#I love all the love interests in DA:I equally

[animezinglife]

@sweetjulieapples, oh, I have, dear. Fear not.

Art made for Cullenite event at Magic City Con.

Step by step here.

[vaguely-concerned]

I've been trying to figure out a dynamic between neve and rye that I find more compelling, because right now there's not much of anything there for me to sink my little teeth into. but I think I've landed on something delicious with the idea that especially after minrathous gets fucked, rye looks at neve and sees myrna -- someone he feels he keeps letting down horribly no matter how hard he tries not to and can't quite achieve the approval of/connection with that he wishes so it's better to just pull away completely and disengage rather than stay in that unshifting shame. neve is (very understandably) measured and distant with him after what happened, and he's flashing back to his student days of myrna gazing at the perpetually hungover heartbroken heap of a person of him on the other side of her desk every time he missed the deadline of a paper or project like '...can we at least both agree that this is. a bit disappointing. especially considering your potential.' (and him all smudged black eyeshadow and numb ruefulness being like 'sure that's a very kind way to put it myrna thank you'.)

aside from the 'if I let him get too deeply into this he'll go the way of brom and it'll be all my fault (again)' element, neve thinks rye is dismissing her and her city/being a bit callous in the same way he was after varric's death (listen. how fucking wild must rook's reaction to losing a beloved mentor seem to the rest of the crew who aren't seeing the blood magic paper doll ghost varric the whole time, especially those who got to see them interact. you WOULD think 'there's something wrong with this guy. putting the job first is one thing just not seeming to react at all is another this is fucking freaky', wouldn't you, especially after seeing the warmth in that dynamic in action beforehand.) perfect storm of two people who grit their teeth and turn inwards in pain deciding that not talking about it is their best bet (NEWSFLASH: IT ISN'T) lmao

(rye spent his last year of watcher training on a mostly joyless bender and then got it together enough to finish the eternal orb project last moment in a fevered near-sleepless week instead of the half a year that was intended. emmrich is both astounded and distressed to hear this. "a week? but -- but that is an astounding accomplishment rook!! and also why in the maker's good light would you ever do that to yourself?" ("well you see there was no one to stop me from doing it like that but me. and under those conditions these things tend to happen".) rye was working through/looking up stuff around transitioning and doing every kind of OTHER high level watcher research through that whole time, but ultimately he's an excellent watcher and a terrible student, at least under traditional methods. adhd from here to the fucking moon. touched by something akin to divine inspiration in moments of high tension that pulls all the threads into one coherent unbreakable cord, a bit of a frayed mess in most other settings. in our world he'd be dropping out of a masters program at the very last hurdle in this moment maker bless and protect him)

[mendellyill]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard looks super exciting for me. DA:I was probably my least favorite game in terms of tone/plot so this switch is really exciting. Solas never interested me much as a character and the ancient elvhen gods equally disinterested me. I'm really hoping to learn more about the other cultures in Thedas and exploring this rich world and everything in it. Origins established so many interesting parts of Thedas and I cannot wait to see it all.

I also love the art style. Realism is great in games but it does mean that all games start to look the same if everyone goes for realism. Seeing something very distinct in the trailer was really exciting for me! Like a new food to try. I think if they'd just released DA:I 2 electric boogaloo people would be upset that they weren't more innovative after 10 years.

[gotinterest]

The writing of the Fenris v Anders conflict frustrates me to no end because it just doesn’t work on many levels. The idea of Fenris and Anders not getting along because Fenris is wary of mages and Anders is a very “pro-mage” mage is good in theory. I’m even fine with them never getting along. 

Unfortunately, the writing suffers from “Dragon Age Oversimplification” disease as well as a bad case of “Racist Fantasy Oppression Metaphor” syndrome.

For the oversimplification thing. This is a problem that got significantly worse in DA:I, but you can begin to see it with Fenris in DA:2. You can see what they wanted to do: show an idealogical struggle between a sympathetic pro-mage character, and a sympathetic anti-mage character. 

That’s great, it gets you to see two very different sides of the coin. Previously, you hadn’t really seen someone who came from a society where mages actively oppressed other people. It makes Fenris’ perspective interesting. Even pro-mage players can sympathize with him and understand why he feels the way he feels. 

They could have gone two different routes with this: 1) a completely anti-mage character whose arc is that he starts out justified and sympathetic, but his hatred of mages fuels him into being like the people who oppressed him or 2) Someone who hates mages and thinks they are all corrupt, but then begins to realize that most of them aren’t bad people and slowly loses some of the fear and resentment towards them and comes to understand that the chantry circles are not the way to go, either (even if he does still vehemently disapprove of blood magic).

The problem is they tried BOTH. Fenris, when you first meet him, is cautious of mages, but tells a mage! Hawke that he is willing to see what kind of person they are before judging their character. But then he continuously justifies the absolute shit treatment of mages, even after finding out that people are being lobotomized and abused. But he is also convinced by such arguments as “everyone deserves freedom”... except when it’s Anders saying that.

It’s flip floppy and inconsistent. It’s clear that they wanted to write a nuanced character, but also felt as thought they needed a hard counterpoint to Anders’ pro-mage stance to “balance things out”. But Fenris’ stances often don’t match his established character. I’m not saying that a character can’t be hypocritical or occasionally contradict themselves  (real life people do that). I’m saying that it gets to a point where you have to IGNORE certain things he does and says in order to form a consistent picture of the kind of person he is. 

A Fenris that hates mages so much he wants them to be lobotomized and abused (which he does, if he is still ok with the circles even after learning of the abuses in them) is not one that would fall in love with a mage! Hawke and say something like “I am yours” to them. You literally have to sacrifice his character development where he heals from his trauma and opens up more in order for him to still be so angry and hateful that he is ok with the abuses in the Gallows.

Anders also suffers from the “they need to absolutely disagree all the time and be 100% opposed to one another for ‘balance’” trap as well, but to a lesser extent. The most egregious example is him approving of Hawke giving Fenris back to Danarius. That’s COMPLETELY out of character for Anders, even if he does hate Fenris’ guts. 

And that’s just the way it’s bad from an in-story perspective. From an out of story perspective... mages are a very bad metaphor for oppressed people. Mages ARE dangerous. If they don’t get training they can get possessed, they can lose control and be a danger to themselves and to others. Their ability isn’t just a tool, it makes them inherently dangerous because their powers can go out of control if they aren’t trained properly. Rogues and Warriors aren’t born inherently carrying weapons around with them that they have to worry about hitting other people with. Particularly powerful mages (like Solas) have godlike abilities. Regular people have absolutely EVERY reason to be terrified of them.

This does not reflect the reality of oppressed people. Fear of oppressed people is based on biases and bigotry, it’s cultivated by the powerful to maintain systems of control. If mages weren’t capable of being so powerful, and the mere fact that they are different was the reason they are hated and feared, than that would be different. But that isn’t the case in the Dragon Age universe.

It’s an extremely bad look to have your freedom fighting, civil rights leader allegory character be white. Fenris is brown and from a fantasy race heavily inspired by Indigenous Americans, Romani, and Jewish people. It’s a very bad look for a white character like Anders to refer to him as an “animal”. Anders is supposed to represent oppressed people fighting for their rights, but Fenris has far more in common in with actual real life oppressed peoples who have to fight for their rights. It falls very much into the trope of a poor oppressed white character having to deal with a bigoted person of color, especially when the writing consistently paints Fenris as the aggressor in their arguments.

It’s bad writing to make a narrative that’s responding to real world issues while, at the same time, not reflecting real world dynamics at all. But things didn’t have to be as bad as they were, if they had just changed things a little bit, made Fenris and Anders’ dislike of each other a bit more personal than political, presented it as more equally petty, and didn’t sacrifice Fenris’ character development to make it make sense, than it could have worked better. You’d still have the issue of mages being a bad metaphor for oppression, but that’s baked into the universe, so what are you going to do? DA:2 at least handled it better than DA:I. 

[msbarrows]

...of course getting DA:I necessitates connecting up and booting up my ancient desktop, so I can grab my old DA:O, DAA etc, and DA2 saves off of it. The plan is to copy them to the correct locations on the new laptop, and hopefully figure out how to get the Dragon Age Keep site to recognize and update my world states, because when I checked last night it just had names of some of my wardens and Hawkes and none of their actual decision trees. *Twitches*

I suppose while I’m on there I might as well see if I can get my cranky, equally-ancient install of iTunes to fire up so I can get my old playlists copied down to set up in MusicBee; I never did get them properly set up on the interim laptop, because it had sucky sound quality, so the impetus was just not there. Playlists on the old desktop are so ancient, they started being made at least one machine prior to that, and are dumb lists. It wasn’t until the old laptop that I found myself thinking “You know, I could do a smart playist for some of those based off of ratings...” - which I then never fully implemented. I’ll have to manually work through the list and hand-set the ratings, but it’ll be worth it to have some of my old playlists back. Particularly ‘Favorites’ and ‘Headspace’ (aka mental health).

Thinking about music, that’s another reason to keep the old laptop going as a media machine; I have no interest at all in installing iTunes on the new hardware, but of the music purchase sites available to me it is one of the most easily accessible. I can buy albums on the old laptop and then just transfer them over to the new machine and new software (as mentioned previously, MusicBee, and so far I’m loving it).

[crackinglamb]

Video Game Questionnaire

Rules: Fill in your answers below and tag some buddies!

Tagged by @bitterotter, thank you!

Tagging @ir0n-angel, @pikapeppa, @modernagesomniari, @wherethefuckismyshoe, @thealexmachina, @the-desert-dancer and @fasterpuddytat.  No pressure!

