Dragon Age Team Prepares Veilguard for Battle

Larian Studios’ Publishing Chief Michael Douse recently praised Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Read on to learn more about his thoughts on the newly released action RPG.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard Gets High Praise from Larian Studios’ Publishing Director“It Feels Like the First Dragon Age Game That Truly Knows What It Wants to Be,” Said Baldur’s Gate 3 Lead

Michael Douse, @Cromwelp on Twitter (X), the publishing director of Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios, has only praise for BioWare’s latest RPG, Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Douse took to Twitter to share his thoughts on the game, admitting that he’d been playing it "in complete secrecy"—he joked that this involved playing behind his Backpack - Wallet and Exchange at the office.

According to Douse, The Veilguard feels like a game that "truly knows what it wants to be," which he considers a refreshing focus compared to past entries in the series that have sometimes struggled to balance storytelling with gameplay. Douse even compared the game to a "well-made, character-driven, binge-worthy Netflix series" rather than "a heavy, 9 season long show."

Douse also praised the game’s combat system, which he described as "a mix of Xenoblade Chronicles & Hogwarts Legacy," a combination he terms "giga-brain genius." This new direction seems to bring The Veilguard closer to the style of Bioware’s Mass Effect series, with fast-paced and primed attacks that players can chain together for powerful effects, rather than the slower, tactical style of earlier Dragon Age titles.

Praising The Veilguard’s brisk pacing, Douse said the game "has a good sense of propulsion and forward momentum," and knows "when it needs a critical narrative moment, and it knows when to let you toy around with your class and exploit some of its finer elements"—perhaps a thoughtful departure from its predecessors’ more traditional RPG roots. His praise for the game even extended to BioWare’s continued presence in the industry, which he said remains crucial during times of "moronic corporate greed."

But the most intriguing aspect Douse pointed out is The Veilguard’s newfound essence. He hails it as "the first Dragon Age game that truly knows what it wants to be." While this could be seen as a subtle dig at past Dragon Age entries perceived as lacking clear direction, Douse, however, clarified his stance: "I’ll always be a [Dragon Age: Origins] guy, and this isn't that." It might not evoke the nostalgic charm of "DA:O" for Douse, but The Veilguard seems to embrace a distinct vision, a quality Douse deeply respects. "In a word, it’s enjoyable!" said Douse.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard Rook Character Customization Allow for “True Player Agency”

In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, BioWare aims to create a deeply engaging character experience for players through the Rook, a custom protagonist with distinct traits. According to a recent feature by Xbox Wire, players will be able to delve into The Veilguard with an unprecedented degree of creative control over their Rook’s background, skillset, and alignment. As Rook, players are tasked with assembling a party to confront two ancient Elven gods imperiling Thedas.

Character creation in The Veilguard seems to be designed to ensure that every choice, from backstory to combat specialization, aligns with the player’s role-playing vision. For instance, players can choose between classes that include Mage, Rogue, and Warrior—each with unique specializations like Spellblade for mages, which lets players wield elemental magic up close. There will even be times when choices extend into Rook’s home, the Lighthouse, where players can personalize rooms to reflect their character’s journey.

"As you do, Rook reflects on their history before the events of the game," A developer told Xbox Wire. "This allowed me to define more about my Rook—even down to choices I thought were insignificant, like why he has face tattoos. The result is a character who truly feels like mine."

This attention to character intricacy may be part of what Michael Douse found commendable, especially as the game focuses on choices that feel weighty to the player. With The Veilguard set to release on October 31, BioWare will be hoping that players share Michael Douse's opinion.

In our review of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, we mentioned that the game finally embraces "the faster pace of the action RPG genre" with a gameplay that "is more streamlined and more engaging as opposed to the older games." Fore more on our thoughts on Dragon Age: The Veilguard, and why we awarded the game a score of 90, check out our article below!