“EA’s historically been, and I don’t really know why, but they’ve even said this publicly, kind of against remasters. It’s strange for a publicly traded company to basically be against free money, but they seem to be against it. That’s part of it,” says Darrah.

Of course, bringing all three titles together into one package would have been “harder than Mass Effect to do; to some degree unknowably harder. Maybe only a little bit harder, maybe a lot harder.” This is likely because of their vastly different toolsets and engines.

BioWare had some ideas on how to tackle this, though. “Let’s do Frostbite tools, and then let’s find a mod house that seems talented and pay them to do a remake of Dragon Age Origins.” Darrah revealed that, “There were lots of pitches around. A remaster, you kind of get Dragon Age 2 for free, a remake you don’t.”

“EA’s stance was probably, ‘Sure, go ahead and do it, but do it with the money you already have.’ And it’s like, ‘Well, we can’t do it with the money that we already have because we’re doing all these other things.'” Darrah has mentioned a lack of support from EA in the past, while former writer David Gaider says it always preferred Mass Effect over Dragon Age, so that may have also played a part.

Dragon Age is even less likely to receive any support following the underwhelming performance of Dragon Age: The Veilguard and BioWare’s restructuring, with the studio now focused on the next Mass Effect. While Veilguard has received extensive criticism, it saw no shortage of troubles during its long development period, as reported by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier.

According to Gaider, EA had a preference for the sci-fi franchise rather than Dragon Age‘s fantasy settings and more strategic gameplay. He wrote about the marketing team also having the same preference since they were unsure of how to market a dark fantasy franchise like Dragon Age, while Mass Effect‘s sci-fi trappings and more action-oriented gameplay were more marketable.

“While I was at BioWare, EA *always* preferred Mass Effect, straight up,” wrote Gaider. “Their Marketing team liked it more. It was modern. It had action. They never quite knew what to do with [Dragon Age], and whenever DA outperformed ME, ME got the excuses. If you ask me, it was always just shy of the axe since DA Origins.”

With his post, Gaider was responding to a fan of the Dragon Age franchise who commented on the sense that EA seemingly had a preference for Mass Effect even from the perspective of someone outside of the industry. A follow-up question was asked about whether the marketing team’s inability to figure out how to work with the Dragon Age franchise led to each game being quite different from its predecessor.

“Maybe in part,” responded Gaider. “I’d say the biggest reason was that, while I was there, the BioWare teams were bad at overreaction. They’d take the feedback/criticism to heart – both our own and the fans’ – and generally fixed that but also over-corrected. And then there was EA’s influence on top of that, yes.”

The first game in the Dragon Age franchise, Dragon Age: Origins, was released all the way back in 2009. Several DLC releases followed, and it also received a full-fledged sequel in 2011 with Dragon Age 2. The series then went quiet for a while as BioWare started wrapping up the Mass Effect trilogy before getting Dragon Age: Inquisition in 2014.

The most recent game in the franchise was last year’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard, released in October 2024 on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. For more details, check out our review. As for some insight into some of the game design decisions that were made around The Veilguard, check out our coverage of the UX designer’s comments on changing the game’s interface due to feedback from QA teams.

Unfortunately, Dragon Age: The Veilguard underperformed in the market according to EA’s earnings report back in January. EA CEO Andrew Wilson revealed in February that he believed it was because of the RPG’s lack of multiplayer and shared-world features. According to Wilson, despite its warm critical reception, the game failed to resonate with a broader audience in the competitive market.

While I was at BioWare, EA *always* preferred Mass Effect, straight up Their Marketing team liked it more. It was modern. It had action. They never quite knew what to do with DA, and whenever DA outperformed ME, ME got the excuses. If you ask me, it was always just shy of the axe since DA Origins.

— David Gaider (@davidgaider.bsky.social) 2025-04-14T07:11:01.939Z

Maybe in part? I'd say the biggest reason was that, while I was there, the BioWare teams were bad at overreaction. They'd take the feedback/criticism to heart – both our own and the fans' – and generally fixed that but also overcorrected.And then there was EA's influence on top of that, yes.

— David Gaider (@davidgaider.bsky.social) 2025-04-14T07:57:50.921Z

The patch also adds a setting to turn off Bloom and a Hide/Show UI option when pausing on consoles. PC players also get a Take Photo button when paused, allowing for screenshots during cinematics and dialogue exchanges. There are also fixes for several issues, including one that prevented certain PC saves from loading.

If you saw two Neves during the “Fire and Ice” quest and had trouble following the spirit guides in “The Warden Vault,” those should no longer occur. Your Ultimate also won’t swap to the default anymore.

Check out the full patch notes below. Dragon Age: The Veilguard is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. You can read our review, where we gave it a 7 out of 10.

