Dragon Age Dreadwolf is now officially called Dragon Age The Veilguard. BioWare announced the title change for the highly anticipated instalment in the beloved fantasy RPG series, which comes hot on the heels of an upcoming reveal set to come during the Summer Game Fest schedule.
In a blog post detailing the decision behind the change, executive producer Gary McKay said that: "Naturally, the Dread Wolf still has an important part in this tale, but you and your companions – not your enemies – are the heart of this new experience". With seven new companions set to join us on our new adventure in Thedas, it won't be long before we'll at long last get a look at the game. Late last year, the studio confirmed that we can expect to see a full reveal of Dreadwolf, and now the studio has confirmed we'll be seeing over 15 minutes of gameplay on June 11.
By Andraste, it looks like exciting times for Dragon Age fans are well and truly ahead as we fast approach getting a better picture of one of most anticipated new games coming our way.
While we wait it out for the reveal, read on below for a recap of everything we know so far about what is now Dragon Age Veilguard.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf latest release date and platform rumors
The Dragon Age: Dreadwolf release date is up in the air, with no set launch window as of yet. The latest news suggests the RPG is reportedly set to release before the current fiscal year ends, which would place it sometime before March 31, 2025.
Before this, the last time we heard any sort of indication of when might expect to return to Thedas came by way of a financial report that seemingly indirectly confirmed it's still a year away - pushing it into 2024.
Perhaps the upcoming reveal in Summer 2024 will at long last come with confirmation of a firm date.
We can also take a strong guess at the platforms the game will arrive on thanks to the LinkedIn profile of the former lead player designer at BioWare, who states the game will be coming to PS5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC.
Dragon Age Dreadwolf gameplay leaks
In February 2023, Dragon Age Dreadwolf gameplay leaks appeared to surface on Reddit, in which the poster claimed to have seen early footage of Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. This came just a handful of months after BioWare officially revealed the upcoming RPG had reached Alpha stage. It was said that the BioWare team was able to play the game from start to finish in its entirety: "Up to this point, we’ve been working hard on the various parts of the game, but it’s not until the Alpha milestone that a game all comes together. Now, for the first time, we can experience the entire game, from the opening scenes of the first mission to the very end. We can see, hear, feel, and play everything as a cohesive experience."
The blog post went on to say that "the game is not finished by any means", but this milestone indicated it was closer to completion.
While the Reddit poster has since removed links to gifs and screenshots, the post is still live, and details a section that takes place in the Grey Warden fortress headquarters, which is known as Weisshaupt. It also touches on some supposed classes, the presence of Red Lyrium, and even the possible direction of Dragon Age Dreadwolf's combat, which left fans divided over it seemingly leaning into a style closer to that of God of War.
As with any leaks of this nature, it's always best to take everything with a big pinch of salt, but it does offer up some interesting food for thought.
Dragon Age Dreadwolf trailer cinematic
On Dragon Age Day 2022, BioWare released an in-game cinematic from Dragon Age: Dreadwolf that once again put Solas front and center. What's most exciting about this cinematic, though, is that it's narrated by none other than Varric Tethras, the loveable rogue and storyteller we first meet in Dragon Age 2. Varric talks about Solas' goal, which offers a great recap of where Dragon Age: Inquisition left off, and intros the Dreadwolf to anyone who's new to the series.
Varric's phrase at the end of the scene, "we're the only ones who can stop him", suggests the iconic dwarf will be returning in the latest adventure - and could potentially even work with the character we'll fill the shoes of. Given his appearance in the Dreadwolf prequel comic and his prominent role in Inquisition, it would certainly make sense.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf news
- Dragon Age Dreadwolf dev lays off all unionized QA workers
- Former BioWare employees recently laid off are suing the studio for "shortchanging" them with low severance pay
- BioWare lays off 50 developers as part of a plan to ensure "Dragon Age: Dreadwolf is an outstanding game"
- BioWare director shares and very quickly deletes Dragon Age Dreadwolf post because it was too spoilery
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Internal Dragon Age: Dreadwolf delays are reportedly pushing Mass Effect 5 back, too
Dragon Age 4 has a non-linear skill tree so you can customize your character class - Dragon Age 4 leak has fans theorizing about a new class system
- As it finishes Dragon Age: Dreadwolf, BioWare brings in the Mass Effect team and former series lead Mark Darrah
- New Dragon Age comic looks poised to answer what Solas is up to in Dreadwolf
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf concept art
Another look at Dragon Age Dreadwolf came in the shape of dark and delicious concept art revealed during a next-generation montage at EA's summer event, EA Play Live, back in 2020. The game wasn't even mentioned by name, but in a section introduced by EA's chief studio officer, Laura Miele, she did namecheck BioWare.
