‘Dragon Age 3′ Name Change, Shift to Next-Gen Explained

Fans of fantasy RPG’s likely had their hopes buoyed by the cinematic E3 2013trailer for Dragon Age: Inquisition (viewable above), bringing back old characters for a brand new chapter in the series. Yet savvy viewers likely picked up on something else in the footage: that BioWare had severed ties to the title Dragon Age 3, and the presumed connections the game would have to the series’ last numbered entry.

With next-gen on the horizon and marketing as strategic as ever, plenty of reasons for the name change were proposed: poor fan reception to Dragon Age 2, saving the numbered sequel for next-gen, and more. Now EA has offered an official explanation, claiming that the decision isn’t meant to fool anyone, but make the message clear to fans and newcomers: Dragon Age: Inquisition will be telling a story completely separate from either game that came before it.

It wasn’t long ago that BioWare finally announced Dragon Age 3: Inquisition, releasing little more than a continued pledge to put fan complaints to rest with the third entry in the franchise, and a logo treatment. After that announcement was made (before Xbox One and PS4 were publicly confirmed), evidence began to suggest that BioWare wasn’t quite locked into any portion of their development.

Screenshots and concept art were uncovered depicting worlds far bigger and more elaborate than the series had enjoyed on consoles, and employee resumes hinted that a next-gen release was being targetted. Then came the E3 trailer confirming that not only would the game be coming to next-gen systems, it would do so under an adjusted name.

Speaking with IGN, EA Labels president Frank Gibeau explains the decision to swap number for simply subtitle, citing a desire to focus players not on the games that came before, but the task of Inquisitor awaiting them:

“I think there’s always this debate over numbers versus no numbers, what works, what doesn’t work… We felt like we wanted to bring more attention to the word Inquisition, because that’s more the story arc of what it’s like. There’s a whole bunch of gameplay and features and big story choices related to how you go through this Inquisition that happens in the world.”

“It’s a tactical marketing decision… There wasn’t anything that strategic about it, to be blunt. We just wanted to draw more attention to the fact that Inquisition is an all-new chapter inside of the Dragon Age universe, as opposed to people expecting a follow-on to Dragon Age 1 and 2 in a literal, linear sense.”

It’s common these days to hear any sizable franchise seeking larger audiences to promise that “you don’t need to play the old games to enjoy this one,” and cynics maintain that while a third act may be fun, story and investment are essential to role-playing experiences. It’s too early to tell how much Inquisition will deliver on those claims – since Morrigan, the trailer’s narrator isn’t the only returning character – but there is more good news for consumers not yet convinced that next-gen consoles are for them (in their current states, at least).

The number being dropped to establish Inquisition as a standalone chapter makes sense (although causes us even more confusion over Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag), but what about the sudden enthusiasm for next-gen consoles as well as current? Gibeau points to motivation from the technical side, aided greatly by DICE’s work on the Frostbite engine:


“Just the raw capabilities of Frostbite 3 and gen 4 features… We’re going to have PS3 and Xbox 360 and PC versions of Dragon Age III, so there will be a very broad-based experience there, but the new platforms are giving us the opportunity to tell stories in much larger worlds with more features and more things. From our perspective, we didn’t want to launch a “current-gen” game in a next-gen market. We took the opportunity to add resources, add time, and we brought in new technology. Frankly, we’ve raised our expectations.”

There are few at BioWare or EA who haven’t come to realize the weight of audience expectations over the past few years, so it’s wise of Gibeau to explain that they’re at least attempting to become their harshest critics. BioWare general manager Aaryn Flynn has also spoken of his excitement over Frostbite 3, which impressed audiences for what it makes possible in games like Battlefield 4.

It remains to be seen what the engine can offer to the visuals and core mechanics of Dragon Age: Inquisition – mechanics it will be sharing with the next Mass Effect – but there’s no question the team is looking to impress with their first gameplay footage. If nothing else, expect plenty of discussion over split-gen releases like these in the coming months, since there are sure to be massive differences.

What do you think of the name change and next-gen releases? Are you optimistic about BioWare’s decision to step away from the story and characters of Dragon Age 2, or do you think the game was better than it was given credit for? Sound off in the comments.

Dragon Age: Inquisition is expected to release in 2014 for the Xbox 360, PS3, Xbox One, PS4 and PC.