“If you stick with it long enough it earns the Mass Effect name – though yes, there’s a dangerous feeling early on that you’re playing the straight-to-video sequel version of Mass Effect that gets made when none of the original cast want to come back.”
"It was a bit of a weight off my mind – I was 50 hours into the game and still had no idea of what I wanted to say."
It's funny how journalists try to find something remotely positive about this game. Am I really supposed to pay 60 euros and chew through dozens hours of crap before game gets decent? WTF?
There are moments, Liam had a loyalty mission pretty early on which worked nicely but then you reached the end and the "boss" was a spoiled teenager which well it ruined everything.
(Well acted like a teenager I guess.)
...Or a AI you'll encounter during some story moment somewhere ("vague spoilers") who is insecure and knows the concept of death, which well a AI wouldn't know that.
(Unstable is one thing but a insecure AI who wants to be considered and feel closeness is just weird let alone understanding things like death.)
EDIT: "Pretty early on." = 35 or so hours, I'm a bit further now in terms of story progress several more hours in but I am also grinding a lot although it kinda got a bit messed up since these last tier weapons and armor can't keep up with the level scaling when you try to max out your character, basically mod the weapons for headshot / weakpoint or all out damage bonuses and go for sniper rifles for raw damage, don't even try above normal difficulty or you'll feel like you're playing something like The Division.
Overall you can beat the story path in around 30 - 40 hours but side quests will pad the hell out of the total playtime as will exploration.
But that's true for the entire trilogy, short fairly direct and linear main story points and then tons of extra stuff if you want to, might be beneficial later on but looking into a guide now after doing some quests a lot of these don't really have much of a effect, at least on this game though some events seem all but set up for a sequel hook, of course.
Last edited by JBeckman on Sun, 26th Mar 2017 18:18; edited 3 times in total
At this point, it's my favorite Mass Effect game. I'm not sure if it will hold up - but that's how I feel about it right now. I have to admit, though, that certain NPC models and facial animations are a bigger concern than I originally thought they would be.
I did get past it - for the most part - very quickly, but there are issues with the models that get more apparent and disappointing later on. I'm not sure how to explain it - but it feels like SWtOR more than Mass Effect in terms of NPC models. It has something to do with the size and scale of the models - and the way they all look nearly identical.
It's most likely a simple matter of the game being so ridiculously huge in scope in terms of individual characters - each with their own voice and backstory. You'll find even the most trivial of side-quest NPCs have a story to tell - and they just ran out of resources I expect.
However, in pretty much all other ways - this game is above the past Mass Effect games - and that includes the writing. Yes, I prefer this kind of writing - which is much more nuanced and much less about making an impression as soon as possible. Characters are plausible - instead of extremists with absurd Hollywood attitudes.
Sure, a few of them feel like run-of-the-mill Bioware characters, like PeeBee and Drack - but the vast majority of both party members and regular NPCs feel much more grounded and subtle in their presentation. To me, that's a big plus.
Another big surprise is how well the game is balanced at hardcore difficulty level. This includes the gear system and the progression system. If you're smart, you will be rewarded - and the game won't be that hard - but it will STILL throw the occasional really challenging fight in your direction, but so far it's been within the realm of reason.
I have no idea why people have a problem with the crafting system. It's pretty straightforward - and it's incredibly rewarding. The augmentations make all the difference - and one of the best parts of the game, for me, has been experimenting and finding just the right weapon/armor combo.
Right now - I'm packing an Isharay sniper rifle (love that it means "Goodbye" in Angaran, by the way) - with the Bio-converter augmentation and the +2 mod augmentation. This means I don't have to reload - EVER. It takes 5% of my life instead of reloading - and since I've built my character to regenerate life by using Tech powers - that's not a problem.
An extremely potent combo - that I came up with through experimentation. You can't find that kind of power - you have to craft it. That's what a crafting system should be all about.
The combat remains extremely satisfying and just plain fun. No comparison here. ME1 combat was clunky - but sort of fun. ME2 was way too predictable and streamlined - and while ME3 added a few RPG elements, it was more like exhausting with almost no variety once you'd encountered the handful of different enemies. Yes, I agree that taking away the party member control was a bad move, but it's less of an issue than you'd think - as you get used to it. It's true that you - as the player - is the one kicking the most ass, but your members are actually helpful and they don't need handholding at all. They even revive each other sometimes - and I love how they have unique call-outs tied to their powers.
The main plot is - so far - very intriguing and not as derivative as I've come to expect from Bioware. Again, it's a bit more nuanced and subtle than the ridiculous "elusive man" Hollywood stuff from ME2 - but I guess that's down to personal preferences. Certainly, it works for me.
The Nomad is fine. I've yet to upgrade it that much - but it does improve. Overall, it's definitely better than the Mako - but it's essentially the same thing, and I never had a big problem with the Mako. That said, I don't think the freeform exploration (as in, non-quest related exploration) is worthwhile at all. It's on par with Witcher 3 - which means it sucks.
