Mass Effect: Andromeda

degrassinoel

Bioware have stated that Shepard will not be in the game.. at all.

And there's not been very much news on it since it was announced in 2012, shortly after ME3 launched.. but that's all changing now

you may have seen this one already, it was one of the first (of very few) teases



But, There's been the E3 tease

It's been confirmed that Comic-con this month (July 24-27)will have lots of details (comparatively i assume) from Bioware.
As mentioned on Polygon

There is also a short survey from Mike Gamble's twitter page which asks which games you have played, and what type of games you enjoy, what you want to see in the new ME etc..

It takes less than 2 minutes to fill out, but it might be worth it to get your spoke in.

Judging by the E3 video and the scant details in the survey i'm guessing the new ME game is going to be heavily focused on exploration rather than a massive questline with a bunch of sidequests.

I'm really curious how they're going to approach this with a new main character.

Nody

Sorry but if this does not go back to the ME1 roots (and it will not) I'll buy it in a future steam sale for less than a fiver with DLCs. Why? Because it is likely to end up as a poorly ported console PC game (most multi releases are) with dodge behind fixed cover to fire with decision having no real meaning ala ME3 ending with a slapped on multiplayer with one use cards bought for cash in boosters (or rarely gotten boosters in game) and unlock for cash story/MP characters. Simply put I'm not optimistic but I hope the game reviews once released will prove me wrong on it but I highly doubt it...

degrassinoel

Bit harsh Nody, ME3 multiplayer was awesome imo, you can unlock all of the weapons and characters in it without paying a red cent. The single player DLC is a different story but again, it was very well done, especially the citadel DLC.

I dont think it'll show up on steam tbh, Considering that ME3 didnt and wont, and dragon age inquisition isn't going to either.

I thought ME3 was excellent, even the endings, having a forth instalment with Shep after that would be anticlimactic

Nody

degrassinoel wrote: »

Bit harsh Nody, ME3 multiplayer was awesome imo, you can unlock all of the weapons and characters in it without paying a red cent. The single player DLC is a different story but again, it was very well done, especially the citadel DLC.

Sorry but I don't buy a ME game for it's online multiplayer mode; it's a single player game same way as Batman Asylum (if they want that type of multiplayer it should be part of the campaign ala L4D2).

I dont think it'll show up on steam tbh, Considering that ME3 didnt and wont, and dragon age inquisition isn't going to either.

It will end up in a steam sale anyway (as other companies tend to do sales at the same time so it's all a big steam sale :pac: ).

I thought ME3 was excellent, even the endings, having a forth instalment with Shep after that would be anticlimactic

I made more (and way harsher) decisions in ME1 that impacted the ending then I did in ME3 which is simply wrong in my book. ME3 beat ME2 but I still hold ME1 as the best in the trilogy and after having played through it (and youtubed the alternate endings) I was done and walked away. The exploring was boring (better then ME2 but worse then ME1), the combat was on rails with fixed cover or turret sections and at no point was there a real "Oh holy frack" moment like in ME1 (choosing who was to die, killing or not killing of Grunt etc.). ME3 was an ok to good game but as the final in a game trilogy story it came up far below where it could easily have been because of the dumbing down of game mechanics etc.

Having said that I agree that Shepard should be out in the fourth game (but I'd not be surprised if they'll pull a "oh this is Sheps young years" on us down the line in a game) but I also want it to return to it's roots. I don't want a shooter, I want a RPG, I want to explore the stories of people, worlds, I want hidden quests and decision that has a big game altering impact ala Witcher/ME1 rather than surface changes only. And I'm very unlikely to get that because the masses are perceived not to have an attention span beyond the 10h mark for the main story on first play through...

degrassinoel

on multiplayer.. most single player games have a version of MP, ME3's version just happened to be co-op and really good. It was well balanced, lots of people played it (and still do), there were weekly missions that rewarded the participants with new characters and weapons, and it was consistently updated for over a year with new content (chars, weapons and maps) for free.
I dont think it's fair to judge the game by it's multiplayer - which was never going to be it's selling point, just an added bonus.


Steam sale, fair point - it will eventually be on sale on origin.

