Dragon Age The Veilguard’s newest preview promises non-linear exploration, gorgeous environmental designs

Dragon Age: Inquisition had plenty of huge worlds, encouraging players to explore every nook and cranny. And while most of the gameplay shown from The Veilguard so far has looked more linear, BioWare unveiled a treat for exploration enthusiasts today.

A new blog showcased several locations in The Veilguard, including many locations we haven’t gotten a good look at before—or any look at all. The Arlathan Forest, Hossberg Wetlands, and Rivain Coast were all put on display, as well as the city streets of Minrathous in a more exploratory look outside the main intro quest that was shown in The Veilguard’s first gameplay look, and the lit-up city of Treviso. Each small video was accompanied by snippets of lore for the respective locations, often name-checking the factions that call each area home. The Veil Jumpers, for example, explore Arlathan, while The Antivan Crows have some vested interests in Treviso.

While the blog noted The Veilguard is a “crafted experience telling a rich narrative,” it promised players many areas to explore. And the areas shown off certainly look like they have plenty of secrets to discover, with multiple branching paths beyond what we’ve seen in gameplay snippets so far.

Also featured was The Crossroads, a magical realm that connects the Eluvians (giant magical mirrors your character will use to travel great distances, and a hallmark of the Dragon Age series). Rook, the player character, and their party can access The Crossroads via the Eluvian at The Lighthouse, where you and the party will live. The Crossroads itself is a large area that encourages exploration as well, and not simply a fast travel hub for players to skip through. And why would you want to skip through an environment this beautiful, anyway?

While there are clearly many environments in the game meant for specific missions and narrative beats, it sure seems like players will have both the opportunity and the motivation to go off the beaten path and even return to areas they’ve already visited for more opportunities to loot, discover lore, and encounter secrets they may have missed before.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard launches on Oct. 31.