History BrokenBase / DragonAgeInquisition

** Some revelations about the Fall of the Dales in ''Jaws of Hakkon'': [[spoiler:Some find [[OrwellianEditor Inquisitor Ameridan's story]] a beautifully tragic parallel to the current Inquisitor's (particularly if they're a Mage and/or Elf), and sheds more tragic light on [[ForWantOfANail how easily the Fall of the Dales might have been avoided]], given that Ameridan the elven mage was a close personal friend of Emperor Drakon, worshiped both the Maker and Creators, and tried to convince the Dales to do the same before he disappeared. Other fans are a little annoyed at ''yet another example'' of the writers [[ScrewYouElves blaming the elves for their own conquest by humans]], since Ameridan implies if the Dales had only accepted dual Maker/Creators worship like him, relations with Orlais might not have gone sour. Some think this to be another brilliant case of GrayAndGreyMorality, others feel this ignores established lore about how Emperor Drakon was an ''Imperial expansionist'' who refused to tolerate any alternate Maker worship (including the peaceful [[https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Codex_entry:_The_Daughters_of_Song Daughters of Song]]) and already led several military campaigns against neighboring human kingdoms to [[HidingBehindReligion "spread the Chant of Light"]] before Ameridan even disappeared, so it's doubtful that in the long run Drakon or his descendants would have just ''left the elves alone,'' when even humans who already worshiped the Maker weren't spared.]]

** Some fans were disappointed that the more straight-laced KnightInShiningArmor characters like Cassandra, Cullen, Blackwall, etc were straight, while mostly [[{{Gayngster}} rogue]], mercenary, and apostate characters were gay/bi against. Not only were many sapphic women hoping to romance [[LGBTFanbase Cassandra]] and many gay/bi men hoping to romance a more [[ManlyGay traditionally masculine]] yet ''feelings''-driven love interest for a change (and break Creator/BioWare's tradition of keeping "butch" female characters strictly straight while only [[LipstickLesbian overtly feminine]] women can be romanced by a female player character [[note]]like [[TheSocialDarwinist Morrigan]] to [[TheChick Leliana]] in [=DAO=], [[FemininityFailure Aveline]] to [[BuxomIsBetter Isabela]] and [[{{Moe}} Merrill]] in [=DA2=]... Not to mention ''Franchise/MassEffect'' making [[MilitaryBrat Ashley]] straight but [[NiceGirl Liara]] bi in ''[=ME1=]'', Jack and Miranda romanceable only to Male Shepard but Kelly Chambers (a minor side character) romanceable in ''[=ME2=]'', and that's not getting into ''[=ME3=]...[[/note]] and making male love interests mostly {{Elfeminate}} and/or sex-driven ({{Zevran}}, Fenris, etc), but fans some felt it carried some {{unfortunate implications}} that ''of course'' morally upright KnightInShiningArmor types would be straight, while mostly social deviants and outcasts would be "sexual" deviants too. (Downplayed as [[RatedMForManly Iron Bull]] and [[PrincessClassic Josephine]] are bi, but still...)

