What you need to know
- Dragon Age: The Veilguard is an action role-playing game created by Bioware.
- Bioware, makers of Mass Effect and other RPGs, have not made a Dragon Age game in over a decade.
- The director of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Corinne Busche, says systems that use all your skill points to max a specialization aren’t fun.
- To combat that, players will hit their specializations about halfway through, leaving the rest of the game to level and branch out.
The problem
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is an action role-playing game developed by genre veterans Bioware, the makers of the massive RPG series Mass Effect. For the first time in a decade, Bioware is returning to the Dragon Age series, and in a big way. Veilguard is promising an all-new leveling system that will see the player peak toward the mid-game rather than the end.
As a player who relishes the art of crafting uniquely built characters in games like Elden Ring across multiple playthroughs, I often find myself a little bored during my character’s progression. The anticipation of reaching its full potential can sometimes be marred by a lack of engaging gameplay or a seemingly endless grind. However, the upcoming Dragon Age game is set to empower players like myself by giving us the goods sooner rather than later.
The solution
In an interview with RPG Site, the director of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Corinne Busche says she gets frustrated by games that take too long to get to the good stuff. Often, a similar title will require all of a player’s skill points to reach the end-game specializations. This results in a player having nothing left once they reach that point.
Corinne says, “We have a level cap of 50. One of my frustrations with some other games that have similar skill tree systems is that getting up into the specialization might take up absolutely all of your skill points, and then you have nothing else. We’re the exact opposite. You get into your specialization about mid-game, and then you can really branch out.”
What if you find yourself in a situation you don’t like? No need to worry about that, either, because the developers have got your back. “Every level you get a skill point; there are other side activities to get skill points. We are very player-friendly; you can refund your last, refund the whole thing…”, mentions Corinne.
I revel in games that offer players the freedom to explore different options, especially in the early stages, before the ‘best build’ guides flood the internet. The ability to switch skills and abilities at will is a game-changer during those opening chapters. I’m one of those players who constantly fine-tunes and optimizes their character, and this level of customization is a source of pure joy for me. It’s a journey of discovery and experimentation that I hope pays off for Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
Does this news help instill more hope into Dragon Age: The Veilguard for you? I’ve seen some mixed reactions online. Even here at Windows Central, we’re debating with Senior Editor Samuel Tolbert, feeling confident, and Jez Corden is still unconvinced. Let us know below or on social media! I’ll make sure to follow along.