Games

First game you ever played: Like, for real video game?  Original MYST, way back in 1995 on my dad’s old Mac Performa.

Favorite game: Uh...I’m poly.  I don’t play favorites.  Games I adore and always go back to?  Borderlands 2, Subnautica, DA:I.

Game you’ve played through multiple times: *snort*  All the ones listed above, as well as BL1, ME1 and ME2, Fallout 4, MYST, Minecraft...pretty much all the games I own.

Game you hated at first but now love: Hate is a strong word.  I don’t think I’ve ever played anything I disliked only to change my mind later.  Generally speaking, I will only start playing a game because I’m interested in it.

Game you used to love but now hate: Again, hate is too strong.  But after many hours of Skyrim, I completely and utterly lost interest and never played it again.  If that counts.

Your favorite game atmosphere/setting(s): I love the variety in DA:I, even if some of those maps are too lorge.  But current fave is probably Subnautica.

A game with your favorite ending: Borderlands 2.  Pity they didn’t follow through on the promise.

A game with the WORST ending: Tossup.  FO4′s clunky four way is...clunky and disappointing.  ME3′s equally clunky forced bullshit is...you get the idea.

Best character customization?: FO4.  Still the only game I’ve ever played with a body size/weight slider.

Hero and Companions

Your favorite playable character:  Tough call.  Depends on what I’m in the mood for.  Sheer insanity and violence?  Krieg, BL2.  RPG and emotion?  Inquisitor, DA:I.

The funniest playable character: Clap-trap, BL the Pre-Sequel.  Probably the only good thing about that game other than Mr. Timothy Lawrence.

Your favorite companion(s): ME1, the forever squad is Garrus and Wrex.  ME2, it’s Garrus and Jack.  DA:I, Bull, Dorian and Solas OR Cass, Cole and Solas.  FO4, Hancock, all the way.  (And Dogmeat with mods.)  Yeah...there’s a theme there with the LI’s, don’t judge me.

Companions you could live without: DA:I, Vivienne, Sera.  FO4, Piper, Cait.  ME2, Jacob.

Relationships

Favorite game friendship(s):  FO4, SoSu and Nick Valentine.  DA:I, Inky and Dorian.  ME, Shepard and Wrex.

Favorite game relationship(s): Anyone who’s ever read any of my work knows this one.  Shakarian forever.  F!SoSu/Hancock.  *sighs in disgust with myself*  Solavellan.

Favorite companion banter:  DA:I, Dorian and Solas.  ME, Wrex and anyone.

A relationship you weren’t sure of but loved: See the aforementioned reluctance towards Solavellan.

A minor character you wish could be a companion: FO4, Edward Deegan.

A character you wish you COULD romance: Varric, dammit!

Fun

Shoutout to a random NPC:  Tiny Tina!!!

A game you love watching playthroughs for and want to play: DA2, only by virtue of it being the only game I’ve actually watched playthroughs for.

Love watching playthroughs but won’t ever play: I don’t go out of my way to watch games via playthroughs.  That being said, I enjoyed watching my ex play the Deadpool game knowing I’d probably never play it myself.

Online gaming or solo?:  Solo.  I’ll co-op, but rarely.  No MMO’s plz.  Nuh uh.  Not for me.

Why do you play video games?: Fun, stress relief...fanfic fodder.

[pikapeppa]

Oh Mighty Word Wrangler, bestow upon me your wisdom!! ♥ What do you think makes your amazing fics so popular? Apart from your OBVIOUS talent and writing ability, of course ;) Is it frequency of posting? The pairings? Amount of smut? I'm curious :D

HAHAHAH THANK YOU FOR THAT COMPLIMENT YOU SNUCK IN THERE but also I’M PANIC at the thought of trying to answer this question lol?? I mean, this is the question for the ages, right? What makes a fic popular, and how do we boost the engagement with our own work?

Let me preface this reply by saying it is based just on my experiences and hypothesizing, and NOT on anything systematic. Trust me, I’d study this like a science if I could, but then I wouldn’t be writing. HAHA. Also, I’ll mostly focus on popularity on AO3 and not on Tumblr, since I would argue that I’m only “known as a writer” on Tumblr because people followed me here from AO3. 

First of all, I want to highlight the fact that popularity does not equal quality, and vice versa. I’ve read some fics that are AMAZING but have little engagement. Some examples are Last Call by @galadrieljones (Ameridan/Lavellan) and this very short Fenris fic that I just read recently. On the other hand, I’ve tried to read some fics that are extremely popular with tons of hits/kudos/comments, but my judgmental ass thinks they’re poorly written and/or poorly characterized. There really is not a clear linear relationship between the quality of a fic and its popularity. (Anyone who is discouraged by the lack of engagement with their work: please keep this in mind.)

Another thing to consider: what do we even mean by popularity? On AO3, is the most popular fic the one with the most hits? The most comments? The most kudos? Even then, a longfic that’s been updated weekly for a year is going to have more hits than a completed oneshot, just by virtue of its length. Frequently updated fics will show up week after week in search results, since AO3’s search results show the most recently updated fics by default. So when I think about popularity… ehhh, I guess I’m thinking about a vague combination of all three of these things – hits, kudos, and comments – while keeping the length of the fic in mind. Given all of this, in the grand scheme of things, my DA fics really aren’t that popular. I didn’t actually do a search because I didn’t want to make myself sad, but if you search my DA pairings (e.g. Fenris/female Hawke) on AO3 by number of hits/comments/kudos, I won’t come up on the first few pages of search results. We’ll come back to the topic of search results later.

ANYWAY. Let’s pretend I’m relatively popular, leaving out the Big Names™ in DA fanfic (whom I won’t tag here because I don’t want to annoy them with a random tag lol). What do I think make my fics somewhat popular? I can think of four things:

Frequency of posting

The combination of fandom and pairing: filling a gap

Varying lengths of fics for a single pairing: something for everyone

I have no idea

Frequency of posting

The most obvious factor that jumps out to me is that I post regularly and frequently. Currently, I update my two ongoing longfics weekly or every other week. When I first got really heavily into Fenris/Rynne Hawke, I was updating almost every day. As I mentioned before, AO3’s search results are shown by the most recently updated fics by default. So if I’m posting regularly, that means my fic is regularly appearing at the top of the list of search results when people search my tags or pairings, which means a higher chance of new readers seeing it and deciding to dive in week after week. 

Fandom and pairing: filling a gap

For this point, I’m going to call back to the fandom where I first became “well-known”, which is Horizon Zero Dawn. I’ve written a number of ships for that game, but my OTP is Aloy/Nil. My fic Stormbirds and Stalkers is the second most kudos’ed fic if you search for that pairing on AO3, and the #1 most kudos’ed fic if you exclude fics that are multi-ship (i.e. shipping Aloy with multiple people in a single fic, which is common in the HZD fandom). Importantly, this was a popular pairing in a very small fandom. There weren’t many fics for this pairing at the time, and there weren’t any fics that did what I was doing: a monogamous love story, with explicit smut, that was actually being updated. 

Funnily enough, though, my second most popular fic in the HZD fandom is my fic for Aloy/Ikrie. This is an extreme rarepair even within a small fandom, with only 19 Aloy/Ikrie fics on AO3, but my fic for this pairing is the one with the most hits/kudos/comment and is also my one fic with the most subscribers on AO3. Clearly people were excited about this fic and wanted to see more of this pairing. 

So what’s the logic here? A rarepair in a small fandom, a popular pairing in a small fandom… what’s the pattern? From what I can tell, a fic will be more popular if people are starved for that content. If a fic falls into that gap where people clearly want MOAR, but MOAR doesn’t yet exist, it’s going to get more engagement. Popular pairings in a small fandom fall perfectly into that gap, as do highly-coveted rarepairs with little existing content. A Dragon Age example of this is my little Cole/Lavellan romance fic. Colemances are quite rare, sexual ones even more so, and I think the reason for my Colemance fic’s popularity is because it fills that gap. 

If we return to the rest of my Dragon Age fic, however… [nervous laugh] the logic I just outlined above doesn’t really apply. That takes me to the third factor.

Varying fic lengths for a single pairing: a little something for everyone

Most of my Dragon Age work is for the most popular pairings for the games I’ve played: FenHawke for DA2, and Solavellan for DA:I. (Yes, yes, Cullen is even more popular, but I’ll leave my Cullen/Inquisitor work out of this analysis because I think it’s a special case.) I’ve heard that it’s notoriously difficult to get engagement when you’re writing a popular ship for a bigger fandom, since readers get inundated with choice and your fic can get lost in the shuffle. I would in no way say I’m “popular” for the pairings I write, considering that the most popular Solavellan fics have like… tens of thousands of hits and thousands of comments. Still, I have been surprised and thrilled by the engagement I have gotten in this fandom, especially since I’m kind of a noob to the DA world. 

One of the reasons my DA work might be relatively popular is that I write fics of varying lengths and types for my pairings. For Fen and Rynne in particular, I’ve got everything from non-smut oneshots to smutty oneshots to smutty longfics to AUs. There’s a little bit of everything for everyone, and I suspect that someone who was like “I just want a oneshot” might get interested enough by the one thing they read to check out my other work, even if they didn’t start out looking for more than a oneshot. Similarly for Solavellan, and also for Abelas/Lavellan, I’ve got oneshots and a multichapter drabble collection, so there’s something both for the people who are searching for a quick oneshot and for those who are searching for multichapter fics. In short: more variety means more potential to show up in AO3 search results. 

