Several titles in the series have followed, from short lived casual games to full AAA releases. Fans are eagerly anticipating the next installment.
If you're new to the series and are wondering which titles are worth your time, read on.
"Join us, brothers and sisters. Join us in the shadows where we stand, vigilant. Join us as we carry the duty that can not be forsworn. And should you perish, know that your sacrifice will not be forgotten, and that one day we shall join you."
~ Alistair, a Grey Warden in Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins
Play Time: Easily 70 - 100+ hours
My recommendation: Play it if you haven't. The Ultimate Edition
is well worth the price for any fan of medieval-themed fantasy RPGs.
is well worth the price for any fan of medieval-themed fantasy RPGs.
In Origins, you play a Grey Warden, one of the last of an ancient order of guardians who have defended the lands for centuries. Betrayed by a trusted general in a critical battle, you stand as one of few who know the truth of what happened to bear witness against his lies and machinations. His lust for power divides the nation in civil war when attention is most needed against a greater threat. As you fight your way towards the final confrontation with an evil nemesis, you will face monstrous foes and engage in epic quests to unite the disparate peoples against this common enemy.
Players can play as either gender and choose one of six Origin stories that will lend richness and depth to their gameplay experience, affecting how the gameworld sees their character and their character's outlook on that world. Within the Origins, the player will find much freedom to roleplay their character however they see fit. Those Origins cover noble and commoner backgrounds and draw from three races within the world of Thedas: elf, dwarf, and human.
Along the way, the player will attract companions to their cause, all with backstories and motivations of their own, which form a realistic basis for reaction to the player's deeds. Certain companions can even fall in love with the player-character, or out of love with them, from dialogue and story choices or actions.
Companions have customizable AI allowing player control of their behavior in a fight without having to micromanage them, but can also be selected individually for more control as desired.
Gameplay can be challenging in the beginning, particularly before you get the companion AI tweaked to suit you. Add in the various origin stories, which spawn specific types of experiences and characters, which do not click with all players, and you might be tempted to give up on the game before the story really has a chance to hook you, which is a shame. When you find the origin story that matches you best, the game really sinks its claws in. It's a deep, compelling, masterpiece of a game once you get past the initial learning curve and start discovering its secrets.
My advice? Try all of the origins once.
If you're the kind of player to fall under the spell of a game, to seek its lore and appreciate its world, you'll want to play each of them, because Thedas is a different world for the nobleman's daughter than the mage, the caste dwarf from the casteless, the city elf from the Dalish. Each reveals a bit more.
Looking back, now, it's exciting to me that decisions I made then are still echoing in the game world through the sequels.
DLC for Dragon Age: Origins
(included in the Ultimate Edition)
Accessed Within Origins:
Warden's Keep - Players can explore and reclaim an old Grey Warden base in Northern Ferelden. Clearing the area gives a party storage chest and two new merchants. Soldier's Peak offers unique loot, a couple of achievements, and the potential to pick up new special abilities for each class based on the "Power of Blood". Adds one or two hours of playtime.
The Stone Prisoner - The companion Shale, originally intended to be part of the core game, is added through this content pack. She is unlocked by completing an adventure in the village of Honnleath, and her companion quest adds the lost dwarven thaig of Cadash. Adds two to three hours of play time and offers two new achievements as well as unique items.
Return to Ostagar - The Warden, Wynne, and Alistair are given the chance to return to Ostagar. Unique weapons and armor belonging to Duncan and Cailan are recoverable, as well as some insight into why Loghain took the actions he did. Players who didn't recruit Dog earlier are given a second chance. Adds one to two hours of play time and a new achievement.
Feastday Pranks and Gifts - these two packs each add 10 new gifts, great for bonus fun with your companions and allowing players to massively use and abuse the approval system.
Further Adventures for your Warden:
Golems of Amgarrak - The Warden is asked to assist in the investigation of Amgarrak, where an expedition recently vanished searching for secrets related to Golem construction. Three new achievements are available, which unlock their own unique items in Origins and Awakening. Adds one to two hours of play time.
Witch Hunt - Your Warden is on the hunt for Morrigan, out of whatever motivation fits your Origins play: revenge, friendship, or love. New areas are explored, others revisited, including some you may know from an Origin story. A little more of Morrigan's motivation and future plans are revealed. Offers four new achievements, its own unique items, a possible new "ending" for your Warden, and adds one to three hours of play time.
Standalone Adventures:
Leliana's Song - The events of Leliana's Song do not quite match what she claims is her history in Origins, which is interesting in itself. The player takes the role of Leliana through a night of roguish mischief in Denerim and then into her betrayal and first attempt at revenge. Two to three hours play time. Offers three new achievements and a potential powerful and unique roguish armor for your Origins and Awakening games.
