Dragon Age: The Veilguard won't have DRM protection, Denuvo or otherwise

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BioWare's new Dragon Age game won't have any kind of DRM when it launches on Halloween 2024.

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The first new Dragon Age game in 10 years is right on the horizon, but despite that long wait, BioWare and EA have chosen not to use DRM protections on the new game. Dragon Age: The Veilguard is due out on October 31 and won't have Denuvo at launch, which is typically a good thing for gamers as DRM can impact in-game performance. However, it does mean that PC users won't get to actually pre-load the new Dragon Age.

"As you prepare for October 31st, please find the preload times for each platform below. Dragon Age: The Veilguard won't include any 3rd party DRM (such as Denuvo) on any platform. The lack of DRM means that there will be no preload period for PC players," BioWare said in an update post.

DRM can be a headache for PC game performance, including loading times, but it also protects the game from piracy. A recent study indicates that piracy can affect around 20% of a game's launch revenues. Having DRM protections like Denuvo on a digital game for around 12 weeks can reduce the effect of pirated/cracked games almost to zero.

It's hard to say how this could impact BioWare's latest Dragon Age game, and whether or not the game will be cracked and disseminated across the internet via piracy channels, but on the flip side, the game may actually perform better both on consoles and PCs as a result.

Check below for the pre-load times for Dragon Age: The Veilguard:

• Xbox Series X|S: October 14th 9AM PDT
• PlayStation 5: October 29th 9AM PDT
• PC: No preload, the game will be downloadable and playable on launch day October 31st, 9AM PDT