Today EA and Bioware announced that Dragon Age: Origins, the RPG for the PC / PS3 and XBOX360 that has claimed loads of ‘Game of the Year’ awards for 2009, is getting a full-fledged expansion pack. The expansion is called ‘Awakening’ and is due out March 16th on all platforms.

From the official site:

A Stunning World Expanded: BioWare’s deepest universe to date just got bigger with an all new area of the world to explore, Amaranthine

Unlock the secrets of the Darkspawn and their true motivations
Rebuild the Grey Warden order and establish their base of operations at Vigil’s Keep
All-new Complex Moral Choices: Embark on an epic story that is completely defined and reactive to your play style

Shape your entire experience based on the choices you make and how your handle complex situations
New Ways to Customize your Hero: Experience additional spells, abilities, specializations, and items to further personalize and customize your hero and party

Import your character from Dragon Age: Origins or start anew as a Grey Warden from the neighboring land of Orlais
Encounter five all-new party members and an old favorite from Dragon Age: Origins
Even more Bone-Crushing, Visceral Combat: Battle against a new range of horrific and terrifying creatures

Put your skills to the test against an evolved, intelligent breed of Darkspawn and other menacing creatures including the Inferno Golem and Spectral Dragon!

The pricing is set at $39.99 for PC and PS3 / XBOX360. Initial reports indicated ~15 hours of gameplay, but since then reports have indicated a much fuller experience of at least 30 hours is expected.

Regarding the Mac version, it is as yet unclear if the expansion will be supported on the Mac, as ‘stand-alone’ add-ons are thus far not available for any of the Dragon Age DLC.

The EA / Bioware site hosts a Flash-based video, but fan-site GreyWardens has uploaded their copy (from IGN) to YouTube:

Source: Bioware