I don't believe that this game is that bad. In it's own merit, it's actually a good game. But I think what kills the game is that there isn't the same amount of character development that fleshed out the characters and made them lovable like in DAO. Like for me, I'm 8 hours into the game, and I still don't give a shit if my main character (and all the accompanying character) dies in a ditch somewhere. Especially since I just finished DAO replay to get ready for DA2 -- makes me wish that this game (DA2) didn't exist.
It really didn't have to exist, there are some games out there, old and new alike that got a sequel for them, and it should have never happened, unfortunately even a failed sequel has to happen to be able to realize that it wasn't necessary, or else we'd wonder what it'd be like if a sequel for a good game would be made. Let's face it, if DAO never had a sequel to this day and if BioWare still wouldn't have talked about making one at all then what do you think most fans would think or even cry for, that's right, a sequel.
I still think that lots of people out there are doing what they shouldn't do, and others aren't doing what they should do. In BioWare's case I think that they are doing what they shouldn't do, I.E making sequels to games that don't need one. I mean DAO wasn't made with a trilogy or a series in mind, was it? They just realized after its great success overall that "hey guys, let's sit down in this room and let's brainstorm about what it'd be like to make a sequel for this"... and here we are, we have a sequel for DAO that in fact might have nothing to do with the original (I'd have to play it to make sure about that one, which I will, eventually, I'll wait for a price reduction).
Personally I don't understand why a development team, video game artists, would want to change a working and appreciated formula for a new one. I would change a formula if I knew and if it was obvious that the one in place isn't working well however, that would make sense. But why oh God why are people like those at BioWare who actually wanted a DAO sequel thought "ok, let's streamline the whole thing guys, it's a great idea!"... HOW can ANY one right in their mind come up with something like that exactly? Why LESS character development? Why having to stay inside a single city for MOST of the game's duration?
But, hey, they released a high-resolution textures pack, so it's alright, right? I only hope that Mass Effect 3 won't be worse than ME2. I can live with "just" Dragon Age: Origins without a problem... but I wouldn't be able to sustain the "loss" of the Mass Effect franchise due a failed finale, please BioWare don't butcher ME (yes, pun intended).