How to Play the Dragon Age Games in Order

The game that started it all, 2009’s Dragon Age: Origins presents players with a choice between six different protagonists, each with their own origin story, as they join an elite group known as the Grey Wardens. The Grey Wardens endure a disastrous battle defending the Kingdom of Ferelden from an invasion by the darkspawn, subterranean monsters commanded by a formidable dragon. Barely escaping with their life, the player character assembles a small band to unify the disparate armies of Ferelden and drive the darkspawn back.

In addition to the base game, Dragon Age: Origins released a whole wave of story-based DLC, some occuring concurrently with the main story and others occuring either before or after the climactic battle against the dragon. The largest expansion for Origins was Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening, so large it also got its own standalone release. Here is the order to play Dragon Age: Origins and its associated DLC expansions.

1. Leilana’s Song
2. Dragon Age: Origins (through Ostagar)
3. Return to Ostagar
4. The Stone Prisoner
5. Warden’s Keep
6. Dragon Age: Origins (through the end)
7. Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening
8. The Golems of Amgrarrak
9. Witch Hunt
10. The Darkspawn Chronicles

Leilana’s Song is the only overt prequel to the main story, revealing the origins of the team’s bard Leilana in Orlais before she eventually links up with the Grey Wardens. The Stone Prisoner through Warden’s Keep takes place concurrently with the main story, with Return to Ostagar arguably occuring first, given the state of the fallen King Cailan’s body in the expansion after the opening battle.

Awakening takes place six months after the main game, with the victorious player character rebuilding the Grey Warden order in the realm of Amaranthine, and Alistair returning if he survived Origins. The Golems of Amgarrak takes place some time later while the story-based DLC for Origins ends with Witch Hunt, as the Grey Warden searches for the witch Morrigan after she left Ferelden following the darkspawn’s defeat. The Darkspawn Chronicles is a non-canonical story, with players controlling the darkspawn in a version of Origins where they successfully conquer Ferelden.

Origins‘ gameplay is the most tactical of the bunch, with players being able to plot out the movements and actions of each character before confirming their selection.

2. Dragon Age II

2011’s Dragon Age II opens in the immediate aftermath of the Grey Wardens’ initial defeat defending Ferelden at the beginning of Origins, before relocating to the neighboring Kingdom of Kirkwall. The story then unfolds over the next several years, with the game divided into three distinct acts, as the protagonist, Hawke, becomes Kirkwall’s new champion. Unlike Origins, Dragon Age II only features two story-driven DLC expansions, Legacy and Mark of the Assassin. The recommended playing order for Dragon Age II is as listed below:

1. Dragon Age II
2. Legacy
3. Mark of the Assassin

Dragon Age II is narratively framed by one of Hawke’s companions, Varric, recounting his adventures with the Champion of Kirkwall to a Chantry Templar, Cassandra Pentaghast, some time after the events of the game. Legacy and Mark of the Assassin are side stories that Varric provides Cassandra with during his interrogation.

Legacy covers Hawke’s investigation into their own family history while Mark of the Assassin introduces the elven assassin Tallis, tying into the 2011 webseries Dragon Age: Redemption. Both stories are set at an indeterminate time during the main Dragon Age II story, though their higher difficulty levels and dialog suggest Hawke has been at Kirkwall for some time, while Dragon Age II itself ends seven years after the events of Origins.

Dragon Age II‘s combat can feel like a major departure from Origins, as it’s much more action-oriented. You’ll still have two other party members with you, and you can level them up and unlock unique skills. However, you can expect a faster pace when it comes to combat. Unlike its predecessor, the Dragon Age II is also a much smaller game in scope since it only takes place in Kirkwall.

3. Dragon Age: Inquisition

2014’s Dragon Age: Inquisition takes place approximately four years after the events of Dragon Age II, as the Templars split from the Chantry to take on the Circle of Magi after the magical organization goes rogue. The player character, the Inquisitor, travels across the Kingdom of Orlais to quell the continuing unrest between the mages and templars and seal rifts in the Veil, the barrier separating the world from a magical dimension full of monsters and demons. Here is how to play Dragon Age: Inquisition and its narrative-driven DLC in order:

1. Dragon Age: Inquisition
2. Jaws of Hakkon
3. The Descent
4. Trespasser

Like much of the story DLC in Origins and Dragon Age II, most of the story DLC in Inquisition takes place either during the events of the main game or shortly after. The sole exception is the third and final DLC expansion, Trespasser, which takes place two years after the main events of Inquisition, setting up the game’s eventual sequel, Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Both Jaws of Hakkon and The Descent are side adventures for the Inquisitor as they investigate mysteries at the Frostback Basin and Deep Roads, respectively.

Inquisition‘s gameplay feels like a blend of the first two games, with the game giving you the ability to pause combat at will and plan out your moves. It’s much smoother than Origins though, and also features a giant open-world for you to explore. In fact, one might even argue it’s just too big. My biggest tip? Get out of the Hinterlands as quickly as possible.

4. Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Inquisition ended with the revelation that the elven companion Solas was secretly the trickster god Fen’Harel, whose intent is to destroy the Veil, completely unleashing the monsters on the world. 2024’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard takes place a full decade after the events of Inquisition, with players controlling a hero named Rook out to stop Solas. Among Rook’s companions is Varric, the old dwarven friend of Hawke and the Inquisitor, looking to confront Solas after being betrayed by him.

With no story DLC for The Veilguard currently released, here is the full order of how to play the Dragon Age games:

1. Dragon Age: Origins
2. Dragon Age II
3. Dragon Age: Inquisition
4. Dragon Age: The Veilguard