Don’t get me wrong; some of my Dragon Age stuff has fallen flat, namely my Blackwall/Lavellan work. That was actually the first DA ship I ever wrote for. The smutty oneshot collection has been relatively popular in terms of hits and kudos, but the two little multichapter mini-fics I wrote for Baewall have had very little attention, and I don’t really know why. Baewall isn’t the most popular ship in the fandom, I know, but it still doesn’t really explain the popularity of the smutty oneshots versus the mini-fics, which are also smutty. 

Which brings me to my final point…

I have no idea.

LOL. Seriously though. I’m sure there are other things at play that I’m not aware of, so maybe this can open a little discussion! What do you guys think? Any other theories on why some fics get more popular than others? 

Thanks for the interesting ask, Elvenybae! I definitely spent too much time thinking about this today, LOL!! 😂 😘

- Love from your friendly neighbourhood Pikapeppa xoxo

[gravityfissure]

[meta] What, if any, games, movies, books, tv shows, etc. have you drawn influence from for your character?

Okay so round 2, much in the same vein for Arthur there are... A lot. Possibly even more things that influence and inspire where Otto’s muse and views comes from. That said in writing this there are also a LOT of similarities between the characters I can pick out certain attributes and to be honest there’s a lot of crossover with the traits and characterisations highlighted.

Namely: playful and proactive, self-serving yet loyal to those that meet his criteria as to who is deserving of it. A grifter by nature that will approach almost any situation if he feels he’ll get something out of it while equally hoping that one day someone might actually bother to ask him (and maybe give him a true reason) to stay.

Dorian - Dragon Age: Inquisition

Uh, the heir of a famous magical dynasty? A flair of magical talent that made him the envy of his peers? Studied at one of the best colleges for the magical arts before being kicked out and privately tutored before eventually vanishing and being found by Magister Gereon Alexius who offered to take him as his apprentice eventually becoming a fully-ranked enchanter. A pariah for opposing every fault his homeland is renowned for?

It’s been years since I’ve played DA:I and Dorian always was one of my favourite characters but tbh I completely forgot his background and it’s only in revisiting it now I actually realise the similarities in the framework of their characters/development/story line. Not to mention the fact they both enjoy playful flirtation and witty banter and oppose the things they don’t fit into their view of the world. They will probably do the right thing, but that doesn’t mean they might not take their sweet ass time in actually getting into a situation.

Isabela - Dragon Age II and Inquisition 

AND AGAIN. Isabela’s a great character - a pirate scourge of coastlines and nations around the world who values fun, freedom and getting ahead in life. They both value solving situations in clever and devious ways and getting ahead even if it means being somewhat selfish when they’re dealing with other people, example: Otto conning Deirdre out of $28k when she tried to cover for Regan or those plans he has to try and record a banshee scream? They’re both always down for trying to squeeze that little bit extra out of a person. If it one ups them in life and people are gullible enough to fall for it well... They really did it to themselves didn’t they?

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t depths to that hardened persona they both present. There are actual feelings and things hidden behind the wall and appearance they both present to the world. And underneath it all they’re both afraid of being left behind, but figure it’s best to push people away before they decide to leave of their own volition. At least that way they can say they have some control over the situation.. 

Sera - Dragon Age: Inquisition

Apparently this is a DA characters list but you know what sue me. x) So NEXT on the list is Sera, an elven archer who is incredibly impulsive and reactionary. She takes pure delight in humbling the established authority she views as arrogant and selfish. It’s less about what’s right in the grand scheme of things but more about what’s right in that very moment. She doesn’t believe in actions taken for a greater good, instead viewing it as just another excuse to hurt others undeserving of such treatment because it’s easier than making the truly hard choices in life. 

Felix Dawkins - Orphan Black

Look Felix is one of the many fascinating characters on Orphan Black. Don’t get me wrong there are SO many and it’s a great show. But Felix is a character whose very existence proves that you can have a very effeminate, boisterous, loud, witty gay character and not have him be limited to the perpetuation of the sassy gay friend stereotype. Why? Because he has a whole complex personality beyond just that aspect of his life. He’s got to deal with real life issues on top of all the drama clone club brings into his life and he deals and he survives and he cOPES.

Not to mention he’s a positive representation of foster children being happy, positive representation of LGBTQ+ characters and gives positive representation of sex workers. Not to mention on top of all that representation you see how he’s smart as hell, the only person who knows Sarah well enough to keep her on track. The BEST uncle to Kira and one of the most supportive characters on the show. 

Sarah - Orphan Black

Felix’s foster-sister, another character that shows the positive and complex dynamic that foster families tend to have while also demonstrating the fascinating found-family dynamic with clone club. Sarah’s interesting because she’s a natural chameleon, she’s street-smart and tough, a born outsider living on the fringes by her wits while in possession of a dark sense of humour that sees her by.

Sarah and Otto have a rather morally ambiguous compass, they’re both characters who swing between being very self-serving and selfish and acting for the greater good when they decide it’s needed. Not to mention the act as if they don’t care about other people’s issues (see clone club) when actually it transpires they both might just care a little more than they actually let on.

Garcia Flynn - Timeless

Unfortunately Garcia fits the my favourite character type: tall, dark, snarky, sassy antihero motivated fiercely by love and willing to do things of questionable morality against a greater evil, self-aware and doesn’t make excuses for his behaviour, but isn’t wringing his hands over it either.  A character who so dearly loves the people in his life (see revenge for his wife and daughter) so much so he’s still fighting for them 5 years later just to be alive and not even to have anything to do with him again because he knows the things he’s done are enough the he could never go back to being that person for them. The man who loved his mum and went on a trip just to make her happy and save his brother. When he truly cares for someone he does EVERYTHING for them while somehow having none of the toxic jealous possessive business, despite his  well-attested Garbage Drama in other departments, and just generally being a mature adult and an essentially good person who has gone down some really dark places and is finally rediscovering what he’s buried and lost. Look man, I’m a suuuuuuuuuuuuucker for found family, enemies to lovers, and villain becomes weird family member. And he covers all of those, so yes. 

There’s a lot of that I’m planning and drawing on for Otto, this weird currently antagonistic little self-serving shit who is out for his own ends but maybe along the way finds some semblence of a conscious and maybe has a fair few moral dilemmas and self-questioning moments along the way? Who maybe finds friends (and even love?) Who has to deal with FEELINGS and things he’s repressed for years because of the things he’s done just to survive the life he fell into? Uh, yes give me give me give me.

Jesse Custer - Preacher

Okay, so this one’s kind of another given. Jesse’s another character I’m fascinated with because before Genesis’ arrival he was a down upon his luck preacher. A man who was trying so hard to fit into his dad’s ideal and not let the life he had before affect his day to day. Except it all goes to hell in a handbasket because of course it does.

Jesse essentially gains the ability to make anyone do anything he says. And that power? It’s addictive, and we see the struggle he goes through to learn how to control and manipulate it to his own end. To begin with he tries to right wrongs, to tell people to stop doing the bad things they’re doing in their lives and fix them so they’re better people but with each act that power and god-complex grows. It goes to his head until we meet the moronic messiah Humperdoo and Jesse eventually agrees to take his place. The messiah-complex and power corruption is complete, and the repercussions of his choices are devastating especially with how they impact Cassidy or Tulip and the repercussions in Angelville.

Much like Otto’s own magic, the more its used the more enticing it is to carry on using it for more and more things. At first it was small deeds, little acts of good until Otto in kind started to realise that good deeds weren’t enough to make a change. They weren’t enough for other people around him and with each act it grew and grew - and it continues to grow. The question is to what level? And if it ever got out of control, would he ever know how to stop it?

Crowley - Good Omens

An overall non-threatening demon, who tries to be “evil” in his own way to fit into the role his society (other demons) expect of him. Crowley wants to save the world (for his own reasons) and can be rather self-serving in certain moments. There’s plenty of times he tried to convince Aziraphale to run away with him and let everything else forgive the irony but for lack of a better term “go to hell” but he always comes around in the end (typically to a Queen track) to help when it really counts for something.

 Not to mention his flare for the dramatic, very rarely thinking things through, with many of his own plans backfiring on him.  

Sound familiar?

Wrench - Watch Dogs 2

Part-hacker and full-fledged anarchist who wears a freaky mask with LED displays capable of bizarre emoticons. He's vulgar, crude, entertaining and an absolute adrenaline junkie who lives on the edge. He's jokingly called the wrench because he's the wrench you throw into somebody's gears to grind them to a halt.

The final one on the list, because it’s a side I haven’t yet played into so much but I’m curious to given means and opportunity to. Otto does have some inclination towards an anarchistic nature, if a system doesn’t seem to work he isn’t afraid to speak out or more likely act out against it. Whether it’s in the greater good or not isn’t so much relevant rather that he would happily take a torch and burn something to the ground if it meant starting again with something new and better in its place. It’s definitely something I want to explore more down the line.

I also find it interesting the whole concept of “hiding behind a mask” which is something wrench quite literally does. Both have built personas to defend themselves from people breaking through and seeing that what actually exists on the other side is a rather shy and awkward person who tries to “act out” and be “dramatic” in an attempt to get attention from a world in which there’s so much noise how could anyone ever feel like their voice mattered let alone be heard unless they started shouting “HEY, LOOK AT ME” at the top of his lungs?  