** Also Cassandra being straight caused some confusion. If you know her character arc, it is clear what the creators were going for, but it is not a reach to say that many people expected her to be bi.
* Female Elves getting the most romantic options deserves its own section.
** Again, many players resent that female elves get more romantic options than any other race/gender/orientation. Others feel like the female elf gets so much grief from certain love interests just for being an elf [[spoiler:with Sera constantly badmouthing her culture and potentially dumping her for it, Solas badmouthing her culture and eventually dumping her no matter what, and Cullen refusing to acknowledge her race at all until ''Trespasser'']] that it can feel like the devs want to [[ScrewYouElves "punish" the player for choosing an elf]], that some almost wish they hadn't even bothered.
* Speaking of romances, how Creator/BioWare handled general personality and body types also divided some fans.
** Some fans question Creator/BioWare's decision to make the more straight-laced KnightInShiningArmor characters (Cassandra, Cullen, Blackwall, etc) completely straight, while mostly [[{{Gayngster}} rogue]], mercenary, and apostate companions are gay/bi again. At best, some feel it's Creator/BioWare sticking to the old formula a little too closely (since in the first game [[DorkKnight Alistair]] was straight while [[HitmanWithAHeart Zevran]] was bi, and in the second game Aveline could only wind up married to a man, while pirate queen Isabela and blood mage Merrill were bi, and Sebastian the "[[KnightInShiningArmor choir boy]]" was strictly straight while "angry homeless men" apostate Anders and mercenary Fenris were bi). At worst, some feel this carries UnfortunateImplications about how morally upright models of chivalry must ''also'' be straight, while only social deviants and outcasts would also be sexual deviants. (Somewhat downplayed as Josephine the ProperLady is bi, but she's the only exception in the game.]]
** Some fans were annoyed that Creator/BioWare followed their tradition of making their most "butch" female love interest straight (Cassandra), while only the more [[LipstickLesbian overly feminine ones were lesbian/bi]] (Josephine the ProperLady, and while Sera has some [[ButchLesbian butch]] qualities, it's still downplayed by her being an elven archer who wears dresses). Some appreciate Creator/BioWare trying to avoid the ButchLesbian stereotype, while others argue that a) [[ButchLesbian Butch women]] are popular among sapphic women [[TruthInTelevision for a reason]], b) they've ''been'' avoiding the "ButchLesbian" stereotype since the beginning (with [=DAO=]'s [[TheSocialDarwinist hardass]] [[WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove Morrigan]] being straight while the more [[TheChick soft-hearted]], [[AllWomenLoveShoes shoe-loving]] [[NunTooHoly Leliana]] was bi; the [[FemininityFailure hardass warrior Aveline]] could only end up with a man while the [[BuxomIsBetter voluptuous pirate queen]] Isabela and {{Moe}} Merrill were bi... and that's not even getting into the ''Franchise/MassEffect'' franchise) and at this point it's either tired, or carries some UnfortunateImplications that [[ButchLesbian butch women attracted to other women]] is this awful trope to avoid. Some female players are also just tired of having to be the "Masculine" in a MasculineFeminineGayCouple.
** While Dorian is fairly popular, a number gay/bi male players expressed disappointment at getting yet another [[CampGay effeminate, flamboyant male love interest]] this game (especially when you compare, again, straight [[DorkKnight human warrior Alistair]] to the {{Elfeminate}} Zevran in the first game, and both Anders and {{Elfeminate}} Fenris in the second game being a bit on the effeminate side) and would have prefered the option to romance a more [[ManlyGay traditionally]] [[TheBear masculine]] warrior (like Blackwall or Cullen) for a change. This is somewhat downplayed since Iron Bull is [[AnythingThatMoves pan]], though it opens another can of worms since Bull's romance involves a ''lot'' of BrainsAndBondage but little actual feelings (due to his [[DeliberateValuesDissonance discomfort talking about love]] due to growing up with the [[ScaryDogmaticAliens Qunari), which some players feeling it forces gay male players to choose between the effeminate pretty boy or the overwhelmingly physical relationship (which many gay/bi men feel society expects of them too much in real life). Again, while plenty of players are happy with Dorian and/or Bull, some feel disappointed that they didn't get the ''option'' to romance a more traditionally masculine KnightInShiningArmor type who's romance is more about ''feelings'', like female {{player character}}s can enjoy with Blackwall or Cullen.

** Again, many players resent that female elves get more romantic options than any other race/gender/orientation.
** However, many female elf players express discomfort that they receive more in-universe grief from love interests due to their [[ButThouMust (Dalish) culture]], with Sera and Solas constantly badmouthing Lavellan's culture to or in front of her, with Sera [[spoiler:potentially dumping her for it]], and Solas [[spoiler:dumping her no matter what]], and Cullen refusing to even acknowledge her culture until ''Trespasser'' [[spoiler:during their wedding]], left many female elf players almost wishing the devs hadn't even bothered since (combined with the below revelations about the Dalish) it almost feels like the devs want to [[CosmicPlaything "punish" female elven players for being "too elfy"]]. Female Dwarves, Qunari, and even Humans have fewer romance options, but at least they receive consistent respect and support from all their partners (with Iron Bull only getting snippy with Adaar once), not conditional or backhanded support due to their race/culture.

** Some revelations about the Fall of the Dales in ''Jaws of Hakkon'': [[spoiler:Some find [[OrwellianEditor Inquisitor Ameridan's story]] a beautifully tragic parallel to the current Inquisitor's story (particularly if they're Elven), and sheds more tragic light on [[ForWantOfANail how easily the Fall of the Dales might have been avoided]], given that Ameridan the elven mage was a close personal friend of Emperor Drakon, worshiped both the Maker and Creators, and tried to convince the Dales to do the same before he disappeared. Other fans are a little annoyed at ''yet another example'' of the writers [[ScrewYouElves blaming the elves for their own conquer by humans]], since Ameridan implies if the Dales had only accepted dual Maker/Creators worship like him, relations with Orlais might not have gone sour. This ignores how Emperor Drakon was an ''Imperial expansionist'' who refused to tolerate any alternate Maker worship (including the peaceful [[https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Codex_entry:_The_Daughters_of_Song Daughters of Song]]) and already led several military campaigns against neighboring human kingdoms to [[HidingBehindReligion "spread the Chant of Light"]] before Ameridan even disappeared, so it's doubtful that in the long run Drakon or his descendants would have just ''made an exception'' and ''left the elves alone,'' when even humans who already worshiped the Maker weren't spared.]]

