Although EA have a reputation for being something of an advertising behemoth, it would be fair to say that they were somewhat off the mark when it came to the promot­ion of Dragon Age. With a trailer that blazed Marilyn Manson over a montage of blood, guts and gore, you could be forgiven for thinking that this was just another gore-fuelled, over the top, brainless hack-and-slasher. Luckily, this couldn’t be further from the truth.

As a spiritual successor to Baldur’s Gate, Dragon Age is actually an incredibly well crafted, involving, and intelligent game. While the over-the-top gore does distract a bit from the proceedings, underneath the layer of blood is an RPG every bit as involving as a Mass Effect, with a story that manages to be both original and interesting (not too easy a task in the crowded fantasy realm), filled with characters that you end up actually being bothered about. As is most important for a role-playing game, you can craft your characters to be exactly the type of person you want them to be – and the choices you’re offered in interacting with NPCs allow you to steer the conversations into some interesting places, and talk your way out of (or into) confrontations.

All in all, this is a real tour de force in RPG gaming – it fixes the problems that plagued Mass Effect, and gives BioWare fans something to tide them over until Mass Effect 2 arrives.