[deadlymaelstrom]

Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy Gameplay Changes and Details Appear Online

It seems EA Games will indeed release a Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy later this year. Over the past few months, we heard multiple reports about the three remasters releasing sometime in September. A major new leak from an EA QA Tester details each game’s new features and graphical changes. Each Mass Effect game will be remastered in the trilogy. In addition, development kicked off in early 2017.

The leak, which was posted on Reddit, goes into detail about each of the three remastered games. It seems they will not only get a graphical enhancement but also some UI and gameplay changes too. The original game will receive the most robust changes in the trilogy including gameplay tweaks to make it fall in line with ME3. Even some boss fights have been completely redesigned in the Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy.

Take a look at the full breakdown below posted on Reddit. Keep in mind that until confirmed, take this all with a pinch of salt.

Mass Effect

Major graphical and gameplay changes. Gameplay is more in line with Andromeda fluidity but instead of the original weapon and armor systems in that game its more streamlined like ME3. However this game has the least robust gameplay of the three in the remaster.

The change in gameplay has also altered some of the level design and “Boss Battles”. Beneziah is no longer in the room with the Rachni Queen it is instead in a more open environment both of Sarens battles have had the environments expanded to offer better options for gameplay.

The planet exploration from ME1 has been changed to be more in line with ME3 planet scanning. However there are still a few planets to land on. Do not expect Andromeda size open worlds. I would say every planet combined is about equal to EOS in terms of size and areas to explore. This game is still a very linear experience.

Galaxy Map and Galaxy Exploration is ME:3 version but with more to explore in this remaster.

If I had to make a comparison the game graphical looks similar to DA:I. Its not a “Next Gen” title but Mass Effect remade in the “Current Gen” Frostbite Engine. Character models look good but look even better in the ME2 and 3 versions of the Remaster.

Cut quests from the original game have been added to the remaster. Maybe about 2-3 hours of gameplay. Saren has more backstory shown through cutscenes.

Shepards Cabin has been added for ME1. Companions are no longer stashed in the “Cargo Hold”.

The “Sacrifice” scene has new cutscenes added to show the fates of the squad member from their perspective. You are also able to start romances earlier and if you are romancing the one who was not left behind there is an added moment after with that particular love interest. I was told its one of the few moments that Shepard is “vulnerable”.

Bring Down the Sky and Pinnacle Station are included in the remaster as the base game and not DLC.

Hub areas are more lively. On the Citadel there is more NPC interactions, ambient conversations and the clubs/c-sec and certain areas of the presidium are also completely redesigned to give it a fresh look and feel.

Mass Effect 2

Major graphical and gameplay changes like ME1. The gameplay is more in line with Andromeda fluidity but instead of the robust weapon and armour systems in that game it’s more streamlined like ME3.

Character models are noticeably improved from the ME1 Remaster. Graphically it still is on par with DA:I overall.

Planet scanning is back but improved and more in line with ME3 than the original ME2 game. They have added more to the hub worlds instead of giving planets to explore. The Presidium and Wards from ME1 have been added with obvious environmental changes from the aftermath of ME1. Parts of Omega that was cut from the base game has been added to the remaster.

All of the DLC from the base game has been added into the remaster.

Cut quests and content have been re-added. Also have been told that they have made the game “more adult” as in certain romance scenes/environments are no longer strategically “non-nude”. If you romanced Kaiden or Ashley from the first game there is extra content with those characters later in the epilogue of the game.

After you complete “Arrival” which only activates after you beat the main quests. They have added the extra content of Shepard turning him/herself into the Alliance. It’s during this “epilogue” that you can interact with Kaiden or Ashley briefly.

Mass Effect 3

Like the previous two games, this one also includes major graphical and gameplay changes. The gameplay is more in line with Andromeda fluidity but keeps the core ME3 inventory system.

You get to play an extremely brief “Prologue” as Admiral Anderson prior to the Reaper Invasion. This allows players to see a little bit of Earth prior to its destruction which was a major complaint from the original release.

Looks similar to ME2 Remaster Graphically. Character Models might have some incremental improvements but unless you view them side by side it’s hard to tell.

Planet and War Asset System returns but is easier to manage and you cannot unlock Asset Quests until you reach certain points in the game.

Like the previous two games, they have added more to the Hubs.

All of the DLC from the base game has been added to the remaster and are considered main quests so you can’t miss them. Some cut content has also been included. About five hours worth. Also, something else that is new. If you play as Female Shepard you can also sleep with Aria after the Omega Mission as long as you are not currently in a relationship with anyone else. Apparently Aria doesn’t like that. Like the ME2 Remaster, they have made the game “more adult” as in certain romance scenes/environments are no longer strategically “non-nude”.

They have also added a bit more to the ending of the game. Any romance interest you have assuming they are still alive will be able to have a physical in-person goodbye with Shepard before the final mission.

The ending has not been changed in any capacity. However, some of the cut content is more towards the end of the game.

EA Games has yet to announce the so-called Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy. The company hosted its lacklustre EA Play Live event last week and it was missing. However, we could see a possible reveal in one of the many upcoming reveal streams planned for the upcoming months ahead.

[dalishious]

Hi! Sorry to bother you but I've been wondering about this for a while, do you think that having a relationship with a pro-mage Mage Trevelyan would change Cassandra's stand on mage? I always felt like since the game doesn't let you argue with anyone and it's such a mess re: mage rights, she never really has to re-consider a lot of stuff, but you can romance her even when disagreeing on this main points, so I usually headcanon a rivalmance of sorts. She does seem to listen to Cole after all.

IDK, she was in a relationship with a mage before (in Dawn of the Seeker, her love interest is a mage named Galyan who did talk about how mages aren’t all evil and deserve equality with her,) and it didn’t seem to change a lot about her views by DA:I. But there’s no reason you can’t imagine otherwise I guess?

[edelgoth]

Hi, I'm 2w1 for ennea and (I think) ENFP for MBTI. I am a big nerd (obviously :D) and for hobbies I do MMA, photography, play the Mandolin, love folk music and acting. I like meeting new people even though it tires me out. My humor can be snarky, and I apologize way too much. I am not assertive at all, but do not shy away from difficult heart-to-heart moments. I do try to be there for people and normally see the best in other by default. DA2 or DA:I? & any gender, if you don't mind. Thank You!!

(Hi. It’s that 2w1) I think I for got to mention that I’m female, and I enjoy writing. But, yeah, thank you so much for if you see this!! ( If you’d like, I’d be happy to do a Dragon Age match up for you as well!!) Thank you again.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! you have no idea how excited i was to see a dragon age request in my inbox i’m,,, thank you so much! also, it’d be lovely if you did a matchup for me!! just message me! 

okay, so i tossed this one up a lot, but in dragon age ii, i match you with… 

fenris!!

i think you two have a nice amount of contrast! youhave the sort of personality that’ll help bring him some levity, while he has amore assertive edge

he strikes me of the certain of person to encourageyou to stop apologizing too much; not only have you not done anything wrong, but he has such a clear view of your valuethat the idea that you’re apologizing for nothing doesn’t make sense to him

you’d definitely be the “social point” of therelationship, if that makes sense; fenris is more than happy to let you dealwith other people, but he’s always there when you’re tired at the end ofthe day. he gets it,

he’d like to see your creative outlets, fromwriting to acting, and he’d be very supportive of them; he’s intrigued by howyou express yourself, and would value any extra understanding of you he couldgather from your work. i think he’d also really enjoy it when you played themandolin (i had to look up what that was for this and oh my goodness they’re so cute), and i think he’d be especiallyfond of the folk songs that had a story to them?

just imagine him resting his head on your legs withhis eyes closed as he listens to you pluck away at a laid-back tune,,, bless

i feel like he’d enjoy getting involved in mma withyou (or the thedas equivalent, depending on how you’d like to think of thismatchup), and it could be a good way for him to get more comfortable with beingtouched by others? that’s something he has to work through in a relationship,and while mma certainly isn’t intimate,it could be good practice? i have No Idea where this tangent is going, B U T itgives him a) an opportunity to get competitive for fun, and b) an opportunityto be close to you

fenris had a pretty good sense of humour, and ithink you’d bounce off each other quite well here. his humour is moreunderstated, so he’d like your snarky side 

but at the same time, i think being with someonewho has your outlook would be a good thing for him; he struggles with pessimism(with good reason), and he’s naturally distrustful (again, for very good reason). having someone whosaw the best in others would help remind him that things are okay, and that oneday, maybe things will get better

also, since you like meeting others, i feel likeyou’d help him get out of the house more? he has a habit of cooping himself up,but with the joint efforts of you and varric, he might see the light of day (orthe streetlights) just a little bit more

i think something else that’d be invaluable wouldbe your ability to have those difficult heart-to-heart conversations. fenrishas a lot to work through, and knowing he had someone with who he could behonest and vulnerable with would be precious. it would take him a while to getcomfortable with that, the dialogue you two would be able to have would helpyou both grow as people

and when all’s said and done, he’d try to be thatperson to you, too. i think a lot of people forget that fenris is a deeplycompassionate person at his core, and he wantsto connect with people; it’s just hard for him to really express thosesides of himself. but, knowing he was with someone who treated him with thekindness and patience he needed would inspire him to return that with attentivenessand care.

i love him so much thinking about him has made meemotional hhhhh 

alternative matchups

merrill: she was actually the first person i thought of, but i just felt more passionate about fenris tbh. that being said, i think your relationship with merrill would be quite different to that described above; you share the propensity to see the best in others, and you’re both very kind people. i can see merrill missing a lot of your snarky humour (to varying degrees of endearing), but she’d be as equally invested and supportive as you are. you’d have a very open, honest relationship, and it’d be the kind where you never went without affirmation and affection! 

