E3 - BioWare Shows Off Dragon Age Details

Thanks to GameSpy for the brief details and screenshots on BioWare's new RPG, Dragon Age, noting of the 2005-due PC title: "What makes the combat system unique is that the game can be played in the over-the-shoulder mode of Knights of the Old Republic or in the tactical overhead mode of Baldur's Gate... The game also utilizes the 'combat pause,' which allows players to plan strategy while the action is frozen." BioWare's Greg Zeschuk is quoted as suggesting the game "melds the fun of party interaction from Baldur's Gate, the community and multiplayer aspect of Neverwinter Nights and the tactical combat of Knights of the Old Republic." Elsewhere, there are new screenshots of Jade Empire, BioWare's Microsoft-published Xbox RPG, and IGN Xbox's preview of Star Wars: KOTOR 2, Obsidian-developed but BioWare engine-using.

Comments

Neverwinter Nights already does this:

[hexfortyfive]

What makes the combat system unique is that the game can be played in the over-the-shoulder mode of Knights of the Old Republic or in the tactical overhead mode of Baldur's Gate. The player can toggle back and forth in whatever way feels comfortable.
in NWN, press the NumPad-* changes between other-the-shoulder & bird's eye.
The game also utilizes the "combat pause," which allows players to plan strategy while the action is frozen.
NWN does this too; assigned to Spacebar by default.
So where's the inovation?

Re:Neverwinter Nights already does this:

[Anonymous Coward]

Judging from the blue circle around that fighter on the one screenshot I would say that you have full party control (as opposed to one character in NWN).

Also it looks like you can zoom out a bit more than in NWN, in combination with the massive battles that are promised, this sounds a lot more like BG than NWN.

Personally, I can't wait to see more of this.

Re:Neverwinter Nights already does this:

[Anonymous Coward]

You've got to remember this is E3; a convention where a game company will try and pass off a bowl of chilli fries as innovation.

Re:Neverwinter Nights already does this:

[Jeranon]

Camera:
It did it after many patches (it was into the 20s IIRC). The hardcore would have all this, but for the rest who bought it on release (and did not continue the love affair after the lacklustre Official Campaign), all this was missing. Games only get noise to generate hype for release and the NWN hype did not have this to hype (in fact, Bioware actively fought this for many patch releases until the community convinced them that the game is meant for players, not designers).

Pausing:
No innovation here as this was present back in Baldur's Gate, but the context of this statement after the previous may lead to the innovation conclusion.

Speaking of immersion.

[Jon Kent]

Zeschuk said they are aiming for an immersive experience that will keep the player in the game for plenty of hours, although maybe not as long as Baldur's Gate or Baldur's Gate 2. "It may be a bit shorter, but it will be a wider experience and the immersion will be better," he said.

This Mr. Zeschuk and I have varying opinions, it seems, as to what makes an RPG "immersive". Specifically, Baldurs Gate, Baldur's Gate II and the associated exp packs were extremely immersive with a rich story line, excellent environments, non-liniarity, etc. and, quite frankly I have found very few CRPGs which compare to the franchise since.

It's going to take more than a third person perspective and a few million polygonal models that I'm sure will make my GeForce Ti4600 cry to make a truely immersive game.

A true sequel to Baldur's Gate?

[arhar]

I'm one of the few people that didn't like the hack-n-slash gameplay of Neverwinter Nights and felt that it was a dissapointment after the brilliance of Baldur's Gate I and II.

Maybe I'm having my expectations too high, but I am absolutely psyched about this game. Please, Bioware, not too much fighting, more memorable characters (I think Minsc (+ Boo) was a greatest character in history of games), and more great storyline twists!