The player of Dragon Age: Veilguard players will not be able to fully control their companions. BioWare says that it does not want to overload users with a lot of work during the game.
Speaking to Edge magazine, game director Corinne Boucher explained why Dragon Age: The Veilguard is abandoning the party control formula of previous games, even if the number of companions is reduced from three to two.
«You are in this world, you are really focused on your actions. We wanted the companions to feel like fully realized characters who are in control of their own actions. They make their own decisions… It’s a game with a much higher number of actions per minute. It is technically more demanding on the player. So when we tried to allow you to have full control of your companions, we found that it didn’t add to the experience, in fact it was detrimental in a way, given the demanding nature of controlling your own character».
Boucher admits that the substantial nature of this change may seem daunting, but this decision has been validated by BioWare testing:
«I admit, if you just read that you don’t have the ability to control your companions, it might not seem like much. But during our testing and validation with players, we found that they are more active than ever».
Without full control over the characters, the player will still be able to shape some of their actions during combat. Their abilities can be activated by activating her abilities from the control wheel. The developer offers an example: one companion uses a gravity well-style spell, the other slows down time, and then the player throws AoEs at grouped and slowed enemies.
It’s a big change in gameplay, but the words about high intensity and complexity are intriguing. It will be possible to see this in the game or in some very detailed demo.
Source: GamesRadar