Following the success of Mass Effect, BioWare went back to its fantasy roots with Dragon Age: Origins. The team behind the original Baldur’s Gate and Neverwinter Nights was creating a whole new world with their dark fantasy RPG. Released in 2009 and published by EA, DA: Origins was the aptly titled first game in the Dragon Age franchise and one that BioWare would return to a few times in their storied career.

After our first Retro Grade episode, we put out a poll on our site asking readers to vote on the game for our next retrospective review. We weren’t expecting the 30-hour RPG to make a surprise last-minute sweep, but that’s exactly what happened. So Sri Kandula and Nick Sivak played through Dragon Age: Origins, and they had a lot to say about it.

Watch the full episode of Retro Grade and hear what they had to say about the game’s lengthy narrative, team-based mechanics, and how it feels to play it for the first time in 2024. This review was recorded last year, and was exclusive to our website, but as we prepare to relaunch Retro Grade next, it’s available to watch on YouTube. Come back next month to vote on the next Retro Grade title and play along with us.