It won best mediocre game of a mediocre year and sales say nothing. If it had sold that well there would be another one already, hence why they are not doing another one.
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Laidlaw: Dragon Age 4's dev team was reduced to "a very small skeleton crew” [UP: ominous tweet]
- Thread starter Nirolak
- Start date
It's also possible that it sold well enough, but other games like Destiny did even BETTER and looked to be a better return with that team.
Though I bet The Witcher 3 and Destiny 2's apparently more modest return is making them go "oh for fuck's sake" internally.
This. The point of Dragon Age has ALWAYS been that the villain is the world they inhabit and the monsters it creates. That under the surface is a hellscape controlled by infinitely powerful monsters that the mortal minds of those that inhabit Thedas are not ready nor able to combat. We don't need to know how Corypheus was corrupted or what the Imperium used to be like because they aren't the point. The point is that the world corrupts even those that seek power for seemingly altruistic reasons, and that those people, not the ones screaming about ancient magic while looking like a failed David Lynch villain, are the real threat and the ones you need to deal with.
Ugh, I've seen Gamble and Hudson talking vaguely in positive tones about ME's future. If they elect to drag its corpse along rather than give us DA4, one of my last hopes for them is fading.
Oh, right!
And I do agree it was kind of a mediocre or at least somewhat good RPG in a year that mostly sucked. It was a generation transition year, and it was one of those early games with a next gen wow factor to it. I'd put something like Dark a Souls II way above it.
And I do agree it was kind of a mediocre or at least somewhat good RPG in a year that mostly sucked. It was a generation transition year, and it was one of those early games with a next gen wow factor to it. I'd put something like Dark a Souls II way above it.
Witcher 3, Skyrim, Assassin's Creed, Destiny, you name it. Their whole thing with ME and DA was that they wanted a 10 million seller and they never got one. They are not going to put the time and I seriously doubt they have what it takes to do a TW3 or AC:O kind of game (DA:I's design is so outdated in comparison), so they went the Destiny 2 route, i.e., endlessly expanding, repetition based shooter that they can monetize forever. That's the EA way.
This is absolute nonsense, BTW, and I'm baffled by the popularity of the sentiment. I can only assume it's because most of the major releases of the year came late in 2014 and PS4 owners who bought their console in 2013 had some kind of buyer's remorse thing going on. 2014 was full of amazing games.
There is almost zero chance of Anthem being the end of Bioware, no matter how it does.
If you think EA convinced Casey Hudson to come back without some pretty hefty guarantees tied to at least getting one game after Anthem, you'd very likely be incorrect. He'll get at least one shot at something not-Anthem.
If you think EA convinced Casey Hudson to come back without some pretty hefty guarantees tied to at least getting one game after Anthem, you'd very likely be incorrect. He'll get at least one shot at something not-Anthem.
And contrary to belief on this forum, just like Fallout 4, most people agree with the reception of DA:I and it's sales show that.
Bioware is in a lose-lose situation for me. If Anthem is a success they'll abandon everything I enjoyed about their games for more multiplayer GAAS crap that the industry is being filled with.
If Anthem fails, then goodbye BioWare.
If Anthem fails, then goodbye BioWare.
Nah.
It won Game of the Year of an average year, and it is an amazing RPG for many.
As far as getting another one, we don't know. The (very good) sales of DAI probably have little to do with the delays, and Andromeda's (poor) sales a lot.
BioWare isn't going anywhere. Some people might lose their jobs but that name isn't going anywhere. It has recognition that other studios don't have, EA isn't going to lose that because of a few flops.
I generally hope that this game comes to fruition and that Bioware actually learns something from several of the much better designed open world RPGs released since.
I hated DA: Inquisition by the time I beat it, but that feeling took almost 50 hours to coalesce, which suggests to me that the core idea for the game was fine, but critical blunders in pacing and design hurt the experience. This compared to other open-world fare like NV, TW3 and BOTW which I liked more the more time I spent in those worlds.
What exactly are you trying to say here?
This comes off as 'People on this forum don't like this game, but they are wrong because other people like it and it was popular.'