Patch 4 Release Notes

New Content:

Dragon Age 2 Hawke’s Iconic Outfit

• Armor
• Body Paint
• Face Paint

Qunari Complexions

• Two new complexions for the Qunari lineage

Quality of Life Changes:

In Patch 3, we introduced a line on screen showing where a Photo Mode screenshot was saved. In Patch 4, we are reverting that change due to a safety concern brought to us by some content creators. PC players can find their Photo Mode screenshots in Documents/BioWare/Dragon Age: The Veilguard/screenshots

• Added an in-game Setting to turn off Bloom.
• Added a “Hide/Show UI” button on the pause screen to better take screenshots on Console.
• Added a “Take Photo” button on the pause screen to take screenshots during conversations and cinematics on PC.

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed an issue that prevented some saves from loading properly. (PC Only)
• Fixed an issue that was preventing the Frame Rate Limit setting from being saved.
• Fixed an issue with Rook’s face and hair changing drastically when a save is loaded.
• Fixed an issue with certain longer hairstyles that floated above Rook’s chest and shoulders.
• Fixed an issue where two Neve characters could appear in the Fire and Ice quest.
• Fixed a rare issue where Emmrich did not lead Rook to the next task in his recruitment Where the Dead Must Go quest.
• Adjusted the spirit guides in The Warden Vault quest.
• Fixed an issue that caused the Ultimate Ability to swap to the default Ultimate.
• Fixed an issue where the Ultimate Ability Icon was not displayed after Bellara is recruited.
• Fixed an issue where the first hit in a Warrior Rook’s shield throw may miss the target unintentionally.
• Fixed an issue where the Slaughter of Pillars Revenant had no health bar.
• Fixed an issue that caused Achievement Progress to reset when a new Rook was created. This will not restore Achievement Progress that was overwritten, but your Rooks will no longer compete with each other for who can kill more High Dragons.
• Fixed an issue with the camera in The Demon’s Bargain quest when playing on an HDD.
• Fixed an issue with the camera in the Sea of Blood quest if Rook backtracked too far.
• Fixed two instances where Viago was clearly talking to Rook but was too absorbed by Teia’s beauty and staring at her instead.
• Fixed an issue with Photo Mode screenshots appearing slightly blurry for some players.
• Fixed an issue where taking a screenshot with the space bar in Photo Mode also toggled the highlighted setting at the same time. (PC Only)
• Fixed an audio issue that caused battle music to stop playing while Rook was still fighting darkspawn in A Warden’s Best Friend quest.
• Fixed an audio issue that prevented music from playing during a conversation with Lucanis in the Lighthouse.
• Fixed a rare lighting issue in the One Last Breath quest
• Fixed a blocking issue in the Fire and Ice quest when returning to the Lighthouse.
• Fixed a blocking issue in the Blood of Arlathan quest if Rook backtracked too far.
• Fixed a UI issue that caused the “New Item” highlight to get stuck on an item.
• Fixed an issue with the In Lost Friendship codex that was mentioning events out of order and possibly with the wrong companion.
• Fixed an issue that was causing the male British Inquisitor (Harry Hadden-Paton) to be pitched too low.
• Updated several German voice line instances with corrected translations.

That’s as per Jon Epler, creative director on The Veilguard, who said in a recent interview with Rolling Stone that though he would “love” to see a remastered collection of the first three Dragon Age titles similar to 2021’s Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, it would be a much more “challenging” project due to engine-related issues.

Specifically, unlike the original Mass Effect trilogy – which was built entirely on the flexibility and developer-friendly Unreal Engine – the first three Dragon Age titles were not only built on different engines – with BioWare’s internal Eclipse Engine used for Origins and 2, and EA’s Frostbite for Inquisition – those engines are also more complicated to work with, especially for a remastered collection meant to bring all three games together.

Either way, Epler says you shouldn’t completely discount the possibility regardless.

“I think I’m one of about maybe 20 people left at BioWare who’s actually used Eclipse,” he said. “It’s something that’s not going to be as easy Mass Effect, but we do love the original games. Never say never, I guess that’s what it comes down to.”

Meanwhile, Epler has also confirmed that BioWare has no plans for post-launch DLC for The Veilguard, with BioWare now shifting its full focus to the next Mass Effect as its main project. Read more on that through here.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is available on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

Taking to Twitter, Gaider said that, even in 2016, he felt a resentment from other parts of the studio.

“Even BioWare, which built its success on a reputation for good stories and characters, slowly turned from a company that vocally valued its writers to one where we were… quietly resented, with a reliance on expensive narrative seen as the ‘albatross’ holding the company back,” Gaider said on Twitter.

