Dragon Age – series. Best RPGs available on GamePass in 2022

Within a few years, BioWare created two games; one of them redefined space opera, the other returned to the roots of fantasy RPG. The heyday of CD Projekt was still yet to come. In 2009, when the first part of Dragon Age was released, hardly anyone believed that The Witcher would be able to rival the production of BioWare, and in 2015, actually take the throne.

How did Dragon Age deserve such recognition? First of all, the efficient combination of a dynamic, intuitive real-time combat system with an extremely expressive visual style, quite shocking brutality, and the grime of the presented world. The vibrant cast of characters also deserves recognition. Relations with them have been expanded here even more than in the classics of the genre, such as KotoR, Baldur's Gate or Planescape: Torment.

There's nothing to hide – eroticism was also important for the success of the game. Prior to the game, AAA developers shied away from explicit sex scenes. What's more, building romantic relationships was not an easy task. And romancing more than one person often ended in a spectacular disaster. All parts of the series maintained comparable quality in this respect. The third one might not be as engaging as the first, and the second one's locations could discourage with emptiness, but even despite these shortcomings, they are still games that belong to the absolute elite of fantasy RPGs of recent years.

1. Dragon Age series in our encyclopedia

Torment: Tides of Numenera

Torment: Tides of Numenera turned out a commercial flop. The Kickstarter-financed production did not satisfy the fans and was criticized quite harshly by the press. I find it difficult to agree with the latter; the game was accused of not being a real Planescape, though the story is at least as engaging, and the writing remains supreme. I would also argue that the game is not in the least boring – extraordinary heroes and extremely original locations (including a city built in the guts of a monstrous creature) appear in the game from beginning until the very end. Can fans feel disappointed? Unfortunately yes.

The creators promised much more. Many of the elements that the studio had promised were eventually thrown out the window. Moreover, the project was abandoned after just one major update. It was not fair towards fans who invested quite a lot of money a few years earlier in the development of the beloved series.

Nevertheless, Numenera remains a must-have for fans of the classic Planescape: Torment. The colorfulness of the presented world and the variety of philosophical ponderings on the meaning of life, the definition of freedom, or the limits of identity are deeply resonating. There are so many ways to learn the history of the Changing God and develop your own skills that you can complete the game several times over and still not experience all the variants. And this is one of the biggest advantages an RPG like this can have.

1. Torment: Tides of Numenera in our encyclopedia