The Veilguard Gets Nonbinary Representation Right

The option to create a nonbinary character in video games is a relatively new one, although it has increased in popularity as each year passes. Role-playing game Dragon Age: The Veilguard is one of the latest titles to offer the option of a nonbinary protagonist – and one of the best. Making a nonbinary Rook in The Veilguard is so much more than just selecting pronouns in Character Creation – the game offers well-written dialogue options that truly reflect Rook’s journey and identity. Additionally, the game features several nonbinary NPCs, including one companion, who are allowed to explore their gender in a respectful, thoughtful way.

A Nonbinary Rook Is So Much More Than Their Pronouns

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is not the first AAA game to allow characters who fall outside the gender binary – previous examples include Starfield and Baldur’s Gate 3 – but Rook’s pronouns feel like more than just set dressing. They’re not just somebody who happens to not identify as male or female; their identity informs the choices they make and the way they relate to the world.

Optional nonbinary-exclusive dialogue choices, when they appear, are thoughtful and incisive, and accurately reflect the real-world experience of individuals who have struggled with their gender identity. In one particularly impactful moment, Rook can encourage companion Lucanis, who is unsure of his future goals, by saying “Once I broke out of defining myself as a woman or a man, I was free to pursue what really mattered to me,” a line that will likely ring true to many players.

Rook’s Romances Are Not Limited By Their Identity

They can choose to bring up their identity with a potential romantic partner, and it’s handled respectfully, carefully, and above all realistically. Rook, as confident as they may be in their own identity, is nervous that their partner will reject them for who they are, and their joy when that doesn’t happen is fierce and infectious. That all seven romantic options will accept a nonbinary Rook and not see it as an obstruction to a potential relationship is a beautifully affirming choice on Bioware’s part.

Nonbinary Companions And Other NPCs Can Explore And Express Their Identities

Dragon Age: The Veilguard goes beyond allowing a protagonist to choose they/them pronouns, including nonbinary NPCs in and around the world. Queer identities and relationships are celebrated and treated as normal. One shining example is Flynn, an apprentice physician living in the Hossberg Wetlands, who appears in a side quest. Their identity is casually mentioned and simply allowed to be a part of who they are, rather than their sole defining trait; their medicinal skills and relationship with the Grey Wardens faction get equal depth and focus.

In addition, the companion Taash explores their gender identity during their companion quest. Many nonbinary players will likely see echoes of their own journey in Taash’s. Their life among the Qunari and the Lords of Fortune had not exposed them to identities beyond strictly defined male and female, and they struggle with the expectations their mother and society has placed on them. Prior to a conversation with Neve and Rook, Taash had not even fully comprehended that nonbinary individuals existed, and their excitement at the revelation is palpable.

“Shokra toh ebra.” – Taash

Embracing themselves as neither man nor woman lets Taash find a peace and confidence in themselves that they previously lacked. Taash’s story is a triumph, particularly at the moment when they fully embrace the Qunlat phrase, “Shokra toh ebra,” which they had previously seen as meaning they would suffer their entire life, for its true meaning: “Through struggle, you find what you are.” With Taash, writer Trick Weekes and actor Jin Maley have created a powerful story that the nonbinary community can celebrate and embrace.