While it’s still very much the summer ofDragon Age: The Veilguard, news has slowed down considerably. BioWare came out swinging around Summer Game Fest, offeringpreviews ofDragon Age: The Veilguard’s opening sequenceand revealing new details about its story, companions, and more. It remains to be seen what’s next on the agenda, but hopefully, more gameplay reveals and a release date are in the near future.
Dragon Age: The Veilguardcame out swinging, while paying off years of anticipation, but slowing down is not a bad idea. It allows fans to contemplate everything shown and revealed so far, while building even more anticipation for what’s next. One thing that has no doubt caught a lot of eyes is the changes to combat, which isn’t necessarily a big deal. It’s not like combat has ever defined theDragon Agefranchise, but for the first time in franchise history,Dragon Age: The Veilguardwill only see two companions join the player character, Rook, at one time. This is no doubt a big change, and while devs have promised it makes the tactical gameplay even better, there’s no denying it’s the loss of an entire character. However, there are some obvious pros and cons to this choice - outside moment-to-moment tactics.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard Only Has Two Companions for Gameplay
Having only twocompanions inDragon Age: The Veilguarddrastically impacts party composition, if nothing else. Because of its set-up,Dragon Age: Inquisitionplayers could run a party of four rogues, four mages, or four warriors if they so chose. On the other end, a lot of players would perhaps prefer compositions that were more balanced. For example, someone might choose to run a sword-and-shield warrior and a two-handed warrior in one party, supported by a rogue and a mage. It even works if someone runs two mages, one focused on damage-dealing magic and the other focused on support. Having only three companions means that players will likely have to look at one rogue, one mage, and one warrior, or leaning heavily toward one class or the other means forgoing the gameplay options offered by others.
It seems possible temporary companions could also occasionally take on the role of the “fourth character,” as seen with Varric in the introduction.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but those who have always enjoyed the three-class structure combined with the four-person party will have to make some serious adjustments. It’s worth noting, however, that BioWare might be looking at ways to mitigate this impact.Lace Harding, a long-standing rogue inDragon Age, will somehow have access to magical powers (like a result of The Descent DLC). Bellara, a new mage companion, also wields a bow. Therefore, it would make sense that one or the other could resolve any class-specific world events (similar to Veilfire and breakables inInquisition) should they exist. That is not confirmed at this time, however, and the end result is the same. Party composition will be totally different, and at the end of the day, players are losing one additional character.
Two Companions Means More Intimate Banter
Despite the possible gameplay implications of dropping a companion, there is a silver lining.Dragon Age: The Veilguardfeatures seven companions, which is fewer than any game before it aside fromDA:O’s Awakening DLC. That might seem slight, but when consideringDragon Age Originshad 10 (one DLC, two of whom are mutually exclusive),Dragon Age 2has 9 (one DLC), andDragon Age: Inquisitonhas 9, even having two fewer changes a lot.
With fewer companions than mostDragon Agegames and a smaller party, the trade-off is that the game will likely feature better, more intimate banter.Dragon Age: The Veilguarddevs have made it clear there’s plenty of banter, but depending on party composition,banter inDragon Age: Inquisitionsometimes outright omitted a party member. This means that’s likely avoided and fans will get to see how Harding gets along with Bellara, Taash with Emmrich, and so forth in stronger and deeper ways. It does remain to be seen, but there’s plenty to indicate that fewer companions + smaller party = more realistic relationships among the companions.
One could argue thatMass Effectbanter accomplishes this, allow for stronger inter-party relationships, but there’s also the fact thateveryDragon Age: The Veilguardcompanion is pansexual. If not romanced by Rook, BioWare has indicated that some of these companions might become a thing on their own. It would make sense if the opposite was also true. Some of these companions may not get along, while perhaps one or two hates the other’s guts. That equates to even more unique banter among the party members. It’s hard to say for sure, but focusing on banter between two companions (or two companions and Rook) opens up more doors than losing a single companion in combat closes.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
WHERE TO PLAY
Enter the world of Thedas, a vibrant land of rugged wilderness, treacherous labyrinths, and glittering cities – steeped in conflict and secret magics. Now, a pair of corrupt ancient gods have broken free from centuries of darkness and are hellbent on destroying the world.Thedas needs someone they can count on. Rise as Rook, Dragon Age’s newest hero. Be who you want to be and play how you want to play as you fight to stop the gods from blighting the world. But you can’t do this alone – the odds are stacked against you. Lead a team of seven companions, each with their own rich story to discover and shape, and together you will become The Veilguard.
