Dragon Age II has been released on 360 and been provided for us to preview/review by the publisher.

Believe it or not we are still playing it. Here are some extracts of what we made of it in chronological order:

"Dragon Age II has deep, character-driven subplots but to find them you have to deal with a tedious, repetitive world. I'm too old now for games to feel like this much work..."
- Returning Gamer (Tue, 10 May 2011)

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Dragon Age II 360 Release

24/01/2011 06:51

Dragon Age II pre-order bonuses have been revealed, providing some shiny new weapons for the setting's most dedicated champions.

Bioware are fuelling excitement for the release of Dragon Age II in March. Pre-ordering from participating retailers will net you the Fadeshear longsword and Lion of Orlais shield to help out with your adventures in the Free Marches. The Fadeshear provides damage bonuses against undead and demons and improves with level, while the Lion of Orlais includes bonuses to health and experience gain.

Additionally, the Black Emporium will be a new location in the major city of Kirkwall, only available with a new copy of the game (i.e., not pre-owned). The Emporium houses a range of artifacts for sale, and some free items. Benefits to accessing the Black Emporium include gaining a mabari war hound to help in combat, and the Mirror of Transformation which can modify your character's appearance mid-game.

For those who enjoy crossovers, Bioware have also just announced that buying Dead Space 2 will get you a download code for a Dead Space-inspired suit of armour for Dragon Age 2. That's a long list of possible bonuses for Dragon Age fans.

Dragon Age 2 will be released on March 8 2011 in America and March 11 in Europe.

Dragon Age 2 Announced

09/08/2010

Dragon Age 2 promises to turn the thumbscrews on your emotions while giving your fingers an easier ride. The improved interactions, combat and interface join heart-rending decisions to create a story that sounds genuinely intriguing.

Dragon Age II is the sequel to the Dragon Age: Origins and its expansions. But unlike Dragon Age: Origins you can't alter the main character's race, although gender and class are still up for grabs. The game tells a rags to riches tale that charts the journey of Hawke from penniless refugee to a world renowned leader. The story spans 10 years and is affected by moral choices the player has to make.

Although bringing many fresh ideas to the table, Dragon Age 2 hopes to build and fix what has gone before. Combat, dialogue and progression have all been improved. But perhaps it is the thrust of the story that has seen the most attention. This joins a fresh Dragon Age Soundtrack to promise some moving moments.

A key moniker here is family. This not only motivates Hawke's quest but also adds weight to the decisions he has to make about people in his party - particularly when familiar faces emerge from his past. This pulls on the emotions unexpectedly in a similar fashion to Fable III and Mass Effect.