Okay, so, I want to talk about Andromeda.
First, I should start with a warning about the incoming wall-o'-text. I'm going to get pretty thorough here. Also, as a disclaimer, the Mass Effect Trilogy is my favorite franchise, so take however much salt with my opinions that you think is required.
Also SPOILERS, if anyone cares.
I saw and heard many of the same things all you fine people did leading up to this game's release. The ME3 ending effectively fucked any possibility of a sequel to the franchise, and prequels would be pointlessly boring, so what the hell else could they do to continue it? Some people liked the idea of ignoring the ending by jumping to another galaxy, some people hated it, some people just want EA to go fuck a fondue pot, etc. I thought it was the only option with any potential.
As the game's release date got closer, I heard a lot about a rushed production, about awful character animation, about a racist development team member, about Bioware putting an inexperienced team on the project, about how EA should go stick their dicks in boiling cheese, etc. I never bother to pay attention to pre-release hype because marketing is all bullshit, but I also try not to judge a game based on assumptions before its release either. And I can't recall any non-COD game that had been so thoroughly judged before anyone had played it like ME:A had.
So I decided to wait a while to play it. I heard they were doing some patches to fix some of the glitches and inconsistencies, and I wanted to give them time to make it a better game. I was going to play it at some point, I can't not play a Mass Effect game, but I was going to wait 6 or 8 months for it.
Then my wife bought me the game as a present, and that plan went by the wayside. I might as well play it if I have it. And guess what, motherfuckers?
I really, really liked it.
I honestly think I enjoyed it more than ME1. It's no ME2 or ME3, but overall, it's my third favorite Mass Effect. Let's dive in to why I think this is so.
I guess we can start with the story. It's pretty boilerplate. Even in another galaxy, you can't go a lightyear without running into ancient technology left by a super advanced civilization. There's an ugly bad guy with a fleet of things to kill, he barely ever shows up even as he threatens to murder everything everywhere, and you have to chase him and his minions and try to piece together his ultimate plan. This is basically ME1's plot re-skinned.
I certainly won't say this was a fantastic story or anything, but I will say that it gets the job done. You want to know one of the things I really like about Mass Effect? It's story. A repeat of that may not be impressive, but it is comfortable and engaging enough to give me a reason to continue. Overall, this aspect was not great, but not disappointing.
Next, characters. Characters are why we play Bioware games, right? I've heard people pointing out that if all the characters we got to love over the Trilogy are gone, then what's the motivation to play this new game? Well, okay, I miss them too, but then what's the motivation to play the original game? You don't know anyone before you know them, that's...how linear time works. You have to play new games to become familiar with new characters. So that's what I did.
As a whole, they aren't as compelling as the Trilogy's cast is. But looking back, the squadmates in ME1 are actually a lot less engaging than I remember. It's not until ME2 that you get legitimate conversations and in-depth loyalty missions to get to really know these people. I'd argue that of all 6 squaddies in ME1, only Wrex gets some true character development, and that's if you don't kill him on Virmire. The Andromeda 6 actually get a lot more time and personality than the original cast, with their long-form loyalty missions and far greater interaction among each other. It does a good job at making them feel more rounded and less like Ryder is the very center of their lives.
And finally, some human squadmates that aren't like walking Ambien. The general consensus is that Kaiden and Jacob are total bores, Ashley is a racist, and Miranda is a ***** with crippling daddy issues. Well here's Cora and Liam, some humans who actually rival the rest of the cast with real personalities and humor, with issues that feel more real and relatable, and who don't drone on like Kaiden or whine all the time like Miranda. (To be honest, I don't mind Kaiden and I actually like Miranda, but we all know the boxes they've been put into.)
Peebee is a bit too far on the quirky side (and why is she always making references to 21st century human culture?!), and I didn't get to know Drack or Vetra very well this first time through. But Jaal is terrific, he's different from any previous companion in the series, and as closely tied as he is to the main plot, it always felt important to talk to him and get to know him. I think they did a great job with the new alien race, making them different enough from the other races to make me want to learn about them.
The rest of the cast is expansive and varied as you would expect from a Bioware RPG, and a few of them are even likeable, like the Salarian Pathfinder. The other crew members on the Tempest are reasonably fleshed out, especially Gil the engineer, who has a unique little side story going on a subject that rarely gets covered in video games. And hey, for once a Bioware protagonist who actually has living family! I'm glad that whichever Ryder twin you didn't pick wasn't immediately killed off, and actually has some impact on events.
Next, the gameplay. I really like the combat. It's familiar and recognizable as a Mass Effect combat system, but putting it in open environments and giving you a jet pack for maneuverability does absolute wonders. I quite liked ME3's shooty bits, but this game easily has the best shooting of the franchise. The weapons are extremely varied, and while the encounters do get samey later in the game that's only because the game has so much frickin content. In short, I loved the shooter aspect of this shooter/RPG.
