E3 2008: Dragon Age arises on consoles

BioWare's epic fantasy RPG billed as a spiritual successor to Baldur's Gate will arrive on unnamed home platforms in addition to PC.

Compared to the information dump at Microsoft's press conference yesterday, Electronic Arts offered a relative trickle of new details at its event later that day. That's not to say the publisher's press conference was bereft of announcements, however, with EA's id Software publishing partnership on the famed developer's Mad Max-inspired car-combat/racing game Rage taking top billing.

While the id alliance was certainly a win for the publisher's EA Partners program, EA had news from its internal studios as well. Namely, during BioWare president Greg Zeschuk's demonstration of Dragon Age: Origins, the executive revealed that the game would arrive on consoles in addition to the PC. Unfortunately, the developer would only say that the titles would arrive "in the future," and Zelschuk did not elaborate on whether the title would surface on all platforms simultaneously.

Billed as a spiritual successor to the gamemaker's acclaimed Baldur's Gate, Dragon Age: Origins offers a classical Western role-playing experience of swords-and-sorcery combat and an epic storyline. EA expects to release the game as part of its current fiscal year, which ends March 31, 2009.

For more on the game, which just recently received its Origins subtitle, check out the game's first trailer and GameSpot's just-published impressions from the E3 Media & Business Summit.

54 Comments

  • Edvin76

    Posted Aug 16, 2008 2:39 pm PT

    High end PCs are cheaper by the day and continuously better and cheaper, whilst a generation consoles normally stay around for ages without any significant improvement.
    Not to mention console games are the ones which always tried to be sold with their graphics as the gameplay is exactly the same in all game in a particular genre.
    PC games show you what a game CAN be, whilst console games try to feed down on your throat HOW you should play every game.

  • DarthMuffin

    Posted Aug 12, 2008 3:47 pm PT

    Interesting piece of news, I kind of hope it's true (at least in the long run). I once styled myself as a die-hard PC gamer (and as of today it's still sort of true) but I'm really considering getting a console. Why? Because I'm tired of system requirements. Good gaming PCs cost much more than consoles (especially for the tech inapt such as myself who can't really build their own computers) and even if you do have the monster PC, you are at the risk of getting plenty of compatibility issues and weird glitches. I really miss the old days when the only question you had to ask yourself when buying a PC game was "do I have enough space on my HDD to install this?" or "does my card have 3D acceleration?". What's with all the graphics craze anyway? Gameplay should always be the focus. So unless I go and spend the big buck for a new computer, I guess I'll cross my fingers for a console version.

  • Edvin76

    Posted Jul 31, 2008 2:35 am PT

    not to mention that they can not draw a face that doesnt look like a crappy plastic mask, even PC games look like this nowadays, thats why i dont play anymore, bye

  • Edvin76

    Posted Jul 31, 2008 2:33 am PT

    when did I say that Im more mature, refined and intelligent than a CONSOL player? grammar nazis gtfo and ive never heard of teabagging and griefing. all I said is that every single consol game is a big mixture of cheap rip off of everything that has ever made anything in the western culture unique or original even this chibi-chubi or what from ff7 is a rip off from taun-tauns at Star Wars, you can not name a single original idea which worth mentioning from any consol game

  • LookOutSnake

    Posted Jul 27, 2008 1:03 pm PT

    PC gamers that claim to be elitists give me many lulz. They're so much more mature, refined and intelligent than console gamers...wait, aren't these the same guys that created teabagging in FPSes and griefing in MMOs? Yeah, real mature...

    Just look at this genius Edvin76 who consistently spells the word "console" incorrectly. I also LOVE how he acts like there is no intersection between console gaming and PC gaming: news flash, asshat, there are lots of people that do BOTH.

  • Abs0Iute_Zer0

    Posted Jul 23, 2008 11:09 am PT

    I hope this does live up to or surpasses Baldur's Gate

  • wcw6

    Posted Jul 21, 2008 7:51 pm PT

    I hope this would be as big and grand and fun as Baldur's Gate 2 ever was, it's hard seeing how EA is in control now, I seriously hope it doesn't get dumbed down for consoles. KOTOR and Mass Effect are great games, but they still are but a shadow of Baldur's Gate.

  • Macgyver40

    Posted Jul 20, 2008 11:36 am PT

    Dragons are great may have to check this one out

  • Edvin76

    Posted Jul 18, 2008 7:54 am PT

    maybe the consol developers shoudlnt have stolen (like they do with everything from western culture) the name rpg in the first place, they should have said jrpg immediately and then we would all still know what rpg really is, innit?

