Dear EA- NOBODY WANTS A LIVE SERVICE DRAGON AGE GAME
Dragon Age The Veilguard lacking live service elements is NOT why it failed. Here, let me tell you some of the reasons why it failed:
* Weak dialogue writing. Especially Rook's(the player character). The overall dialogue was pretty shallow and basic...like a tween comic book.
* It was NOT a "role playing game" even though you marketed it as such
* The marketing was way off base and catered to tween anime types(which has NEVER been the appropriate market for Dragon Age)
* There was a severe lack of available interaction between the player character and companions. In previous DA games we could have lengthy in-depth conversations with companions to get to know them. In Veilguard you could only talk to them when the game said it was ok. even in the player base(the Lighthouse) the player couldn't chat with companions at-will. When you walk close to companions they say a line or two and then stop and stare at Rook who never responds because for some puzzling reason you guys removed Rook's autodialogue which contributed to Rook feeling like an isolated outcast. People play and love DA games for the companions and our relationships with them.
* The romances were overall shallow, brief and unrewarding, Especially Lucanis'. The game was definitely NOT meant for a mature audience. It is PG 13 at best, which is another insult to DA's traditional market. Romances are a big part of DA games for players. Veilguard's romances can't even compare to DAI's.
* Why did you put in a nudity button where is literally NO nudity. Side-butt is NOT nudity. Another failure of the romances.
* Limited dialogue choices. Rook has limited choices on the dialogue wheel, and they all result in similar responses. There is NO roleplay here, period. In fact, even when you WANT to be a **bleep** and the dialogue wheel response looks like you're going to be, Rook ends up saying something polite and fuzzy. Are you
KIDDING me?
* The elephant in the room- Taash. You want representation in Dragon Age? Sure it's been in every game, however you want to make GOOD representation. A one-dimensional character whose entire existence is based on their gender identity is NEVER good writing. It's ESPECIALLY not good writing when that character is unlikeable, rude, hypocritical, and dumb as a bag of rocks. Taash was supposed to be 20-22 but written like a fifteen-sixteen year old brat. Why say she's 20-22? So people could feel ok about romancing them? Tacky. You want a good example of representation? Just look at Dorian from DAI. His troubles stem from him resisting cultural norms and daddy issues. He's a complex character who grows during the duration of the game who isn't defined by his sexuality. Taash falls flat in comparison. Taash IS defined by being non-binary. That's Taash...the non-binary who happens to do a bit of dragon hunting. That isn't complex nor interesting, and the character being obnoxious doesn't help at all.
* There were VERY limited World State choices from previous games, which has also been a staple of DA. Why? Veilguard completely disregards the vast majority of what players chose in previous games.
* The game was left with no real endings or tie-ups. The epilogues, which are also a staple of Dragon Age games, just went over what we did in the game. WE KNOW- WE WERE THERE. We needed to have the stories wrapped up, consequences, results, and MOST OF ALL what happened with our love interest. We got NONE of that.
* The game feels cut off...like suddenly the Powers That Be decided it needed to be released earlier than intended, so the game got cut off at the knees.
* These are SOME of the reasons Veilguard failed, but I can ONE HUNDRED PERCENT assure you that it has NOTHING to do with Veilguard lacking Live Service game elements. It would have crashed and burned even worse than it did. I can also tell you that long-time fans of Dragon Age feel dishonored, disrespected, and betrayed. We waited TEN YEARS for this? The frustrating thing is that you can see the game had immense potential- you can see it in there, but DA fans(and I assure you Mass Effect fans) are wondering if EA is so far removed from knowing their own customers that they are incapable of giving us a solid game. There are others hoping ME4 crashes and burns so maybe you'd sell DA and ME to someone who would do the games justice for us.
WE ALL HATE LIVE SERVICE. VEILGUARD FAILED BECAUSE OF BAD DECISIONS