The driving was also fun, for the most part. At first it was extremely annoying having to switch driving modes every few seconds, but I got the hang of it eventually and it became a seamless system for traversing long distances and climbing steep cliffs. And I appreciated that, while the Nomad is certainly a necessary tool for exploring planets, they didn't force you into combat sections with it like in ME1, which consisted entirely of scooting back and forth at long distance to avoid enemy fire while you waited for your cannon to cooldown.
I was also quite impressed with the as-previously-referenced frickin huge amount of content. I never played DA: Inquisition, but I know many people were worried that the apparently endless list of fetch quests and collect-a-thons that game used for side quests would infect Andromeda as well. Well, it didn't. There are a crazy amount of side quests here, and only a fraction of them are the MMO kind. They are varied, they are rich with story, and many of them feel impactful.
The conversation system left something to be desired. I realized before long that it was the same as ME3's system, in that it cut the options in most dialogues from 3 down to 2, which is a mighty shame. On the other hand, it was freeing to not have to worry about Paragon/Renegade points and if I could pass the next speech check. It was simply about roleplaying which Ryder you wanted to be, and it worked just barely well enough in that regard.
Now, I know all the talk about fucked up faces and weird animation glitches put a lot of people off, even me a bit. But I encountered precisely one facial glitch that ruined the tension of a single scene for a few moments. Maybe it was worse before patching, I don't know, but in my experience it was no worse than any other Bioware game. I get that some people can't overlook the glassy stares and oddly disconnected movements, but this is par for the course for Bioware, and either you can live with it or you can't. I can, and the apocalyptic predictions about Andromeda being unplayably glitchy are comically exaggerated.
I will admit the voice acting was below average for a Bioware game, which makes it far better than most games. Scott Ryder is as generally dull as Male Shepard was, and many of the minor characters sounded very inexperienced with saying lines in a sound booth, but all the major characters were fine, and some of them were great.
---
Okay, so, I have more to say, but these are the highlights, and I'm hopeful that the comments will prompt me appropriately. If you want a TL;DR: ME: Andromeda is a good game, I loved it, come at me bro.
Seriously, I just want to say that I really liked this game, and I really want to talk about it. I know I'm going to get some comments on my questionable taste, so bring them on, I can take you all at once!
First, I should start with a warning about the incoming wall-o'-text. I'm going to get pretty thorough here. Also, as a disclaimer, the Mass Effect Trilogy is my favorite franchise, so take however much salt with my opinions that you think is required.
Also SPOILERS, if anyone cares.
I saw and heard many of the same things all you fine people did leading up to this game's release. The ME3 ending effectively fucked any possibility of a sequel to the franchise, and prequels would be pointlessly boring, so what the hell else could they do to continue it? Some people liked the idea of ignoring the ending by jumping to another galaxy, some people hated it, some people just want EA to go fuck a fondue pot, etc. I thought it was the only option with any potential.
As the game's release date got closer, I heard a lot about a rushed production, about awful character animation, about a racist development team member, about Bioware putting an inexperienced team on the project, about how EA should go stick their dicks in boiling cheese, etc. I never bother to pay attention to pre-release hype because marketing is all bullshit, but I also try not to judge a game based on assumptions before its release either. And I can't recall any non-COD game that had been so thoroughly judged before anyone had played it like ME:A had.
So I decided to wait a while to play it. I heard they were doing some patches to fix some of the glitches and inconsistencies, and I wanted to give them time to make it a better game. I was going to play it at some point, I can't not play a Mass Effect game, but I was going to wait 6 or 8 months for it.
Then my wife bought me the game as a present, and that plan went by the wayside. I might as well play it if I have it. And guess what, motherfuckers?
I really, really liked it.
I honestly think I enjoyed it more than ME1. It's no ME2 or ME3, but overall, it's my third favorite Mass Effect. Let's dive in to why I think this is so.
I guess we can start with the story. It's pretty boilerplate. Even in another galaxy, you can't go a lightyear without running into ancient technology left by a super advanced civilization. There's an ugly bad guy with a fleet of things to kill, he barely ever shows up even as he threatens to murder everything everywhere, and you have to chase him and his minions and try to piece together his ultimate plan. This is basically ME1's plot re-skinned.
I certainly won't say this was a fantastic story or anything, but I will say that it gets the job done. You want to know one of the things I really like about Mass Effect? It's story. A repeat of that may not be impressive, but it is comfortable and engaging enough to give me a reason to continue. Overall, this aspect was not great, but not disappointing.