varric tethras: honestly i can’t can’t quite put my finger on why i think you two would work well together, but this is a great match in my mind? varric is very different from the other two, but you guys would have a great rapport. you have similar senses of humour, artistic inclinations, and you both care a great deal about people. i think that while he definitely seems a tad more cynical than you, i think you’d understand each other very well. also, i think you’re the perfect mum for the kirkwall crew? and honestly, what else would varric look for in a partner? 

your inquisition matchup is under the cut because Big Yike guess i got carried away and this post is getting ridiculously long

in dragon age inquisition, i match you with… 

josephine montilyet!! 

i… love her so much i cannot put itinto words… and i think she would really love you!

first of all, kindest couple? you bothwant (and do) to see the best in people, and I’m guessing that extends to theworld in general, as well? josephine wants to make the world a better place,and you seem like the sort of person who can help her do that

also, beloved socialite couple! part ofher job is literally meeting new people, and she’d love taking her with you todo that. You’d flit through all those parties hand-in-hand, and she’d know exactlywhen to take over when you got tired

okay but josephine would want to takeyou everywhere with her, tbh. expectto travel the world with her, and whenever you meet anyone she knows, she’sdefinitely the sort to say “hello nice to see you have my met my partner? no? well, let me tell you—” before going ona long ramble about all your best qualities

your biggest fan, without a doubt. whileshe may not understand the wrestling (and certainly isn’t going to take partherself), she’ll be there cheering you on!

also loves seeing your creative work! she’senraptured whenever you’re on stage, she gets emotional when she reads yourprose (or poetry!), and she marvels at your ability to capture the beauty of theworld around you. It almost gets overwhelming tbh

she’d love your mandolin so much!! as anex-bard, she’d obviously have a bit of musical knowledge hidden in those puffedsleeves of hers, and she’d delight in hearing you play 

she’s not obviously nerdy, but I feellike josephine is a naturally curious person? Because of that, she’d lovehearing all about your interests and your hobbies, and would always have a cleverquestion to ask

she has a very stressful job, and she’dgreatly appreciate having a partner with whom she could be very honest and openwith. knowing she could be frank about her feelings with you would take amassive weight off her shoulders

you’d have a very good dialogue withone another, and it means that you don’t let things get bottled up or left tofester; your relationship is a very safe, comforting place for both of you, andit’s something you’re both thankful of!

and she’d be your biggest support too! josephineis a very emotional, loving person, and you’d never have to doubt how she feltabout you; she’d always be telling you how much she loves you and how much sheappreciates you

josephine is too good for the world andwe don’t deserve her,,, please duel for her hand in marriage and give her lotsof love

alternative matchups

blackwall: while he’s less bright than josephine, ifeel like the things he’d value in you would be the same. he’d appreciate theway you saw the best in other people, and i honestly think your lifephilosophies would be quite similar? i’m assuming here, but it just reads thatway to me. i feel like blackwall’s also very affirming, once you work out howhe shows love. he’s not as affectionate or overt as josephine, but he’d be justas supportive, once he felt secure in your relationship. he’s just a Good Man, youknow? it’s just going to take a while for him to relax and open up.

iron bull: okay so things would be very, very different withbull. your personalities would bounce off each other quite well, and ithink you’d be that couple that’s always laughing about something. bull would be the toughest nut to crack when it came toemotional openness, but i think he’d get there eventually. like fenris, he’dtell you that you don’t need to apologize so much. he’d teach you how to bemore assertive, and you’d teach him how to see the best in others. your ways ofseeing the world are more different than all the people listed above, but ithink that’d make for a really interesting relationship?

side note: i knowyou didn’t ask for a matchup for origins but,,, you sound perfect fororigins!leliana? softest couple 

[diguerra-moved]

If Morrigan were to meet each of your WoW muses, what would they think of one another? Meant for an OOC response, but if you wanna go crazy on it, go for it :P

RANDOM ASKS // always accepting.

I think that would depend even of if we’re looking at DA:O Morrigan and DA:I Morrigan because they are somewhat different but I ended up not discussing both and trying to make it more general somewhat? I think those focus most on DA:I Morrigan but anyways have this long rant about it aisndkjansdfk

Dragons are very different in DA and WoW. Morrigan would be very interested in learning more about them. She’s very much interested in magic and magical beings, particularly ancient mysteries, so I think it’s easy to see why on that front she would be very interested/curious about Alexstrasza. But when it come to personalities, I don’t think it would be as simple. For DA:I Morrigan that would be less of a thing, but DA:O Morrigan wouldn’t like her at all. She’s way too cheerful/nice/forgiving/absolute good for Morrigan to like her. 

From Alexstrasza’s part, I don’t think she would have a problem with Morrigan. Not like her immediately, maybe, but she would be okay with indulging questions and telling her about dragons and magic in Azeroth (within the limits of what wouldn’t be dangerous to just let people know ofc). Sure, she would narrow her eyes at some of Morrigan’s attitude, but in the end, she would see it as more a thing because Morrigan is a mortal and how the younger races tend to be than it being deep terrible flaws.

Love magic as she does, though, Morrigan is more than clever enough to recognize Azshara as an immediate threat. I think it would be something akin to Corypheus, really: yes, this is an ancient being with more knowledge about magic in general and ancient magic in particular than probably anyone else alive, but they’re also way too dangerous for the world itself. It isn’t worth it to risk doing anything that isn’t opposing them (and to Morrigan this is an easy decision but not one made lightly… she didn’t shy away of having a baby to preserve an Old God soul, after all, even not knowing exactly what the Old God soul would be, or how it would affect her child).

Azshara wouldn’t have much of an opinion on her? Another somewhat powerful magic wielding human, maybe a slightly more annoying one. She really just wouldn’t care aisfnkjsdnfkas

I think Thalyssra would be just as intrigued about Morrigan and magic in Thedas/Thedas itself as Morrigan would be in her and Azeroth. Out of all my WoW muses, I think she is the one Morrigan would get along with the best. Thalyssra is strong and driven and intelligent, and although she’s nice, she’s not the kind of overly good person Morrigan scoffs at. I think all of those would be things she would appreciate, and I think Thalyssra would appreciate her similarly. They’d have a nice time exchanging knowledge about history and magic and their worlds and comparing differences or drawing up similarities. Morrigan would also be really interested in the elves of Azeroth, seeing as how much she’s invested in the lore of those in her own world, so they could have lengthy talks about elves too. And of course, they also share the mindset of better hardship and danger than subordination, to some extent.

Alleria is kinda eh towards magic (the quote is from Hearthstone not WoW but: Alleria “Many believe magic has maintained order in Quel'Thalas. My bow would say otherwise.” Windrunner really doesn’t think magic is that great™). It’s nice and all but she doesn’t place nearly as much value in it as Morrigan does. I don’t think she’d be too thrilled to discuss elves either, because even though she knows 0 things about elves in Morrigan’s world, she would be iffy about a human talking about them with so much certainty, as if they could ever know the elves as well as the elves themselves. So no bonding over knowledge like Thalyssra. 

But in the end I think they wouldn’t actually have terrible opinions about each other: Alleria and Morrigan are equally practical in their views that if it is an enemy they won’t cry for spilling their blood, and they have their love of freedom in common too. Both of them will always do what they want ultimately, and both are even unwilling to commit sometimes because of that (and both are prone to disappearing and avoiding people). They can be harsh and they can be soft, they’re both rather afraid of being vulnerable, they’re intense but also more sensitive than they would let most people see. They’d actually have a couple things in common, so I think if the initial reaction may be distrust/skepticism on Alleria’s part and some sort of curiosity/cold interest from Morrigan’s, I think they could grow to respect each other in the least, maybe even form some sort of friendship in their understanding of each other.

Also I didn’t expect to love my son this much but wow he’s everything to me now I would do anything to protect him club.

And last but not least there’s Tyrande. They wouldn’t get along. Maybe there’d be indifference in the beginning, but I don’t think it would turn out fine. Tyrande and Morrigan have in common that they don’t really measure words most of the time, and Morrigan’s criticism towards blind devotion to a deity (she’s skeptical about gods and goddesses in general, so sure she has no reason to hate Elune as she does the Chantry and their Maker, but the moment Tyrande even said anything akin to ‘acting as her goddess wills’, Morrigan would be deride it and Tyrande wouldn’t take it well), combined with Tyrande’s distrust of magic and particularly her looking down on those who to her seem to be messing with aspects of magic they don’t really understand, would certainly not end well. 

tldr: Basically, I think she’d get along the best with Thalyssra, and it would be the one relationship with the best initial impression from both parts. With Alleria the initial reaction wouldn’t be great, but they would at least come to respect each other. Alex, while interesting to Morrigan from a more scholar point of view, wouldn’t be liked personally; and Alex would be nice and all, but she wouldn’t particularly like Morrigan either. Azshara doesn’t care enough to have an opinion, and Morrigan would see her as an enemy. With Tyrande, they may be indifferent at first but I can’t see it not escalating to disliking each other.

[ageofdragon]

DA4 Cameos and Companions

I wanted to address this, since I really liked this post by @quizzy-tielle​ but there are a few more notes that can be added. tdlr at the bottom, under the read more.

Origins

Alistair: Alistair will probably only have a Cameo since he has two different paths (Warden or King), but I could see him being plot relevant. Maybe only a Warden like in DA2, even if it is possible for him to “die” in DA:I. This is because DA:I leaves that open if they want to “retcon” it. The words used in the choice implies you might be leaving Alistair to his death, there is an open end there. Especially since we don’t see his dead body only what looks like him going down. On the other hand, it has been a while since his Joining and unless he is like his mother (or the dragon’s blood theory is true), then he is almost due for his Calling. So if Al is there in DA4, expect him in Grey Warden regalia.