I hated DA: Inquisition by the time I beat it, but that feeling took almost 50 hours to coalesce, which suggests to me that the core idea for the game was fine, but critical blunders in pacing and design hurt the experience. This compared to other open-world fare like NV, TW3 and BOTW which I liked more the more time I spent in those worlds.
What exactly are you trying to say here?
This comes off as 'People on this forum don't like this game, but they are wrong because other people like it and it was popular.'
Contrarians tend to be louder and more persistent.
I mean look at MGS4. It won GOTY vote on GAF twice but that didn't stop it from seeming like the forum hated it. I think that's why he's saying. Even the popular sentiment on the forum may not really be what it seems because those with an axe to grind will do so and those that enjoyed things tend to move on and ignore that sort of stuff more.
I get that, I take issue with how much of a non-statement it is. It says nothing about whether or not those opinions are wrong or unfair, just that other people have opposite opinions.
Also, I do not agree with that general sentiment because suitably popular games on this forum get contrarian opinion drowned out pretty aggressively. At least here, people passionately defend things they like almost as much as they are willing to do the opposite.
And, DA: I did pretty well on the forum until the following year. Witcher 3 sort of turned popular opinion.
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I think the essential point is that people on enthusiast forums tend to go for this weird, "I didn't like it so NOBODY liked it" nonsense. Just look at something like Crysis 2 or Hitman: Absolution. You can have a game that sold better than every other game in its series, got glowing reviews, and by all reasonable accounts was well liked by the gaming public. And instead of being willing to admit that, a lot of enthusiasts will insist that, for example, the only good Dragon Age game was Origins. I'd wager most Dragon Age fans never played Origins, just as most Witcher 3 fans have only played The Witcher 3 and most Mass Effect fans only played Mass Effect 3. The sentiment that Origins is the only good Dragon Age may very well be true, but it is unreasonable to argue that it's a commonly held belief considering the series demographics. There's a tendency to resent the popularity of a game that, in the eyes of some, is an unfitting successor. A tendency to believe that your personal dislike for a game is overwhelmingly shared despite any and all evidence to the contrary. That's ultimately why Dragon Age: Inquisition arguments go round in circles. Yes, the game has flaws. Most fans would happily admit that, I think. But the game's strong points endeared it to a lot of people. It sold a lot of copies. Which means it's the game most DA fans have played.
Of all the loot shooters, Anthem to me looks to be the most attractive. From a gameplay perspective and overall potential.
I find it funny that the thing that pulls be back to Bioware's fold will be the game further from their initial principles.
I find it funny that the thing that pulls be back to Bioware's fold will be the game further from their initial principles.
Are we really REALLY back to this "If Anthem fails Bioware is done" talk again?
Bioware edmonton's last game was Dragon Age: Inquisition. A game which sold VERY well and won many GOTY awards when it came out. They did NOT make Mass Effect Andromeda, that was a new studio that EA made and named Bioware, a few of the bioware people helped but the main development was done by this new studio (which has closed since then).
EA would have to be completely NUTS to have Bioware on the chopping block with Anthem, even if it does fall, it'd be stupid NOT to put them back on Mass Effect or Dragon Age after Anthem regardless.
I don't think they are anywhere near "danger" of being shut down like some people seem to think they are on era.
Bioware edmonton's last game was Dragon Age: Inquisition. A game which sold VERY well and won many GOTY awards when it came out. They did NOT make Mass Effect Andromeda, that was a new studio that EA made and named Bioware, a few of the bioware people helped but the main development was done by this new studio (which has closed since then).
EA would have to be completely NUTS to have Bioware on the chopping block with Anthem, even if it does fall, it'd be stupid NOT to put them back on Mass Effect or Dragon Age after Anthem regardless.
I don't think they are anywhere near "danger" of being shut down like some people seem to think they are on era.
I imagine they at least have, or at least had, the writing chops to match if not exceed AC, but game design? Yeah, doubt it.
Admittedly I can see DA:I having done ok as one of those early gen games, but then there were games like Destiny doing gangbusters and it would likely have an even smaller audience now despite the larger install base.
I agree. The only thing I realistically fear is what type of game the next Dragon Age or Mass Effect is.
Inquisition had one or two systems that made me uncomfortable at the time, and AC: Origins and AC: Odyssey have set a bit of a precedent.
