Dragon Age II: Mark of the Assassin DLC Reviews

Reviews keep cropping up for BioWare’s latest DLC offering for Dragon Age II, Mark of the Assassin, which marks the first trip to Orlais in the franchise and has been receiving for the most part favorable reviews so far, this batch making no exception.

Eurogamer kicks off our round-up with a very solid 8/10.

Often, with poor DLC, it’s the loot that justifies the experience. Certainly, BioWare is no stranger to serving up slim corridor-based expansions that only prove worthwhile because of some weapon handed out at the end. Mark of the Assassin has goodies to spare – the Orlesian Lancer armour set is especially juicy – but the fact that it feels like a secondary bonus rather than the motivation for the whole enterprise speaks highly of the effort that has gone into this download. The benefits of the loot ultimately pale alongside the memorable story and characters, which is just how it should be.

Hitting the “confirm download” button on any new piece of BioWare DLC is always a gamble, but with Mark of the Assassin it pays off. It’s an absorbing and varied side story that feeds back into the wider Dragon Age universe in subtle ways. What more could you need?

The Gaming Addiction, 4/5.

Over the course of the DLC Hawke will battle some tough guys. From an optional battle that represents an Architect type character, to a painstakingly long boss battle, Hawke will definitely be given a challenge. Overall, I’d say this was a pretty solid DLC, as was its predecessor, Legacy.

The Controller Online, 8/10.

Mark of the Assassin did what a great episode of a great story should do. It drew you into the characters and setting, it was fun and it left you wanting to know more. I only wish it hadn’t left me wanting to play for a few more hours. Despite being a short adventure, Mark of the Assassin will appeal to every fan of Dragon Age 2. I truly hope we get to see more of Tallis in the future.

Finally, fansite GreyWardens.com is a little less positive and awards it a 7/10.

I feel like Mark of the Assassin had some good pieces in place, but they didn’t really just come together in the right way. The new features like Tallis’ fighting style and the stealth mode seemed good on paper but didn’t really work out well in the game. The story has it’s moments but it felt like BioWare was really trying to carry this DLC on Day’s star power as opposed to its own merits.

So I’ll try to sum it up like this: the DLC is better than the standard DA2 experience, but I’d say it doesn’t match up to the previous DLC offering in Legacy. Mark of the Assassin introduces some interesting game mechanics, but in its compacted form it felt incomplete and jarring.

Playthrough time was slightly longer than Legacy, about 3-4 hours worth on a thorough playthrough.