Dragon Age: The Veilguard – Fall of the Gods

The problem with all old game series is time. Since the release of the previous Dragon Age installment, Dragon Age: Inquisition, 10 years have passed, a tectonic epoch by modern standards. A new generation of gamers has grown up, the world has changed, games have changed, and we have changed. So it's strange to demand from the new part, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, to be the same as... well, what, really? Dragon Age: Inquisition, Dragon Age 2, or Dragon Age: Origins?! These are completely different games that look and play differently. So it's no surprise that the new installment is also different from the previous ones, it seems to be a trademark of the series. But how different is it?

LGBT+

Let's start with the main thing, because in the end, any discussion of Dragon Age is all the same: The Veilguard comes down to this: LGBT+ and woke conspiracy theorizing. Judging by the tantrums on Twitter, posts by some users, and reviews by some reviewers, the presence of LGBT+ NPCs and some character editor options deeply offend them, demean them, and generally degrade the place of white heterosexual men in the modern world.

Well, I have some bad news for you. If your dignity and your ego are so fragile that they can be humiliated and even broken by the actions of fictional characters in a fictional fantasy universe, then it seems that you are the one in big trouble, not Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

BioWare has been supporting the LGBT+ community and adding relevant characters to its games since before Sweet Baby Inc. existed and the phrase woke culture was widely used. This has been the studio's conscious policy since Jade Empire (2005), although the first LGBT+ characters appeared in BioWare games even earlier, in Baldur's Gate II: Legends of Amn (2000) through mods and in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003) due to a software bug. Since then, none of BioWare's games have been without homosexual relationships, and yes, all Dragon Age projects have been too. So it's a bit strange that in 2024 this still upsets and surprises someone.

If this bothers you and you want to talk about it, you may want to seek professional help or ignore BioWare games, or at least the LGBT+ options in them. No one is forcing you to play an LGBT character, no one is forcing you to use the "same options" in the editor or choose the "same branches" in dialogues. Play to your heart's content as a heterosexual man/woman, no one forbids you to do so.

I played Dragon Age: The Veilguard for 25+ hours before I met a non-binary character who wanted to talk about his problems. And yes, there is an option to ignore them here too.

It's a lie that you can't create a cute female character with the Dragon Age: The Veilguard editor makes it impossible to create a pretty female character is an outright lie. Yes, there is no way to create a woman with exaggerated forms like in EVE with Stellar Blade, but in 3 minutes I created an attractive girl, who looks like Princess Merida from the Brave cartoon and Moana from Moana, and I play as her (yes, I always play as female characters whenever possible), while courting all the other female characters and one non-binary character.

The hair simulation in Dragon Age: The Veilguard is generally the best in video games today, so I advise you to make lush hair and not use helmets. And as for mastectomy scars... I want to remind you that millions of women around the world have them not because they want to get a more masculine figure, but because of breast cancer, so be respectful. By the way, you still need to look for this function in the reactor.

The only thing that I think is inappropriate in Dragon Age: The Veilguard is the display of closed branches of dialogs that can appear if you choose a non-binary character. But this, if I'm not mistaken, appears only once as a tutorial. Also, it's very easy to put a non-binary person in the game to bed, which I think is a bit demeaning to all non-binary people.

Graphics

The second complaint, which again always comes up when discussing Dragon Age: The Veilguard is that the game's graphics are too bright and a bit cartoonish.

It's true, Dragon Age: The Veilguard is not as gloomy and fatalistic as Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening, but, as we have already mentioned, the series changed from part to part and was criticized for some different graphics each time. What in the case of Dragon Age II, what in the case of Dragon Age: Inquisition. But then the players got used to it, and the seemingly not so visual component of Inquisition suddenly became almost the best in the series. So, Dragon Age: The Veilguard in terms of visual style is the next step after Dragon Age: Inquisition, nothing more.

Yes, the game has become a bit like a cartoon, a kind of fruit of the passion of Pixar and Fortiche (the authors of Arcane, if anything), but within the chosen visual style, it looks fantastic. Both from a technological and artistic point of view. In addition, it is also well optimized and almost bug-free.

Location design in Dragon Age: The Veilguard is a whole other story. They are so gorgeous that you want to stay here longer and shoot additional screens. A real paradise for virtual photographers. Of course, you can find traces of retcon here if you want, but I think this is the development of the authors' ideas about the game world, and they have the right to do so. Yes, some locations that seem familiar to you from previous games may look different from what you're used to, but they still look gorgeous.

