"Dragon Age: The Veilguard Star Devastated by Backlash, Claims BioWare's Critics Wanted Failure"

Dragon Age star Alix Wilton Regan has shared her personal thoughts on the backlash against last year's Dragon Age: The Veilguard, attributing the "mixed reactions" to individuals who "wanted to see the game fail, or wanted to see [BioWare] fail."

Wilton Regan, who voices the Female Inquisitor in both Dragon Age: Inquisition and Dragon Age: The Veilguard, expressed to IGN her devastation over BioWare's latest game not reaching a broader audience, despite receiving largely positive reviews from critics.

In a recent interview where she discussed her various iconic roles in video games, including her part in Microsoft's upcoming Perfect Dark reboot, Wilton Regan reflected fondly on her time as BioWare's Inquisitor but expressed doubts about reprising the role in the future.

"I feel absolutely devastated for BioWare as a studio that they got such mixed reactions to the game," Wilton Regan said about The Veilguard. "I personally thought it was a really strong game. I thought it was just BioWare being more BioWare.

"I also think a lot of people kind of wanted to see it fail, or wanted to see [BioWare] fail, either because they're just really bad people on the internet — of which there are unfortunately many, as we have discovered."

Upon its release, The Veilguard faced review bombing, with criticism focused on the game's "woke" elements, such as the inclusion of a non-binary companion character and the option for players to choose a transgender protagonist. On Steam, the game is currently rated as 'Mixed' by players, and it is tagged with "LGBTQ+" and "politics."

"People were attacking the game before it was released," Wilton Regan added. "It's ridiculous. How can you judge a game, a book, a film, a TV show before it's actually released? You can't. It's an idiotic stance to take."

In January, EA reported that Dragon Age: The Veilguard had "underperformed" by about 50% compared to their expectations, shortly after the game's director, Corrine Busche, announced her departure from the company. Additionally, other BioWare staff involved with the game were laid off.

That same month, BioWare announced the final update for Dragon Age: The Veilguard, indicating no further content would be forthcoming.

"I only ever want to see the folks from BioWare thrive, because I adore them," Wilton Regan concluded. "And whatever they go on to do next I have no doubt their talents will be richly rewarded. We're really lucky we'll get more gold from them in the future."

A smaller BioWare team is now focusing on the development of Mass Effect 5, which does not yet have a release date.