Dragon Age Veilguard: A Post-Mortem Review, Part 1
- Sneaky Mage
- Mar 14
- 12 min read
Updated: Apr 18
So here we are. Only a couple of months late to the party, but as I've already mentioned in my short review (don't worry if you haven't read it yet, I will reiterate it here), I wanted to take some time to gather my thoughts, before airing them out into the open.
Now, I don't normally drink much, but for this special occasion, I decided to bring out my favourite Save Game's Dragon Age inspired cocktail (click here for the recipe) to keep me company. So relax, grab a drink of choice (non alcoholic options are also welcome) and join me as I corral my thoughts and feelings into this lengthy review.
As it currently stands I've unlocked all achievements and replayed the game 3 times to completion.
For anyone interested in the details, here were my starting choices for each playthrough:
For the sake of transparency: When I first played the game, I didn't expect I'll replay it ever again... and then I did. I almost quit in the middle of my second playthrough, due to a certain quest being just too annoying (don't worry, I'll share... ). And somehow I managed to get through it, and then... here we are. Three playthroughs later...
Into the Nug Hole...
As I've already mentioned in my short review a week ago: the scenery is downright gorgeous in this game! The amount of detail and work that went into this, is ridiculous and deserves every possible recognition. Kudos to those amazing artists and every single person who worked on this!
I spent at least a dozen hours admiring the scenery, while playing around with in the photo mode in the game.
Environments, character customisation and hair dynamics are amazing, however music is absolutely subpar, compared to the rest of the series.
And the hair! Why is nobody talking about this?! I guess it’s been so long, that helmet hair of the past entries slipped out of the collective memory....
Anyway, for the first time ever, a series known for horrible, clunky and limited hair options, came out with an amazing (read: ridiculously extensive) character creator, with the most luxurious locks and hairdos, height options, body proportion settings and so much more!
On the other hand, the music is... well underwhelming. And that is about the nicest thing I can say (well write) about it. As the forth entry in the Dragon Age series, a series known for epic music scores that knock you on your ass, grab you by the heart strings, and throw you through the screen into the nug hole of the fantastical dark medieval-ish world of Thedas... Veilguard’s score is disappointingly generic and downright annoying at its worst (looking at you “elven” chimes of whatever during Bellara’s personal quest...). It also feels sooo out of place.
Now, I have never been one of those people who gave much emphasis on the musical score of a game, but here... there were times I had to remind myself that I am actually playing a Dragon Age game. This was the only game series I've never turned down the music, or muted it out completely, it always went along so perfectly with each setting and the storyline, it was transformative, but here... yeah, no. Just...no. I know it's Hans Zimmerman, but I can't remember a single note of the main score.
On the other hand loot system and gameplay also received a mayor improvement. I really like the flow of the whole combat/loot system, which lets you switch gear mid exploration and completely overhaul Rook's or any companion's abilities.
Tired of using lightning and fire? How about spicing things up mid-game and going full on necromancer? Feel like you messed up your skill tree and wish to change a few abilities? No problem, just cancel those two with a click of a button and choose the two you'd actually find more useful for the current situation.
Loot and gameplay systems are a mayor improvement, allowing you to adapt to the situation on the fly.
To be honest I was miffed at first when I saw you can use only 3 abilities at a time (well that and the special attack) and wondered if combos are now a thing of the past... luckily that is not the case. They did a little rehaul which means that companions are much more involved, you just need to figure out the right combination of their abilities (and yours, of course).
And while I do still miss the classic group of 4 configuration, I will not deny that the current set up does streamline the whole gameplay and combat experience. It's a lot more simplified and action packed, to be sure, however it did feel a little spamy and bland the further along I went. By the time I got to the end of my first playthrough as a mage, I was a more than a bit bored by Rook's repetitive special attacks and moves.
Hence the need to cleanse my palate with a warrior on my next playthrough (which was a bit out of character for me, as I only ever play rogue-ish or mage-ish character builds, but ended up a surprisingly fun experience.
I will also take this moment to lament the omission of my favourite build of all time, the God-mode from Origins also known as Arcane Warrior...gone and forever missed. I kind of always held out hope that it would make a comeback someday in another instalment, alas...'twas not meant to be. I just miss the sheer amount of spells and elements you could choose from, instead of just the three special attacks.
