What do you think the point of origins is, if they can be completely divorced from the character?
Well I'll just get some quotes here as honestly Larian studios understands the point of origins are period.
At the start of the game, you pick a single character and determine your starting stats, race, and origin story.
You'll be able to recruit up to three companions, each of whom is just as detailed as the character you're playing, with their own origin story and motivation to help you in your quest.
Origin Stories: You’ll have a choice of several origin stories, each one a pre-made past for your character, which will ground them in the world you’re exploring. You might meet people who’ve heard of your story, or suffered a similar fate. You might meet some old friends to help you on your way, or cross paths with those who have a score to settle. The origin stories bring a rich, deep narrative to the game, which compliments the world and gives you lots more options for how you can interact with the people around you.
It is kind of simple really. It puts your character into the game, into the world you created, and makes them feel all the more organic and your adventure all the more personal. It gives your character hooks.
Almost all games that let you make your own character pretty much make them basically a blank slate with little-no story and if there is something there they quickly try to rush past it so you forget (Neverwinter Nights 2 for example... you might as well forget your origin story immediately). Divinity 2 Original Sin actually stood out as something that was trying something different. It said "Hey, you can make your character and assign him a backstory which will even affect the narrative around them".
As well when I heard origins originally said I NEVER EVER EVER thought it meant pre-gen characters and in fact I bet you NO ONE ever thought they were...
In fact I'll go even further and the original videos shown for the game showed backgrounds as not being tied to specific characters.
In fact even the current information remains incredibly vague as to whether the game will have Non-generic Non-pregen origins.
Yet is it the case? The game is so early in development that the current 4 pregen characters might just be the first 4 origins (not to mention they need to be down since they ARE technically companion characters you get no matter what)
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Calling you by the proper name can be done. Making "relatives" the right race can be done. Gender pronouns, can be done. As well most conversations in the game as they are... Are Race Agnostic (even when they REALLY shouldn't be...) and Gender Agnostic so it wouldn't even be a bigger burden on the writing staff.
I don't see this great barrier in giving you a backstory... letting you make your character... and having people from that backstory interact with you and call you by name.
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But really I'd like to know either way... Though it might be a while until a developer lets me know...
