BioWare hopes that Dragon Age: The Veilguard will help make up for the series’ previous character creators, particularly when it comes to non-white skin tones.
In an interview with Edge magazine, game director Corianne Busche acknowledged that some aspects of character creation were far from the series’ high points. “Full disclosure,” she admits, “Dragon Age has traditionally not done skin tones well, especially for people of color.”
As a result, she says, BioWare “wanted to do a make-good here.” We’ve not seen the full power of The Veilguard’s character creator yet, but it does look as though you’ll be able to adjust your Rook with a little more nuance than previous game allowed for.
That’s all part of what Busche says was BioWare’s “first creative principle” when it came to the entire game, not just character creation: “Be who you want to be.” Busche explains that “we really feel [features like character creation] are the kinds of features that unlock that for our players. We want everyone to be able to see themselves in this game.”
There’s little doubt that RPG character creation has come a long way in recent years, and 2023 certainly pushed the envelope in that regard. Both Baldur’s Gate 3 and Diablo 4 received particular praise for their inclusivity, and while even both of those games still had plenty of room for improvement, it does seem as though a new standard is being set, and The Veilguard wasn’t prepared to be left behind.
