There has been a general disapproval of BioWare's decision to re-use environments in Dragon Age 2. However, I don't see this as a bad thing.
Of course, I am a little disappointed. The main reason I purchased Dragon Age 2 was because I had not played Dragon Age: Origins and was amazed at the high praise the original title received. I was expecting a sweeping epic that took place around a huge land with lots of varied characters and environments.
Those great expectations are my own fault, since I did not do my homework before buying the game. I have finally beaten DA2 and now believe that the recycled environments actually help focus the scope of the game.
What would you do if you were displaced from your country because of a war? You would find a new country and put down roots, invest yourself elsewhere until you decided to go back or to stay. You wouldn't keep wandering if you found a good home, especially an ancestral home.
The one thing I do take issue with though is the linear nature of the environments, and the large number of invisible walls for outdoor environments. But that is another debate and I do not know what sort of pressures and deadlines the game developers were under, so I will learn from this and wait for reviews before purchasing BioWare games in the future.
Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed the game. It just seemed a little rough around the edges and looked like it could have used a few more months or even a year in the development cycle. Perhaps they are gearing up for an AMAZING Dragon Age 3?
Here's a little video I made. It is all in good fun :)
Nineteenth Hour (talk) 19:59, April 8, 2011 (UTC)
I take no real issue on the repetitive environments. At first I was a bit annoyed by it, but as I'm now on my 3rd play through I've gotten used to it. Ser Pouce-a-lot (talk) 20:55, April 8, 2011 (UTC)
I do take issue with it, partly because someone has to call Bioware out for something any modder would be taking hell for, and because the repetitive pipeshooter layouts with overrecycled textures does mar gameplay. It's hackish map design, and completely apathetic to let it go to release. If maps downloaded for free get bashed for it, why should someone who wants your money for the work get let off the hook? DokEnkephalin (talk) 21:09, April 8, 2011 (UTC)