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[Audioboxer]

It feels like the whole thing was written with the intention to create maximum tumblr memes

Seems like a little bit of this

Except Bioware forgetting so many people have grown up on ME, and even younger gamers these days can still appreciate a higher tier of writing.

 

[RoboPlato]

Damn. That's gotta be a blow to EA.

Depends on how it sells

Battlefront reviewed worse and is one of their biggest titles. Destiny scored about the same and is massive.

 

[jelly]

Doesn't seem like the worse reviews to be honest, sure it doesn't sound up to par in some areas but if you can overlook them, it won't be a bad game. Probably not a day one purchase though.

 

[ffejeromdiks]

Can you be disappointed in something if you don't play it? onder:

What a stupid question, you're pretty volatile.

Edit: Banned, hah, I guess that's about right.

 

[RAIDEN1]

So will it be another 5-6 years before we get another Mass Effect game? As it is the weakest entry in the franchise so far....will be interesting to see who takes the mantle next....

 

[GlamFM]

That´s all very disappointing, but not entirely surprising.

The most disappointing part of ME3 was the super bad DLC - especially considering how great the DLC for ME2 was.

I remember being worried once I read that the DLC team would lead the development on Andromeda.

This makes me question EA´s and Bioware´s expectations for the game given that they deliberately brought in the C-Team for this direct-to-video (GB quote) sequel to a beloved franchise.

ME was always beloved, but never a super hot seller AFAIK.

Bioware is apparently all in on their take on Destiny and not really that concerned with Mass Effect.

 

[Ragnar Blackmane]

6-7/10 is still not a BAD score...well at least it shouldn't be considered as a bad score.

That perspective only works though if the critics actually score based on the full 1-10 scoring scale (like e.g. Angry Joe does). As is a 70 score for most outlets is basically the cut off point into below-average. And from that perspective, a 70-75 score is basically "average". Doesn't help that Metacritic does mix limited/full scoring scoring scale together.

I'll probably end up eating crow, but I don't think it will impact sales (that) much.

Well, there is also that extremely negative PewDiePie video that already has more than 3 million clicks despite not even being out for 2 days...

Can't burn what's already on fire

Haha, well said ^^.

 

[Lime]

The RPS review :/

This tale of discovering, well, Andromeda – or at least the Hellius cluster within it – is populated by some cardboard cut-outs from a science fiction display stand. Rubber-masked baddies (with the least scary-looking big bad of all time), an astoundingly familiar alien race, and – just to ensure no originality could slip in through a crack beneath the door – an ancient, mysterious and technologically accomplished missing race (with a peculiar love for airport puzzle books).

Think about a new galaxy, a whole new potential of life forms, of evolutionary exoticism, of astounding new ideas. Now discard them all and think of intensely familiar bipedal people living in ordinary cities with ordinary thoughts, relationships, educations, jobs, and would you believe it, technology exactly on a par with what you just happened to bring with you. Floating octopuses that think in cascading colours? Societies based on amorphous interaction? Ideas better than the ones I'm throwing out? Nope, not a single thing.

Why even go somewhere new if everything is basically the same as before with even worse clichés?

What unites all these different features is the most unrelentingly dull writing, cliches and aphorisms pouring out like the waterfalls they'd use as an analogy in this sentence. Every chat lasts three times longer than it needs to, and they're achingly boring from casual encounters to the deepest moments in relationships. I cannot explain this better than by giving a lengthy example from one moment in the first few hours, a chat about the potentially complex and messy subject of faith.

 

[kadotsu]

So will it be another 5-6 years before we get another Mass Effect game? As it is the weakest entry in the franchise so far....will be interesting to see who takes the mantle next....

If they do Mass Effect 4, yes. If they use their current tools to iterate they should be able to manage a 2-3 year cycle.

 

[glaurung]

The RPS review :/

Why even go somewhere new if everything is basically the same as before with even worse clichés?

Crazy-ass new stuff did not test well with EA's idiot focus groups.

 

[Green Yoshi]

Only if it sells below expectations.

I hope there will be a price drop. This would increase sales. I think 2K did that for Bioshock: Infinite. I bought it for 30€ (Xbox 360) at a local shop on Day 1.

 

[SolicitorPirate]

So will it be another 5-6 years before we get another Mass Effect game? As it is the weakest entry in the franchise so far....will be interesting to see who takes the mantle next....

