Okay, gather 'round, because the tea is piping hot. Ever wondered why you can't play a gloriously upscaled version of Dragon Age: Origins on your PS5 without it looking like a potato? Well, former Dragon Age executive producer Mark Darrah just spilled it all, and honestly, it's the most EA thing I've ever heard. Turns out, the mega-publisher is "historically against" remasters, which Darrah basically calls being "against free money." The math is not mathing.
It's Giving 'Flop Era' Energy
In a recent interview that has the whole fandom screaming, Darrah laid it all out. He confirmed that BioWare actually pitched the idea of a trilogy remaster-you know, the one thing literally everyone has been asking for since the dawn of time. But EA, in its infinite wisdom, has apparently been publicly and privately allergic to the concept. Their galaxy-brain take? Focus on new titles only.
It’s a weird hill to die on. Sir, we want to give you our money for games that already exist. Just make them pretty. How is that a hard concept to grasp in 2025? It’s clown behavior, truly.
An Engine-ering Nightmare ⚙️
Now, to be fair, it's not all on EA's questionable logic. There's a legit technical reason this is a massive headache. Unlike the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, which was a relatively smooth process because all three games were built on Unreal Engine, the Dragon Age series is a technical hot mess held together by digital duct tape and hope.
Here’s the breakdown:
- Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II run on the ancient and arcane Eclipse Engine.
- Dragon Age: Inquisition uses the much more modern (but notoriously difficult) Frostbite engine.
Trying to merge those two fundamentally different platforms into one cohesive package is a certified nightmare. Darrah even highlighted that the number of BioWare developers who are still fluent in the ancient texts of the Eclipse Engine is dwindling. This means they couldn't just outsource it; it would have to be an internal project, taking precious time and resources away from the upcoming Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
EA's Allergic to Opening Its Wallet 💸
This brings us back to the money, honey. According to Darrah, even if EA’s cold heart thawed and they greenlit the project, they'd likely tell BioWare to fund it from their existing budget. That’s like your landlord telling you to pay for a new roof out of your own pocket. It's not happening.
With the studio completely focused on getting The Veilguard out the door, there are simply no spare developers or cash to dedicate to a massive remaster without specific funding from the publisher. And we all know how much EA loves to splash out on passion projects that aren't stuffed with microtransactions. 🙃 Look, don't hold your breath. Between EA’s bizarre aversion to easy financial wins and the genuine technical spaghetti code holding the original games together, it’s not looking good. Our memories of Ferelden, Kirkwall, and Thedas will have to remain authentically blurry and low-res for the foreseeable future.
So... Are We Ever Getting It?
We're not mad, EA, we're just disappointed. And also a little mad. Make it make sense.