I did find one key to my enjoyment - and that is to COMPLETELY ignore tasks - unless you're just looking for a bit of combat or XP. They're as boring and dreadful as the PoIs in Witcher 3. Kill these samey enemies, scan this mineral, push this button, etc. - boring trivial shit. That said, unlike Witcher 3 - Andromeda actually gives you decent XP for these activities, where W3 progress was almost exclusively tied into quests. So, there's more reason to do tasks than PoIs - but they're on the same super boring level.
However, every single Main quest, Ally quest and "proper" side-quest has been entertaining and worthwhile - so far. No, this isn't Witcher-level writing - but it's good enough to engage and entertain. I really have no idea why so many reviewers are bitching about the writing - but I'm guessing it comes down to wanting more Bioware melodrama - which I don't personally like at all.
Once you get used to navigating the journal - and you unlock Fast Travel - it's really very easy to pick the quests in an order that's likely to be the most fun. Again, you will burn yourself out quickly by going OCD with tasks - and I almost gave up on the game until I realised how stupid that was. I'm guessing many of the reviews failed to appreciate the difference between tasks and proper quests - or so it seems.
The amount of content in this game is pretty absurd, and while there's plenty of re-using the same assets - the stuff you find on quests is very rewarding. The scanning isn't as bad as it seemed at first - and the game will give you a warning when something vital is there for you to scan.
Once you learn the rhythm of the game - you're more or less free to comfortably pick and choose what content you want to experience, without feeling much is lost.
I must also reiterate what I said earlier - that the no-skip animations when flying in space is actually a GOOD design decision. Why? Because you don't do it that much - and you're never actually taken out of the world like that. You can even see everything whilst walking around in the Tempest. It feels better than just skipping everything all the time - as you tend to do in games like this. Now, if the game had been more about flying back and forth - it WOULD be a pain, but it's really not like that. You sort of get "into it" - or I certainly did.
Also, this is the best implementation of the typical Bioware "extra" activities so far. The AVP system makes a lot of sense in terms of the story - and the rewards are nice, but definitely not vital.
The inventory limit - which seemed awfully rigid at first - hasn't been a problem AT ALL - as you can sell/deconstruct pretty much anywhere - and I've yet to get really close to the limit, even on extended missions. That's without expanding it.
The APEX missions are sort of "meh" - and is clearly a blatant rip-off of Blizzard's Garrison feature. So, I guess if you liked that - you'll like this.
For me, it's just a neat little timewaster to gain a bonus - but it definitely feels like something you can easily skip - which is what it should be.
One thing I'm missing is something like the card game found in KotOR. That was a neat little game - and it's sad that Bioware left that feature behind.
Same can be said for the computer-interaction in KotOR - which was more evolved and interesting than the stuff in Mass Effect 1 to A.
The Soduku puzzles are TERRIBLE. They actually get worse as you progress - and that's really a pathetic excuse of a puzzle. Yes, you can buy decryption keys - but they're expensive and any hacking mini-game should be fun - not a fucking retarded crossword puzzle offshoot.
Also, I have to say that Eos and Voeld haven't been as beautiful as Habitat 7 was. I'm slightly underwhelmed - and I got some awkward SWtOR flashbacks of Tattoine and Hoth while playing on them.
Ok, they're a lot prettier than that - and certain buildings and locations are VERY neat - but on the whole I'm finding the planetary vistas less impressive than I thought they would be. Maybe it will be better later on - but that's one area where I've changed my mind a little.
---
The best parts of the game remain as follows:
Fantastic combat.
Great progression.
Nice and detailed loot system.
Excellent and wortwhile crafting (reviewers seem retarded to miss this, really).
Strong party characters (ok, most of them - not all).
Engaging main quest.
Cool side quests.
Strong loyalty missions (so far - only done a few).
Sheer amount of content.
Worst parts of the game:
NPC models and facial animations.
Tasks (The WORST part. Absolute dreck).
Soduku puzzles (I want to kill Bioware developers just thinking about them).
Character creation (I was never that into stuff like this, but even I can see it's terrible).
Overall, I'd rate it a solid 8/10 right now.
I would rate the original Mass Effect the same - but where that game wins in the mystery and wonder department - Andromeda completely destroys Mass Effect when it comes to gameplay. Story/narrative is a toss-up due to different styles.
Once I finish it, I will return to adjust if needed. It can definitely still degrade in many ways. But that's how I feel after around 40 hours.
Last edited by Casus on Sun, 26th Mar 2017 22:09; edited 5 times in total
From a gameplay perspective is the best in the series, but the writing/story are by far the worst. So far there were a handful of decently/good written moments one of them was the one in the screenshot I posted above and even that one was tainted by a horrible technical problems. And speaking about technical problems, the game is a damn mess.
From a gameplay perspective is the best in the series, but the writing/story are by far the worst. So far there were a handful of decently/good written moments one of them was the one in the screenshot I posted above and even that one was tainted by a horrible technical problems. And speaking about technical problems, the game is a damn mess.
As with all things, it comes down to personal preferences.
As I said, I prefer the writing in Andromeda to the other ME games. Certainly to ME2 and ME3.
Considering the size and scope of this game, I'm finding surprisingly few technical glitches. I've yet to encounter a single quest-blocker, for instance. They were abundant in Witcher 3 - just to name one example.
