First Dragon Age 2 screenshots sport better graphics, familiar imagery

Saying that Dragon Age 2 has better graphics than its predecessor isn't much of a compliment. Though Dragon Age: Origins remains one of our favorite games from 2009 (as a matter of fact, it was our #4 pick!), on consoles, it looked like the game's entire texture library was secretly replaced with macro photographs of roadkill.

The game's announcement promised "updated graphics" and a "new visual style," and the first two screenshots – part of Game Informer's month-long look at the title – are certainly updated, but we're not quite ready to call them "visually super hot" and we're not seeing the "new visual style." The image above shows a highly detailed Hawke (remember, s/he's the new Commander Shepard-esque lead) but look at that ground texture! The image after the break shows a new Ogre, some awkward Hurlocks, and Hawke's not insignificant ups.

Be sure to peep the full-res images at Game Informer, then come back and tell us what you think. We're going with: unconvinced but optimistic.