Dragon Age: Origins Forum Activity

Questions about dialogue, elves in the military, playing after the ending, sexual encounters, and The Fade have been answered in the latest developer responses on the official Dragon Age: Origins forums.

David Gaider on modern dialogue in a fantasy setting:

We’re not using words that you’ll solely have found used in our own history — that would be pretty peculiar-sounding to modern audiences if we did, and ultimately communication is still the key. That said, while the levels of “acceptable” vernacular differ from person to person, generally we avoid making fantasy characters sound like they live in modern times. You’ll have to judge for yourself just how well we’ve done that, but if what you’re picturing is people walking around using slang terms and modern swears all the time — no, that just isn’t so.

Chris Priestly on elves in the military:

Although I don’t know if David and the designers feel the same way, I think the attitude of elves in the military is very similar to how African Americans were thought about during World War 2.

In most respects African Americans were relegated to their own squads with their own barracks, training areas, commanders (until it went up the chain far enough where someone white took over), etc. They got the worst jobs or assignments often being sent into extremely dangerous situations rather than risk the more “useful” white soldiers. Sure, there were some white people who realized that there was no difference between white or “colored” soldiers, but these were pretty few and far between. It wasn’t until the skill and heroics of warriors like the Tuskegee Airmen and many more were recognized that they became to be accepted.

This sentiment is basically refected in Dragon Age: Origins. Some people, like Loghain in the novel, realize that elves are no worse (and often better) than their human fellow soldiers. However, most humans still regard elves as lower class, untrustworthy or inferior in some way. You will definitely encounter such sentiments as you play through the game.

David Gaider on whether or not we can keep playing after the game’s ending:

The only way that’s possible is if the ending didn’t truly matter. You won? Yay. Continue doing random quests in a vacuum. Sounds like fun.

I get the desire behind it (ie. to continue playing a game you enjoyed), but consider that it would no longer be that game you enjoyed any longer. Unless the entire game is built to me more sandbox and less reliant on an overall narrative to drive it forward, you’re just not going to be able to do that — and while you might prefer those kinds of sandbox games, they come with their own weaknesses and (more importantly) we don’t make ’em.

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I don’t know anything about what they have planned. Maybe? You’d have to ask them. Mass Effect had some sandbox elements, I suppose, if you count the uncharted worlds — so perhaps I should instead say that Dragon Age isn’t that type of game to be safer?

David Gaider on the game’s sexual encounters:

There is no bestiality. I’d be careful about jumping to conclusions, as some of the ESRB descriptions are pretty dry descriptions of something that either happens in passing or is played for humour — but even such references need to be dissected in this manner in order to have full disclosure.

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What you have is confirmation of same-sex sex. That’s not the same thing.

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Couples? As in two people together?

I know I’m being nit-picky, here, but as soon as you invoke the word “romance” you’re talking “full romance with a party member” here on these forums… so you must be careful just how much you’re reading into that (and other things in the report). That’s all I’m saying, I’m not raining on anyone’s hopes or anything.

David Gaider on The Fade:

More than supposedly, the Black City (as it’s now called) is the one constant geographical feature within the Fade. You can look up and see it in the sky, always in the distance (and, yes, you can do this in-game as well — though only someone who’s aware of the lore would realize what they were looking at). So it definitely exists, though nobody has ever found a way to get to it.

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It’s pretty obvious that you’re looking at a sprawling, dark city on a floating rock up in the sky — so it’s much more then a little speck. It doesn’t dominate the skyline, however. You might have to look for it.