Dragon Age: Origins spawned a rich world of lore, memorable characters, and countless hours of game play. All over the world, the scepticism that surrounded the rumour mill prior to release swirled the phrase "Baldur's Gate Spiritual Successor".
Then, the game released, and the world of eagerly anticipating fans took a deep breath in. They released it not long after, with varying opinions of what Bioware had achieved with the all new-world they built.
Taking away the dastardly always on "achievements" and online system, there's a lot of stuff that Dragon Age: Origins managed to achieve - interesting characters, enjoyable combat, and a role playing system that workable.
I personally preferred the more high brow fantasy setting of Neverwinter Nights (the original game) - but it was easy to get immersed in the constant battle against the dark spawn.
Whether you were helping dwarves roam through their caves full of mechanical contrivances, or helping hold back the monsters from the realms of man, the game remained engrossing, fun, and a joy.
Today, there's two other games in the series, and they've held up well, with perhaps the exception of Dragon Age 2, which was a rushed, cash grab. Still, it told a story.
But, we're not here to talk about those. We're here to talk about Dragon Age: Origins , and the remainder of this article will be in reference to how well it has aged.
Gracefully isn't a term I would use - the plot is certainly timeless (as most fantasy romps are) - but the game play mechanics are outclassed by more modern role playing games (I'm looking at you, Divinity: Original Sin II.)
Interactions with characters and the environment are good, with branching plot lines for sub quests and romantic forays on offer. The loot system, armour, magic, and combat is lack lustre, and slower paced compared to more modern efforts.
The visual splendour on offer is adequate for a game of this type, and I wouldn't leverage too many complaints about this.
The biggest part of the game that seems to be lacking is the freedom, which is an area where games like Divinity: Original Sin II have spoiled players. Yes, there's many, many of difference between these titles, but the tools where there, even back when I went to have a play in the scenario editor of Neverwinter Nights .
At the end of the day, while Dragon Age Origins was a labour of love for the artists, writers, and programmers that spent their creative forces on unleashing a new intellectual property, the shotcomings and advances the game could've truly made in the genre were spoiled by a simple thing - commercial viability.