The nearly decade-longDragon Agedrought has officially come to an end with the release ofDragon Age: The Veilguard. In the time sinceDragon Age: Inquisition‘s release, developer BioWare has releasedMass Effect: Andromedaand most recently,Anthem. Depending on who you ask, both of these titles are typically seen as alright at best, but I think you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who feels as though either lived up to the typical high-quality standards that BioWare had been known for in the past.
For a quick comparison,The Veilguardgives me seriousDragon Age IIvibes, mostly in terms of its combat and gameplay. I’m just over 30 hours intoThe Veilguardand while I feel confident that I’ve got a firm grasp on what the RPG is all about, we have to keep in mind that like most BioWare games,The Veilguardis very story-driven. As such, I feel it’s important to point out that my impressions in this review in progress are based on having not reached the finale of this story-driven RPG.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard(PC, PS5 [reviewed], Xbox Series X|S)Developer: BioWarePublisher: Electronic ArtsReleased: October 31, 2024MSRP: $59.99 on PC, $69.99 on Consoles
The Veilguarddrops you into the action quickly. The story takes place ten years after the events inDragon Age: Inquisition. One of the optional companions inInquisition, the elven mage Solas, has seemingly gone rogue and is carrying out a ritual to tear down The Veil, a barrier that exists between the physical world of Thedas and The Fade, also known as the Beyond. After some interference at the behest of the player and his group of companions put together by none other than charismatic series regular Varric, the ritual is stopped but at a cost. Two ancient Elven Gods, Elgar’nan and Ghilan’nain have pierced the The Veil and are now free in the physical world.
Tasked with creating a team to hunt down the Elven Gods and prevent the full destruction of The Veil—hence the nameVeilguard—the player is thrust into the role of Rook, the protagonist. Despite being in the final act ofDragon Age: The Veilguard, I’m still not entirely sure how I feel about Rook as a whole. The character has grown on me over the course of theVeilguard‘s journey, especially more recently. But I’ve had a really tough time feeling Rook actually belongs.
It’s a tough task to navigate for BioWare, for sure. Rook is a brand-new character inDragon Agewho is essentially tasked with saving the world. For all intents and purposes, it makes complete sense, this is the best way to in the end create a meaningful connection to the main character for both new and returning players to the series. But it resulted in much of the game trying to tell me that Rook is important and the right person for the job, even though it never feels like they really are.
Important characters from the series’ entire timeline – all the way from 2009’sDragon Age: Originsthrough the most recentDragon Age: Inquisition– make an appearance inVeilguard, including franchise favorites like Morrigan and Varric. EvenInquisition’sprotagonist that you play as, The Inquisitor, makes an appearance inVeilguard. But the whole time the characters are constantly trying to sell you on the importance of Rook. “Oh you’re Rook, I’ve heard of your mighty important deeds, you’re perfect for this!”
By extension, I have found most of the new companions inVeilguardto be very solid additions to the evergrowing list of important characters inDragon Agelore. I’ve grown fond of Neve, an early companion who is a part-time private detective, a member of the rebellious Shadow Dragons faction, and a badass ice mage. As you progress throughVeilguardyou’ll learn more about all of the new companions as you continue to grow and expand the Veilguard.
In terms of actual combat companions though, I wish there was a little more substance to them. They essentially serve to give you access to additional skills that you can call upon in combat as opposed to opting to use your own character’s (Rook’s) skills. While you can choose where to put points in their respective skill trees and even equip them with gear, it feels quite meaningless as they don’t actually do much in combat outside of you choosing to use their skills. They have no health bars, and the damage they do on their own is minuscule. In a single standard attack, you do multitudes more damage to enemies than the basic attacks of your companions that only shave off a sliver from the health bar with each hit.
It’s a real shame because the actual core gameplay ofDragon Age: The Veilguardis a rather satisfying feeling. It’s reminiscent ofDragon Age IIopting for fast-paced Action RPG-style combat as opposed to the more tactical and strategic combat ofDragon Age: Originsand evenInquisition. You choose from three starting classes: warrior, rogue, and mage. Each class eventually branches into one of three specializations, allowing you to further cater the playstyle around exactly what you enjoy. I opted to go Warrior eventually specializing in Slayer, which focuses on wielding massive two-handed weapons.
I enjoy the combat of the Slayer, charging directly into combat and dealing insane amounts of damage while dodge-rolling around to avoid attacks. The combat also reminds me of one of my favorite action RPGs,Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. The fast-paced combat makes boss fights particularly fun, although a bit difficult at times. Despite my gripes on how limited the companions actually are in combat, the core combat for you as the protagonist feels extremely polished and could very well be the best in the series.
Ultimately, I think the final act ofDragon Age: The Veilguardwill be a major factor for me in ranking howVeilguardholds up to the rest of the series. There are constant choices to be made throughoutVeilguard, with the game constantly telling me that the choices matter. But outside of one major choice in the early game, most of the choices haven’t actually changed much. However, it wouldn’t be out of character for a BioWare game to be keeping track of all my choices throughout my journey to dictate which ending I receive, or which endings I have access to.
If you’re looking for a solid RPG in a beautifully built world,Dragon Age: The Veilguardis certainly that. The combat is fluid and satisfying, and the world of Thedas is well-designed and fun to explore. The story has its drawbacks, but overall it’s still better than most. Whether it will live up to the prestigious storytelling of the previousDragon Agegames will very much depend on the RPG’s curtain call.
[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]
