Dragon Age: Inquisition multiplayer will be cooperative, separate from single-player campaign, paywall-free

BioWare today revealed a raft of details concerning the multiplayer component of their upcoming RPG Dragon Age: Inqusition, not the least of which is its independent and free-to-play design.

In stark contrast to the 150-hour single-player campaign, Inquisition’s multiplayer is designed to be played in short bursts, IGN reports. The game’s three multiplayer campaigns will feature 10 randomly generated sections composing a larger level, proposing potentially infinite replayability.

The campaigns will be thematically related to the game’s singler-player content, but in no way directly connected. “The campaign is a story about you, and your growth, and your Inquisition,” creative director Mike Laidlaw said, affirming the same level of quality couldn’t be delivered in multiplayer storytelling. However, multiplayer NPCs won’t be lumps on logs; Laidlaw added that “they’re kind of like mini followers, and they banter among themselves.”

Despite “lots of DLC, lots of new heroes and levels,” multiplayer will remain free. “It’s all free DLC for everyone,” BioWare’s Sylla Costa said. At launch, nine heroes will form Inquisition’s multiplayer roster—three for each point of the RPG combat triangle—but will be joined by others through future expansions.

Everything loops back to loot; gold earned through matches is used to unlock equipment chests, thereby upgrading your multiplayer heroes. However, “singleplayer content is NOT locked behind MP,” executive producer Mark Darrah clarified via Twitter.

“We didn’t want to force anyone to play MP, though,” he added.

[IGN, Twitter]