Morrigan: I don’t think Morrigan will ever be a Companion player again, but she will be a major npc no matter where the game takes place. Not only is she headed where we are supposed to be, but she is now carrying some of the last remnants of Mythal whether in her head (depending on who drank the Well) or in her blood.

Leliana: If our game does actually take place in Tevinter, I think she might get a mention at best. Either by reminiscent characters or in the grand scheme of things. I don’t see her playing to much part unless some of the game returns to Orlais, in which case as a Divine she could very well pop up. As well as still being interested/running the Inquisition’s spies against Solas (I believe even as the Divine), so again a peripheral character. That said I’d really be interested to see if Lyrium Ghost Leliana pops up anywhere!

Wynne: Wynne has actually died by Asunder; leaving not a character no one cares about, but one that even if people wanted her she is unable to return. Unless as a spirit of course. That said it is not out of the question to meet her son Rhys and perhaps recruit him as a companion, along with his Templar sweetheart Evangeline.

Oghren: I could have seen Oghren returning when the team consisted of mostly the old writers. But with Weekes in charge and a few new writers around, I agree he is probably too lowbrow and overlooked (even among the writers) to pop up again. At the very most, if at all, it’ll be a quick mention somewhere.

Zevran: I agree that Zevran possibly being dead makes it hard, but honestly if I don’t get to see Zev once in this new engine. I will move to Canada just to stand outside Bioware studios and scream continuously at them till the day I perish. Zevran deserves more and if Leliana can resurrect, why not our favorite elven assassin.

Sten: Sten is actually a pretty popular character, only he doesn’t go by Sten anymore. Well at least not for most people. Which is where the conflict comes in. For anyone who earned Sten’s loyalty, he is Arishok now. Which big Qunari plot means definite appearance by the Arishok. However, I don’t see him being a companion, at best he would be a NPC ally. On the other hand, those who didn’t help Sten left him without the Qun...unless he went back and became Arishok later (after the Warden) which is a very easy work around.

Shale: I could actually see Shale being a companion. I mean they can reuse at least one (even in DA2, Nathaniel was going to be a return companion but they scraped it). Shale was a character a lot of people liked, but being a DLC character was underexplored. She was last seen heading to Tevinter to discover how to be a dwarf again. So golem, dwarven, or a mix of the two, Shale is a huge possibility.

Hero of Ferelden: Bioware has pretty much confirmed the Warden won’t be back in full capacity ever. Mostly because creating a unvoiced major character is very hard, when they once spoke (unable to make canonically mute) and finding a voice is no solution (they wouldn’t be able to appease enough people, no matter the actor). Which pretty much seals it as, if the Warden shows up, it is in a written or spoken about capacity and nothing more.

Dragon Age 2

Carver/Bethany: It would be such a guilt pleasure if they did show up, but I highly doubt they would and certainly not as a companion. They have too many outcomes and possible paths, it’ll probably be like in DA:I where they get a special mention. OR if Bioware was really clever, they’d make an obscure Warden in the background look like them but obscure enough they can handwave it as “no, but maybe”. Either way, might show up in the Weisshaupt storyline as a special mention, but not much more.

Fenris: I agree with the other post, that Fenris is the one person who would be the one most likely to pop up. I still don’t think as a companion, because he can die. But I do think he could be an ally NPC. Fenris either gets sent back to Danarius or has spent the past years hunting down slavers, so he is bound to be in or near Tevinter. I have almost no doubt we’ll see him, physically, at least once. Though I wouldn’t rule out him being a Weisshaupt too, if he romance Hawke and Hawke wasn’t left in the Fade.

Isabela: Isabela has been in every game so far and if they don’t continue this in DA4 I will be upset. Seriously, it’s like an expectation now. Every DA game is like sex, it’s fun, there is depth, and Isabela is there. Maybe as a companion, maybe as an NPC, or a extra to the cause. Don’t care, she just has to be there now. It’s a signature. Which...if we can get her in her sick Captain’s outfit again, more kudos to them.

Merrill: Hmmm, I don’t know about Merrill. She is such a good and well liked character, and I really need her to interact with Solas. BUT she had far more reason to be in DA:I, in a game that most likely will take place in Tevinter and surrounding area...I’m not sure where she’d fit. Not as a companion I don’t think. Maybe a cameo in Weisshaupt or when dealing with Solas stuff, but even then, her investment in those things seems a bit weak. The most likely place for me, would be dealing with the Eluvians or maybe even helping run an elven slave underground...kind of. But it would really depend where the game chooses to focus (on Tevinter, Solas, Weisshaupt, all 3 equally by some miracle).

Anders: I think at this point, everyone who loves Anders wants Anders back and safe, but also doesn’t want him to be touch by Bioware anymore. And anyone who hates Anders has either killed him or hoped that he was dead...so... Mixed feelings and mixed ideas. I don’t think he’ll ever be a companion again, Bioware learned their lesson (kind of considering Sera). But also being the entire world’s [of Thedas’s] scapegoat for the Mage War/Mage Split, I’m 99.9% sure we haven’t heard the last of some saying something bias, pretty much untrue, and absolutely scathing about him.

Aveline: She is helping run Kirkwall, which is where she belongs. If the game reaches out to the Free Marches, a glimpse or mention of her is sure to be heard. After all, she is the biggest badass there at the moment. Her days on the screen are probably over though, she was a good character but not one interesting enough to last past a single game of screen time. That said, I’d love to see her side-story with the Du Lacs actually revisited at some point, give us a deep Investigative story with her.

Varric: I mean I have to agree with quiz tielle, it pains me but his days as a companion are probably over. That said, I absolutely believe he’ll still have a large role to play. For starters, he is still our storyteller. Thedas’ storyteller and I highly doubt he’ll miss a chance to write out all of Thedas’ major historical events into eye-catching adventure novels till the day he dies. He may be a played out companion (can’t relate) but he isn’t dead and he is still an adventurer at heart, no matter how much he complains about the outdoors. All that aside, he is cousin to probably the most important, incredibly attractive magister in Tevinter right now, Maevaris Tilani (Tethras). I can definitely believe he’ll pop in to say hello and maybe scoop up a story or two, during DA4.

Sebastian: I’m not sure, I forget how his War Table mission plays out...but also not to offend any diehard Seb fans or anything...but he is shit and if he returns I’ll want to punch him. I mean he tried to overtake Kirkwall, for no reason than his own pride and probably a political move to strength his own country. It’s a Free Marcher thing, sure. But still, Sebastian Vael can get stuffed. That so awfully said, if he does come back I’ll still have a good time. Which serious for a moment, I don’t know why he would. Unless like I said we return to the Free Marches for whatever reason.

Tallis?: I have no idea if we have seen the last of her or not. I mean according to DA2 we haven’t and she was a War Table in Inquisitiion. So I suppose if there is a Qunari plot in DA4, you’d expect see her there. But I don’t know how there she’ll be...she could even be a companion. It’s a possibility, but I don’t expect it as a strong one.

Hawke: Hawke is definitely coming back, I don’t know when and I don’t know where but they will. I don’t say this as someone who loved their Hawke tho. I say this because Weisshaupt’s storyline seems to weigh on Hawke’s presence (if they escaped, they said that is where they are headed) and again, like I said in Alistair the decision to leave them behind in the Fade wasn’t final. Hell I wouldn’t be surprised in if in the obligatory Fade mission we ran into a Hawke that got left behind, half dead but still trucking along with that Purple Hawke smirk on their face. “You look like wyvern shit, Hawke.”  “You would know.”

Dragon Age Inquisition

Josephine: I think if the Inquisition is there, Josephine is definitely going to be there in some regard. Even if it is a few letters lying around. She’ll be less relevant that she was in Inquisition though, well unless you romanced her. She still has a family to take care of, plus all that new trade and a few diplomatic graces. A lot for her to take on, plus a maybe slave rebellion?

Cullen: Cullen time has come, I don’t think Cullen wants a thing to do with Tevinter cause mages and honestly I’m glad. I mean yeah, he was the white boy version of Isabela’s cameo, but far less entertaining with his anti-mage, but they’re sorta of okay rhetoric. A little salty, yeah. Cause Bioware had 3 chances to get him to a better place (aka make him a great character with growth), but never got there. So as much as I’d love to see them try and fail to make him a better person one more time, it’s time to let him rest. With his slightly changed notions, his lyrium detox facility, and his dog. That rant over, he could be there in the same capacity as Josephine. A few letters and a little something extra for romancers.

Blackwall: A hard one...in theory Blackwall could make a comeback during the Grey Warden plot, Bioware hyped up. He could even be a true Grey Warden companion this time. However, he has a lot of variables and that makes it hard to bring him back as a return character. He could have died, he could have been saved and hidden, or he could have been saved and made a Grey Warden. Not to mention adding romances and whether he got the Grey Warden epilogue or the “prison counselor” epilogue.

Cassandra: I think Cassandra will have the same role/handling as Leliana honestly. She won’t be a companion, but we will see her interacting with the Inquisitor. Divine or not, she is still helping them with Solas. Though we might not actually interact with her, unless Orlais. Again like Leli.

