A decent, but flawed RPG experience
Pros:
-Origin backgrounds are excellent
-Combat is solid and features good variety
-Excellent soundtrack
-Great storyline and characters
-Good replay value
-Impressive art style
Cons:
-Graphics could be better
-Some bad pacing
-Unorganized menu and managing system
-Dumb AI
Bioware is no doubt a master of the RPG genre, with great past titles such as Knights of The Old Republic and Mass Effect series they have become a staple in the industry. So it's no surprise that Dragon Age Origins has a lot of hype behind it, but is the hype a bit too much? The short answer is yes. But Dragon Age is still a decent RPG experience in it's own right.
Dragon Age begins with you choosing your Origin story, unlike many other games Dragon Age offers the player the choice of how they want to begin their jouney, it sounds a bit unorthodox but it works out perfectly with the game's storyline. You can choose to be a noble human who get's caught up in the dirty politics of the wealthy, or an elf who lives a poor life in the ghetto of a city, or a person who is about to enter a trial to become a mage, or more. Each Origin background will effect how your character plays and how the story will play out. This is certainly an attractive feature of Dragon Age and it's one you will appreciate as it adds much replay value to the game. The storyline is very immersive and it allows much player choice, the characters are also all unique with their own personalities. It brings life to the the game.
Dragon Age also offers a fairly solid combat system. It's all done in real time though it plays similar to past Bioware RPG's such as KOTOR, though there is more variety. From having strong combat attacks, to being able to transform into monsters with magic, or being able to stun enemies as a rouge, and much more. There is a good amount of strategy in Dragon Age's combat, however this is hurt by the bad AI of your team members. They often forget to heal, will sometimes get in the way, and on occasion, even stand there and do nothing while enemies are nearby. To be fair you can change and manage their settings, but this requires far too much work and even then it doesn't fix the issue. This leads to another flaw in Dragon Age; the menu system. It's unorganized and at times confusing.
Dragon Age also suffers from uneven pacing, at times certain parts can feel repetitive and tedious, it makes the game feel like work and not like fun. However that being said when Dragon Age get's it right it really shines, and you'll be glad you sat through the less enjoyable moments.
Visually the game is a mixed bag, the graphics are not very detailed but the art style is impressive and makes up for it. Dragon Age also has a beautiful soundtrack that you will love listening to on your journey.
Final Verdict:
In the end Dragon Age is an enjoyable game that RPG fans will appreciate if you're willing to look past it's flaws. It does have some enjoyable aspects that are worth experiencing, but not at full price. Wait for the cost to go down a bit.
Dragon Age Origins get's a 3/5