** Some revelations about the Fall of the Dales in ''Jaws of Hakkon'': [[spoiler:Some find [[OrwellianEditor Inquisitor Ameridan's story]] a beautifully tragic parallel to the current Inquisitor's story (particularly if they're Elven), and sheds more tragic light on [[ForWantOfANail how easily the Fall of the Dales might have been avoided]], given that Ameridan the elven mage was a close personal friend of Emperor Drakon, worshiped both the Maker and Creators, and tried to convince the Dales to do the same before he disappeared. Other fans are a little annoyed at ''yet another example'' of the writers [[ScrewYouElves blame the elves for their own conquer by humans]], since Ameridan implies if the Dales had only accepted dual Maker/Creators worship like him, relations with Orlais might not have gone sour. This ignores how Emperor Drakon was an ''Imperial expansionist'' who refused to tolerate any alternate Maker worship (including the peaceful [[https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Codex_entry:_The_Daughters_of_Song Daughters of Song]]) and already led several military campaigns against neighboring human kingdoms to [[HidingBehindReligion "spread the Chant of Light"]] before Ameridan even disappeared, so it's doubtful that in the long run Drakon or his descendants would have just ''made an exception'' and ''left the elves alone,'' when even humans who already worshiped the Maker weren't spared.]]
* The Elven Inquisitor being Dalish-only. This annoyed many fans who prefer city elves (which have always been more popular than the Dalish), or would have [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot loved to explore how an elf raised under human oppression would feel being in charge of them now]]. Others feel that being Dalish-only makes a lot of story sense given the many above revelations about Dalish history. A third faction understands why a Dalish protagonist was required this game, but would prefer to play a city elf in future games.

* Whereas some characters, such as Varric are universally well-liked by the fanbase and some of them (read: Vivienne) are often criticized, many of them have this 'you either love or hate them' vibe going on. Most notably Sera. Who can be extremely funny and a pleasure to have in your party, but can come across as not taking stuff too seriously. On top of that she can be rude or condescending. It is safe to say she has by far the most polarized opinions. If you look at people making their top 10 most loved Dragon Age companions, she often ends up either at the bottom or at the top.
** To a lesser extend, Dorian has this going on as well. Though generally better accepted by fans than Sera, sometimes his flamboyance and bragging gets on the nerves of players.

* Also in Tresspasser: [[spoiler: Bull's betrayal. Some people felt like it tied in perfectly with his character arc, whereas others felt like it came out of nowhere. Also the fact that Bull will betray you, no matter what relationship you have with him made people feel like their choices were pointless. The fact that you never get to know if he was ever loyal to the inquisition at all and forced into his position, or his reasoning behind his betrayal makes everything worse.]]
* The repetitive trope [[spoiler: that you were a pawn in your mage companion's plan all along, starts to tire some people after it happened for the third time in a row.]] In Tresspasser, we learn that [[spoiler: Solas is the dread wolf and has been pulling the strings since the beginning of the story. After Morrigan and Anders' arcs, some people went out of their way to express their displeasure about this turn of events.]]
* The double standard surrounding Cullen's fanservice. There are several occasions where people objectify him or joke that he's just part of the inquisition so they'd look prettier. In one of the dialogues, Leliana jokes that he just has to 'shut up and look nice' and during the party banter, Varric will ask who'd win a fight Cassandra, Leliana or Josephine, leaving 'Curly' out of the equation because we all know he's just there to look pretty. Some people applaud the story for switching the game narrative, because usually, this is how female characters are handled. However, some of them find the fact that nobody whines about it because he's male, a big double standard.

* Many people were unpleasantly surprised that there was still no dwarven romance option. This sentiment only worsened with the introduction of Scout Harding, a character many had hoped to romance. Simultaneously, most people who play as dwarf are by now used to the fact they have to stick to humans or elves, and are either still annoyed or generally express no displeasure.

