Dragon Age: The Veilguardis, at its heart, a fantasy RPG - but it has its fair share of downright terrifying moments as well. The game, which focuses on the epic conflict between the titular Veilguard and accidentally-freed elven gods, draws from the horror genre with moments like the players exploring a blight-choked wasteland or facing demons deep in the Necropolis Halls. Gamers looking for a bit of a scare will find plenty to frighten them inDragon Age: The Veilguard,with several characters, quests, and battles feeling like they were pulled straight from the most spine-tingling of horror films.
Ghilan’nain’s Design Evokes Lovecraft’s Monsters
One of the godly foes faced inDragon Age: The VeilguardisGhilan’nain, the Mother of Halla. Initially portrayed in elven mythology as a benevolent figure responsible for navigation and guidance,Veilguardreveals Ghilan’nain to be a twisted creature with power over the Blight and the ability to create terrifying monsters.
When she manifests fully, Ghilan’nain appears as a massive, tentacled woman with an oddly-jointed, near-skeletal frame. Her design wouldn’t be out of place in the works ofHP Lovecraft, and she’s an eerie presence whenever she appears. Battles against her forces, where she tirelessly creates monster after blighted monster to send against her Veilguard foes.
The Cabin In The Blight Is A Self-Contained Mini Horror Story
The Hossberg Wetlands isThe Veilguard’smost horror-adjacent location, filled with Blight that has driven many of its residents from their homes and forced them to seek the nominal safety of the Grey Warden encampment. One side quest in Hossberg is particularly horror movie-adjacent: “The Cabin in the Blight,” which even draws its name from the classic scary movieThe Cabin in the Woods.
“The Cabin in the Blight” sees players delving deeper and deeper into the most blighted parts of the Wetlands to learn the fate of a missing physician. Said fate is a gruesome look at howthe Blightcan so quickly choke out lives and devastate homes as players rush from clue to clue desperately hoping for a happy ending to the story - but all the while becoming increasingly aware that there isn’t going to be one. It’s an effective, self-contained horror story that could definitely haunt players' nightmares.
Other Moments Of Horror In Dragon Age: The Veilguard
While these are two of the most prominent elements that draw directly from horror films, there are several other moments of horror inDragon Age: The Veilguard.These include:
Perfectly fitting for a game that officially launched on Halloween,Dragon Age: The Veilguardis rife with scares. Fortunately, it’s also filled with moments of levity and warmth - plus more than a few instances of something “frightening” on the surface turning out harmless or even adorable, such asEmmrich’s devoted skeleton assistant, Manfred. The world of Thedas may be filled with terror, but it’s also full of friendly skeletons always down for a good game of Rock-Paper-Scissors while exploring the Lighthouse alongside Rook.
