Dragon Age: Origins released over a decade ago in November of 2009 and the game has only grown in fan following and popularity. Despite two more main titles being added to the Dragon Age franchise since the series launched, Origins remains a contender for fan-favorite, and players still enjoy returning to the original adventure in Thedas.
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As well as multiple pieces of downloadable content, Origins also received an expansion pack called Awakening. Though Bioware has long since stopped supplying updates and new content to the game, the online community has taken up the task by creating weird and wonderful mods for fans to enjoy.
Updated on August 13th, 2021 by Ritwik Mitra: Dragon Age: Origins is easily one of the greatest western role-playing titles of all time. The idea of going through a bunch of unique origins and embarking on a journey to save Ferelden makes for a great story that most fans can't get enough of. However, players who want to get into Dragon Age: Origins for the first time might find themselves struggling to deal with what might seem like an outdated title. To avoid this problem, players can download the best Dragon Age: Origins mods to significantly improve their experience.
20 JB3textures
Given the dated nature of Dragon Age: Origins, it's only a given the graphics of the title won't be up to par with modern standards. This is where the JB3textures mod comes into the picture.
It increases and sharpens the textures present in the entire game. As a result, the game becomes a lot easier to bear on the eyes. It's easy to see why most people consider this mod to be one of Dragon Age: Origins' best mods.
19 More Hairstyles
Character creation is one of the biggest aspects of any RPG. Thus, when said customization doesn't provide too many offers, it's only a given that any player would be disappointed.
Players who would at least want their Grey Warden to sport a range of diverse hairstyles should opt for this Dragon Age mod. It's a small change, but a welcome one regardless. With the wider range of choices, players can customize to their hearts' content.
18 Morrigan Restoration Patch
Morrigan is one of the best characters in the entirety of the Dragon Age series. The biggest part that she plays in the series comes in the first game itself.
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Given her massive presence in this title, one would be surprised to know that a ton of dialogue and scenes featuring Morrigan were cut out for scheduling issues. This patch restores most of her voice lines to make her an even more memorable character in Dragon Age: Origins, adding to the player's experience with the story.
17 Grey Wardens Of Ferelden
The uniform and weapons of the Grey Warden have seen numerous changes since the first title. For the most part, the fan reception to these changes was pretty positive.
This Dragon Age: Origins mod integrates the weapons and uniforms from Dragon Age II to feature in the first game as well. This makes the entire experience more consistent. Regardless of how minor this change may be, it's one that many players are sure to appreciate.
16 ZDF Dialog Fix
There's a massive amount of dialogue present in Dragon Age: Origins. So, it's very possible that some of this dialogue present in this title will feature some errors — and it does.
This is where the ZDF Dialog Fix comes into the picture. It fixes most of the errors in Dragon Age: Origins' dialogue and ensures that players aren't taken aback or misinformed by some of the statements uttered in the game.
15 White Teeth
While the characters of Thedas having yellow grotty teeth may be more realistic for the more medieval fantasy setting, sometimes players might want a little more of a cleaner modern touch to their favorite characters.
The White Teeth Mod doesn't magically give the characters toothbrushes, but it does give them some sparkling white teeth, ensuring players aren't distracted during cutscenes by unsightly teeth. This mod is compatible with all other mods, so there's no concern when it comes to any possible conflicts.
14 Awakening Silverite Mines Bugfix
When it comes to Dragon Age: Origins' expansion, Awakening, there is a notorious glitch that causes players to lose certain equipment if it is equipped to their character during the scene with the Architect & Utha.
Fortunately, the Awakening Silverite Mines Bugfix Mod ensures that this glitch is removed from the game and that players can rest assured that their favorite gear won't suddenly disappear from them. Regrettably, if players install this mod for a save that has already passed the buggy cutscene, it will not fix the problem retrospectively.
13 Alley of Murders
For players who have covered everything that Dragon Age: Origins has to offer down to the littlest detail, there is some fresh new fan-made content to keep the excitement going. The Alley of Murders Mod adds some new quest content on the streets of Denerim.
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This mod is very well-made, with players' choices having an impact on the questline and the possible survival of other characters. The creator even hired voice actors to really give a polished finish to this add on.
12 DA2 Isabela and Flemeth to DAO
The characters of Flemeth and Isabela appear in both Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II, though their appearances are quite different in the sequel, and arguably a lot cooler. If players want to give the characters their better, more stylized looks, there's a mod that can be installed.
The DA2 Isabela and Flemeth to DAO Mod gives both character models a revamp so they can look as they do in Dragon Age II. However, this mod only works if players haven't yet encountered the characters in question, so the wisest choice would be to make a new save file to benefit from this mod.
11 A Year with Sten
Sten is an optional companion that the Warden can recruit in Origins, and despite being of the Qunari people, he doesn't really look like it. In the Sacred Ashes trailer, Sten is shown with a beard, and the reason for him lacking horns was due to graphical limitations at the time.
The A year with Sten Mod makes Sten's appearance change, as if he is regaining his proper look and recovering from his trauma. There are also options to return his missing beard to him.
10 Lock Bash
The Lock Bash mod makes locked chests and doors impeding adventures a thing of the past for players, allowing them to break open the locks by force. This mod is intelligent in that if the player is accompanied by a rogue who can open the lock, or possess the key, it will instead prompt this action instead.
