dr_rus
Member
Their feedback loop is completely broken if that's the message they got from MEA's troubles.
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The Mass Effect Community Thread |OT2|
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Their feedback loop is completely broken if that's the message they got from MEA's troubles.
prag16
Banned
Was gonna say exactly this. As was said it's tough to really blame EA for most of Andromeda's troubles, but I can sure as hell blame them for being deaf and blind if this was their takeaway.
But it isn't broken. As a company, they'd be damn stupid to take any other lesson.
Let's Remember Mass Effect isn't Halo. Whilst it has a loud group of extremely vocal fans, as a game it's only ever done 'well', never stellar. Dragon Age is the bigger franchise. Between the disaster that was Me3's ending and this game, sinking any further resources into the mass effect brand just doesn't make any sense.
It's not just about whether they can make another game - it's about whether the resources could be deployed elsewhere to greater advantage. And it's sad to say but that's probably the case.
(Also, let's not kid ourselves - the game is much improved since launch, but it's still riddled with animation and graphical bugs that look wildly out of place compared to any other triple aaa game. Why does male default shepherd look half asleep in every single cutscenes? Why is there a random drunk lady outside the tempest on Eos? Why are the guards in the Nexus constantly crouching?)
So despite not liking how this game looked since the beginning I took a chance and bought it since the deluxe edition was only $30 on Amazon. I have to say that I actually like it so far? I mean I side eye certain things and feel like I have to straight up ignore that the original trilogy exists to accept some parts but it's not as bad as I was expecting it to be.
The npcs do look pretty bad though and I don't think they did a good job with introducing the Kett as villains like how the Geth and the Collectors were introduced but oh well.
The npcs do look pretty bad though and I don't think they did a good job with introducing the Kett as villains like how the Geth and the Collectors were introduced but oh well.
There are games I'm much more forgiving of for the price. I paid $38 for this at launch so I've been more forgiving of it through two 100+ hour playthroughs but I still feel like their fundamental design philosophy is broken and people's focus on the writing is largely misguided.
I think equally importantly is how they could even sink more resources into the franchise even if they wanted to? They're not giving it back to Montreal, and most of Edmonton is on Anthem or preproduction for DA4 while Austin is either assisting with Anthem or working on SWTOR stuff. BioWare Edmonton for all intents and purposes was done with ME after 3 so... who at EA or BioWare even wants to make another ME game in the first place right now?
At this point, I honestly expect that they're in active production for DA4. I'm guessing they want it to be a 2019 title, and 2 years of production sound about right.
VenomousCoffee
Member
Hey EA, I'd still pay $60 for a remaster of the trilogy.
Yeah I'm still at the very, very beginning of the game so my opinion could drastically change the further I go on.
spazchicken
Member
Not really enjoying Andromeda as much as the first three.
To the point that I almost don't want to continue. I never thought that would ever be possible.
To the point that I almost don't want to continue. I never thought that would ever be possible.
I was having this discussion in the discord, but I problem I have with this game- which also exists in the others but is magnified in being a collection of sandboxes is the really... bad biomes. You've got a hot desert, a hot and irradiated desert, a ice desert, a dark as shit forest, and... Kadara. Like, Eos, Voeld, and Elaaden are some of the least imaginative shit ever and it's not like the OT was better at this- it's just the OT didn't have explorable worlds in the first place (ME1 tried but it was equally shitty). Shit, change the sand on Elaaden to a bright red or hot pink and make the sinkholes green. Fuck it- we're in Andromeda it doesn't have to make sense. In the end the most visually innovative planet was Habitat 7 and we were there for like 10-15 minutes.
prag16
Banned
Can't disagree. Meridian was neat but we never get any opportunity to look around.
I mean, this series abandoned any semblance of hard scifi in game one- they ought to go all out and yet they remain remarkably conservative in the visual design of most of the worlds across the entire franchise.
I would as well. A complete GOTY edition with all DLC and I'm good to go.
That's exactly what I was thinking. In other news, Batarian class coming to MP this Thursday.
While it's sad for Mass Effect, it's cool we're getting so many fresh games from EA. Anthem, Jade Raymond's game, Amy Hennig's game - excited for all of them.
prag16
Banned
To be clear, we have the Battlefront 2 campaign (Motive), the Hennig game (Visceral), and... another Motive game? This article seems to think the "in the style of Uncharted" game is Raymond's game? But that was the description largely used for Hennig's game. Are they the same game, or is there a Motive game in development separate from the BF2 campaign, and separate from the Visceral game?
Separate, new IP. Raymond's IP will be more Assassin's Creed while Hennig's is more Uncharted. Though it sounds like they'll be lending major assistance to Hennig's game before the new IP is set to go into full production?
Alpha Phoenix
Member
Guys, if you love Mass Effect, please consider donating here:
https://www.youcaring.com/caingaspurlauragaspurcoreygaspur-892080
Corey worked on ME2 and ME3 as well as DA:O. He was lead designer on Anthem. More details at the link.
I hope you show your support whatever you can afford.
https://www.youcaring.com/caingaspurlauragaspurcoreygaspur-892080
Corey worked on ME2 and ME3 as well as DA:O. He was lead designer on Anthem. More details at the link.
I hope you show your support whatever you can afford.
From the article
Sounds more like they are being moved into a new building and sharing the same space as Motive.
Can't find the link but this as well
Sounds like Montréal still lives and just helping out on Anthem.
No.
