Dragon Age: Inquisition Delayed

Battlefield Hardline isn't the only EA holiday release getting a delay. BioWare revealed today that medieval fantasy RPG Dragon Age: Inquisition is being pushed back as well.

Fortunately, Dragon Age: Inquisition's delay isn't as bad as Hardline's. The game's still arriving this fall. The new release dates are November 18th for North America and November 21st for Europe.

Dragon Age: Inquisition was originally slated to launch on October 7th against survival horror Alien Isolation and open-world action game Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor. November 18th is arguably just as competitive; that's the day that Far Cry 4 is debuting worldwide. Analysts expect FC4 to be one of the best-selling games of the fall.

BioWare, however, believes that the extra month of development time for Inquisition will make the game considerably better.

"We appreciate the enormous support we’ve received from all of you to get to this point, and while this extra few weeks may not seem like a lot, I know the game you’ll play will be all the better for it," said Inquisition executive producer Mark Darrah on the game's website.

Inquisition, the third game in the series, is shaking up the formula in major ways. BioWare realized how much fans disliked Dragon Age 2 so they've essentially gone back to the drawing board. Inquisition is more open-ended than its predecessors and abandons BioWare's proprietary engine in favor of DICE's Frostbite 3. At the same time, the developers are bringing back some of the elements that fans loved from the first game in the series, like tactical combat and different playable races.

Added Darrah: "I’m privileged to be a part of a team that has been working very hard to surpass every measure they’ve set for themselves. That has meant completing huge amounts of game content, fixing bugs both big and small, and improving the overall experience.

"This last bit of time is about polishing the experience we want you to see. Ensuring that our open spaces are as engaging as possible. Strengthening the emotional impact of the Hero's choices. And ensuring the experience you get is the best it can be in the platform you choose to play on."

Inquisition is being released on PC, PS3, Xbox 360, PS4 and Xbox One. The cross-gen release brings its own challenges. The studio has to make the game feel like a big step forward for Dragon Age while also ensuring that it performs well on older consoles. There's also the added challenge of making sure the PS4 and Xbox One perform as close to the PC edition as possible. BioWare has their work cut out for them. Hope they use that extra month wisely.

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