Summary
The time has finally come: The nextDragon Ageentry has been announced and is now coming up to its release day,ten years after the last game. It’s been a long-time coming for fans, and their patience has been awarded with several trailers showcasing just some of these things the game has on offer, though BioWare is keeping several things under wraps for fans to find out for themselves.
With the release date fast approaching and many likely already having their pre-order secured, it is time to hop on the hype train and celebrate the exciting tidbits that are sure to makeDragon Age: The Veilguarda stand-out entry inBioWare’s vast catalog of creations.
6The Return Of Legacy Characters
Iconic Series Favorites Are Returning To Reprise Their Roles
One of the first nuggets of news was the announcement of the new companions players would be fighting alongside, and though the fans received these characters well (with some already picking out their favorites), there were hopes of legacy characters returning, and BioWare did not disappoint.
Thus far, there is confirmation of Lace Harding, Varric Tethras, Morrigan, and Maevaris Tilani returning inVeilguard.The former three are from previous games,Inquistion,2andOriginsrespectively, and Maevaris isa celebrated character from spin-off workssuch asThose Who Speak. It is unknown if other fan-favorite characters will return, but it is likely that there will be mentions of the previous heroes and their chosen beaus at the very least. Time will only tell if BioWare has sneaked more cameos in behind gamers' backs.
5Improved Character Customization
The New Hair Reveal Has Characters Looking Salon-Fresh
Some lucky journalists got their hands on exclusiveDragon Age: The Veilguarddemos, and what was shown were some truly impressive hair physics and a breathtakingly beautiful Rook.Dragon Agehas a rather sordid past with character customization, specifically with the hair options (or rather, the lack thereof). Many can forgiveOriginsdue to the age of the game, as customization back then was a unicorn.Dragon Age 2showed some improvements, but most chose the default Hawke, as they looked better than what anyone could come up with outside of mods.Inquisitionremains a sore spot for many fans still.
Fans' prayers have finally been answered, however, and things are finallylooking up for character customization enthusiasts. Though there haven’t been any in-depth reveals, fans have seen the impressive hair physics showcasing some decent hairstyles finally. Now, players can finally make a salon-fresh character in aDragon Agegame, whose perfect hair could likely only be put down to magic use. Whatever the reason, the mere possibility of decent customization options is incredibly exciting.
4Brand-New Locations
Players Will Visit A Previously Unexplored Setting
Thus far, players have had quite a tour of Thedas, from Fereldan to Kirkwall and then to numerous different places inInquisition, such as The Hinterlands, which fans will likely remember the most. There were wonders about where the new game would take place, with BioWare confirming the main location to be Tevinter when the game was still titledDragon Age: Dreadwolf. Though the name of the game has changed, the location has not, and the Imperium is still the main location.
There is plenty of rich lore surrounding this location, which will certainly have some interesting implications for Rook and co, as well as the plot at large. Though Tevinter has featured in otherDragon Ageworks, this will still be the first chance players have of walking through this region themselves, which will be a very exciting prospect for long-time fans of the franchise.
3No Gender-Locked Romances
Rook Is Free To Woo Whoever They Please
Originskicked the series off with a mere four romances, and two of those four were locked to the opposite gender, stealing many players' dream paramour.2evened the playing field, featuring only one character who was gender-locked, which fans highlighted as one of the game’s strengths.Inquisitiontook a step back, and though it had more romance options overall, not everyone was content with the choices available to them.
BioWare seems to have finally learned their lesson, as every single one of the possible romance choices are pansexual, assuaging the fears players had that the one they wanted was off the table. Though there are arguments to be made about the lack of representation within an all-pansexual cast, there is nothing stopping companions who are not romanced by the Rook to find love with one another or for there to be more diverse sexualities among the NPCs. But either way, this was still the best move to be made, as now, everyone can rest assuredthe companion of their dreams is 100% romanceable.
2Exciting Gameplay
Players Have Been Promised More Engaging Action
Dragon Agehas seen several gameplay shifts throughout the series.Originstook a more turn-based approach,2embraced hack-and-slash elements, andInquisitiontried to find a balance between the two, but most players would have defaulted to button-mashing. BioWare hasoverhauled the combat systemfor their next outing, reducing the party size for a more involved experience and doing away with the tactical camera to force players to think quickly and remain on their toes.
Classes are returning in the form of warrior, mage, and rogue, and players can spec into a subclass with fairly in-depth skill trees, so now, one type of character feels the same to play. There has also been the new addition of being able to boot an enemy off a ledgeBaldur’s Gate 3-style, which could result in some hilarious premature boss executions. Combat is rarely ever the highlight of aDragon Agegame, but from everything revealed so far,Veilguardlooks like it might just be changing that.
1New Specializations
Veilguard Introduces New Sublasses To The Series
TheDragon Ageseries always remains faithful to three classes: Warrior, Mage and Rogue, each with its own playstyle andspecializations to choose from, encouraging gamers to consider a second playthrough so that they can experience combat from a different point of view. These traditional classes continue withVeilguard, but brand-new specializations have been introduced specific for the upcoming title, with some even involving the eponymous veil.
The confirmed specializations for each class are as follows:
With so many new specs and the return of legendary factions such as Grey Wardens, there is something here for everyone. The collection of exciting abilities are also likely to make the combat ofVeilguardmore fun than previousDragon Agegames.