"BioWare imagines and creates worlds where you become the hero of your own story, and we're using this next generation of technology to make those fantasy worlds your reality."
You can see those Dragon Age: Dreadwolf teaser images below.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf characters
So far we know that Solas will be the main antagonist in the upcoming RPG. The fact that Varric Tethras has also narrated over a cinematic implies the storytelling rogue who appeared in Dragon Age 2 and Dragon Age: Inquisition may also feature. But as of right now, we haven't had much in the way of information about Dragon Age Dreadwolf's characters.
One of the biggest questions surrounding Dragon Age: Dreadwolf is what our role will be. We've yet to learn anything too concrete, but there have been some hints thanks to the above behind the scenes look - among other sources - that might point towards the direction of the new protagonist. For a detailed exploration with all of our thoughts and theories, be sure to check out our piece on who we might play as in Dragon Age: Dreadwolf.
May the Dread Wolf take you.Your newest adventure begins in Dragon Age: #Dreadwolf. pic.twitter.com/riYYZXS7O1June 2, 2022
The original Dreadwolf title - which reiterated that Solas will play a big part in Dragon Age 4 - was revealed in a tweet from the game's official account, which also linked out to a blog post going into more detail about Solas' return.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf is for newcomers and longtime players alike
BioWare has made it clear that it's approaching Dragon Age: Dreadwolf with a varied audience in mind to cater to both long-time fans and newcomers. As well as confirming that Solas will introduce himself when the time is right for those who've yet to meet the character, a blog post reaffirmed that this will be an experience veteran players and those new to Thedas can enjoy.
"It’s been eight years since our last DA game came out. I’ve seen a lot of adults fondly reminiscing about how they played it as teens!", senior writer Sylvia Feketekuty said in the blog post. Dragon Age: Dreadwolf has been a balance of providing answers to long-standing questions for veteran fans while making a game that new players, or someone who only played DA:I years ago, can also get into."
"Unlike the vast galaxies we explore in our other franchises, Dragon Age: Dreadwolf returns us to Thedas, where we can revisit friends and places that are familiar," Narrative editor Ryan Cormier said in the blog. "Some fans haven’t spent time with Dragon Age since the 2014 release of Inquisition, while others have read every comic and story published since. Others never played a Dragon Age game at all and have no idea who the bald guy is (he’s Solas)."
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf behind-the-scenes look
During Gamescom Opening Night Live 2020, BioWare gave us a helping of Dragon Age 4 goodness with a behind-the-scenes look at the next adventure. Casey Hudson introduced the video by saying that the team "has been imagining new ways of using next-generation technology to bring the world of Dragon Age to life", and also confirmed that at that stage, the game was currently in the early stages of production.
Hearing from various BioWare developers working on the game, the video gave us a look at how the team are creating this new adventure, complete with some gorgeous concept art and very brief glimpses of game footage showing off different vistas and locations. We're also convinced one piece of concept art features Dorian Pavus underwater (because we absolutely need more Dorian).
We also get interesting tidbits from the developers, offering some insight into the direction of our return to Thedas. Lead writer Patrick Weekes says that Dragon Age 4 will tell a story that explores "what happens when you don't have power?", and "what happens when the people in charge aren't willing to address the issues?". This could mean we'll be playing as someone who's an underdog who does what the people in charge aren't willing to do. For now, we can only speculate, but it does make our imaginations run wild - especially if you think about what happened in the Dragon Age Inquisition Trespasser DLC.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf plot theories
The Game Awards 2018 debuted the first teaser trailer for what was then known as Dragon Age 4. You should watch the brief glimpse above, but essentially we see the #TheDreadWolfRises tagline, along with an ominous greeting from Solas of Dragon Age: Inquisition fame:
"So, you found me at last. I suspect you have questions."
If you're not intimately familiar with Dragon Age lore, the 'Dread Wolf' moniker refers to Fen'Harel, the Loki-like elven god of betrayal who has (spoilery) ties to Solas and features prominently in Inquisition's epilogue DLC, Trespasser. Most interestingly of all, the trailer prominently features a red lyrium idol, and it's not just any idol. Those of you who played Dragon Age 2 might recognize it. The idol plays a big role in the corruption of Kirkwall's templars. Now, if you fancy dipping into the second instalment in the series anytime soon, skip past the next section because it contains some *hefty spoilers*.
