• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Mass Effect: Andromeda - Game Informer Details (Combat, story, more) [Up: All Info]

Status
Not open for further replies.
Like I said, Mass Effect 2 focused on character development almost exclusively, and had for more characters, many who benefited from already being introduced. I liked Legion and Thane and Mordin, etc. Saying Garrus wasn't Garrus until 2 is just ridiculous, tho. His whole personality, dislike for authority and loyalty was there from the very start. His mission wasn't as elaborate as the ones in 2, but you got to know him through it all the same. Wrex and Ash and Liara and Garrus were all themselves since 1. Of course they are going to grow with more development in subsequent games, that's just common sense. It doesn't make the particular character writing unoriginal in any cases, i.e. daddy issues for everyone.

I think the thing about Garrus is that he only really stepped into his own once he was kicked off the Citadel Security and all his faith in the system which was shaky to begin with was completely shattered. That and all he then goes on to lose on Omega before Shepard reunites with him really makes the Garrus that's better known and better loved. There's plenty of character to Garrus in ME1, but he doesn't arrive as fully-formed as Wrex or Mordin do. There's nothing wrong with that, but I just can see why people would say that about Garrus.
 

Metroidvania

People called Romanes they go the house?
I think by unintended consequences they mean stuff like getting locked out of P/R persuades. DAI tracked even the content of your dialogue choices (play an atheist and people will bring up in later conversations that you said you were an atheist) so I expect that for ME.

I remember this occurring on a low-key level, as well as the 'WHY DID YOU DO X' berating by the council and such in earlier MEs, but I'm hoping for more....mid-level branching.

Admittedly, it'd be much harder to build that big of a weave, but something along the lines of Alpha Protocol would be sick.

For example, something akin to being a mage in DA:I having you start with a lower approval rating in DA:I during the Orlais sequence was a nice touch that tied back to a more 'major' choice of your character creation, and the implications therein to the Andrastian faith.
 

Plasma

Banned
Nothing about Cerberus. Good, very good.

Guess some of the team members at Bioware were able to reign in some of Mac Walters' shit ideas.

Don't count on it.

"Founded in 2176 and launched in 2185, the Andromeda Initiative is a civilian, multi-species project created to send scientists, explorers and colonists on a one-way trip to settle in the Andromeda Galaxy. With powerful benefactors lending their support, the program has grown substantially in scope since its inception. The Initiative’s ultimate goal is to establish a permanent presence on the seemingly resource-rich frontier of Andromeda, and eventually create a reliable route between it and the Milky Way Galaxy."
 

cooldawn

Member
My god that trailer is good. I've never liked Mass Effect but I want this based on that.

Really impressed with the gritty visual design and the gravitas of a superior species. It made me remember Dead Space in solitude.

Pre-ordered...out of nowhere.
 
I think I'd actually be fine if Ryder had a set first name for VA purposes. As long as I can modify my appearance, I think it would still feel like my character.
 
The player Warden was probably similar to one-size-fit-all solution to get around the backgrounds but it wasn't voiced so wasn't as noticeable.

That makes no sense- the PC wasn't voiced in DAO but everyone else was. So people calling you "The Warden" was every bit as common as ME and the other Bioware games.

And with DA:I while they used Herald and Inquisitor more commonly, characters would refer to your given surname too.

And with DA2, Hawke is used way, way more than "Champion".

I want to see gameplay as well. Don't care about any of this stuff. I'm assuming we won't see anything until E3.

Uh, the release date is Spring 2017.
 
I'm usually on the other side of this argument, but Mass Effect: Andromeda appears to be lacking in story. The first game was the first one where I said that I'd watch a movie with it's premise, and the game felt like I was playing that movie. As the series went on the narrative became more fractured. Instead of playing a movie, it felt like experiencing a series of novellas. Now it sounds like the story is a loose framework to hold together gameplay and smaller stories.

Maybe if I see some gameplay it'll be enough to replace what's been lost in story. Or, maybe we'll get a story trailer that returns back to that old magic. Admittedly I'm being hard on ME:A. That's because I've loved the series so much in the past, and I'm judging it against that high standard. I still think Mass Effect: Andromeda is a good game. I'm just not yet convinced that it's great.
 