David Gaider worked with BioWare for 17 years before his departure back in 2016. Gaider worked as the lead writer for Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, and Dragon Age: Inquisition. BioWare is currently working on its fourth Dragon Age game, titled Dragon Age: Dreadwolf.

Recently, former BioWare veteran Mark Darrah returned the studio as a consultant to help development on Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. EA is also reportedly bringing in the Mass Effect team to help on the game’s development.

Maybe that sounds like a heavy charge, but it's what I distinctly felt up until I left in 2016. Suddenly all anyone in charge was asking was "how do we have LESS writing?" A good story would simply happen, via magic wand, rather than be something that needed support and priority.

— David Gaider (@davidgaider) May 3, 2023

It seems, however, that BioWare Points are being retired. A Reddit user posted an email from the publisher which stated that BioWare Points would no longer be available on Origin from October 11th. As a result, DLC for Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3 are now free to claim. This doesn’t apply to Multiplayer Packs for Mass Effect 3 and currencies like Crystals and Platinum for other titles remain.

Those with points remaining can use them to purchase Multiplayer Packs in Mass Effect 3. However, after October 11th, packs must be purchased with Credits. And yes, those who already purchased content with BioWare Points will still have access to them.

While not technically an official announcement, I can confirm that paid single-player DLC for Mass Effect 3 – like Citadel, Omega and Leviathan – can now be claimed for free. The same applies to Mass Effect 2 with its Lair of the Shadow Broker, Kasumi – Stolen Memory, Overlord, Arrival, and so on. So if you’ve never played the DLC for either of these games or the first two Dragon Age titles, now is the time.

For the sports enthusiasts out there, MLB The Show 22 and Cricket 22 are both available on Game Pass for console and cloud starting today. Starting April 7, cloud users will be able to play Dragon Age 2, Star Wars Squadrons, and Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare via EA Play. The same day will also see the launch of Chinatown Detective Agency, a cybernoir point and click adventure, for Game Pass on console, PC, and cloud.

April 12 is also going to see some activity, with the addition of Life is Strange: True Colors (console, cloud, and PC), strategy title Panzer Corps 2 (PC only), and tactical RPG The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk (already available on console and cloud, coming to PC).

Finally, on April 14, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers will get access to Lost in Random on PC, cloud, and console via EA Play.

MASS EFFECT ANDROMEDA

No one needs to be told about the massive legacy of the original Mass Effect trilogy. Barring some missteps here and there, BioWare’s first three Mass Effect games are collectively probably the best work they’ve ever done. Then there’s Mass Effect Andromeda, which is… not. To be fair, Andromeda is a good game in its own right, and it certainly has a lot going for it, but it just doesn’t do justice to the magic of its predecessors. Even if we ignore the overblown criticism the game was subject to at the time of its launch, we still have to accept that Andromeda is a pretty big step back from the Commander Shepard trilogy.

In this feature, we’ll be taking a look at all the games that BioWare has ever made (barring a couple that were on mobile devices or made for web browsers), and ranking every single one of them, starting with the worst one, and counting down right to the very best.

Without further ado, let’s get started.

#17. SHATTERED STEEL

Though BioWare is a studio associated with RPGs and storytelling, the first game they ever made was something completely different. Shattered Steel was a mech action title, which took cues from the MechWarrior series, but went for a more accessible and action-oriented style of gameplay (which you can translate to “it had more mindless explosions).

Shattered Steel was a decent enough game, with enjoyable action and a story that, for its time, was at least mildly entertaining. It was, however, a far cry from the kind of games BioWare would build its reputation on and go on to be associated with, and is, as a result, often altogether forgotten.

Anthem may more or less be borked, but Electronic Arts’ still has other offerings that are definitely worth looking into. The publisher is currently holding a sale for a number of its PC titles on Origin. Discounts go up to 80 percent, with the sale ending on March 19^th, 10 AM PST. These include titles like Titanfall 2 (75 percent off), The Sims 4 (63 percent off), Madden NFL 19 (67 percent off), and Battlefield 5 (50 percent off).

You can even pick up some bundles, like Titanfall 2 Ultimate Edition and Battlefield 1 Revolution for 80 percent off. If you’re more interested in the glory days of BioWare, then perhaps the Mass Effect Trilogy is worth a look at 50 percent off. You can even pick up Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age 2, each a whopping 75 percent off from their original asking price.

However, our personal recommendation is Command and Conquer: The Ultimate Collection, discounted by 50 percent and including pretty much every major C&C title ever made. Command and Conquer, the Red Alert series, Generals, and Tiberium Wars are all bundled together. Just pretend that Command and Conquer 4: Tiberian Twilight isn’t there and all is good.