Will EA and BioWare ever release an update that fixes the memory leak/stuttering issue?
Dragon Age: Origins has an engine-level problem which has existed for years, and has been widely reported by users. It was originally identified as a "memory leak" though this is probably an inaccurate description of the issue. BioWare claimed that it would be fixed in an update, but it never was and instead patch 1.05 only ever brought fixes to DLC authentication issues.
The game will run fine for the first 10-20 minutes, but after a while performance will begin to tank. Framerates don't drop much, but loading stutter is introduced, such as when opening menus (inventory, skills, journal) and when in conversation with NPCs. On top of that, the game will persistently hitch and stutter for a split-second evey few seconds, which is most noticeable in conversations but can occur in regular gameplay too. Load times when transitioning between areas also get longer and longer to the point where, after several hours of play, it can take several minutes to load an area that should only take 5 seconds.
There was a lengthy thread on the BioWare Social message board about this issue some time ago, however, it appears to be missing and may have been renamed/moved/deleted at some point. Either way, searching for "memory leak" here will provide you with plenty of evidence as to the problem:
http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/search
The fact that users continue to report the issue 3+ years after the game's release, up to nearly this very day, shows that it is still a serious concern. It is significantly gameplay-harming. The fact that it has not been fixed and that BioWare claimed it would be fixed but then the matter was promptly drops reflects badly on the Dragon Age, EA and BioWare brands, as well as their customer service.
My question is, will this problem be re-investigated so that players can actually enjoy the title they spent money on without having to restart it every 20 minutes?
