von David GaiderThey will say, "Oh, it's a dwarf." -- and hide their purse. Depending on the region, dwarves may not be commonplace inside human lands, but considering that they are often merchants it would be rare that even the most remote village hasn't seen one from time to time.
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