Is Dragon Age: Inquisition a 10/10 game?

The reviews for Dragon Age: Inquisition are in – and they are overwhelmingly positive.

Dragon Age: Inquisition is due to launch for the PC, PS4, PS3, Xbox One, and Xbox 360 in SA on 21 November 2014, but our gaming comrades overseas have already had a thorough go at the game.

Inquisition is based in the land of Thedas which has been taken over by dragons and is in the throes of an all-out war. You and your allies are tasked with restoring order using your RPG skills to the max.

BioWare is punting the game’s customisation options as one of its strong points, with not only your Inquisitor’s appearance editable, but the ability to manipulate your party of followers and styles of combat also an option.

For those of you who are impressed with what Metacritic and the reviewers have to say, you can find a local retailer to order the game from in our pre-order price roundup.

Metacritic Scores
Platform	Metacritic Score
PC	85
PS4	90

PS3, Xbox One, and Xbox 360 scores were not available at the time of writing.

Now, let’s see what the experts have to say.

Eurogamer – 8/10 (PC)

Its not-so-fatal flaw is that in offering so much, both in terms of player choice and in going for peak-BioWare in every aspect of the game, those individual moments, characters, activities and plot beats often don’t benefit from the focus and importance needed to unlock their full potential.

Still, that’s hardly a crime, and one more than made up for by the many high points that I can’t name directly for fear of spoilers, the hours and hours both adventuring in Thedas as it was always meant to be, and sitting at the highest levels of its politics. The true power of the Inquisition may be illusory, but that doesn’t stop it being satisfying to wield while it lasts.

PCGamer – 87/100 (PC, duh)

There’s even co-op multiplayer, in the style of Mass Effect 3’s horde mode. As I write this, the servers are empty, and so I’ve been unable to test it. Whatever its quality, it doesn’t affect a single player campaign that, all things considered, is a resounding success.

How much you enjoy Inquisition will likely depend on what it is you enjoy about RPGs. If you want complex systems and hardcore challenge, it could potentially disappoint. I don’t. I want a rich world, interesting characters, and a dramatic and memorable plot. Judged on those criteria, Dragon Age: Inquisition sits happily alongside BioWare’s best.

Polygon – 9.5/10 (PC, PS4, Xbox One)

Dragon Age: Inquisition is one of the biggest games I’ve ever played, and I still want more.

This is the astounding scope I referred to above. It’s no longer as simple as how your choices affect your small band of adventurers — though that can vary quite a lot as well. Dragon Age: Inquisition puts the fate of the world in your hands in a way that few role-playing games have done before.

And even after another 80 hours devoted to it, it’s a world I cannot wait to return to in whatever BioWare does next. I don’t know what higher praise I could give.

Joystiq – 5/5 (PS4)

Dragon Age: Inquisition is BioWare’s reaffirmation of what it’s capable of delivering. It’s a gorgeous game on an epic scale. Rich in character and story, it creates a fantasy world with plausible social rules you can get lost in. It makes you feel that you aren’t just exploring a new world, but helping shape it at various levels of society. Inquisition sets the bar for what a blockbuster RPG should be.

Oh, and after everything is said and done, make sure to stay following the credits.

Gamespot – 9/10 (PS4, Xbox One)

Inquisition’s characters and world, on the other hand, recall the grand gestures of the original Dragon Age, even though the game as a whole is so structurally different to its predecessors. It offers the thrill of discovery and the passion of camaraderie. It features a glee club called The Sing-Quisition, and a dwarf with writer’s block.

It establishes connections with its world in big ways and small, with the sight of a titanous temple and the smirk of an Orlesian commander in love. Dragon Age: Inquisition is a wonderful game and a lengthy pilgrimage to a magical world with vital thematic ties to one we already know.

GameInformer – 9.5/10 (PS4)

After two disparate entries with different philosophies, Dragon Age’s identity crisis is over. With a mixture of open-world exploration, entertaining combat, and top-tier characters, the team at BioWare has found a winning formula that isn’t shackled to either Dragon Age: Origins or Dragon Age II.

Inquisition is not defined by the traditions it returns to, but by the new directions it forges for this magnificent fantasy universe.