Computer games give me feelings
Apr. 13th, 2011 08:44 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alias_sqbrI finished my third playthrough of Dragon Age yesterday, as a law abiding warrior who (mostly) supported the Circle/Templars and rivalry romanced Anders, and I have THOUGHTS and FEELINGS.
I really am surprised how well the game holds up to replaying. I think it helps that it's short, and that I really enjoy the combat. Replaying DA:O just dragged in so many places. (Which is not to say that DA2 is better than DA:O, and one of the reasons I was surprised is because so much of the plot stays the same)
First off, I can see why people who romanced Anders in their first playthrough without spoilers are fixated on him. I knew what was coming, which I think stopped me from every totally trusting him, plus I didn't trust magic/spirits in general, and my character was still pretty smitten. (I wasn't so much, there was a pretty strong disconnect where she was all "Yay, a potion to get rid of Justice!" while I was thinking "ANDERS YOU BASTARD >:(") As much as I adore Fenris, he isn't so good with the expressing his feelings and smiling (and Isabela likes to pretend she doesn't even HAVE feelings. Though I don't know what's she's like in Act 3 if you don't screw up her romance. At this point Cam would point out how adorably affectionate Merrill is, maybe one day I will play a character that doesn't see her as a little sister or evil blood mage...) Anders slow descent into being taken over by Justice is so sad, and the whole rivalry romance was beautifully tragic given that my character was a basically decent person who cared about him and respected his underlying values. I refused to help him with the Grand Cleric, but I just watched the scenes on Youtube and I am sad all over again. I almost regretted killing him, but it really was the only in character choice, and knowing that it was almost entirely Justice speaking, not Anders, that Anders was in some ways dead already, kind of makes it easier. I'm almost curious to play with an idealistic pro-mage freedom fighter type and have a happy ever after (sort of) but I have trouble seeing myself playing a character who thinks his actions are remotely acceptable, same way as it turns out I couldn't quite manage one who supported Meredith to the end.
Ah, Meredith. Her descent was sad too. We were genuinely friends for a bit there. I played the very end a second time supporting the Templars out of curiosity, since it was almost in character, and I was pretty disappointed when she turned on me, I knew it was coming for plot reasons but was hoping she'd have slightly more justification. Not a HUGE fan of the mental illness=demonic possession pattern, Bioware, by the way. The fact that my family is full of psychologically messed up political activists made characters like Fenris, Anders and Meredith kind of intense, I spent a lot of time either sympathising intensely or wanting to thwack them upside the head. I think I probably would have had similar issues with Merrill if any of my characters had had very strong feelings about the Dalish. (Which isn't to say I didn't often want to thwack her upside the head regardless :)) Anyway, I liked that you (and Cullen. And when Cullen is the voice of reason against excessive anti-mage sentiment...) had a chance to draw the line at killing blatantly innocent mages.
It's interesting to note that Varric really does seem to be subtly pro-Templar, especially if you compare his comments if you side with the mages vs the Templars. But he doesn't let that stop him being friends with Anders. I felt like SUCH A JERK persuading Bethany and Merrill to side with Meredith, especially since one reason Merrill's rivalry was so high was that my character was fairly mean to her (she had a chip on her shoulder about blood magic)
I quite liked being (mostly) just friends with Fenris, as much as his soppy smile is adorable when you say "You have me" in Alone, I like that when you say "you have friends" Aveline pipes up to agree. It made me a little sad that at the end he said I was his only friend, though. By my count he had a couple (and would have had more if I hadn't have told Isabela to sod off in Act 2 :D) That said, I felt a bit hard done by, knowing that if I'd stuck with Fenris I'd have had a happy ending and smooches rather than an increasingly moody, demanding boyfriend who yelled at me for not giving unquestioning support to his terrorism, wasn't entirely friendly to my dog and eventually forced me to kill him. Fenris is much nicer about being rejected for Anders than vice versa, but I guess he did dump you so is in no position to complain. Isabela is nicer about it than both of them, of course, but she is pretending not to have any feelings (plus would totally be up for a threesome)
I liked all the references to the Amell Warden I imported, but seeing as he was BFFs with Anders and Isabela (plus, an apostate, and in my head with Morrigan and her archdemon!baby) I keep imagining a less than friendly meeting between the two cousins.
