Platted That! – Dragon Age: Inquisition

Presented Spoiler-free: Platted That! is an ongoing series from Handsome Phantom giving gamers a review of unlocking the Platinum Trophy for PlayStation 4 titles.

Dragon Age: Inquisition completes Bioware’s sword-and-spell trilogy that started in 2009. The series began as an M rated RPG with gameplay that felt remarkably similar to Bioware’s masterpiece, Knights of the Old Republic. The first game, Dragon Age: Origins, was filled with weighty choices that led to several disparate endings. Dragon Age II side skirted most of these choices by taking the players across the sea to Kirkwall, and explored the life, loves, and times of Hawke. Still filled with a plethora of decisions, the game ended with a bang that set up the plot of Inquisition.

It had a lot to handle.

Bioware introduced an entire website for importing player decisions from previous games. The next few dozen hours of gameplay featured cameos and callbacks to the previous titles, and an expansive fantasy adventure through deserts, snowy mountains, and the dream-like realm of the Fade. It’s a pretty epic game.

The Dragon Age franchise has collected thousands of devoted fans. No definitive word has come out as how Bioware will continue the series. We assume that with new IP Anthem on the way and the lukewarm reception of Mass Effect: Andromeda, it might be a while.

So, in the meantime, kick back, settle in, and chase down the Platinum Trophy for Inquisition. Inquisition’s Plat is difficult and takes a fair amount of time, but the challenge is very achievable and incredibly satisfying.

Organic

Organic trophies tend to unlock just by playing through the game with little to no conscious effort being applied. Most of the trophies in Inquisition are organic, depending on individual play styles. As long as the player at least attempts the different activities and crafting mechanics, the trophy count at the end of the initial play-through should be pretty high.

It’s recommended to do this plat in two play-throughs. Inquisition has been out long enough that most readers have already played through the campaign once. One of the most difficult trophies, “Inquisitor,” requires beating the game on the hardest difficulty. It’s handy to be familiar with the mechanics, crafting system, and efficient leveling techniques that players will pick up on lower difficulties. This trophy is also the most satisfying. Many of the more complex mechanics in DA:I are completely unnecessary for lower difficulties. Discovering more developed strategies and character builds can be very engaging.

Another trophy, “Dragon’s Bane,” is possible on higher difficulties, but the dragons that need slain for this can be quite the pain. Some players may want to defeat these huge beasts on a lower difficulty, and then save them as an optional challenge for the “Inquisitor” trophy.

Mop-Up

There are also some missable trophies. These are tied to player decisions. For new players, I recommend just bulldozing the initial play-through, and mopping up the missable trophies during the hard mode run through. Conversely, there’s always the option of keeping a ton of back-up saves, and simply reloading and playing through to the big moment. Here’s a quick hit of the missable trophies:

• “On Burning Wings”
• “Belle of the Ball”
• “Persuasive”
• “The Brightest of Their Age”
• “People Person”
• “Beloved and Precious”

Other mop-up trophies will be mostly related to clearing the map: closing rifts, unlocking astrariums, or completing requisition requests. Honestly the most unachieved trophies are the two related to difficulty. If you can muster up the courage to get through “Nightmare” difficulty, then the rest of the road to platinum is going to be a breeze.

TL;DR

Dragon Age is an incredible fantasy game. A slow start builds to incredible and dramatic set pieces. Long time fans of the series will be pleased by the cameos and callbacks. New fans should find the dense lore pretty accessible. The “Inquisitor” trophy is a tough play-through, but doable, and the rest of mop-up should be pretty easy. This will require a significant amount of time, as most players will want to do two play-throughs, but the decision based story and new strategies in harder difficulties will keep the experience alive.

As always, we want to know what you think! Have you platted Dragon Age: Iquisition? What Platinum Trophies are you working towards? Can nugs turn into Darkspawn? Let Handsome Phantom know your thoughts and you could get a shout out on the Adventure Mode podcast! Be sure to check out previous Platted That! for Assassin’s Creed: Origins and Horizon Zero Dawn!