The decisions in ME3 were gutwrenching at times, and at a much more grand scale than losing Wrex and either Kaiden or whatsherface ( i know there's a lot more to ME than just those two decisions, but the repercussions from ME show up throughout the series)

Probably no sense in spoilering these.. so be warned.. spoilers yarr!

The decisions in ME3 were for me at least equally difficult as they were in the first game, the second game seemed like a no-brainer most of the time, nonetheless still an excellent story.
Mordin's unavoidable death, curing the genophage or dooming the Krogan, destroying the Geth, or the Quarians, Tali's/Legion's death, or a peaceful solution, and that's just the ones off the top of my head.. Even the final decision (granted with the extended cut free DLC) was particularly brilliant, each one of them was a masterfully done epitaph for Shepard.

The entire game itself is (ME3) around 30-40 hours of solid play depending on your playstyle.

I know most of what we're talking about here is opinion, and polar opposite opinion too

Kiith

I was disappointed that they were including multiplayer in Mass Effect 3...until i played it, and realised that it was brilliant. It was an example of how to do multiplayer will, and was a great example of how to incorporate it into a single player game.

As for the next game, i'll buy it at launch, pretty much regardless of what info we get between now and release (baring them making it a MOBA :pac:). The current trilogy was fantastic, with some of the best moments in games over the last few years. It's not often we get really well realised sci-fi universes, that actually have an enjoyable story with some of the best npc's in games. Garrus, Mordin and Wrex are some of my favourite party members in RPG's, up there with Minsc and Sarevok.

Regarding choices that genuinely change games...it's easy enough to do it for single games, but to have those changes carry across a trilogy is a huge ask. I quite liked how ME3 dealt with my decisions in previous games, even if it's wasn't completely game changing.

So bring on the next series of games i say.

Nody

degrassinoel wrote: »

I know most of what we're talking about here is opinion, and polar opposite opinion too

But that's the thing; I don't think w're polar oppositions as we're simply seeing a glass half full/empty :P.

For example why were there no decisions on sending in a suicide attack or having to decide which worlds to save / which to let go to perish? Were was the fleet battle fights to send in battleship after battleship sacrificing themselves as you were forced to escape from a battle and you had to decide which groups to send in that had fought with you through the the game (at least)? Why was there no moral decisions beyond the geth and even that you could get a free pass on having to pick a side (I don't see the Kroogan choice as a real moral decision as he decides to sacrifice himself to save them out of guilt and the Kroogan decision is really the Spider decision of earlier games repeated)? Where was the decision of having to send part of my crew to die as distraction for me getting closer to the enemy (ala ME1's decision)?

Beyond this it's the general story solution in general; everything revolved basically around run and gun. Rescue this guy? Oh it's a guarded and new guards will come in waves until you move one block closer and then more waves will come. No exploring open worlds or having to find a hidden base or anything like it or talking with random NPCs to get side quests.

Finally the universe was not black enough; you were not hammered by losses (beyond the initial introduction video) or really getting a feel this could not be done or it was urgent. No, everything is herpy derpy you simply need to run around the universe a bit (with out the Reapers giving a toss) to do some quick missions for the factions to get them to line up to your side. The Reapers simply sit around waiting for you to gather everyone up rather than you losing a faction because guess what; you took too long and they are now wiped out so tough beeping luck. If I was to make a movie analogy I'd be playing this song throughout the game basically:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhQ5678cJU8

And that's my axe with it; it should not be a "oh things are grand don't worry" but you should have seen your friends killed, worlds blown up and fighting a losing war constantly losing every fight even when you kill more and win the battle you know you're losing the war. In essence in many ways how 300 Rise of an empire played out ending as below (first 90s or so).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3VBvx0ncoI

That would have been to me the real way to end the story in a really epic way...

Maximus Alexander

I played ME1 at release but never got around to ME2 and ME3 until this year, where I went through them both in marathon sessions over a couple of weeks. I just couldn't get enough. For me, it was the best trilogy ever and I am chomping at the bit for more.

