So long Bioware, it was nice knowing you.

[Dead badger]

It's ironic that Dragon Age the Veilguard prides itself on inclusivity yet failed to include the Dragon Age fanbase. This is probably the angriest I have ever seen people be about a video game outside of when their friends start corner camping and I can see why. Bioware is not Bioware anymore. The name once resonated with everyone who ever had some attachment to the RPG genre. They were pillars and pioneers of the industry once. Now it's like someone has stolen your Dad's skin and they're pretending to be him.
I'm not expecting a response to these questions but I'd like to ask them of contemporary Bioware all the same; Firstly, Why did you decide to make only three choices transferable and why only from Dragon Age Inquisition? Older titles across different Bioware games allowed you to tranfer your decisions and worldstates across into the game you were currently playing. It was good, it added to the sense of agency you had to shape the world around you and it encouraged players to play the other games in the series. For that matter, where is the agency in Veilguard? Why don't player decisions have meaningful differences or consequences? These components are supposed to be present in an RPG. The original Dragon Age marketed itself as a dark fantasy RPG with engaging characters and storytelling. So in what aspect is Dragon Age the Veilguard an improvement or even a continuation on any of these metrics? The writing in this game is atrocious, the characters are banal at best, insufferable at worst, no player decisions have meaning or impact. If I want to play a dark RPG which respects my agency what is my incentive to play the Veilguard rather than The Witcher? If I want a game with good storytelling why should I play the Veilguard rather than Baldurs Gate 3? And while I'm feeling philosophical tell me, why should I pay money for a copy of Dragon Age the Veilguard to be preached at and patronised when I could simply turn off my computer, walk to a church and get that for free?
I'd like to wind this up with a message to EA. I'm glad this game is a commercial failure because I strongly believe that that's the only kind of failure you can learn from. You had every conceivable advantage. Glowing reviews from critics, many of whom are owned by the same parent company, an established intellectual property, a budget of hundreds of millions of dollars and you still failed to turn a profit on this game. The projected lifetime sales for this game are sitting at 3 million, the current number of copies sold is much lower than this. It's also coincidentally lower than the number of copies Dragon Age Origins sold, which was a series opener with a fraction of the budget. The kind of love that the old Bioware games got was not something you could buy. You had to earn it.

[Officer Nastyy]

Tell me about it. i am not happy either. Makes me more mad that there going to make Mass Effect 5.

[Shadow]

Originally posted by Knight of Ni:

Bioware is the name of the Company, the people who made the old dragon age and mass effect games, dont work for this company anymore, they were replaced by mentally ill clowns.

After first Dragon age Origins and Mass Effect downhill started when EA bought it

[Karax]

Originally posted by Dead badger:

Why did you decide to make only three choices transferable and why only from Dragon Age Inquisition? Older titles across different Bioware games allowed you to tranfer your decisions and worldstates across into the game you were currently playing. It was good, it added to the sense of agency you had to shape the world around you and it encouraged players to play the other games in the series. For that matter, where is the agency in Veilguard?

The problem with player agency/branching choices, while also maintaining a consistent story is, more or less, a matter of time and effort, this subject is big and you can read more about it on the interwebs:
https://armchairarcade.com/perspectives/2023/12/07/storytelling-in-video-games/
https://peerdh.com/blogs/programming-insights/branching-storylines-in-level-design-2

These are the big 3 challenges in creating a video game with branching paths:

Complexity in Writing and Design: Crafting meaningful choices requires extensive planning. Each player decision must lead to distinct and consistent outcomes, which can balloon the workload exponentially as branches multiply. Writers need to ensure narrative coherence while maintaining the emotional depth and impact of player choices.

Maintaining Player Agency: Developers must strike a balance between offering freedom and guiding the player experience. Too few choices might feel superficial, but too many can overwhelm players or dilute the narrative focus.

Resource Constraints: Creating multiple paths often requires additional dialogue, scenes, and animations, which can strain time and budget resources. This explains why even large studios sometimes limit branching to key moments.

Now to me it looks like, with the 4th dragon age installment they took the same decision as with ME4 Andromeda, basically, completely a redo, although I didn't particularly like ME:A, I still found it fun to play, DE:V is a whole different story though.

So in a nutshell, devs didn't bother too much because of either time/effort/money constratings.

