The creator of the world of Dragon Age talks about a document that contains the entire story. What you can see today in The Veilguard was already established 20 years ago – at least partially. Hardly anyone knows that.
What kind of document is this?
- David Gaider is the lead writer and creator of Dragon Age. He created the world of Thedas.
- When the story of Dragon Age: Origins was created, he already had ideas for the very, very distant future – but only in his head.
- In an interview with Eurogamer, Gaider says: At some point, they “pulled” the whole story from him and put it into a secret document. Only “20 people or so” would even know about it.
This is what the document says: Gaider does not go into the specific content. He says, however, that almost everything that happens or will happen in the world is already established. At least in broad strokes, though not fully developed yet.
An example would be the beloved and hated Solas, also known as the Dread Wolf. It was known that he should appear even during Origins 15 years ago. Solas was given a role only in Inquisition, and The Veilguard is primarily about him.
The secret document is supposed to show the “overarching plan” for Dragon Age; only the specific elaboration happens afterwards. Gaider says this ensures that a “credible illusion” is created, a world that feels complete.
A very similar approach can be found in the vast world of World of Warcraft: Story chief Chris Metzen has been working on 7 expansions into the future. However, this story document holds nothing more for The Veilguard.
The story continues with The Veilguard, but will end for now
BioWare has confirmed that The Veilguard will not receive any DLC. This means the story of Dragon Age will end for now once you finish the latest game. The studio wants to focus on the next Mass Effect (via RollingStone).
The Dragon Age games traditionally have an open ending that is only truly concluded with one or more DLCs. For example, the direct predecessor to The Veilguard, Inquisition, would have no connection to the latest installment without Trespasser.
However, The Veilguard is a complete game at release – whether the ending remains open or not. This also means that anyone who wants to know what happens next must wait. There are 10 years between Inquisition and The Veilguard. How long it will take until the next Dragon Age is still unknown.
That Dragon Age describes a coherent world has always been evident through the possibility of cross-game decisions: circumstances from earlier parts continue to have an impact later. The Veilguard breaks with this tradition, much to the dismay of long-time fans: Fans miss their own world, saying that’s what made Dragon Age so good
