Game Review: Dragon Age Inquisition (Xbox One)

“Mages and templars, and innocent people caught in the middle. Some things never change.”
Dragon Age: Inquisition is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. The third major game in the Dragon Age franchise, Dragon Age: Inquisition is the sequel to Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II. The game was released in November 2014 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.

The story of Dragon Age: Inquisition follows a player character known as the Inquisitor on a journey to settle the civil unrest in the continent of Thedas and close a mysterious tear in the sky called the “Breach”, which is unleashing dangerous demons upon the world. The Inquisitor is viewed by some as the ‘chosen one’, as they have a ‘Mark’ on their hand capable of closing the Breach. The Inquisitor assembles the titular Inquisition in an attempt to stop Corypheus, an ancient darkspawn, who opened the breach in an attempt to conquer Thedas.

Dragon Age: Inquisition follows its predecessors Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II, but although they’re similar and it fits the franchise, this game in my opinion is vastly improved. Of course it’s difficult to compare it to the feeling you felt when you played Dragon Age: Origins for the first time and looked at the world with fresh eyes but this game rekindled that feeling for me. The excitement I felt when entering the world as my new character, ready to take on whatever evil Bioware had created for us to face was unquestionably up there with how I felt the first time around. Not only is it graphically vibrant and beautiful but the companions are top tier and sassy as ever, also the story itself is easy to invest in and want to see through. Additionally all the DLC are definitely worth playing and add to the experience.

The world is larger than ever before and unlike Dragon Age II its landscapes are varied, each place different from before and filled with different enemies, plants and animals. Additionally for the first time ever, mounts are available. I use the word “mounts” because it’s not just simply basic horses you can ride around. There’s just so much to see and do in this vast world, I tried my best to sample everything and after 100 hours there’s definitely aspects I’ve missed. I enjoyed most of what’s to offer but I often got lost in making my own armours for every member of my team (in the same matching colour of course) and choosing different décor for our main fortress (Skyhold) – Customization is something I always revel in.

Combat is considerably more strategy based, you have the ability to use a tactical camera that pauses combat and allows you full control over your character and your allies. You can point them to move to a different place or perform attacks on any enemy you’re facing and then fast forward to see the effects. It’s much more manageable than playing in normal speed; I found it extremely useful during tough battles.

I played as a Mage which I found much more enjoyable than the other 2 classes, it feels awesome to wield such power in your hands. I chose my character (Lucius Trevelyan) to focus more on his fire abilities and specialize in necromancy, simply having the ability to ignite your enemies in a wall of fire or raise them from the dead to fight by your side momentarily makes you feel truly all-powerful and lights up the screen in a stunning display of colour. As the main character, you’re The Herald (later known as The Inquisitor) and you have a mark on your hand that can close fade rifts that are spewing demons everywhere. Over the course of the game your mark increases in power and effectiveness until you can even create a barrier or make your entire party invincible for a short time (DLC).

^ my character, woo 🙂

One major aspect to Dragon Age: Inquistion is that you can import your previous world-state into the current game. Players who do not have or choose not to import a world-state into Inquisition will be provided a default “canon” as in Dragon Age II: an “Ultimate Sacrifice” Dalish Warden, Alistair made King, and Hawke a male mage who sided with the mages. Honestly, I found doing this a little tricky (you have to use The Keep website to choose your previous decisions then import them, sounds easier than it appears because it can fuck up) and as such played through the game more than once to get it right.

During my first play through I only realised when I got the default Hawke show up and mine was a woman so it was obvious my world hadn’t imported correctly. Initially in my first 2 playthroughs I decided to be a Warrior woman but for my last version (and the one I actually completed the game with) I played a Mage man. I played as a man for the first time in any Bioware game, having previously been a female Warden, Hawke and Shepard in Mass Effect. My main reason for being male was so I could romance the dashing Tevinter Mage, Dorian.

The companions are what made this game for me. I’ve always loved Dragon Age companions (Dragon Age II not so much, I only liked my romance Anders and Varric) but this time I liked more than just a handful. Some I found irritating, such as Sera and Vivienne. But they were never boring and I was proud of who they all became at the end of the story. In addition to your main 9 companions, there are 4 advisors: Cullen, Leliana, Josephine and eventually Morrigan. They’re a great mix and really add to the rest, making you feel at home and giving you different support options in missions.

Let me go into detail on my top 3 favourite companions:

Firstly, my favourite character and romance: Dorian Pavus.

Dorian is the first male exclusive romance in a Bioware game, but instead of playing my own gender I cheated a bit and played as a male just to experience his romance option and I definitely made the perfect choice.

Since playing Dragon Age: Inquisition I think I’ve developed a slight obsession over his character, and I was extremely excited for the sequel to be heavily insinuated that it’ll be set in Tevinter. As evil as people from Tevinter are made out to be, Dorian is kind and sweet.
He never failed to make me laugh and every time there were cut scenes or any interactions between him and my Inquisitor I was thrilled. I hope this is not the last we see of him, I look forward to him critiquing my next characters outfits and perhaps a Pavus/Trevelyan wedding?

Up next is Varric Tethras.
Yes, Varric returns! But this time he’s a little different…

That’s right. Varric’s hot. But no, he’s not romanceable unfortunately. But regardless, Varric is the best. He’s witty, sarcastic, and I wish they’d actually publish his books in real life because I would buy the shit out of them. If only Varric was real, what I wouldn’t give to get drunk, play Wicked Grace and hear all his stories (the scene in which this happens is too short!).

Finally, the big guy: The Iron Bull.

If Dorian didn’t exist then I’d have romanced The Iron Bull, there’s something undeniably different about this Qunari. Although he’s followed the Qun his whole life and was a spy for Ben-Hassrath, he’s a funny, straight talking and extremely loyal guy. His love for dragons is also extremely cute.

One negative I have to say about The Iron Bull is that if you don’t romance Dorian then he’ll take him for his own conquest, which makes me feel all kinds of jealous so I’m glad that didn’t happen for me.

It’s a stunning, open world rpg with excellent companions, story and it’s DLC are actually worthwhile playing (Trespasser is my favourite because you get to see 2 years into the future!).

Negatives are that you never get to see your Warden! I was pretty upset about that, because as cool as seeing Hawke is, the Warden is the original and from a superior game. Plus, I became Queen and married Alistair so how can we not even be involved in such a big war! You get some interaction with him briefly and the Wardens are involved but it’s not enough damn it…

Now to post some more pretty images of Dorian to finish this off, enjoy.