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Yeah, it's ridiculous.
Sures Darrah leaving could impact the project at some point, whenever that may be, but I'm not going to think about that. I'm still looking forward to DA4.
Things will definitely be different with a new Executive Producer, but we will never know how different. Or if things got better or worse. We know so very little about the game.
Which is why it's absurd how people are reacting in the other thread. You'd think the only people who could ever work on a franchise were the ones who created it. Nevermind that Patrick Weekes, the person who joined BioWare to work on Mass Effect, became a wonderful addition to the Dragon Age team in Inquisition. First Dragon Age game they tackled and knocked it out of the park. Even their work on the books is fantastic, to the point people now look at Weekes as THE new Dragon Age writer after Gaider left.
Darrah leaving is a bit of a blow, not gonna lie. But I'm not worried about DA4 as it is, there are plenty of amazing talented people working hard on it as we speak, and video game dev is teamwork most and foremost.
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I feel like we haven't seen enough blood sacrifices from the Tevinters we've seen so far. And they are supposed to be the kings & queens of blood sacrifice. Maybe we can actually partake in one in a really difficult moral dilemma for the next game and have it be "justified" but "very bad", gets you a reputation. But also solves you a major problem, perhaps in a way that is even "better" solved than without using the blood magic route.
Honestly the blow of Mark leaving is more that I loved seeing him interact with fans. Who else is going to endlessly shit post us now????
On a more serious note, as that tweet shows, it's just not fair to the people themselves or the teams they work with to put all the work on one person. It's a tremendous amount of stress and is just plain wrong, there are so many talented people at BioWare who make the games what they are.
Happy Dragon Age Day!
And yeah, please don't put all this into Patrick. John Epler has been on the series since Origins, as well as many senior devs. Remember that we only see a few of them in public. Most of the team isn't highlighted, or people aren't comfortable enough with the exposure.
EDIT: Sometimes, this kind of stress is what makes people leave, too. Outside pressure on top of your job isn't something most people desire to have.
And yeah, please don't put all this into Patrick. John Epler has been on the series since Origins, as well as many senior devs. Remember that we only see a few of them in public. Most of the team isn't highlighted, or people aren't comfortable enough with the exposure.
EDIT: Sometimes, this kind of stress is what makes people leave, too. Outside pressure on top of your job isn't something most people desire to have.
Huh... didn't realize Mary was still with the team. I thought she left.
Anywho, I got some new stuff to read during lunch. *rubs hands*
Anywho, I got some new stuff to read during lunch. *rubs hands*
Christian Daily was "Franchise Development Director for the Anthem Live Service"
EA appointing him as head of DA4 means they want next Dragon age to be a massive Live Service game.
With the success of Genshin Impact, maybe they want to turn DA4 into another 'gacha' game?
EA appointing him as head of DA4 means they want next Dragon age to be a massive Live Service game.
With the success of Genshin Impact, maybe they want to turn DA4 into another 'gacha' game?
That seems extremely unlikely. Just because Dailey worked on Anthem doesn't mean they will make DA exactly like Anthem. Besides, a game could have "live" elements and still contain content that we know to be Dragon Age. These things are not mutually exclusive. DA:I already had a multiplayer mode and there are a bunch of things they could do that aren't like Genshin Impact. DA:I had the War Table in which used a real-world clock and the concept of "agents" - they could take that concept and turn those into drop-in drop-out co-op/multiplayer missions. It's just an example, but having a live element isn't inherently the end of the world and saying so is categorically false.
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That seems like a reductionist view of what "Live Service" actually is; it's more than "gatcha", "moba", or "multiplayer". Assassin's Creed Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla are all "live service" games, and what they all have in common is content delivery, they're "live" in the sense that they're supported with new frequent content to keep players coming back. It can come in the form of being multiplayer-first, multiplayer as an option, or no multiplayer at all in lieu of frequent content updates like expansions. You can have Dragon Age and Anthem have seasons, despite Dragon Age being SP and Anthem being MP, if you're dropping seasonal story content it works either way.
I think it would be for the best if the Solas arc wraps up in DA4, for multiple reasons. One, I am generally not a fan of continuous overarching plots in game series as there is a tendency for fuck all to be done with them once they're established. I don't want Solas continuously slowly maneuvering in the background as the PC fights off whatever current-game-centric villain has been introduced like a bald Rita from Power Rangers. Second, there are other fruitful lore topics well worth investing a game in, and finishing the Solas story doesn't mean the Dragon Age story has been told. And third...yes I am worried about the future of the series. Dragon Age has sold well by Bio standards, but it's by no means a 15 million seller giant like Elder Scrolls and Witcher. While I have no fears about Bio being shut down, I think an underperforming Dragon Age 4 might lead EA to shifting them to other projects, the way Eidos Montreal was dragged into Tomb Raider at the expense of Deus Ex.
Fourth, I just really wanna know what fucking happens, lol.
Dragon Age is traditionally BioWare's most successful series no? Origins and Inquisition were huge for them. If a new Mass Effect can be greenlit, I can't imagine Dragon Age wouldn't if to at least tie up the series.