** However, many female elf players express discomfort that they receive more in-universe grief from love interests due to their [[ButThouMust (Dalish) culture]], with Sera and Solas constantly badmouthing Lavellan's culture to or in front of her, with Sera [[spoiler:potentially dumping her for it]], and Solas [[spoiler:dumping her no matter what]], and Cullen refusing to even acknowledge her culture until ''Trespasser'' [[spoiler:during their wedding]], left many female elf players almost wishing the devs hadn't even bothered since (combined with the below revelations about the Dalish) it almost feels like the devs want to [[CosmicPlaything "punish" female elven players for being "too elfy"]]. Female Dwarves, Qunari, and even Humans have fewer romance options, but at least they receive consistent respect and support from all their partners (with Iron Bull only getting snippy with Adaar once), not conditional or backhanded support due to their race/culture. (Not helped that theLavellan

* Making the Elven Inquisitor Dalish-only. This annoyed many fans who prefer city elves, or would have [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot loved to explore how an elf raised under human oppression feels being in charge of them now]]. Others feel that being Dalish-only makes a lot of story sense given the above revelations about Dalish history.
* It ''cannot'' be overstated how divisive ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'''s depiction of the Dalish has been among elven fans and detractors, since arguments continue in social media forums and comment sections to this day:

** On the one hand, [[https://the-gaider-archives.tumblr.com/page/17 Word of Gaider]] has stated that the developers based the elves off real-world Medieval Jews, and admitted to their [[{{Applicability}} similarities to "historically oppressed groups" like African and Native Americans]], to the point that it's not uncommon for Jewish and/or [=BIPOC=] players to identity with City and Dalish elves. To that end, [=DAI=]'s many cases of ScrewYouElves (as stated above) has left many players feeling it carries some UnfortunateImplications: "If you deal with systemic discrimination, ''you deserve it.'' Your ancestors ''deserved'' to be enslaved, colonized, genocided, and/or segregated because of their own faults. If you/they had just assimilated to the dominant religion/culture [[spoiler:as Ameridcan claims he tried to get the Dales elves to worship the Maker, and Sera is depicted as right for rejecting anything "elfy"]], you wouldn't be dealing with your own oppression." This left a bad taste in many players' mouths. Not helped that the Dalish are framed as [[BreakTheHaughty elitists bigots]], but many players have pointed out that since the Dalish and "elfy" city elves are EnslavedElves, it's less "[[ScrewYouElves knocking the haughty elitist down a peg]]" and more "grinding already disadvantaged people further into the dirt."

** There's also a third party who's just sick of elves being a SpotlightStealingSquad this game and would like future games to focus on other groups. (Particularly dwarves and Qunari, who haven't gotten as much content so far).

* Making the Elven Inquisitor Dalish-only annoyed many fans who prefer city elves, or would have [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot loved to explore]] how an elf raised under human oppression would feel to be in charge of them now, and others feel that being Dalish-only makes a lot of story sense given the above revelations about Dalish history, which would feel more personal to a Dalish protagonist. Others still understand why the Elven PC was Dalish ''this'' game, but would prefer the option to play a city elf again next game.
* It ''cannot'' be overstated how divisive ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'''s depiction of Dalish elves, history, and protagonist has been among elven fans and detractors, since arguments continue in social media forums and comment sections to this day:
** On the one hand, [[https://the-gaider-archives.tumblr.com/page/17 Word Of Gaider]] has stated that the developers based the elves off real-world Medieval Jews, and admitted to their [[{{Applicability}} similarities to "historically oppressed groups" like African and Native Americans]], to the point that it's not uncommon for Jewish and/or [=BIPOC=] players to personally identity with City and Dalish elves. To that end, [=DAI=]'s many cases of ScrewYouElves (as stated above) has left many players feeling it carries some UnfortunateImplications. Basically: "If you deal with systemic discrimination, ''you deserve it.'' Your ancestors ''deserved'' to be enslaved, colonized, and/or segregated because of their own faults. If you/they had just assimilated to the dominant religion/culture [[spoiler:as Ameridcan claims he tried to get the Dales elves to worship the Maker, and Sera is depicted as right for rejecting anything "elfy"]], you wouldn't be dealing with your own oppression." This left a bad taste in many players' mouths. Not helped that the Dalish are framed as elitist bigots and the revelations a case of BreakTheHaughty, but many players have pointed out that since the Dalish and "elfy" city elves are EnslavedElves, it's less "[[ScrewYouElves knocking the haughty elitist down a peg]]" and more "grinding already disadvantaged people further into the dirt."

** There's also a third party who's just sick to death of hearing about elves at all, and would like the games to focus more on other Thedas races and groups. (Particularly the dwarves and Qunari, who haven't had as much chance to shine compared to Andrastian human nobles, the Chantry, Circles, mages, Templars, and now elves.)

