Gamers who are looking forward to the next Dragon Age game should temper their expectations, as The Veilguard wasn’t quite the runaway success the studio, EA, and fans needed it to be.Dragon age could end up being shelved for a long timescreenshot: biowareDragon Age: The Veilguard had the weight of the world on its shoulders when it was released nearly two years ago, in 2024. It had been a decade since BioWare released what many fans of the studio consider its last great game in Dragon Age Inquisition, as the studio entered a major slump following the 2014 hit. It was during this slump that BioWare released the hugely disappointing Mass Effect Andromeda, and following the failure of its 2019 live service attempt Anthem, faith in BioWare reached an all-time low. After two huge duds, fans turned to the next Dragon Age game, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, as the title that could redeem BioWare and get the studio back on track to once again creating some of the best RPGs the industry has to offer. While The Veilguard released to decent reception, it didn’t become the savior BioWare fans had been hoping for, and the game even fell short of EA’s sales expectations. Two years later, Dragon Age: The Veilguard isn’t viewed nearly as poorly as Andromeda or Anthem, but it’s not considered a success either.could another EA studio run with a new dragon age game?screenshot: biowareAccording to longtime Dragon Age veteran Mark Darrah, fans of BioWare’s fantasy franchise shouldn’t get their hopes up about a new entry anytime soon. It’s not only because BioWare is currently working on an all-new Mass Effect game. In speaking with FRVR, Darrah mentioned the decade-long gap between Dragon Age games, and explained how difficult it is to get games greenlit at EA. He also mentioned how EA has no problem with letting IPs sit dormant for very long periods of time. “I think it was happening because of EA’s complicated relationship to shipping games at all. Someone once described to me EA as a hedge fund with a video game hobby that it wished it didn’t spend so much money on. And I think that remains true… EA owns a frightening number of IPs that are dormant”While Darrah didn’t directly mention The Veilguard‘s struggles as a potential reason for reluctance surrounding the Dragon Age name, it’s likely that Veilguard‘s poor performance and relatively lukewarm reception left a sour taste in EA’s mouth. Additionally, heading into The Veilguard, many fans knew the preceding Dragon Age game, Inquisition, was a critically acclaimed hit. That won’t be the case for the next Dragon Age entry. screenshot: biowareDarrah also mentioned the possibility of another EA studio pitching a Dragon Age game but remained cynical about the idea of the IP going to a different studio. He predicts that if a different team within EA were to take a stab at a Dragon Age pitch, BioWare would do what it can to sabotage the pitch in order to maintain control of the IP, further limiting the chances of fans seeing another Dragon Age game anytime soon.“The problem is I don’t know who at BioWare would pitch a Dragon Age. So the other option is somebody else within the EA organisation decides they’re gonna pitch a Dragon Age and, what I expect would happen if they try to do that, is somebody at BioWare would essentially become one of those people jumping under the vents to rip that person apart.”If Dragon Age really does end up being shelved or frozen, it would be interesting to see what BioWare does after this next Mass Effect game. The more likely road would see it take a swing at a new IP.The post Dragon Age Fans Shouldn’t Expect a New Game Anytime Soon, According to BioWare Veteran appeared first on VICE.