Dragon Age Inquisition was BioWare's best selling game so I assume so
Yes, but like I said, best-selling for BioWare is not necessarily all it's cracked up to be, especially with how long between games it's taking lately. Bio games definitely have a larger hardcore gamer mindshare than the greater commercial/casual demographic. Origins I believe (and probably Inquisition as well at this point) sold in the 6-7 million range. While that's good, I don't quite think it makes the future of the series a guarantee the way that, say, Horizon selling over 10 million in under 3 years does for that franchise.
Not doomposting or anything, I've already said I would be utterly shocked if BioWare was shut down any time soon, and if I had to bet I'd say Dragon Age will continue indefinitely. But I'm also a huge Legacy of Kain fan and I know the pain of an unfinished series just as it was reaching its climax.
I feel like they said back in the DA2 days that DA has no business going over 5 games.
I don't think BioWare has actually had a commercially unsucessful game since being with EA? Even Anthem I think was the best selling new IP for that year, I think it made it's money back even if it didn't hit it's expectations. And EA literally just moved them to a bigger shinier studio. I don't think they are in much trouble tbh.
Nah, they said they plan roughly five games ahead, not that they'd be done in five.
Are there are videos or resources where I can go to get a recap on the Dragon Age story so far?
I've played DA Origins, DA 2, and DA Inquisition (but not any DLC) and have forgotten alot of the story. I want to be up to date.
I wonder if all our choices will carry over into DA4, like they did for Inquisition. Which was awesome.
I've played DA Origins, DA 2, and DA Inquisition (but not any DLC) and have forgotten alot of the story. I want to be up to date.
I wonder if all our choices will carry over into DA4, like they did for Inquisition. Which was awesome.
If you google the Dragon Age Keep, it does a video summary of your choices through the game and explain what happens.
Here's a link to the default world state that someone uploaded to youtube (don't think it covers Inquisition though):
Honestly assume they'll just continue to use the Keep to import choices
What the actual fuck? Why would Ellis find it appropriate to publicly say something like that, even if deep inside he actually believes it?
Is he trying to not be hired by BioWare again? Lol.
Greg Ellis has been burning bridges for a looooooonnnnng time.
I can now see he was typecast as Cullen/Anders. He's just as much of an asshole.
Was DA2 successful for them? Might just be the other forums' bias playing with my mind, and ERA as well, but I don't remember it winning too many awards.
Actually sold well and had short dev time so did well commercially. Critically acclaim is not the same as commercially sucessful, Jade Empire for example was critically acclaimed but did not sell well
thank you so much.
God I love Dragon Age so much lol. Just going to the Keep brings back memories.
Have some form of co-op play + Fifa Teams system + seasonal events baked into DA and it becomes "gacha" game.
You can already spend money to open crates in Mass Effect for better weapons in co-op.
I just find it suspicious that Mark Darrah and Casey Hudson is leaving at the same time and the lead for Dragon Age got replaced with Live Services director.
Maybe I'm wrong, EA did a performance review and found them wanting? Maybe they did a play test on latest Dragon Age build and it wasn't good enough? I don't know. But its no secret that EA wants deeper monetization with their products and success of Genshin Impact would have some influence on upper management.
lol have some form of perpetual paid content releases and you have a live service game. Gacha is as plausible as becoming a Battle Royale. Dailey is BioWare senior leadership who's now in charge because other senior leadership left. Who else takes over, a writer?
Inquisition had a multiplayer mode, albeit an unsuccessful one, so it's likely that future titles will feature some form of multiplayer mode with microtransactions. BioWare had great sucess with Mass Effect 3 and they've been trying to replicate that since. To me, it's all fair game; Inquisition didn't suffer for having a multiplayer mode. But that's most likely not why they chose Christian Bailey to be the game's new lead. It's not like he can only work on GaaS titles.
Look, Casey and Mark weren't fired. They retired from BioWare. We have to remember that these guys have been involved in BioWare games for decades now. It's not uncommon to want to look for something new.
Being involved in Anthem doesn't mean you're making every new project you're working on like it. Mark Darrah was on Anthem, too. Developers from the Mass Effect Trilogy worked on that. We're talking about a leadership position, and Dailey may be a good fit for an Executive Producer for that team. His promotion doesn't mean he'll scrap the work that's being done. The Creative Director, the Lead Writer, and the Narrative Director are still the same people.
Man... it's great to see old names like Hrungr still kicking around committing time and effort to ensure that the Dragon Age fandom is alive and well.
That's Strife, dalish guy in Tevinter NightsI wanna know who these guys are so baaaad
So. Bad.
I've never even played a Dragon Age game yet here I am wondering who the artists are and whether I can buy an art book of all of these or similar pieces
That's the same art style from the Inquisition cards, right? I think that's when they first started using it. It's so good! It's SO GOOD!
Dragon Age 4 is not only experiencing a healthy development and will reach its release with no further complications, it will be a fun hack 'n slash romp and a fantastic conclusion to the Solas plot line and will more or less offer a satisfying book end to the series as a whole with reveals about the nature of the Darkspawn, Fade, the old/elven gods, and the Qunari that will answer all of our questions over the years.
....or it will be none of that. *shrug*
Listen, there's no harm in dreaming, ok?
....or it will be none of that. *shrug*
Listen, there's no harm in dreaming, ok?