Fire, brimstone, lore, and dragons. What’s not to love? The Dragon Age trilogy started with Dragon Age Origins. Dragon Age Origins has in my opinion the most impressive plot I have ever witnessed in interactive media. Then there was Dragon Age 2, which consisted of a more streamlined combat system with less emphasis on plot. Dragon Age Inquisition is the youngest child of the three and has the best characteristics from the previous installments. This latest entry in the series is composed of amazing graphics, intuitive gameplay, and vast game settings.
Players start their journey in a place called The Hinterlands which is a gorgeous forest set with baseline enemies and a hard-to-kill dragon of death! Outside of The Hinterlands lies a world so vast that even Stephen Hawking would have a hard time comprehending it. While traversing the multiple gameplay areas gamers may be tempted to stop and just take in all of those breathtaking visuals, and that is encouraged. Aside from the fidelity, the game world has great color variety and contrast ratio that mingle with interesting greens and browns to create a truly spectacular game world. I would dare state that this title brings the best visuals in the series so far.
Dragon Age Inquisition brings many things from early games in the trilogy. The main gameplay element that people loved in Dragon Age Origins was the top-down camera system. This amazing element has been reinvented for Dragon Age Inquisition, but the angles put a stronger emphasis on action. Dragon Age Inquisition also reinvents the action-oriented gameplay elements from Dragon Age 2. Weapons have weight prior to and after striking through the flesh of enemy demons. Oh how delightful demons are to send back to a fiery death. The picture above showcases the deadly Ice Witch in the bottom right corner. They are perhaps one of the most engaging enemies in this game, capable of rapid movement and debuffs to your parties’ movements. The true joy of the reinvented gameplay mechanics is made apparent when any number of the numerous dragon battles ensue. Party members make remarks of anticipation and fear, but they won’t flee unless you let them. You may direct them behind cover to avoid the fires of your assaulter. That being said, all the cover in this game is destructible. Do not think that a rock pillar is a safe haven for your mage.
An interesting system for health restoration has been implemented for your parties’ health pools. A “healer” in this game has very few spells that actually restore health. Almost all of the abilities relating to health merely provide a shield capable of withstanding a certain amount of damage. This new take on health management is a breath of fresh air. Without the ability to get a second chance so to speak, one must rely on careful planning and potions. Health potions are limited to 8 potions spread across your entire party, so strategy is a must.
Dragon Age Inquisition is full of beautiful gameplay elements; from a striking top-down camera to more action-focused gameplay, it’s composed of so much content it is hard to believe it retails for only $59.99(USD). I have delved into this masterpiece for roughly 80 hours and from what I hear a completionist run-through can take 200+ hours to complete, that is over 3 hours per dollar spent!
Dragon Age Inquisition takes every delightful aspect of the previous games and seamlessly sutures them together. High-definition delight awaits gamers worldwide, as well as amazing gameplay elements and vast settings. I advise you to purchase this game promptly, as a game of this magnitude can not receive justice from a renting service.
