Dragon Age The Veilguard Criticism Thread (formerly Skepticism Thread) [Spoilers]

Why would they? It's an industry trend after all: cut corners to save on costs and hope brand recognition will do the rest. Although in this particular case, the forced pivot to live service obviously couldn't be walked back easily or in time. Still doesn't explain why they simply didn't revive "Joplin" since a lot of work was already done. Well, it looks like they took the opportunity to 'modernize' the experience. And this is what we got. I've been checking the numbers on Steam. Steady decline. Last Saturday there was a max concurrent player count of 13808 people playing it. Now it's only 5670 people. Give it another month and this will decline below 1000.

By the way folks, did you know that your past choices will totally matter in the next Dragon Age game?

I found this 'gem' from 4 days ago on the PC Gamer site.

The Veilguard's devs say they'll totally make choices from the past games matter next time

That's hilarious but I don't buy it lmao..

They're trying anything to win old fans back, it's quite pathetic really.

How would they even make old choices matter after they literally burned down the south? LOL

Please, EA, don't let these people touch Mass Effect. I'm begging you. Let Shepard and his crew rest in peace. Andromeda was bad enough but at least it was a meaningless spin-off. Don't let them burn down the Milky Way like the burned down Thedas.

Impossible, Cassandra likes Varric's smutty novels. Veilguard smuttiness is a bit...uh...difficult to find? Not here? No boobs!!! XD

Oh I am going to go WAY past the mark of ‘they sold me bad quality Big Mac advertised as chateaubriand prepared by a Michelin-starred chef.’

The situation is more like.

There is a Michelin restaurant that’s been in business for the past fifteen years where I had a delightful experience.

A new owner buys the restaurant. He fires that Michelin-chef and all of the staff under pretense of modernization, but asserts the reputation of the former restaurant and passionately claims that all the standards have been maintained and the new chief is just as skillful (although in reality that guy used to flip burgers in a cheap pub in Dark Town where he got fired for burning them). There is a giant glowing sign hanging on the front door that says Michelin restaurant.

The restaurant opens after this renovation. Although I’m skeptical of the new owner, I nonetheless hope if not for the former glory but at least some decent meal and eagerly rush in. Inside, I find sticky tables with flies buzzing around them. It smells iffy and the music is not to my liking. I still decide to give it a desperate chance. Maybe the food is good after all?

The waiter is extremely rude. They throw some kind of plate of slop into my face that spills onto my clothes with words ‘don’t’ like it, don’t eat it!’ I sniff the so called ‘chateaubriand prepared by a Michelin-starred chef’ and ask for a bill without eating it. They bring me a bill that has the cost of something expensive and doesn’t remotely match the quality, and they cheat me on the already outrageous price by adding hidden fees.

To my very valid complaints they point to some guy in the corner, who is shoving slop in, with the words ‘We’ve had no complaints! He seems to like it!’ (although you’ve seen them pay that guy five bucks at the back door) ‘You must be a bigot and don’t like our food just because it was prepared by a Bi person! Get your racist ass out of here and don’t come back! I wasn’t planning on opening this place for old customers anyway and I hate anything chateaubriand! I burned the last existing recipe of chateaubriand in the fire!’ (although there is a huge poster plastered on his restaurant wall depicting chateaubriand)

I go, ‘Sure! I’m never coming back to this hole and I will tell ALL my friends how horrible you are.’

A month later the owner of the new restaurant permanently closes the restaurant, you loved going to for the past fifteen years, and you will never, ever, ever eat another chateaubriand prepared by a Michelin-starred chef again because the old business was irreparably destroyed.

In the meantime, that very same guy pompously announces that he has the intention of buying out another successful restaurant across the street, all the while calling all the old Michelin customers ingrates for writing him bad reviews and ruining his business.

I wander why I feel like feeding that restaurant owner to the leeches in Fallow Mire!

It’s not even the Dragon Age fans who are the biggest supporters of letting BioWare kick the bucket, it’s the Mass Effect fans because they’re afraid that BioWare is coming for their restaurant next.

It is a bad business trend in the current gaming industry of someone who completely despises the franchise to buy it purely for cash grabbing reasons. Then they turn it into something the franchise is not to grab more money. If you’re going to alter it so badly, then why not create something completely separate and not ruin someone else’s hard work and achievement – seems like a reasonable thing to ask.

The answer is – it requires actual writing talent and love for what you do to create an entire world that will be believable and a story that will appeal to a large audience. Make something from scratch – it didn’t exist, and BOOM! it suddenly comes to life – that’s difficult! These companies have zero chances to attract those masses with the that unimaginative slop they serve. So, all they do is behave like parasites – take over and suck it dry.

Since there is no other form of appeal available to protest these foul practices, then that’s exactly what I’m going to do and dish out criticism on forums to leave the company exactly with the reputation it deserves.

This is my rating to BioWare for what they currently represent.

Oof harsh

What a a legendary show. Somehow it's underrated. It's right up there with any of the sitcoms you can name and it's probably better. Life is unfaaaaaaiiiiirrrrrr...

It makes me angry. If they had simply made a Dragon Age game, we wouldn't be in this mess in the first place. It's very difficult not to take Veilguard as a middle finger to anyone whoever cared about the series. Despite all their posturing, I believe it is. I would have respected them more if they came out and said "Fuck your Dragon Age. It's problematic and we're making it more inclusive for a better audience. A modern audience". Of course, I would have hated it, but at least it would have been honest. I can deal with zealots standing ten toes down on their bullshit, at least they're willing to challenge the marketplace of ideas. This cowardly 'here's a Mass Effect Trilogy armor and 'member Dragon Age II' nonsense is weak garbage. All the while they hide, don't mention their numbers, and prepare to infect the next Mass Effect.

And the irony is both series have everything they ever could have wanted in diversity and inclusion, but it seems that it's never enough. It doesn't matter how many well written gay, bisexual, pansexual and trans people they write. It's not enough. What is enough? And why can't a great story be included with the representation? Dragon Age and Mass Effect both proved it can be done and not with extraordinary difficulty either. 

I don't blame EA entirely for Veilguard, but I will if they allow these people to even glance at the next Mass Effect. 

This showed up. Take this with a shitload of salt but the guy doesn't strike me as obvious "WOKE, WOKE, EVERYTHING IS WOKE! grifter. ( though he obviously criticizes it)

TLDR: Game sold around 3 million copies while EA projections were 10 million. Potential mass layoffs coming soon, but also major shake up away from personal agenda from leads to more gamer oriented.