For years, BioWare’s Dragon Age franchise stood as one of the most respected names in fantasy RPGs. Fans waited 10 years for the long-promised return of the series, hoping for a revival of the magic that made Origins and Inquisition standouts. Instead, Dragon Age: The Veilguard (released October 31, 2024) has gone down as one of the most stunning disappointments in modern gaming that people won’t even play for free.
A screenshot from Dragon Age: The Veilguard (2024), BioWare
How bad is it? Ten months after launch, the game has already been given away on PlayStation Plus, bundled into Xbox Game Pass through EA Play, and now Amazon Australia is literally handing it out for free with over 1,000 different purchases.
And yet still…practically no one is playing it.
The Amazon Australia Giveaway
Between August 20 and September 2, 2025, Amazon Australia launched a promotion where anyone buying qualifying items — everything from routers to controllers — would receive a free copy of Dragon Age: The Veilguard. According to reports, more than 1,000 separate items triggered the freebie. Imagine buying a printer or a kitchen appliance and finding this “bonus” video game tossed into your order. Far from being a celebration, it comes across as a digital clearance bin.
A screenshot from Dragon Age: The Veilguard (2024), BioWare
That’s not an exaggeration. Amazon’s own fine print described the promotion as an effort to unload inventory, a sign the warehouses are overflowing with unsold stock. For a Dragon Age title — once considered a guaranteed hit — that alone is humiliating.
A Pattern of Dragon Age: The Veilguard Free Giveaways
Amazon’s desperation isn’t the first time Veilguard has been pawned off. The timeline tells the full story:
- Launch (October 31, 2024): Released worldwide as a $70 premium RPG.
- PlayStation Plus (March 4, 2025): Just four months later, it was part of Sony’s monthly free lineup for all subscribers.
- Game Pass (August 2025): Dropped into Microsoft’s Game Pass catalog through EA Play, lumped in with other filler titles.
- Amazon Australia (August 20 – September 2, 2025): Given away with more than 1,000 everyday purchases.
A screenshot from Dragon Age: The Veilguard (2024), BioWare
This isn’t the normal lifecycle of a strong-selling RPG. Compare this with Baldur’s Gate 3 or Elden Ring, which sold millions and stayed at full price for years. Veilguard didn’t even last a single fiscal year before being shoveled out for free.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
Maybe the defenders will say, “But free exposure boosts player counts!” Except… it hasn’t.
According to SteamDB, Dragon Age: The Veilguard peaked at 89,418 concurrent players in November 2024. That number is respectable — until you consider it’s a flagship BioWare RPG with 10 years of hype.
The Steam player count for Dragon Age: The Veilguard on August 25, 2025 – Steam
Today, the 24-hour peak barely scrapes 1,000 players, and live counts hover around 700-800 at any given time.
In other words: even when Dragon Age: The Veilguard is free, almost nobody wants to play it. The audience evaporated in less than a year, and no amount of bundling has revived interest.
Critics vs. Players: The Great Divide
On Metacritic, Veilguard maintains a critic average of 82 — solid on paper — but players have handed it a brutal 3.9 user score.
A screenshot from Dragon Age: The Veilguard (2024), BioWare
That gulf speaks volumes. Critics shrugged and moved on, while fans who actually loved the franchise felt betrayed. The game offered lackluster gameplay, forgettable environments, and storylines that many felt focused more on “modern audience” checkboxes than compelling fantasy. Elective cosmetic surgery “scar toggles” and on-the-nose identity politics replaced the nuanced worldbuilding that once defined the series.
The result? A product that felt like it belonged in a bargain bin, even on launch day.
From Prestige to Punchline
What makes this especially damning is the franchise legacy. Dragon Age wasn’t just any RPG. For years, it stood shoulder-to-shoulder with The Witcher and Elder Scrolls as a benchmark for immersive dark fantasy storytelling. BioWare had the goodwill, the talent, and the fanbase.
A screenshot from Dragon Age: The Veilguard (2024), BioWare
And yet, after years of hype, The Veilguard went from $70 premium release to free add-on with your Amazon router in record time. Instead of rejuvenating the brand, BioWare has turned one of gaming’s most beloved franchises into a punchline.
Protecting Investor Optics
So, why all the giveaways? The answer is simple: optics.
When a game hits Game Pass or PS Plus, publishers trumpet “millions of downloads” as proof of success. What they don’t admit is that these are not sales — they’re downloads bundled into existing subscription numbers. It looks good to shareholders, but it doesn’t fully hide the truth: Veilguard failed to resonate with players, and no amount of “free” can disguise that reality.
Key art for Dragon Age: The Veilguard (2024), BioWare
Ten months in, BioWare’s decade-long project is already being treated like unsold cereal boxes in a warehouse clearance. Critics may continue to soft-pedal with an 82 on Metacritic, but the fans have spoken with their wallets and their playtime.
And what they’ve said is brutal: Dragon Age: The Veilguard is not worth playing — even when it’s free.
Are you surprised that no one will play Dragon Age: The Veilguard even when it’s free? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
