DRAGON AGE 2

PLATFORMS: PS3, XBOX 360 AND PC

GENRE: RPG

PC SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:

Processor - Intel Core 2 Quad 2.4 GHz Processor or equivalent , AMD Phenom II X3 Triple core 2.8 GHz or equivalent
Memory - 2GB (4 GB Vista and Windows 7)
Graphics Card - ATI 3850 512 MB or greater (To run Direct X 11 - ATI 5850 or greater) , NVIDIA 8800GTS 512 MB or greater (To run Direct X 11 - NVidia 460 or greater)

There are a few things I'm certain of in life: Darkspawn must die, dragons must die, and, from a technical perspective, Dragon Age II is the best game in BioWare's fantasy role-playing franchise. The gameplay, user interfaces, and conversation system have all been modified to the point where the game is much more functional and fun than before. Yet despite all these improvements, there are still some issues with the story and setting in the sequel. 

 To kick things off, the plot is told through a framed narrative, much like the movie The Princess Bride. It's known that your character, Hawke -- a male or female human mage, rogue, or warrior -- will eventually become the Champion of Kirkwall. It's also clear that the world is on the cusp of war, and the Chantry, the main religious faction in the Dragon Age universe, is coming apart at the seams. What isn't known is your amount of involvement in the chaos, and why a Chantry seeker named Cassandra is interrogating a former friend of yours, a dwarf named Varric. It turns out that your part in this play is major, and you'll figure it out as you go along. 

 Most role-playing games depict a prevailing evil presence that only your hero can defeat after an epic journey across the world. You can imagine my surprise, then, when Dragon Age II threw most of those ideas out the window and instead opted to document the political struggles of the city of Kirkwall. It's a gutsy move to say the least – this is a 30-hour game and most of it is spent in and around the city looking at similar architecture. I appreciate that there are distinct parts of Kirkwall like Hightown (a bright, clean spot for nobles to hang out) and Darktown (a dingy, underground area), but there's so much to explore in the Dragon Age universe that it's rather puzzling to set an entire adventure in just one area.

One of the best things about Dragon Age is stopping and listening to what your companions have to say. That remains true in the sequel, where the background chatter between party members is often hilarious and sometimes heartwarming. It adds authenticity to their personalities despite their occasionally stiff movements. Assembling a team isn't a light decision in Dragon Age II as your companions aren't just there to aid you in battle. They can also partake in conversations, opening up new dialogue options. Anders might be able to tell if someone is possessed by peeking into the Fade (the spirit realm), Varric can sweet-talk you out of sticky situations, and Aveline can threaten like nobody's business when the terms are right. 

Of course, you do need to consider their combat abilities as well, because a team full of mages probably isn't going to get very far. The appeal of the combat system in Dragon Age II is its versatility. You can easily play it like an action title and mash buttons on lower difficulty levels, but if you prefer to think about what you're doing, you can crank up the difficulty, pause the game, and issue commands for individual team members. It's more difficult to direct complex strategies on consoles due to imprecise movements with the analog sticks, but it's easy with a keyboard and mouse, though PC users will need to get used to the new camera that doesn't zoom out quite as far as the one in Origins. Still, taking on foes in any version of Dragon Age is really entertaining – attack animations have been sped and spiffed up and slicing through an enemy with a sword feels satisfying. 

Every modification to the gameplay and structure of Dragon Age II is a clear improvement over the previous game. The combat is more responsive and bloody, you don’t need to fight the inventory system anymore, and conversations are more engaging thanks to the adapted Mass Effect wheel. There are downsides though; the semi-linear story and repetitive environments have a negative effect on what is otherwise a great role-playing game. Despite these complaints, Dragon Age II is a game I’m eager to replay.