Dmax3901

Member
Ok so that trailer was a huge let down for me personally. My biggest fear is that this will be Mass Effect: Inquisition and this trailer made it look like exactly that. Also could they be more on the nose with that last line? "what makes you special", so Spectre/Warden/Inquisitor and now... Pathfinder? Why can't we just be a person.
 
Sounds really promising, can't wait for more.

I went from "Krusty WTF face" thanks to the very weak PS4 Pro tech demo to an enormous hype, with today´s news. I shouldn´t pre-order, but... Mass Effect is my favorite series. I don´t know if I will resist.

I thought the tech demo was pretty nice showing off some of the graphics and animation/movement.
 

valkyre

Member
Ok so that trailer was a huge let down for me personally. My biggest fear is that this will be Mass Effect: Inquisition and this trailer made it look like exactly that. Also could they be more on the nose with that last line? "what makes you special", so Spectre/Warden/Inquisitor and now... Pathfinder? Why can't we just be a person.

Becasue you are playing as a person of some significant importance.

And all important persons carry a title. Be it a senator, a major, a president or an admiral etc .
 
They could have just made a Mass Effect dating sim and I would still buy it. :|

You ain't joking. Speaking of, I love the news about a more nuanced relationship system. The idea of some characters wanting flings and some wanting more seems like it might give way to some more relational drama rather than just picking a waifu and doing everything right for some boning. Glad that it sounds more rewarding
 

Dalibor68

Banned
Removing renegade/paragon stuff etc sounds to me like theyre removing the ability to be an asshole just as in DA:I, ugh. Really don't need another "Yes/Sarcastic Yes/Funny Yes/No(Yes)" dialogue system.
 

Tovarisc

Member
Removing renegade/paragon stuff etc sounds to me like theyre removing the ability to be an asshole just as in DA:I, ugh. Really don't need another "Yes/Sarcastic Yes/Funny Yes/No(Yes)" dialogue system.

Not having clear cut Good vs Evil system shouldn't mean you can't play asshole.
 
Removing renegade/paragon stuff etc sounds to me like theyre removing the ability to be an asshole just as in DA:I, ugh. Really don't need another "Yes/Sarcastic Yes/Funny Yes/No(Yes)" dialogue system.

They're just trying to make it less binary, which is commendable. Not everything in DA:I was "but thou must."
 

valkyre

Member
Removing renegade/paragon stuff etc sounds to me like theyre removing the ability to be an asshole just as in DA:I, ugh. Really don't need another "Yes/Sarcastic Yes/Funny Yes/No(Yes)" dialogue system.

Lets be honest here... there is no way, whatever dialogue system they decide to use, that people will ever be happy 100% about it...

I mean look at this from a developer standpoint. You try to get feedback and its literally all over the place... "oh god I hate Paragon/renegade system", "oh no they removed the best part of the dialogue wheel"...

Its literally a lose lose situation... or a win - win one, depending on how adaptable you are as a gamer. I have no issues with either way. I will settle with what they offer, as long as it is well made.
 

RPGCrazied

Member
The trailer looks good to me. Now if they can release it without bugs would be a miracle. Don't think I like no more paragon/renegade system. I really liked that. Sometimes you just want Shepard to be a snarky asshole. :p
 

EatChildren

Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
The wording is ambiguous, but it seems like there will be consequences of some sort for the choices you make.

I think by unintended consequences they mean stuff like getting locked out of P/R persuades. DAI tracked even the content of your dialogue choices (play an atheist and people will bring up in later conversations that you said you were an atheist) so I expect that for ME.

yeah this section causes some questions

Yeah, it does sound like Inquisition, which I prefer. The more the lines can be blurred, and less transparent in influence, more organic I guess is the term I'm going for, the better off the narrative interaction can be. I feel this is a cornerstone of good role playing; I don't need an abundance of stats, but I do feel that causality from my actions, which includes behavioral via character interaction, is essential.

