Dragon Age II is a more action-oriented and intimate sequel than DAO. Kirkwall and Hawke's rise over ten years, remarkable companions. Less epic than the original but narratively courageous. Appreciated in retrospect.
Your verdict
Category
RPG1 player18+
Description
Ambitious sequel to BioWare's RPG centering the adventure on Hawke, Champion of Kirkwall, in a narrative spanning ten years of conflict. Published by EA, released in Europe in March 2011. Pre-defined voiced protagonist, companion approval relationships, more dynamic combat, framed narrator storytelling, and choice-impacting outcomes.
Dragon Age II review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
4/5
Story
★★★★★
"Captivating"
Confined to Kirkwall alone, this entry makes the city a single set, tiered by class. Marble Hightown looms above, Lowtown grimes with misery, and beneath it the dark town of the sewers shelters the outcasts. The art direction draws a vertical, stifling city one never truly escapes, its social geography standing in for a world map.
Rather than a kingdom, the score sets to music a circle of intimates. Each of Hawke's companions gets a colour, bitter strings for one, exotic Free Marches timbres for another, motifs that return with each reunion. Tightened around relationships rather than a planetary threat, the music favours the intimate and weaves like an album of portraits.
Spread over ten years, the story follows Hawke's rise in Kirkwall as the conflict between mages and templars smoulders. Far from an all-powerful saviour, the hero watches the city harden despite him, until the blast that sets the whole continent alight. The drama lies in that powerlessness: gaining power is not enough to keep a city from tearing itself apart.
Dragon Age II, a tighter sequel of the BioWare saga focused on one city across a decade, with nervier combat and a divided reception after the first's enthusiasm. Still common, its collector interest is modest; the Japanese and Asian versions remain rarer. An accessible piece for those completing the Dragon Age trilogy on the console, whose desirability rests on set coherence rather than its own value.
Is Dragon Age II still worth playing in 2026?
Dragon Age II is a more intimate, more action-oriented sequel than its elder, long disliked but reassessed over time. By focusing its tale on Hawke's rise within the single city of Kirkwall, across a decade, the game takes a brave narrative stance that favours characters and social tensions over the epic. The brisker combat appeals, even if the blatant recycling of environments betrays a rushed development. The remarkable companions and the mature writing more than make up for it. For anyone who accepts this change of scale, the adventure proves endearing and singular.
