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fadestep.bsky.social
fadestep
@fadestep.bsky.social
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f1shb0nes.bsky.social
forgot to post these here whoops
[ #lacenet #hornet #lace #silksong ]
August 12, 2025 at 9:54 PM
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teamcherry.bsky.social
The countdown is on!

Join us in 48 hours for a special announcement about Hollow Knight: Silksong!

Premiering here: youtu.be/6XGeJwsUP9c
Hollow Knight: Silksong - Special Announcement
YouTube video by Team Cherry
youtu.be
August 19, 2025 at 2:33 PM
Reposted by fadestep
davidgaider.bsky.social
The Road to Summerfall - Part 2

I guess the best place to start is with leaving BioWare. Right off the bat, I'll say I enjoyed working there - a lot. Until I didn't. I started in 1999 with BG2 and ended in 2016, 2 years after shipping DAI and after spending a year on the game which became Anthem.
I gave away most of my BioWare swag when I left Canada, but I still have a few things. The plaques I was given after finishing each of the three Dragon Age games, for instance, have a place of honour on my office wall. My Fifteen Years plaque, given to me by Bio. Proud moment, considering I'd just shipped DAI, but I was already on my way out the door. The day I left BioWare, this enormous map of Thedas was being taken down from one of the hallways in the BioWare Edmonton office. "Can I take it?" I asked. I brought it with me to Melbourne, and it hangs in my living room.
April 14, 2025 at 4:29 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
I kept getting feedback about how it was "too Dragon Age" and how everything I wrote or planned was "too Dragon Age"... the implication being that *anything* like Dragon Age was bad. And yet this was a team where I was required to accept and act on all feedback, so I ended up iterating CONSTANTLY.
April 14, 2025 at 4:34 AM
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tobyfox.undertale.com
DELTARUNE Chapters 1-4 will be released on June 5th as a launch title for Nintendo Switch 2! It's also coming to Steam, Switch, PS4, and PS5 the same day!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDzg...
DELTARUNE Nintendo Switch 2 Announce Trailer
YouTube video by UNDERTALE and DELTARUNE Official
www.youtube.com
April 2, 2025 at 2:46 PM
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tobyfox.undertale.com
January 6, 2025 at 10:53 PM
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aimoahmed.bsky.social
I was told more than once that this old comic is *very* hard to find other than on my tumblr, so putting it here for posterity on a belated #DragonAge Day: The Revelation, written by @davidgaider.bsky.social, art by moi. Pt 1/4
December 5, 2024 at 1:58 PM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
Thing is, Jennifer left.

You may not remember, but this was around the time a bunch of GamerGate dudes decided Jennifer was somehow responsible for ALL of BioWare's faults. Oh, the power she wielded! She, a writer, could even command the combat Bio made! The result was a LOT of ugly harassment. 😞
November 28, 2024 at 9:03 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - Day Nine: Cassandra

This is the last of the (major) characters I wrote during my time on Dragon Age. I could go into others, and considered moving onto Stray Gods... but I feel like fewer would be interested, and I honestly can't keep up the pace. So let's make this the last, for now.
A head and shoulders shot of Cassandra, in heavy armor, as she first appeared in DA2. I almost forgot she looked like this back then. Head and shoulders shot of Cassandra, as she appeared in Dragon Age Inquisition. The character artists did such an amazing job translating her into the new engine. A still from a DAI cutscene which includes Cassandra and the now-infamous "[DISGUSTED NOISE]" subtitle. Honestly, I just had in my head a sort of... short, derisive snort? But I didn't want to SAY "snort" in the subtitles because the LAST time I did that the voice actor literally snorted. As in snorted like a pig! Miranda read this line the first time and started laughing, she didn't know what to make of it, and laughed more when I tried to describe it. The result is now infamous.
November 28, 2024 at 8:59 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
If you need more proof of how it was hard for me to let go of him, a short story I wrote after Trespasser came out where Dorian has a bit of closure with his dead father: medium.com/@davidgaider...

So yeah. He'll always be my boi. And I'll always be thankful Bio gave me this opportunity. ❤️
The Final Conversation
A note to start: I don’t work for BioWare any longer, and while I created and wrote Dorian for “Dragon Age: Inquisition”, this is purely…
medium.com
November 27, 2024 at 3:38 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
It was annoying. Still is. Overall, however, the reaction to Dorian was very positive. The number of straight men who said they romanced him still pleases me. The number of fans who privately contacted me who'd been through conversion therapy, some who said Dorian helped them survive? Well. Gosh. 😭
November 27, 2024 at 3:37 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
What would happen is they'd hone in on something visual in our write-up not intended to be a focus. The first write-up for Anders in DA2, for instance, mentioned he was "haggard" after his journey... and the first concept we got was this pale, shriveled man.

"What... is this?"
"YOU SAID HAGGARD!"
😅
November 27, 2024 at 3:25 AM
Reposted by fadestep
davidgaider.bsky.social
Zevran was funny enough that the fans liked him. The only part of the reception I thought odd was the occasional comment by a male player who felt "tricked" into having sex with Zevran.

"You mean... that part where he invites you to his tent for a sensual massage?"
"Yes! I was expecting a massage!"
November 24, 2024 at 1:21 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
I'd been reading about the CIA and one thing that stuck with me was how they'd (allegedly) recruit gay men as assassins because they rarely had familial ties.

Zevran wasn't going to be gay (bisexuality wasn't a question of representation, but a cost-benefit compromise) but that was the inspiration.
November 24, 2024 at 1:15 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - Day Eight: Dorian

Now this is a fun one. It's no big secret I have a lot of feelings about Dorian, not least of which because he was my first (and only) gay male companion. There's a lot more to him than that, of course (as there should be), and it was quite a trip. So let's go!
Dorian, as he appeared in-game. This was the work of U Ri So, a character artist from Korea who'd just started at the time - Dorian and Cullen were her first big tasks, and boy oh boy did she knock it out of the park. The reveal poster for Dorian, shows him casting a spell with a snowy wilderness and ruin background. I kind of love that he got the same staff here that Orsino had in DA2, which the writers referred to as "the Staff of Violation". For reasons unknown. A screenshot from one of the Dorian romance scenes, with Dorian resting his head on the player's shoulder. At the end game, I think? So cute. I think this was Sarah Hayward's cinematic work? She did such a great job, and was so committed to doing the translation of story to screen justice.
November 27, 2024 at 3:23 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
I actually had a whole scene written in DAI where Fiona tells him, but the requirements were so specific for them both to be in Skyhold and it seemed like it'd be relevant only to a small small sub-section of fans (and confusing to everyone else) so it was dropped. Rightfully so, I guess.
November 23, 2024 at 6:49 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
And he was so gloriously easy to write. It's a well I'd probably return to... a bit too often, maybe? Maric, then Anders in Awakening, and then Alistair kept popping up in future games and the comics because, yes, he was pretty much the breakout comedy character of DA.

Which still makes me happy. 😁
November 23, 2024 at 12:27 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - DAY ONE: Morrigan

Morrigan began, waaaay back, as a bit of Morgan le Fey (hence the Dark Ritual) mixed with Delirium from Sandman. The Delirium elements subsided into more of a weird cadence of speech as my idea of Morrigan solidified - more cynical, wanting to connect but unable to. 🧵
Morrigan's original appearance in DAO. I can't help but look back on this and balk at the old graphics, but at the time I was *enamoured*. The DAI version of Morrigan - so awesome. I remember pleading with the artists: "If we put her in the Orlais plot, can we give her a dress?! PLEASE PLEASE" It almost didn't happen. Some of the first art we put out for Morrigan. I remember seeing this and asking "why does she look so YOUNG?" - that's when I learned how parts of the team thought she was, like, 18. The idea persisted for some time.
November 20, 2024 at 12:43 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - DAY TWO: Kieran

(Technically this is an addendum to yesterday, but I make the rules here so nyah!)

Heading into DAI, I had a bite-sized problem on my hands. I knew Morrigan would feature. I also knew we were importing previous choices. So now I had to contend with: the Old God Baby. 🧵
Ah, Kieran. So dapper! I had a moment of "but what if the Warden wasn't, you know..." because he's SO white, but the artists just went "shhhh shhhh it's maaaagic" and I had to admit they were correct. This whole sequence had already stretched the limits of our resources and then some. The Old God soul is transferred! Only appears in one of the three versions, but such a magical moment. Ah, yes, the (awkwardly animated) Dark Ritual scene. Why didn't we just fade to black? Or move the camera to look at the fireplace or something? I'll never know.
November 20, 2024 at 9:47 PM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - DAY THREE: Flemeth

I have a type. I admit it. There are certain wells I can return to repeatedly and always find something new to explore.

One of them is older female characters. Mike used to rib me about it. Consider Wynne. Meredith. Genevieve. And, of course, the biggie: Flemeth.
Ahhh the original version of Flemeth's appearance, after we'd cut her unique model. I almost forgot that this is what it looked like. Bah, it's fine. Shapeshifter, right? We'll ignore that shapeshifters don't change into other human appearances - Flemeth is special. I remember when the artists brought me the concept for DA2's revamp of Flemeth. I was in love immediately. Hair horns? God yes. I'll do whatever I need to in order to explain this, thank you. Look at that outfit. LOOK AT IT. This is where Morrigan gets it from, clearly. "Watch me serve, daughter, but know you will never do it QUITE as well!"
November 21, 2024 at 8:43 PM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - DAY FOUR: Alistair

Ah, Alistair. Depending on who you ask, he's the adorable woobie with the biggest heart or the irritating, over-used man-child. Yes, he is indeed all of those things. Good characters have flaws to go with their virtues. Ugly spots. That is literally their humanity.
Original flavour Alistair, in DAO. Always with the eyebrow. We don't talk about DA2 Alistair. I actually really appreciate the artists took the time to give Alistair a unique appearance in DAI. Probably my favourite version of him.
November 23, 2024 at 12:21 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - DAY FIVE: Zevran

I was going to skip over Zevran, honestly, as I felt like I didn't have a lot to tell in the way of stories about him... but I know he still has some (ardent) fans. Plus, on reflection, I thought maybe I DO have a few things to say. 😅

Sooo we'll see how this goes.
I keep forgetting that Zevran is an elf, honestly. My mind immediately goes to "twink". DA2 Zevran. Oh god. He doesn't even have face tattoos! As soon as they cut him and Alistair getting custom face sculpts, we probably should have cut their appearances. I still remember reviewing the DAO sex scenes with the team, and noting the gender- or race-specific variations - like this one. I blushed so hard. Keep in mind we'd never done anything like this, previously.
November 24, 2024 at 1:10 AM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - DAY SIX: Fenris

Now, DA2 is a story all on its own but I'm not going to go there other than to sum it up as "we had just over a year and a half to make this". It's why I only wrote one follower, Fenris, and although it'll make his fans mad: I probably shouldn't have.

Let me explain.
In-game image of Fenris from Dragon Age 2. I'd objected strenuously to the art team's plan at changing the elves to a more "distinctive" appearance. Not that I opposed the idea in theory, but I thought they ended up looking too alien, and according to the lore elves were generally considered attractive. The art team mocked and dismissed me (quite literally, I'm afraid) and the rest of the team had bigger battles to fight. For Fenris, at least, he reached a point of being kinda sexy despite the change... so not all bad, I guess? A piece of unused concept art for Fenris: bare-chested, quilted armor on the legs, giant sword on the back. I was looking through the Fenris concept art pieces online and saw this and thought "hey, this one actually looks pretty good... if you ignore the DA2 elves-are-barefoot thing". I want to say maybe this was a piece done for the cancelled expansion, for a potential Fenris model update? A screenshot from one of the DA2 conversation scenes with Fenris, in the mansion he occupies during the game. He did a lot of drinking. I got accused, at one point, of glorifying alcoholism? I mean... I don't know if Fenris was an alcoholic, but if he was the bitterness of these scenes certainly doesn't feel like glorification to me.
November 24, 2024 at 10:07 PM
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davidgaider.bsky.social
CHARACTERS - Day Seven: Shale

Oops! I realized I'd moved on from DAO but missed one of the companions I'd written. Which checks out, honestly, because I almost didn't write Shale and, even after I'd written her, she almost didn't happen anyhow. Then she did. Prepare yourself for... PIGEON QUEST. 🦤
A screenshot from the Stone Prisoner DLC, showing Shale in front of one of the buildings in her initial quest area. A row of pigeons, up close to the camera with HVAC system in the background. Staring with their beady little demon eyes. My eternal nightmare.
November 25, 2024 at 11:39 PM