By the way, now the world of Dragon Age: The Veilguard is no longer a large open location, but rather corridors and back alleys, which refers to the classic Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II, and even to the very Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. There are also quite a few elements of metroidvania here, with locations to be "unlocked" by completing quests and involving partners with special skills.

The characters of the game do not raise any questions either. They are also made in a cartoon rather than realistic style, but they are well animated, voiced, and interact well with each other. They fit into this world. Except for some small monsters, the redesign did not benefit them. But if you're looking for end-of-the-world hopelessness, then yes, it's not here. Unfortunately, there is enough of it in the real universe.

Storyline

The events of Dragon Age: The Veilguard takes place approximately 10 years after the end of Dragon Age: Inquisition. The Inquisition has been dissolved, its former head (the player character in Dragon Age: Inquisition) is in hiding, and Solas, our friend and companion from the previous part of the game, who also happens to be a rebellious elven god, is going to destroy the Veil to correct his past mistake. You and your team, with Warrick in her head, try to stop Solas and accidentally release two powerful and very evil elven gods that Solas once imprisoned behind the Veil. Warrick is wounded, so now it's up to you, the hero, heroine, or non-binary person named Rook, to save the world.

And then everything is as usual - we assemble a team, try to find allies and convince the powers that be that everything is very serious and we should prepare for the worst (something reminds me of that...). During the game, we will have several important choices that will affect the characters, some locations, and the plot, but in general it is a fairly linear story that has several endings.

Some people think that the plot has become more lighthearted (the end of the world, how can it be lighthearted?!) and the dialogues are more simplified than in the previous installments. Maybe it's because this time I didn't have to go to the dictionary, although it's more likely that my English has improved over the years. Although complicated words and expressions are still used in documents and legends, the general style of the texts has become more prosaic, more human. This is how ordinary people communicate, without unnecessary pathos and academicism.

As for me, Dragon Age: The Veilguard has good lively dialogues, interesting situations, and the plot itself is not as simple as it might seem at first glance. Solas doesn't tell you everything, and some of the political references clearly hint at our real world. While it's true that fans of the retcon will definitely find inconsistencies with the factions and the situation in Thedas' world, as I said, it's the authors' right to change and develop the world they've created, especially since new players, as well as those who have played the first installments for a long time, won't even notice these inconsistencies.

Although it's really nice to meet old friends, and in Dragon Age: The Veilguard has more than just Varric, Solas, and the Inquisitor, it's really nice to see them.

Role-playing and combat system

The role-playing and combat system of Dragon Age: The Veilguard is again a development of what we've already seen in Dragon Age: Inquisition. It also has a controlled pause during which you can give commands to your teammates. This is especially useful for creating powerful combos when "meeting" bosses and semi-bosses. But in general, the combat system has become more arcade-like, where you can "pull off" difficult fights solely due to better reaction and constant movement, especially if you play as a mage or archer.

Playing on the normal difficulty level seems to have become easier, but on the other hand, it's enough to choose the wrong amps, elemental skills, and teammates, and you can get stuck for half an hour (this is no exaggeration) on a boss that can be "removed" in three minutes with the help of other spells and party.

Each class has its own set of weapons, but you can use any armor. Light armor has bonuses for skills and spells, so it's more suitable for mages, while heavy armor offers better defense. Again, there are skills that affect armor bonuses. In addition, any armor, weapons, and jewelry can be upgraded at your base or by purchasing or finding additional versions of the same item. Next, you will also be able to cast additional enchantments on items.

If you don't like the current build, you can return all the points within the class for free and redistribute them to try something new. The skill grid itself is somewhat reminiscent of the reduced/simplified grid from Path of Exile. Companions have the same grid, but it's even simpler, and to improve their skills, you need to talk to them, complete their special quests (which are quite good, by the way), take them on missions, start romances, and so on.

Yes, Dragon Age: The Veilguard may be the simplest of the Dragon Age role-playing and combat games, but it's dynamic and rewards you for your victories, which is nice. Although it would be possible to hide chests with rewards behind more complex puzzles.

Dragon Age or not Dragon Age?!

Is Dragon Age: The Veilguard is definitely worth a look. This is one of the most beautiful role-playing games of recent times. It's not stupid, it's interesting, and it's a pleasure to play. It brings us back to our favorite universe and shows it from a slightly different perspective. Yes, old players may not like it, but there is nothing completely terrible or unacceptable here.

Perhaps if this game was called "Rook and her team against the ancient gods", it would have received less criticism, but this game is called Dragon Age: The Veilguard. And it's not a bad game, although it may not be the Dragon Age you were expecting.