I'm delighted that Shepard won't be involved. As much as I loved my FemShep character, for better or worse that story ended and it's time to move on. I just really hope they don't go the prequel route. I'd be interested to see how they tackle the state of the galaxy after ME3 - and will they be forced to choose a canon ending?

gazzamc

Why can't they let this franchise die already?? It's like kicking a dead horse after that horrible ME3....

I'll be pirating this one if I even decide to play it.. EA/Bioware don't deserve any money after the butchering of most of my favourite games...

It should have stayed story based with RPG elements like ME1 but with every new release it became a shooter... Who cares if the combat sucked it was an RPG..

They did the same thing with Dead Space, EAs logic is if it ain't a shooter it won't sell.. I'm still waiting on the guns to be added to FIFA..

The very same goes for Dragon Age, Nothing will top origins...I rather give my money the CDprojektred as they will deliver a more complete game without story based DLC that was clearly stripped from the main game...

And to those who say sure it's only DLC you can play without it... Nope most of ME DLC anyway fills in a lot of unanswered Qs... And it never goes on sale.. The game is starting to age now and all DLC to buy is about €150.. What an utter joke.

/rant

I may have gotten a little carried away there but EAs (and to a certain extent the industry lately) practises is just scummy.. They try to sell you half finished games and expect you to pay for the rest...

BF4 was my last EA purchased game and Ill get any interesting games from them other ways.. And I won't feel bad as they deserve it...

You're all in denial if you think this or the next dragon age will be as good as the others, EAs games have been getting worse yearly..

degrassinoel

I actually think it's quite poignant that you're comparing what you wanted to see in ME3 with two fairly big budget films there. The quality of voice acting and game art/direction in all of the ME games have all been that calibre, of watching or rather participating in the role of the hero(paragon/renegade) in a movie.

So have ye done the survey? It does actually sound like they're turning it back around to exploration

It's also in the youtube video in the OP, they mention exploration there too, and not just galactic, but planetary

Shiminay

Not entirely unfair criticism from Nody, even gazza's rant has a nugget of truth underneath all that declaration of intent to commit a crime...

I hated ME1. I thought it was one of the most boring and awful games I've ever played. After an hour of faffing about I just gave up - if a game still hasn't hooked me in an hour, then it's done something wrong as far as I'm concerned. ME2 on the other hand had me hooked in 5 minutes. The switch to a more combat focussed game is what made the series for me. The story was still there (and it's been one of the more interesting sci-fi stories to come out in gaming in quite a while I think). ME3's Multiplayer was phenomenal. I poured hours into that multiplayer because I love it and I'd never owned a game that had that sort of "hoarde" mode before - so whilst lots of people may have already been tired by what it offered, I loved it.

I'd love to see co-op story stuff, but not an entirely co-op game. Maybe you're a Spectre and there are options to play some missions in a co-op way like Splinter Cell Blacklist does. So if you've got a buddy, you're all set, if you're billy-no-mates, you don't miss out. I've been playing a good deal of Borderlands 2 with my girlfriend recently and it's been a lot of fun, so I guess that's why it's in my head

Anyway, I've filled out the survey, can't hurt to add one more opinion into the melting pot.

Nody

degrassinoel wrote: »

I actually think it's quite poignant that you're comparing what you wanted to see in ME3 with two fairly big budget films there. The quality of voice acting and game art/direction in all of the ME games have all been that calibre, of watching or rather participating in the role of the hero(paragon/renegade) in a movie.

What I want is the feeling from the movies; the epic moment of "Oh hell yea!" with the fleet rushing in on the enemy. In a computer game that's way easier then in a movie (it's all CGI anyway) but it require proper storytelling to get to that point rather than making the game even more about pew pew (looking at the transition ME1 to ME3) which is what I'm missing. At no time did I feel "oh crap the galaxy is going under" or "I really need to hurry up getting this alliance up and running" in ME3. There's no time pressure, there's no in game pressure and there's no story momentum that risk you "failing" the game. Without the risk of failure a lot of the wind for an epic showdown is removed sadly .

So have ye done the survey? It does actually sound like they're turning it back around to exploration

I did and added my comments on it; I'll do say this if they do bring back the buggy (and not the boring jump jet hover ship from the ME2 DLC) I'll seriously consider a day 1 purchase :P

degrassinoel

I felt those epic Hell yeah moments all the way through the game hehe

hell yeah!