I really am surprised how well the game holds up to replaying. I think it helps that it's short, and that I really enjoy the combat. Replaying DA:O just dragged in so many places. (Which is not to say that DA2 is better than DA:O, and one of the reasons I was surprised is because so much of the plot stays the same)
First off, I can see why people who romanced Anders in their first playthrough without spoilers are fixated on him. I knew what was coming, which I think stopped me from every totally trusting him, plus I didn't trust magic/spirits in general, and my character was still pretty smitten. (I wasn't so much, there was a pretty strong disconnect where she was all "Yay, a potion to get rid of Justice!" while I was thinking "ANDERS YOU BASTARD >:(") As much as I adore Fenris, he isn't so good with the expressing his feelings and smiling (and Isabela likes to pretend she doesn't even HAVE feelings. Though I don't know what's she's like in Act 3 if you don't screw up her romance. At this point Cam would point out how adorably affectionate Merrill is, maybe one day I will play a character that doesn't see her as a little sister or evil blood mage...) Anders slow descent into being taken over by Justice is so sad, and the whole rivalry romance was beautifully tragic given that my character was a basically decent person who cared about him and respected his underlying values. I refused to help him with the Grand Cleric, but I just watched the scenes on Youtube and I am sad all over again. I almost regretted killing him, but it really was the only in character choice, and knowing that it was almost entirely Justice speaking, not Anders, that Anders was in some ways dead already, kind of makes it easier. I'm almost curious to play with an idealistic pro-mage freedom fighter type and have a happy ever after (sort of) but I have trouble seeing myself playing a character who thinks his actions are remotely acceptable, same way as it turns out I couldn't quite manage one who supported Meredith to the end.
Ah, Meredith. Her descent was sad too. We were genuinely friends for a bit there. I played the very end a second time supporting the Templars out of curiosity, since it was almost in character, and I was pretty disappointed when she turned on me, I knew it was coming for plot reasons but was hoping she'd have slightly more justification. Not a HUGE fan of the mental illness=demonic possession pattern, Bioware, by the way. The fact that my family is full of psychologically messed up political activists made characters like Fenris, Anders and Meredith kind of intense, I spent a lot of time either sympathising intensely or wanting to thwack them upside the head. I think I probably would have had similar issues with Merrill if any of my characters had had very strong feelings about the Dalish. (Which isn't to say I didn't often want to thwack her upside the head regardless :)) Anyway, I liked that you (and Cullen. And when Cullen is the voice of reason against excessive anti-mage sentiment...) had a chance to draw the line at killing blatantly innocent mages.
It's interesting to note that Varric really does seem to be subtly pro-Templar, especially if you compare his comments if you side with the mages vs the Templars. But he doesn't let that stop him being friends with Anders. I felt like SUCH A JERK persuading Bethany and Merrill to side with Meredith, especially since one reason Merrill's rivalry was so high was that my character was fairly mean to her (she had a chip on her shoulder about blood magic)
I quite liked being (mostly) just friends with Fenris, as much as his soppy smile is adorable when you say "You have me" in Alone, I like that when you say "you have friends" Aveline pipes up to agree. It made me a little sad that at the end he said I was his only friend, though. By my count he had a couple (and would have had more if I hadn't have told Isabela to sod off in Act 2 :D) That said, I felt a bit hard done by, knowing that if I'd stuck with Fenris I'd have had a happy ending and smooches rather than an increasingly moody, demanding boyfriend who yelled at me for not giving unquestioning support to his terrorism, wasn't entirely friendly to my dog and eventually forced me to kill him. Fenris is much nicer about being rejected for Anders than vice versa, but I guess he did dump you so is in no position to complain. Isabela is nicer about it than both of them, of course, but she is pretending not to have any feelings (plus would totally be up for a threesome)
I liked all the references to the Amell Warden I imported, but seeing as he was BFFs with Anders and Isabela (plus, an apostate, and in my head with Morrigan and her archdemon!baby) I keep imagining a less than friendly meeting between the two cousins.
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Date: 2011-04-13 02:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-13 05:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-13 04:56 am (UTC)My mage killed Anders for two reasons: one, Anders lied to him, and he can't forgive that, and two, he's hoping that perhaps excecuting the mage responsible will keep other mages from being damned by association. And yes, he is a little naive.
I haven't gotten many references to my Wardens in either game, because even with the patch, the imports are broken. The Alistair mistress flag doesn't carry over, and Zevran is completely borked: even though my Warden is very much alive, Zevran talks as if he were dead.
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Date: 2011-04-13 05:00 am (UTC)I should have said "I liked all the references to the Amell Warden I imported as opposed to my Brosca and Tabris, who got diddly squat." Zevran described his boyfriend as "my Warden" but forgot not to flirt, which was ok since I don't see them as exclusive, so that was ok :) I am still annoyed at Alistair for calling my Brosca "an old friend" in my first playthrough, though.