Next, characters. Characters are why we play Bioware games, right? I've heard people pointing out that if all the characters we got to love over the Trilogy are gone, then what's the motivation to play this new game? Well, okay, I miss them too, but then what's the motivation to play the original game? You don't know anyone before you know them, that's...how linear time works. You have to play new games to become familiar with new characters. So that's what I did.
As a whole, they aren't as compelling as the Trilogy's cast is. But looking back, the squadmates in ME1 are actually a lot less engaging than I remember. It's not until ME2 that you get legitimate conversations and in-depth loyalty missions to get to really know these people. I'd argue that of all 6 squaddies in ME1, only Wrex gets some true character development, and that's if you don't kill him on Virmire. The Andromeda 6 actually get a lot more time and personality than the original cast, with their long-form loyalty missions and far greater interaction among each other. It does a good job at making them feel more rounded and less like Ryder is the very center of their lives.
And finally, some human squadmates that aren't like walking Ambien. The general consensus is that Kaiden and Jacob are total bores, Ashley is a racist, and Miranda is a ***** with crippling daddy issues. Well here's Cora and Liam, some humans who actually rival the rest of the cast with real personalities and humor, with issues that feel more real and relatable, and who don't drone on like Kaiden or whine all the time like Miranda. (To be honest, I don't mind Kaiden and I actually like Miranda, but we all know the boxes they've been put into.)
Peebee is a bit too far on the quirky side (and why is she always making references to 21st century human culture?!), and I didn't get to know Drack or Vetra very well this first time through. But Jaal is terrific, he's different from any previous companion in the series, and as closely tied as he is to the main plot, it always felt important to talk to him and get to know him. I think they did a great job with the new alien race, making them different enough from the other races to make me want to learn about them.
The rest of the cast is expansive and varied as you would expect from a Bioware RPG, and a few of them are even likeable, like the Salarian Pathfinder. The other crew members on the Tempest are reasonably fleshed out, especially Gil the engineer, who has a unique little side story going on a subject that rarely gets covered in video games. And hey, for once a Bioware protagonist who actually has living family! I'm glad that whichever Ryder twin you didn't pick wasn't immediately killed off, and actually has some impact on events.
Next, the gameplay. I really like the combat. It's familiar and recognizable as a Mass Effect combat system, but putting it in open environments and giving you a jet pack for maneuverability does absolute wonders. I quite liked ME3's shooty bits, but this game easily has the best shooting of the franchise. The weapons are extremely varied, and while the encounters do get samey later in the game that's only because the game has so much frickin content. In short, I loved the shooter aspect of this shooter/RPG.
The driving was also fun, for the most part. At first it was extremely annoying having to switch driving modes every few seconds, but I got the hang of it eventually and it became a seamless system for traversing long distances and climbing steep cliffs. And I appreciated that, while the Nomad is certainly a necessary tool for exploring planets, they didn't force you into combat sections with it like in ME1, which consisted entirely of scooting back and forth at long distance to avoid enemy fire while you waited for your cannon to cooldown.
I was also quite impressed with the as-previously-referenced frickin huge amount of content. I never played DA: Inquisition, but I know many people were worried that the apparently endless list of fetch quests and collect-a-thons that game used for side quests would infect Andromeda as well. Well, it didn't. There are a crazy amount of side quests here, and only a fraction of them are the MMO kind. They are varied, they are rich with story, and many of them feel impactful.
The conversation system left something to be desired. I realized before long that it was the same as ME3's system, in that it cut the options in most dialogues from 3 down to 2, which is a mighty shame. On the other hand, it was freeing to not have to worry about Paragon/Renegade points and if I could pass the next speech check. It was simply about roleplaying which Ryder you wanted to be, and it worked just barely well enough in that regard.
Now, I know all the talk about fucked up faces and weird animation glitches put a lot of people off, even me a bit. But I encountered precisely one facial glitch that ruined the tension of a single scene for a few moments. Maybe it was worse before patching, I don't know, but in my experience it was no worse than any other Bioware game. I get that some people can't overlook the glassy stares and oddly disconnected movements, but this is par for the course for Bioware, and either you can live with it or you can't. I can, and the apocalyptic predictions about Andromeda being unplayably glitchy are comically exaggerated.
I will admit the voice acting was below average for a Bioware game, which makes it far better than most games. Scott Ryder is as generally dull as Male Shepard was, and many of the minor characters sounded very inexperienced with saying lines in a sound booth, but all the major characters were fine, and some of them were great.
---
Okay, so, I have more to say, but these are the highlights, and I'm hopeful that the comments will prompt me appropriately. If you want a TL;DR: ME: Andromeda is a good game, I loved it, come at me bro.
Seriously, I just want to say that I really liked this game, and I really want to talk about it. I know I'm going to get some comments on my questionable taste, so bring them on, I can take you all at once!
