INTRODUCTION:
As was the case with Dragon Age: Origins, multiple DLC expansions were released for Dragon Age II. No "Ultimate Edition" was ever released, however; so in this case, all DLC still needs to be purchased and installed separately. A great pity, as the story-based DLC for Dragon Age II ranks among the series' best...
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| Meet Sebastian Vael, the game's Day One DLC companion. |
THE EXILED PRINCE:
Release Date: Mar. 8, 2011
This was Dragon Age II's Day One DLC. As is too often in the case with Day One expansions, it very much feels as if it should have been part of the core game. The story isn't up to much. Sebastian Vael, a Chantry brother and prince of Starkhaven, turns to Hawke for help when his family is wiped out by mercenaries. What makes this noteworthy is Sebastian himself. Not only is he a full companion, but his unwavering faith in the Chantry and most particularly in Kirkwall's Grand Cleric tie him strongly to the game's overall themes and central conflict. Sebastian receives one quest per Act - and his Act Three quest, combined with his conversations with the Grand Cleric, account for roughly half the total setup the game's ending receives! Given how underdeveloped Act Three feels even with this material, I can only imagine how anemic it plays without it.
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| Meet Corypheus, an undead Tevinter mage. He might be important later. |
LEGACY:
Release Date: July 11, 2011
Hawke is targeted by Dwarven carta assassins, and the trail leads back to an ancient Grey Warden prison in the Vinmark Wasteland. There, Hawke learns that his/her father assisted the Grey Wardens in sealing away an ancient Darkspawn known as Corypheus, whose servants now seek "the blood of the Hawke" to free him. Those who have played Inquisition will note from the description that it's this DLC that introduces that game's villain.
Beyond that, it's a strong overall piece, offering up a good story and some splendid atmosphere. Gone are the copy + paste dungeons of the main game, replaced by an extensive and genuinely well-designed journey into darkness. The combat is also greatly improved. Instead of facing waves of grunts that pop in out of nowhere, the enemies are genuinely challenging - enough so that you will have to rely on your tactics menus to get through. The final boss battle is frustrating, but also ingeniously designed to defeat players trying to just "brute force" their way through.
Oh, to get the most out of this expansion, make sure to bring your sibling (who, if alive, will be available for this mission), along with Varric and Anders. Though it can be played at any time, I recommend playing in Act Three; if Anders is in the group, the events of the mission support his Act Three character arc - and the equipment you receive will be much stronger if you play at a higher level than at a lower one.
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| Meet Tallis (Felicia Day). She's... basically just Felicia Day. |
MARK OF THE ASSASSIN:
Release Date: Oct. 26, 2011
Hawke travels to Orlais to assist bubbly thief Tallis (Felicia Day) with a heist. However, not everything about the mission - or, indeed, about Tallis - is as it appears. This brisk caper is the most light-hearted adventure of the set, and it leans perhaps too heavily on the presence of its celebrity guest star. But despite having long felt that a little Felicia Day goes a long way, I still found Mark of the Assassin to be a lot of fun. It's divided into three main phases: a hunt, a stealth section, and more traditional dungeon crawling/combat. All are entertaining, and the developers went the extra mile to include side quests for each potential companion. The quests for Aveline and Isabelle are by far the best; most of the rest are fetch-quests.
This wasn't actually planned as the final DLC; a large-scale expansion titled The Exalted March was supposed to round out Dragon Age II while leading directly into Inquisition... but by this point, fan backlash was resulting in disappointing sales, and the final expansion got canceled. Even so, I find it oddly appropriate that the final release for a generally dark and brooding game ended up being a light-hearted adventure. If nothing else, it's nice to see the characters having a good time!
OVERALL:
As fond as I am of Dragon Age II, it is fair to say that it is a very flawed game that falls short of the success of the epics on either side of it. However, it probably has the best DLC of the series. The Exiled Prince helps to offset some of the game's Third Act weaknesses while offering another companion. The two big story DLCs are both very good, offering new and detailed settings and interesting narratives. Both Legacy and Mark of the Assassin offer decent value, with each campaign providing a good 4 hours of gameplay for completists. They also feature the most enjoyable combat of the game; as I stated in my review of the main game, the big issue with Dragon Age II's combat has to do with the way it was executed rather than the actual controls, as the combat in these DLCs is terrific.
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