Dragon Age: The Veilguard was able to win three awards at the Gayming Awards 2025, including Game of the Year. The accolades were earned despite underperforming commercially, mixed reviews, and public backlash concerning 'woke' themes.
BioWare released the title last year, spending the better part of a decade in development limbo. Veilguard is an installment that stood as one of the most controversial games of 2024.
While others embraced it, fans of the dark, grittier aesthetic of the game were quite unhappy. Grievances reflected after the first quarter of release as Game Rant reported that the game failed EA's expectations by 50 percent.
Awards Received by Dragon Age: The Veilguard
The Gayming Awards 2025, as the name suggests, focuses on titles with LGBTQ+ themes. Dragon Age: The Veilguard was able to snag awards for Best LGBTQ+ Character, Best LGBTQ+ Voice Actor of the Year, and Game of the Year.
In Veilguard, the player pilots Rook, with the game allowing players to decide their sexual orientation and gender identity. Erika Ishii, the recipient of the LGBTQ+ Voice Actor of the Year award, contributed by voicing a version of Rook.
Adding to this element, the game also features non-binary characters like Taash. Putting these in consideration, Veilguard winning awards here made sense.
The only other award the game won was Outstanding Video Game at the 36th GLAAD Media Awards. However, this has been met with sarcasm by former fans of the franchise.
Backlash for 'Woke' Themes and LGBTQ+ Representation
Just days into the game's release, Veilguard was met with public backlash for its 'woke' themes and LGBTQ+ representation. Netizens even opted to conduct a review bombing campaign against the game immediately.
In the photo above is a comparison from reviews on Google. There are more than 3,000 people that find a one-star review helpful over the spam of five-star reviews.
Among other grievances included inconsequential decision making (which is a key RPG element), flat dialogue and characters, and missing identity. Fans have certainly voiced how far the game has veered away from its roots.
Most notably, commenters felt like the end of the previous instalment Dragon Age: Inquisition felt aimless. Fans felt like the big cliffhanger for Inquisition was succeeded by an uninspired continuation in Veilguard.
IGN's review on the game reflected these comments.
'As a continuation of the Dragon Age series, Veilguard does feel a little disconnected from where we left off a decade ago. If you were expecting decisions from previous games in the series to carry over, I'm sorry to say they've never mattered less.'
The game is rated a 2.4 out of 5 with more than 7,000 ratings. The majority of the reviews have given the title a one-star review. A fan even made a four-hour long-form video noting how the franchise was 'ruined' due to Veilguard. Even with the game's recent awards, it's highly unlikely that the fanbase will see a sequel.
A few months prior, BioWare suffered layoffs with team members who have contributed to the game either being fired or repurposed. Before this took place, Corinne Busche, Director of Dragon Age: The Veilguard left the company. In addition, the company is currently working on the next Mass Effect game.
