There is almost always a handful of video games each year that will be “divisive” for one reason or another. Sometimes, it’s because they launched in an “incomplete” form, which frustrates gamers endlessly. There’s also the case that the game didn’t “live up to expectations” or the hype that the developer/publisher put on it. In the case of Dragon Age The Veilguard, the reason that this game is divisive despite not being out yet is that many aren’t thrilled with Bioware’s actions regarding the game’s story, gameplay, and other elements. They have been very loud about their objections, and we’re seeing some unique things due to that.
We’ll start with the positive. On Metacritic, Dragon Age The Veilguard has an 84 score on the PS5 version, with an 80 on the PC version. The Xbox Series X version has a 93, but that only has five reviews, so that’s not enough to get a good understanding of the game on the platform.
For the PS5 version, 39 critics gave it a positive score overall while 16 gave it a mixed review. Curiously, there are multiple perfect scores, with some saying that it’s “the best Bioware game ever made,” which is high praise given not only past entries in this series, but entries in a certain spacefaring franchise that is consistently called one of the best games ever.
Once you get away from those reviews, you start to see the cracks within, including some noting that while it was fun, it wasn’t worth the “Decade-long wait” for it. Others state that while it has good elements, it could be heavily improved in others, with some calling out the gameplay and uneven story as proof. Some of the lower scores even stated that Bioware is “playing it safe” with this one, and that’s why the experience wasn’t as meaningful.
And that brings us to the bad thing, as reports are going on from seemingly reliable sources that Bioware is striking any video that uses the game’s images or footage and talks negatively about it:
While we can’t confirm this ourselves, if this is true, that’s not kosher. Negative reviews and thoughts are a part of the industry, and while Bioware is fair in “not wanting” to hear negative thoughts on the game that they clearly worked hard on, it’s not fair to restrict speech on it just because they don’t like what’s being said.
The real “verdict” of the game, though, will come from how well it sells.