Just last week, Mark Darrah, the executive producer of the Dragon Age series, Tweeted a poll that asked if fans would play a Dragon Age Tactics game. In the comments, he specifies that the game would be like the Fire Emblem and XCom series. If you do not already know, this means that there would be turn-based combat and a grid on which to place your team. Any story or plot would come through mini cut-scenes and text boxes during combat. In XCom , the grid is less obvious and the perspective not quite as chess-like as in Fire Emblem . That being said, I believe that Darrah was referring to something that looks a little more like the tactical mode in Dragon Age: Inquisition . In this mode, the player can assign tasks, items, and position of team members. Tasks can include attack types, spells, and area of effect spells. Items can include potions, bombs, and jars of bees. The player can even use Advance Time to progress the battle until their preferred moment.
The reaction to Durrah’s Tweet is mostly positive and the votes reflect that. 49% say “yes”, 23% say “only on PC”, 22% say “no”, 6% say “only mobile/handheld”. The uncertainly lay in a variety of reasons, mostly referring to whether or not the new game will be part of the canon story arc, if there will be any story at all, and if the player is allowed to romance any of the other characters. In reply to these concerns, Durrah confirmed that yes, the game would be canon, and would likely have romance options. Nothing too clear, of course.
Nonetheless, a Dragon Age Tactics game would certainly fill the gaps that Inquisition ‘s tactical mode left. If you have not played Inquisition , or avoided the tactical mode like I did, those gaps include a lack of stackable actions and no comprehensive tutorial. As such, Dragon Age Tactics would allow the player to learn properly, and more intimately, how to use a tactical approach in a RPG. The theoretical game would also have a great deal more focus on teamwork and creating the most effective team possible. Again, this is a different approach to fighting, since Inquisition is focused on treating each member as an individual rather than part of the team. This depends on the player’s preferred style of gameplay, of course, but in the main Dragon Age series it’s impossible to gain the same amount of control as a player might in Xcom .
Though Dragon Age Tactics would make a great learning title for those new to tactical games, it may fall short of what makes the Dragon Age series great. Dragon Age games focus mainly on relationships, romantic or otherwise, exploration, lore, and story. Especially in Dragon Age 2 , the relationships the player chooses to build or destroy affect the outcome of the game. Exploration, more in Dragon Age: Origins and Inquisition , comes in the form of the fantastic world BioWare creates and the numerous quests it provides. Such quests are not limited to mapping the world, but allow the player to discover lore and the nearly infinite amount of backstory in each game. As such, the plot of Dragon Age is just as important, if not more, than the relationships or exploration. The apocalypse is usually nigh and the player must save Thedas once again.
Dragon Age Tactics could be a great learning tool for tactical combat, allowing the player a far more detailed and intricate version of the tactical mode in Inquisition . However, such a game would also risk taking away what makes Dragon Age so appealing to most gamers. We’ll just have to see what BioWare comes up with if it decides to go forward with this plan.