Or maybe nostalgia makes us remember old games better than they were.
I don't think this applies here.
I got BG2 when it first came out and I loved it at that time. I didn't think that Betrayal at Krondor or Ultima VII were better than BG2 just that BG2 was great and I loved it.
But if you are going to sell your game using BG2's name then you should expect to be compared to it.
This scene still floats around in my mind.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=schKIswVdPc
It doesn't look great or have some blinding gore but it gets the job done and it is memorable. Whoever made it wanted to create an experience for the player and they succeeded. When I think of BG2 I think of beautiful environments with their own unique atmosphere, great dialog, epic battles, and characters I care about. This is what BG2 means to me. And compared to that I find DA lacking.
If I look at DA on its own merits it is good game. Some parts are really fun and others can be quite tedious. BG2 was the same way. But I feel BG2 is still head and shoulders above this. Spiritual successor tag or not.
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In regards to my original comment I will expound a little. I think today's games are so encompassing and require so much specialization and modularization that it is more difficult to get a singular vision for what the game should do for the player. And I think we have accepted this as a trade-off.
Forced multiplayer components, DLC friendly design, toolsets, sequels being created before their predecessors are completed, I almost feel that gaming is becoming more like the motion picture industry. Big names, big explosions, lots of gloss, and keep the content light and fluffy to attract the maximum amount of mainstream dollar.
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And why is it that it appears that every other female in all the new Bioware games are bisexual?