The Veilguard “woke up” the deicide to the rhythm of Hans Zimmer

Ten years have passed since the events Dragon Age: InquisitionWhere Oneone of the protagonist’s loyal companions turned out to be the ancient elven god of lies and betrayal. Varric and Rook follow his trail to Minrathous, the capital of the Tevinter Empire, and interrupt the ritual with which he tried to destroy the Veil, the separation between the physical world and the demon dimension.

Although they manage to avoid disaster, In the process, they release two specimens of Solas. against whom he led a centuries-old rebellion many centuries ago and treacherously imprisoned. With Varric out of action, Rook must recruit a team of competent operatives to hunt down a pair of deities who wish to claim power over Thedas and enslave all its inhabitants, as happened in a past no one remembers.

No matter how Electronic Arts marketing tries to make it seem Guardian of the Veil as a perfectly valid entry point into the franchise, the reality is that The game is a direct continuation of the events Inquisition and the neophytes will be hopelessly lost. It involves not only a noticeable familiarity with many of its characters, but also with the very complex socio-political structure of the peoples of Thedas, full of factions that fight for power, both in the shadows and in broad daylight.

Although at first glance Age of the Dragon may seem like a fantasy setting, very derivative of Tolkien and Moorcock, He has certain qualities that allow him to form his own identity.as well as how it reflects the culture and traditions of medieval Europe in their respective countries.

If the first three games were focused on the south of the continent (Ferelden, Orlais and the Free Marches), Guardian of the Veil The action takes place in the north: Tevinter, Nevarra, Antiva, Rivan and the Underfelds. It’s a very varied choice that completely rejects the open world approach. Inquisition (so poor) to choose more linear, more limited levelsbut full of secrets and very interesting details that stimulate the spirit of exploration. Without a doubt one of the most inspired solutions.

If Bioware made a name for itself during the aforementioned golden age, it was through its superior storytelling, and more specifically, its incredible ability to create captivating characters. Was it Garrus and Rex from Mass EffectLeliana and Morrigan Age of the Dragon or Bastille Knights of the Old Republicthe group of companions was so powerful that it managed to take root and establish a genuine emotional relationship with the player when the main plots risked getting lost in the abstraction of its own epic.

Although Bioware wanted to return to the same pattern with this game, the results were mixed. But first we must remove the main obstacle that has come our way. The first 15 hours of the game are by far the worst.. This slow burning management. This requires a lot of patience. None of the main cast are saved. In the beginning, everyone offers their worst version, and some, like Bellara or Emmrich, clearly classify themselves as unbearable.

It’s as if these two characters escaped from a Disney Channel children’s series and completely collided in an ultra-violent and dark fantasy. Age of the Dragonwho has since Origin (2009) had gloomy darkness as one of its distinguishing features.

Later, everything starts to fall into place. I admit, I was full of doubts until the end of the first act. The Siege of Weishaupt is a monumental episode in which Bioware throws house out of window and conveys the terrifying power of the elven gods, crippled by millennia of imprisonment.

The production values ​​are very high and take us back to the most intense moments of the trilogy. Mass Effectconveying a sense of enormity and absolute chaos in the face of an unprecedented catastrophe. It’s a stunning moment that ultimately convinces us that the trip is worth it, despite its boggy beginning. The companions begin to open up, show greater psychological depth, and move away from the original caricatures, although not always with the same effectiveness.

Epicenter of the culture war

Dragon Age: Guardian of the Veil In recent weeks, it has become the epicenter of the culture wars that are currently disrupting the discourse around video games. Some influential people, anxious to enforce this slogan, have launched a genuine attempt at a boycott. Woke up, broke in the face of what they believed to be a pamphlet developed by a Marxist committee whose sole function was to ensure adherence to DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) principles.

Bioware has always been a fairly progressive studio. It was already possible to have homosexual relationships in the first Dragon Age game, and even in previous games there were more implicit references. Problems that are common in any RPG today. However, it must be admitted that here they have gone much further than any other studio, including a character editor (for the design of our main character), including, among many other options, the ability to include scars from radical mastectomy to refer to gender reassignment surgery.

On the other hand, the plot revolving around Taash focuses on their process of coming out as non-binary. There are a lot of conversations about being comfortable or not in your own skin, your mother’s expectations and manipulative comments, using the correct pronouns (which They singular), more abstract questions about normative femininity or more mundane ones such as the use of makeup or clothing.

The commitment to inclusivity doesn’t stop there, it permeates the entire game and is revealed in every detail, such as the prosthetic leg Neve uses to walk, the woman displaying her assertive sexuality. Including people with disabilities in fantasy settings is one of the discussions currently fueling the genre, and it’s clear that Bioware has its own opinions on the matter.

Corinne Boucher, who took the creative direction of the game, is a trans woman, so none of these narrative and aesthetic lines may be surprising, but there is no doubt that the game follows a very specific political line and that it approaches this With dogmatism that will make more than one person suffocate.

In general terms, Dragon Age: Guardian of the Veil it’s not feeling good, comeback story something we’d like from Bioware. The combat is very effective, but it abandons the strategy of yesteryear to focus on the action. It doesn’t have the depth needed to support over 50 hours of footage and ends up being extremely monotonous. It starts out too long, and the quality of the dialogue is very irregular, with inspired moments interspersed with boring, hackneyed and vulgar phrases.

Still, this is Bioware’s best game, at least since Mass Effect 3 (2012) and shows a studio willing to focus its efforts on everything that has elevated it in the past, rather than continuing to pursue ill-fated experiments while trying to chase market trends, be it open worlds or games as a service.

He manages to shine in the moments of the unfolding epic with a stunning audiovisual aspect, where the compositions of Hans Zimmer and Lorne Balfe especially shine. This is a step in the right direction and gives me hope for a future return to Mass Effect.