Mass Effect: Andromeda goes Gold

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

As of yesterday, BioWare officially announced via Twitter [https://twitter.com/bioware/status/835217802755715072] that Mass Effect: Andromeda has gone gold.
Mass Effect: Andromeda has gone gold.

BioWare (@bioware) February 24, 2017 [https://twitter.com/bioware/status/835217802755715072]
What this means is that the game is officially finished and, in the case of physical copies, ready to go into production ahead of distribution to retailers for its 21st-23rd March release date [http://www.techradar.com/news/mass-effect-andromeda-release-date-news-and-rumors]. While it will not have a season pass [http://www.polygon.com/2017/1/9/14212934/mass-effect-andromeda-dlc-no-season-pass], there will almost certainly be DLC down the line as well as potential patches to fix outstanding or as-yet undiscovered issues. (It's actually very refreshing to not be inundated by DLC before a game has even launched, let alone controversial Day 1 DLC of the ME3: From Ashes [https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=me3+from+ashes+controversy] sort.)

Unlike most publishers these days, EA have seemingly allowed publication a day or two ago, of previews from a variety of video game coverage outlets. YouTube and review sites have a lot of information and "Hands-on Impressions [https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mass+effect+andromeda+hands+on]", something the likes of Bethesda [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/168701-Bethesda-Review-Policy-Updated] and Ubisoft [http://www.polygon.com/2014/11/11/7193415/assassins-creed-unity-review-embargo] embargo until at or only just before release, a vile anti-consumer practice relying on subterfuge and deceit to sell games. Granted, the playtime came from supervised sessions (where reviewers were invited to EA sites and the parts shown were handpicked), but the parts remain largely representative of the final product so I must credit EA for being as open with the press as they have been.

Further, they've also announced PC hardware specs [https://twitter.com/bioware/status/835266993771151361/photo/1] to play the game at minimum and recommended levels. Of note, the game runs on DX11, not DX12, requires a 64-bit Windows 7 or higher (similar to Blizzard's recent announcement [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/169584-Blizzard-Games-Will-Stop-Working-on-Windows-XP-and-Vista-Later-this-Year], it seems support for Vista and earlier is unavailable). Further, it requires a whopping 55GB free hard drive space to install and a minimum of 8GB RAM and a 2GB GFX card. (In perspective, the entire ME Trilogy including all DLC takes up 57GB of my hard drive!)

While all this is good news, there have been some controversial issues surrounding the game and its development. From an openly racist developer [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/663.941681-Manveer-Heir-and-Mass-Effect-Andromeda], the lead writer leaving [http://www.polygon.com/2016/2/15/11010936/mass-effect-andromeda-lead-writer-bioware-bungie] mid-development, Casey Hudson leaving [http://blog.bioware.com/2014/08/07/casey-hudsons-departure-from-biowareea/] too and fears from fans that ME:A will end up as Dragon Age: Inquisition [http://www.gameskinny.com/br1bs/mass-effect-andromeda-looks-suspiciously-like-dragon-age-inquisition] in space, or not [https://www.pcgamesn.com/mass-effect-4/mass-effect-4-will-not-draw-inspiration-from-dragon-age-inquisition].

For PC and XBone players with EA Access, they'll also be allowed a 10-hour preview of the game [http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2017-01-23-10-hour-trial-of-mass-effect-andromeda-out-five-days-before-launch] a full five days ahead of its official release; the save will also carry over to the release version. Finally, there's an interview with Natalie Dormer [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gip_9AdbtHA] (previously of Game of Thrones fame), on her role as Dr. Lexi T'Perro, doctor of the Tempest and the character who wakes Ryder from cryo-sleep at the game's beginning.

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

I'm still not one iota excited for this one. Couldn't care less about Bioware desperately trying to call backsies on the shit storm of an ending they wrote of Mass Effect 3.

I'm much prefer them just admit they fucked it, declare the last...15mins of Mass Effect 3 non-canon, everyone lives, Normandy doesn't crash, the magic space child isn't real and the Reapers were defeated, the end. No need to make an entire other game.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

Some other news, which may be treading on minor spoiler territory.

Spoiler: We have been introduced to the Tempest Crew

The Tempest Crew

[http://oi67.tinypic.com/119ywcz.jpg]

Spoiler: In more detail

We have 2 females, 1 Asari, 3 males.

- Cora, Female Human and "Biotic Commando" (AKA Vanguard) and romantic interest for male Ryder.
- Vetra, Female Turian, "Drifter Mercenary" (likely a combination of tech and weapon skills)
- PeeBee, Asari, "Rogue Academic" (almost certainly some amount of biotics and likely a romantic interest for either Ryder twin)
- Jaal, Male Angara, "Resistance Fighter", native to Andromeda.
- Drack, Male Krogan, "Veteran Warrior", most likely closer to Grunt than Wrex, but a brutal melee fighter and tanky squadmate)
- Liam, Male Human, "Crisis Specialist", clearly the token Irishman and the romantic interest for female Ryder.