Eurogamer: Mass Effect Andromeda studio BioWare Montreal will be absorbed by EA Motive
Official EA statement:
Ian S. Frazier, Lead Designer on MEA:
Bioware Montreal is dead. It is now part of Motive.
Heckler456
Banned
I don't think the people who were doing the grunt work were the cause of ME:A's failure. I seem to remember hearing that it was largely leadership.
Anyway, I do believe that Motive is helping out on Battlefront 2's campaign, so we'll see how that works out.
I know you're somewhat joking, but considering Montreal was expanded into a full studio given a real shot at making a full-fledged game by EA, I don't think it fits at all.
I'm a big BioWare fan, but at some point we need to stop blaming EA (that point should have been post-ME3 when EA started giving BioWare plenty of time to reasonably make a game). At this point it's up to BW Edmonton to make a completed game in a reasonable amount of time.
I've long said that MEA's failings are almost solely due to Bioware Montreal.
From my perspective, EA gave them the money and the time to make a game, Montreal just failed to do so.
If anything, EA should have stepped in earlier when it was clear they were wasting far too much time on fruitless preproduction.
On top of that, Edmonton basically had to come in and staple the game together, and was receiving a lot of resentment from Montreal for doing so. I shudder to think what the story would have looked like if Walters hadn't course-corrected the whole thing.
DeadlyParasite
Member
Via r/masseffect & the Titanbooks website, the description for the Mass Effect novel "Initiation" is out. It's about Cora Harper and what she was doing before the Initiative launched from the Milky Way.
I'm really interested in this one because I liked Cora's character. Maybe we'll get some more Benefactor intrigue as well.
It's also written by N.K. Jemisin, who won another Hugo award recently so I suspect the writing should be pretty good too.
I'm really interested in this one because I liked Cora's character. Maybe we'll get some more Benefactor intrigue as well.
It's also written by N.K. Jemisin, who won another Hugo award recently so I suspect the writing should be pretty good too.
prag16
Banned
Wasn't a huge Cora fan, but maybe the speculated relationships she may have due to her last name will be explored somewhat. Could help with one of the loose ends from the game.
As for the rest of the loose ends... I've basically abandoned hope on the "Lost Ark" book or whatever it was going to be called. -_-
As for the rest of the loose ends... I've basically abandoned hope on the "Lost Ark" book or whatever it was going to be called. -_-
BrassDragon
Member
They've changed their MO since then... studios get shuffled around, it's franchises that get left in the boneyard.
There's the Harper thing, but there's also http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Eva_Coré. Put together, it seems more than just some coincidence, unless the writer was just being cute.
Anyways.
She doesn't like to mention it but she was an asari huntress.
🤔
JohnnyFootball
GerAlt-Right. Ciriously.
I have to admit that I am sad that Andromeda gets so much hate.
Now that I have completed the game I do feel that the game did a lot of things well and was fun to play.
But the issue I couldn't get past was all of the unnecessary bloat and the hassle of fast travel.
It's a shame they're done patching it because if they could make fast travel happen in one or two steps as opposed to the 5+ steps then it would be a much better game for me.
I suspect the PC version has mods that do just this sort of thing.
Now that I have completed the game I do feel that the game did a lot of things well and was fun to play.
But the issue I couldn't get past was all of the unnecessary bloat and the hassle of fast travel.
It's a shame they're done patching it because if they could make fast travel happen in one or two steps as opposed to the 5+ steps then it would be a much better game for me.
I suspect the PC version has mods that do just this sort of thing.
I agree the gameplay is fun but actually trying to get to those great moments of moment-to-moment gameplay is a pain. But... I don't see mods as solving the issue as much as making then slightly less annoying. The 13+ step process will always be there but the animations might be shorter if anything.
AFAIK it's an issue with the game's fundamental design philosophy.
Heckler456
Banned
Man, I STILL haven't finished my first playthrough. Never thought I'd be at a point where a new Mass Effect game came out, and I didn't blast through it in the first week. Although, the same did happen with Fallout 4.
I really hope they get around to doing a remaster of the original trilogy though.
I really hope they get around to doing a remaster of the original trilogy though.
That's how I am.
I finally started the 10 hour free trial and... quickly lost interest. It was very unpolished and not very enjoyable, and this is AFTER all the patches.
But I just upgraded my computer and got ME1 with the high-def mods and controller support patched in. I would still pay for a full HD trilogy re-release with all content, but until then, fine, I'll make my OWN HD remaster and play that over Andromeda.
I'm sure this was already posted back when they were first made available, but I was looking for a way to get Pinnacle Station on my Steam copy of ME1 and apparently all of the DLC for 1 and 2 are available for free here.
That was probably around the same time I spent a boatload picking up all the DLC for 2 and 3, which is quite irritating.
I have ME2 installed on Steam but Origin recognises it as having been downloaded and hits me with 10 pop-ups prompting me to install all the DLC when I log in. Does anyone else have this issue?
That was probably around the same time I spent a boatload picking up all the DLC for 2 and 3, which is quite irritating.
I have ME2 installed on Steam but Origin recognises it as having been downloaded and hits me with 10 pop-ups prompting me to install all the DLC when I log in. Does anyone else have this issue?
I've been telling you people this for how long
EatChildren
Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
every once in awhile i think about mass effect andromeda (mainly because i see it still installed on origin) and get mad
I haven't even finished it.
I haven't even finished it.
Blue Ninja
Member
Holy crap, the DLC is just free like that?
I beat it twice. Can't see myself ever doing it again.
The last mission is awesome, definitely my favorite ME final mission. I would finish it just because of that mission.
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