But Tuesday is basically an eternity away, and I -- I mean you -- might need your Dragon Age fix right now. If so you're in luck, because I have a laundry list of five things you should definitely do before you finally lay your hands on Inquisition next week, starting with...

I'm not going to mince words here; I'll admit that I'm working myself into a bit of a froth over Dragon Age: Inquisition, which is due to be released next Tuesday. It's receiving rave reviews from critics I respect, and the general consensus seems to be that it does so many things right that previous games in the series may have done wrong. Notably, for the first time in the series players won't be confined to a single nation. They'll roam across Thedas in a game world larger and more open than ever before, and peppered with plenty secrets and points of interest.

Refresh Your Dragon Age Lore

Even if you've played (or replayed) the first two games recently, there's a lot going on in the world of Dragon Age and it couldn't hurt to brush up on the details. Thankfully due to the franchise's popularity there are quite a few lore lessons and summaries available in both text and video format. The best I've come across yet are by ShoddyCast, who are producing an ongoing series about Dragon Age with high-quality voiceovers and visuals. This series combines game footage, screenshots and artwork with slick animation and is so well done you that could easily mistake it for a History Channel documentary. On the other hand if you'd prefer something you can skim on your lunch break, check out Kirk Hamilton's concise and conversational lore summary instead.

Complete Your Keep

The Dragon Age Keep is a rather clever little thing. At face value it seems like a way to get around the fact that many players' saves are going to be on different consoles or systems than what they'll be playing Inquisition on. However, the fact that the keep takes your most important choices and strings together a short movie about the state of your game world makes it a good way to remind-yourself of what exactly your Warden and your Champion were up to when you left them. That said, The Keep can also be an intimidating wall of decisions about events and characters you don't remember at all. Do yourself a favor and fill it in with the help of PC Gamer's Keep guide, which not only gives you a bit of background on each choice but also describes what those choices would say about the character you played -- perfect for ringing bells if you don't remember quite how your characters tackled a certain situation.

Watch Video Reviews

If you're a fan of the series then you've probably already watched (and rewatched) the official trailers and teasers for Inquisition, but since the press embargo lifted on Tuesday there are already reviews and more importantly video previews coming from the games press. Polygon's Dragon Age: Inquisition Overview and Giant Bomb's Quick Look are my go-to recommendations, but there are plenty more out there. in general, seeing the game in the hands of players will give you a better idea of the experience you'll have than promotional materials ever could.

... And Dawn of the Seeker

While you're kicking back with the popcorn, you may want to fire up your Hulu Plus account and watch Dawn of the Seeker, a CG (and anime-adjacent) feature produced to provide backstory for Cassandra Pentaghast and the events that lead up to her involvement in Dragon Age 2 and Dragon Age: Inquisition. Dawn of the Seeker is about an hour long, and it's a pretty light (if somewhat gorey) watch. Most of that time is spent making Cassandra (who will be one of your companions in Inquisition) look unbelievably cool through combat scenes worthy of Monty Oum himself. As a friend put it when I described a particularly memorable scene to him, when Cassandra is at level 1 in your party she will have already crashed a dragon into another dragon in midair. You're probably going to want to see that.

Play The Last Court

The Last Court is a wonderful thing. Think of it as a pre-Inquisition appetizer or, if you're feeling particularly Orlesian, amuse-bouche. Developed by the folks behind the intrigue and narrative-heavy Fallen London it plays similarly, based on cards and various currencies, stats and favors that can be accumulated by the player and traded in at prudent moments. You assume the role of a struggling noble managing a disgraced and waning province in Orlais who's preparing for an important guest, but simulatenously trying to manage mounting domestic troubles. This is a game as much about damage mitigation as it is about strategy and luck. Essentially there are wolves at your front door, lions at your back, a bear in your parlour, and you'll be managing the risks of each long enough to restore your family and holdings to favor. It's tough, it's tense, and from the sounds of things it may be the perfect preface to playing Dragon Age: Inquisition.

Janine Hawkins (@bleatingheart on Twitter, Iris Ophelia in Second Life) has been writing about virtual worlds and video games for nearly a decade, and has had her work featured on Paste, Kotaku, Jezebel and The Mary Sue.