It's not just that either, there are conversations throughout the game(s) that tell how long it takes the reapers to complete the harvest, it basically takes hundreds of years.

Klair88

aaannnddd i wanna play ME2 again.

Kiith

Nody wrote: »

I did and added my comments on it; I'll do say this if they do bring back the buggy (and not the boring jump jet hover ship from the ME2 DLC) I'll seriously consider a day 1 purchase :P

You liked the Mako so your argument is now invalid :P

Nody

Kiith wrote: »

You liked the Mako so your argument is now invalid :P

The Mako was bloody brilliant heathen!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iky9ubskNMU

:pac:

Kirby

The Mako was awesome. I felt like such a badass jump jetting over terrain. It was very cool.

degrassinoel

I hear there's a therapy group for you people like you two haha

hammerhead all the way :P

Gbear

I don't think there's any way at all that you can argue that ME3 is anything other than massively better than the previous two games in terms of game mechanics.

The combat and control in 1 were pretty terrible and really poorly balanced. ME2 was a huge leap forward and 3 was where they perfected it.

I'd like to see them continuing in that trend by giving your even more flexibility. They kept exploring that with the newer MP characters so I think a lot of ideas are already in place - teleporting, swords, flamethrowers, various omni-weapons and a load of really fun biotic and tech powers.

Story-wise, they wrote themselves into a Reaper invasion and that had to be dealt with like your pretty much run of the mill war plot. Even though you weren't under pressure for time, the game had to be structured in a way that made it appear that way.

With that plot-line out of the way, I'm hopeful they can go back to their roots and combine the now extremely polished action mechanics, levelling system and inventory with the old backdrop of exploration.

They've done this grand space opera thing now and I wonder would having another Saviour of the Universe as the protagonist feel like retreading old ground.

I'd totally be ok with something with a smaller scope - maybe someone working in a private security company, a mercenary band or a criminal gang might give a different perspective. There's an enormous galaxy to explore so there's no excuse for running out of ideas.

Sarky

The Mako let you run over geth armatures and punt them off cliffs. No other vehicle compares.

degrassinoel

So Comicon is this weekend. The ME devs will be there, here's the schedule

and the offical comicon site says

Mass Effect developers from the Edmonton and Montreal studios discuss what it's like to expand on a well-established and beloved video game franchise. Panelists Carl Boulay (lead animator), Fabrice Condominas (producer), Mike Gamble (producer), Noel Lukasewich (senior artist), and Jessica Merizan (community manager), share their experiences in shaping the next Mass Effect game with new possibilities while staying true to the critically acclaimed series.

So there should be news, lots of it on saturday 26th or sunday morning

Kiith

I doubt we'll see much of anything from the next game till 2015. Comicon will just have more discussion about the universe and setting, and how they plan on making it much better. Similar to what they had at e3, but longer.

Not that that's a bad thing. Any news is good news.

degrassinoel

well, E3 was pretty crap for ME news, a 2 minute vague video stating that they are working on the project is as much news as was known already.. positive reinforcement i guess, but i'm fairly confident that they'll give the name of the project and maybe a teaser.. then again, you could be right too and they wont let any cats out of the bag at all

Kiith

I'd almost rather they didn't release any news. It's probably 2 years off at this stage, and i'm sick of games being talked about so early in development. Wait till at most a year before launch, and then tease the hell out of us.

degrassinoel

I'm not so sure about that, it's been in development since at least the launch of ME3, that's 2 and half years of development, i'm being hopeful here

Shiminay

There was talk of an FPS game and then that turned into a 3rd person shooter and then I think that turned into whatever this project is.

degrassinoel

You sure that wasn't The bureau XCOM declassified?

