Even with his crazy PAX schedule looming we managed to spend time with Penny-Arcade’s Tycho to get his first impressions on our latest game Dragon Age: Origins. We are still swooning from the timbre of his voice and perfect diction.
[BW] What attracted you to working with BioWare on Dragon Age: Origins?
[Tycho] I felt certain that, as part of my work on the project, I would be
given a playable copy!
[BW] And what did you think of the Dragon Age setting?
[Tycho] I have to admit that I read The Stolen Throne in advance of playing
it, so between that and the official site I had a pretty strong
primer. The world-building is much stronger than you’d guess from the
existing videos – the Chantry in particular, but also the relationship
between the Templars, the Circle of Magi, and the unauthorized gutter
magic of the wilderfolk. For lore nerds, the game’s Tome of Knowledge
is something you can easily get lost in.
[BW] BioWare has called this a “spiritual successor” to its previous fantasy titles. Do you think Dragon Age lives up to that heritage?
[Tycho] It was clearly designed to evoke that heritage, so if you’re already
weak to those kinds of attacks I’d say you’re in pretty big trouble.
[BW] Who is your favorite party NPC?
[Tycho] I like Sten, for a lot of reasons. He has many virtues, but his
chatter with Morrigan is priceless.
[BW] Do either of you have a favorite origin story?
[Tycho] Not especially, other than to say that playing more than one before
you settle in is a good idea, because they’re not completely inert,
story-wise. I saw people in his origin that popped up in my main
campaign, for example.
[BW] What class did you choose?
[Tycho] I went with a Human Noble Rogue for my “main,” if that terminology
even means anything in a single player game. I’d read the book, and I
figured Rogue would be my path to Bard. I was not wrong!
[BW] Can you give us a favorite moment that doesn’t spoil too much?
[Tycho] Killing my dad was kind of a jerk move, guys. 🙁
Apparently we forgot to ask “What did you think of the game?” but I think this penny-arcade.com post covers it.
~dlarke