* Female Elves getting the most romantic options deserves it's own section. Again, many players resent that female elves get more romantic options than any other race/gender/orientation. However, many female elf players express discomfort that they receive more in-universe grief from love interests due to their [[ButThouMust Dalish culture]], with Sera constantly badmouthing her culture [[spoiler:and potentially dumping her for it]], Solas constantly badmouthing the Dalish [[spoiler:and dumping her no matter what]], and Cullen refusing to even acknowledge her culture until ''Trespasser'' [[spoiler:during their wedding]], left many female elf players almost wishing the devs hadn't even bothered since (combined with all the revelations about the Dalish; see below) it almost feels like the developers want to [[CosmicPlaything "punish" female elven players for being "too elfy"]]. Female Dwarves, Qunari, and even Humans have fewer romance options, but some counter that at least they receive consistent respect and support from all their spouses (with Iron Bull only getting snippy with Adaar once, but never again), not conditional or backhanded support due to their race/culture.

* Making the Elven Inquisitor Dalish-only has divided some fans, with many annoyed because they prefer city elves, or would have loved to explore [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodStory how an elf raised under human oppression would feel to be in charge of them]], and others feeling that being Dalish-only makes a lot of story sense given the above revelations about Dalish history

** On the one hand, [[https://the-gaider-archives.tumblr.com/page/17 Word Of Gaider]] has stated that the developers based the elves off real-world Medieval Jews, and admitted to their [[{{Applicability}} similarities to "historically oppressed groups" like African and Native Americans]], to the point that it's not uncommon for Jewish and/or [=BIPOC=] players to personally identity with City and/or Dalish Elves. To that end, [=DAI=]'s many cases of ScrewYouElves (as stated above) has left many players feeling it carries some UnfortunateImplications. Basically: "If you deal with systemic discrimination, ''you deserve it.'' Your ancestors ''deserved'' to be enslaved, colonized, and/or segregated because of their own faults. If you/they had just assimilated to the dominant religion/culture [[spoiler:as Ameridcan claims he tried to get the Dales elves to worship the Maker, and Sera is depicted as right for rejecting anything "elfy"]], you wouldn't be dealing with your own oppression." This left a bad taste in many players' mouths. Not helped that the Dalish are framed as elitist bigots and the revelations as a case of BreakTheHaughty, but many players have pointed out that since the Dalish and "elfy" city elves are EnslavedElves, it's less "[[ScrewYouElves knocking the haughty elitist down a peg]]" and more "grinding already disadvantaged people further into the dirt."
** The fact that the Dalish Inquisitor receives the ''least'' support from their companions for their beliefs or culture from a story and gameplay standpoint (since Cadash can bond with Varric for being a fellow surface dwarf, and Iron Bull being on at worst neutral terms with Addar [[spoiler:especially if Bull turns Tal-Vashoth]]), and receives more antipathy for their background than any Inquisitor (with virtually ''every'' major Chantry character giving them grief for being healthen/elven, and ''every'' Elven NPC outright badmouthing the Dalish to Lavellan: [[BoomerangBigot Solas, Sera]], Minaeve, Briala, [[spoiler:Abelas, Ameridan]]...) And, on top of all of that, Inquisitor Lavellan potentially suffers the most misfortune due to their race/culture than any other Inquisitor [[spoiler:with a straight male Lavellan only being allowed to romance Andrastian human noblewomen Cassandra and Josephine, male Lavellan of any sexual orientation being barred from romancing an elf or learning about their culture (which is only revealed in Solas' straight romance), female Lavellan potentially being verbally abused and dumped by Sera for being "too elfy," Solas dumping Lavellan no matter what, and Lavellan potentially [[NiceJobBreakingItHero accidentally causing the slaughter of their entire clan]] in a [[https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Stop_Purge_of_Wycome%27s_Elves War Table Mission]] and [[AngstWhatAngst getting no support for it]] until ''Trespasser'']] led to many players feeling that Inquisitor Lavellan is a CosmicPlaything at best, a DesignatedMonkey at worst.

* How each romance was handled was also another big point of divide. General consensus was that the romances for Cullen, Cassandra, Dorian, and Solas are well-written and enhance those characters, but the remaining options have issues: Iron Bull's romance underwhelms due to the lack of emotional connection and the excessive focus on the BrainsAndBondage aspect to the exclusion of anything else meaningful; Josephine's romance is painfully cheesy; Sera's romance with the female Lavellan is abusive and unhealthy (as detailed above), and her relationship with any of the other races is either objectifying or condescending; and those not put off by TheReveal of Blackwall's status feel that he is [[SoOkayItsAverage too boring]] or actually reminds them too much of their real-life dad/grandpa to romance. Of course, all of them have their supporters and detractors, and a character's individual popularity may or may not have also influenced how fans think about their romance.

