00:00I haven't heard anything about Dragon Age recently, but it seems we are in luck because there is an article
00:05about that franchise.
00:07And it goes something like this.
00:08Former Dragon Age lead writer says Bioware's fantasy series is unlikely ever to return under EA.
00:15And I think he is probably right about one thing, and more speculative about another.
00:21The strongest part of what he says is his own assessment of EA's relationship with Dragon Age.
00:26As you well know, Bioware has spent nearly two decades having to justify the series internally.
00:33Dragon Age has never been a franchise that consistently sells like FIFA or Battlefield or even Mass Effect.
00:39Even EA reportedly viewed each installment cautiously, despite several of them outperforming expectations.
00:46However, after Dragon Age The Vailguard failed to meet EA's internal goals, it's understandable that the publisher shifted Bioware's focus
00:54entirely to Mass Effect.
00:56Not to mention, the amount of diarrhea that Dragon Age The Vailguard produce.
01:00I don't think you can clean it ever, even if you hired all the toilet cleaners in the world.
01:07That game just stings to high heaven like there's no tomorrow.
01:10And if I may be bold to say, it basically killed the whole Dragon Age franchise altogether.
01:16Also, I talked in one of my videos about Dragon Age franchise, and if you look at it, it was
01:22kinda declining ever since we saw Dragon Age 2 releasing.
01:26Remember, the original Dragon Age succeeded because it combines several elements.
01:31A grounded, morally gray world.
01:33Tactical party-based RPG gameplay.
01:35Meaningful player choices.
01:37Strong companions with believable flaws.
01:39And mature tone that felt earned, rather than edgy.
01:44And then, if you notice what happened in Dragon Age 2, Inquisition, and obviously The Vailguard.
01:49The franchise, or at least what Dragon Age origin was in the beginning, slowly got watered down to a point
01:56where I don't even recognize it anymore.
01:58So, Gator's comments about wanting to go back to the basics resonates because Dragon Age used to be willing to
02:06let players make uncomfortable decisions without immediately telling them which answer was morally correct.
02:12Characters often disagreed with you in abelievable ways because they had their own values, not because the writers wanted to
02:19deliver a message.
02:20Also, I would like to point out that I think every single installment after Dragon Age Origins had issues.
02:27But more importantly, it seems that the developers couldn't find the right formula after they were done with Origins.
02:34Or maybe they were trying to experiment and see if that's going to land somewhere, but apparently it didn't.
02:40For example, Dragon Age 2 launched with recycled environments and was heavily criticized because of that.
02:45Not to mention, many features that Dragon Age Origins had, Dragon Age 2 simply deleted.
02:51Then you have issues with Dragon Age Inquisition.
02:53Yes, it won Game of the Year award, but let's be honest, that's completely pointless.
02:59Nobody cares about that other than the publisher in order to slap that sticker on the box so it sells
03:04better.
03:05But plenty of people disliked the MMO-style open world design.
03:09And let me tell you, that was a freaking pain.
03:12Kill 10 of this, collect 15 of that.
03:14Unbelievable.
03:16So you could say, after Origins, the series has never been perfect.
03:19And as for whether Dragon Age comes back or not, I wouldn't say it's dead forever because EA owns the
03:25IP.
03:26Publishers rarely abandon recognizable franchises permanently.
03:30If Mass Effect succeeds, and that's a big if, and then Bioware stabilizes,
03:35or another EA studio pitches a compelling reboot, Dragon Age could absolutely return.
03:41But I think that won't probably happen anytime soon.
03:45My bigger question here is who would make it?
03:48Because many of the people who define Dragon Age, including Gator and several other veteran writers and designers, have left
03:55Bioware.
03:56The new Dragon Age would almost certainly be made by a different generation of developers.
04:00Obviously, that doesn't automatically mean it would be bad, but it does mean it wouldn't simply be Origins 2.
04:08So the question is, can Dragon Age survive without people who made Dragon Age in the first place?
04:14And that's a broader question about modern game development.
04:17As you know, studios change, the talent moves on, and eventually, only the name remains.
04:23So whether an IP can retain its identity after most of its original creators have left,
04:28well, that's something that the industry keeps grappling with.
04:31Take a look at Blizzard, Bethesda, and Obsidian.
04:34They all made sequels to already established IPs,
04:37and if you ask me, they haven't done a pretty good job, to be honest.
04:42In other words, they managed to alienate the core fanbase,
04:46which is the people who actually promoted your game in the first place,
04:50by adding all kinds of nonsense just to please whatever they wanted to please,
04:54or whoever they wanted to please.
04:56And that's problem with stuff today, because you need to focus on those core people who are the OG fans.
05:02But that doesn't mean you cannot introduce new ideas and new mechanics.
05:06You just gotta be wise enough to keep the majority of it,
05:10while slowly but surely changing bits and pieces of your game,
05:14and then see the feedback if the people like it or they don't like it.
05:17Because if you change stuff to a point where you don't recognize the original game or vision anymore,
05:23first, you're gonna alienate people who originally supported,
05:26and second, you're not going to make that type of a numbers when it comes to selling the games,
05:31because word of mouth from the original fans is always going to win no matter what.
05:37So yeah, you could say Dragon Age is in a very bad spot,
05:40and you would need to have an exceptional writer in order to kickstart the whole thing,
05:46but also having a lead who understands what the original Dragon Age is all about.
05:51And then, only then, will there be a chance for this franchise to be revitalized yet again.
05:56Because if you're going to experiment again,
05:59well, you might as well just bury it and forget about it, and that's about it.
06:03No more Dragon Age, was nice knowing you.
06:06And that's basically my take on this news.
06:09Thanks very much for watching, and as always,
06:11like, share, subscribe, comment, all that good stuff.
06:14And that's it from me, until the next one.
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