I doubt it. Frostbite seems to be a strong enough engine to be used at least for the next few years, and BW Montreal have the experience and pipelines that they didn't have before. If there is to be another Mass Effect, I'd imagine we'll see one in 2 to 3 years

 

[Audioboxer]

That´s all very disappointing, but not entirely surprising.

The most disappointing part of ME3 was the super bad DLC - especially considering how great the DLC for ME2 was.

I remember being worried once I read that the DLC team would lead the development on Andromeda.

This makes me question EA´s and Bioware´s expectations for the game given that they deliberately brought in the C-Team for this direct-to-video (GB quote) sequel to a beloved franchise.

ME was always beloved, but never a super hot seller AFAIK.

Bioware is apparently all in on their take on Destiny and not really that concerned with Mass Effect.

Not exactly a slouch, and it did start on the Xbox ~ http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=428093

Mass Effect 3 wasn't too bad either ~ https://www.engadget.com/2012/03/09/mass-effect-ships-3-5-million-worldwide-890-000-sold-in-na-swt/

 

[Chaos2Frozen]

Crazy-ass new stuff did not test well with EA's idiot focus groups.

Is this true?

 

[Jarmel]

They're the ones who decided release it in an apparently not overly polished state so I doubt that this is a surprise to them. They must've known that the game needed a few more months in the oven.

Either that or they realized those extra months wouldn't have made much of a difference and the game was always going to get trashed.

 

[klier]

Pretty average sadly. Sad.

 

[IAmAnAgnostic]

I was actually thinking it'd be even lower, but 75 for a new AAA game with 5 years of development is of course bad.

I wonder what went so wrong with the game..

 

[AusRoachman]

Kind of sad they hand this amazing franchise to a c tier dev . I am assuming they are putting all there teams into starwars.

Also sounds like it was fairly cheap compared to the usual AAA budgets.

Really sucks because scifi rpgs are so rare these days , will probably pick it up just for that alone .

It's a good thing I am going to be busy with horizon for awhile so hopefully it will be cheaper by then .

 

[Poimandres]

inb4 8 months from now when we get the wave of "Am I the only one really loves Andromeda?" threads.

I give it 8 hours before we get a "Mass Effect Andromeda is the Dark Souls 2 of the Mass Effect series" thread.

 

[Tareskog]

That Zelda game sure gotta be worse than Andromeda.

Personally I get a bit intimidated by 10s all over. I feel like there is no aspect of the games I'm not "allowed" to dislike when playing the game. After playing roughly 20-30 hours of Zelda I have several issues with it, but love it nonetheless. The wording could have been better from my part.
With Andromedia at least I know that it got issues, but with Zelda I feel like there is nothing I am allowed to criticize about it due to the universal praise.

Just for clarification: I highly doubt in any way that Andromedia is a better game than Zelda, which is one of my favorite games thus far this year. I'm just not good at express my thoughts in english.

 

[Audioboxer]

The RPS review :/



Why even go somewhere new if everything is basically the same as before with even worse clichés?

Damn, Ubisoft map point generator, poor writing and iffy companions :/

So there are two big problems. A game that’s somewhere between unpolished and unfinished, and a game that’s just flat and unoriginal and uninspired. There’s the ability to wile away many hours cleaning icons from maps, and it’s worth noting that I lost myself in this multiple times, but in these surroundings, not worth celebration. It’ll keep you busy, but not in a way that feels like you used the time well.

Is it as bad as my previous comments on the first few hours suggested? Kind of, yes, but diluted down by sheer volume of busywork. There’s nothing I’ve found that redeems its crappy writing, threadbare companions, moribund story, and ghastly UI. But, well, the best I can say is it occupies time. The driving’s kind of fun, with its own list of annoyances. Um. Some it’s fine.

 

[Lime]

They're the ones who decided release it in an apparently not overly polished state so I doubt that this is a surprise to them. They must've known that the game needed a few more months in the oven.

They already gave it 5 years and perhaps realized that granting any more extensions to Bioware Montreal is like throwing water against the wall, so they decided to fix the worst of what could be salvaged and shipped it in a 'good enough' state.

 

[Ushojax]

Bioware is apparently all in on their take on Destiny and not really that concerned with Mass Effect.

I don't blame them, I can imagine there was very little appetite from the main team to carry on and deal with the flaming wreckage of ME3.

Andromeda would probably be acceptable as a late-gen 360/PS3 title, a cheap outsourced game like Gears Judgment or GoW Ascension. For it to take 5 years and release against Horizon and Zelda is quite embarrassing.

