December 4, 2018 Dragon Age 4 is set to be announced soon, but don’t expect to play it for a very long time.
BioWare is working on a new Dragon Age game. Reps of the studio have said as much, and recent statements have made some kind of reveal at The Game Awards this week seem increasingly likely. But don’t expect the game to be out anytime soon – a new report suggests the fourth Dragon Age won’t be out until 2021.
While Dragon Age 4 has been in various stages of development for at least a year, it’s been pushed to the backburner as BioWare focuses on Anthem development. The game has been in limbo for much of that time, as EA reportedly scrapped most of BioWare’s pre-production work as the publisher emphasised a live business model for its titles – a model Dragon Age will not fit.
According to VentureBeat, “sources familiar with the studio” say that with no substantial work done on the game, it won’t be out for another three years – though the timeline is subject to change. The development reboot is apparently the reason why series creative director Mike Laidlaw left BioWare, as he had an outline for the new game that was among the casualties.
A Game Awards announcement for a Dragon Age game that barely exists yet seems premature – the studio hasn’t even settled on final title – but it’s apparently due to the passion BioWare bosses Mark Darrah and Casey Hudson have for the series. We’ll likely see at least some part of their vision for the series later this week at the award show.
If you’ve been paying attention, BioWare GM Casey Hudson wrote last week, “you know we’re also working on some secret Dragon Age stuff. Dragon Age is an incredibly important franchise in our studio, and we’re excited to continue its legacy. Look for more on this in the coming month (though I won’t tell you where to look).”
In that blog post, Hudson also noted (again) that new Mass Effect projects are in the works, though there’s no specific timetable on when these will be revealed. Since the much-maligned Andromeda came out just last year, it’s unlikely we’ll hear about this potential title anytime soon.
A new Dragon Age was officially confirmed earlier this year, but only in the vaguest terms with a pair of tweets from Hudson and Darrah.
Halfway through my trip to Barcelona!
I’m here showing Anthem internally to EA. I am EP of BOTH DA and Anthem working with @Bio_Warner as Game Director
Anthem’s up next but there are people hard at work on both franchises and I look forward to sharing more in the future— Mark Darrah (@BioMarkDarrah) January 24, 2018
Reading lots of feedback regarding Dragon Age, and I think you’ll be relieved to see what the team is working on. Story & character focused.
Too early to talk details, but when we talk about “live” it just means designing a game for continued storytelling after the main story.
— Casey Hudson (@CaseyDHudson) January 25, 2018
Even if we’re unlikely to see a specific Dragon Age 4 release date from this announcement, you can bookmark that link for further details on the fantasy follow-up as soon as they come in.