Darkspawn Chronicles - the player takes the role of a Hurlock Vanguard to protect the Archdemon against the assault of the Grey Wardens. Darkspawn Chronicles is especially interesting because it gives the player a look at "what might have been" had they never joined the Wardens or died in their Joining. Have a certain party member you've always really wanted to feed to the darkspawn? Here's your chance.
"All I want is a pretty girl, a decent meal, and the right to shoot lightning at fools."
~ Anders, an apostate mage in Awakening
Awakening Expansion
(Included in Dragon Age: Origins Ultimate Edition)
Play time: 13-20+ hours
Recommendation: Worth it! Especially bundled in the Ultimate Edition with all DLC and the base game.
In Awakening, you can either continue to play your Origins character or begin anew as a Grey Warden from Orlais. Either way, you are the new Warden Commander and your task is to rebuild the Order in Ferelden on the Grey Wardens' new lands at Vigil's Keep. But something's gone wrong at Vigil's Keep, and you must take your new recruits out to face the darkspawn and who-knows-what-else lurking in the region and the depths below it.
Unlike Origins, romance is not an option in Awakening. Another major difference is that you're able to actively recruit, and then put your recruits through the Joining ritual to make them Grey Wardens.
It is possible to play a single character from Origins into Awakening then into Golems of Amgarrak and Witch Hunt.
"Hurtled into the chaos you fight... and the world will shake before you."
~Flemeth, the Witch of the Wilds in Dragon Age 2
Dragon Age 2
Play Time: About 40 hours
My recommendation: Skip it, unless you really want the lore. Events in this game do directly lead to the world state of Inquisition, but the game's a rushed mess with glaring problems in both game play and plot.
In Dragon Age 2, we take on the role of a refugee from Lothering, a village destroyed in Origins. Unlike Origins, we can only play a human. Players can choose to play as a mage, rogue, or warrior of either gender.
Through the story told by the storyteller Varric, the game covers about a decade of the adventures of our hero, Hawke, from his or her escape from Ferelden into the Free Marches to eventually become the Champion of Kirkwall.
The growing tensions between the Mages and the Templars play a big role in the plot as your Hawke tries to survive, keep your family safe, and build a future for you all in Kirkwall.
Romance continues to be one of the fun optional aspects of the game, with the confirmed love interests and short stories about them appearing in this thread on the official forums. Unlike DA:O, all of the love interests among the standard companions in DA 2 can be romanced no matter your Hawke's gender. To the Romance/Friendship system they've added another important new change: Rivalry. With rivalry, you can oppose a companion's overall agenda, or they yours, while still respecting each other's skills and working together for mutual benefit. Rivals who are love interests can still be romanced.
As far as game style goes, Dragon Age 2 is a much more action-oriented and console-focused than DA:O. Combat is fast-paced and heart-racing, and tends to get into button-mash-fest territory quickly, particularly noticeable in the console demos. (I tried both the Xbox and PC demos, then bought my full version on PC, preferring the combat there.)
Players with save files from Origins can import them so that their new game reflects the choices made. Those choices affect some of the NPCs your character will meet and available quests, as well as rumors and ambient chatter. From my experience, this is handled in a manner that is satisfying to players of the original, yet subtle enough it's not going to detract from the game for those who haven't played Origins.
Here are the preset histories new players can select to cover key points that would have impacted DA 2 from Origins:
Hero of Ferelden - The Warden killed the archdemon and survived, leaving Alistair on the throne.
The Martyr - The Warden was a Dalish Elf who gave her life to destroy the archdemon. Alistair and Anora rule.
No Compromise - The Warden was a Dwarven noble who allowed Loghain to redeem himself, leaving Anora as ruler and Alistair in exile.
Includes cameos from: Alistair (exiled, king, or Grey Warden), Bann Teagan, Zevran, Leliana, and Nathaniel Howe (from Awakening, if he was recruited and survived).
Flemeth is a returning character, as are Anders, Merrill, and Isabela.
Finally, whether DA 2 is as good as DA:O is a raging debate. While Origins could be played dozens of times and still have new things to discover and new roles to play, DA 2 lacks that depth and longevity. If you like fast, flashy action games, DA 2 is more your speed. If you're looking for a lingering, deep role playing game, DA 2 is going to disappoint.
These are the three most glaring flaws that are the reasons I regretted my purchase:
1) Maps are reused excessively, to the point internet comics rightly claim that every building and cave in Kirkwall look the same. It gets boring real fast.