In the first act of Dragon Age 2, you go into the deep roads with Varric and his brother Bartrand in a bid to recover lost dwarven treasures and make your fortune. You stumble upon an ancient dwarven thaig filled to the brim with red lyrium, and sitting upon a pedestal is the very same idol we see in the trailer. The idol corrupts Bartrand, and causes him to turn his back on his own brother and leave him for dead in the deep roads.
Later on in Act 2, Varric asks you to go and confront Bartrand in his mansion in Hightown for his personal quest. You find out that the idol has poisoned his mind, and makes him "hear a song." As a result of the idol's corruptive power, the dwarf forced his servants to feed on the lyrium, and then proceeded to cut it off them while they were still alive. It's pretty awful, to say the least. After confronting and fighting Bartrand, you find out he sold the idol to a woman, who turns out to be none other than Kirkwall's Knight Commander, Meredith. The red lyrium drives Meredith to take her fight against the mages and magic to extremes and all but tear apart Kirkwall.
Now, from Dragon Age 2 we know red lyrium is very, very bad news in the world of Thedas. In Dragon Age: Inquisition, if you side with the mages early on, you'll be catapulted into a future scenario where Corypheus is wreaking havoc. And what makes an unfortunate comeback? Yep, you've guessed it: Red lyrium. You meet Fiona who appears to have red lyrium growing out of her, and she says Corypheus has been growing lyrium in living people and harvesting it from their corpses.
From the get go, lyrium courses throughout Inquisition, so naturally it makes sense that it's still a problem in Dragon Age 4. Since we know just how corruptive it can be, we also know it must hold untold power. And in the wrong hands... just what will it do? It looks like our old friend Solas might be getting his hands on it. The flash of a mural in the teaser as seen above shows what looks like a wolf beast with three eyes and an elf either side of the idol. The Dread Wolf rises right, so what if he does so using the idol? What does that mean for Thedas? We all know what Solas is planning to do, so it can't be good news.
Some eagle-eyed fans have already picked apart every inch of the trailer and explained their theories in impressive detail. If you want to take a deep dive into the trailer, this theory on reddit is quite compelling.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf will be a single-player game
As reported by Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, EA is removing all multiplayer and live service elements from Dragon Age 4 after Anthem failed to leave a lasting impression on critics and players. EA had reportedly been looking at the success of the single-player Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order compared to Anthem's critical and sales downfalls when it decided to scrap the online component and focus solely on single-player content.
Some months later, BioWare reaffirmed that Dragon Age 4 will be a single-player game.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf will take us to Tevinter
In a BioWare book published in 2020, the studio seemed to confirm the Dragon Age 4 setting to be Tevinter.
The book, titled BioWare: Stories and Secrets from 25 Years of Game Development mostly details the studio's storied history, but Eurogamer picked out a key detail of the next Dragon Age adventure. One entry reads in-part: "the long-awaited follow-up to Dragon Age: Inquisition … will take players to Tevinter as the events of Inquisition and Trespasser threaten to forever change Thedas."
We've suspected this to be the case since Tevinter was heavily alluded to at the end of Dragon Age: Inquisition Trespasser DLC. Later, an official blog post officially revealed we'll be venturing to the city of Minrathous in Tevinter.
"It’s also exciting to finally be able to bring our fans to parts of the world that we’ve previously hinted at, but never been able to fully explore - like the city of Minrathous, the capital of the Tevinter Empire," the blog post states. "We’ve talked about Minrathous in previous games, and now you’ll finally be able to visit! It’s a city built on and fuelled by magic, and the ways in which that has come through in its visual identity, and what that looks like in comparison to previous cities we’ve visited in Dragon Age, are pretty spectacular."
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf studio departures
Over the course of development, some key members of the BioWare team have since departed from the project, with new names joining the fold. The most recent layoffs in 2023 have seen the loss of series veterans, including writer Mary Kirby. In years prior, news came to light in November in 2021 in a statement to Kotaku that Dragon Age 4's senior creative director Matt Goldman and long-time alum had left. Following on from Goldman's exit, BioWare put out a blog post in February 2022 confirming that executive producer Christian Dailey had departed midway through production.
