Dragon Age Inquisition's Horse has been lying to you all this time

Dashing across open plains atop a trusty steed is a common theme and mechanic across many role-playing games, and Dragon Age Inquisition is no exception. But that feeling of the wind in your hair, of travelling the world at great speed? Well, you've been lied to.

The fact that part of the speed of horseback riding in Dragon Age Inquisition is in fact an elaborate illusion was revealed by one of the game's developers in a twitter thread about revealing 'useless' Dragon Age series facts.

"When you 'sprint' on a horse in Dragon Age Inquisition it doesn't really do much," BioWare veteran John Epler tweeted. "Frostbite couldn't stream in levels fast enough, so we just added speed lines and changed the camera so it felt faster."

So there you have it - riding a horse is faster than walking, but every time you press that sprint button on your horse, it doesn't actually do anything. It just tricks you into thinking you're moving more quickly.

BioWare's struggles with the Frostbite game engine, which was built by fellow EA studio DICE for the Battlefield series, have been well documented over the years. Designed for a shooter, it lacked much functionality that'd be most useful for building role-playing games - having a heavy impact on the development of both Dragon Age Inquisition and Mass Effect Andromeda. 

The next Dragon Age game, Dreadwolf, will also be on Frostbite. Epler, who revealed this tidbit, is that game's Creative Director, and so wrestling with the engine again - albeit with many more tools and more experience. The next Mass Effect is likely switching over to Unreal Engine, based on BioWare's job postings. We'll see more of one of those games - if not both - later this year.