I don't mind being called jaded if it means I expect more and that's a natural consequence of the attitude, or vice versa. I fail to see why we shouldn't demand more as gamers. I understand there will always be many, many gamers who are fully satisfied with something that doesn't even REMOTELY stimulate the cerebral cortex, but I feel even the dumbest gamer can benefit from games becoming more - not less - complex. The gradual shift in more complex dynamics would scoot them along and we could throw them some bones here and there. As complex as bleeding edge WoW? Maybe that not, but certainly starting out with an endgame heroic 25 WOTLK level at the least. People are ready for that.
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I think the challenge isn't to make new and interesting mechanics, I think the challenge is to redefine/experiment with different mechanics combinations.
By that logic, if we were to go back in time and invent the initial mechanics from scratch while simultaneously implementing those refinements, it would be LESS challenging than simply implementing the refinements themselves? That wouldn't make much sense =p It's almost always harder to create or invent something from scratch, especially if it has merit. The less you have to go on, the harder it is. The only exception to this is when someone takes extreme steps to redefine something to the point of nearly creating something new(and in some cases, it's simply a new idea entirely - something we're clearly not seeing with SWTOR or Rift). However, pound for pound, it's more work rather than a difficulty in coming up with ideas.
As for the voice acting, I was unaware Bioware had any voice actors that WEREN'T British. Apparently that makes them sound smarter or more clever. Cool.
They definitely got sloppier with the VOs in DA2. It's not terrible, but there's a lot of work to be done. Anyone notice how corny the scenes where people are supposed to be sad are? There's no crying when the characters are shown sobbing or serious emotion when you'd expect it.
As for the relationship scheme, it's been like that since at least ME1. You can't simply pick the evil lines or good lines and expect everything to line up accordingly. That's a good thing, but it still feels simulated on the whole. Too many decisions lead to pointless trivialities in character relationships, or no changes at all. There are so many times when I simply cannot give enough of a damn about EXACTLY how I want to respond when random_townsfolk__00 lost their treasured family heirloom in the forest and a big 6-option dialogue tree flies into my face as if I'm facing a crucial decision point of moral truth. Insert "Oh mah gawd, I just killed a thief and now I'm given the option of sparing his life!" Insert "Oh mah gawd, 2 powerful factions are at war and I must choose a side! Will it be the templars or the mages?!?!?!" Insert "Oh mah gawd, if I choose to open the evil tome and find its secrets I will become more powerful, BUT AT WHAT PRICE?!?!?!?". After a few Bioware games, none of these events are particularly appealing or exciting, and it gets a tad old when they use the exact same schemes time and time again.