  • ronnet

    Posted Jul 18, 2008 1:32 am PT

    Advin, JRPG are ancient and for many a RPG means a JRPG. So always be clear about what kind fo RPG you mean WRPG or JRPG. As for this WRPG by Bioware, its a great game and worth the price if you have enough room on your 360. Better would be to get an actual copy to keep though.

  • MDesigner

    Posted Jul 17, 2008 2:48 pm PT

    I just have to comment on "user5689"'s comment below.. he says

    "And Bioware is NOT WORKING IN KoTOR 3 FOR CHRISTS SAKE!
    Trust me, I visit the forums daily, they've stated this time and time again. While i'm at it, the MMO is not KoTOR related either."

    Dude.. epic fail. See link:

    http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/news/eas-riccitiello-confirms-knights-of-the-old-republic-online-/?biz=1

    KOTOR Online, confirmed.

  • lettuceman44

    Posted Jul 17, 2008 1:18 pm PT

    Edvin, that is very ignorant of you.............

  • Edvin76

    Posted Jul 17, 2008 12:05 pm PT

    "western rpg"
    since when do the "eastern" pikachu rpg-s count as rpg at all, apart from by 12 year old americans? rpg IS the "western rpg" i just feel SO sorry for you consol player, that you dont even know this

  • grambyte

    Posted Jul 17, 2008 5:45 am PT

    I can't help to automatically been drawn to everything with "dragon" in the title... I wonder...

  • Kez1984

    Posted Jul 16, 2008 12:01 pm PT

    Chris Priestly of BioWare(from their forums)

    "I'll post here what I posted in the other threads already discussing this (it's like no one takes a look around before posting nowadays).

    Much of this is being made of Greg's comments, but it really hasn't change anything. Dragon Age: Origins is for the PC. It is possible we may make a console version of a Dragon Age game sometime in the future.

    Dragon Age: Origins is still being made for the PC. If a console version gets made some time later down the road after that, it doesn't change the PC version of Dragon Age: Origins."



    "Dragon Age: Origins will be out for the PC first (since it is the only one being worked on atm). As I said, a console version is possible after that, but we'll have to wait and see what happens."

    Tom Magrino needs to learn what un-bais reporting is.

  • gr8jedimaster

    Posted Jul 16, 2008 11:47 am PT

    Good. I wasn't going to spend $500 to upgrade my PC so I could play it.

  • world69star69

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:01 pm PT

    NOOOO! I own a ps3, but i was hoping this game would stay pc exclusive, so much for a old school, intriguing, rpg ala Baldurs gate, it will probably now be dumbed down for the mainstream audience... I could be wrong, but i have a fealing its not going to be baldurs gate spirtual successor unless they make it for the pc and dumb it down later so the consoles can handle(damn xbox, I hate you!) I am first and foremost a pc gamer, and console 2nd, but I love deep rpgs more then anything. I bet EA is the blame for this, i knew it! When they had the article with his stock holders about being for the pc only, I bet they balked..damn money grubbing, dicks. Why do games have to be based on stocks and committees nowadays, what happened to making a good deep game and if made good it will sell?

  • combatsoldier

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 10:01 pm PT

    I am so excited and just want it to come out already.

  • SavoyPrime

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 9:28 pm PT

    Well, I have both the PS3 and 360. So I'll be fine with whichever console it comes to.

  • ottumatic

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 8:18 pm PT

    "Unnamed home platforms"... so maybe they will announce DA being ported as one of first few titles for a new console TBA year 2009? Unlikely it may sounds, but there's a good chance of it happening.

  • jakeboudville

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 8:07 pm PT

    I'm somehow not surprise they are cashing it in on the consoles too but i'll stick to the pc version of it

  • user5689

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 6:31 pm PT

    Everyone complaining about this pushing Mass Effect 2 back.
    Stop. Bioware has *multiple* dev teams, this game development in no way effects Mass Effect's development. They're also working on an MMO, a Sonic RPG, and another unnamed project with Lucasarts.

    And Bioware is NOT WORKING IN KoTOR 3 FOR CHRISTS SAKE!
    Trust me, I visit the forums daily, they've stated this time and time again. While i'm at it, the MMO is not KoTOR related either.

    They've also stated that the game is being developed PC first, Console later. THIS GAME WILL NOT BE "DUMBED DOWN" FOR CONSOLES!
    I, for one, don't think Dragon Age would work on a console. Baldur's Gate didn't, and from what they've shown/told us the past few years on the forums Dragon Age won't either.
    I'm also doubtful it will sell on consoles, it's shaping up to be a very complex game.

    But hey, not everyone has a good PC.