Exactly the same thing happened with that

Shiminay

Yea, I remember thinking something similar. I didn't bother with The Bureau because it looked very like ME3 combat (not necessarily a bad thing, but I've already got that game) and it got fairly poor reviews.

degrassinoel

yeah, those reviews are fairly accurate too. The game starts off well enough but it loses it's way and ultimately falls on it's face, it did for me anyway. the combat idea was sound enough and similar to ME's combat but nowhere near as good

Skerries

just got an email from Bioware to a site but it is getting hammered at the moment but it just says You've been chosen and a short video

http://invertedcontrols.co.uk/youve-been-chosen-bioware-releases-trailer-and-site-pointing-towards-gamescom-reveal/

degrassinoel

must be their new ip, nice

degrassinoel

details slowly leaking out

Nothing official yet, but according to that article, human is the colour of choice and the Mako is to mako a comeback..

Nothing on the bioware blog yet

Gbear

Some actual information was released at San Diego Comic Con.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzueBbcXqRk

From the Neogaf forums:

I'm tried to put non-obvious details/newer stuff near the top of the list.

Details:
-The Mako is back, they showed video of it, and there are images of it below. It's apparently quite fast now.
-"Building a game about exploring places, so you need a vehicle for that "
-"We learned some things about vehicle frustration"
-They showed off armor renders, viewable below
-"Sounds like the timeline of #MassEffect will be during Shepard's lifetime but won't involve Shepard...hard to tell @GambleMike being cagey!" [Note: Two other tweeters said it sounds like it takes place in another galaxy, though that's not necessarily mutually exclusive with this.]
-"Team reiterates that it is not Shepard's story and that this story one is brand new."
-"no timeline was announced at the panel. Some hints were made but I have to re-listen to the audio."
-"You will see a bit of old with the new (old characters MAY appear) "
-"Competition is critical but cooperation is bigger for us" @GambleMike speaking on multiplayer in #MassEffect / "cooperative MP is bigger for us (than competitive)"
-"Spiritual successor" vibe for the next
-"It's ingrained in us to give players as much choice as possible" - @GambleMike #MassEffect
-"The animation team is now doing stuff we couldn't even dream about before" speaking on Frostbite 3 for #MassEffect
-"it's not called ME 4 damn it! " [I'm going to keep calling it that until they give it a name.]
-No announcements on player race choice of composers when asked
-The internet kept dying for the people livetweeting so there are more details that aren't here
-"I got video of the new #MassEffect Mako in action"

Update:

https://twitter.com/lizwrites/with_replies

-"Seems strongly implied that new Mass Effect will be set in totally different galaxy, but will contain familiar elements. #SDCC"
-"Not playing as Shepherd, and Shepherd is not important to story - new uncharted areas. #SDCC"
-"Mako is back in Mass Effect! More agile, no cannon. #SDCC"
-"New Mass Effect is focused on exploration of planets, Mako is meant to be fast travel on them. #SDCC"
-[Note]: Nerd Appropriate (one of the original tweeters) also said it sounded like another galaxy but they need to double check their audio recording.

Nody

Yay Mako! Much and pretty much turning into a day 1 buy :P

degrassinoel

lol after all that Nody!

Nody

degrassinoel wrote: »

lol after all that Nody!

It got the Mako, that's enough to buy any game and I did state that earlier :P

Nody wrote: »

I did and added my comments on it; I'll do say this if they do bring back the buggy (and not the boring jump jet hover ship from the ME2 DLC) I'll seriously consider a day 1 purchase :P

Icyseanfitz

if its similar to me1 with the shooting mechanics of 3 il buy it, a game like me is all about exploration and story to me (finding new planets to explore, new races to contact, hidden places, secrets, same reason i loved kotor)

me1 was the best in my opinion, the universe felt massive and unexplored, 2 and 3 just felt small to me, i think the mako/planets was the right way to go, the problem was the lack of variety of locations,quests and things of interest on the actual planets

degrassinoel

Well, i disagree, but as it is, it's been done to death anyway.

Anyways, rumour control as per comicon 2014 Bioware ME Panel

KNOWN FEATURES

STORY

The next game will feature a brand new story, that has not to do with Shepard.
It will however, reference the old trilogy. In fact, old characters may reappear.
The Main Character will be a human, male or female, sporting N7 gear.
The character is said to have “something to do with N7”.
The story will take place in a “whole new region of space”
Krogan will be featured.
We will be able to have aliens in our squads.
Aliens players are familiar with will appear in the game, as well new species players haven’t seen before.
The theme is “new experiences for the player, but with elements of what you know and love,”

GAMEPLAY

The next game will feature gender selection.
The galaxy map will remain as a means of interstellar navigation.
Co-operative MP is preferred to competitive.
Customization may be refined, allowing more options.
Combat is “a point of exploration”.
Playable races are not locked down.