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Additionally, this mod can be used in a balanced way to make it more realistic, meaning that when players break open chests, they have a chance of destroying the item inside also. It's worth noting that this mod also allows players to enter previously inaccessible areas that were behind locked doors.
9 No Helmet Hack
When it comes to games it can be pretty annoying when your character, or your companions for that matter, gets stuck wearing some clunky looking helmet that hides their face. By the time Bioware released Mass Effect 2, it had included the option to make helmets invisible, but regrettably, Origins came before this and so players were stuck with their helmets.
However, the No Helmet Hack mod is here to solve that issue for players, allowing players to appreciate your Warden character and companions in all their full-faced gloriousness. This mod also works for the Awakening expansion.
8 Equal Love
The romance aspect of the Dragon Age games is a fan-favorite element and allows the player to build relationships with their companions, with it leading to a romantic union if successfully done. However, depending on which gender the player chooses for the Warden will then affect which companions the player can romance as each one has their own gender preferences.
This can be a bit frustrating for those who want to play as a female, as it means missing out on romancing Morrigan, for example. Luckily, the Equal Love mod exists and it removes the gender barriers when romancing your favorite characters. However, it does not remove any class or race restrictions.
7 Morrigan and Leliana Sacred Ashes Face Mod
The Dragon Age: Origins Sacred Ashes trailer was, and still is, a breathtaking insight into the world of Thedas. Players who haven't seen it can check it out via the official Dragon Age YouTube. While the trailer is indeed stunning, for players who have already been hands-on with the game there are noticeably a few differences, with the biggest fan peeve being how Morrigan and Leliana's faces are different.
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For those who want to rectify this and ensure your two favorite female companions get their promised faces from the trailer, this is possible with the Morrigan and Leliana Sacred Ashes Face Mod. There are actually a few different options available when it comes to Leliana's character model, so players can choose whichever suits them.
6 Leliana's True Sacred Ashes Armor
To take things a bit further and really go all out in trying to recreate Leliana's look from the Sacred Ashes trailer, the Leliana's True Sacred Ashes Armor mod will see to it that the red-headed bard finally gets her intended gear.
While Morrigan's outfit in the Sacred Ashes trailer varies slightly in design, overall it is fairly similar to the in-game armor that she eventually ended up with. It's a shame that Leliana wasn't given the same treatment by Bioware, especially as her armor in the trailer is particularly awesome.
5 Extra Dog Slot
One of the companions available to players in Dragon Age: Origins is the adorable mabari hound simply called "Dog". Dog falls into the warrior category but has a talent tree completely unique to him as well as an additional function – scavenging. While Dog does his best to entertain with his own "dialogue", it's hard not to miss the real conversation of other companions and so often Dog is overlooked by players.
However, the Extra Dog Slot mod allows players to choose their usual additional three companions and then still have Dog accompany them too, essentially giving the player an extra companion. This mod places Dog into the small summon slot next to your player icon, however, it does not limit Dog to being a summon, and he still maintains all of his full abilities.
4 Auto-Loot
A feature that is a godsend to players in any game that chooses to implement it – auto-loot. Unfortunately, Dragon Age: Origins doesn't implement an auto-loot feature by default, but that is easily rectified with the Auto-Loot mod. This allows the player to easily grab your loot and run at the click of a button, without having to manually select "take all".
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There are a couple of restrictions: naturally, your inventory must have sufficient space, and certain quest-related items don't work as otherwise, it won't flag as the quest being progressed when players obtain the required items via auto-loot.
3 Improved Atmosphere
In an effort to flesh out the world of Thedas, the Improved Atmosphere mod restores life to some of the more barren parts of the game. While it may not be game-changing in terms of gameplay, this mod is great at improving the immersive quality of the world around the player. This mod changes NPC's from rigid, unmoving models to characters that actually move around and perform different activities in an effort to make the game more realistic.
Additionally, this mod increases the probability of your companions hitting a banter trigger in areas; allowing players to enjoy more of the witty remarks and conversations between their favorite allies.
2 Qwinn’s Ultimate DAO Fixpack
Over at Nexus Mods, players can find Qwinn's Ultimate DAO Fixpack, which fixes a whole load of ongoing bugs and issues that Dragon Age: Origins has suffered from for years. However, an unforeseen benefit arose from this mod also, in that it restored content that had been removed from the game prior to release.
As well as restoring new dialogue lines and new items, there are also new options that were not available in the original final build. For instance, with this mod players are able to turn in Morrigan for being an apostate to Greagoir. Or, if players are a sucker for punishment, there's even a restored option to have a harsh break-up with Leliana.
1 Dragon Age Redesigned
Dragon Age: Origins's story may be timeless, but it's graphics certainly aren't and after a decade of providing entertainment for fans, it's beginning to show its age. Fortunately, there's a mod on hand to combat this, with the Dragon Age Redesigned mod overhauling the facial features of characters and NPC's so they are more realistic.
Additionally, this mod provides various re-skin options for certain characters, such as Morrigan. Players can choose the version that they like best. This mod is a much-needed anti-aging solution to the game, allowing new and old players alike to enjoy it without being distracted by outdated graphics.
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