The Veilguard Faced “Cultural Challenges” Even Before Being Hit With ‘Woke’ Accusations

After months of anticipation, Dragon Age: The Veilguard is finally here, and its early impressions range from massively favorable to overwhelmingly positive, depending on the platform. This game is already proving to be a huge success for BioWare, signaling the return of the studio to its glory days.

Despite being a phenomenal game, Dragon Age: The Veilguard has been the subject of massive criticism by many in the community due to it being “woke.” Some players are irked by the game’s diverse cast of characters, and others feel the diverse romance options rob characters of their personalities. However, even before these accusations, The Veilgaurd faced turbulent development due to cultural challenges.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard was Plagued With Development Problems

It’s been more than a decade since the last entry in the Dragon Age series, so it’s no surprise that The Veilguard is making waves in the community.

Originally, it was rebooted from a single-player title into a live-service game focussed around heavy multiplayer elements. It’s an element that we’re pretty used to seeing in all the recent EA games, including Anthem. In 2020, Gary McKay took over the project and was committed to making it a smash hit.

In a recent interview with Bloomberg, McKay opened up about the development process behind Dragon Age: The Veilguard. He reveals that he was influenced by the success of hits such as Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order over games such as Anthem. However, the game’s development faced several setbacks and challenges.

One of the most significant development issues was the pandemic, which forced BioWare to start hiring people remotely, which led to “cultural challenges.” Due to this sole reason, the game didn’t hit the original target and debuted last week.

Not only that, but BioWare also had to lay off 50 people last summer, which included some of the studio’s top names. According to McKay, the downsizing and refocusing of the team ultimately boosted the morale and productivity of the team in the end.

After all these hurdles, Dragon Age: The Veilguard has launched. Although we don’t have the sales figures yet, data suggest it’s performing exceptionally well. If so, it’s the much-needed comeback for BioWare after its disastrous releases in the last couple of years.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard Could Snatch GOTY 2024

Even though Dragon Age: The Veilgaurd was plagued with development hurdles and criticism over its so-called “woke” agenda, the game has proven to be a massive success.

Currently, it boasts “Mostly Positive” reviews on Steam, and that’s based on over 7,000 player impressions, the majority of which end with a recommendation. The game even surpassed Star Wars Jedi: Survivor as EA’s biggest single-player title, with over 70,000 players on Valve’s service.

Players have opined that the game’s combat is super fun and polished, even if some of them say they’d have preferred a more classic CRPG experience like Dragon Age: Origins.

The game’s PC performance is nothing short of spectacular, as it runs even on older hardware. It’s the first EA game in a very long time that doesn’t even need its dreadful launcher and straight-up boots from Steam.

Since it’s just been 3 days since the release of the game, The Veilgaurd will likely further improve on this impressive figure over the weekend. It’s undoubtedly going to be right up there when the time comes around for Game of the Year 2024.

With that said, what do you think about Dragon Age: The Veilguard? Let us know in the comments below.