The only glitches I'm really seeing are animation related. Characters standing on tables on occasion and some odd jerky movement here and there.
That's after 40 hours - so I'd say it's not bad at all.
If ME2 is your idea of the perfect Mass Effect - then Andromeda will most likely be quite terrible. To me, the original Mass Effect was flawed - but it was much more my style in terms of being open and non-linear. Andromeda is the same way - but with a different tone and while it's definitely a step up in terms of world design and freeform gameplay - there's a lot of room for improvement.
Unfortunately, being butchered by so many critics - I'm afraid any possible sequel will, once again, go in the wrong direction instead of improving these exploration aspects. I have a feeling all the more interesting complexities including the crafting/loot system will be streamlined for people who prefer being held by the hand.
Oh well, history repeating itself is hardly a new concept.
I like this more than the other games, I'm having more fun. I like the writing and dialog, but I never liked the writing and story in any Bioware game. I don't like their usual melodrama and bombastic story. It's as clunky as the other games were, I don't remember any of the other ME's being technically superior. Some things are simplified, others are more complex. Overall the game mechanics aren't as clunky as the previous games IMO.
It does need a few patches though, so I'm not playing more. There are some weird things here and there technically, I also hope they can really do something about the character models (though I doubt it).
I won't bother writing up a long post with detailed descriptions about pros and cons, no one cares in this thread anyway, but I like it. I'm not a big Bioware fan (DA:O being the exception) and I always found the ME games fun yet very clunky and schizophrenic (especially ME3), but I like this game. Won't win any prizes, but it seems to be a damn fine scifi game after 13 hours or so. I think I wrote somewhere in the ME3 thread it hovered betwen a 3 and 9, hence the schizophrenia, but this one seems to be a more balanced 7.5-8 atm.
Funny that the people who like it don't call it amazing. So why do the people with doubts expect something amazing? I thought Bioware was already dead long years ago according to this forum.
God I hope this gets cracked. I just want to play it to see where this amazing game is hidden.
poor excuse imo
Poor excuse for what, playing it? That's what's called 'morbid curiosity'.
Poor excuse for going back on your words and eating them?
Never played the game and trusting other guys who are bashing the game while ppl who actually played it say its not that bad - good but not amazing yet you still remain convinced about your"made up opinion coz of a prerelease nfohump thread/posts"
P.s.: Just recently finished Dragon Age ultimate edition and started to play DA:Inqi which i thought was shit according to the posts and reviews i read but surprisingly i dont find it as bad as ppl thought it's very similar to dragons dogma. So what i want to say is maybe stop shit talking it first try it and maybe then bash it if you still think it's bad ;O
P.s.: Just recently finished Dragon Age ultimate edition and started to play DA:Inqi which i thought was shit according to the posts and reviews i read but surprisingly i dont find it as bad as ppl thought it's very similar to dragons dogma.
P.s.: Just recently finished Dragon Age ultimate edition and started to play DA:Inqi which i thought was shit according to the posts and reviews i read but surprisingly i dont find it as bad as ppl thought it's very similar to dragons dogma.
Seriously?
Dunno what games you played but it has similarities ;O
I think the game is pretty good. I like the world, but then i liked inquisition as well. Dialogue however.... They certainly havent heard about re recording either, that's for sure.
Poor excuse for what, playing it? That's what's called 'morbid curiosity'.
Poor excuse for going back on your words and eating them?
Never played the game and trusting other guys who are bashing the game while ppl who actually played it say its not that bad - good but not amazing yet you still remain convinced about your"made up opinion coz of a prerelease nfohump thread/posts"
P.s.: Just recently finished Dragon Age ultimate edition and started to play DA:Inqi which i thought was shit according to the posts and reviews i read but surprisingly i dont find it as bad as ppl thought it's very similar to dragons dogma. So what i want to say is maybe stop shit talking it first try it and maybe then bash it if you still think it's bad ;O
Soooo 10 hours trial, where I literally completed as much as I could possibly find equals me not ever playing it?
Learn to read thread before allowing your aggressive tendencies to manifest themselves.
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Poor excuse for what, playing it? That's what's called 'morbid curiosity'.
Poor excuse for going back on your words and eating them?
Never played the game and trusting other guys who are bashing the game while ppl who actually played it say its not that bad - good but not amazing yet you still remain convinced about your"made up opinion coz of a prerelease nfohump thread/posts"
P.s.: Just recently finished Dragon Age ultimate edition and started to play DA:Inqi which i thought was shit according to the posts and reviews i read but surprisingly i dont find it as bad as ppl thought it's very similar to dragons dogma. So what i want to say is maybe stop shit talking it first try it and maybe then bash it if you still think it's bad ;O
Soooo 10 hours trial, where I literally completed as much as I could possibly find equals me not ever playing it?
Learn to read thread before allowing your aggressive tendencies to manifest themselves.
10 hours of gameplay should be enough trial time to see for yourself if you like it or not
And if you still feel the urge to play it it might not have been as bad as youve thought/bashed it the whole time i guess
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Such a good series. Diana was such a bad girl 
