Dragon Age Interview Plus Magic Book'em, Danno.

What interesting timing. A few weeks ago I talked to Dragon Age's designer Mike Laidlaw at a press event. It has just gone up on Eurogamer. Of course, this ties in to the uproar around the recent violence trailer. I found myself eye-brow raising a little in the PR-line which Bioware seem to be following with this too, but when pressed Mike defended the mature direction as more than just trailers...

"I'm not sure the level of maturity is the difference - but the depth, the experience itself. Does it all hang together on a single theme? Because I think our greatest failing could be it's just a standard oh-look-a-unicorn fantasy... also, this guy's head just popped off. For it to feel tacked on, and not part of the experience."

More here. Of course, there's also the sarcastic response inspired by Psychopomp's comment thread post...

Good work. Though the whining about Marilyn Manson not being real music does make you sound an old English major tutting at children on the village green. I'd have gone for something far harder myself. WE ARE THE ATTTAAAARRRRIII TEEEENAGGGGGEEE RIOTTTTTT!!!! WE HAVE A +4 SWORD VERSUS SCARABBBBBBZZZ!

Yes.