Gamers that pre-order Dragon Age 2 at select retailers before January 11, 2011 will receive the 'BioWare Signature Edition' of the game for free, which includes the full version of Dragon Age 2 and $20 of additional content. The additional content includes: a downloadable bonus playable character and missions; downloadable game soundtrack; and downloadable in-game items including the digital armory, featuring a special weapon for each character class.

According to BioWare's FAQ on the offer, retailers participating on the free upgrade include: Gamestop, Amazon, Electronics Boutique, and the EA store. While they did say other retailers will be following suit, the safe bet is likely to pre-order from one of the retailers listed if you want the free content. The good news is not limited to US gamers, however. BioWare has also confirmed the 'Signature Edition' will be available in other regions as well, including: UK, France, Russia, Italy, Germany, Poland, Spain, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, South Africa, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, New Zealand, and Australia.

Gamers that might have already pre-ordered the game at a participating retailer should have their pre-order included in the offer, but it is always safest to check with the specific retailer to make sure.

While I do not always see the logic in gamers pre-ordering games that will not be limited at release, something like this makes a sense. Give up your $5 or $10 and let the retailer make some interest off your dollars and let the publisher and the developer know what kind of interest exists for the game, but also get some free content in return, OK.

I do think it is funny the way a "price" is assigned to the free content. That price is directly controlled by the publisher and/or developer. Will it even be available for people who do not pre-order in time to get the Signature Edition? As it is, unless it is sold individually, it has no real price or value. When companies give you a free older game(s) or something, then that has a dollar value attached to it. You can see how much that game costs at other locations. But this stuff, well that $20 value could really be any number.

Free is free though, and if you are interested in Dragon Age 2 and have some change to spare, pre-ordering before January 11, 2011 seems like the way to go.

Will you be pre-ordering Dragon Age 2? What do you think about developers/publishers giving free content for pre-orders? Do you think the content offered is worth $20? Let us know in the comments below.

Dragon Age 2 is expected to bloody things up for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC on March 8.