MAKO FEATURES

The Mako is back. She has been described as “speedy”, and is capable to maintain her acceleration while travelling through heavy snow.
They are building a game about exploring places, thus the Mako will play a role.
Mako will have new physics, so it can be as responsive as possible. Customizing Mako might be an option. It is sleeker and faster but has no apparent cannon.
Mako thrusters not confirmed, but vehicle customization is being looked into.


AESTHETICS

The next ME game will use the Frostbite Engine.
There has been no info on soundtrack composers yet, as it’s too early.
A variety of environments, from destroyed urban, and arid to grassy and snowy ones will be featured.

Thargor

"All new galaxy"? Wut?

Also a massive fan of the Mako in the first one especially when it intersected the story missions, that huge broken sky bridge and a flooded tropical planet spring to mind, but the research stations on barren worlds were also very atmospheric. Looking forward to a full replay of all 3 before I start 4.

Sarky

There's nothing particularly leaping out at me in those releases. I don't want to be the one that says it, but: Meh.

Mr. CooL ICE

Being a Krogan in the Krogan rebellions would be fun. Not a hope of that happening from that info

Gbear

Sarky wrote: »

There's nothing particularly leaping out at me in those releases. I don't want to be the one that says it, but: Meh.

It's years away yet.

I'd almost be worried if they had too much set in stone at this stage.

We'll have to wait and see.

degrassinoel

Thargor wrote: »

"All new galaxy"? Wut?

Also a massive fan of the Mako in the first one especially when it intersected the story missions, that huge broken sky bridge and a flooded tropical planet spring to mind, but the research stations on barren worlds were also very atmospheric. Looking forward to a full replay of all 3 before I start 4.

I'm gonna go ahead and assume they mean "Part" of the galaxy.

Gbear

degrassinoel wrote: »

I'm gonna go ahead and assume they mean "Part" of the galaxy.

I've seen a lot of suggestions on the ME reddit about going to an actual different galaxy - something like the Omega 4 Relay to Andromeda.

It'd sidestep having to make a canon ending to ME3.

degrassinoel

could be, they'd also have to section it off entirely if it's taking place within shepard's timeline. Mass Relay explodes after it sends a single frigate clear across to another galaxy, no way back - and you name your character Captain Janeway

degrassinoel

Just thinking though, they were pretty specific about saying "Shepard's Timeline" which could mean when humanity first discovered the mass relays - shortly after the find on mars - when the alliance basically started activating them all and started the first contact war. Could easily be one of those relays, possibly destroyed by the Turians shortly after it being opened. One ship escapes..

feck it, i'm gonna copywrite that and sell it bioware

Maximus Alexander

degrassinoel wrote: »

could be, they'd also have to section it off entirely if it's taking place within shepard's timeline. Mass Relay explodes after it sends a single frigate clear across to another galaxy, no way back - and you name your character Captain Janeway

You could easily have it that here was another relay like Omega 4 that ships could go through but never returned. Lots of ships went through to try their luck and explore, something happens on the other side to prevent return so it's a one way trip.

That way you can have all / some number of the races in the other galaxy, along with new ones and it neatly explains why it's never mentioned in the original trilogy. Bam, new place to explore that is completely unaffected by the original series.

degrassinoel

Whatever way it goes i'm looking forward to it

Kirby

degrassinoel wrote: »

could be, they'd also have to section it off entirely if it's taking place within shepard's timeline. Mass Relay explodes after it sends a single frigate clear across to another galaxy, no way back - and you name your character Captain Janeway

Will this include ass shots of 7of9 during a dialogue wheel conversation? Coz I can get on board with that.

degrassinoel

Every conversation with Miranda had that, cant see why it'd change in the next one, although they could probably add dramatic closeup's of cleavage and dun-dunn-DUNN music to it for added masseffect

degrassinoel

Here's the lowdown on Comicon again.. video version :P