* Many people were unpleasantly surprised that there was still no dwarven romance option. This sentiment only worsened with the introduction of Scout Harding, a character many had hoped to romance. Simultaneously, most people who play as dwarf are by now used to the fact they have to stick to humans or elves and generally express no displeasure.
** There is still an on-going discussion if Varric should've been (or become) a romance option. When it was announced he'd play a major role in Inquisition, some people assumed he'd come back as a love interest (like Cassandra or Cullen did). Nowadays, you see a lot of discourse about the topic whenever possible Dragon Age 4 romances are discussed. Some people would love to see Varric pull a [[VideoGame/MassEffect2 'Garrus']], where he is a good friend/companion in earlier games and romance-able later on. Other's feel like making him a love interest would invaluate the relationship he had with both Hawke and the Inquisitor, as by now he's established as 'the best friend' tag-along. The fact he might also be involved with Bianca doesn't really help here.

* It ''cannot'' be overstated how divisive ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'''s depiction of elves, elven history, and an Elven PlayerCharacter has been among elven fans and detractors, since arguments continue in social media forums and comment sections to this day:

* It '''cannot''' be overstated how divisive ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'''s depiction of elves, elven history, and an Elven PlayerCharacter has been among elven fans and detractors, since arguments continue in social media forums and comment sections to this day:
** On the one hand, [[https://the-gaider-archives.tumblr.com/page/17 Word Of Gaider]] has stated that the developers based the elves off real-world Medieval Jews, and admitted to their [[{{Applicability}} similarities to "historically oppressed groups" like African and Native Americans]], to the point that it's not uncommon for Jewish and/or [=BIPOC=] players to personally identity with City and Dalish Elves. To that end, [=DAI=]'s many cases of ScrewYouElves (as stated above) has left many players feeling it carries some UnfortunateImplications about real-world minorities. Basically: "If you deal with systemic discrimination, ''you deserve it.'' Your ancestors ''deserved'' to be enslaved, colonized, and/or segregated because of their own faults. If you/they had just assimilated to the dominant religion/culture [[spoiler:as Ameridcan claims he tried to get the Dales elves to worship the Maker, and Sera is depicted as right for rejecting anything "elfy"]], you wouldn't be dealing with your own oppression." This left a bad taste in many players' mouths. It's framed like the Dalish are such elitist bigots that the revelations are a case of BreakTheHaughty, but many players have pointed out that since the Dalish and "elfy" city elves are ''already'' disadvantaged, it's less "[[BreakTheHaughty knocking the haughty elitist down a peg]]" and more "grinding already impoverished people further into the dirt."
** The fact that the Dalish Inquisitor receives the ''least'' support from their companions for their beliefs or culture (since Cadash can bond with Varric for being a fellow surface dwarf, and Iron Bull being on at worst neutral terms with Addar [[spoiler:especially if Bull turns Tal-Vashoth]]), and receives more antipathy for their background than any Inquisitor (with virtually ''every'' major Chantry character giving them grief for being healthen/elven, and ''every'' Elven NPC outright badmouthing the Dalish to Lavellan: [[BoomerangBigot Solas, Sera]], Minaeve, Briala, [[spoiler:Abelas, Ameridan]]...) And, on top of all of that, Inquisitor Lavellan potentially suffers the most misfortune due to their race/culture than any other Inquisitor [[spoiler:with a straight male Lavellan only being allowed to romance Andrastian human noblewomen Cassandra and Josephine, male Lavellan of any sexual orientation being barred from romancing an elf or learning about their culture (which is only revealed in Solas' straight romance), female Lavellan potentially being verbally abused and dumped by Sera for being "too elfy," Solas dumping Lavellan no matter what, and Lavellan potentially [[NiceJobBreakingItHero accidentally causing the slaughter of their entire clan]] in a War Table Mission and [[AngstWhatAngst getting no support for it]] until ''Trespasser'']] led to many players feeling that Inquisitor Lavellan is a CosmicPlaything at best, a DesignatedMonkey at worst.
** On the other hand, many players feel that these fans are over-reacting since [[CaptainObvious Thedas elves aren't real]], their similarities to real minorities are "[[https://pshspawprint.com/2009/uncategorized/whitewashing-forcing-the-video-game-industry-backwards/ tenuous at best]]", and the devs constantly shitting on elves this game just means they're winding the elves up to being liberated in future games. Many players also feel the Dalish ''are'' that awful, and thus the many helpings of ScrewYouElves ''are'' well-deserved. Others still feel like [[spoiler:the revelations that elves destroyed themselves]] is a refreshing change to the usual NobleSavage depiction of African and Native American tribes, since many colonized cultures were just as flawed as their colonizers. They also feel that revealing that [[spoiler:the elves destroyed themselves]] gives the elves much-needed agency in their own fate, [[spoiler:not just helpless victims of external circumstance]]. Others also feel that the friendly and supportive Elven NPC's in the Hinterlands and Exalted Plains, and some sympathetic portrayals of Dalish elves in codices and War Table missions, makes up for every cinematic and story-required Elven NPC being full of ScrewYouElves.