I will say that another thing which I found to be a MAJOR improvement, was the option to use ANY companion's special ability, anytime, anywhere, without them being present in the party!
*Cue in applause and standing ovation*
Gone are the days of my Inquisitor running around the Haven's chantry begging Varric (or Sera) to unlock all the doors for me, spending extra points in upgrades that would give me that ability in other areas, being forced to have a balanced party (having a warrior present, so they could smash that pesky wall/red lyrium rock for me),... my poor mage being stuck with one rogue per playthrough (as they were usually the one with enough points in cunning to unlock those locked chests again)... nope, not missing them at all!
In Veilguard, you can choose to build a party from the companions whose company you prefer, no matter their special ability and on easier settings can even completely ignore the ones you might dislike or even "hate" (yes, that is an option!... you might even kill them off in a way in the end, if that specific set of pixels offends you so), so no more locked doors/chests or unbreakable walls, any and all loot is here for the taking!
And it is worth taking. I don't miss the days of sifting through random generic armour, or being stuck wearing the absolutely worst looking armour, for the sake of stats. I know inquisition dealt with this already, however I do like the option to change your appearance and run around looking like a literal scarecrow, if you're into that sort of thing... or a full on Antaam armoury:
That said, I wouldn't mind if this game also had something along the lines of a golden nug like the Inquisition or a New Game plus...
Importing an already created character from a previous save into a new one, is however a nice touch and greatly appreciated - so if by chance you love the look of your custom made Rook so much, you'd wish to replay the whole game with the exact same one, but try out different origin/specialisation, you most definitely can!
And while we're on the topic of Rook...
For a leading Dragon Age character Rook has very little agency (even compared to Hawke) - you can only choose how to react or respond, but it changes little in the grand scheme of things, if anything.
While you have the option to create the perfect character, with luscious locks, customized proportions and whichever race, gender/sex you could think of... your roleplaying options are very much limited, to put it mildly.
Rook and her/his/their personality is pretty much set. You can choose different "words" to respond in conversations, however it changes very little in terms of reactions or consequences. Your influence mostly limited to who you end up in a romance with, and who your companions romance in turn... (more on this topic later).
The only case of actions and consequences really counting for something (that stands out now that I think on it) is in one of the very first missions where you can decide on the fate of a certain mayor... the rest is pretty much dependant on how many quests you complete and how much time you invest into your companions' personal quests and not any actual decisions (yes, even the ending).
But wait, you might ask, what about the Minrathous vs Treviso dilemma? For anyone who doesn't know that I am talking about and wishes to be spared the details please skip this next paragraph.
Apart from the cosmetic overhaul of a city you don't choose and supposed rivalry of a companion tied to that city (which consequences are only really felt in the "who can you" romance department) the side quests, conversations and various other areas you'd expect to be impacted in a major way, only ever have a slight difference here and there and result is pretty much the same.
And while we're on that topic. A fair warning: Rant bellow. Skip, if not interested.
Role playing is limited to your choice of race, specialisation, faction and romance.
Choice of race, however, really does make an impact in this game, giving you a decent amount of extra dialogue options, NPC reactions and responses, which which I absolutely and wholeheartedly approve. Veilguard has some of the richest background storylines for Rook and at the same time some of the most barren, even if they might seem intriguing at first (but sticking out like a bronto in a negligee on an Orlesian ball... this metaphor will make sense soon, I promise).
Grey Wardens are back with a bang in an epic redemption arc that is definitely among my top favourite parts in the game! Same goes for Rook's background. A Grey Warden just make sense story-wise, considering that in its core the game really is about the last blight of the Dragon Age, the blight to end all blights.
It is also, in my opinion, one of the most squandered opportunities on Bioware's part, to include at least one Grey Warden character from previous entries. While I do appreciate the little mentions in the from of a couple of scattered notes around the Weisshaupt fortress, most of them pertain to side characters you haven't really met in person in any previous entry.
Even the joining chalice from Origins, isn't the chalice you actually interact with in the first game. It has obviously gone through the Bioware "glow-up".
