#and datv despite its many problems

[thewardenisonthecase]

Despite everything, I do prefer veilguard to inquisition

[wild-magic-oops]

I finally finished DATV!

It takes a lot for a game to make me cry but DATV did that a few times. The writing at times is definitely lacking or cringe but ultimately I don't mind a more fluffy YA type of story, so it doesn't matter to me much. But the main story questline is filled with absolute bangers, especially Act 3. I think the majority of the main story questline was the first thing that got done, so it's the most polished. Then some side quests that pack a punch and some of the companions quests (or at least parts of them). Then the rest, so it shows.

But back to Act 3 - fantastic, especially playing as a Shadow Dragon. DA2 tried really hard to make Hawke care about Kirkwall but ultimately it failed to make me care about it or give me a reason for my Hawke to do so. DATV actually made me care about saving Minrathous. My Rook did it once and then it got blighted anyway at the end, which adds to his frustration and helplessness that's been building during the story.

There were so many moments that I wasn't sure whether everyone possible would make it and I absolutely loved the suspense. At the end everyone except Harding survived so I'm pleased with my results. What I really liked is that the exploration, building relationships with factions and companions, actually plays a role in the end. And it's not boiled down to some extra spells I can use in the final encounter (I'm looking directly at you BG3). Companions and factions are actually woven into the final battle and I love that.

Now about Solas - he was one of the reasons I bought the game. I was really curious how his story would go and I have to say I'm very satisfied in that regard. His interactions with Rook were always intriguing to me, and they're delicious in Act 3.

I expected the ending slides to be a disappointment bc that's something that would be probably done at the very end anyway, so no surprises there. I definitely wish there was more. But tbh, the fact that the game came out at all, with no microtransactions, no day 1 paid dlcs that hide important lore, no major bugs (and barely any for me at least), fun gameplay, amazing qol stuff - it's a surprise. And I feel like people who are very disappointed are so bc they went into it with high expectations, which they should've tempered given what was known about the development hell the game went through and about EA. Despite its flaws, the game offers much to fans to enjoy if they actually want to do that and are not obsessed over what it could've or should've been. And that's only taking into consideration the valid criticism. This is the place to say I actually don't care that the game was a soft reboot and ignored previous choices. Ofc it would've been great if it wasn't like that, but I honestly didn't expect much bc bioware always pushed their own canon and mostly ignored other choices or retconned how your previous character felt about certain things. And not to mention how the Divine choice would've been an absolute hell to implement to begin with, unless they once again made certain choices not matter, which would've been worse imo.

I love Mass Effect much more than Dragon Age. And DATV felt like a fantasy ME game, so I liked it for what it is. I honestly don't miss the "but what if oppression is actually excusable and a valid choice ehehe" type of bs from the previous games, I don't miss the South, and I don't miss slurs and xenophobic remarks thrown in my or companions' faces every second conversation bc the game doesn't trust me to really get that smth is wrong without overdoing it and feeding me like a baby. Yes, Veilguard doesn't stress those topics enough, but that's mostly bc it focuses on bigger problems. But they're still there, often in the main questline. And I want to point out that I do in fact love intriguing political knots set in fantasy lands. But in my book DA has not been great at this, so I don't care that they did away with that and focused on an epic save-the-world story instead for this particular game (which fans should've known was the path bc Tresspasser basically tells you that).

Time for a replay now ofc