Board 8 > Shinobi Speaks: What the next Dragon Age needs to be a success [attn: icon]

(+) Yeah! (+)

Really great, really lengthy read from industry insider Shinobi. This is a deep dive sort of analysis, and I think @iiicon at least will find it worth a glance.

https://shinobispeaks.com/2017/05/23/opinion-what-the-next-dragon-age-needs-to-do-to-be-a-standout-success/

Some scattered snippets:

"There are crucial areas that speak to an audience in the current games climate. I’m certain the talented team at BioWare Edmonton know this, but in order to come out of the gates swinging and be a standout success, the next Dragon Age must evolve in terms of design, presentation, marketing and more."

While I admittedly enjoyed most of my time perusing these zones, there was always a feeling in the back of my mind that took a sliver of me out of the experience. Rather than believing I was exploring a realistic world, I felt as though I was moving from one point of interest to the next in a square map. Hidden collectibles were unraveled and dotted across the land as if to ensure the player visits every corner. Wildlife and NPCs unnaturally stayed in specific spots, weather in each zone remained static and there was ultimately no dynamism to make these areas feel alive. Again, I still liked running around these areas and seeing what was lying around, but I’d be lying to myself if I didn’t also admit that they felt like playgrounds for me to roll around in and move on from."

"Instead of picking a zone from a menu and transporting yourself there, imagine trotting along vast, open Tevinter plains on your steed, cresting a hilltop and seeing a small village in the far distance straddling the shoreline. A long draw distance accentuates the feeling of a large inhabited world. Along the way you encounter a herd of wild camels and then a pair of vandals who just happened to randomly appear from a forest’s edge. You dispatch them. Continuing onward, you then see a trader riding his mule on his way to another town, pulling his cart behind him. You have the option to stop this man and perhaps barter, but you want to keep going. Closing in on the village, you see the sun starting to set and notice rain clouds begin to dynamically form above you. You dismount your horse and enter the village, watching NPCs that were going about their daily routine start to take shelter as the rain begins to pelt the ground. The skies change as the wind picks up and you decide to enter the village tavern."

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you don't know me!!
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(will read in a bit, thanks)
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