A couple weeks ago, BioWare released a video highlighting the various means of progression in Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Into focus came skill progression, item progression, and companion progression, which sounds like…a lot. However, watching the video, the general tone of progression is in step with what BioWare’s done before, particularly in the Mass Effect series. Players will be able to amp up their Rooks with a variety of different skills and items (weapons and gears), and they’ll also be able to spec out their companions.  

While the best thing about this most recent look at Veilguard might be that it’s combat looked a little more satisfying than what was shown in the devs actual combat video, it nonetheless demonstrated that players will be given a lot of control over how they approach the game. The skill tree looked rather hefty, with lots of different pathways and choices for whatever you want your Rook to be. Choosing gear and abilities for companions is more limited, but the options to switch them out is there. Hearkening back to the original Dragon Age games, gear can again be enhanced with different runes, which further brings up that crafting remains a staples feature, too. It all looked, eh, okay. As I’ve meandered on about repeatedly, I’m not a micromanager in games, so I suspect that I’ll ignore a lot of Veilguard’s most in-depth progress-related customization offerings during my first playthrough, at least.

The one thing here that I find a bit disagreeable is the skill tree. I’m not a fan of the choice generally, and I can’t think of a single game in which I’ve ever been happy in having to navigate them. In fact, something that does come to mind is games that eventually got rid of skill trees in favor of much more streamlined approaches to progression. Cyberpunk 2077 is a big one there. Its original skill trees – there were so many of them! – were so confusing, I barely paid attention to the choices I was making. The system that was introduced with the games major 2.0 update is fantastic, and frankly could be a model for anything thinking of putting skill trees in their games. The new system is very user-friendly and flexible, albeit with fewer perks But the perks that are available are more meaningful, useful, and easy to apply within the game.

Another game that comes to mind is Neverwinter. Its progression system was considerably altered with it’s 21^st and 22^nd expansions. Prior, its skill trees, while generally easy to understand, were bloated with so many options, it was often hard to make sense of what was best for your character. Granted, choice is good, but not at the expense of one’s sanity! The new system did take away a lot of choices, as Cyberpunk 2077 did, but, again, the skill that were available were the best skills anyway. Taking away the burden of overgrown skill trees made playing the game much more enjoyable. The rework also removed the abundance of useless/low-level gear that could be acquired, an issue that Veilguard seems to have taken into account. Hard to say until the game is out and in player’s hands.

With about six weeks remaining until Veilguard’s release, I continue to be excited for it while also tempering my expectations. As I said a couple paragraphs ago, at least the looks that we’re getting of the game now have improved some. I’ll always be wary of any skill tree I come across; and, if my experience in previous Dragon Age games holds fast, I’ll probably forget about all of Veilguard’s systems once I’m let loose again in Thedas. Still, it’s good to know that if and when I am ready to get all tactical Dragon Age-style, the options will be there.

Lede image © BioWare, Electronic Arts.