It’s happening! New Dragon Age: The Veilguard trailer reveals October 31 release date, pre-order bonuses

It seems that Dragon Age: The Veilguard may really, actually, finally be coming out with an official release date on October 31. Fans of the Dragon Age franchise have been waiting for the game’s next chapter for over a decade at this point, and it’s been a painfully long wait after BioWare’s rapid release of the first three Dragon Age games, which came out between 2009 and 2014.

Take a look at the latest trailer for yourself, which gives us a broader look at the setting and story than the previous teaser and gameplay preview.

Is Dragon Age: The Veilguard worth buying?

Will this much-anticipated title be worth that wait? That depends on what you were hoping for from a Dragon Age game. The days of Dragon Age: Origins, where you really felt the game’s tabletop influences, are long gone — every game since has become more action-oriented, and Veilguard seems to push this somewhat further than Inquisition did. It’s a playstyle that many modern RPGs emulate, but if you wanted something more like Origins — or like the recently released throwback Baldur’s Gate 3 — that’s not what Veilguard is. Expect fast-paced combat encounters.

The game also has some stylistic changes, which feel a little jarring. The art style has a more cartoonish bent, and though it looks good — and I think these more stylized looks tend to age better than photorealistic art — it’s certainly different. The fact that we’ve gone years seeing little of the game’s work in progress has made the recent trailers, with their new art style, something of a surprise. And the fact that some characters seem more stylized than others makes for an odd mix. Rook, for example, looks fairly realistic, and Varric looks like himself, but the necromancer Emmich has extremely stylized features, with an exaggerated, gaunt face. I’ll just say the new style is growing on me.

What the game does maintain from its siblings — at least I hope — is a solid fantasy story and a host of companions to befriend (or more than befriend). The story continues almost directly from the plot of Dragon Age: Inquisition (notably its final Trespasser DLC) and sends us on a dramatic war against Solas and the Elven gods. (Every video game series eventually leads to fighting gods.) If Dragon Age: The Veilguard nails it with an engaging story, I’ll be happy with it — but that’s something we won’t know until we’ve had a chance to play the game.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard pre-orders

You can pre-order Veilguard now for PC, PlayStation 5, or Xbox Series X|S.  As is typical with games these days, it comes in multiple editions and a range of price points, though they certainly aren’t the worst prices we’ve seen. Here are your options:

• Standard Edition for $59.99 (PC) or $69.99 (console) comes with the base game and Blood Dragon Armor sets for Rook, with unique appearances depending on your class.
• Deluxe Edition for $79.99 (PC) or $89.99 (console) comes everything in the standard edition plus three Rook armor sets, six Rook weapons, seven companion armor sets, and seven companion weapons.

BioWare hasn’t said whether these armor sets and weapons offer a power boost or are simply a cosmetic. In Inquisition the pre-order armor was excellent early-game armor, which you could craft with higher quality materials to keep up with your character, so I suspect it will be a useful bonus. And while I do love myself some sweet alternate appearances, the game will certainly be playable without these extras. It’s up to you whether all these cosmetics are worth $20. (I’m going to wait until I can see them, at least.)

There’s also a quasi-collector’s edition called Rook’s Coffer which includes a whole range of physical items: a light-up lyrium dagger, a deck of art cards, a die (d12) with conversation response art on each side, a glass potion flask, a cloth map (with a quiver tube for storage), and an 18×24 companion lithograph. I’ve got to say, I’m loving the die, though I wish it were available on its own.

One thing this bundle doesn’t include, however, is the game itself. BioWare did the same with a Mass Effect 3 collector’s edition, and while it seems somewhat laughable, it may be a better way to handle collector’s editions than Blizzard does. When you buy a World of Warcraft collector’s edition, which comes with the game as well as physical goodies, you also have to buy a digital copy of the game to get immediate access on launch day (since collector’s editions typically arrive after launch) as well as digital bonuses. That leaves you with two copies of the game and an awkward refund process to go through since you don’t really need that second copy. However, the price is a little too steep for me at $149.99. It’s a big collection of very cool stuff, but it certainly doesn’t fit into my budget during this game-heavy fall season.

So, friends, will I be seeing you in Thedas on October 31, or are you going to wait and see? I’m afraid it’s too late for me, as a long-time Dragon Age fan: there’s no way I won’t be playing on launch day.