You wait ages for a bus then one comes along at exactly the worst time. Wait, that’s not the expression. But it could be true forDragon Age: Dreadwolfif last week’s rumours are true andBioWareisaiming for a summer showcase with a release before the end of 2024.Dragon Ageis one of my favourite series of all time, and in my book, there is no bad time for a new Dragon Age game.I’m a Dragon Age 2 defender, I’m indeep. But this does not feel like perfect timing.
BioWare was once the trailblazer of the RPG. In fact, ourFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirthreviewercompared the game to a BioWare RPGwhen praising the depth of social links between characters, and it was often noted that in 2023’s GOTYBaldur’s Gate 3, Larian was building on the principles BioWare established two decades earlier through both the original duo of Baldur’s Gate games as well asMass Effectand Dragon Age.
This Is A New Golden Age Of RPGs
BioWare is a trailblazer no longer, even if the Mass Effect and Dragon Age trilogies launching in step with each other once made BioWare arguably the single most respected studio in gaming. But the successive stumbles ofMass Effect AndromedaandAnthem, plus years in the wilderness with nothing but a remaster have left it as the forgotten man at video games' top table. All eyes are on Dragon Age: Dreadwolf, and it feels like it could be make or break.
Therefore, it coming out in 2024 is better than 2027 - if we assume that it will come out ‘when it’s ready’, it’s obviously advantageous that it be ready sooner rather than later. But that brings its own pressure. Baldur’s Gate 3’s comparison to BioWare is pressure as much as it is complement. It leaves big shoes for Dragon Age: Dreadwolf to fill as it raises the bar for what an RPG can be.
Baldur’s Gate 3 was swiftly followed not only by the aforementioned Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, but also byLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.Dragon’s Dogma 2will be here soon too, while Metaphor: ReFantazio will also hit shelves before Dreadwolf. That’s a lot of RPGs, and the three out already are top of their class, all landing over 90 on Metacritic. Dreadwolf not only has the pressure of living up to everyone’s nostalgia for how BioWare used to be in their rose-tinted memories, but to the very real standards of the most recent RPGs that Dragon Age should see as its equals.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf Could Plug A Major Gap
Of course, there is a flipside to all of this. While the first half of the year is packed, the second is wide open. I wrote recentlythat Xbox had a golden opportunitythanks toNintendoandSonyboth biding their time until 2025, and though Dragon Age is cross-platform and therefore not a soldier in the console war, it can still become a neutral profiteer as a victor of circumstance. 2024 is front-loaded, but Dreadwolf’s only comparable competition in the later months isAvowed, which seems like the least likely of Xbox’s upcoming titles to hit its 2024 release window.
2023 also showed us there is always room for one more great game. It might feel like looking for problems to complain about Dragon Age: Dreadwolf getting a release date more in line with predictions from optimists than pessimists, and with few big games around it to boot. In a way, it is. We’re starving for news on this game and all of the things I could write aboutwhat’sinthegamehavebeenexhausted. The game coming out is obviously good news. But for the series, for BioWare, and for me personally, it has a lot of expectations on its shoulders. I’d feel better about its ability to shoulder those if we’d seen any gameplay outside of unreliable leaks.
Ultimately, it remains my most anticipated game of the year and I still have faith that it could be my overall game of the year. But with so many changes at BioWare, I’m sceptical. I understand the approach of not revealing too much gameplay until just before launch, aiming for a shorter and more concentrated marketing cycle, but that is surely less effective when the game has been in development for a decade and we’re still yet to see anything from it.
When Dragon Age: Dreadwolf was just coming out at some point in the future, it was easy to think it was going to be great. Tomorrow always is. But even without a concrete date, this news changes it from ‘some point’ to ‘soon’, and those bring with it a lot of worries about just how great it really will be. RPGs have moved a lot in the past decade, and maybe never faster than the past six months. I hope BioWare has kept up.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
WHERE TO PLAY
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is the long-awaited fourth game in the fantasy RPG series from BioWare formerly known as Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. A direct sequel to Inquisition, it focuses on red lyrium and Solas, the aforementioned Dread Wolf.