** The Inquisitor as main character: People supporting this view argue that Tresspasser ended on an open note, leaving more possible adventures for the Inquisitor and their team. One of the reasons being that at the end of DAI, the main character has created a giant network for themselves, bigger than the Hero of Ferelden or Hawke. The other one being that [[spoiler: Solas]] will most likely be the big bad in Dragon Age 4, many people believe it would make no sense to have anyone but the Inquisitor hunt him down, considering their close ties. However. Others may argue that because the two are familiar, [[spoiler: Solas]] would be able to predict the moves the Inquisition would make. Therefore, it'd be better to introduce a new character. [[spoiler: Then there's also the fact the Inquisitor lost their arm at the end of Tresspasser, no matter how you played the game. This causes issues, especially if you used a two-handed weapon. Sure, the story could whoop out yet another miracle, but frequent occurrence those in Inquisition were already a main point of criticism.]] Many people will also argue that, unlike Mass Effects, Dragon Age always had a new protagonist for every single game and that DA4 should be enjoyable for new players. Aside from that, the Inquisitor already had the longest game in the franchise and arguably the 'greatest legacy'. Giving them a second game would create an even bigger imbalance in importance compared to the Warden and Hawke, pushing forward the Inquisitor as 'the' Dragon Age protagonist.

** The Inquisitor as main character: People supporting this view argue that Tresspasser ended on an open note, leaving more possible adventures for the Inquisitor and their team. One of the reasons being that at the end of DAI, the main character has created a giant network for themselves, bigger than the Hero of Ferelden or Hawke. The other one being that [[spoiler: Solas]] will most likely be the big bad in Dragon Age 4, many people believe it would make no sense to have anyone but the Inquisitor hunt him down, considering their close ties. However. Others may argue that because the two are familiar, [[spoiler: Solas]] would be able to predict the moves the Inquisition would make. Therefore, it'd be better to introduce a new character. [[spoiler: Then there's also the fact the Inquisitor lost their arm at the end of Tresspasser, no matter how you played the game. This causes issues, especially if you used a two-handed weapon.]] Many people will also argue that, unlike Mass Effects, Dragon Age always had a new protagonist for every single game and that DA4 should be enjoyable for new players. Aside from that, the Inquisitor already had the longest game in the franchise and arguably the 'greatest legacy'. Giving them a second game would create an even bigger imbalance in importance compared to the Warden and Hawke, pushing forward the Inquisitor as 'the' Dragon Age protagonist.

* Considering Dragon Age has always had a very specific format, it is strange to see this discussion perking up, but the role of the Inquisitor in Dragon Age 4 is still heavily discussed. There are 3 general opinions: 1) The Inquisitor should be once, again, the main character, 2) The Inquisitor should be an NPC like Hawke was in Inquisition or 3) The Inquisitor shouldn't appear at all. All points of views have good reasoning behind it, whilst also creating some issues.
** The inquisitor as main character: People supporting this view argue that Tresspasser ended on an open note, leaving more possible adventures for the Inquisitor and their team. As [[spoiler: Solas will most likely be the big bad in Dragon Age 4, many people believe it would make no sense to have anyone but the Inquisitor hunt him down, considering their close ties. However. Others may argue that because the two are familiar, Solas would be able to predict the moves the Inquisition would make. Therefore, it'd be better to introduce a new character. Then there's also the fact the Inquisitor lost their arm at the end of Tresspasser, no matter how you played the game. This causes issues, especially if you used a two-handed weapon.]]

* The romantic orientations in general. As mentioned above, if you play as a female elf, you have so much more romantic option than if you play as, let's say, a Qunari. Many people were displeased to find out some characters had very limited options. Most notable Solas, who is only available to female elves (1/8th of the character creation options) and Cullen, who is only interested in female humans or elves. A lot of people stated that it'd be nice if Solas was bi, considering his interest in elves only does make sense in his lore and that, just like Cassandra, Cullen was romance-able by all female races.
** Also Cassandra being straight. If you know her character arc, it is clear what the creators were going for, but it is not a reach to say that many people expected her to be bi.