We also know about the timeline and how it relates to the ME trilogy [http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2016-11-07-now-we-know-exactly-when-mass-effect-andromeda-is-set] in general and more specifically ME3 and the "ending".

Spoiler

In short, the "Arks" left the Milky Way *after* the events of ME2 but *before* ME2: Arrival and of course, therefore, ME3. Thus the last any of the ME: Andromeda cast knew was that the Reapers were still a looming threat and nothing that happened after ME2: Arrival will therefore be relevant to the events or characters of Andromeda.

On the subject of the Arks

Spoiler

We know there are four Ark ships, one for each of the Humans (Hyperion), Asari (Lunesia), Salarians (Parchero) and Turians (Natannis). Krogan are clearly present, but not in great numbers. On the subject of other races:

- Krogan likely won't be there in great numbers. Prior to ME3 all Krogan were affected by the genophage so Andromeda krogan would be no different. They would likely not be present in sufficient numbers to be viable to re(populate) the species in the new galaxy. (This makes Drack and any other Krogan quite interesting, in the same vein as the one-way Mars One trip.)
- Quarians presence has been left intentionally ambiguous by BW. While it could go either way, IMO the reason for this is that they won't be present in Andromeda and for good reason. Based on lore, firstly the Quarians need their suits to survive and without hardy immune systems a new galaxy would be most unwelcoming to their species. Secondly, they are very community focused, almost tribal in how important being amongst their own species is, so sending many away of an already dwindling population would be very unlikely. Lastly, during the timeframe in which the Arks left, the migrant fleet was very much accounted for and laying the groundwork for retaking Rannoch.
- There is no news about other species such as Volus, Elcor, Hanar, Batarians, Vorcha, etc.)

On the subject of weapons:

Spoiler

- There are four broad categories, Assault Rifles, Snipers, Shotguns, Pistols (which now also includes SMGs). There are also now melee weapons with their own category and equipment slot.
- They will have a "rarity" system not unlike MMOs and a "crafting [https://www.pcgamesn.com/mass-effect-andromeda/mass-effect-andromeda-weapons-guide]" system.
- There are quite a few returning weapons from the trilogy, including: M3 Predator, M5 Phalanx, Carnifex, M25 Hornet, M8 Avenger, M96 Mattock, M37 Falcon, Revenant, N7 Valkyrie, Incisor, M90 Indra, Black Widow, M23 Katana, Disciple, Reegar Carbine, N7 Crusader.
- There are three different "types" of weapon. There are the "Milky Way" projectile weapons that use "thermal clips" a la ME2-ME3. There are Andromeda "Remnant" weapons that use the Heat mechanic a la ME1 and are "beam" based. Other Andromeda "Heleus Cluster" weapons are plasma based and will use a "charging mechanic" and have heat seeking/homing.

On skills, abilities and levelling, we've now seen the available skills in official gameplay videos. This video [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=It8lhMhrlbQ] provides a great breakdown of the skills and information released on the subject so far. Skills include:

Spoiler: Combat Skills

Combat Skills

[http://oi65.tinypic.com/r8crcy.jpg]

Spoiler: Tech Skills

Tech Skills

[http://oi64.tinypic.com/of7f5u.jpg]

Spoiler: Biotic Skills

Biotic Skills

[http://oi66.tinypic.com/10zrbig.jpg]

 

[Elijin]

I'm still not one iota excited for this one. Couldn't care less about Bioware desperately trying to call backsies on the shit storm of an ending they wrote of Mass Effect 3.

I'm much prefer them just admit they fucked it, declare the last...15mins of Mass Effect 3 non-canon, everyone lives, Normandy doesn't crash, the magic space child isn't real and the Reapers were defeated, the end. No need to make an entire other game.

You get that even if ME3 ending had no issues, that people want more of the setting, without treading the same tired ground with shepard a 4th time, right?

Of course not. You aren't interested, it must have no reason to exist other than your critical snark. Obviously.

 

[pookie101]

after the ending of ME3 it basically destroyed my interest in the series but thankfully the directors cut fixed the ending that i initially thought was completely glitched.that said i wasnt interested in andromeda initally but ive been pleasantly surprised and will be picking it up in a couple of weeks. its actually given me an excuse to finally upgraded my pc and looking at the system requirements BRING IT ON !

the hands on previews seem pretty positive and its curious that they are going back to ME1 for inspiration. im glad they FINALLY understand that the issue with the mako was the maps not the vehicle.

its still weird that EA of all companies seem to be doing the right thing

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

I'm still not one iota excited for this one. Couldn't care less about Bioware desperately trying to call backsies on the shit storm of an ending they wrote of Mass Effect 3.

