Making Dragon Age: The Veilguard Denuvo-Free Doesn’t Eliminate Its Flaws

Expert Verified By

Dragon Age: The Veilguard's snappy action combat and thematic changes theoretically look impressive in an action game, but count as glaring flaws for a true Dragon Age title.

Story Highlight
  • BioWare’s latest game, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, will not feature Denuvo.
  • However, the removal of the Dragon Age soul, less strategic combat, and modern themes still remain a concern.
  • Dragon Age: The Veilguard has the potential to be a solid action game, but it’s no longer Dragon Age.

When some title remains in development for a little too long, it either turns out a mess or becomes something entirely different than what it was supposed to be. The latter isn’t necessarily bad; however, a radical change carries equal risks. Similar circumstances entangle Bioware’s latest work, Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

It’s been 10 long years, and this period wasn’t easy for Dragon Age fans. Seeing the developer they adored slowly fall from grace and the evergrowing uncertainty regarding the new Dragon Age was not a pretty sight. Thankfully, we’re past the waiting time, and The Veilguard is upon us. But is it what we wanted?

Why it matters: BioWare catered to a modern audience with Dragon Age: The Veilguard, and in doing so, made it a possibly solid action game but a flawed Dragon Age entry. 

YouTube video

Dragon Age: The Veilguard Won’t Have Denuvo

Bioware is doing something peculiar with Dragon Age: The Veilguard, which has a divided fanbase. Still, no matter how you feel about it, one point brings everyone together in appreciating Bioware and EA: the decision not to include Denuvo.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard won’t include any 3rd party DRM (such as Denuvo), release time announced
by inGames

This special DRM protection has done more harm than good over the years. Yes, it’s adopted as a counter to piracy, but when it comes at the cost of performance issues and botched releases, I can hardly call it worth all that.

Countless gamers steer clear of Denuvo-protected games these days, and Bioware knows this. Thus, to alleviate their worries, the company has decided to keep its latest game, Denuvo-free. However, let me ask you this: does this make The Veilguard perfect?

A Radical Shift Away From Dragon Age

Before I begin, I’d like to make it clear that I don’t have anything against Dragon Age: The Veilguard as a standalone game. With all the previews I’ve witnessed, I can see this game being a great action title. But since it carries the “Dragon Age” name, I’m obliged to judge it as such, and I’m not impressed.

[No DAV Spoilers] Veilguard might be good game but it is not for me
byu/Melancholic_Hedgehog indragonage

The greatest selling point of Dragon Age was the tactical combat with an extreme focus on controlling your party members effectively. By giving that up, Dragon Age: The Veilguard has become something I can no longer see as Dragon Age.

The gameplay is a lot smoother and flashy, there’s no doubt, but the tactical aspect is severely diminished. Commanding companions is extremely limited in scope, and even your own ability slots are reduced. 

Solid action combat, but not Dragon Age-level strategy (Image by Steam)
Solid action combat, but not Dragon Age-level strategy (Image by Steam)

Game design is also being changed drastically. Dragon Age: The Veilguard will now be mission-based instead of open-world. What I don’t understand is the need to make everything a God of War clone. A game calling itself Dragon Age had a perfect legacy to follow, yet it chose the trendy topic instead.

The Problems Of Thematic Changes

Every Dragon Age game tried tweaking the combat in some way. Never as drastically as The Veilguard, but changes did happen. However, no Dragon Age game strayed from its signature storytelling, themes, world-building, and writing.

This is what scares me the most about Dragon Age: The Veilguard. I feel its pursuit of modernity can prove detrimental to the series’ iconic plotline. With the hero shooter-style character designs and the obvious change of themes, I fear the worst.

[Dragon Age: The Veilguard] The Qun didn't prepare us for this
byu/ConfidentMongoose ingaming

Plus, the controversial character creation system full of certain ideologies isn’t a good sign for a Dragon Age game, either. Of course, it’s too early to say anything for sure, but Bioware apparently not issuing review copies openly is certainly an omen.

This does not spark joy (Image by u/Brzeczypalka1)
This does not spark joy (Image by u/Brzeczypalka1)

A Good Standalone Game, A Flawed Dragon Age Title

If this was a new IP from Bioware that only took certain inspirations from Dragon Age, I would’ve been the first to praise it. But a Dragon Age game that drastically changes this and adopts something completely opposite to the classic titles doesn’t sit well with me.

Now this is Dragon Age (Image by Steam)
Now this is Dragon Age (Image by Steam)

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is about to be released and trust me, I genuinely think it’d be a solid title. For an unrelated game, the snappy combat, quirky characters, awesome visuals, and mechanical depth all sound great. But when Dragon Age comes into the mix, things get awkward.

In the end, what’s done is done. All I can do now is hope that Dragon Age: The Veilguard will be a solid RPG, one that only strays from its predecessors in gameplay and nothing else. That’s all I’m wishing for.

Was our article helpful? 👨‍💻

Thank you! Please share your positive feedback. 🔋

How could we improve this post? Please Help us. 😔

Gear Up For Latest News

Get exclusive gaming & tech news before it drops. Sign up today!

Join Our Community

Still having issues? Join the Tech4Gamers Forum for expert help and community support!

Latest News

Join Our Community

104,000FansLike
32,122FollowersFollow

Trending

Why Ryzen 7 9800X3D Chips Are Running Much Cooler Than The 7800X3D

The reason why Ryzen 7 9800X3D chips are running much cooler than the 7800X3D is because the 3D V-cache's position changed in the new CPU.

Star Wars Outlaws: Discovering The Gritty Side Of Canto Bight

Star Wars Outlaws offers a fresh perspective by discovering Canto Bight and its gritty underworld instead of traditional Jedi themes.

Red Switches Are Amazing But I Don’t Recommend Them For Fast Typists

Red switches are amazing, but I don't recommend them for fast typists with heavy hands due to their lower actuation force and creamier noise.

Dual-Mode Monitors Are The Future Of Gaming And I’m All Up For It

While I believe dual-mode monitors are the future of gaming, their price needs to take a dive down for them to be more accessible for gamers.

I Cleaned My PC After Six Months — Here’s The Thermal Difference

PC dust control shouldn't be taken lightly if you live in a dusty area. I cleaned my PC after six months and my temp drops were phenomenal.