2) Wave after wave of enemies pop up out of nowhere in a manner that makes no sense unless you're playing a fighting game in an arcade.
3) Whichever ending path you choose, you fight the same enemies. Along one path, one enemy makes no sense plot-wise.
DA 2 DLC and Add Ons
The Exiled Prince - Sebastian Vael is a nobly born archer seeking revenge for the murder of his family. With this DLC you gain Sebastian as a full companion, including his quests, which was included free with the Signature Edition or can be purchased separately for those who missed that offer.
The Black Emporium - Deep beneath Kirkwall you'll find a market offering unusual and unique items, some free, some at a cost. Includes the ability to call a mabari wardog as a summon. One of the Emporium's artifacts allows you to change your character's hair and facial appearance at will - as in, during the game! The Emporium is available to all players who buy the game new.
Legacy
Playtime: 1 1/2 to 3+ hours
Recommendation: Worth it! If you've already invested in DA2, or plan to for the lore, this is a must have.
Legacy the first new storyline DLC for DA 2. In it, the developers really took their time to understand player disappointment with DA2 and give us something that was more of the best of both DA:O and DA2. Gone were the recycled environments, over-use of delivery quests, weak motivations, and feeling a spectator in the stories of your companions).
It's a good story well told, with quality game play. The environments were beautiful and well done. The banters, interactions with my Hawke's love interest and her party members, and Hawke's reactions to the story were perfect. I enjoyed every minute. This is the DA I fell in love with in Origins. I took my time, trying to explore everywhere, but still managed to miss things, so my three hours of play time could easily have been longer.
The basic storyline is: Hawke, and his/her sibling, if alive at that point of your game, have been attacked by Carta thugs. Investigation into why leads them to a lost Grey Warden fortress. Inside an ancient evil slumbers, imprisoned. There are ties to Hawke's family, and only his/her blood holds the key to unlocking very old secrets.
Lore hunters and franchise fans will want Legacy for the impact its events have on the third game, Inquisition.
"You might want to watch yourself. It's raining demons out here."
~Varric, in Inquisition
Dragon Age Inquisition - (Dragon Age 3)
Play time: 150-200 hours.
Recommendation: Play it! Get the Game of the Year edition if you can, to have all the bundled DLC.
In Inquisition, we play the survivor of a cataclysmic event who promptly finds himself/herself expected to somehow knit the unraveling world back together while at the same time dealing with suspicion that she was the one who tore it apart to begin with.
At this point in the series, the world is falling apart as Templars split off from the Chantry and Mages fight for their independence. There is chaos as the two sides battle each other. Not only that, but there is a growing, quite literal rift allowing demons to pour into the world.
Players can be a dwarf, elf, human or qunari of either gender. Origins are back, though in a much smaller role than in the original: you can choose from various backgrounds for your character, which will affect how the world reacts to you, but all characters play the same beginning.
Events carry on from the world state set up by the preceding games, though you need not have played them to get full value from Inquisition.
Rather than saves importing through all three games, Bioware set up a Keep online where we could enter our preferences for the major choices that impact the world. This gives us the echoes through the world that would be there had our choices carried through, and also lets us go back to set another world state, to explore the paths not taken. I really came to appreciate that aspect in my play throughs, as I dove into the lore and noted the differences in the world.
Returning characters include: Cullen, Morrigan, Leliana, Cassandra, Flemeth, Hawke, and Dagna.
Cameos, depending on Keep choices, could include: Alistair, Loghain, Anora, Stroud. Other characters may be referenced, even involved in war table quests, but do not actually appear, such as Zevran and The Warden.
DA3 Story DLC:
Jaws of Hakkon: Retrace the footsteps of the last Inquisitor to find out what happened to him and the last dragon he pursued. Explore a new environment and face a new enemies, including a troubling new threat.
The Descent: Delve back into the Deep Roads to face darkspawn once more, and solve one of Thedas’ greatest mysteries.
Trespasser: Take your team out for one final adventure, chasing down a little closure as you track and confront the one truly responsible for the events of Inquisition. As Trespasser continues the story we've played in Inquisition and seems to set up the events of the next Dragon Age game, fans of the games won't want to miss it.
"Demons, dragons, darkspawn, even the Dread Wolf."
- Varric, narrating DA4's teaser trailer.
This teaser trailer for "Dragon Age 4" dropped in December of 2020. Fans immediately noted the narrator's familiar voice: Varric, our roguish dwarven friend from DA 2 and Inquisition. Then Solas appeared, confirming all hope and expectation that the storyline involving the Elven trickster god continues. The new setting shown in the trailer has been confirmed to be Tevinter, which fans have been hoping to visit since the first game. Lots to be excited about here!
