Dragon Age: The Veilguard marks a clear departure from the open-world design of its predecessor, inquisition. While the open world in inquisition While it initially impressed players with its expansive landscapes, many different biomes, and general freedom, it quickly became a point of criticism.
Many players felt that the gaming experience was marred by repetitive tasks and an overwhelming amount of errand missions, which is often compared to the tedious activities in MMORPGs.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard moves away from the open world
Dragon Age: The Veilguard promises a return to a more curated experience, reminiscent of the highly detailed hubs with lots of interesting characters and side missions that were featured in the first three games of the Mass effect Series.
Mass Effect 1-3 were like that, that’s why it was so great.
Hub-based games are goat
— Pulse_hammer (@RangerONE_SC) 10 August 2024
These hubs provided a good balance between exploration and story by offering locations that could be revisited and further explored as the narrative progressed and during additional side quests.
This design decision not only added depth, but also ensured that each area felt meaningful and connected to the overall story. With this game, BioWare seems to be following that model, opting for larger, more detailed levels rather than sprawling open worlds.
This shift could appeal to a fanbase tired of the traditional open-world formula and instead craving a more intense and narrative-focused RPG experience like the studio’s older games.
The developers have described the game as mission-based, with an emphasis on hand-crafted, carefully curated environments. This design philosophy is intended to create a more cohesive and immersive narrative, similar to the linear but also extensive main quest of Inquisition.
According to the developers, it is similar to Mass Effect 2, is widely considered one of the studio’s best examples of cinematic RPG storytelling.
The decision to move away from open-world elements allows the developers to focus on Character-based narratives and branching storylineswhich has always been a trademark of Series, such as origins.
Creating a cinematic RPG experience
One of the most anticipated aspects of the game is its combat system, which represents a significant evolution of the hybrid action mechanics of the last two games in the series. Dragon Age 2 And Inquisition.
According to the developers, but with great rejection from fans, these earlier entries struggled to Balance between tactical and action-oriented gameplaywhich often leads to players being dissatisfied with the combat experience.
The developers aim to create an action combat system that feels both active and impactful, drawing comparisons with the dynamic combat in the Mass effect series. This approach is intended to provide a more exciting and responsive gaming experience.
Although the game will stray from an open-world format, it will not be entirely linear. There will be larger levels that encourage exploration and discovery, and side quests and hidden secrets will add additional depth to the gameplay experience.
The RPG’s mission-based structure will include a central hub area, similar to the Skyhold Fortress in Inquisition.
This new hub, known as the Lighthouse, serves as the player’s base of operations and provides a space in which to interact with other characters and team members and plan missions, similar to The Normandy in mass effect.
Are you glad that the game won’t be completely open world? Let us know in the comments.