* Another point of debate is how not all romances are available for every gender/race, but the flirt option often is for some time. In some character's case, like Cullen or Vivienne, the Inquisitor gets turned down rather quickly. However, in some other arcs, especially Cassandra hers, you can be already very far into the game before she tells you she is not interested. Not only is this frustrating because you got your hopes up, but you could've also spent your time romancing another character.

** There is still an on-going discussion if Varric should've been (or become) a romance option. When it was announced he'd play a major role in Inquisition, some people assumed he'd come back as a love interest (like Cassandra or Cullen did). Nowadays, you see a lot of discourse about the topic whenever possible Dragon Age 4 romances are discussed. Some people would love to see Varric pull a 'Garrus', where he is a good friend/companion in earlier games and romance-able later on. Other's feel like making him a love interest would invaluate the relationship he had with both Hawke and the Inquisitor, as by now he's established as 'the best friend' tag-along. The fact he might also be involved with Bianca doesn't really help here.

* Whereas some characters, such as Varric are universally well-liked by the fanbase and some of them (read: Vivienne) are often criticized, many of them have this 'you either love or hate them' vibe going on. Most notably Sera. Who can be extremely funny and a pleasure to have in your party, but can come across as not taking this too seriously. On top of that she can be rude or condescending. It is safe to say she has by far the most polarized opinions. If you look at people making their top 10 most loved Dragon Age companions, she often ends up either at the bottom or at the top.

* The double standard surrounding Cullen's fanservice. [[spoiler: There are several occasions where people objectify him or joke that he's just part of the inquisition so they'd look prettier. In one of the dialogues, Leliana jokes that he just has to 'shut up and look nice' and during the party banter, Varric will ask who'd win a fight Cassandra, Leliana or Josephine, leaving 'Curly' out of the equation because we all know he's just there to look pretty. Some people applaud the story for switching the game narrative, because usually, this is how female characters are handled. However, some of them find the fact that nobody whines about it because he's male, a big double standard.

* The repetitive trope [[spoiler: that you were a pawn in your mage companion's plan all along, starts to tire some people after it happened for the third time in a row.]] In Tresspasser, we learn that [[spoiler: Solas is the dread wolf and has been pulling the strings since the beginning of the story. After Morrigan and Anders' arcs, some people went out of their way to express their displeasure about this turn of evebts.]]

*** The debate flared up again after ''Trespasser'', where two female-only romances (namely, Cullen and Sera) get to ''marry'' the Inquisitor. As for why this caused issues, it's because no other romance route has the marriage happen on-screen or ''at all''. Iron Bull can discuss marriage with a romanced Inquisitor of either gender, the implication being that they'll have an offscreen wedding after the current mess is settled. Meanwhile, in the Cassandra romance, depending on your ending, Cassandra may say that her romance with the Inquisitor is at risk thanks to her being Divine; as for Dorian, he will say he has to go back to Tevinter, which the Inquisitor notes means they won't see each other for a long time at least.

*** Sera's [[IfItsYouItsOkay relationship]] with a Dalish girlfriend [[spoiler:and her rash ultimatum after Mythal]]: A refreshing change where a companion actually ''acknowledges'' the player's race, and understandable given her own [[InternalizedCategorism internalized racism]]? Or a highly toxic and emotionally abusive relationship where [[BoomerangBigot Sera treats Lavellan the way]] [[{{Hypocrite}} she claims "elfy" elves treated her]] in the past? Her {{character development}} in ''Trespasser'' mitigated this only a little bit, with some forgiving her and others seeing it as far too little too late [[spoiler:especially since she never apologizes or rescinds her ultimatum if she has not been dumped]]. Fans were also a little torn over whether her DistractedByTheSexy / CutenessProximity reactions to a Qunari and Dwarf Inquisitors are charmingly funny, or objectifying / infantilizing respectively.
** How each romance was handled was also another big point of divide. General consensus was that the romances for Cullen, Cassandra, Dorian, and Solas are well-written and enhance those characters, but the remaining options have issues: Iron Bull's romance underwhelms due to the lack of emotional connection and the excessive focus on the BrainsAndBondage aspect to the exclusion of anything else meaningful; Josephine's romance is painfully cheesy; Sera's romance with the female Lavellan is abusive and unhealthy (as detailed above), and her relationship with any of the other races is either objectifying or condescending; and those not put off by TheReveal of Blackwall's status feel that he is [[SoOkayItsAverage too boring]] or actually reminds them too much of their real-life dad/grandpa to romance. Of course, all of them have their supporters and detractors, and a character's individual popularity may or may not have also influenced how fans think about their romance.