I'm much prefer them just admit they fucked it, declare the last...15mins of Mass Effect 3 non-canon, everyone lives, Normandy doesn't crash, the magic space child isn't real and the Reapers were defeated, the end. No need to make an entire other game.

You get that even if ME3 ending had no issues, that people want more of the setting, without treading the same tired ground with shepard a 4th time, right?

Of course not. You aren't interested, it must have no reason to exist other than your critical snark. Obviously.

I don't recall anyone saying the ending was terrible, but hey at least we got to see a few new planets.
Likewise the Citadel DLC wasn't praised because of the arcade minigame or the battle simulator.
And Mass effect certainly wasn't such a hit because of the gameplay.

It was about the characters. Tali, Liara, Garrus, Kaidan. People replay it for the characters, people were upset by the ending because of the characters, people were passionate about the characters, they draw the characters, write fics because of the characters, cosplay as the characters.

A Mass Effect game without the mass effect characters is like a Batman game where you play a school janitor, you never see Batman, never hear about Batman and never see or hear about any of the villains. But hey, at least you get to see more of Gotham, right?

Just saying, no one cosplays as a setting

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

I still think this game is a massive cop-out and it might even qualify as an insult. The setting is of crucial importance for science fiction. It's the most important thing and they've chosen to abandon it because they wrote themselves into a corner and they're too stupid to fix it. We've barely scratched the surface of what the Milky Way has to offer. I hate the very concept of this game.

Just imagine if any other game did something like this. If suddenly a sequel Dragon Age or The Elder Scrolls or any other RPG is set on a completely different planet with completely different races and rules. The stupidity of the "idea" for ME:A is mind-blowing.

 

[GrumbleGrump]

Not really excited. Not only did they bum-fuck the lore already (arguably they started doing that in ME2) with all that "yuge ark ships" deal, not only they made no effort to improve their by now traditional bad animations, but they took the fucking coward's way out by making you use a god damn human again. You could play as all the citadel races, but no, lets use the human again. Let's also forget all the ugly characters.

 

[Zhukov]

Yay I guess.

I'm actually liking what I see of the combat. Lots of mobility and cool abilities. Although I'm a bit concerned that the weapons won't have that delicious snappy quality many of them had in ME3. Hard to tell that without playing though.

The big unknown is of course the story. Oh, and whether or not they keep the things that made Inquisition such a soggy fart of a game.

 

[Souplex]

It looks like they're bringing back all the parts of ME1 that I liked (Mako, heat system, inventory, exploration), giving the middle-finger to that godawful ending, tweaking up the parts of the gameplay I liked from 3, and adding in some new stuff. (Increased focus on mobility, doing away with the arbitrary construct that is classes) I'm cautiously optimistic.

 

[Athennesi]

Mixed impressions on this one. On gameplay, they expanded mobility, "powers" and builds tenfold, but core gunplay seems weak, no more tactical pause and (limited) companion control and enemy AI seems very passive and unimpressive. Plus enemy hit reactions are very poor quality, sometimes outright missing.
Not a bad idea to try and shake their regular formula with twins and more determined background( like with DA II), but damn that villain gives DAI vibes and the reasoning behind Initiative is mind-numbingly nonsensical as all the plotholes ME trilogy was riddled with...seems they've learned nothing here.
Art and env design is bit of hit and miss...feels a bit too familiar and "safe", considering the setting. ME I introduced great and easily recognizable alien races...Kett, Angaran seem unimpressive in comparison.
And overall seems there is a lack of polish: facial animations, clipping, sound issues, reported performance problems, etc.

 

[Hawki]

Natalie Dormer[/url] (previously of Game of Thrones fame), on her role as Dr. Lexi T'Perro, doctor of the Tempest and the character who wakes Ryder from cryo-sleep at the game's beginning.

Giggity giggity!

The setting is of crucial importance for science fiction. It's the most important thing

Yeah...no. Worldbuilding is more important in speculative fiction than other genres, but it doesn't trump the importance of storytelling, plot, and characters. It doesn't matter how interesting the setting is if you can't tell a good story and/or have good characters in it.

Just imagine if any other game did something like this. If suddenly a sequel Dragon Age or The Elder Scrolls or any other RPG is set on a completely different planet with completely different races and rules. The stupidity of the "idea" for ME:A is mind-blowing.

That's a bit of a false equivalency - more if individuals left the core continent of those settings and traveled to another continent. There's still a direct link between Andromeda and the Milky Way, both narratively and astro-geographically.