This is actually one of my biggest pet-peeves when it comes to Bioware's games. I understand the change of the game's engine can lead to having to redo the same work again, but for the sake of consistency, why also completely redesign and change the original model?
For example the darkspawn (yes, I know they justify the change in Veilguard, but this was not the first overhaul), Redcliffe village in Origins vs Inquisition, is not even remotely the same place, only thing "similar" is the position of the Redcliffe's castle (it still bothers me to no end, even after all this years, especially because The Witcher series proved it can be done, when it kept Kaer Moren's design virtually the same as in the first game, but upgraded), and now the joining chalice as one of the latest examples... there are many more, but that would cross into excessive nit-picking, so I'll rather stop here, as it's not the point of this post.
Back to the topic of Rook's background... you'd expect that a game called the Veilguard, would also give more emphasis (in quests and dialogue) to the new faction seemingly the most connected to the new storyline - the Veil Jumpers, but that is not really the case. Grey Warden background triumphs in comparison.
Same goes for Shadow Dragons (I haven't played, but from what I've read while researching which background to choose for my third playthrough, it seems it's plagued by the the same problem) and the Crows as well, if you believe the internet. As I haven't personally played through those two yet (probably will in the future, but definitely not anytime soon), I can not (yet) attest to it.
I can however attest that the Mourn Watch, also a new faction, is a surprisingly delightful option for anyone who wants to do some actual role playing (you'd think that would not be the case, as it's not really a faction pertinent to the main storyline). I chose this for my third playthrough based on the already mentioned internet recommendations and I am not sorry I did!
As to the bronto in the room AKA the Lords of Fortune. While it does sound like a fun option (at least on paper), it's the one that, to me, sticks out the most as the least Dragon Age-ish faction. It feels tagged on from another game (similar to the musical score). I get it's probably a remnant of the multiplayer version of the game and in that case it makes sense in the setting, however it would definitely benefit from more content and side quests.
As it stands, it's just one of the more barren parts of the game (if you wish to level it up to the maximum, you just need to defeat 10 opponents in the Hall of Valor, and you don't even get a medal for it). Even Isabella (one of my all time favourite characters in the series) can't save it for me. It does, however, give you the option to run around half naked in their skimpy armour, so at least there is that...
Romance took a backseat however, and while it's nice to have the option to romance anyone of your companions regardless of your Rook's race, sex and gender, it could do with a little less formulaic approach compared to the previous entries (it's really reminiscent to the Mass Effect 2's approach to romances). I don't mind the lack of a real "sex scene" at the end, I would however wish for a bit more nuanced approach to companion romances, especially when it comes to Lucanis (you're kind of stuck as a third wheel to his and Neve's budding relationship, even if you do choose to romance him).
But while there is plenty of extra content regarding the romances themselves, it feels less, due to that formulaic approach: innocent flirting (that seems to drag the longest time), expression of intent, obligatory date, a couple of short, one sentence interactions sprinkled in between the dialogue (not in every case), other companions comments on your choice, and sex scene coupled with proclamation of eternal love at the end.
I will say however that Emmerich, while not my first choice, was a a complete surprise. He is hands down one of the best written characters in the game and if you choose to romance him (especially as a necromancer yourself), it makes for one of the more delightful storylines of the game. He definitely took the crown as my favourite companion this time around. And if you've told me that was going to be the case before I've played the game, I would probably look at you aghast, you'd even think to mention such a thing. While his age was one of the factors for my reluctance at first, the necromancy itself made him seem like a peculiar and occult choice geared toward a very specific crowd... I couldn't have been more wrong.
I absolutely loved the Memorial gardens' missions and the dialogue. The solemn and dignified discussions on the profound topics of mortality and death, were handled masterfully and with the gravitas one does not usually expect in popular media (or games). Also Emmerich abilities are pretty awesome. Just imagine how many crimes (or family disputes) we could solve, if this sort of magic would exist in real life...
Let's stop on this cheery note, as part one seems long enough already and I'm running out of my drink. Stick around for part two, where I'll tackle the more controversial aspects of the game and share my final verdict. Don't forget to bring snacks and your favourite drink of choice, it will probably be a long one...
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