Dragon Age: The Veilguard is BioWare’s fourth entry in the long-running fantasy RPG series, released October 31, 2024 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. It picks up roughly a decade after Dragon Age: Inquisition and shifts the series toward faster, more action-oriented combat while resolving the Solas storyline that’s loomed over the franchise since 2014.
Story and Setting
The game opens with Solas attempting to tear down the Veil separating the physical world from the Fade. Members of the Inquisition try to stop him, and Varric Tethras assembles a team called the Veilguard to hunt Solas down.
The interrupted ritual leads to the release of two ancient elven gods, Elgar’nan and Ghilan’nain, who unleash a Sixth Blight on Thedas. From there, the new protagonist, Rook, takes command of the Veilguard to stop the gods and deal with the fallout.
Character Creation and Companions
Players build Rook through a character creator with four lineage options — Human, Qunari, Dwarf, and Elf — and three classes: Warrior, Mage, and Rogue, each with two weapon types and unique abilities.
Rook is joined by seven companions from iconic Dragon Age factions: Bellara, Davrin, Emmrich, Harding, Lucanis, Neve, and Taash, each with their own storyline and combat skills. Their backgrounds include an assassin, a necromancer, and a detective. Romance is available with any companion, regardless of gender.
What Changed From Previous Games
BioWare simplified how choices carry over between games. Instead of importing a full history of decisions, players only set three choices from Inquisition, since earlier games’ events don’t significantly affect The Veilguard. That’s a real departure from the series’ usual cumulative approach.
Combat changed too. The Veilguard leans into real-time, action-based combat built on systems BioWare used in Mass Effect Andromeda and Anthem, making it more frenetic than past entries. It uses setup-and-detonation combos across the party, a shift from Inquisition’s slower, tactical style.
Critical Reception
Reviews were largely positive but split on tone.
GameSpot called it a return to form for BioWare, though issues — particularly with the mage class — kept it from being superb.
Other reviews pushed back on the writing. One argued the game trades the series’ usual nuance around faith and society for a simpler good-vs-bad story with a found-family arc. The same review said it often feels closer to Mass Effect than Dragon Age, favoring character relationships over Inquisition-style political complexity.
Still, it praised the ending: major decisions come together well by the finale, with a bigger scale of consequences than in previous BioWare games.
Commercial Performance and Support
Sales fell short of EA’s targets. EA reported the game engaged only about 1.5 million players — roughly 50% below expectations — contributing to a sharp drop in EA’s stock.
Support wound down fast. The game got five patches between November 2024 and January 2025. BioWare’s fifth patch thanked players and said the studio would shift to monitoring for game-breaking bugs rather than continuing regular updates.
Should You Play It?
Play it if you want closure on the decade-long Solas arc and don’t mind a lighter, more action-focused tone. Temper expectations if you’re chasing Inquisition’s tactical depth and political intrigue — this entry trades some of that for speed and spectacle.
Join The Discussion
Whether you’ve finished The Veilguard, you’re mid-playthrough, or still deciding whether to pick it up — there’s a lot to talk about. How does it stack up against Origins, II, or Inquisition for you? Did the action-combat shift and simplified choice system land, or did you miss carrying a full trilogy’s decisions forward? Share your take on the ending, your favorite companion, or any tips for new players.