[Khergit Horse Archer]

Originally posted by Karax:

Originally posted by Dead badger:

Why did you decide to make only three choices transferable and why only from Dragon Age Inquisition? Older titles across different Bioware games allowed you to tranfer your decisions and worldstates across into the game you were currently playing. It was good, it added to the sense of agency you had to shape the world around you and it encouraged players to play the other games in the series. For that matter, where is the agency in Veilguard?

The problem with player agency/branching choices, while also maintaining a consistent story is, more or less, a matter of time and effort, this subject is big and you can read more about it on the interwebs:
https://armchairarcade.com/perspectives/2023/12/07/storytelling-in-video-games/
https://peerdh.com/blogs/programming-insights/branching-storylines-in-level-design-2

These are the big 3 challenges in creating a video game with branching paths:

Complexity in Writing and Design: Crafting meaningful choices requires extensive planning. Each player decision must lead to distinct and consistent outcomes, which can balloon the workload exponentially as branches multiply. Writers need to ensure narrative coherence while maintaining the emotional depth and impact of player choices.

Maintaining Player Agency: Developers must strike a balance between offering freedom and guiding the player experience. Too few choices might feel superficial, but too many can overwhelm players or dilute the narrative focus.

Resource Constraints: Creating multiple paths often requires additional dialogue, scenes, and animations, which can strain time and budget resources. This explains why even large studios sometimes limit branching to key moments.

Now to me it looks like, with the 4th dragon age installment they took the same decision as with ME4 Andromeda, basically, completely a redo, although I didn't particularly like ME:A, I still found it fun to play, DE:V is a whole different story though.

So in a nutshell, devs didn't bother too much because of either time/effort/money constratings.

dao took 6years according to wikipedia, was able to implement branching choices and story to some extend better than dav.

yes, there are 3 games before dav and to add all of that in will be massive effort, however, we are not even talking all 3 games, just within it's own story, the amount of branching path is far inferior.

dav took 10years (probably not full production in all of 10 years but dao only went into full production after like 3 years out of the 6 years, according to wikipedia)

[Uryon]

Originally posted by Knight of Ni:

they were replaced by mentally ill clowns

Why do you say they're mentally ill? You can't make that statement without developing further.

[Dead badger]

Originally posted by Karax:

Originally posted by Dead badger:

Why did you decide to make only three choices transferable and why only from Dragon Age Inquisition? Older titles across different Bioware games allowed you to tranfer your decisions and worldstates across into the game you were currently playing. It was good, it added to the sense of agency you had to shape the world around you and it encouraged players to play the other games in the series. For that matter, where is the agency in Veilguard?

The problem with player agency/branching choices, while also maintaining a consistent story is, more or less, a matter of time and effort, this subject is big and you can read more about it on the interwebs:
https://armchairarcade.com/perspectives/2023/12/07/storytelling-in-video-games/
https://peerdh.com/blogs/programming-insights/branching-storylines-in-level-design-2

These are the big 3 challenges in creating a video game with branching paths:

Complexity in Writing and Design: Crafting meaningful choices requires extensive planning. Each player decision must lead to distinct and consistent outcomes, which can balloon the workload exponentially as branches multiply. Writers need to ensure narrative coherence while maintaining the emotional depth and impact of player choices.

Maintaining Player Agency: Developers must strike a balance between offering freedom and guiding the player experience. Too few choices might feel superficial, but too many can overwhelm players or dilute the narrative focus.

Resource Constraints: Creating multiple paths often requires additional dialogue, scenes, and animations, which can strain time and budget resources. This explains why even large studios sometimes limit branching to key moments.

Now to me it looks like, with the 4th dragon age installment they took the same decision as with ME4 Andromeda, basically, completely a redo, although I didn't particularly like ME:A, I still found it fun to play, DE:V is a whole different story though.

So in a nutshell, devs didn't bother too much because of either time/effort/money constratings.

An excellent point Karax, and you're right that anyone crafting an RPG would face challenges in balancing agency with narrative structure. I will point out though that Dragon Age 2 did a better job on this than Veilguard did and DA2 was a dumpster fire itself. It was objectively the most visually hideous game in the series. I'm not a fan of how the Veilguard tries to make things look like 'Inside Out' but Jesus, DA2 repeated the same 10 or so maps over and over again, all set inside a hellish Scottish Afghanistan. EA (in a run-up to becoming the worst company in America) told old Bioware they had 16 months to make a game and after instituting a work schedule on them which should probably be illegal in developed nations they managed to shake a game out which still has more appeal than Veilguard.

