Was Dragon Age: Origins as good as I remember? - An analysis of one of BioWare's best games

[@TheSaltFactory]

This shit took me forever, so I appreciate the patience. If you want to check out my new storefront, it's here: www.thesaltfactory.store/ No worries at all if you're not interested!

[@ibramgaunt8575]

Jesus fuck man, almost 4 hours. Of course I'll watch the whole thing but come on its 2am.

[@davi1415]

Looking forward to listen to your thoughts on this! Appreciate your humor and insight, man!

[@xxxxxShirosakixxxxx]

I NEED MORE, tbh your voice is so awesome , maybe less video editing , and just thoughts + raw video, or at least less editing , so more content for us!

[@TheSaltFactory]

@@ibramgaunt8575 Brother, we gotta talk about time zones at some stage. I promise I won't remove the video while you sleep lmao

[@ShadowScorp99]

I just woke up, but I can't wait to put this on while I work.

[@m00sician]

Well, it’s not like I have anything planned for the next 4 hours

[@anon7596]

Lol

[@malakai_adam]

Adorable profile ❤️

[@seanjames6000]

lol

[@smallpoly10]

Have you seen Daniel Floyd's video on the history of Sonic animation? That's a good one as well.

[@Eazyrun]

Ok, wouldn't have thought to see any GamingClerk in the comment section lol. Much love

[@k.drac0rex]

Dragon Age Origins was only my second big RPG behind Elder Scrolls Oblivion, and it completely blew my mind as a little 14 year old girl. It was so cool back in the day and I love how much of it still holds together in certain ways. I played a Dalish Elf which stuck with me through Inquisition. The world still has my heart after all these years

[@hurhursjarf4527]

Always had a love hate Relationship with the games, Origin back in the day blew me away but I always felt the sequels failed to live up to it. DA 2 was bad on most fronts and Inquisition while improved still doesn't do it for me, especially story and character wise if it hadn't been for the Trespasser DLC I'd say its story was worst of them all as for the characters just ugh.

[@jam8539]

@@hurhursjarf4527 for all the faults DA2 had, almost all the companions were well made and written, inquisition felt like a slap in the face, only really liked Dorian and varric the rest were ehhh or just bad

[@hurhursjarf4527]

@@jam8539 i am completely on board with that, for all the improvements Inquisition made in terms of gameplay it really felt like they put Companions and Story on the backburner. The companions were frankly just bad overall, it went from somewhat decent like Varric to Horrific like Sera with most others falling somewhere between that. As for the story, it was sooooo predictable and uninspired, it really feels like it was carried entirelly by the Trespasser DLC which frankly should have been the main story ending. DA:2 had a unimpressive story but I do think it it was largely better as for its Companions most of them were decent to good still nothing compared to Origins though. Bur DA:2's gameplay and world was just plain bad.

[@fionn2220]

@@hurhursjarf4527 ''Trespasser DLC which frankly should have been the main story ending'' People who hate Inquisition and act like their personal distaste is the same as something being objectively worthless always say this and it makes absolutely no sense, Trespasser is an epilogue, the main story wraps up on basically the same note and in the same format Origins did there is no reason to suggest it should have immediately jumped 2 years into the future and started a new narrative. Regardless many, many people disagree with you and dont dislike any of the companions and a story doesnt need to be particularly unique to be engaging, case in point Origins having one of the most generic fantasy stories ever told and still being excellent.

[@hurhursjarf4527]

@@fionn2220 I always struggle with a reply like this, a debate or a talk doesn't work like that, you can't just pretend I said something else entirelly and respond to that, either respond to what I said or don't bother, as an example where did I say you or everyone else agreed with me? I was merely sharing my personal opinion on the Dragon Age Series. Where did I say I hate Inquisition? I was merely saying for all it's improvements on Dragon age 2 I was very dissapointed with the Companions and thought the story was saved by the trespasser DLC, criticism and hatred are not the same thing and I am getting sick of people like you pretending it is it makes any conversation impossible. You know there is a whole lot of space between Fanboyism and Hatred huh? The only people that fail to see that are either Fanboys or haters, you being the first. As for wishing the Trespasser DLC had been the ending, it was a great twist on an otherwise largely uninspired and predictable story which is why I think it saved the story and should have been the ending, not sure why that is controversial I am far from the only person with that opinion, but you can disagree. As for the Companions, I have not met a single person, even those that absolutely adored the game that dont have an issue with at least some of the companions, but again, you are free to think they are great, I'd disagree though in my eyes the Companions were Inquisitions worst part. You are right about the last part though, Origins made a well treaded storyline fun and engaging and added various twists, I do not feel Inquisition managed to do that, not sure how that is strong finishing point as it just illustrates to me that Origin succeeded where Inquisition failed Lol. See this is what I mean about pretending people said something they didn't, I never argued in my comment that Origins had some out of the box story, I simply said it was a good storyand certainly the best in the series in my opinion. If you need to know though out of 10 I'd give Origin a 9, Da2 a 4 and Inquisition a 7 as you may notice for all that Hatred you claim I got against Inquisition I somehow managed to grade DA2 as the only one below average, funny how that goes.

[@alejandroyava]

2:16:17 Funny that you say that. In the quest of the Sacred Ashes, when you confront the guardian and he asks a personal question to each member, Oghren has for me the most hearthbreaking and saddest confession of the whole group. He doesn't even let the Guardian ask, he only says: "Yes, it was all my fault, I should have been better, I lost my wife, my house, my honor long ago, and now I have nothing more to loose" Holy shit! Only that makes me see him in another perspective.

[@rebellyanmagic6409]

The Guardian also doesn't have anything to say about Dog. Because he's a certified Good Boy.

[@JediBusouSonic]

One of my favorite aspects is revisiting your homes from your Origins. The Magi Tower is really cool to come back to as a mage in particular.

[@JillLulamoon]

I love returning to the Alienage as a city elf. Reuniting with Shianni and Soris and saving your dad. Normally you save Velendrian but City Elf specifically, it's your father. Even better is you learn from Shianni everyone just assumed you died at Ostagar with the army, so it's sweet for them to learn you're alive. Or not, if you took Vaughn's bribe, in which case your family basically disown you. One last bit is if your love interest is with you, when Shianni mentions your wedding, your LI will be shocked you never mentioned it. And you can tell them how your fiance was murdered.

[@brokencannon9174]

So for the intros, technically each origin is placed into a situation where death is certain. The only difference is where duncan chooses to go. So all origins are cannon, they all happen. Just the 1 you play happens to survive

[@FalenDragmire]

It's technically possible for a couple of the origin characters to survive, Human Noble and the Mage in particular.

[@benl2140]

@@FalenDragmire Yeah, I'm pretty sure the Mage origin would've at worst had your character made Tranquil.

[@margisama]

@@FalenDragmire Actually I think the only origin where you could technically get off scott free without being recruited would be the mage origin IF you choose to be a narc and betray Jowan and Lily. Then when Gregoir does his spiel of 'they helped a blood mage escape!" Irving points out you were working for him.

[@margisama]

@@benl2140 Well if you genuinely were trying to help Jowan escape instead of ratting him out and working for Irving instead (which I never do...my mage considers him her childhood best friend), Gregoir could've easily had you killed, imprisoned for that in the same mage prison they send Lily too...or made tranquil...which depending on perspective could be considered worse than death.

[@SeventhheavenDK]

@@margisama . But then Uldred's attack to the Tower comes and the Mage Origin character could have perished there.

[@Kalenz1234]

During the noble human origin if you talk politely with arl Howe about his family and his friendship with your father he actually chokes up and starts to stumble over his words. Absolutely brilliant.

[@SaganTheKhajiit]

That's when I went: "My lore lover instinct is telling me that this motherfucker is a traitor"

[@ZeethK92]

It really adds depth to his character.

[@Sindrella.]

The game is terrifically written and acted. Still one of the best games ever made, flaws and all.

[@ethosterros9430]

​@@Sindrella.When the flaws add a humane beauty rather than destroying.

[@Leon108]

Hands down my favorite playthrough was the City Elf Origin, since it makes a really compelling story about someone born into oppression and poverty who eventually becomes a national hero and (if accepting Morigan's offer) becomes a commander of an ancient paramilitary order. It's also the only origin that is fundamentally changed by the gender of the character. The video mentions that the City Elf origin is that a lord kidnaps a bride for first rights and that the groom rescues her, but that's only if the player chose the male option. What the video glosses over is that if the PC is female, then *they* are the kidnapped bride who breaks out of captivity, sees her groom get senselessly cut down in a botched rescue attempt, and then basically becomes Uma Thurman's character from Kill Bill and butchers the lord's entire estate while wearing a blood-drenched wedding gown.

[@ooostarb3rryooo]

That sounds so badass. I always play the dalish female elf playthrough. Now I wanna play this version.

[@BeBopScraBoo]

also interesting that other origins can find a dude in a jail, listen to his sob story, and then choose to release him or not, but it's not until you play the city elf that you learn he is the kidnapper.

[@MURDERFACE555666]

@@BeBopScraBoo fr, if you were a human warden for example isn’t actually in your best interests to free him since his family will testify against howe and support you in the landsmeet? it’s such a simple interaction with him in the jail cell but it gives city elf origin a lot of depth

[@Wintercide]

City elf and Dwarven noble were the best origins for sure.

[@GeorgeMonet]

EXCEPT the player might not want to get married. It is worth mentioning that the groom thing was something that was forced on your character just 10 minutes before you get kidnapped. You had never even known of that elf groom 10 minutes earlier. You wake up and it is "you are now going to be forced to be married to a guy you have never met before."

[@Bunge16]

“God, there’s so much to this game..” The half admiring, half resigned tone. Yeah, all dragon age players know that feeling.

[@PrettyPinkPersephone]

Trying to go back through the series is an exercise in pain and endurance. Especially because there’s that definitive “everyone hates this bit” section of each game (the fade in origins, for example) that’s just a miserable and slightly overlong experience. That being said? It’s still my favorite video game series

[@Kyla-Stormhazard]

​@@PrettyPinkPersephone *Shivers in the Hinterlands*

[@chloedoesstuff3753]

@@PrettyPinkPersephone wait people dont like the fade in origins?? that was one of my favorite parts. gimme alllll them permanent stat boosts >:)

[@brandonfritts6111]

Yeah the Fade was fucking awesome. It was hard for a rogue at first until I realized the forms actually had abilities. Then it was super fun.

[@chloedoesstuff3753]

@@brandonfritts6111 EXACTLY IT WAS SO COOL

[@orarinnsnorrason4614]

When you're at Arl Eamon's estate and if you're playing a mage you can also send yourself into the fade to save Connor. I love the variety in which you can resolve quests. This alone is reason enough to put this game near the top of best game ever.

[@jackdaone6469]

Yeah. I love how your Mage’s options can potentially include getting a boon from the demon(including SEX) and then you can still intimidate her into backing off and leaving Connor alone.

[@orarinnsnorrason4614]

Plus in order to get the Blood Mage specialization you need to go yourself (as a mage) in order to get it. If you send someone else you can't get it.

[@spacejesus6581]

@@orarinnsnorrason4614 I've never understood why specializations are unlocked across all playthroughs, all you have to do is load up Awakening, use infinite money for a bit then buy any book and you have the spec for all playthroughs forever

[@robcampion9917]

@@spacejesus6581 Or you just unlock them and reload.

[@temptationofmemories]

@@robcampion9917 This is what I did.

[@mzfiend2584]

I think what I love about Dragon Age Origins is how much your gender does matter, it really does change a lot about the game, how characters respond to you and treat you. Some treat you like shit, others go full mode simp mode, it's pretty great.

[@ichigokage]

Everything of your character can matter: race, gender and if you’re a mage. Though if you’re an elven mage it’s pretty rough. :x

[@spacejesus6581]

@@ichigokage female elven mage is worse still

[@ObsidianKnight90]

@@spacejesus6581 Female Elven Mage was my first playthrough and what the Warden will always be for me. I went Blood Mage as soon as possible because, I mean, it's not like NPCs could treat me any WORSE. I knifed the owner of the tavern in Redcliffe and assumed that my Warden just retired there, living a peaceful life, knowing that she'd become too powerful for the Templars to deal with.

[@kronksstronkstonks6360]

Origins' ability to make your character creation choices actually matter in interactions made the game a delight to replay too since expected dialogue would be replaced with new and somewhat differently toned dialogue depending on many aspects. God, I love this game.

[@arantir4150]

So true. Then when I played Inquisition my female dwarven castless was told by a human noble that there is nothing wrong with two women dancing together and while Origins taught me Qunari women may never become soldiers it is totally fine if they're trans.

[@SteveMan92]

I'm only about 25 minutes into this, so I don't know if it gets brought up at all, but one thing that I find SUPER interesting is that all of the backgrounds/origins happen simultaneously, and the one you pick just happens to be the one Duncan was visiting/interacting with. You can find evidence of all the other origin stories happening and those characters dying (because Duncan wasn't there to save them) if you look for them

[@rebellyanmagic6409]

IIRC you can find the Dwarf Commoner's corpse in a cell when you rescue Leske.

[@Rigby350]

@@rebellyanmagic6409 Oh. My. God.

[@ouchiegiverjr]

@@rebellyanmagic6409 same with all of them, hell the dwarven prince you play as is said to die in the deep roads like he would have if you didn’t pick that backstory

[@rebellyanmagic6409]

@@ouchiegiverjr And if female....Well, we know where the Broodmother came from now....

[@fourthmatchflame]

@@rebellyanmagic6409 well thanks for that mentle image.

[@nazgu1]

25:00 - two reasons why Cailan doesn't care much about you being the dwarven king's son. First, the title of the king is granted by the Assembly, not inherited. Yes, most often it goes to the son of the current king, but that's not always the case. Second and more important, you are now a Grey Warden. Which means your past life does not matter anymore, as you have to relinquish everything when joining the Wardens.

[@ethancha9361]

When you play through as a mage, you really understand the tensions between the Templars and the Mages. When you start the Mage play through, part of your quest is to break your blood phial. Which is basically a container of your blood that the templars will use to hunt you if you leave the mage tower, or use blood magic. The mages refer to it as "a collar".

[@areebjunaid1505]

Pretty sure in the mage origins you are trying to get rowan's phylactery, not yours but you're right, in all the games a mage playthrough gives a much better view of the mage/templar feud

[@infamouscha]

@@areebjunaid1505 ah yes, you're right, I meant Jowan.

[@Kaarl_Mills]

also as a lady mage you can be *Thirsty AF* for Cullen, he makes really cute responses

[@GabrielleduVent]

It's also really clear that the political tension is complicated within the Circle, and that the Chantry really beats everyone over the heads with its dogma. Each origin really gives insight to all the dynamics within Thedas to (e.g. racism with the elves), which made this game so great.

[@jenbcamping]

Yeah, I always thought that the whole Mage vs. Chantry and the NEED to keep mages in the circle was a pretty well-written and complicated thing. Loose mages are a truly scary and possibly devastating problem. The annoying mom just doesn't want to lose her son Connor so she has him trained at home, and the son only wants to save his dying father, and BAM taken over by demon and like hundreds and hundreds of people die. There isn't some easy solution. Just because Morrigan is a wild mage and turned out OK, doesn't mean that is what always happens (plus special circumstances!) This game is complicated! The mage starting path really does make a difference if you've seen it.

[@noraye2500]

On the matter of not going into Redcliffe during the day before the battle, this is touched on if you question Bann Tegan about his secret ring. He says that he intentionally didn't tell you about the entrance into the castle because he knew that you would go there instead of defend the village. As for why they didn't do this before hand, well Tegan only came back to the village the day before and only a few of Redcliffe's knights have been returning every other day. It was the day of your party's arrival, along with Ser Perth and his knights that Tegan felt he now had the means to get into the castle, but only after you defend the village, because in lore the day was drawing to a close and he wasn't going to abandon the village

[@Cheepchipsable]

...SO THERE!

[@ethosterros9430]

I loved the red cliff sequence it was so badass. Literally being part of a guard protecting a village, and u get rewards if you kept the townsmen safe.

[@ananiasv]

It's been a long time since i played it but if i remember correctly, calling out Loghain about the elven slaves deal has zero sway on the nobles. They just get outraged for show. Which frustrated me at first but in hindsight, it shows how little the ruling class really care about the elves.

[@Robert399]

Yeah, Salt got basically everything wrong about the Landsmeet. It's definitely possible to win even if Anora betrays you, but you actually have to think about what the lords want to hear. Picking the "it's all your fault, arsehole" lines you expect from a self-righteous Hollywood hero don't win you any support (just like in real life). And, as you said, the nobles don't care about the elves, but they *do* care about torturing nobles' sons and releasing blood mages from Chantry custody.

[@2010topdog]

That's not exactly right. It does have sway but you have to do it exactly right, and even then it's low influence. But ya the nobles only really care about the slave aspect and working with a foreign power.

[@yourdadsotherfamily3530]

@@2010topdog exactly if you mention they are ORLAIS slavers he’s helping rather than the slaves he’s hurting would make more sense to the nobility who sent soldiers to fight the orlais in the past conflicts I suppose would sway them more than the servants all nobility use being ‘abused’ when that’s what they are there for sadly but realistically

[@gnomebody2371]

I mean why would they care about the elves? Think about it honestly. We all like to think we would be better. However if I was born into the Human Noble background I would probably be real racists towards elves. What’s happening to the elves is wrong but it’s only because I have modern values and I wasn’t born into a society where slavery was deemed necessary from paternalistic racist or the economic output.

[@internetjerk2839]

To be fair the elves are preachy and annoying...and responsible for a lot of their own problems

[@lycantabris]

Soris isn't the City Elf Warden. He's their cousin who was getting married on the same day. Shianni isn't his sister, either. She's their other cousin. They do share a home, and Shianni and Soris both lost their parents at some point, Shianni implied to have lost hers first and at a younger age.

[@Adamantium93]

Re: the joining being secret and killing Jory. In my understanding, the joining's true nature is also kept secret because the Wardens are afraid that people will not join them if they know that the very act of joining could kill them. Most people who volunteer (like Jory) are probably confidant in their fighting prowess and don't seriously consider the threat of being killed by Darkspawn. But dying horribly from poisoned blood is a different matter (Jory even says as much). Lettting people back out at that stage lets that risk become known. Further, I think Duncan uses the threat of death as a way of coercing recruits into joining. Ideally, Jory would have backed down and drank, but even his death could serve to scare the other recruits into going through with it. Also, I like that the forcibly conscripted scoundrel has his moment of "I'll gladly die if it helps stop the darkspawn" while the noble knight who volunteered is all "no, I can't give my life, that's too high a price!" It establishes early a running theme of heroes coming from unconventional places.

[@istvankarolyfarkas6125]

Sorry what?

[@topazdrake42]

this can be added on to if your Warden is an elf, dwarf, or most noticeably imo an elven mage, my first play through of the game was as a female Rogue city elf

[@lowenmensch8308]

Pc

[@Rhoen13]

Yeah, that last point on Daveth and Jory was a neat surprise for me that the thief was the one willing to put his life on the line for this when the noble knight got cold feet. After going back it turns out Jory even has a low Willpower stat which was also a neat touch

[@alejandroyava]

Yeah... but is also worth mentioning that if half the people would join if they know that the Joining could kill them, even less would join if they know that they have 15 to 20 years to live before the Blight consumes their brains, and even if they are ok with that, they would not survive at all if they face and kill an Archdemon. So... go team!

[@alexandrospapadopoulos4297]

The game itself is an absolute masterpiece, but where it really shines is the characters. While i enjoyed every single one of them, I never got over Morrigan. She was my first and heaviest video game crush, and I never really appreciated how well written she is until much later. We need more characters like her in video games.

[@ishmaelforester9825]

'Men always want to believe one of two things about women. Either that she is in love with them or needs them to protect her.' Or something like that. I always remember that quote from Morrigan because it is devastatingly true.

[@Trakesh]

I hate it when people start gushing over characters because its the lowest form of writing. Anyone can write a quirky or funny character. Not everyone can write a coherent and well plotted narrative that last for hours. Example: People adore Mass Effect 2 because of its one-note quirky characters while its entire story is completely pointless, low-brow and undermines the previous game's setup. Its an embarrassment once you put any thought into it beyond 'funny robot does funny robot dance'.

[@alexandrospapadopoulos4297]

@@Trakesh I haven't played Mass Effect yet so I can't really get the comparison. That being said, I think that while most of Dragon Age's characters are quite obvious about what their role in the party is (e.g. comedic relief, mom of the group, bro etc), they don't force it down your throat. I like the writing of the companions in all three games, except Anders. Fuck Anders.

[@Trakesh]

@@alexandrospapadopoulos4297 ew

[@ishmaelforester9825]

@@Trakeshmass effect 2 has a glorious ending though. the big suicide mission is awesome and basically the whole game is building up to that. that is a classic ending to an rpg. it can be different depending on how you play or when you launch the last mission. and it's a great boss fight at the end that just reminds you of a treasure game on megadrive or something. if you play on the hardest difficulty lol

[@altfaerie]

Dragon Age: Origins is one of those games that is timeless. It brings emotion out of you and you can attach to the characters easier because they are complex and deep.

[@hansoskar1911]

It is timeless but at the same time really hasnt aged well.

[@lillemonlover6667]

tbh the characters feel more alive in da2 my personal fave lol.

[@qt18XX]

@@lillemonlover6667 Shame on you

[@PageAaron]

@@lillemonlover6667 The world collectively disagrees. I do like DA2, i just wish it was longer. DAI is just a snore fest.

[@PageAaron]

@Wall Paint you probably haven't played DA: O properly

[@vanyadolly]

I've never seen anyone rush Denerim like that at the end of the game. 😂You're definitively supposed to get there earlier and do the quests while you're working on the main quest. Some chains like the Slim Couldry quests will unlock one part at a time as you deal with the treaties. And Alistair will marry Anora even if he isn't hardened, but he is a better king and the two of them get along better if he is hardened.

[@lololol924]

I actually really liked the dungeon crawling in the deep roads. It really conveyed a sense of dread, having to descend deeper and deeper into hell and finding more and more monsterous enemies.

[@SeventhheavenDK]

I hated it the first time I played the game, same the with the Fade, nowadays after countless of playthroughs I enjoy them a lot.

[@kyleellis9177]

Denerim and going back 20 times is what I hated my first few games. Now I know how to do it all in 3 trips.

[@Cooli167]

The Deep roads were a real journey for me. Every corner was a fight, and if taken poorly, it was a party wipe. It was a litteral crawl to get through it. I've never felt happier seeing that deathsqaud of Dwarfs at that one bridge. However, by then end of it I was a season veteran. Like that last section of tunnel with wave after wave of Darkspawn was a slaughter, but not for me. They all fell, one by one. I was panicking through it all, but I won. Best dungeon crawl ever.

[@BLK_MN]

Easily the best part of *being* a Grey Warden. You really feel like this is something only you and your party could dare to even attempt. I actually wished for some missions you don’t just skip the way back to the beginning, and actually had to trek your way back. I’m sure it could be made interesting without being too tedious.

[@Bubbles99718]

@@SeventhheavenDK Love the dark roads hate the fade. Constantly switching forms then immediately porting to another location, again and again is such a slog. It just FEELS long, u can feel yourself aging. And u have to reactivate sustained all the time as well on top of it all. It's so repetitious

[@jakeseverson3019]

I went back on this game recently, and in my experience discovered that it was far better than I ever remembered. Some of the best story-telling and character interaction in any game I've ever played. Simply fantastic

[@mmmk5385]

Yes same what wonderful game. The second time playing it after years I took the time to go through each of the beginning origins it just blew my mind how each of characters still exists and is referenced in each other’s universe. It’s just that the one that survives is whichever one Duncan decided to visit. Such amazing writing.

[@snkybrki]

Some balancing later on gets bad, though. Good god do you get stunned like fucking crazy if you're a melee boy. Good if you're the tank, terrible if you're a dps

[@popspider4920]

Facts

[@romansingleton8831]

same , recent return

[@thedenseone6443]

I remember getting Inquisition when it was on sale, then thinking "Ah sod it, the other two games are pretty cheap, I'll play them in order of release." I'm so glad I did instead of only playing Inquisition.

[@veratikon7882]

Did the exact same thing. And i have the exact same opinion.

[@edgytaco4275]

I got inquisition first and it was one of my favorite games...then I found Origins. Needless to say origins is my favorite now

[@Mazaroth]

I tried to play Inquisition, but it's just so goddamn boring, it's a walking simulator where the walking is fucking boring and slow. And i've played DEATH STRANDING and absolutely loved that one, but it's because the mobility and problem solving is actually interesting, in Inquisition you can run almost as fast as a horse and you have to run back and forth, point a to point b, do a boring combat segment, run to another point, do a boring combat segment, listen some inane bs that i hardly gave a fuck about, and i played it for 100 hours before finally giving up, i just got fed up with it, i wasn't even 1/3 through of the main story when i stopped (i like to play as a completionist so i tend to do and collect everything), there's really not many games that have defeated me like that.

[@barbarchurpa3731]

played inquisition and origins loved both games and go with multiple playthroughs.. but i cant for the love of me finish DA2 i found it boring and you're stuck at this guy hawke instead of making your own character. Not to mention there's no grand adventure you just explore kirkwall on day and night cycle lmao

[@SamusLovesMilk]

I didn't play too much of Inquisition, but I felt that the combat was sooooo boring. But it's beautiful and the characters as well as the story telling is super! Too bad the combat drags it down so much. I did compare my early game combat to my friends end-game combat, and it was practically the same. So it didn't seem to progress at all, which made me not play any more unfortunately

[@bravodefeated9193]

OG bioware games always make you attached to all these characters

[@TheBrclear66]

Back when they had actual writer's rooms and not one or two employees that don't have the time, training, or freedom to make truly deep stories.

[@raveneggz3337]

Was Dragon Age Origins the gateway drug into RPG's I remember? The relapse I'm gonna have from this says yes.

[@jeremylackey6587]

It doesn't hit the same the 30th play through... Still a great game

[@PeachShortcake_]

I literally just re-downloaded all of them lol. I never got past 4 hours in inquisition, hoping that this time I'll be able to enjoy it!!

[@ramenbomberdeluxe4958]

@@PeachShortcake_ I started with Inquisition, that was a big mistake lmao

[@Shin_Akumi]

@@ramenbomberdeluxe4958 i liked inquisition. The lore got expanded on. Graphics wise much better. Only downfall is the lack of skills n classes. But has lots of re playability. But mostly the lore really opens up the universe. Much like skyrim era elder scrolls lore became massively expanded on. Khajiit might be elves, orcs were an elf race that became orcs when trinimac was turned into malacath. In oblivion tes4, orcs were not linked to elves. And no one picked up on the fact that pelinial whitestrake wiped out khajiit who he couldn't tell apart from elves. So there is a theory that not all khajiit look like cats. Well inquisition does that with the elves and eleven pantheon...and u get to have a small amount of interaction with ur DA2 protagonist. They also created a system where u can share all ur collected blueprints etc for crafting. Some play throughs the loot is random..so u dont always get everything in one playthrough, plus when u start a new playthrough, u can start with all the stuff u collected previously, so u can make a legendary playthrough with better scematics to craft early game instead of late game.

[@PatriotArro]

@@Shin_Akumi I hated inquisition's graphics. These stylized characters had these... realistic textures all over them and it made them super fugly to me.

[@11Justin93]

As someone that is currently replaying DA:O, I can say with confidence that it is exactly as good as I remember. Honestly one of the best games ever IMO.

[@kieferclaes4067]

I just finished a replay this weekend, I must agree, top tier.

[@polok4149]

True

[@SouthernSouthAsian]

I played through it again a few months ago and the gameplay is perfect. If they do a remaster it only needs to be a graphical one.

[@РайнхардЛоэнграмм-ш8ц]

New vegas and Dragon Age: Origins are my favourite games ever)

[@kingofsapi]

Now I tend to play it with tons of mods! Still one of my favorite Bioware game along with the original Neverwinter Nights.

[@godimready2go]

I played this game at like 8 years old it was my introduction into rpgs . I asked my grandma for How to train your dragon 😅 but through the language barrier the GameStop employee gave her this .

[@alysser.9570]

I got it for Christmas but never asked for it. Didn't even know what it was about, never heard of it. My mom just thought I'd like it because it has dragons 😂 she was right.

[@ReaperCH90]

I wouldn't say it's age appropriate for an 8 year old, but when you liked it, understood it and had fun, then it was a great outcome. Probably the first person who started straight with dark fantasy.

[@zaccarter3801]

I came home from school and my dad put this game on my bed. He said nothing about it. I was probably 9 or 10 at the time. I’m convinced my dad has given me favorite games of all time. I watched him play oblivion and he got me the ps3 version. He then got me dragon age origins and future expansions without me ever knowing the game until I saw it in a game informer. Then he got me fallout 3, another game he didn’t play but knew I was into shooters, and since fallout was the “shooter version of elder scrolls” he didn’t care much for the gore in it. Needless to say these games laid down a precedent that couldn’t be touched by future releases. Idk if it’s nostalgia or just developers switching to more generally accepted designs, but no games hit like these did. I had an awesome childhood but maybe he saw something different about giving me these games during the recession as a “cheaper longer term distraction” than most hobbies. Regardless my imagination and understanding of plots these games provided gave me a lot of empathy. Especially DAO, I got literally upset when a dialogue went the wrong way or if I misread a situation. If only he knew the impact these games actually had on me as down the line he complained I played games too much even though he rocket launched my interest by letting me watch him play and giving me games that I never really knew were as awesome as they were until I watched reviews like this one. Most kids my age played CoD, Halo, etc. i was into SOCOM, rpgs, and rainbow six games.

[@joshuakuehn]

Like that video of where Grandpa gets the grandson a copy of Mein Kampf when the grandson's Dad asks for Minecraft

[@robertmedlock]

@@ReaperCH90 My introduction was Stephen King's series, "The Dark Tower", which I feel had a big impact on my overall lifestyle growing up. I'd have been happy to have played Dragon Age at eight, I think. Though there were some grammar mistakes in the game, the story and world-building hooked me. So much dialog, too.

[@zrybftytcdrghh3774]

At the landsmeet you have to talk to a bunch of nobles and people at the bar in denerim to get them to side with you at the landsmeet. Basically, Howes basement had a bunch of people who you rescued and all of them where somewhat related to the nobles at the tavern. If you don't talk to them, they don't know you rescued their friend or son.

[@scottbellotti9530]

I love how customisable the mages are in this game most other games mainly make then either pure damage or healing

[@benl2140]

Yeah. Unfortunately, fighters and rogues don't have the same level of customizability.

[@bellystraw]

@@benl2140 That's true but there is surprising amounts of variety when it comes to rogues. You could go on a tank route, pump strength and dex, use duelist/ranger combo or you could go full dex with duelist/assassin and just never be hit by anything. You could also go full cunning with bard/assassin and go for those big BOI backstabs while also buffing your party. But archery in base DAO sucks dick so that removes some possibilities.

[@Ike_of_pyke]

mystic knight and blood mage clique

[@rockino2562]

Pure (blood) mage for my playthrough, was pretty awesome

[@lordkhan]

Most games that are not based on DnD or Pathfinder, I guess.

[@heartless2147]

I can't believe you didn't figure out how the Landsmeet works, I win every time. You just have to choose your words carefully. Focus on the Blight, bring up Loghain kidnapping Templars and hiring blood mages, etc. Granted it ends in a duel anyway because Loghain is a sore loser but still, that's the rules of the Landsmeet.

[@TheFuzzician]

IT's basically the same as the Trial in Neverwinter Nights 2. It doesn't matter what you do, it always in a fight, but there is still some fun in seeing it play out.

[@Deathlordalmighty]

I'm a little confused. If the Warden won all of the possible votes but lost the duel to Loghain, would Loghain have taken control again or would he still have been deposed? Realizing not all Warden's would be honorable or even want to fight Loghain, why couldn't the Warden have simply refused to fight Loghain?

[@uuuuuuuuuui6534]

stay mad

[@Deathlordalmighty]

@@uuuuuuuuuui6534 what?

[@SeventhheavenDK]

@@Deathlordalmighty . Good question.

[@EmptyTempest]

Sten's reticence to talk at the beginning is pretty intentional to contrast against the common trope of 'cRPG character who joins your party and immediately lore dumps their tragic backstory'

[@thedoomslayer5863]

And the way he speaks, man I have never heard someone so matter-of-fact about everything He's the type of guy to be late and just say "Yes I am and I have no excuses, I know I did wrong" Then go about his job and do something extra to make up for it but not care whether you or anyone notices it

[@cellamuert]

i'm pretty sure he is just setting the stage for the qunari race in this world. he's not an anti-trope, that's just how they are

[@getthegoons]

Sten is my favorite companion because of his dialogue. I know mechanically he's objectively worse than the other warriors due to only getting one specialization, but I like how you and him can challenge and respond with certain cultural differences.

[@kman9884]

@@getthegoonsSten is objectively better than Oghren and Dog due to his DPS output. Only the player character can out DPS him. Alistair is really the only one who’s better, but he’s really only good for being a tank so there’s still a void that is open.

[@riseagainstthemachine6079]

@@kman9884 yeah but alistar is enough too tank, mages are enough to... well, basically handle any fighting. so in case you arent a rogue, you take a rogue for lockpicking and stuff and sten has no place to be.

[@DJ_Drakon]

I always loved doing the Arcane Warrior specialization. It's really hard in the early game (you have to dump basically everything into magic at first) and it's hell on Nightmare difficulty but once you get to wear heavy armor you are basically unkillable. It's a great reward for the experienced player.

[@SaganTheKhajiit]

I personally like to invest a bit into dex before pouring everything into magic. Dex still helps with attack even for AW, also helps with defense which is overall great. Not a perfect solution for Nightmare, but in Nightmare the only reason why you should let anything even come near you as an unspecialized mage is whenever you need to Cone of Cold into Stone Fist.

[@lidla2008]

Plus there's a certain combination of magic Regen items that lets you keep your invincibility shield on at all times, which ACTUALLY makes you nigh unkillable. In the Xbox version, where Regen rates are doubled, you can get enough to keep Shimmering Shield plus Cleansing Aura up at all times, which means you become an unkillable healing fountain that just pumps out constant aoe heals for your party, causing threat to stay on you indefinitely. Insane.

[@Matass101]

blood mage is even stronger

[@soundingsea3419]

thats why till this day, we havent see AW anymore. that spec was goddamn OP 😂

[@nonono9194]

I remember playing as a dual wielding dex character and remember that being basically unkillable on nightmare aswell because of the amount of dex I stacked, was a stronger build than my arcane warrior

[@tlcompletionist7892]

This is one of my favorite games. Definitely going to watch all 4 hours of this when the opportunity arises.

[@crashboredom2]

These long plays with a breakdown of everything probably takes soooo much work dude. Thank you for going through all this just to share it with us, I've loved all these videos and they bring back so many memories. Its also cool to see games I never played and live vicariously through your recaps. Thank you salt!

[@jeremyrosal6049]

Seriously! I mean I know just how many hours I've spent in these games, so he definitely puts in the hours. But more than that, I never had to prepare basically an entire presentation, a professional-quality one really. I love this channel. I almost always want to replay the game in question whenever I'm halfway through the video.

[@ShmuckLord385]

Right? Like he played a roughly 25-30 hour game, minimum I'd say, while taking notes and writing a script. He does it all the time too, and gets these out pretty frequently. It's actually really impressive.

[@mtuktuk9627]

Could not agree more, Love this!

[@chadcuzbad7009]

Every 5 mins I’m thinkin man jt must’ve taken so much time to get all this shit in order to throw it together in a vid

[@alejandroyava]

3:25:17 Actually, it is possible to win, even if Anora gives her speech against you, but it requires preparation. The last guy that speaks is basically the announcer who says who won the Landsmeet. You need to do all the Antivan Crows Quest, even a secret one that only appears during the Landsmeet Quest You need to leave Vaugan alive, although I'm not sure if that's neccesary. The Speech options DO MATTER. Depending wich ones you choose, you get support of one noble or another. The best strategy is to NOT mention Ostagar or Cailan, and starting mentioning that the real threat are the Darkspwan, not Orlais. After that, if you got all the side quests, you can win even if Anora speaks against you.

[@Reljadin101]

I was just about to write this, the landsmeet is great! I simply hated how without anora's support you only had ONE dialogue choice that works in each argument phase, I feel like there should have been a bit more leniency to the points system of winning the landsmeet but other than that the landsmeet is great. Salt is just salty he loses, typical Dwarf 🤣

[@joaoassumpcao3347]

@@Reljadin101 I actually liked how hard it was to win without Anora's support. It may be frustrating to the player, but it fits perfectly with the political system the story is portraying.

[@Reljadin101]

@@joaoassumpcao3347 Don’t get me wrong, it should be difficult. I just think that they made it difficult in the wrong way. There was literally only 1 exact combination of dialogue choices that would win it for you - which would be fine, but I’d say that it wasn’t the combination with the most powerful arguments. Then again I might just be biased on some topics during the Landsmeet. In any case I completely agree with you. I just wanted a less cheap difficulty.

[@spacejesus6581]

You don’t need to save Vaughn AND do the assassin tree, in fact I’m pretty sure siding with Anora means you don’t need either of them, it all depends on your dialogue

[@uqs57bju]

@@spacejesus6581 That's the exact thing that he said. He said that it was still possible without Anora and pointed our how to do it.

[@TheTexasDice]

Salt, I'm coming back to this after replaying the game and you are crazy. The Landsmeet is the single best sequence in the whole game and you can absolutely "win" it, even if you don't betray Anora. You are rewarded for playing thoroughly and picking the most important lines of dialogue, not just the ones that say "Press Speechcraft here". For those curious, the order in which the Landsmeet has to go (with all quests completed and speechcraft maxed and the denerim arl's rapist son rescued): 1. "The Blight is the threat here, no Orlais" 2. "You sold Ferelden citizens into slavery to fund your war" 3. "You let Howe torture citizens of Ferelden" (requires the rapist Arl's son to be alive) 4. "We're discussing your crimes here." 5. "What?!" (this one might be irrelevant) This ends in 7 to 1 against Loghain, not prompting him to call for executions and without a brawl.

[@rebellyanmagic6409]

There's also another way to do it, but it requires you to complete the Crows' assassination questline (that's if you don't want to support Anora) so you don't need the rapist. 1. "The Blight is the threat here, not Orlais." - gets the Arl whose lands were ravaged by the Blight to agree. 2. Mention How torturing people. If you freed the noble's son, he corroborates this as well and you get his vote. 3. Accuse him of poisoning Arl Eamon using Jowan. Loghain will say that it was the doing of a rogue Mage. If you freed the tortured templar from Howe's dungeon (he was hunting Jowan near Redcliffe before he was captured), the templar's sister disproves Loghain's lies and you get her vote. 4. IMMEDIATELY after this, a Chantry Mother Superior condemns Loghain for 'interfering in a Templar's sacred duty' in apprehending apostate Mages. This gives you the Chantry's approval, which IIRC is 2 approval points (Anora's is 3). 5. If you agreed to support Anora, she shows up regardless of which dialogue you pick and throws in her lot with you. Landsmeet is almost unanimously in your favour (one NPC always sides with Loghain no matter what). But even if you didn't, you can still win the Landsmeet if you complete the Crow sidequests, because a noble whose son you helped rescue gives you his support. Basically the strategy to win the Landsmeet is to not mention Ostagar or Alistair. Hell you don't even need to mention the slavers in the Alienage. Focus on the Blight being the real threat and Loghain's crimes that can actually be proven. Do the Crows' quests for that extra vote, and you won't need the rapist OR Anora at all.

[@BradTheAmerican]

The Landsmeet would be less ridiculous if it wasn't based on the hidden arbitrary background score and instead was based on the public votes, because otherwise it makes it seem like everyone doesn't know how to count. It's been a while since I tested the various outcomes but I think you can even fail a 6-2 or 7-1 vote, which obviously makes less sense than a 3-2 loss. If Anora and/or the Chantry are against the player, then that should simply affect the voters rather than act as if the votes don't exist. On a side note: how silly is it that even if you win the vote and thus the Landsmeet, that Loghain simply calls for a duel for whom the winner will be backed by the Landsmeet, thus rendering the votes meaningless anyway. Loghain lost, so how could he have any authority on dictating those terms?

[@Toadcfc]

The fact that this guy will spend all that time making the video, but can't be bothered to do thirty seconds worth of Google to check his rants is astounding.

[@bonniedykstra6722]

Yeah, it’s such a cool sequence with so many outcomes and choices affected by earlier sequences and your choices in them.

[@jentoncentondenton4818]

Yeah, It seemed odd hearing him critizise that part when I've always demolished Loghain at the trial since my very first playthrough by just paying attention at what I was doing and well... roleplaying.

[@ChokyDaWerehusky]

My favourite moment in Dragon Age: Origins was asking Zevran about his opinion about elves right after you slaugher an entire tribe.

[@kopicat2429]

Best moment has to be in the Dalish camp. Where you can cuck this innocent guy who pines after a girl. Tell him you're gonna help him, sleep with the girl and afterwards, tell him you had sex with the girl instead of helping. I seem to remember he runs off into the woods and dies after that. Though I could be wrong about that. Been a while since I played Origins. Ofc, it's not the act itself, but rather the fact that the option exist, that makes it the best moment. And makes the game so great.

[@SeventhheavenDK]

@@kopicat2429 . I don't remember him running to his death, that doesn't happen, he is even there if you decide to kill the elves in favor of the werewolves.

[@kopicat2429]

@@SeventhheavenDK Ok. Then I did remember that part wrong.

[@requiem5151]

@@kopicat2429 I remember doing that choice not long ago lol and he definitely runs to the forest and disappears from the camp. Although I can't seem to remember if he finally dies in the forest, becames a werewolf or you find him and can return him back to the camp.

[@lc2131]

My favourite moment of Dragon Age: Origins was when Zevran started humming Fallout 4 title screen music.

[@alucardonus]

Most important fact is that all player characters exists at the start of the game. You just pick one of existing persons and it changes only where Duncan is gonna be and who of those starting presets will meet him as others will die in their story.

[@Aaron-qe9ms]

Minus 'The Mage' because that person literally changes into either an Elf or a Human depending on which you choose.

[@alucardonus]

@@Aaron-qe9ms tru

[@OddHornedNinja]

@@Aaron-qe9ms the human mage is the cannon person as they are the cousin of Hawk mother in dragon age 2.

[@stardusst]

if you don't choose the castless dwarf warden you can actually see their corpse when you enter jarvia's hideout.

[@tangentyes3323]

The broodmother is by far one of the darkest and one of my favorite fantasy horrors. Sure their appearance is terrifying but what really gets you is the story behind how they’re made it’s sickening and terrifying and then you have to deal with fighting one. One of my favorite subtleties that the artists made while designing this enemy, is if you look at the Broodmother’s mouth and lower face, you’ll see it’s skinless, it’s just the raw muscle above the bones, implying that the broodmother ate and continued to eat until the skin around it’s mouth and nose was worn away. Great video btw.

[@candyvampire3393]

what a sickening yet great observation

[@thedoomslayer5863]

I imagine for any women who played the game imagining this being done to them it probably hit home twice as hard

[@getthegoons]

​@@thedoomslayer5863 "horrible tentacle birth monster exists. Women most affected."

[@elizabethgriggs322]

@@getthegoons They were referencing the creation lore of the Broodmothers. Broodmothers start off as normal women of any race, but are made into Broodmothers by being tainted, raped and tortured by Darkspawn and force fed humanoid flesh. Human women will produce hurlocks, dwarven women produce genlocks, elven women produce shrieks, and qunari women produce ogres.

[@themikatoon]

@@getthegoons women most affected by fictional regular women turned into horrible birth monster by getting fed corpses and raped repeatedly , random youtube commenter shocked at revelation.

[@ashleyseed7237]

One thing. With morrigans romance you can absolutely chase after her. After the fight when she disappears. You can say to companions that you’re going to look for her. There’s even a dlc for it. By inquisition you and morrigan have a son and are together and in love.

[@VideoGameSophistry]

3 hours and 47 minutes is a long time to say ' OH HELLS YEAH it's as good as I remember'

[@Ghostrama13]

Dude... Spoilers QwQ

[@PuellaMagiHomuraAkemi]

I mean at that point you can just play the game yourself xD so I find the video rather bad, its supposed to make you wanna play it and not play it for you

[@PuellaMagiHomuraAkemi]

@@Santiago-sh3cq Not like they're that different though, the main thing stays the same

[@lovelydovy660]

Um it's kinda his thing.he plays old games & let's u know if they're still worth playing or if it's too outdated. perhaps it's a bit long but so is the game.& U can always skip to the end.or just not watch it if it's not ur thing! Personally I like it.

[@VideoGameSophistry]

@@lovelydovy660 It's a joke. I think he's great

[@r_r_rye2441]

If you take Oghren with you to the Circle Tower and see his nightmare in the Fade, you get a bit more insight into him and can't help but feel bad for the guy. His anger and callousness are all cover for his insecurity and loneliness. He knows he's a laughing stock in Orzammar who's life is falling apart.

[@porkcutlet3920]

Damn, I completely forgot Oghren existed. Probably because I never picked him for any of my parties.

[@colonel1003]

@@porkcutlet3920 iirc, you had to deal with the deep roads to get him

[@HaruDoneYet]

Funny part though is that dwarves can’t dream

[@porkcutlet3920]

@@colonel1003 I unlocked him for my playthroughs but never used him, even when playing as a dwarf.

[@GeorgeMonet]

Oghren's life is falling apart because of the dumb decisions he himself made.

[@GuessWho7197]

Fun fact: If you bring Morrigan when you fight the Sloth Demon, she's the only party member smart enough to recognize that this isn't real, she just can't escape it all on her own and needs your help. It's hilarious having your character tell her it's all a dream and hearing her reply.

[@sanitykeeper_2395]

That's a lie. Sten realises what's up from the get go.

[@thedoomslayer5863]

@@sanitykeeper_2395 what does sten say?

[@sanitykeeper_2395]

@@thedoomslayer5863 He finds himself sitting with two qunari whom he knew and have been slain in combat. Yet he wants to stay because he misses their company.

[@jedaye47]

@@sanitykeeper_2395 Sten is such a good boi, aside from the whole slaughtering farmers thing

[@LynxStarAuto]

@@jedaye47He was possessed by a demon. Wasn't feeling himself when that happened.

[@averagejoe5145]

Morrigan can only be swayed into NOT killing the mages of the Circle if your character romances her. Otherwise it never shows up. In most cases where I had my character do a good deed or be charitable, I usually had to swap her out of the party to avoid an approval loss. At other times, I took advantage of the "Feast Day" DLC & bought Sugar Cakes or the Thoughtful Gift items from Bodahn to cover for the loss of approval.

[@HistoryScope]

The answer to that question is always 'no'. That game is so large with so many little details that every time you replay it, you find some new awesome thing you either forgot or didn't realize last time. Personally, I really like how when you play as a female character, lots of people speak to you differently. Such as creeps making derogatory or sexual comments when it's clear you've got more important things on your mind.

[@drackestalentorgen166]

same for race, and if you are a mage....if you want to live the true discrimination life be an Elven Mage ...its so hard not to be evil

[@bigdumbfatcat2869]

@@drackestalentorgen166 >Woah, did you do a hekkin racism?!

[@OmegaTav]

@@drackestalentorgen166 that was what I played when I played it for the first time. My female eleven mage was a big asshole to almost everyone that I didn’t like, which ended up big most everybody in the game.

[@tmerchead1]

Sten dialouge to a female warden is interesting.

[@poki580]

@@tmerchead1 and then the retconning of qunari race in the third game takes a huge shit on that dialoge

[@Darkgun231]

My favorite part of Origins was the magic system. As neat as 2 and Inquisition were, they just lack the fun of the magic that Origins had. In Origins, you could let Morrigan teach you to shapeshift. You could learn Bloodmagic, the most forbidden type of magic ever, or discover how to cast magic through a sword like the ancient elves did. And the spell combinations! Freeze a foe solid with Winter's Grasp then insta-kill them by shattering their frozen bodies with a Rock Fist follow up! Or Grease the floor and set it aflame with a fire spell. Immobilize a distant foe with Telekinetic Forcefield so you could finish off their weaker friends without a problem, or melt their brains with illusions. Knock 'em on their butts with a Quake! So many fun options! I really miss the combos in the later games. Inquisition in particular was really boring with only Elemental spells and that wimpy Spirit branch. I would have much preferred being able to turn into a giant spider and eating the faces off Tevinter mages.

[@wolfsruhm]

well yeah, thats what happens when you let your EA overlords decide what is good in your games, and subsequently loose all the talent that made your company great

[@Maourin]

The first time i played through the game i played as a warrior, cause at the time that just made sense to me. the second time though i went for the mage. I have been picking up mages in RPGs ever since, fell in love with the class. though yeah few of them gave me the feeling of power that DAO gave me.

[@darthgenesis9]

Did you ever get the spell combinations?

[@hayleybartek8643]

Agreed. I fondly remember someone describing the magic in Inquisition as “choose what color of sparkles you want or Spirit Fade stuff.”

[@dragonheart1236]

Or, you could do what I did, and be a mage in name only, by going full Battle Mage. My elf in heavy armor, wielding a sword and shield "me? Oh, yeah, I'm totally a mage, totally..."

[@Lord_Inquisitor_Ignis]

The brood mother still gives me shivers that scene was absolutely horrifying

[@180Deadman]

The broodmother kicked. My. Ass. The fist time I played through this game. Orzammar was the first of the big storylines I decided to do and we were so not ready. I ended up having to reload a save from like 3 hours before and run around the world for a while

[@orangesoda4535]

Broodmother is the hardest fight in the game for me. I'll take on a dragon at level 7, but broodmother is on a whole other level.

[@NATA5II]

When this first came out, I'd agree with you. Now I lean more into the "first of all I'm suckin on those honkers" territory.

[@ximthedespot4673]

"That's a lot of nipples."

[@caitlynnhatch9254]

I still remember that haunting moment. The dialogue in the background... mother of darkspawn... then seeing that? I was HORRIFIED. I was a male dalish elf seeing that for the first time, but as a female noble my second i was like "that could happen to me" and that hit hard

[@MoostachedSaiyanPrince]

23:00 - The human Noble backstory may not be the most compelling on it's own, but I think it's still the best backstory due to the way it ties you character's backstory to one of Loghain's strongest supporters. I also personally see this as a possibility that Loghain may have actually ordered the deaths of your family by Howe's men. Because I suspect he intended to take control of Ferelden via Cailin's death and the Landsmeet since before the story started, and he knew (or at least believed) that your characters family would stand against the idea. So he ordered Howe to attack your family by promising power as well as protection from retribution, because I don't see any other way Howe could have possibly believed that killing your whole family would be a good idea or that he would get away with it if he was acting on his own, no matter how greedy he was. It just seems like to big and risky a move for a coward like him, especially when you consider how much support Loghain gave him after that, and ESPECIALLY if you told Loghain about what Howe did when you meet him at Ostagar. Edit: I suspect the whole "Cailin looks down on your Dwarven noble" thing may have been reading too much into it. He had a personal tie and relationship with your father and your family in the Human Noble story line, but he doesn't know the Dwarven Nobility from a hole in the ground, at least not on a personal level. I think it's that personal tie to your character's dad that makes him get concerned and upset, but not your race of choice. That's just my take though. 2nd edit: I think there's another major reason the Wardens keep the method of The Joining a secret. In times of crisis, people will turn to violence against things they don't understand. If it became known that The Wardens get their Darkspawn killing abilities by drinking their tainted blood, there's practically guaranteed to be a group of fanatics to arise that will insist that the Wardens are agents of the Darkspawn, and will incite violence against them. And I'm willing to bet THIS is the biggest reason why the Wardens keep the Joining a secret. But once again, that's just my take

[@thedoomslayer5863]

There's plenty of good reasons to keep the joining a secret it's just a shame Duncan doesn't even use any one of them and instead his justification is "yo bro that. Dude totally drew his sword out"

[@artorius4809]

Human noble is definitely best origin and it makes the most sense

[@willyeeton4390]

Human noble also connects well to a certain character in the Awakening DLC, who wants to get back at the wardens for the destruction of the Howe family. Having Howe butcher the Warden-Commander's entire family adds a layer to that.

[@getthegoons]

​@@thedoomslayer5863 >guy pulls a weapon >is turned into a self defense Statistic I'm with Duncan on this one once he pulled a sword he forced the situation.

[@SaganTheKhajiit]

Absolutely right on Cailan. He reacts pretty much the same to everyone except human noble, even human mage.

[@dylanperry3735]

We need more rpgs with story and options like this, the writing is amazing.

[@alexanderjakubowski5673]

Divinity isn't nearly as centered on choice though. You basically get the well-to-do hero option, or the asshole option, and there's no actual advantage or change for selecting the latter.

[@VashdaCrash]

@@alexanderjakubowski5673 That's the impression I got from when I playded Divinity too, it's like people don't appreciate choice-centered gameplay as much as they think.

[@sarahj7507]

@Dirt Soup I love those games (DOS was my first ever rpg), but I have to disagree. DOS2 especially, for all the praise it gets, has a near nonsensical main story, and the "best" (canon) ending basically tells you that you should have never played the game to begin with and just stayed in Fort Joy to accept your fate. The multiplayer/origin system really hurts the writing, too, imo.

[@DillonP530]

We have almost identical names and it’s unnerving

[@agroed]

The gifts that are really over-the-top and give you like 50 affection were DLC. There are also gifts that are just as good at making them hate you. Really not my favorite DLC, but it has its moments, like the Alistair doll. Even without those gifts, it's still true that some of them are just too powerful. I'd prefer for them not to be in the game at all in exchange for having dialogue sway party members more.

[@LordOverTheLightOfRa]

Just dont buy it. Use mods. Problem solved.

[@GrouchyRaccoon]

This really was Bioware at its peak, the storytelling was so thoroughly thought out and I'm pretty sure I STILL haven't uncovered all of the lore after hundreds of hours of replays. I especially love how the background isn't just a setting for the tutorial, it's important for a lot of character interactions and even plot points.

[@TrueCarthaginian]

Indeed. And there was a steep decline immediately afterwards. Such a shame. Modern BioWare is easily one of the worst companies in the industry now, when its name used to be synonymous with greatness

[@heathbaker1138]

I could not stand the combat.

[@GrouchyRaccoon]

@@heathbaker1138 See I used to wish it was more action based but now its grown on me and I actually quite like the combat, it is a little clunky but I feel like that's more down to its age. But I find the tactical aspect quite fun.

[@InceyWincey]

Your problem with the Ogre fight at the beginning was that the animations bear almost no relation to what is actually happening in the combat. When an attack is made, the game basically rolls a dice to hit, then if it hits it rolls for damage, the animation is merely a representation of the the outcome. This means that the game has already decided the attack hits or not when the animation begins.

[@NJoCaulfield]

I always found the Awakening DLC to be hugely beneficial to the overall story of this game, and I think it's worth a look in retrospect as well. It fleshes out the setting so much more and provides a lot of depth to things like the Darkspawn, the Wardens, and the Fade while also providing enough shake-ups to the character building to make combat more fresh for the admittedly few hours it lasts. Personally, I find Awakening and the Trespasser DLC from Inquisition to be the best pieces of content in the series, and it's a bit unfortunate that they kind of require you to play through the full main game first to appreciate them. At least with Awakening, it's really easy to enjoy Origins for at least its storytelling and characters despite the dated design, but Inquisition is a HUGE slog to play these days thanks to open-world collect-a-thon design choices, and the main plot and combat of that game are so middling that it's hard to enjoy despite some cool characters, in my opinion. Thanks for the video! I look forward to seeing what you cover next!

[@hondshoven8477]

Awakening is also one of the rare bioware games where the "you're the commander but you also do everything" is justified. You're one of the only grey warden left in the middle of a Darkspawn invasion and you get enough choices along the way to feel like a real commander instead of a dignified errand boy.

[@tgr3423]

Even on my first playthrough, I hated doing the open world collect-a-thon bullshit. It felt like unnecessary busywork. It's a large part of the reason why I have yet to finish the game, because despite all of Inquisition's positives, the collect-a-thon tasks are just chores to fill out check boxes.

[@sunshoe-l5r]

Idk…Awakening was one of the first signs of Bioware lazily copy/pasting locations. Granted they at least put a slight bit more effort into it by dressing up said locations differently but still. Going back to that dock/cove area near the ocean like 3 freaking times was kind of a bummer.

[@thefool8224]

i havent fully played awakening. all i remember the dwarf taking the ritual to become a grey warden and just burping as if it was nothing dangerous

[@mattyice31]

Not to mention that transferring all choices to inquisition is hard. I forgot my login information for my old keep account and EA can't do anything to help me.

[@sirdanielfortesque5812]

The moment I realised there was more to this game was after meeting up with the Wardens and soldiers at the camp before the big massacre at the start, i tried and got caught pickpocketing a few soldiers then later when speaking to others got shunned for being a thief and told they didn't want me near them, then it got back to my 'supervisor' who also told me to keep my hands out of people's pockets. It felt naughtier and more convicted than something like Shep punching that journalist in Mass Effect 2 as it was an action entirely of my own volition and not a forced decision scenario.

[@Marichainz]

Every time I see the word or hear the word enchantment, I can’t help but immediately think of Sandal’s bloody face saying “Enchantment??”

[@SaganTheKhajiit]

Enchantment!

[@archangelgabriel5316]

Sandals easter egg in DAI, was hilarious.

[@eji]

03:21:49 lol that "mime" elf is actually the city elf's father, and the elf you rescue from the prisons is actually the city elf's cousin, but it's cool that they exist in the world regardless of the character's origin. the whole Alienage thing definitely pays off more as a city elf.

[@oni2988]

the mime isnt city elf's father, he is the elder of the alienage. the city elfs father has brown hair and is called cyrion

[@eji]

@@oni2988 huh, well he sure looks just as ugly as the father, there's not a whole lot of visual difference there lol

[@kunduo]

I remember when I first played the game years ago the landsmeet was more meaningful to me cause I romanced Alistar as an elf and therefore could not be Queen. I just remember it being so hard to decide on what to do and what was best for the story

[@poisonberry2166]

Same here! I was so worried about making the wrong choice and it was the most conflicting moment in the game for me

[@Kirinet]

I was devastated when he broke up with me. Learned about hardening him and reloaded to an hour before just to do it.

[@donradkos6655]

Not to mention Loghain's VA performance in it is absolutelly stellar

[@almamater489]

@@donradkos6655 Bruh, after seeing how Loghain looks in Inquisition, I'd romance that bitch and put him on the throne

[@toolatetothestory]

@@Kirinet Wait, when he's hardened he doesn't break up with you? Huh, I wouldn't have guessed that.

[@blueboi12jj]

My favorite part about the questing in this game is how dense and thought out they are. From finding notes about obscure legends to searching a room and finding an urn with a trapped spirit asking you to set it free. I remember being so engaged in those quest so much that now anything less than these feel hollow and rushed. Dragon Age Origins is one of my favorite games of all time and I sincerely mean that. There hasn’t been any RPG that I’ve played that could even measure up to it, other than maybe the Witcher 3. The combat can be a bit of a drag but that’s what adds to the glare of it being a classic.

[@motan7864]

the combat is a classic top down crpg in real time with pause with D&D rules, i don't understand why people hate it, it's very tactical and you gotta pay attention to your builds and the synergies between your characters to build the ultimate squad, i love it

[@HiDefHDMusic]

I got this game for PS3 before the sequels came out and never managed to finish. I think I started it twice. Then I decided to jump back into it right where I left off after several years, managed to finish the last half of the game without any issues, and the story was memorable enough that I wasn’t lost or confused. It’s straightforward in a lot of ways but still pretty compelling as it plays out, and the choices feel pretty important even if they don’t necessarily affect gameplay. It’s not perfect but few if any have really done it better.

[@johnlaremy3592]

@@motan7864 it's one of my favorite games for that I really enjoyed solasta for that but that's straight up dnd

[@MasterFeidn]

Which games you played before? I wish I could have enjoyed Dragon Age like you, but it was a chore. Weak story, artifical gift system for your companions (you can get them to 90% just on the first camp night), illogical consequences like teaching wynne blood magic. Boring dialogues and don't let me start with the combat system and the fighting ratio. The soundtrack was also suprisingly weak. It might be a sign when I say that I enjoyed lelianas song more (and that was just an 1 1/2h dlc.) Nowhere near to fallout 1/2, baldurs gate 2, Icewind Dale 1 or Neverwinter Nights ... let alone the masterpieces Planescape Torment, Vampire Bloodlines and Arcanum.

[@thatdodo8263]

You really gotta bless me like this Salt? My favorite rpg of all times, i remember the good old days. Spending so much time reading lore, doing optional quests, figuring out all the possible options and endings for characters. My god i love this game, when i found out i can sode with the cultists and chill with the dragon it made it so perfect. Now im gonna relax and enjoy and watch this on repeat atleat 10 times like all your other videos.

[@Joyful_Traitor]

If you have the Shale DLC it is quite nice to take her through the whole Orzammar part

[@SaganTheKhajiit]

I remember when I first equipped her with crystals. Her reaction made me go: "This golem is acting way too fabulous for a construct. I bet Shale was a living being at some point in time". Imagine my joy when I found the Anvil Of The Void.

[@JoshSweetvale]

She also, obviously, sides with Caridin. Violently if need be.

[@jaydub2546]

I didn't even know it's a she lol

[@spencergreen3581]

Please also do a video on the DLCs because Dragon Age: Awakening is better than most other full games I've played

[@TheWhiteRabbit727]

.....................how? Its literally the easiest game EVER CREATED. The story is pretty fun I'll grant, but the new skill trees are so completely overpowered you literally don't have to do anything and you win. Its ALMOST a walking simulator.

[@cryst4lb34st2]

I like the story concept of Awakening, but it felt...a little too fast-paced for me. As soon as I collected all the team members and completed the respective area's storyline, it automatically continued to the main plot of facing the boss. I don't have time to flesh out some companions, learn their history, get their respective quest, etc. It just feels...rushed. I like how it mentions or taps into if you completed Witch Hunt or The Goldems of Amgarrak if you played it before it but still...I wish it would give me more time to get to know my companions as soon as I collected them all and give me the option of continuing to face the main antagonist.

[@LinoTirado]

Shit I just bought the Ultimate edition on Xbox for 20.00 for them DLCs Idgaf.

[@kinagrill]

If he can get them installed.... rather than the bullshit setup that STILL EXISTS. Ya know, rather than compile it and whatever non-standard fixes have been made into a fully functional complete edition.

[@Quintesson16]

@@LinoTirado i literally bought the same edition yesterday for the same price, hell yeah

[@k8rip]

2:09:00 about zevran's attempt to assassinate you being set up in a way that didn't play at all to his strengths. That's something that I wrote off as bad writing at first too, but in hindsight, after he tells you that his intent was to fail all along... it suddenly makes so much more sense! He's definitely an interesting character. And, in my opinion, one of the best (most rewarding) romances in the game since the backstory with rinna and taliesen makes it that much more difficult for him to let himself fall for the warden.

[@WetBoy]

Shut up

[@k8rip]

@@WetBoy no ♥

[@WetBoy]

@@k8rip whats your onlyfans?

[@I_Cunt_Spell]

Nice frog. Has he turned into a prince already?

[@t5hammer871]

Zevran may not be a good man, but he's a good character for sure. Someone worth giving a hug... if a dagger wasn't poised for that exposed back lol

[@mattyice31]

"Great, we have a dog now and Alistair is still the dumbest one in the party." Morrigan was the best roaster.

[@mazemusicx9221]

Bae, badass bitch and queen of shade. She had the trifecta

[@WeOnlyEatSoup]

This games characters have the MOST personality in my opinion then any other Bioware game

[@itsCaptainEli]

Morrigan is still best girl

[@wayway7017]

Fuck'er

[@chrisdane.7170]

Morrigan is savage. Perky boobs, too.

[@dancodanify]

The release of Veilguard has demonstrated just how far Bioware has fallen-the downfall of a titan.

[@anaximanderification]

Sten has a great line in Redcliffe, "Wisdom is like a breath, you need it to live and nobody can give you their own", which is interesting cause you find him good for being a philosopher, and philosophy means "friendly towards wisdom" in greek.

[@SkyNinja759]

People who can perform CPR: _"Are we a joke to you?"_ But seriously, that's a nice metaphor. People can share their findings, as a form of intellect, but cannot directly share their experiences.

[@mauricesteel4995]

@@SkyNinja759 its like the saying "You can take a horse to the river, but you cannot make it drink."

[@curtisjackson4090]

Really good quote. Stem was a real one 💯

[@Lastofthefreenames]

@@SkyNinja759 knowledge is not wisdom

[@VashdaCrash]

@@Lastofthefreenames Yeah, the horse phrase goes better. The horse can know about the river because you take it there, but it has to drink from it to get the "benefits".

[@jon-umber]

I can't hear the menu music for Dragon Age Origins without being instantly teleported back to 2009. So much nostalgia for that game.

[@cokekazoo9996]

“Morrigan standing around camp like a diablo 2 class, ready to be picked” absolutely KILLED me

[@coryjohnson2486]

hAhAhAhAaaaa 🥴 DORK

[@ridesq]

It actually sounds like the Tristram music is playing when he is saying that too.

[@MishraArtificer]

@@ridesq It *is*.

[@what9480]

What part was this at?!

[@jasperedwards2196]

Baldur's Gate 3 is a worthy successor to this. The Dragon Ages following this one miss the mark. They aren't terrible, but they lack the soul Origins had.

[@Nerbit13098]

This is my favourite game of all time, it makes me so happy to see people still talking about it, can't wait to sit down and watch :)

[@NinjaSushi2]

Same here. One of the best.

[@smokeboozedrinkweed6524]

can't forget a game like this :D

[@dagothurik1815]

I never noticed that your channel banner has Hawke in it.

[@greasyzach]

Nerbit in the hizzouse!

[@metetural9140]

Hey Nerbit! dragon age origins challenge run?

[@kayak2hell]

I worked at BioWare from 2005-2010 - two years on Mass Effect and three years on the Dragon Age franchise. Thanks for the nostalgia trip, it's been a while since I've seen that font!

[@gabrielcaro]

You worked at BioWare? What was it like working there?

[@kayak2hell]

@@gabrielcaro It was my first experience in the games industry so I was very grateful for the opportunity to work there. I only left to try something new (BioWare games tend to be formulaic). In my time there, the executive and team leads were among the best in the industry.

[@elucidation3064]

Awesome!

[@easybreezy3314]

@@kayak2hell I'm late on this but I have to know your thoughts on the " downfall " of Bioware over the last 6 or 7 years? If you'd kindly provide them. Did you see it coming? Did the success end up being the " downfall " ? I quite enjoyed Andromeda and thought they shouldn't have closed the project, no story could have possibly lived up to the Shepard trilogy but I thought they did the best they could and everything aside from story was better than the original trilogy. I'd love to know your thoughts if you ever see this or have time to reply. And if you do thanks so much in advance 😁

[@crocsarethepurestformofwea3122]

Press X to doubt

[@psyjinx]

When Dragon Age: Origins released, I rented it from blockbuster. After the rental period was over, I hid it and told my mom I lost the rental so we could own it. Absolute masterpiece of a game.

[@DreddPirateRoberts]

Hear hear.

[@justinianthe1st790]

That's sorta similar to what happened to me lol. Blockbuster rental and we just...didnt give it back. I cant believe how easy it was to do that. That was worth it. Best game to ever do that for.

[@otomicans6580]

My mom got me a fantasy book once as a stocking stuffer. It was a nice effort on her part but it was pretty clear that she just saw a book that was fantasy oriented, knew I liked similar stuff and bought it. It's the, "we have Dragon Age at home" mentality. Mom doesn't understand or care about the importance of your fantasy worlds. Any decision she makes for the toys you can or cannot have are arbitrary relative to artistic merit or quality. While usually, lying to your mother is unacceptable, I think in this case it might have been a white lie.

[@theanimer1]

I did this back when blockbuster existed.....difference is they actually did their job if you were late........good news is....they never checked the cases for the correct cd. I on a few different occasions put another cd in with the silver sheen part sticking out and when they checked. Saw a cd and moved on. It's how I got to play ff10 dragon age origins and elder scrolls oblivion lol. I was a little shit when I was young

[@hounsdjentlow3074]

Yo wtf 😂 you could get away with not returning blockbuster games?

[@c.jarmstrong3111]

I have so much respect for how much effort these 3hr+ videos must take

[@deathroar409]

In Duncan's defense he tells every person he recruits that they're is no going back or backing out. Once you're in you HAVE to follow through with the ritual.

[@MisterBlackroad]

I wouldn't say that Morrigan is mostly against helping "otherwise helpless" people, most of the time she disapproves of you helping people that wouldn't be helpless at all if they get their own asses up and did something. In the case of the circle mages she overreacted though, true.

[@masterexploder9668]

There is a reason you can give her so much trinkets to boost affection. She was raised by her mother with somewhat darwinist ideas, so I get why she behaves like she does, but given enough time, she actually develops and despite everybody warning the Warden about her, she actually softens (compared to how everybody else "hardens") and can form a normal, functional family with him. So yeah, a darwinistic ice queen tsundere with barbed tongue. :P

[@matthewcarroll2533]

@@masterexploder9668 Damn that last sentence was a perfect summary lol. 100% my type :P

[@spacejesus6581]

She seems to have overreacted but if you listen to what she's saying it's in line with her views, "they allow themselves to be corralled by cattle, and now their masters are calling for their deaths...I say, let 'em have it!" She thinks that if you want to live in the tower and follow the Chantry's will, you aren't allowed to say no when you disagree, because it's your own fault that you're following it in the first place Immoral as hell, but it makes sense to her character, just because death is involved doesn't make it an overreaction, just shows how loyal she is to her own morals

[@vangoghsseveredear]

And imperfect character with firm opinions? In a video game? Unfathomable

[@wolfsruhm]

@@vangoghsseveredear the last great character bioware ever created, anyone after fell pretty short, although there are a few gems here and there, they never reach Morrigans complexity.

[@LordSoulSicarious]

God, the Flemeth fight is still arguably my favourite RPG boss fight of all time. It's so brutal, but so good, and so fitting. I went into it *knowing* that it was gonna be hard based on all the foreshadowing and setup, but I didn't expect it to be hard enough to actually make me question whether or not letting her live was the better move.

[@duncanlutz3698]

But ultimately it doesn't matter. Flemeth is back right at the beginning of DA2 like nothing ever happened (I know, I know, bullshit resurrection via amulet bullshit that your dumbass doens't know you are doing bullshit. Did I mention this is bullshit?) Then to add insult to injury, Flemeth claims Morrigan was overreacting and that she was never in any danger. Sure, the body stealing thing happens, but she was never going to force that on Morrigan, and thus, there was never a reason to fight Flemeth in the first place. So yeah, it was an AMAZING fight that BW ruined in retrospect. Just like with the purified archdemon baby Morrigan and Flemeth planned for. A dragon god like from Tevinter in it's prime? A possible cure for the Blight, once and for all? Nah, that's nerd shit. Let's yeet that whole plotline out the window with more dumb bullshit! GOD DAMNIT!

[@BLK_MN]

Annnnd Dragon Age 2 completely ruins it, and makes Flemeth not just a dragon witch, but apparently a fucking God the Dalish worship. What a joke.

[@zoisantonopoulos7999]

@@duncanlutz3698 she also appears in dragon age inquisition no matter what if i remember correctly

[@SeventhheavenDK]

@@duncanlutz3698 . Just before you continue exaggerating with your rant... It appears some of you didn't pay attention to the dialogue.🤦‍♂️ DA2 didn't ruin anything with resurrections or anything, from the start Morrigan tells you that you weren't truly killing Flemeth and that she was going to come back one way or another, and that she wanted Flemeth's grimoire to prepare herself when that time comes. So, I don't understand why it surprises you that Flemeth came back in DA2 when since Origins it was already said.

[@SeventhheavenDK]

@@BLK_MN . Again, opinions, it ruined it for you, not for everyone.

[@conneremberton4018]

I loved finding all the different schools of magic throughout the world, like learning blood magic from the demon in Redcliffe, or finding arcane magic in the Brecilian ruins.

[@AraiiarA]

My favorite part of the game is just how replayable it feels. It's surprisingly short if you know what you're doing, and the different origins and classes, the different choices and the limited party space makes each playthrough have something a tad different from the previous ones. It's pretty similar to Fallout New Vegas in that regard

[@Bubbles99718]

It's really double the 6 origin stories, male and female run throughs of each are different (even major) enough to make it interesting and worth running again and again

[@mimmikyute]

I played through the dwarven noble origin at least ten times before I learned that if you play your cards right(or wrong, considering) then Bhelen doesn't actually frame you. Because instead you actually DO murder Trian.

[@Bubbles99718]

@@mimmikyute Really? That's interesting

[@arantir4150]

@@Bubbles99718 It's been a while but I think if you believe Bhelen, Trian is alive when you find him during the expedition and actually does want to murder you. I always thought that Bhelen tells Trian the same thing he tells you, that the other brother wants to steal the throne for himself, pitting you and Trian against each other so he can step in. But if you refuse to believe Bhelen he has to take action against Trian himself and frame you for the murder.

[@Bubbles99718]

@@arantir4150 The plot thickens....

[@rsync9490]

2:28:06 I disagree heavily here. The situation with Wynne here is supposed to be a lesson that we shouldn't put too much emphasis on our past mistakes as they may not be as bad as we thought, but we should also thank ourselves that we can feel guilt as that shows us we are capable of empathy and self-reflection. Its a good lesson yet it wasn't conveyed very well I admit. I am disappointed you didn't kill that deranged blood mage in the forest.

[@Cheepchipsable]

I'm surprised he never mentioned how Wynne could turn on you or leave the party. I'm sure many players would have come across it pretty easily. How he could like Sten is beyond me - he came across as a whiner - a big bad ass soldier who freaks out on a family because he lost his toy. So indoctrinated he can't imagine why anyone would not want to go beyond their station in life - no destined to be a philosopher, that's for sure.

[@RepressedMemories16]

@@Cheepchipsable I think sten is a statement on the nature of fanaticism and absolute control of the government. He simply isnt capable of thinking beyond his station, which is consistent in DA2, as well as in DAI with iron bull if you sacrifice the chargers when he turns on you in trespasser immediately at the request of the viddisala. It shows the flaws of the qunari way of life for those who would defend it for the "peace" to survive. And mages are not immune to the temptation to lash out as well. Multiple instances of sundering the veil and summoning demons throughout the series, even outside of the circle. Usually this is done while threatened, as it was with sten when his identity and path home were threatened when his sword was missing. Definitely not defending Sten's actions, however it is far from an isolated incident. Also, you can soften sten quite a bit depending on who you travel with. He and shale have a... interesting relationship, but it gives sten another person to call kadan within fereldan outside of the warden. He and oghren also rip and joke about humans, bringing out his morbid sense of humor. Besides, he is Arishock now, will be very interesting to see how that plays out going forward.

[@masterexploder9668]

In the cut content (which can be restored), Wynne could actually rat you out to Gregor in Broken Circle quest line if you played a Blood Mage. I dislike her attitude, but like with everything, it's a matter of taste. Her support magic is great for bosses and dragons though, unless you spec yourself or Morrigan into it :P Sten presents a completely alien way of thinking, but it's mainly indoctrination and strict caste system so everybody knows his place. To be fair, he knows what he did wasn't right, but he wants to fight the Blight as a way to redeem himself. You can still leave him in that cage, if you really think that Sten deserves it.

[@spacejesus6581]

@@masterexploder9668 I hated that she rats you out and makes you kill everyone in the room, since it's literally a violation of the Grey Warden treaties for the Templars to attempt to kill you That's why it was removed, they realized it made absolutely no sense for Greagoir to attack one or both of the only grey wardens in Ferelden because of blood magic when Wardens are immune to that law Would be better if Wynne confronted you at the camp about it

[@ivoryinkwell7864]

I never really saw Wynne as backpeddling, just being able to admit when she is wrong. Which is really fucking rare for older people.

[@mayaan773]

Yeah i actually love Wynne, i never had a grandparent in my life, and my own mother is older and stuck in her ways, so for me it was nice to see and older character kind of lovingly nag you, and then when they realized they over stepped admit and own up to it.

[@ivoryinkwell7864]

@@mayaan773 Right?! And the part about her not being keen on the Warden being in a relationship during the blight and Morigan not being a good idea isn't her being a bitch. She had her own love life blow up in her face in a particularly horrible way and she's just sitting there going, "I get it. More than you'll ever know but... Trust me, this shit is not gonna end well..." And when she sees, "Huh, they can work. Not everything is going to go as badly as my own experiences have gone. Good for you kids!"

[@legiohysterius4624]

@@ivoryinkwell7864 then morigan leaves the warden.

[@blarg2429]

@@legiohysterius4624 There's a dlc about that. When you catch up to where she is at the time, if you make the right choices you can tag along. But yeah. To be fair to Morrigan, she was raised in a swamp by the crankiest person alive. A lot of her cynicism and such strikes me as an odd form of naivete more than anything.

[@almamater489]

I know she died off-screen in the book later, but I really miss Wynnee

[@MissyJ]

I always felt like the first orge fight was purposely put to feel out of place and unbelievably hard because we're supposed to believe that the king died to one with a whole army around him. It also makes taking them down so easily later feel like an achievement and duncan killing him in vegance for the king to feel badass.

[@rachelclaw]

The City Elf Origin is highkey my favorite out of all of them from a story perspective. 10/10 do recommend at least playing through the origin, and it makes the Alienage quests later on even more interesting.

[@rruhland]

I absolutely love how the character origins all happen no matter which one you pick. Obviously you’re the only one Duncan comes to get, but if you take City Elf, the Dwarf Noble stuff still happens. It makes it so much cooler when you have seen all the origins and play through and see the fallout of things you could have affected.

[@shipu302]

@@timr6492 You're probably mistaking it with the carta hideout raid during the Orzamar storyline. That's where you find his body alongside your best buddy from that origin story, who is still alive.

[@mortemtyrannus8813]

Best part about the City Elf origin is how it's the only origin that changes based on your choice of gender. Male city elf, you're storming the castle to save your kidnapped bride. Female city elf, you're the bride, breaking out of prison and hoping your husband didn't get himself killed trying to save you.

[@fenrisvermundr2516]

@@mortemtyrannus8813 Nah the best part is that you can do all that and just make a deal with Vaughn instead. I know I'm terrible cause I always go that route.

[@MishraArtificer]

@@rruhland I think the only one you don't come across in the main game (if you played any of the other Origins) is the Human Noble, as they were killed in Highever, and the rest of the classes never go there...but I'm pretty sure your character's brother, Fergus, makes it to the end.

[@princeofddr]

Between this and Many A True Nerd's playthrough, it's nice to see interest in this game being reborn again!

[@officialyab0iprxston674]

Glad I'm not the only MATN fan out there, mans been grinding for years and still underrated

[@DreddPirateRoberts]

I know, right?! Just gotta get Oxhorn hooked, and we'll have the trifecta.

[@ashleyno7481]

God, could you imagine if the renewed interest lead EA to sanction a remaster?

[@ashleyno7481]

@No Comment Well, obviously not. I just think that a surge in online popularity could bring good things for DA. We are in the era of game remasters, and DAO was a critical darling of a popular Bioware franchise. Not to mention that we just got ME:LE. The odds aren't horrible for a remaster Just trying to have a bit of optimism for my favorite franchise :)

[@draakgast]

@@ashleyno7481 remaster would be cool but let's be fair. the remaster would be crap compared to modded DA:O, people have already added what they wanted (thank god)

[@calemr]

I remember when I played this game, I loved exploring possible builds for the party. And my personal favourite was the Mage Knight Wynne. She became an unstoppable juggernaut of a tank, able to keep herself constantly topped up on health. And it's just kind of amusing to watch this really old woman step up in platemail and smack people around with a magic sword. Also I love her interactions with Oghren, which largely boil down to A: She is surprisingly knowledgeable about ale, and B: He is a GILF hunter.

[@ragsash]

The dwarf noble ending is one of the bigger reasons why its the canon ending for me, the option for fereldan and the dwarfs to become military allies and fight to take back half the dwarf kingdom is more than you get with any other ending. even tho its just a text and it dont really mean anything I do love the idea of taking the fight to the darkspawn and not just defend against them but actually attack them

[@Alynis_]

I played this game so many times through. I loved that the backgrounds really changed your experience, and that you could find and earn secret specializations like blood magic or arcane warrior. This game is, in my opinion, still one of the best rpgs ever made.

[@mayagilstrom3608]

I know this video has been out for a while now, but I just wanted to tell you that you convinced me to give this game another chance and now I'm addicted to it. I had tried it out years ago, but only had experience with Besthesda games for the most part, so the combat and party system didn't click with me and I put it down after an hour and never tried it again. Now after watching this video I'm like 20 hours in and having an incredible time - so thank you!

[@monkeytime9851]

Its one of my favourite games of all time, and I played it when it first came out knowing nothing about what it would be. Get the DLC too. Shale is hilarious.

[@boobah5643]

@@monkeytime9851 Shale isn't hardly DLC. At least on the PC, her 'DLC' was basically unlocked by registering the game online with EA.

[@Aerowarrier]

I’m saying this right when it’s happening so idk if he gets this later on, but Shield Bash, which Alistair automatically knows, and a rogue’s pocket sand (that’s what it is lol) both stop grabs. I literally always have one tactic on my shield users being: If enemy is grabbing, use Shield Bash. It’s absolutely necessary. It also makes the fight against the ogre a lot more tactical, with you strategically stunning it so you can get hits off. I will say it’s a lot better as a rogue so you can get more damage, or with a mage cuz magic is really good but yeah

[@benl2140]

Man, I wish I knew this before I tried playing the game on Nightmare lol.

[@hondshoven8477]

Winter's grasp (or any freezing spell if their effect goes through) also stop grabs.

[@gretakalmar2282]

Also I think the mage you get as a random companion has Paralysis which stops grabs too

[@Aerowarrier]

Pommel Strike on two handed users does it as well. I think pinning shot for bows does. Petrification does as well. There’s a lot of options for it but yeah, there are ways to counter grabs if you’re creative

[@Aerowarrier]

@@benl2140 oh yeah Nightmare is crazy. I’ve done all three on Nightmare and Origins is definitely the hardest. Pro tip there, archers are god tier late game, especially in dlc, so abuse them as much as you can. Early game focus on mages and making your warriors as survivable as possible. Also kill enemy mages as quickly as you can, they are always the biggest threat

[@Themagfairy]

I love the companion banter in this game 😍 it's not just Companion A: line of dialogue Companion B: retort/reply It goes back and forth and the third companion can jump in too. It's sooo nice! Better than the newer DA games and games like Baldur's Gate 3 and The Pathfinder RPGs in that department

[@THATGuy5654]

When you choose "surprise me" in the Pearl, the aftermath is one of the funniest things I've seen in a video game. The nug avoiding eye contact... if I'd been attacked at that point, I would not have been in a position to defend myself.

[@skimboardboy]

Having gone back recently to replay it and all the DLC’s… yes, yes it is.

[@mazemusicx9221]

Got it on a steam sale a while back. Haven't finished a game that long within a week for ages.

[@Skumtomten1]

This game ruined gaming for me. Every other game has been disappointing and empty in comparison. After playing DA:O I haven't been satisfied with any other rpg I have played tbh.

[@velociraptor3313]

@@Skumtomten1 I love Dragon Age Origins, There are a few games I recommend giving a try Kingdom Come Deliverance it's a great game. Ghost Of Tsushima and Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt.

[@logainwolfe1988]

Try Divinity 2. Speaking from a similar position, it filled the void.

[@stock6600]

@@Skumtomten1 honestly, same. The only RPG that ever came close to Origins for me is Divinity 2, but i sadly have an aversion to isometric view (which speaks volumes about how good the game is, tbh). Baldur 3 apparently is cool, but it is an early access, so i am waiting for an actual release to try it out.

[@j.d.7285]

Having played most of the bethesda et Bioware games, I have to say that DA:O is by far my favorite. I grew up with this lore, and it forged my creativity, I ll never thank the developers enough for this gem

[@Greatanotherchannel]

Its also the last old guard bioware game

[@helixgob695]

It’s unfortunate that the new developers over at BioWare have no clue what made DA:O good in the first place and have ruined the franchise. Such a shame

[@Ghidorah96]

How does Witcher 3 compare

[@R-SXX]

@@helixgob695 inqusition is very enjoyable, after a few crucial mods. A remake of origins would be cool.

[@wu1ming9shi]

@WntrTmpst It's based on medieval mythology more than actual fantasy though...

[@kayinoue2497]

Dragon Age: Origins is by far one of my all time favorite games. I wish I could play it again for the first time, and the memories I have of that and the people who got me into this classic s little late, are precious.

[@radicalcentrist4990]

It still is probably my favorite RPG. What I like about it is that the role playing aspect actually matters. It matters what race you are, it matters what gender you are, it matters what your background is. So replaying the game with a different race/gender/background leads to a different experience. There are things that didn't age well. The graphics, they weren't that good for their time either, looks more like a late PS2 game. Even Mass Effect 1 looks better. There are balancing issues, some fights in the game are just bs and not every class or skill seems to be useful. Levels like the Deep Roads and The Fade might aswell be removed or at least cut the size of them.

[@zakharpolikarpov2525]

You DO know, that you can collect these lyrium things in the fade, which recover your stats? Which ultimately helps to avoid endless kiting. From the gameplay I've seen it seemed like you didn't use them at all

[@VashdaCrash]

Maybe he thought they were decoration? lol

[@bleddynwolf8463]

@@VashdaCrash thats what i thought first 2-3 playthroughs

[@VashdaCrash]

@@bleddynwolf8463 lol I did catch them, I was aware of items that disguised as decoration somehow.

[@Totherphoenix]

he specifically addressed those permanent stat buffs in the fade portion of the video...

[@bleddynwolf8463]

@@Totherphoenix we ain't talking about stats, we talking about lyrium

[@irishijo1]

Ahh, Majula. Literally one of my favorite 'safe zone' tunes. I can tell it anywhere with how warm it makes me feel. Good video, and good choice of tunes!

[@jimijenkins2548]

Majuju's the best location in DS2, hands down.

[@femthingevelyn]

majula's theme is genuinely one of my favorite pieces of video game music

[@irishijo1]

@Tristan I wouldnt say best souls, it certainly have its appeal, and I think why its such a touchy game is that its not Dark Souls 2. Its Demon Souls 2, it takes alot more inspiration from it, as opposed to Dark Souls. It doesnt exactly blend it all together well, whereas Dark Souls 3 blends some of those ideas much better, like the FP system and the inclusion of Simple/Blesed enchantments restoring bars over time. In terms of gameplay, DS3 is fluid, while giving the player an insane amount of freedom. Dark Souls 2 on the other hand has more secrets, and paths, and also has its share of freedom, but you need to commit alot earlier to some things, and sometimes you arent going to have a good time until 3-6 hours in. 2 is a diamond in the rough, where 3 is a polished gem, theyre both pretty, but one needs some work and loving before it rewards you with a beautiful gem.

[@dreamingdragon5245]

My god I played a female elven mage and went down the Alistar romance route. What I didn't know is that making him king causes him to end the relationship. Then at the battle of the Archdemon he told my elf that he would never let his love die and that he would have been a horrible king anyways. It was a gut punch to my feels and I'm still devastated to this day.

[@HaruDoneYet]

Aw man that’s like beautifully tragic! I really need to try out the other origin combinations lol I just keep becoming queen because like anything else is either sad or not the same

[@bryanc6142]

that dwarf noble starting story is actually one of the best stories i've played glad ya went with it this time lol

[@hug-gapug-ga8873]

I played dragon age origins when I was young around 8 or 9 I still remember certain parts like killing the arch demon and getting certain armours, But most of the story for me at the time was a blur since I was young. I bought the game again when I was 16 on steam when I saw it there. And I can say without a doubt in my mind that the game was EVEN BETTER THAN I REMEMBER. I liked the game as a child and enjoyed I still enjoy it now at 17 I have over thousand hours. I can say without a doubt in my mind that dragon age origins will forever be my favourite game of all time.

[@mordinsolus9507]

Turning 20 in a week and im about to Play through origins again i must of been around the same age when i played origins first i started reading the prequel novels when i was training for the Army i got so immersed into the world!.

[@kummakummakummakummakummac8606]

I bet you probably got it for cheap too. I remember buying the regular edition for $25.00 and loving it.

[@ijustmakeinflammatorycomme9839]

@@mordinsolus9507 im 22 now, on my 4th playthrough in 3 years probably gonna play an elf this time

[@surfernorm6360]

good for you . I'm sure you have been to Nexus but if you haven't go there and look at the mods. Not near as many as skyrim but still a lot and some major story mods. and the Saphhos Daughters , the Wardens Women group that was lots more replay. they are mature though.

[@LieutenantStandby]

BALDURS GATE 2 SHADOWS OF AMN. There's no way Dragon Age will remain your favourite once you've been through Baldurs Gate 2. No one has been able to best that rpg game.

[@GingrWithNoE]

Man I miss old Bioware. This was one of the greatest RPGs ever.

[@bernieclinton9572]

Same. It was like the perfect point in BioWares lifetime. It was such a disappointment what happened with the sequels