  • PandaBear86

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 5:24 pm PT

    Anybody who thinks that this game will be good on consoles obviously hasn't played Baldur's Gate or NeverWinter Nights on the PC. There is no way you cna play those games with a gamepad unless it was re-engineered (in a negative way). The Baldurs Gate games on consoles were completely different from the PC games.

  • portej

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 4:15 pm PT

    Hopefully the game on PC is not dumbed down due to it also being developed on consoles

  • Disciple_Gamer

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 3:21 pm PT

    As long as EA does not F'up the greatness that is Bioware, I am looking forward to this game.

  • playstation_wii

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 2:40 pm PT

    Trailer looks interesting.

  • kos1085

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 1:50 pm PT

    What....Dragon Age...Bioware....RPG....Console....I am sold. I love bioware's RPGs and I am sure this will be another great quality RPG.

  • ctg867

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 1:28 pm PT

    With Kotor 3 and Mass Effect 2 but on taking longer to release because they need to put resources towards this, I'm far from happy about it. I really couldn't care less about a pseudo Baulder's Gate sequel. Mega pass.

  • arc_salvo

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 1:03 pm PT

    This game was announced a looong time ago, and I'm guessing they've been taking all this time to polish it. If they say it'll be a spiritual sequel to Baldur's Gate, I believe it. They've sure taken their time with it to make sure it's comparably good, imho.

  • DontEatCream

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 12:36 pm PT

    "Unnamed" home platforms, ehh? Come on, even a brain-dead monkey knows they're talking about the 360/PS3. Who are they trying to fool?

  • lego863

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:40 am PT

    cool game

  • grigjd3

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:37 am PT

    Successor to BG? That's a tall order. It's really easy to fall far short of that.

  • Hungry_bunny Site moderator

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:34 am PT

    Will it really be done til Q1 2009?

  • somberfox

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:32 am PT

    "the game would arrive on consoles in addition to the PC."

    These words of doom translated mean: "the game will be dumbed down for a wider audience."

  • ronnet

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:31 am PT

    Who ever things this is not comming to consoles because they need to redesign things should look at Mass Effect for PC. They were quickly done with redesigning that and that was after release of the original on 360. I'm sure they´ll be working on the console version while building up the PC so I doubt we'll have to wait long.

  • Tom1243

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:26 am PT

    Well come on....EA wernt gona let this not be multiplatform.

  • Kez1984

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:23 am PT

    We really don't care about exclusivity in the slightest, the pc is not in competitor with anyone, it's a platform that doesn't really need to be in competition to consoles, however...we care about is getting our games dumbed down for simpletons, mainstream, in other words...consoles. If the game's remain unchanged, there would be no problem.

  • SaintRasmus

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:22 am PT

    Of cause this game will come to all platforms. This is EA we a talking about.

    PS. The game looks good !!

  • carstairs

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:20 am PT

    I'll look at the trailer, this could be great!

  • VegetaMaelstrom

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:18 am PT

    Sony does allow mouse/keyboard. Microsoft is the one who won't allow it because they are fanatical about maintaining control over everything on the 360. Hence no mods in UT3 like the PS3 has.

  • 1005

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:17 am PT

    What about PC exclusives this year at E3, do any exist at all :O!

  • mismajor99

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:14 am PT

    I don't think this is going to show up on other platforms besides the PC for quite sometime. The interface is going to have to be completely redesigned, unless Sony allows for mouse/keyboard. This game isn't direct control and has a ton of quickbars in the latest screenshots. It's basically WoW's interface. I would imagine, this will be a Dark Alliance type deal at a later date as before

  • lightwarrior179

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:13 am PT

    I honestly cannot imagine a Baldur's Gate inspired RPG on consoles. But,BioWare is capable of surprising everyone,as they did by producing KotOR on Xbox.
    I think BioWare has compared Baldur's Gate with their newer franchises,more than once. They did it with the first Neverwinter Nights,which was a little of a letdown. I hope Dragon Age does well,though.

  • Yuck_Too

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 11:02 am PT

    Baulder Gate II = The 6th Best PC Game of all time.

    Here is hoping this one turns out even better.

  • Cube_of_MooN

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 10:53 am PT

    I might keep track of it, but it's still kind of early.

  • Vincent9mm

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 10:06 am PT

    This better be true, if so... This so far has been the best E3 ever, first FFXIII now Dragon Age. My system is getting all the games I was dissapointed about not being able to play.

    When's Konami's Press Conference?

  • Kez1984

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 9:57 am PT

    Btw: They didn't say specifically "this game", this article is false.

  • Neosword

    Posted Jul 15, 2008 9:52 am PT

    Might check it out on consoles.

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