Topic: Mass Effect: Andromeda

Mass Effect Andromeda has problems and strengths | Rock, Paper, Shotgun
https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2017/03/16/mass-effect-andro...

Another early Impression from RPS.

@ApostateMage
Thanks for that mate. Good to get as many different views on it as possible, though none of them have exactly been full of praise. They're all a bit "meh".

I think what seals it for me is where he says "on the whole, its solid enough".. Not what i'd expect from this series, by these developers, & again where he says "I’m hopeful that future planets and species will be more inventive, but right now my feeling has been “well, here I am again.”

Says it all really..

Quite an interesting talk about Mass Effect: Andromeda. They say the game is very much like an amalgamation of 1 and 3 and cerainly feels like Mass Effect. They do say that they think that its played safe and not taken any risks and that narratively continues on from 3. They do say though that this is more akin to the old school RPG rather than Witcher 3/Horizon. Worth watching though...

Well I think that's it for me, even at bargain bin prices. There's an investment of time involved as well, and I just don't think it's worth it.

@KratosMD

The combat crackles and the worlds are lush, but mediocre writing and tepid quests add up to what is probably BioWare's worst RPG yet.

ouch lmao

@BAMozzy "They say the game is very much like an amalgamation of 1 and 3 and cerainly feels like Mass Effect."

Thanks for posting that Bam, just what I was hoping for!

Never played any Mass Effect & was hoping the trilogy would be Remastered so I could pick this up eventually. Alas, that didn't happen & given its current metacritic score (75) it doesn't look like I'll miss anything. This might be one of those games where I'll wait for a GOTY edition & pick it up used for £10 in 3-4 years time.

I'm surprised by the reviews actually. Animations aside, the gameplay looked solid. Also given that Mass Effect is a beloved franchise I really expected this to review better.

Get that remaster out EA! Why do you hate money?!

I'm still buying this because I love Mass Effect but I'm super-disappointed with what I'm reading. It sounds like exactly what I don't want from a Mass Effect game.

Let's not all act like a 75 is some sort of terrible score. I know it's Mass Effect, I know it had lofty standards to live up to and is one of the biggest AAA titles with huge expectations, BUT getting past all that, it seems there is a solid to good game in there somewhere behind all the jank. Now I know fans of the series hoped for much, much more, but given the lack of similar titles on the market I think it'll be worth playing, especially down the line.

It's not the score that concerns me - it's what the reviews are saying. It seems like it's literally the opposite of the direction I wanted them to go in for the series.

@Lurker I'm just thinking about how boring DA:I was to play (despite it looking pretty damn nice) and picturing that with a sci-fi backdrop and trying to work out if that's enough to save it for me. I don't reckon it is unfortunately but will give it a go at some point.

@kyleforrester87 Yeah that's what I'm dreading too. DA:I come out when i had nothing else to play, and was really itching to play a big RPG after a 12 year break from gaming, so I played it quite thoroughly but looking back I gotta admit it was a slog.

Haven't read much of the reviews but it seems there is no consensus whether there is a ton of filler here, some outlets and players say it's Inquiisition in space, some say quite the opposite.

75 isn't bad an average score and whilst we have been spoilt with games like the Witcher 3 and Horizon in this genre, 75 puts it above Ghost Recon: Wildlands (74), Lego Worlds (71) and Styx: Shards of Darkness (73). Of course the score could drop with more reviews.

Its obviously disappointing because its a Mass Effect game and the trilogy was well loved and highly regarded by many. In many ways the animation and lip synch is not that bad compared to games last gen but with the standards set - especially Uncharted 4, this is poor. Very few RPG's launch almost perfectly - even the Witcher 3 had some issues (particularly in Novigrad and the Bog) but playing them now, its virtually perfect - the odd dropped frame here and there. I don't know if Bioware can fix all the 'issues' (facial animations etc - that seems a massive job) but could patch performance. I would argue that no RPG is really worth buying at launch - or at least playing (a few exceptions like Horizon but that had a 'few' minor issues - hence a few patches but very minor and didn't affect everyone.

Maybe those that are 'undecided' should buy Horizon: ZD and play that until Bioware sorts out this games bugs/glitches. I will still be getting my pre-ordered copy - glad its only the 'standard' version though...

@johncalmc Exactly! After the reviews I've read, I'm quite surprised it's sitting at a very respectable 75%.

Yeah for people saying a 6/7 out of 10 isn't bad, I'd generally agree, but you have to consider the pedigree. EA did the same thing with Dead Space 3 - it wasn't "bad", but compared to DS1 and DS2 they really butchered it. Same with Resi 6.

If a game in a franchise I loved, be it Final Fantasy, Metal Gear or Resident Evil, got a 5 or 6 it might as well be a 0 in my eyes, such would be the obvious step backwards in quality. If I was a big ME fan I'd be gutted. What's the point, you know?

@KratosMD I thought you might mention that lol. Look, I'm not saying the game has to be superior to previous instalments in all aspects. Look at Dead Space 2 against 1 - it sacrificed some of the horror and suspense with action and character development. Some people didn't like that, and some people did, but at the end of the day it was still a worthy sequel that at least in some ways improved on the previous instalment.

Games like Resi 6, Dead Space 3 and (apparently) Andromeda just seem like giant leaps backward in comparison.

@KratosMD Yeah sounds like they went into this instalment with the wrong attitude, or something big went wrong during production - either way they shouldn't have even bothered if this was the end result.

PC Gamer who I fully expected to rip this game gave it a 80... It seems reviews are all over the place. I'm just going to judge it for myself.

So who's getting a copy tomorrow?

@themcnoisy I am. I need a new coaster for my cuppa's while I'm playing Persona 5.

Seriously though, I will get it eventually, maybe when it's been all patched up and is about a flim/tenner in a sale.