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It was inevitable that Dragon Age: The Veilguard would be compared to Baldur’s Gate 3. Almost as soon as the former’s gameplay was revealed in June, community discussions and thinkpieces arose, asking the questions: how will BioWare’s potential comeback title — released after a decade of disappointing launches — compete with Larian Studios’ monumental, acclaimed masterpiece? Can it even do so?
After all, these are both fantasy RPGs inspired by the world and mechanics of Dungeons and Dragons. When pitching Dragon Age: Origins, then-senior creative director James Ohlen literally told then-lead writer David Gaider to “go make D&D but not,” according to BioWare’s 25th anniversary compendium. Not only that, the first two Baldur’s Gate games were produced by BioWare back in the nineties, cementing BioWare’s place in RPG history.
It’s a compelling narrative. A former top dog (wolf?) fighting to reclaim its place as number one, up against a newly crowned victor that’s likely redefined what it means to develop an AAA fantasy RPG for the next decade. But I don’t think it tells us the full story of how Veilguard will be received in the wake of Baldur’s Gate 3.
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Thick as thieves
Read our Dragon Age: The Veilguard preview to see what we thought after seven hours of playtime
Throughout its history, Dragon Age has been called the spiritual successor to the Baldur’s Gate series. In other words, it was never meant to compete directly with its predecessor; not in how it plays, not in aesthetic, not in story and lore. By and large, Dragon Age has been its own thing, always experimenting with each iteration - like a younger sibling donning their older sibling’s clothes, only to ditch those clothes in favor of something trendier and truer to their identity.
Veilguard’s combat takes the most extreme step away from the early days of Baldur’s Gate to date. With its emphasis on priming and detonating combos, dodging, strategising in real-time, and tighter camera perspective, its combat no longer resembles the tactical systems of a TTRPG translated into pixels. The last vestiges of such a system that lingered in Inquisition are all but gone, replaced by the influence of Dragon Age’s other sibling, Mass Effect. “D&D but not” indeed.
Yet, as with all sibling bonds, there are similarities within the two IPs that will ensure their fandoms are forever intertwined and familial. When I first set sight on Astarion in Baldur’s Gate 3, I couldn’t help but notice I take a particular liking to a certain character type. Namely: sad, lonely elves who suck at lying but put up facades to shield their hurts from the world, whose stories and romances touch on themes of consent, sacrifice, and power.
I’m not the only Solavellan shipper who noticed the similarities between Astarion and Solas either! Back in June, a fan caught the attention of Larian and BioWare by posting a side-by-side of a modded bald Astarion and Solas on Twitter.
Solas’ role in Veilguard, as an advisor and aid trapped on a different plane, also reminds me of the Emperor’s role in Baldur’s Gate 3. Like Solas, the Emperor is deceitful and mirrors how you treat him. That said, a key personality difference between them is, Solas lies only by omission and sucks at it. It’s a nuance that’ll undoubtedly spawn months of fan discussion and comparisons alone, not to mention the rest of their differences.
Just as reiterated over and over in Veilguard’s marketing, Baldur’s Gate 3’s heart, too, lies in its companions and storytelling — and, I believe, if the friends we make along the way are the main draw for a good portion of fans, they’re not going to pit the games against each other. They’re going to see it as an expansion of their friend group and/or pixel polycule. Already, I’ve seen Baldur’s Gate content creators who don’t know anything about Dragon Age ask who Varric is.
In the game of capitalism, yes, there can only be one winner. But if we approach game launches like communities, the impact of a game and its development cannot be solely measured by sales and awards. Fandom engagement matters. Developers being inspired by each other matters. Everyone wins when there are more perspectives and choices to go around, in one way or another.
If I were to lean into the fantasy genre of it all, I’d say Veilguard launching the year after Baldur’s Gate 3 is fate. It feels like we’ve come full circle, just as it feels like Dragon Age is finally stepping fully into its own. Where Larian showed that you don’t necessarily need to reinvent the wheel, and that you can make a heavy impact by simply investing in deepening and expanding the systems people already enjoy, BioWare’s previews of Veilguard suggest it’ll show that a little reinvention can sometimes be what you need — as long as you don’t forget your roots.
