GamesRPGDragon AgeDragon Age: The VeilguardI’m slightly less panicked about Dragon Age: The Veilguard after seeing 24 seconds of gameplayWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

GamesRPGDragon AgeDragon Age: The VeilguardI’m slightly less panicked about Dragon Age: The Veilguard after seeing 24 seconds of gameplayWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: BioWare)

Dragon Age: The Veilguard environment shot of Minrathous at night

I wasn’t expecting to seeDragon Age: The Veilguardturn up at the Xbox Games Showcase over the weekend ahead of the gameplay reveal it had already planned for tomorrow. But turn up it did, with a CG trailer that had a lot of fans, including me, very nervous about the plastic-y, poreless character designs. Partly to quell that public panic, I’m willing to bet, BioWare just gave us a “sneak peak” at 24 seconds of the planned 15+ minute gameplay reveal tomorrow. Everyone take ten deep breaths. It looks better—probably.

As my colleague Robin Valentine pointed out yesterday, the CG trailer debuted at the Xbox show had serioushero shooter vibes, with a “hello fellow kids” kind of banter that I don’t associate with the dry, dark humor of Thedas.

I was worried too, and spent the evening consoling myself with thoughts of theSacred Ashes trailerfor Dragon Age: Origins and theDragon Age 2 Destiny trailer, both of which looked very different from the actual games. The Veilguard’s trailer did say “game engine footage,” though I’m not certain how much stock to place in that.

Anyhow, here’s that new24 seconds of The Veilguardwhich definitelyisin-game footage:

Enjoy this sneak-peek at tomorrow’s Gameplay Reveal!Rook and Varric arrive in the stunning - and seedy - city of Minrathous. Little do they know what dangers await. Tune in tomorrow to find out: https://t.co/UGVqA1ZiTE #DragonAge pic.twitter.com/LSJ3oBVoZoJune 10, 2024

Enjoy this sneak-peek at tomorrow’s Gameplay Reveal!Rook and Varric arrive in the stunning - and seedy - city of Minrathous. Little do they know what dangers await. Tune in tomorrow to find out: https://t.co/UGVqA1ZiTE #DragonAge pic.twitter.com/LSJ3oBVoZoJune 10, 2024

“Rook and Varric arrive in the stunning—and seedy—city of Minrathous. Little do they know what dangers await,” BioWare says in the accompanying post.

Now look, this thing is a somewhat compressed video posted to X in a maximum of 720p so I can’t tell if the whole world looks just as shellac-ed as Scout Harding’s face did in that reveal. We don’t see either Varric or our protagonist Rook’s faces here either, but this seems like something Imightbe happy to call a Dragon Age game.

It’s dark. It’s moody. And if it’s not as grimy and gritty as we’re used to, well, we already knew that the cultural hub of Minrathous was going to be way more advanced than the backwaters of Ferelden where the series began.

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We’ll see the remainder of this scene tomorrow, I’m sure, but for now we can hear Varric and Rook deciding to chase down one of the game’s companions Neve Gallus to help track Solas, the presumptive villain of Veilguard who lost his name rights when theDreadwolf title got replaced.

It is funny to me that this first peek shows us walking around on a quest with Varric. From the companion reveals yesterday, we assumed that he wouldn’t be a full party member again. That’s likely still true, but neither has he been relegated to hub areas like the advisors of Dragon Age: Inquisition. He’s still got to get out and about. Please let that man put his feet up for once, damn.

I don’t think this gameplay peek entirely assuages the fears I share with PC Gamer mag editor Rob Jones who worried thatDragon Age has lost its identitybased on the cartoony physical gags of the reveal trailer. But it’s a nod in the right direction, at least.

The rest of the gameplay reveal isscheduled for tomorrow, June 11 at 8 am Pacific / 11 am Eastern. I’ll reserve my full judgment until then, but I’m feeling a little less leery than I was this weekend.

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Morrigan, the Witch of the Wilds in the Dragon Age serries, shown wielding magic in front of a Darkspawn.

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