While I have not played any other Dragon Age-game before Dragon Age: Inquisition, that one is a well-loved classic in my game library. Over the past ten years I have spent over 2,000 hours replaying over and over with different classes, romances, difficulties and, above all, different dialogue choices and alliances. Because Dragon Age: Inquisition is, above all, about alliances. Do you support the mage rebellion? Do you side with the Wardens? What fate will befall Empress Celene of Orlais? You and your companions will have very distinct views on certain decisions and world events, depending on life experience and origin. Which makes the game so re-playable.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is not that kind of game. You can have a lot of fun with the combat system and puzzles, your companions can be quite entertaining, but don’t expect anything meaningful. Let me give you two Spoiler-heavy examples: the pretty much first and only serious big choice you need to make is whether to save Minrathous in Tevinter or Treviso in Antiva. The thing is, no matter what you decide, you either end up with one city doubly screwed or both cities screwed. The other one is when you get to respond to how you are going to handle the fight against the Elven gods. No matter what you actually chose, at a pivotal point in the game that choice will be nullified, because no matter what else you may have chosen, the answer will always be “Whatever it takes”. Which I thought extremely infuriating. But, then, your choices do not matter in this game. Which is fine, there are a lot of games that are without meaningful choices and still fun to play.

So, let’s get on with the review:

The Story

It*s the end of the world – again – and you and your merry band of companions are the only ones who can stop it. With the help, hopefully, of some ancient Elven gods, namely Solas and Mythal, the latter one both in the form of Morrigan and a spectre found in the Crossroads. It is a pretty straightforward line you follow, with a nice lineup of locations, too.

Interestingly enough I just found few mission truly memorable, even on a couple of replays. And that were the assault of Weisshaupt and the one where your team has to free the Dalish before they can be sacrificed.

The Missions

Apart from your main missions, that propel you straight towards the grand finale, you can optionally discover Solas’ past memories (recommended), and help your companions out on their personal quests (also recommended, but quite a chore at times). Unfortunately, since this game absolutely refuses to take any chances or risks, there is – to my mind – just one interesting companion arc, which is necromancer Emmrich’s, who has to overcome the very relatable fear of dying.

Our Hero

Rook, our hero, was hand-picked by Varric to be his second-in-command, because Solas does not know them. Which was teased in Dragon Age: Inquisition, but Solas has a network of spies, so how realistic would that be, really? He seems to know a lot about your companions, after all.

Well. You can choose from the usual classes warrior, rogue and mage and give yourself the background of one of the main factions, which are the Shadow Dragons, the Veil Jumpers, the Wardens, the Mourn Watch, the Antivan Crows and the Lords of Fortune. Personally, I found the Mourn Watch the most interesting faction. I also love the pretty spectacular Mourn Watch-warrior specification. You can choose between different races, Human, Elf, Dwarf and Qunari, and genders. Also, the customization is far more detailed than before. Pretty nice.   So far I have played as Duelist rogue Shadow Dragon, Mourn Watch warrior, Antivan Crow mage and Dwarven Warden warrior.

The Companions

Your team consists of seven companions you can choose from to accompany you on missions, romance and pursue personal quests. Be aware that you can bring along only two of them at a time.

The first companion is a familiar face: Dwarven rogue Lace Harding, former chief scout of the Inquisition. This sweet redhead is a master archer and a compassionate soul. Her story will revisit events from Inquisition’s story-DLC The Descent. Second, there is mage and detective Neve Gallus. Neve is a Shadow Dragon, fighting the Venatori’s continued influence in Tevinter. Neve deals ice damage and a lot of it.

Next in line is Bellara, a Veil Jumper. She is a mage specialising in historical elven artifacts and calls Arlathan forest her home. The fact that the elven gods are back and threaten the world comes as a shock to her, but that is not the only thing she has to deal with.

