Summary
BioWare has returned once again withDragon Age: The Veilguard, the newest entry in their fantasy RPG series. On top of the anticipated characters and a return to the world of Thedas, fans are yet again excited about creating their own character who leads the adventure to save the realm from evil.
While there is nothing wrong with preset protagonists like Geralt fromThe Witcher 3, being able to create a custom character adds a flair that appeals to many gamers. The character can be a self-insert or what the player imagined for their own fantasy story and many games have delivered when it comes to character creation options.
From an Argonian to a Redguard,The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrimremains influential in creating a custom character to this very day. Over a decade later, the character creation seems plain by comparison to certain other games, but few games had the level of detail thatSkyrimhad in 2011for all its playable races, with sliders to modify so much of the face and body.
Scars, tattoos, war paint, blemishes, hairstyles, and body types were not new, butSkyrimpresented so many options for them that it changed how many games, fantasy, and other genres have used it as a template. As a bonus, years of modding have allowedSkyrimto become even more packed with customization options thanks to loyal fans.
While it was not the first game in the series to feature character creation,Monster Hunter Worldwent above and beyond what previous installments did. The fidelity of characters' details was high, with many new options that allowed for very few hunters to look the same when playing together online.
On top of being able to create the hunter,Monster Hunter Worldalso allows players to create their Palico companion. The options were far less for the cat-like creature, but enough to make it as cute as the player wanted. Then the characters' looks are enhanced once the player craftsand equips different powerful buildsbased on the different monsters in the universe.
Other Soulslike titles such asDark SoulsandBloodbornefeatured character creation, but they were mostly a fun bonus since the characters would be covered up most of the time. That is still mostly the case withElden Ring, but that didn’t stop FromSoftware from tripling the amount of detail that can be put into the Tarnished’s base looks.
InElden Ring, the more detailed charactershelp the various outlandish weaponsand armor stand out, but character creation is important to the stats, with each of the ten classes providing different visuals as well as stats. Those who prefer a very specific visual style may need to pick specific classes.
Being able to change the physical appearance of the Inquisitor inDragon Age: Inquisitionis nicely detailed with plenty of options and visuals that are still impressive. Every part of the head can be changed, from the jawline to the nose to the lips and so much more, to create an original face or accurately replicate a famous figure’s likeness to the players' preference.
Dragon Age: Inquisitioneven adds the Qunari as a new playable race alongside humans, dwarves, and elves. However, being thatit is an immersive BioWare game, the player can choose the player’s background and personality like they could with Commander Shepard in theMass Effectgames to make the fantasy experience even more memorable.
SinceDiabloisan isometic hack-and-slash RPGfranchise, pristine graphics have never been the priority, since the character was never shown up close. Well,Diablo 4went more cinematic with characters during gameplay, and as a result, the six classes are more detailed than ever before, and for the better.
Not only does character creation immerse the player in the world of Sanctuary more than ever, butDiablo 4allows longtime fans to create the Necromancer or the Rogue of their dreams. Those characters are enhanced by the many options available, such as glowing eyes, body paint, scars, and different body options.
There are many reasonsBaldur’s Gate 3won so many Game Of The Year awards, including the best RPG, with one reason being that it was a faithfulrecreation of aDungeons & Dragonsexperience. Setting stats, background, class, subclass, and race were already enough to make every playthrough unique, but the cosmetic options are a nice icing on the cake.
With eleven playable races inBaldur’s Gate 3, including Half-Orc, Dragonborn, and Tiefling just to name a few, each one can be customized from head to toe and their clothes change based on the class. Gender conventions can be broken, with the option for facial hair on female characters and feminine hair on males.
The character creation inDragon’s Dogma 2went even further than the precursor with some of the most realistic elements about characters. There are forty-five presets for each gender of the two races, making ninety presets in total that can be customized for those wanting to skip the long process of making a character from scratch andget right to slaying giant monsters.
As for custom characters, the options are plentiful inDragon’s Dogma 2, with every body part capable of being altered, stretched, and morphed to the player’s liking, which has resulted in thousands of creations by fans. The clarity in the details combined with diverse hairstyles makes up for the fact that there are only two races to choose from.
Showing how far games have come graphically,Dragon Age: The Veilguardhas hair that looks straight off a real person’s head, with each strand of hair visible and animated to look as real as possible. That’s only the tip of the iceberg in BioWare’s latest RPG, with fully customizable characters this time with body options and even more beauty in the details.
InDragon Age: The Veilguard, players can go as realistic or as wild as possible with their designs, from head to toe. Taking a page fromCyberpunk 2077,Dragon Age: The Veilguardeven features LGBTQIA+ representationwith the option to make the main character non-binary as well as transgender, with surgery scars viable for all four races.
