User blog comment:Nord Ronnoc/A Tale Of Two Game Series/@comment-2250460-20121111231413/@comment-2228120-20121112152614

/cough/ but the character does have a name, depending on the origin. Mine is Ned Cousland. He is referred to as "Warden" because you can't really have six different version of voice acting every time someone addresses him. Furthermore, being a Warden is also what defines him and sets his goal, for which he is destined. In a way, it also pre-destines the morality choices: the full title is a Grey Warden, and for a reason. The good option sometimes doesn't exist, you can only choose the lesser evil, as in RL. SOmetimes, you can't even tell which it would be: should you support a ruthless enlightened dictator, or a honourable traditionalist whose rule will preserve stagnation? Grey morality may not be your cup of tea, Legion, but it hardly makes the game objectively worse, doesn't it?

As for the originality of the plot: let us not fool ourselves. Both ME and DA make use of the good old hero-saves-the-world-from-ancient-evil. While doing so, he solves other people's problems, runs some errands, unites the good guys and kicks the bad guys' rear parts. As plain as that. What makes both ME and DA:O great is how these sterotypes are implemented.

Some arguments are beginning to resemble a p***ing contest. What does the quality od the game have to do if you save a galaxy or a single world? Because, that's basically what the Warden does: by stopping the Blight early (way earlier than the previous ones which lasted from decades to centuries), he saves everyone. And as to who he defeats - you really ought to play it first, Legionwrex, I'm sure you would see some disturbing similarities. That part of the game where you discover how little darkspawn are made is creeepy.

Comparing the two series, ME undebatably wins: for all the drawbacks from ME2 on, every single part is way better than DA2, and the DA franchise as a whole is, IMHO, a sinking ship. However, if you recall the original argument, we were defending the qualities of the Dragon Age: Origins, not the whole series.

Seriously, what's wrong with admitting that a game might be as good as ME? Sounds a bit like musing if quarians are better than salarians, or that because krogans are unstoppable battle machines, everyone else lacks merit.