Then there is Antivan Crow Lucanis, the Demon of Vyranthium. So named because of his specialization in killing mages. But maybe there’s more to this rogue.

Warden Davrin is one of the warrior companions, and he comes with a griffon! Assan is his ward and he is on a personal mission to reunite him with his family.

Taash is the second warrior companion, a Qunari with a secret and a rather immature personality.

Last but not least there is Emmrich, a necromancer from Nevarra’s Grand Necropolis. Despite his calling, he is deathly afraid of – dying. And very fond of his Wisp-friend Manfred. While these companions have potential, again, a chance was missed, I think. Pretty much all of Dragon Age: Inquisition’s companions were interesting and intriguing in some way or other. These are not. The party banter is mildly amusing, sometimes endearing, but I honestly did not pay much attention to it. To be completely frank, this game was one of those were I skip the dialogues.

Also, the companions’ investment in the cause is opportunistic in most cases. They were basically hired to do a job. And that shows. Remember the companions of DAI? They had real stakes in the game, which was why they joined, and their experiences shaped their fates, depending on the Inquisitor’s decisions. Come to mention the Inquisitor, they, too, had maybe the greatest motivation of all: were they, truly, the Herald of Andraste? All they could be sure of was that they, personally, were the only ones capable of saving Thedas. But, Rook? What’s their motivation? I will go over the Dragon Age: The Veilguard companion stories and romances in a separate post.

Combat and Enemies

Depending on your class you have three possible specifications and some between. Meaning, you can mix and match, which is great, especially when you manage to anticipate the enemies you will possibly face and reallocate your XP to those abilities that will deal the most damage.

Fortunately, since the locations usually come with a fixed set of enemies and you will be returning there on multiple occasions, you quickly learn what to expect and what to equip. The same goes for your choice of companions. Personally, I always go with a mixed team, meaning warrior, rogue and mage. Since they also come with their own specifications, you can tailor your team to your specific needs during the mission. Neve deals cold damage, Bellara electricity, Emmrich necrotic, both Davrin and Taash fire and Lucanis and Harding do physical damage.

Combat is intense, especially at higher difficulties. And that was when I began to appreciate the healers on the team. As a Mourn Watch warrior I was constantly on the verge of death, while dealing tons of damage, but Neve, Bellara, Emmrich or Harding made sure to keep me going. To be honest, I usually prefer the mage or rogue class, but that warrior specification was a lot of fun to play. Also, because I really like the Mourn Watch.

Enemies are the usual, from Darkspawn and demons to Venatori to dragons and gods. Also, Qunari.

I’ll get into more detail concerning weapons and armour in another post.

The Locations

The Crossroads,Dock Town in Minrathous, Treviso, the Hossberg Wetlands, Arlathan Forest, the Coast of Rivain and the Grand Necropolis are the main locations and they are all stunning. Though Arlathan Forest and the Grand Necropolis stood out to me.

The Showdown

Of course, I cannot not mention the showdown with Solas. In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, your default Inquisitor is an elven female, though you can choose whether or not she was in a relationship with Solas previously. If you do, you get a special option for the ending. So, I would advise to do that during one playthrough at least, because it is really satisfying. And there are different outcomes, depending on previous discoveries and a dialogue choice when speaking to the Inquisitor.

Though the enigmatic Dread Wolf is confined to the sidelines during the majority of the game, he gets quite involved in the third act. Finding his lost memories in the Fade will shed light on his motives, and might influence how you want to deal with him. And deal with him you have to.

The Verdict

I have racked up over 2,000 hours in Dragon Age: Inquisition over the years. Dragon Age: The Veilguard yielded a few enjoyable playthroughs using different classes and faction backgrounds. But its unwillingness to take risks and its refusal to acknowledge the predecessors’ darker, gritty themes makes it a rather lacklustre experience. Fun, but nothing remarkable, really.

Despite that, expect a couple of more posts on Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

Until then, keep on playing!’

Cheers
Vanessa