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Dragon Age: Inquisition Is A Perfect Game For A Photo Mode
Yesterday, we had the chance to play Dragon Age: Inquisition here at Gamescom. The content was similar to what Joe wrote about in a preview that went live yesterday (so be sure to check that out). This allowed us to spend some time experimenting with the game and poking at some of its features.
One of the big changes coming to Dragon Age: Inquisition is an improved tactical camera that has more degrees of control. You can freely move the height and angle, which has the potential to create some stunning images. The detail on the characters and foes can be explored closer than ever before.
We had a chance to speak with BioWare Edmonton and Montreal general manager Aaryn Flynn and Cameron Lee, producer on Dragon Age: Inquisition about the tactical camera and its additional uses. One of the most interesting aspects of the conversation was about how BioWare fundamentally changed how Frostbite works.
"We are the team that added the pause to Frostbite," Flynn says. "Previous Frostbite games haven't had any notion of pausing, so we had to work with the Frostbite team to do it. I think it was a fortunate circumstance that the way paused movement allows you to actually go into slow motion as well. We don't just have to have full game speed and pause. We can let you advance.
"It's a really happy outcome too, that it helps glue the tac-cam and the action," Lee adds. "When you see the person who's playing, going into tac-cam, setting up some stuff, and then going into engage mode, seeing it play out, and go back into tac-cam, they'll do that quite frequently."
Recently, Infamous: Second Son and The Last of Us Remastered Edition have included a photo mode. This allows players to pause the action, strip away the interface, and take beautiful in-game screenshots. We inquired as to whether this might be on the table for Inquisition down the road.
"You can do so much with it. You can fly right up, and it gives you so much detail," Flynn says. "One of the hopes I have is that people will do the bigger fights multiple times in multiple ways. We've gotta think about that. There are some just beautiful moments you can capture. If you watch the demo, there's a beautiful tactical camera pause just as guys are flying back in mid-air." A photo mode isn't a guarantee, but it's a request that the team has heard from fans.
We also spoke with Flynn and Lee about Dragon Age Keep. The beta has drastically improved the system, which will be used for importing your version of Thedas from the previous two titles. The art style has improved, and even more people will be invited to help test the application on the way to the November 18 launch on Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and PC.
For more on Dragon Age: Inquisition, check out our full preview of The Fallow Mire region.
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