The wording just makes it sound a bit like you do indeed choose how to speak and respond to people, but the weight of influence and impact is trivialized or non-existent. Hopefully not, because yeah, that's an objectively huge regression of role playing complexity that really doesn't have a lot to begin with.

Something like Inquisition is great though, and I think tonal choices plus the removal of paragon/renegade are good steps.
 
The trailer looks good to me. Now if they can release it without bugs would be a miracle. Don't think I like no more paragon/renegade system. I really liked that. Sometimes you just want Shepard to be a snarky asshole. :p
I don't think they are removing rude/snarky/asshole dialogue options... They just aren't tracking them as some sort of overall moral scale.
 

Dalibor68

Banned
Lets be honest here... there is no way, whatever dialogue system they decide to use, that people will ever be happy 100% about it...

I mean look at this from a developer standpoint. You try to get feedback and its literally all over the place... "oh god I hate Paragon/renegade system", "oh no they removed the best part of the dialogue wheel"...

Its literally a lose lose situation... or a win - win one, depending on how adaptable you are as a gamer. I have no issues with either way. I will settle with what they offer, as long as it is well made.

The takeaway shouldn't be "Lets take away all choice and instead streamline all dialogue options to the same result just in different tones".

I don't think they are removing rude/snarky/asshole dialogue options... They just aren't tracking them as some sort of overall moral scale.
But thats exactly what they did in DA:I (as opposod to DA:O). So im not gonna give them the benefit of doubt.
 
The dialogue system sounds much more natural, nice to see ambiguous morality being introduced instead being locked to good way extreme and aggressive get shot done asshole.
 

Zolo

Member
Removing renegade/paragon stuff etc sounds to me like theyre removing the ability to be an asshole just as in DA:I, ugh. Really don't need another "Yes/Sarcastic Yes/Funny Yes/No(Yes)" dialogue system.

Well, they removed the ability to be racist human supremacist Shepard after ME1 where they potentially
let the council die to advance humankind.
 

valkyre

Member
The takeaway shouldn't be "Lets take away all choice and instead streamline all dialogue options to the same result just in different tones".

True but all of the above is only an assumption of yours. We need to see the actual execution and then decide whether its as poorly handled as you describe.

Something tells me it cant be that bad or horrible.
 
The biggest problem with no classes is having to wait till level 15 or whatever higher level before you actually feel like your playing the roll you want. Skyrim did it and not only did it make early game completely boring but it killed replay value.
 

Bishop89

Member
Sounds great.
Really need to get around to finishing the previous games.

May have missed it in the OP but does this take place before or after the original trilogy?
 

Zolo

Member
They could have just made a Mass Effect dating sim and I would still buy it. :|

Mass Effect petting.

tumblr_np8x107Lkl1qzp9weo3_500.gif
 

Rellik

Member
This all sounds amazing to me apart from the lack of pause. I'm someone who uses that to scope the battlefield and check enemy positions when playing on Insanity.
 

Neptonic

Member
-Your land vehicle is designated the "Nomad", and the team got special guidance from NFS developers on its handling.
-The Nomad isn't sluggish and cumbersome like the Mako, it's very fast, still boosts and maneuvers much better
-The Nomad doesn't have weapons, you can customize things like its speed and appearance

If I can drift in this game on crazy planets, I'm so fucking in.
 
-Most planets have at least one major enemy base
-Planets can have areas, encounters and "super bosses" that are too tough for you to handle at first, encouraging players to come back later
-On planets, one of your priorities is to scout for drop zones for your crew that drop "forward stations" that establishes a foothold for you
Ehhh, am I the only one who is worried that this might be too familiar to DA:I?!

Also:
-Dialogue option tones: heart, head, professional and casual.
Wtf is that? Can't just list the options and let me choice one without showing me some sort of icon to make sure I understand what I'm saying? You know, like DA:O or Witcher series.
 

BeauRoger

Unconfirmed Member
I wonder if the those 4 dialogue option tones means that paraphrasing is out and we only get to pick the tone without seeing the content, like Alpha Protocol, or if the you get to pick the line and the tone, or if every pharaprased line has a tone assigned to it.

If they remove the pharaphrasing entirely, id be pretty bummed out.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom