Okay, we finished Dragon Age Inquisition last night. It was a cool ending, and here are my thoughts on the game's ending.I feel if we would have finished the story using the Dragon Age pen-and-paper game we would have had a better time and wrapped this up on a more personal and satisfying note. We didn't, so I am hoping we can run the entire game as a pen-and-paper campaign sometime in the near future, using the hint book as my guide I would love to do this, and I feel it would be an epic tribute to the game and the experience.
We would need to play the DLC or go read what happened to know the entire story though, because one of the characters is pivotal to the plot and the ending.
I am 50-50 on using the powers from the game or using the powers from the pen-and-paper game. The game's powers are remarkably compatible with the pen-and-paper game; if something says it does 150% of normal weapon damage that is a pretty easy thing to convert to the pen-and-paper game. Most of the powers are like this, and it would be a fun experience to run the game using the videogame's power and talent trees. The pen-and-paper game's powers are a more realistic world (and they are balanced) so this is kind of a toss-up for me.
I would definitely use the hint-book as our bestiary, there are so many cool monsters in there that is a no-brainer. The hint-book also serves as a place and world guide, it would be fun seeing these places again in a pen-and-paper game, closing rifts, and meeting the people of the world. Having these places already created is a huge boon, and with a couple artistic changes more could be added to keep things different and fresh.Using the events in the game would also be a blast, and I wonder if the battle in the original group's base would come out the same. Yes, that is a pivotal moment, and sets up the next base and the story's transformation as an all-is-lost moment, but something makes me think a group of pen-and-paper players would somehow find a way. Similarly, I am betting many of the game's X or Y choices would come out quite differently with a referee that could make changes to the story and plot.
As for the game itself, it was a fun ride. I wanted a more epic story, along the lines of Final Fantasy VI experience, which to me is the bar set for "save the world" plots in console RPGs. There is nothing like saving the world after it has been destroyed, and this game floored us then, and it still does now. There are many similarities between the games including a "destroyed world" part, but in FF VI, you actually get to adventure there and fight back, which is the ultimate world-saving power trip for hero-types.Dragon Age Inquisition's combat and character systems left us flat. We wanted more strategy in the fights, and playing as an archer, the entire game felt far away and spammy. I do not recommend playing as any sort of mage or archer in this game, as you miss out on seeing the battles and enemies up close. Fighter up-close or nothing, or else it is just "shoot the small blob of flashing action in the center of the screen." For 80-90% of the game, that's how it was for us. We wanted more of that "character building" and "choices matter" stuff, and more customization. Also, the game felt like it had too many MMO style cool-down spammy powers that felt the same. I would love to see less powers that mean more.
The war-room mechanics felt flat as well, more like a text-based level selector than an actual table where forces moved and fought. We never felt there was a war going on here, and the illusion of this reflecting the actual world fell flat for us, and thus the "war room" became more of a "mission unlock" screen and activity for us.
Fun? Yes. Worthy of a pen-and-paper play-through and campaign? Yes, by far. Overall, a worthy game not without some rough spots, but as a source of inspiration and a game world all unto itself, it is a rare gem and worthy of attention, especially as a Pathfinder or D&D alternative to Golarion or Faerun. Would I love to see a game of this production value and detail covering either of those two worlds? Yes, but I doubt it will ever happen because of the OGL's silliness and limitations, or Wizard's history with videogames.
For that reason, I see Dragon Age as a stronger and more compelling world to play in, because we got a glimpse into this world through a game that we will never get with the D&D style games. We heard the music, traveled across the lands, met the people, and suffered alongside them during a time of great tragedy. That creates a personal connection that a "Tomb of Horrors" or an adventure path can't compete with. We've been here. It is familiar and compelling. When we hear the music, we are instantly brought back there to that place. We would love to meet Varric or Bull. We would love to be back in this place. The game, despite its flaws, takes us to another place, and that is the mark of a great game.
Would I love D&D or Pathfinder to do this type of AAA game? Yes.
But I don't feel it will ever happen. These D&D style games feel like they are too focused on fiddly mathematical rules, and not the living, breathing worlds and the people that live within them. There was a point for us post D&D 4th Edition that we said "we care less about the math and we want something more", and it just feels like D&D 5 is a patch for D&D 4 and Pathfinder is still trying to fix D&D 3.
We don't want rules, we want a world.
So then, we set our destination as one more familiar and compelling, and we travel there. Right now, that is Dragon Age with its excellent pen-and-paper game, and the soundtracks and images three incredible games have given our play experience. It is a living, breathing experience, not unlike Star Wars, where if you hear the music and see the pictures you are taken to that place in a galaxy far, far away in a world a long, long time ago.
For us, that sense of place is irreplaceable, and thus, Dragon Age feels like home for our fantasy gaming experience.
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