Dragon Age™: The Veilguard

I know I haven't made it especially far into the game but after 5 hours, I would expect my RPG to have opened up at least a bit. I'm not upset that it isn't another generic open-world RPG like so many have gone the route of but I would have hoped that the areas we are given to explore actually had a bit of exploration. At this point, it just feels like I am putting my brain on auto-pilot and walking in a practically straight line. The locations do not feel like a lived-in world with characters who add to the storytelling. It is just one long hallway after another. Every once in a while, there is a chest or something that you have to engage with the least amount of verticality to reach but most of the time it is just going from point A to point B unbroken and endlessly which feels crazy for a game series where we should have more freedom to explore than ever with the working eluvians. I really want to enjoy this game. I mean that genuinely because Dragon Age: Origins has been my favorite game for most of my life. I have always at least been able to find some amount of good in the games going forward from that one. Awakening was a fun sort of semi-sequel that I appreciated for letting me step back into the shoes of my Grey Warden. Dragon Age 2 gave us an interesting update to the combat mechanics which I will admit felt somewhat dated in the original game. Inquisition opened up so much and made the world feel so much more alive now that we were able to explore the politics of Orlais and could even play a Qunari for the first time. I hate to be so negative about one of my all-time favorite game series, especially when so much of the discourse is from people hating this game for having inclusive options for Rook and characters who add diversity to the cast. It sucks to have to pre-empt my issues with the game by saying that I do not agree with the bad faith actors who were never going to like this game, even if it was a perfect experience that made good on the buildup we received over the years of waiting for this game to come out. I cannot recommend anyone buy this game, even on sale like I did. So far the $20 I spent on it feels totally wasted and I will unfortunately not be touching another Bioware game going forward unless they somehow manage to figure out where they've gone off the deep end and manage to release a game that has universal, unanimous and undying praise from the people still willing to give them a chance.

Okay so, out of the perspective of a long time Dragon Age and BioWare fan I can honestly say: I was rooting for this. Through the years, with every negative update and change of direction, I have been there BELIEVING they could make another epic adventure. I TRUSTED the team, I trusted BioWare, even though they dished out games like Anthem and Andromeda, I thought they LEARNED something about us, the fans, and what drew us to their games in the first place. JOPLIN was EVERYTHING we desired from day one, and THIS is what we got..... I stopped having hope from the second trailer onwards. As soon as they changed the title and that Guardians of the Galaxy-esque trailer hit YouTube, I was out. I wanted to preorder this at least twice, maybe even thrice, and I am so ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ glad I did not. Onto what really broke me after I played it ONLY because it was gifted to me: 1 - Thedas as we know it is burned to the ground, they completely blighted the areas as to not have to regard anything you may have chosen over the last 15+ years. This, lovely reader, is what you get for decade-long loyalty at EA. 2 - Every recurring character from the last game is a shadow of their own selves - a corporate husk that sprays positivity like cheap cologne that never ever criticizes Rook, because you as the player, CAN DO NO WRONG ANYWAY. And with that onward to - 3 - This ♥♥♥♥ is completely on rails, do not let yourself be deceived by the "RPG" tag it tries to squeeze itself into. Yes, you do have dialogue options, but if each and every one of them leads to the same outcome and what you click on isn't what your character actually says in the end, is there really much of a choice? You're Rook, you're positive, you're understanding and what you are first and foremost is.... unproblematic. 4 - Fighting feels pretty and fluid but it turns into a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ of glitching and effects at some point and is repetitive after the 5 hour mark. I can only remember ONE, SINGULAR fight that made me feel something other than complete apathy and that fight still only had 2 opponents with the same three attack patterns they have been using in the phase prior. Everything else? Not worth it. If I had to give anyone playing this one piece of advice it would actually be to just put the difficulty to story or easy and breeze through this whole thing. It is not worth the time you waste. 5 - I COULD say the environments were pretty if, for example, I also did not know that the lore demands the Fade to be a green hellscape where your dreams and desires come back to haunt you and not this lush Disney themepark where trees glitter and mobs only attack you if you touch the right busted elven contraption. I would've loved to see a Joplin with these graphics and with actually good writing we could have had an easy Game of the Year right then and there, no question, but as it stands: it's a pretty, glittery pile of liquid narrative ♥♥♥♥ sprayed upon just about 20 hours of gameplay and cutscenes before you quit out and never want to touch it again. Thanks EA! I am glad I used no money on this. Oh and also: I killed all of them off, on purpose. It was less fun than I initially thought it would be and way less satisfying.. so even if you think pushing through this could be worth it, if it means you can kill these ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥, let me tell you: It really isn't, and the game actively tries to make you feel bad about your once choice by putting in the effort to make the camera pan over their lifeless bodies multiple times AND they make you talk to their disappointed ghosts in a mission that makes absolutely zero sense if you take a second to think about it. There's a lot of things this game has no grasp on... the lore of the franchise being the most damning one. If you want a game you can play that feels a little more dangerous than Disney Dreamlight Valley, this is the one to go to! Just in case it wasn't clear yet: the villains too were a complete joke. Thanks for reading through my frustrated little rant, I am sorry it got longer than I thought but I had to vent this out after the credits just rolled on me. There's a lot more to write about fyi, but i think the reviews on YouTube pretty much do it justice too. Aight, i'm deinstalling.

Worse than any form of torture possibly conceived in this world. There aren't enough words in the dictionary to describe how awful this game is.

Play Origins instead The gameplay and aesthetic customization character creation are great in this game.. the story, worldbuildling, lore and everything else.. mid

Don't buy, get it on the EA-Play subscription for 6$ if you're interested in the game.

Sadly a neutered entry into the once great Dragon Age series. Humor is lackluster, stakes don't feel real, companions act like robots with each other, and choices barely matter. Butchering of one of my favorite series.

4.9/10 If you're looking for a game to waste time this one is for you. Don't get your hopes up though as it's nothing compares to an actual Dragon Age game. This should just be called Veilguard and be a stand alone game, it might have attracted more attention that way. I think if you like combat and making builds, it's a feasible RPG. You can make builds but they're limited and probably around 6 actual ones. Past that, the companions, conversation, and story just seems to be atrocious. If you like true story games or old Dragon Age for the story, I wouldn't play this one. It feels like such an agenda piece that I'm genuinely confused any of this was signed off on or made. Back to companions, they feel lackluster and are just there to provide skills that sync with each other. You're playing therapist between each companion that it doesn't even feel like you're apart of the team but rather their parent. At one point, you console a companion about wearing a dress...let that sink in. I could go on but here are some pros and cons: Pros: - You're the sexiest individual alive (everyone wants to romance and flirts with you) - Skills/builds - Combat is feasible so is going here but it's just eh - Everyone wants to have sex with you and you're sexy - Transmog Cons: - Companions - they are lackluster (i.e gear is eh, backstory who cares?, skills are literally the same) Every conversation is a snooze and all they do is whine. You then play therapist. - The game looks terrible - feels like I'm playing Tiny Tina Wonderland - Everything is purple - The fog is rainbow - Variety of enemies is poor - Repetitive - Art direction of the entire game - PURPLE

Its good but not as a dragon age game

LGBT trash is made for mentally retarded degenerates