Dragon Age: The Veilguard Review

With thanks to the folks at BioWare and Electronic Arts I am finally getting around to bringing you my thoughts on their fantasy RPG Dragon Age: The Veilguard. This one is an expansive title with a fair amount to jump into.

As ever, this article brings my five-point quality check for Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Alongside it, you can also find my common-sense Parent’s Guide, covering the content in the game. So if you’re wondering if Dragon Age: The Veilguard is safe for kids, or if it’s any good at all, watch or read on just below.

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The Basics – What is Dragon Age: The Veilguard About?

Dragon Age: The Veilguard will see players saving the world of Thedas from elder gods. After creating a character (including altering their backstory to reflect the world you left in previous Dragon Age titles), you’ll be tasked with uniting the Veilguard as Rook.

There’s a fair amount of choice available here with decent if not extended options for races, classes and background. Each of these will have an impact on gameplay, as well as on the relationships you make along the way.

You’ll lead a team of seven companions, leading a small party onto the various areas and battlegrounds of Thedas. As well as a decent backstory for each, the different companions also bring their own abilities which you can use pretty effectively on the fly, alongside your own actions.

You’ll also work to upgrade your own abilities with an expansive sphere-grid style tree. As well as this, exploration will allow you to find new equipment and artefacts to enhance your combat style. Each of the three classes also comes with two unique weapon types and their own abilities, meaning that each play through can be remarkably different.

Is Dragon Age: The Veilguard Safe for Children?

Rating: Adults Only.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is rated by PEGI at 18 and above, and by the ESRB at a Mature 17+. Watching clips of the game, you would be forgiven for thinking that the fight-to-fight combat is fairly tame. You’d be right as well, but issues come with environmental scenes and some fairly gruesome creatures. While fights aren’t typically that gory, there are some scenes in game with a good amount of blood and fearsome creatures. In addition to this, sexual themes and scenes do mean that it’s one which I am rating as Adults Only.

The Run Down – My Five-Point Rating for Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Gameplay – 5: The action and exploration gameplay has been well put together here. It’ll bring some familiarity for those regularly playing action adventure RPGs, but the additional elements and on-the-fly use of companion skills has been pieced together nicely, to deliver a solid experience.

Visuals – 4: I’ve been playing through Dragon Age: The Veilguard on xbox and it’s been a good show overall. Graphics for characters are solid, and while there are a few rough or blurry edges here and there it doesn’t detract from the game. I’ve especially enjoyed the environmental visuals which provide an immersive world, with grand landscapes and real-feeling weather effects.

Audio – 4: There’s some great voice acting in the game, and the soundtrack for Dragon Age: The Veilguard has been immediately added to my Spotify nerdy score playlist. The audio team have worked really well to balance things as well, so effects, dialogue and music all compliment each other well.

Narrative – 3: Overall there is a good, original narrative running through the heart of Dragon Age: The Veilguard. However, it is let down fairly significantly with some clunky and awkward scripting at times. Clunky narrative writing is pretty few and far between, but it does have an impact to the score here.

Replay – 4: With multiple races, classes, backgrounds, equipment and skills, there are a lot of ways you can go with this one. It’s a shame that the title only lets you create three characters at any one time, and I’d have liked a little more separation with play styles, but overall there’s a solid number of reasons to jump back in.

The Verdict – Is Dragon Age: The Veilguard Worth It?

Overall, myPixel Bandits Rook to Queen 4 Level for Dragon Age: The Veilguard is a strong8 / 10. I’ve really enjoyed the time I’ve spent with Dragon Age: The Veilguard here on Xbox. It’s seen a lot of polish where it matters, with smooth action, plenty of abilities and upgrades and a lot of companions to choose from. While I’d have enjoyed a little more separation between play styles, the different companions have been well fleshed out and their abilities do feel tangibly different.
The clunky dialogue is a relatively big hit, but in fairness, there are only a couple of moments, and it’s only a few seconds out of a title which I’ve spent hours in. Making up a tiny fraction of the game overall, it’s been pretty easy to ignore for me, and the solid mechanics, visuals and audio certainly make up for it.

I’ve really enjoyed my time in Thedas overall, and while Dragon Age: The Veilguard isn’t perfect, it is definitely one you should take a look into. If you’re on the hunt for a new action adventure RPG experience, there’s lots to sink your teeth into, and it definitely falls on the better side of good.

As ever, to provide my review and common-sense parent’s guide, I received a free copy of Dragon Age: The Veilguard from the folks at Electronic Arts.