Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s lead to a name change and Solas’ role in the story

Dragon Age 4 was revealed years ago under the name Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. However, with what appears to be months to go before the game launches in fall 2024, BioWare has announced that it will be changing the name to Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Before that announcement, Detective game Visit BioWare’s Edmonton office for an exclusive look at the game for the cover story of Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Hence we learned that the name has changed.

I interviewed several Veilguard leaders for the cover story, and one of the first questions I asked each of them was: “Why did you change the name?” Here’s what each of them told me:

BioWare is moving to change the name to Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Veilguard Game Director Corinne Bush: “First and foremost, I would say that these games are reflections of the teams that make them, and as part of that, that means we learn a lot about the heart and soul of the game as we develop it. We quickly learned and realized that the beating heart of this game are these diverse, authentic companions.” And when we took a step back, as we always do, always checking our decisions and making sure they still represented the game we were trying to build, I felt like we needed a title that really represented the essence of this game.

Now, I want to be clear: I adore Solas [and] He plays an important role in the game, but this is not a game about Solas. So, in everything we do, trying to capture that authentic experience, we felt like the title really needed to change.

Veilguard creative director John Epler: “Dragon Age has always been about characters, not just the villains, but also your team and your companions and other characters in the world. And as we were building Dragon Age: The Veilguard – there’s this metaphor that I like to use, which is, ‘If you wanted to carve an elephant out of marble… “You just take a marble and remove everything that doesn’t look like an elephant.” As we were building this game, it became really clear that we weren’t trying to create The Veilguard as much as we were shaping it while we were building the game.

Solas remains a central character in it. He is still an important figure. But in reality, the focus shifts to the team. It’s about the people you recruit. It’s about stopping the apocalypse with this group of specialists, these incredibly interesting and diverse characters that you recruit into your team. [We] Dreadwolf realized that it suggests a title that focuses on a specific individual, whereas The Veilguard, like Inquisition, is more team-focused.

BioWare General Manager Gary McKay:”First, let me say: Solas is still a big part of this game. That doesn’t mean at all that he’s going to take a back seat. But when we thought about what was really the heartbeat of this game, we saw his guys really jump out at us. I think you could argue [these companions] It is the best franchise I have ever seen. We have seven incredibly unique characters, each with their own personality and motivations; They have deep stories, and you have a chance to really interact with these characters in a way that shapes their story but also impacts the main story, all the way up to having a chance to influence their fate.

It’s not just the story; It’s also an integral part of the gameplay as well. And so when you look at it from the heartbeat of this game, the heart of the game, it’s about the companions – the Veilguard. We felt the title should reflect what we thought was the focus of this game.”

Former Dragon Age executive producer and Veilguard consultant Mark Darrah: “I think this is absolutely the right choice. Names can gain momentum. It can be said that this game, in a way, has been called Dreadwolf to some extent since its earlier days. As the game has evolved, [BioWare] “I figured out exactly what it is, and it’s very mature to step back and say, ‘We’ve given it a name.’ Does it still really reflect what the game is about? And I think the fact that the team wanted to make that move is amazing, and I think that’s absolutely the right decision.” “.

Solas is in the room

When I asked about Solas’s role in the story after learning that his name was no longer in the game’s title, Darrah said that Veilguard still takes the Elven God story in a good direction. He adds: “It allows us, hopefully, to give a good outcome to all the diverse attitudes toward Solas that will come from people who like Solas, who agree with Solas, who hate Solas, people who want to fire Solas.” Building — I think we give you the opportunity to end that. , but then tell a greater story about The Veilguard and about the world as a whole.”

By talking to Epler, I learned more about how Solas wasn’t as bad as I expected before seeing Veilguard’s opening hours. There are a lot of nuances to everyone’s favorite bald troll.

“The most interesting villains to me, and frankly to most people, are not just the ones who say, ‘I want to end the world.’ To them, they are the heroes of the story, and Solas is no exception,” Eppler tells me. “Solas always feels like a tragic hero but a hero nonetheless, so he has come to this point firmly believing that what he did, which you prevented him from doing, was the right thing – that you made a mistake. But now he is trapped and cannot communicate and influence effectively.” [Thedas]so he needs to work with you.

“This allows us to bring a lot of nuance to this relationship,” says Epler.

If you’re wondering what Epler means when he says Solas is cornered, that’s quite literal — in the game’s intro, which is part of the 20-minute gameplay trailer BioWare recently released (video above), player character Rook and his companions Lace stop Harding, Varric Tethras, and Nev Gallus from trying to… Solas to destroy the Veil, a barrier between the magical Fade and Thedas. I won’t spoil exactly what happens here, but Rook passes out moments later and wakes up in a dream-like scene to the voice of Solas himself… because he’s trapped here.

He explains that he was trying to move Elgar’nan and Ghilan’nain, both part of the Evanuris or Elven pantheon of ancient times, to a new prison because the old one no longer properly contained them. Unfortunately for Solas, he is trapped here – the Fade – by our actions, and Elgarnan and Guillain are free, damaged, and wandering in Thedas. It’s up to Rook to stop them, but it looks like they’ll have to work with Solas (or at least listen to his guidance and advice) to do so.

“So one of the principles we had when we were building the story of The Veilguard early on was that we wanted the beginning of the game to feel like the final chapter of a previous story and that you’re coming in at the end, you’re coming in as if you’re chasing Solas — [Solas at the end of Dragon Age: Inquisition’s Trespasser DLC] “The one who said he would end the world and tear down the veil,” Epler adds.

Players will see early on (and as the narrative progresses through Veilguard) that Solas sees a lot of himself in you, the player-controlled rook, especially “the parts he might not like to face,” Epler says. As a result, there is an interesting tug of war between Solas and Rock. He says players can determine the relationship between these two characters through their choices in dialogue.

“You can continue to be suspicious and hostile toward him, or you can start to see him and find that common ground, that connection between the two of you, and develop a really different relationship over the course of the story,” Epler says.

For more information about the game, including exclusive details, interviews, video features, and more, click the Dragon Age: The Veilguard hub button below.