Dragon age: Origins

Dragon age: Origins is a little old now, with a large array of DLC (Downloadable content) avaliable for it. I am reviewing this game not only because it is excellent, but because it doesn't have a shred of originality to it. Dragon age 2 is already out on the shelves, so bear in mind you might want to look into that (there may be a review on here in future)

The game is avaliable on consoles as well as PC, so it shouldn't be difficult to get your hands on it.

So what we have here is a game that starts off like a mild JRPG, but quickly develops into something a little less linear, and a lot more entertaining. I once read that Dragon age is essentially a sequel to Baldur's gate, and I thought to myself "It had better be damn good then.".

When I bought the game, despite the slow start, it eventually lived up to its expectations, by taking away hours of my life. For those of you that know World of Warcraft, this is the offline version.

Bioware spent a long time producing this game, and it shows in the cut-scenes and plot. If you are interested in buying this game, don't mistake it for what it isn't. What you see and what you will get is a traditional fantasy romp through a generic lord of the rings style world. Maybe I should add an awesome in there somewhere, although the miscomings are readily apparent, I would suggest you buy this game for one playthrough anyway.

The only fault I really despised about the game was the levelling system. The combat was fun, and could be challenging sometimes unless you were prepared. The levelling was boring. Three classes to choose from each with their own lacklustre talent tree, the only one I found playable was mage, and you will learn how overpowered they are.

Pausing and unpausing (Baldur's style), does take a large part of the game if you play it on the harder difficulties. You can play in control of your character, using the programmable tactics to control your party. Or, you can mechanically manage each and every move of your entire 4 man party.

You can choose your party member from approximately 8 people who may or may not be obtained throughout the game depending on your decisions. There's even some romance plots for those hopeless! The voice acting really brings the characters to life, but you are sadly brought back to the game when some of the dialogue ruins it. Although it can be clumsy and mechanical in the details, overall, evolving your relationship with the companions has a volatile unpredictability that makes for quite a credible simulation of human interaction.

All in all, I'd recommend this game to anyone (because it's cheap now). What you will get is a pleasant RPG you can put 100+ hours into if you find yourself addicted, and still a fair amount of time if it isn't your cup of tea. Soldier your way through the starting areas, and you will quickly find something to do. Just make a mage first time, so you can solo your way through some of the battles if they get tough (How I did it).

Check out the top 5 PC turn-based RPGs here!