So here is a maxi-set of mini reviews about all the expansions to the Main Game of Dragon Age: Origins, including Warden’s Keep, The Stone Prisoner, Return to Ostagar, the Feastday content, and more!
Warden’s Keep
Hooray! A day one expansion pack that costs money! And what's that? It’s vaguely disappointing? Oh that’s just great!!!
The story of the mission is more enthralling than its simple setup would let on. You travel to a forgotten Grey Warden base that is overrun with demons and it’s your mission to reclaim it. The rest of the tale however is too good to spoil, so I will let you unravel the rest of the mystery for yourself.
The most important inclusion in this DLC is the addition of a storage chest for any of your excess items; you would be surprised how useful this is due to tragically tight limits on your inventory in the main quest. The storage chest is really something that should have been bundled in the game right at your parties’ campsite, but since it’s not you will need to buy this content to gain access. But that’s not the only gripe I have with it, since the storage chest added is only available at wardens keep, you have to load the Keep Map every time you wish to off load some items.
You also get two new talents that are both ok, although really only for limited situations. That being said you Warden get these talents for free, so there is no reason not to get them.
For those of you who don’t purchase the content you will always have the quest giver at your campsite, in a terrible immersion breaking conversation prompts you to buy the content.
Warden’s Keep is way overpriced at 7 dollars (560 MSP), but the included content really isn’t bad. By no means should we have been made to pay for content that some would argue is crucial to the gameplay experience. This pack comes off as stilted money grab, and it’s really that’s all it is.
The Stone Prisoner
The Stone Prisoner is a part of EA’s project 10 dollar (Although in this case it’s fifteen dollars), so if you bought Dragon Age new you get a code to download this content for free. The included content is a new party member, a Golem named Shale, and a mission relating to Shale’s past.
Unlike a certain other character in a Bioware game (cough…cough…Zaeed) that you can download on the first day, The Golem Shale feels like an actual part of the party. You can converse with it, and give it gifts to increase its approval rating, and it feels like a legitimate part of your team. Admittedly the fact that Shale is yet another variation of the warrior class in a warrior heavy party is slightly disappointing, but like Dog, Shale feels like its own class in spite of this.
Oddly I found myself considering Shale one of my favorite characters in the game. Shale is really funny, and it even references my favorite movie of all time.
As for the missions included, you get two, the first being a short mission where you pick Shale up, and a second that oddly enough is reminiscent (although it’s a precrosor) to Loyalty missions in Mass Effect. It’s short, sweet, and touching mission, providing some interesting visuals and some grade a character development for Shale. Really this Mission is just damn good.
Really it’s not surprising to learn that Shale and its mission were initially going to be included as a normal part of the main game the sheer amount of love and care given to its character, and design can be felt easily, and this content is totally worth it. Do note by NO means should you buy this content separately, if you didn’t buy the game new, at the price of 15 dollars (1200 MSP) it’s practically extortion. Fortunately you shouldn’t have to, I mean you did buy Dragon Age new… right?
Return to Ostagar
Return to Ostagar is a short sweet mission pack. While lacking in depth, it more than makes up for it in the fact that the story is incredibly poignant.
As for the gameplay, it really boils down to you run through a modified map from early on in the game, collecting various items from a certain character that dies off in the first hour of play, and you watch your party members react to what they see.
Really this is just a fluff mission that isn’t required for your full enjoyment of the story or game, but that doesn’t sway me from heartily recommending this pack. Return to Ostagar has a lot of heart and that’s what really counts. Call me a softy, but I loved this.
Feastday Gift’s and Pranks (note can be bought separately or together for a discount)
No. Don’t buy this content. This is completely pointless. There is no reason to buy this. Much like Avatar clothing there is no reason to buy this.
The pack is a collection of gift items for your various companions in Dragon Age Characters, however for the most part you are essentially buying one time use jokes that function like cheats, and give you stupid items/weapons/equipment that you won’t use.
The Gifts either increase or decrease your approval with a character by around 50%. So basically if you don’t actually want to you know talk to your characters, or experience the story, or in other words play the game, you can use these items to get that accomplished.
As for the actual “Hilarity” that supposedly comes from the pranks, the jokes are ok. Giving the Paramour Elf a chastity belt which he can then equip, is pretty funny, but there isn’t really much point to it all unless you want to ruin your approval rating with all of your party members.
If you want to experience this content just watch people play with it on YouTube, otherwise this is a complete and total waste of money. If you need to have all the DLC at the very least by these two bundled, because their honestly not worth the money.
Other Random Tidbits
As for any other Promotional Items that you can acquire by either Pre-ordering the game or completing the browser game Dragon Age Journeys, well it’s all mostly useless junk, and for the most part you are currently and forever unable to gain without downloading a mod, or torrent. Don’t worry about it or go out of your way to attain it, because you really don’t need it.
Oh the only one you might get is The Blood Dragon Armour, if you bought the game new, the only really neat things about it is that it will be the strongest set of armor you won’t be able to equip for a good 45% of the game, and you can download it into Mass Effect 2. The armor however looks dumpy in the chest piece, and makes you look like a Cylon in the helm. Interesting Fun Fact about it though, in the PC version you get the entire armor set for free, whereas on the consoles you have to pay for all but the chest piece, btw it’s really expensive.
Notes
- Almost done… Just Awakening, and Origins left to review
- Older Dragon Age DLC is actually the Deal of the week on Xbox Live this week. Be sure to grab the Awakening expansion at the steal price of 20 dollars (1600 MSP) while you can!
- Oh also with the stone prisoner DLC is somewhat connected to an infinite money exploit.
- Return to Ostagar was glitched out of the solar system and was delayed several times, and then further pulled after release due to massive bugs.
- Massive Bugs are quite common for Bioware DLC
- I never used the Blood dragon armor in Mass Effect 2
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