BioWare is a pioneer when it comes to the development of western roleplaying games, with games like KOTOR, Dragon Age: Origins, and Mass Effect going a long way in cementing this fearsome reputation of a beloved studio. To this day, fans still look back at the time when each game release of this company had fans of role-playing games salivating at the thought of engaging themselves in another amazing story.
One such game that BioWare developed to bolster their stellar reputation was Dragon Age: Inquisition, which has been very well-received amongst some less-than-stellar years for the studio. The franchise’s reputation has remained intact to this day, and fans are still waiting for a sequel to the brilliant story of Inquisition.
In fact, the narrative of this game was so unseemingly complex that there is still a bevy of aspects surrounding the series that need some clarification. Keeping this in mind, here are some things about Dragon Age: Inquisition’s story that fans had no idea about.
15 The Iron Bull’s Romance Was Meant To Be Tamer
The Iron Bull is easily one of the best party members in Dragon Age: Inquisition. This sentiment was echoed by the developers as well, who decided to spice up his romance after initially planning for a tamer fling.
As a result, Iron Bull’s romance scenes are quite a treat to witness. It’s a great thing that fans didn’t have to deal with a by-the-numbers romance that didn’t resonate with the character’s personality.
14 The Iron Bull Was Supposed To Be A Woman
The Iron Bull’s character has been subject to many changes over Inquisition’s development. In fact, the developers intended the Qunari to be a woman!
This idea was scrapped over time, and Iron Bull was turned into a man. Perhaps in Dragon Age 4, players will finally be able to recruit a female Qunari in their party.
13 Vivienne’s Character Would’ve Been Something Completely Different
Vivienne is a powerful mage who ends up aiding the Inquisitor in their quest. Her character is pretty pleasant, and fans will be surprised to hear that she was initially going to be a completely different character.
Original plans for Vivienne had her pegged as a blonde white woman who would serve as an advisor on the Inquisitor’s council. She would also be a cold and murderous character, as opposed to the more pleasant version that made the final cut.
12 Cole Would’ve Played A Greater Role In The Final Fight
Cole is easily one of the better Dragon Age: Inquisition party members. If the original plans concerning this character had come to pass, then players could’ve been in for a surprise if they hadn’t completely Cole’s sidequest.
Corypheus would’ve taken over Cole’s body and turned him against the Inquisitor if he was present for the final battle. Due to the complications attached to this idea, it was ultimately scrapped.
11 Anders Was Meant To Be In The Game
Anders is a character from the much-derided Dragon Age II who still has his fair share of fans. In fact, he was such a great character that BioWare was actually thinking of putting him in the next game as well.
However, this idea never came to fruition. Now, fans can only wait and see whether Anders will make an appearance in Dragon Age 4 instead.
10 The Inquisitor Could’ve Declared Himself To Be Divine At One Point
During the development of the game, BioWare played around with the idea of the Inquisitor attaining so much influence that they would name themselves Divine at one point.
It was a rather out-of-the-box idea on its own, but the notion was completely scrapped once the developers realized that a Qunari Inquisitor could’ve also called themselves Divine, which had severe lore-breaking implications.
9 It Was Intended For The Player To Spar With Cassandra
Cassandra is a rather memorable character present in Dragon Age: Inquisition, and is one of the first party members to join you in your quest to save humanity.
While she already plays a pretty hefty role in the plot, data mining has revealed the fact that Cassandra could’ve been an option for the player to spar with as well, which opened up a whole new world of possibilities for the character’s development.
Unfortunately, this ended up being completely nixed in the final product.
8 The Iron Bull Romance Was Initially Supposed To Be Restricted To Certain Races
There was a time when The Iron Bull’s romance was meant to be restricted to certain races due to his overwhelming size.
This made programming intimate scenes with him rather problematic, but — thankfully enough — BioWare managed to get this situation fixed in the nick of time.
7 Both Cullen And Solas Were Supposed To Swing Both Ways
Speaking of romantic options, Cullen and Solas received the opposite treatment of The Iron Bull and had some of their partner options reduced.
Specifically, both characters were supposed to be romanceable by the Inquisitor regardless of their gender… but this idea was canceled further down the line and they became just the run-of-the-mill straight romances.
6 The Three Dales Regions Were Initially Supposed To Be One Massive Area
While this might seem like more of a gameplay change, the fact that the Dales regions were originally meant to be one massive playground in the game does have serious narrative consequences.
For starters, this change could’ve led to a smoother and more engaging narrative that flowed between the Exalted Plains, the Emerald Graves, and Emprise du Lion. Unfortunately, hardware limitations and time constraints prevented BioWare from executing this amazing idea.
5 The Inquisitor Was Supposed To Besiege Fortresses, But This Idea Was Scrapped
Another aspect of the game that was cut before release was the RTS-style gameplay that Inquisition would introduce at certain intervals, where the Inquisitor would lead a horde of troops into battle.
This would’ve been an engaging way to show the rise of the Inquisitor and his progress as a leader. Unfortunately, as is the case with most of the omissions on this list, time was never really on BioWare’s side, and this feature had to be removed a fair way into development.
4 The Opening Of The Game Was Initially Way Duller Than The Final Build’s Version
The bombastic opening of Dragon Age: Inquisition is one of the many memorable set pieces in the game, and we’re glad that BioWare didn’t opt for their alternate introduction.
The original draft of the game’s introduction saw the player roaming around the Conclave and talking to its various attendees before the Breach — a significantly slow opening that would’ve definitely killed the pacing of the game.
3 The “Champions Of The Just” Quest Was Originally Meant To Be Way Different
The original draft of the Champions Of The Just quest was rather extreme and would’ve certainly been a tough pill to swallow.
In the first realized version of this quest, the Inquisitor was supposed to be tricked by the Envy Demon, who would’ve — among other things — taken on Leliana’s form and tried to secure the protagonist.
The risque nature of this quest prompted BioWare to draw up a new version instead.
2 The Grey Warden Who Assisted The Inquisitor And Hawke Was Supposed To Be The Hero Of Ferelden
Another quest that saw some significant changes during development was Here Lies the Abyss. A pretty major change in this quest came in the form of the Grey Warden who assisted the Inquisitor and Hawke.
In the original version of this quest, said Grey Warden was supposed to be the Hero of Ferelden himself! However, this was a hard ask, since replicating such a customizable character would’ve proven to be a major task for BioWare, who eventually scrapped the idea altogether,
1 Hawke Was Considered To Be The Main Character At One Point
One of the more contentious changes that BioWare was going to make in Dragon Age: Inquisition was making Hawke the protagonist one more time.
The negative reception that Hawke got in Dragon Age II was telling enough of just how poor this idea would’ve been, and the entire Dragon Age fandom can be safe and sound with the fact that Hawke ended up being delegated to a rather minor role, in comparison to this fearsome change.
NEXT: Dragon Age Inquisition: Things To Do After You Beat The Game
