Systems: PC, PS3, and Xbox 360
Our Review: Kill the Darkspawn! Kill them all! If you’re a fan of RPG’s or just plain old killing evil creatures for fun, then you’re going to love Dragon Age: Origins! The game hit PC not too long ago and was given great reviews and awards like “Game of the Year.” Everyone seemed to love the RPG, and we’ve got some reasons you will too in our review!
It’s been centuries since the last Darkspawn attack, and now they’re back, and with some evil revenge. The Darkspawn were fought off by the large force of Grey Wardens a long while back. Now that the evil scourge is back, the Grey Warden’s army is not close to what it used to be, which is why you, (whether you like it or not) will be the next volunteer. Whoever you may choose to be, Elf, Dwarf, or a non-imaginated Human, you will all end up as a Grey Warden. There are several intro stories to each race, but you all end up in the same place with the same plot. Overall the story is an easy to understand plot, but makes playing as different races, not so different.
The game play is fantastic, as you chop through Darkspawn, it might remind you D&D fans, of Never Winter Nights 2, without the annoying large amount of time in between hacking at the enemy. The spells vary in many, but there aren’t many slots to place them all. So be careful on what you choose as spells. One thing we didn’t like about the character creation portion is the fact that there are only 3 races, and 3 classes. This was a huge disappointment, I mean c’mon, Never Winter had Half-Orcs, Humans, Halflings, Dwarfs, Elf, Planetouched, gnomes, and more in the DLC! Don’t even get me started on the classes Never Winter contained! Though the lack of classes and races didn’t dissatisfy when we found out during the gaming process. That you can upgrade a certain class to be more prestige. Sort of like what you D&D fans had fun with in 3rd generation D&D. Example: a warrior can be upgraded to a templar, which allows a little magic usage with the hacking abilities. Or a mage can be upgraded to a shape shifter, which allows him/her to change their body shape into odd yet dangerous creators. For during battle, there are several options. If you’re a hot key presser, or a mouse clicker like me, either will work fine. Also, you can be a realistic player that never pauses during the battle or if you’re like me and think strategically by pausing the game every other second to plan the next spell or attack. Overall the game play is fantastic and similar to Never Winter Nights 2.
The graphics are in great shape but beware, you might want a good PC running this beauty. The affects are beautiful; I only have one complaint, the fire looks absolutely terrible. Blood that you receive in battles carry on into cut scenes, which is a cool affect. Overall the graphics are a huge score for gamers. This game is a MUST HAVE for RPG and possibly D&D fans. Let’s face it D&D, you guys had your run with the Never Winter series and Temple of Elemental Evil. Now let’s have a new business take over.

Minimum System Requirements
OS: Windows XP SP3/Vista SP1/7
Processor: Intel Core 2 DUO @ 1.4 GHz/AMD Athlon64 X2 @ 1.8 GHz
Memory: 1 GB
Hard Drive: 20 GB Free
Video Memory: 128 MB (NVidia GeForce 6600/ATI Radeon X850)
Sound Card: DirectX Compatible
DirectX: 9.0c
Keyboard & Mouse
DVD Rom Drive

Recommended System Requirements
OS: Windows XP SP3/Vista SP1/7
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 (2.4 GHz)/AMD Phenom II X3 720 (2.8 GHz)
Memory: 2 GB
Hard Drive: 20 GB Free
Video Memory: 512 MB (NVidia GeForce 8800 GTS/ATI Radeon HD 3850)
Sound Card: DirectX Compatible
DirectX: 10
Keyboard & Mouse
DVD Rom Drive

Rating: Category: RPG

Award: Note since the year is not yet over a better game can come out and take the award away. The final decision will be made at the end of the year.