Expansion for Dragon Age Origins Will Cost $40

Kris Erickson • Jan 5, 2010 • Comments (1)

Dragon Age: Origins was one of the best Western RPG titles released in 2009, garnering praise from critics and fans alike. In fact, the game was voted IGN's top RPG of 2009, and we would have to agree with that assessment. Now, BioWare has announced that a new downloadable expansion called "Awakening" will be released in March 2010. This new DLC includes additional characters, magical spells, abilities, and an entirely new location called Amaranthine.

Designed and written by the same team that brought you Dragon Age: Origins, the Awakening expansion pack offers a brand new area of the world to explore known as Amaranthine, featuring an epic story that will allow players to unravel the secrets of the darkspawn and their true motivations.

Players will face a range of horrific and terrifying creatures including an evolved, intelligent breed of darkspawn and other menacing creatures such as the Inferno Golem and Spectral Dragon. Awakening also provides new ways for players to customize their heroes and party, including the ability to re-spec their character attributes, allowing even greater customization and replayability. Featuring an increased level cap, new spells, abilities, specializations and items, plus five all-new party members, players can continue their adventures from Dragon Age, or begin with a brand new party. According to the publisher, this new storyline will reveal how the darkspawn continue to infest the world despite the defeat of the Archdemon.

Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening occurs following the events of Origins and puts players into the role of a Grey Warden Commander entrusted with rebuilding the order of Grey Wardens. In addition to rebuilding the ranks of the Grey Wardens, you will be tasked with uncovering the mystery of how the darkspawn survive after the slaying of the Archdemon dragon. How players choose to rebuild their order, resolve the conflict with the mysterious "Architect," and determine the fate of the darkspawn are some of the many intriguing moral choices that will shape each player's heroic journey. Players will be able to import their character from Dragon Age: Origins or start out as a new Grey Warden from the neighboring land of Orlais.

Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening will be released March 16, 2010 worldwide on the Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3 and PC. The DLC pack will carry a heft price tag: Awakening will cost $39.99 in North America and will require Dragon Age: Origins to play. This might make it the most expensive DLC pack ever released, not counting Left 4 Dead 2 (zing!).