[BÆRD]

EA doesn't learn. This is one constant in their corporate wh..oring performance. They have bought, exploited and ruined more game studios and game brands than I care to remember at this point.

[mundanethings]

Everything about this game is disappointing and limited. I don't hate Veilguard. I just wish I enjoyed it.

I loved the Dragon Age lore! The games were unafraid to comment on real world issues. The world had a deep dark atmosphere. There was so much to build off. Veilguard had the most milquetoast approach. The story, and the world itself, is watered down until it's almost comical. This game is a such a massive shame, you see moments of greatest peak through an otherwise shallow experience.

[Red]

nobody who made what Bioware's name renowned is there anymore

those that are , are in purely corpo positions.

[ko]

The inmates took over the asylum. The studio is just some kind of freakshow now, wearing a Bioware skin. Bioware died a long, long time ago. They will never make a good game again, the talent isn't there anymore and hasn't been for years.

Just look at this Veilguard thing. Completely useless game.

[Crim]

Ya Bioware had one last chance to show they still had it, and they bombed. RIP bioware.

[colorized86]

You made such a clear and precise description of this game's problems. And these are the right questions to ask.

[dulany67]

Originally posted by Dead badger:

It's ironic that Dragon Age the Veilguard prides itself on inclusivity yet failed to include the Dragon Age fanbase. This is probably the angriest I have ever seen people be about a video game outside of when their friends start corner camping and I can see why. Bioware is not Bioware anymore. The name once resonated with everyone who ever had some attachment to the RPG genre. They were pillars and pioneers of the industry once. Now it's like someone has stolen your Dad's skin and they're pretending to be him.
I'm not expecting a response to these questions but I'd like to ask them of contemporary Bioware all the same; Firstly, Why did you decide to make only three choices transferable and why only from Dragon Age Inquisition? Older titles across different Bioware games allowed you to tranfer your decisions and worldstates across into the game you were currently playing. It was good, it added to the sense of agency you had to shape the world around you and it encouraged players to play the other games in the series. For that matter, where is the agency in Veilguard? Why don't player decisions have meaningful differences or consequences? These components are supposed to be present in an RPG. The original Dragon Age marketed itself as a dark fantasy RPG with engaging characters and storytelling. So in what aspect is Dragon Age the Veilguard an improvement or even a continuation on any of these metrics? The writing in this game is atrocious, the characters are banal at best, insufferable at worst, no player decisions have meaning or impact. If I want to play a dark RPG which respects my agency what is my incentive to play the Veilguard rather than The Witcher? If I want a game with good storytelling why should I play the Veilguard rather than Baldurs Gate 3? And while I'm feeling philosophical tell me, why should I pay money for a copy of Dragon Age the Veilguard to be preached at and patronised when I could simply turn off my computer, walk to a church and get that for free?
I'd like to wind this up with a message to EA. I'm glad this game is a commercial failure because I strongly believe that that's the only kind of failure you can learn from. You had every conceivable advantage. Glowing reviews from critics, many of whom are owned by the same parent company, an established intellectual property, a budget of hundreds of millions of dollars and you still failed to turn a profit on this game. The projected lifetime sales for this game are sitting at 3 million, the current number of copies sold is much lower than this. It's also coincidentally lower than the number of copies Dragon Age Origins sold, which was a series opener with a fraction of the budget. The kind of love that the old Bioware games got was not something you could buy. You had to earn it.

No paragraphs. Did not bother.

[Anchovy]

Originally posted by Uryon:

Originally posted by Knight of Ni:

they were replaced by mentally ill clowns

Why do you say they're mentally ill? You can't make that statement without developing further.

Originally posted by Uryon:

Originally posted by Knight of Ni:

they were replaced by mentally ill clowns

Why do you say they're mentally ill? You can't make that statement without developing further.

probably because he played the game, for his sanity i hope to be wrong.
wonder when cancer like this will stop being made, such a waste of money and time to make

[Marmottty]

Originally posted by its bread:

Originally posted by Uryon:

Why do you say they're mentally ill? You can't make that statement without developing further.

Originally posted by Uryon:

Why do you say they're mentally ill? You can't make that statement without developing further.

probably because he played the game, for his sanity i hope to be wrong.
wonder when cancer like this will stop being made, such a waste of money and time to make

I don't know any people that cares about companies money.
Play the game if you like it or don't that's the only thing that's matters.
Caring about company money is just weird.