Also, lots of games do change the setting reguarly - JRPGs do it extensively. It's not a perfect comparison, since Mass Effect has had five games in the Milky Way up until now, but nor is the suggestion that Andromeda has no link to the Milky Way accurate either. And given how ME3 ended, I don't see how you could do a sequel without shafting the fanbase, and a prequel has its own set of problems.

 

[SlumlordThanatos]

I still think this game is a massive cop-out and it might even qualify as an insult. The setting is of crucial importance for science fiction. It's the most important thing and they've chosen to abandon it because they wrote themselves into a corner and they're too stupid to fix it. We've barely scratched the surface of what the Milky Way has to offer. I hate the very concept of this game.

Just imagine if any other game did something like this. If suddenly a sequel Dragon Age or The Elder Scrolls or any other RPG is set on a completely different planet with completely different races and rules. The stupidity of the "idea" for ME:A is mind-blowing.

I wouldn't mind seeing an Elder Scrolls game set in Akavir or Atmora. Tamriel is only one continent on the world of Nirn, and while we haven't seen everything Tamriel has to offer, there's no telling what we'll find elsewhere.

Setting is important, yes, but when we're talking about settings the sizes of galaxies, trading one galaxy for another doesn't change a whole lot. Yes, the writers of Mass Effect kinda wrote themselves into a corner. When the extinction of every sentient race in the galaxy is the consequences of failure, you can't really raise the stakes any higher than that. It's a cop-out, yes, but I don't necessarily see that as a bad thing. We get to see many of the same types of people we're familiar with, while exploring an entirely new, hostile part of the cosmos.

I'd like to see more of the Milky Way, but changing the setting doesn't break the game for me.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

I admit that I do feel a slight...excitement about this game, but it is nowhere near anything I felt for Mass Effect 2 or 3 (Mass Effect doesn't count, as the series didn't have the excitement yet for me, just curious). But I see the gameplay, I hear the previews, and that part of me that loved the original trilogy can't help but go, "Ooooooh, more!"

Unfortunately, the part of me that was so burned by 3's ending that I wrote my own ending, and then just straight decided that The Citadel DLC takes place after 3 and that is how the game actually ends screams, "REMEMBER WHAT THEY DID!!!!"

So I must sit in the back, waiting for other people to come forward and take the plunge. I have to see if they really did learn their lesson--both from 3 and Inquisition--before I will touch this game. Because I don't want to go through that feeling of "I just wasted dozens of hours for...that?" again, not from BioWare.

 

[Elijin]

Just saying, no one cosplays as a setting

I mean, people regularly cosplay generic N7 soliders, nameless Asari, etc. Which is the setting. You get setting doesn't just mean scenery, right? This applies across the board, to other titles too. People like the universes created, not just a handful of characters.

Elder Scrolls was mentioned. I think that's a great example. They literally only keep the setting. Everything between games is relegated to lore journals and dialog pieces. Elder Scrolls is literally the embodiment of 'What if we just carry a setting forward without any of the specific characters or events.'

And there's a comic called Gotham Central. Its Gotham without Batman. And its excellent.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I've very reserved about the game and waiting for feedback.

I hope the game is like previous Mass Effects with quality over quantity quests (DA:I). How good the core game is and having only elements that improve that core are what I look for most in games. I don't want to waste time on lackluster content or busywork.

I'm not sure how this whole storyline is going to work or make sense. What's the point of going to another galaxy? To get away from the Reapers? It wouldn't make sense the Reapers are just a thing for our galaxy as then the whole organics vs synthetics with the synthetics winning and killing off all organic life would happen in all other galaxies then. Of course, those winning super powerful synthetics would make it to the Milky Way at some point. I always figured when the Reapers were gone from the Milky Way, they were tending to all the other galaxies because that's really the only thing that makes sense.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

I've very reserved about the game and waiting for feedback.

I'm waiting for Jim Sterling's review.

OT; System specs aren't too harsh, unless you plan on running the game at 4k (I won't be). As for HDD, hmm, good thing I got that new 4tb drive.

I was fairly annoyed at the ME3 ending, but since Andromeda starts before ME3 ends, the ending as done by the Mass Effect Happy Ending Mod can still stand.

 

[meiam]

Colored weapon loot, crafting, open world. Fuuuuuuuuuu... it's the DA:I of ME.

Add to that the removal of class and you can pretty much guarantee the balance will be absolute shit. You could very easily completely break DA:I system and solo enemy 10 levels above you on the hardest difficulty. And limited AI company control does not sound good, the AI companion in DA:I were incredibly dumb, like archer walking in enemy melee range and mage dispelling CC off enemy level of dumb.

 

[escape_hell]

How to preorder Mass Effect Andromeda?

 

[escape_hell]

How to preorder Mass Effect Andromeda?