Iron Bull: Another difficult one. On one hand, he could be dead and that is the end of. On the other he could be with Dorian, who I’ll get to in a minute. I think it’ll be a bit easier though, because they can use him like they did Stroud. If he is alive and helping Dorian (or the Inquisitor) then he can show up, be his usual self. Make references to the past game and his Chargers. If he is dead, then he has a blank stand-in that we kind of get to know during the rest of the game, but never to the extent that we know/knew Bull. That said, he is definitely not becoming a companion. Only two characters with a possible death have ever became companions again after said moment, and I think the fact it happens in the same game leaves Carver and Bethany in a completely different category.

Dorian: Alright, if we were ever going to have a returning companion it will probably be Dorian. I have to agree with the assumption. Because Dorian is Tevinter. He’s the good, the bad. The parts that need change, but also the parts that should be praised. He was singled out for this in Inquisition. It was focused on heavily about him being the new Tevinter ambassador. Of him and Mae taking Tevinter by storm. Their reformation of the Magisterium. They even gave him a plot item, that seemed unnecessary and yet provided a link. Which I’m talking about his sending crystal/magic cellphone. It was endearing and also telling. Why need a crystal when letters work too? And I highly doubt it was just to introduce the idea for fun...I’m getting carried away on my favorite boy. What I mean to say, is Dorian, if not a companion, will be a huge player in the next game. Assuming they are still sending us to Tevinter as planned. Not just because he was so loved, which he way. Or because he is an utterly striking, handsome character, which he is. But because Dorian is a major player in Tevinter as is, trying to change his country and you don’t just go to a country and not meet the most influential of them all.

Solas: Oh boy, I have so much to say about this. First off, I don’t agree with the other post. I don’t think Solas will be the biggest villain this game, this time around. Unless Weekes is really enamored with getting that story out of the way, which he might be. I think he’ll be a smaller big bad in the grand scheme of things, whereas he was the big bad in Inquisition (literally all that happened because of him). I think it’d be interesting to see him as a return companion though. Like yes, we all know who he is. But to our new character? Maybe he is just a revolutionist, maybe he was the one who freed them (if they go the slave plot for the PC). Another chance for him to play the PC and we have to watch it happen. But also, we have to figure out why he’d help us with this rebellion (again relies on the slave plot being used) when he has no horses in the race. I don’t know, it is a possibility and a frustrating, but interesting one.

Vivienne: If she is Divine, I don’t see her doing anymore that Cassandra or Leliana in the position. And again, very dependent on if we go to Orlais. Maybe more so, since she wasn’t a founding agent of the Inquisition like Leliana and Cassandra. However, if the Mage College/Circles of Magi issue is more prominent than I think it will be in DA4, then she might show up a bit more than usual. Still don’t think she’ll be a big role or ally to the main character though.

Cole: I don’t agree with Cole not fighting people, but I do agree that he has other things to worry about that the PC in DA4. That said, when it comes to Solas I feel like Cole will be back instantly. Solas and Cole were incredibly close (for a few reasons I can theorize, coughelves=spiritscough), and he was one of the few who actually wanted to save Solas. So if he is there, he is there for his friends and Solas only. Which means no companionship from him.

Sera: I can’t see Sera giving it a try in Tevinter, for so many reasons. Unless the Inky asks her of course. Every thing from the elves, many who just accept their lives. To the magic, to the lack of friends due to brainwashing and fear. It’s just not an environment Sera would enjoy or even want to be it. But if Orlais is still playing a big part in the next game, I’m sure we’ll turn up the Val Royeaux Jenny eventually. Or like I said, if Inky needs her. I doubt she’ll have much to do with the main character though.

Inquisitor: They’ll be there. In some shape or form they’ll show up, that I have no doubt of. How or when will be a mystery. It might be in the form of speaking to Dorian through the sending crystal (removes the need for a CC) or it might be as a Major Ally (i.e. Hawke in Inquisition). I don’t think the story will center around them as much as we think or would like though. Since this isn’t another Inquisitor story, but our new PC’s story.

Tldr: 

As far as I believe, there could be a ton of cameos from almost anybody. Seriously, there are maybe 3 who won’t come back and none of them are the Wardens or Hawkes left in the Fade. 

The only one from DAO I could see being a companion is Shale, but Sten/Arishok deserves a mention if the Qunari War Plot is going to be as important as we’ve been led to think.

From DA2, I can only see Tallis as a companion, again due to the supposed Qunari War plot. But I’m sure we’ll see Fenris, Varric, Hawke, and Isabela again somewhere in DA4. 

Inquisition provides the most likely return companion, Dorian. I could see Solas or Blackwall returning as a companion, but I don’t think they truly beat out Dorian in the amount of importance and content we could get from a returning character by our side. Since Inquisition is the newest game, I especially see most if not all of the characters making some form of cameo.

Some Special Mentions I want to throw out there too. I imagine Calpernia will still be relevant in some way to the story. As she is also someone who wants to redeem Tevinter (in her own way) and could not be killed by the Inquisitor, even being a villain in their game.

Marius, Tessa, and Charter all seem to relevant, recurring characters in the extended media. I wouldn’t be surprised if they roles in the next game. Especially given Marius’s ties to Tevinter and Calpernia

If we don’t have Maevaris Tilani as a companion, after all of this, I will be shocked and scandalized. She has been another character that has both importance in Tevinter and seems to hold importance to the writers (though how this will go now that her main writer, David Gaider has left I don’t know. Weekes still has access to them and he should use it).

We haven’t yet seen the end of Valta...and perhaps Renn. I’m not sure Bioware will approach more dwarven concepts in DA4, but one can hope. Even more so, since I want to see what happened to Valta and just what is happening with the Titans.

[valpoet]

So it's interesting how my choices in the Dragon Age series change from game to game

In DA:O, I literally replayed over and over until I did all the things that benefited everyone as much as possible and I couldn't stand to see my warden have to deal with anymore pain since their life was already so goddamn hard and fuck no I'm not killing off anyone screw that noise, Alistair lives forever and my warden deserves to LIVE and fuck I love everyone.

DA:2, fuck Welp Bethany is already dead so I might as well make Hawke's life as tragic as humanly possible and write sad fanfiction about it and yes this is Canon in my version of events and it's never changing because Bethany died and then Carver dies and then Leandra dies and Hawke has the crushing weight of reality and an empty house and the realisation that all she has now is the family she chose. That's the only reason she let Anders LIVE, because in the end she still is hopeful that one day mages can be equal to the world and she wanted to be more than just another mage apostate gone mad and to show that they're not all like that instead of arguing and fuck I have a lot of Hawke feelings

DA:I, Hawke dies over Alistair because I'm not killing Alistair and Hawke still feels she has to make up for mistakes in the past.

Inquisitor is friends with everyone but carries the same optimism Hawke had about maybe not all mages are that bad because then she'd have to face the fact that she HERSELF is a terrible person and is constantly unsure and checking herself and putting everyone else first because she was forced into this role, but Damn it, she will do her damndest to make sure everyone gets through this alive.

Long story short, I mostly have a lot of Hawke feelings. And I fucked her life totally.

[rufeepeach]

Popular Fic

Tagged by @thescholarlystrumpet​ and @rowofstars​!

I’m only doing fics where I’m the sole author because this gets wildly distorted with other authors involved!

What are your five most popular works by kudos? (in descending order)

1) Inheritance - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 515

Five years after leaving town to see the world, a death in the family forces Belle French back to Storybrooke to deal with the estate. Never intending to stay very long, she nevertheless soon finds herself drawn back into old friendships, old dreams, and an old love that’s not as finished as once she had hoped. Belle might be back in her hometown, but after five years away from the wreckage she left behind, is it possible to ever really come home?

I mean, I’d hope this’d be my most popular work - it took a year to write and is the length of a long novel! It’s also easily my most complete and coherent longfic, since it was meticulously planned, written, and edited as a whole before a single chapter got posted. I guess more chapters also just meant more chances for people to find it?

2) If I Didn't Know Better (but damn it, I do) - MCU, Darcy/Loki - Kudos: 503

In which Loki's illusions seem to malfunction when a particular supposedly-powerless brunette happens by, and Darcy is more than willing to use her taser.

I have no idea. Someone prompted TaserTricks and back in the days at the height of Hiddleston-mania this seemed like a good idea. I think MCU is such a big fandom that any moderately-readable work - especially with an Explicit rating - will have a larger audience than for something a little smaller like Rumbelle. I’m pretty pleased with the characterisation though, especially since my interest in the MCU - even back then, before I stopped caring entirely - was fairweather at best.

3) A Hundred Years or More - Maleficent - Kudos: 454

"I promise, no harm shall come to you whilst I live" - Maleficent never kisses Aurora, believing she has already done more harm than good, and instead resigns herself to watching over the sleeping princess for the rest of her days.

I made myself cry with this one. Probably my favourite thing I’ve ever written, it’s everything I hope to someday accomplish with an original work, tracking Maleficent’s eighty-four years watching over a comatose, unageing Aurora, as various characters grow old and die, and the world moves on, and Maleficent finds some peace. It’s very soft and very sad and I love it so much!

4) Harmless - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 333

Belle arrives, bruised and bleeding, on the doorstep of a lame spinner and his son. On the run from the war and its causes, her short stopover becomes something else entirely.

One of my earliest fics for Rumbelle fandom, although it took me years to complete in the end. This one was the first ever winner for best woobie!rumple in 2013′s TEAs! I wish now that I hadn’t rushed the ending so much, but by that point it was three years old and I needed it to be finished. This one’s probably the one I’d most like to go back and heavily edit or remix someday. Still, I reread it recently and it’s not half bad!

