So let's start by talking about the technicals of this game, in comparison to Origins, this game is beautiful. The textures, lip syncing, detail and diversity amongst both characters and environments are a major step up in comparison to Origins which honestly, already feels dated even though it's only 6 years old. Also there are far less glitches and frame rate issues in comparison to Origins, very few times did I experience bugs, except in Skyhold (The HUB World) where I kept finding glitches galore, mind you I did keep jumping from several stories forcing the game to load those sections instantly, so i may have cheated the game a tad there. Some people have said the game doesn't look that good and character models are still stiff with limited movement, which is partially true but I still think it's the best Bioware game and being honest graphics have never been Bioware's strongest suit, they've always focused more on gameplay and story.
Talking of, the gameplay in this game is also great, not that much has changed since Origins from what I can remember though it does run smoother and is more fun to play. I will say the best class is clearly the Mage, you're less likely to get attacked seeing as you fight from a range and you have such a wide range of attacks, fire, lightning, ice, spirit, etc. Rouge is also a really good class to play as, having both range and close combat fighting styles but Warrior is easily the least interesting. All of the attacks feel the same and though Warrior's do have the best defence making them useful for swarms of enemies, they're the least interesting. Though the biggest problem is everyone moves too slowly, including the horses. Also i almost never needed the tactical view or the extra potions you could use apart from healing potions. It also seems like there's a bit of a disadvantage in the levelling system, i could be fighting someone the exact same level as me yet they'll have so much more health and more powerful weapons, that just doesn't seem fair or balanced. Then there's the upgrade system which i'm usually half/half on. I almost never take full advantage of the upgrades systems. In this case i spent a lot of time focusing on weapons and armour but only a little bit of time upgrading them individually, especially seeing as after spending ages perfecting a weapon you'll find an even better one through some loot. But overall the combat is a lot of fun and the upgrading system is good enough that you will understand the necessary portions.
Finally there's the story, which some people have complained is too simplistic in comparison to the original...um, was I the only one who felt the original story sucked? It was pretty much a Lord of the Rings rip off, just replace Orcs with Darkspawn and the Grey Wardens were a boring group to fight for. Here, there is a clear antagonist with goals and feels like a legitimate threat and instead of being a Lord of the Rings rip off, it's a Game of Thrones rip off, but it does it in the best way, not copying the story or environments, but the focus on the politics and morality of your choices, making the story much more fascinating and complex, not the simplified version that was Origins. But the complexities come in the details, the story itself can be pretty simplified, bad guy is bringing demons into the world, good guys need to stop him. The Inquisition I found to be much more interesting than the Grey Wardens, you have several advisers, Josephine who focuses on democracy and politics, Cullen who leads your armies and Leliana who is your spymaster. They often disagree on the best approach and they all have great points that make the Inquisiton feel much more diverse and interesting to be a part of.
Then there are the characters. You've heard me talk about another Bioware series a lot and that being Mass Effect and how they have the greatest ensemble of characters of all time yet surprisingly I found Origins to have a very forgettable cast of characters, in fact i can't even remember most of them. While this ensemble isn't Mass Effect level great, they are fantastic. Everyone has interesting personalities and view points and they actually interact with each other while you're out on missions and that can effect certain dialogue options. Though my favourite moment is in one cutscene where you're playing a card game with them and getting drunk, making them feel much more fleshed out and believable as friends. Even characters like Cassandra or Cullen who i felt i wasn't going to like turned out to be awesome. Blackwall who I thought was going to be my least favourite actually has a really good backstory. My least favourite is probably Vivienne simply because i didn't have that good of a friendship with her and i didn't feel like she even cared that much about the cause, also she was the least powerful Mage in my team. As for romance, because I played as a female I romanced Sera and i felt that was a great choice, my Inquisitor was very respectful of other people and was even a bit of a goody two shoes, so having someone like Sera to make my Inquisitor more playful and goof off and take some more risks felt like a great mixture, she made me loosen up a bit more while i made her take things more seriously, I thought they were a really cute couple. Speaking of The Inquisitor, there's also a great variety of character choices, you can choose your species, class and backstory and these will have actual effects on the story and how other characters view you. So me playing as a female elf lead to a lot of backlash from some people who thought of me as a lower class citizen and then i get to prove them wrong by saving their asses, making it feel much more like an underdog story and much more personal that way.
My only real problem story wise is that your decisions will effect whether characters approve or disapprove of your actions and this is ultimately a pointless system because you don't know how much characters approve or disapprove of you overall and you never feel like they will actually leave the party if they disapprove too much. Then in the ending there's no threat of anyone dying like in Mass Effect 2, which i loved and made it feel much more intense. But overall I loved the story and the characters are the best in all of the Dragon Age series, so if you want to know here is my order from best to worst: Sera, Varric, Cassandra, Dorian, Solas, Iron Bull, Cullen, Josephine, Cole, Lilienna, Blackwall, Vivienne.
Dragon Age: Inquisiton is an improvement over Origins in every way possible, graphically it's beautiful, the combat is engaging and great, the story and characters are excellent and is what makes this game so great and makes me love it. My only problems are minor with the gameplay a few glitches here or there. I'm giving Dragon Age: Inquisition a very high 9/10.
-Danny
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