Highlights
- Dragon Age: Dreadwolf may bring back the Origins-style backgrounds, allowing players to choose different character backstories based on race and class.
- A leaked screenshot of the game's interface referring to the character as "Level... Grey Warden" has sparked speculation about class options and potential return to the Grey Warden stronghold.
- The game's trailers and concept art hint at the return of character archetypes, such as Grey Wardens, Navarran Mortalitasi necromancers, Antivan Crow assassins, and members of the Antivan Felicisima Armada, suggesting possible player-character Origins.
Dragon Age has undergone a lot of changes over the last 14 years and is expected to change a lot more with the upcoming Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. While not everyone agrees on which changes are good and which are bad, there are a few things from the older games that most fans seem to like. Among them are the titular character Origins from Dragon Age: Origins.
Dragon Age: Origins lets players choose between different character backstories depending on their combination of race and class. Each of the five Origins had a unique prologue and unlocked a few extra scenes and interactions later in the game. Inquisition featured some race and class-specific dialogue options but lacked the play prologues. It was also arguably less varied, with one backstory per race, except for the human mages. However, there's a real possibility that Dragon Age: Dreadwolf might see a return to Origins-style backgrounds.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf might bring back DAO’s Origins
Even after years of development, BioWare hasn't revealed any of Dragon Age: Dreadwolf's gameplay. However, fans got a brief look at some of it thanks to a leak in February. This included a screenshot of the character's inventory. The interface is clearly unfinished, and parts appear to have been deliberately blurred. However, it refers to the character as "Level … Grey Warden."
Some fans have interpreted this as the name of the class, indicating Dreadwolf might move away from the traditional Warrior, Rogue, and Mage of previous games. However, it could also refer to the player's chosen Origin of the character. This interpretation may be reinforced by the fact that the leaked gameplay seems to take place in the Grey Warden stronghold of Weishaupt Fortress. While Dreadwolf’s story could take players to Weishaupt anyway, the fortress would be the obvious setting for a Grey Warden Origin.
Dreadwolf's trailers and concept art may also hint at the return of Origins. Some of the concept art appears to depict specific characters, but several also seem to depict character archetypes. Others are Dragon-age-specific. The latter includes Grey Wardens and characters believed to be Navarran Mortalitasi necromancers and Antivan Crow assassins. Another character has a piratical look, possibly indicating he is a member of the Antivan Felicisima Armada. Each of those four archetypes has at least one piece of concept dedicated only to them, which could indicate these are player-character Origins.
The necromancer appears to be a party member, but Wardens, Crows, and Pirates are exciting options for character backstories. They are also quite flexible in terms of race and class options. Grey Wardens include members of all classes and races, and it would not be surprising if a piratical organization is similarly diverse. The Crows are typically rogues, but one piece of concept art shows a blonde female warrior wearing similar armor to the Crow woman in the Dragon Age Day 2021 artwork.
Alternatively, Grey Wardens could be Dragon Age: Dreadwolf's default Origin available to all classes, with the others being class-restricted. However, it's also possible that BioWare wants to divorce Dreadwolf's Origin stories from the player's choice of race and class. This would make them more like Cyberpunk 2077’s Lifepaths than the prologues from Dragon Age: Origins.
That approach has at least one significant advantage over Dragon Age Origins' character backstories. The main argument against bringing Origins back is that it's a waste of development time since most Dragon Age Origins players picked the Human Noble. However, that was also the only Origin available for human Warriors and Rogues. Separating Origins from the other customization options could do a lot to flatten the popularity curve.
Of course, this is entirely speculation based on some admittedly flimsy evidence. Still, fans liked the Origin-specific prologues, and have been asking for their returns, so it’s not impossible that BioWare might bring them back in some form. Whether they resemble the DAO versions or something else is impossible to say.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf is in development.