5) Stranger - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 289

Belle remembers everything about her old life, and finally gains freedom from her asylum prison. But Rumpelstiltskin is nowhere to be found: in his place is an oblivious pawnbroker who is as cursed as everyone else in Storybrooke.

A long-time favourite of mine among my Rumbelle fics, this one’s a trooper since it received only moderate attention on Tumblr when I posted it, but it seems to have steadily climbed the ranks on AO3? I’m glad this odd little fic is getting some love now :)

What are your five least popular works by kudos? (in ascending order)

(Okay so this is weird, because my AO3 is so unrepresentative of when I posted things? So for these I’m picking and choosing because a lot of my AO3 lowest page is just my old imported Castle, Community, and Glee fics and I’d rather not... drag those up... so I’m only counting fics posted after I left LJ. Also I’m not including bits of series that just got dumped on there when I realised I’d forgotten to cross-post years after the fact. Come at me.)

1) In Trouble - OUAT, Swanfire - Kudos: 18

Emma Swan knows Neal is trouble from the moment she meets him, but he’s also everything she’s been looking for.

This one is surprising because it got such a good reception on Tumblr when I posted it, so I guess this is a result of importing it to AO3 super late, and the lack of SF-shippers? Idk bro. I like this one a lot?

2) Falling In The Space Between - Dragon Age: Inquisition, Hawke/Varric - Kudos: 20

Varric visits Hawke in Skyhold the night after Adamant, and they discuss heroes, stories, and how the world suddenly got so much bigger and more difficult since Kirkwall.

I had feelings while playing DA:I. Sue me. This one’s a short, introspective character piece, and it’s hella sad.

3) Life in Black and White - OUAT, Snowing - Kudos: 21

Snow White was raised to hold onto goodness at all times, no matter the costs. No matter the damage she leaves in her wake.

Snow White character assassination piece, mostly focusing on how black and white morality, and her privileging of her own family above all else, has led to massive destruction in the name of ‘goodness’. I can totally see why no one read this, but again it got a better reception on Tumblr?

4) Seven Beaches - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 23

Seven times Belle and Rumpelstiltskin visited the beach.

Ah, 2012. Back before it was drilled into me that songfic is always wrong and bad. On the other hand this is kinda pretty? On the third hand I was eighteen and it shows, because dear God, varying your sentence length is always right and good. Hundreds of short sentences glued together does not equal poetry. I seem to remember rave reviews at the time but then we had like ten authors back then so who knows.

5) Disassociation - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 24

The man on the floor is not Belle’s husband.

Another short fic solely written because I had feelings, set immediately after the Town Line scene at the end of 4A. It’s dark, miserable, and very much written in that post-episode rush before things settle. Again, I get why no one would seek this out now.

No idea who’s done this yet, but I’ll tag @mariequitecontrarie, @amuseoffyre, @toseehowthestoryends, @ladybookwormwithteeth, and @worryinglyinnocent

[greatfay]

(I'm the one who asked about Blackwall): what do you hope to see return in da4 from dai and what do you hope is changed or cut out?

Ok just to make sure I got this right, what I liked in DA:I and would like to see more of and what I didn’t like in DA:I and would prefer they cut or altered? Cuz I have a lot tbh. More under the cut.

More Please:

Crafting system. I really liked it, love how you can change your companions’ armor (unlike in DA2 or ME:A) but it still has their “look.”

Banter. Memorable characters are a staple of the Bioware games, but unlike in Dragon Age II, I rarely triggered dialogue between companions in DA:I. Hopefully that changes in DA4.

Soundtrack. Trevor Morris was amazing… too bad most players don’t know this since the devs thought the game would be “more realistic” if the music barely plays. Even combat wouldn’t trigger music for me, all you’d hear is grunting and swords clashing. Ambience just made me feel empty in this game (which doesn’t help the large empty regions).

Pretty places. This game is really bright and colorful compared to the first two. I hope that if DA4 is indeed taking place in Tevinter, we get to see variety in landscape and regions the way we did with Ferelden and Orlais. Just fill it with some damn cities/villages! I hate empty worlds.

Clear cut story. I’ve heard criticisms that Inquisition’s story is oversimplified and pretty cut and dry compared to DA2 and some hail this as a drop in narrative quality in the franchise (psh, they should aim that criticism at the damn fetch quests). However, the game has a straightforward, classic hero’s journey plot that is overall very grand and enjoyable, and that makes it actually similar to Origins. I like that the story can be summed up in 4/5 big moments, with smaller plot points and subplots in between.

Face creator. Honestly there’s a whole subreddit dedicated to the hot OCs you can make in this game and I’m here for it, I have now saved Thedas with an Angela Bassett look-alike (if she were an elf), a Rami Malek look-alike, and a much more idealized version of myself. 

Could Be Better:

Specializations. First two games let you get two specializations, DA:I only gives you one. And I’m cool with that tbh, just wish they were a little more expansive and interesting. Also, companions used to get their own unique specializations and/or abilities, and in DA:I, this led to some questionable creative choices. Giving the big healing ability to Knight-Enchanter instead of Necromancer for example, then giving the time power to Necromancer instead of Knight-Enchanter (when the rest of the abilities support the other).

Also jumping into DA:I right after finishing DA2, I was disappointed to find that this new special Rift Mage tree just recycled the abilities of the Force Mage + firestorm.

Armor/Weapons. I actually liked most of the gear in this game (except the helmets, which looked ridiculous in design for the most part). Wish there were more! I feel like it should be possible to get every armor part and weapon that you can see in-game; it used to be a staple of the genre that when you defeat a boss, you get their stuff, but not every boss in this game drops their gear; some who do don’t even drop the same thing *cough, Alexius*. I remember searching for the Venatori Mage helmet for hours before finding out it’s not in the game (though you can get the regular infantry helm for some reason, and it’s ugly soooo).

Supporting characters. In DA:O and DA2, you’d see recurring characters pop up in other quests and you could get attached to some of them. In DA:I, most of the people you get quests from are forgettable and one-offs.

Enemy encounters. In DA:O and DA2, enemies come in hordes, making crowd control pivotal to survival. In DA:I, you get small parties of enemies (3 - 6) with high health and defense, making overall DPS more important. I think they did this to be more realistic, but this is Dragon Age. Zombies dig up the corpses of dragons out of the ground to raise their gods and elves are part-spirit and a trickster god stole a piece of the sky and horned gray-skinned humanoids go to sex doctors to pop their corks under an oppressive religious order. There’s no room for heavy realism in Dragon Age, let’s be real.

Narrative-based quests. I miss when quests would start with a character actually talking to me! With actual cutscenes and dialogue! In Inquisition, quests either start with a brief chat with an unremarkable NPC, or by reading a fucking note someone left on a table. This is so lazy and boring. Maybe Bioware didn’t have the funds to do proper quests, but I’d prefer a handful of real ones than the dozens of “Oh look, I found a letter on this door that says this person left treasure somewhere” quest.

Party AI. I’d love to have more control like in past games; I want to set it like the gambit system in FFXII, where you can say “If ally uses this ability, character A will use this ability on targeted by ally.”

No Thank You:

Fetch quests! “Collect x amount of these and return for XP” is so boring. What happened to more narrative-heavy side quests?

Inventory limits. I’m so over this, lemme hoard like the junk rat I am, gdi.

War Table operations. If you don’t follow guides on the wiki, you’ll have no idea what the results of these operations will be. There’s no riddle or clue left in the descriptions that suggest that choosing a particular advisor will result in the mass genocide of your Inquisitor’s clan (yeah, fuck that, do NOT choose Josephine for the Protect Clan Lavellan operation).

Miscommunication. The devs and the writers don’t seem to be on the same page. In cutscenes and dialogue, Cassandra will say “We should give mages a chance to prove they don’t need chaperones” and then you’ll give mages some freedom and she’s like “CASSANDRA GREATLY DISAPPROVES.” Happens with a lot of other characters, too.

Requisitions. They’re a waste of resources and I never do them as they have zero effect on my gameplay experience. Don’t even need them in the beginning, just finish 4 quests to get the power needed in the Hinterlands.

Some Ideas:

Integrate side quests into the main story. They’re already sort of mandatory; getting XP in this game is impossible without doing the side quests and you end up under-leveled for the main quests, so might as well write them to be more story-related and use them as opportunities to introduce recurring minor characters. The DLC for DA:I was great tbh, all tightly made stories that didn’t pussyfoot around. I finished Prey recently and that game did a great job with side missions; all of them felt personal, and having voiced characters in your ear as you finish objectives makes them feel more active.

The character classes you can pick in the multiplayer should actually be in the game. I think some of them are mentioned by name, but you don’t otherwise see them.

Loyalty missions. Mass Effect 2 did this best and there’s something like this in Inquisition, but not all of them are equal tbh, they don’t involve scripted events and cutscenes and plot lines that reveal more about your companions. Pretty much Dorian, Solas, Sera, and Iron Bull are the only ones that get it. ME2 gave us: returning to the facility where Jack was tortured as a child so she can blow it up, Garrus hunting down the former protege who betrayed his squad, Jacob locating his presumedly dead father crash-landed on a planet whose flora fucks with everyone’s mind, Miranda relocating her little sister (and her adopted family) to keep her creepy-ass father away from her, Samara hunting down her wayward serial killer daughter (the whole investigation + seduction scenes were dope), Thane trying to rebuild his relationship with his son who is trying to follow in his father’s bloody footprints—I could go on. Those weren’t just “Pop in here and beat an enemy and then leave” kind of quests, they were involved and offered the player choices and were super emotional.