14 DAY TRIAL // The first Dragon Age was called Origins, mainly because of the six different possibilities that a gamer had when creating the background of his character, but the name was also fitting because it was the first game to use Thedas as a universe, with developer BioWare saying that it planned many more experiences that use the same setting.
Dragon Age 2 is a weird name for the first sequel in this series, mainly because it creates a sense of continuity between the two games that is actually very limited, with only small cameos from characters and a few lines of conversation mentioning the Grey Warden and his exploits to the Champion of Kirkwall.
But the problems are bigger than that with Dragon Age 2 because the name also created a set of expectations from those who played and enjoyed Origins, some of which the sequel did not manage to live up to, creating a problem for BioWare.
The chosen title also creates problems for the future of the franchise, mainly because BioWare will have to announce, develop and launch a Dragon Age 3 and will face a tough choice between again messing with the fundamentals of the genre and playing it safe and creating an experience that is close to one of the two already launched games.
A much better idea would have been to never assign numbers to the Dragon Age games and just add terms to the title to show off the scope and the intent of the game experience.
Dragon Age 2 could have been something like Champion of Kirkwall or Of Mages and Templars (this one might be too spoilery for some).
It would also allow BioWare to create smaller experiences in the Dragon Age universe, coming in at about 10 – 15 hours, to explore more peripheral areas like Antiva or Rivain or even Per Vollen and experiment with the gameplay mechanics while keeping the main games in the series more or less aligned with Origins.