BioWare will survive Anthem, I fear them becoming the Anthem Studio.
One thing I've noticed is that a lot of people seem to think EA shut down studios left and right without reason, when in fact EA are known for giving studios a huge amount of leeway. If you release a game that underperforms, you'll typically get a second chance. Maybe a third if you're lucky. And if they do shut you down, they will try to merge you with another studio.
EA are considered a lovely place to work for a reason, but because the games industry is so secretive, there's a lack of perspective.
The sentiment that has been repeated by many, including the co-founders of BioWare, is that EA gives you enough rope to either pull yourself up or hang yourself. They're perfectly fine to leave you alone if you hit deadlines and make sales, but if you don't then they come down.
But seriously, if DA4 is canceled that EA/BioWare is kind of dead to me. Let's be clear, DA4 was nowhere near release. However, it was at least being worked on, even after the reboot. Thus, we could've expected at least a 3-4 year wait after Anthem. But, a full cancellation means that even if it every did get picked back up it would be at least a decade. And, do you think they'd just continue the story from Inquisition/Trespasser? Fuck no, they'd reboot or do some prequel crap. In other words, it wouldn't be DA4.
Fuck this shit if true.
EA needs a diverse portfolio. RPG's sell a lot when you see Witcher and such. Elder scrolls VI is anticipated and asscreed is heading more rpg by the year. Makes no sense especially since now EA got command and conquer back(lets see if it works out) for the rts. Hopefully Jason from Kotaku can shed some light on this, and hopefully the future is bright, cause I adore the Dragon Age franchise, DAI being my favourite despite the flaws. Doh
I mean, they have to do something with those people once anthem is done. I don think its totally unrealistic that they would be moved back to a previous project.
Dragon Age being shifted to low priority sucks I want to know the continuation of what they started in inquisition but I guess I should start making peace with it. It's actually the last thing from EA I actually kinda care about.
I find it funny if DA4 is canned, the only big open world games in a fantasy setting coming out is Elder Scrolls 6, and that is probably years out.
While nothing has been announced and to not complain/vent about EA's entire existence and how negatively I view the company. I just hope the best for the Dragon Age team.
While nothing has been announced and to not complain/vent about EA's entire existence and how negatively I view the company. I just hope the best for the Dragon Age team.
They don't have to make it grand scale. There is no rule that says the sequel has to be bigger.
Settle for something small and intimate, AA experience is acceptable imo. 20-40 hrs long and answer most questions in Trespasser.
Settle for something small and intimate, AA experience is acceptable imo. 20-40 hrs long and answer most questions in Trespasser.
Hmmm I should really play Inquisition. It has been $10 in the bargain bin at Gamestop for forever. I actually liked Mass Effect Andromeda so I might like this as well.
Well, shit.
Outside of the repetition in areas outside Kirkwall (admittedly, inside some of Kirkwall, too), I really enjoyed DA2's smaller scale. I'd be happy with something similar again.
Games like Destiny and Overwatch changed the game. It's not about making hits anymore it's about the ability to long term milk consumers repeatedly. When EA canceled that single player Star Wars game Amy Hennig was making the writing was on the wall. There's no place at EA for such games anymore.
Wasn't Inquisition by some distance Bioware's best seller ever. It's really hard to just not assume the worst.
I think Anthem will do well though, so hopefully EA will put the gun down for awhile.
I think Anthem will do well though, so hopefully EA will put the gun down for awhile.
I too enjoyed DA2's story and characters. I'd like DA to go back to non-open world approach again.
As far as I understand it, EA wanted to pivot said game from being a linear ~10 hour long experience into something open world. So it was cannibalized to make a new game.
Imagine if they were in the midst of retooling Dragon Age as a mobile IP, only for EA to witness the reaction to Diablo Immortal, get cold feet, and pull the plug.
....Fuck this, I wasn't the biggest fan of Inquisition but I always had a soft spot for Dragon Age, Origins is a legit top 10 RPG contender, and its sad to see what's happened to it and Bioware as a whole.
I don't give a shit about Anthem, but Bioware's survival is contingent on its success.
I don't give a shit about Anthem, but Bioware's survival is contingent on its success.