 

[GlamFM]

Not exactly a slouch, and it did start on the Xbox ~ http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=428093

Mass Effect 3 wasn't too bad either ~ https://www.engadget.com/2012/03/09/mass-effect-ships-3-5-million-worldwide-890-000-sold-in-na-swt/

EDIT: How do I maths?

 

[Durante]

The RPS review :/

Why even go somewhere new if everything is basically the same as before with even worse clichés?

ME1 to ME3 already showed a tendency towards this IMHO.
You interacted with at least some Elcor, Hanar and Keepers in ME1 and its sidequests, which were pretty credible attempts to portray life forms beyond the "humans with rubber masks" aesthetics, both visually and in terms of societies. They were already de-emphasized in the sequels.

 

[Zok310]

EA got what they deserved, and Usgamer need to be called out on their bullshit between this and Horizon score, like wtf.

 

[EGM1966]

Sounds about what I was expecting TBH. Will wait for a few patches and see how it balances out.

I'll get it eventually but I've always felt ME as a franchise ended up over-rated in terms of what it really delivered (which was an every shrinking sense of adventure and exploration and an ever escalating focus on trying to be combat TPS with online MP).

The whole it's a new Galaxy in advertising also put me off as everything looked the same. Why even do the move to another Galaxy if its just some bullet point?

I do live the idea of ME but if never lived up to some of the nice Space Operate moments of the first (which will the jankiest mechanically still had the best narrative and moments in the end of the whole thing. ME2 felt like the right balance between polish and the original but was a side story that went nowhere narrative wise).

 

[Audioboxer]

I really don´t think 7 mil sales across 3 games is what EA or Bioware was going for.

Maths my friend, at least 10.5m across 3 games

The 1~2 sales do not include the ME Trilogy either which released ME1 on the PS3 for the first time.

 

[Nero's Neptune]

Not terrible reviews, but low enough to make me happy I canceled my preorder.

Developers have to do better to get my money. Sort of a shame, though, that Bioware was one of the few developers I trusted enough to preorder from.

 

[StrongBlackVine]

Personally I get a bit intimidated by 10s all over. I feel like there is no aspect of the games I'm not "allowed" to dislike when playing the game. After playing roughly 20-30 hours of Zelda I have several issues with it, but love it nonetheless. The wording could have been better from my part.
With Andromedia at least I know that it got issues, but with Zelda I feel like there is nothing I am allowed to criticize about it due to the universal praise.

When you are playing a game only your opinion matters. Feel free to criticize.

 

[nath999]

I've played a crap ton of this game already and I can 100% agree with Gamespot review but the score should be like a 7.5 or an 8. The guy even agrees that he's poured 65 hours into the game and still willing to do more.

Also he barely touches on MP which is IMO great. I can definitely see myself getting sucked into like I did with ME3.

 

[AJ_Wings]

The RPS review :/



Why even go somewhere new if everything is basically the same as before with even worse clichés?

I read the part on how the game approaches religion. Dont want to be too judgemental since I want to play it myself but otherwise.... LOL

 

[GlamFM]

Maths my friend, at least 10.5m across 3 games

The 1~2 sales do not include the ME Trilogy either which released ME1 on the PS3 for the first time.

Oh, right.

 

[Astral]

Damn. Those aren't bad scores but they are a series low and there's just so much shit I haven't played yet like Nier or Horizon or even The Witcher 3. I'll watch some reviews later but I'm not sure I'm getting this now. I was hoping that the story and characters would be good enough to drive me through it but that doesn't seem to be the case. It's a shame.

 

[miller.skippins]

 

[Audioboxer]

Oh, right.

It's not out of this world sales, but still a good profit generator for EA. All in we have to be 11~13m by now? Especially considering EA's love for doing re-releases like the Trilogy disc and ME3 "GOTY" edition with all the DLC. Then, digital sales too.

I mean, what did DA:I do? Can't find anything concrete on the internet other than 2~2.5m?

 

[MrCookiepants]

Is Bioware's new IP supposed to be sci-fi?

Ugh, no other game can scratch this itch. I'll probably end up buying it.

 

[dEvAnGeL]

Surely this will kill the franchise just like Catalyst killed Mirrors Edge, still day 1, really liked what i played on the trial

 

[Ragnar Blackmane]

Is this true?

Well, EA has a history of extensively focus testing future games for at least the last 7 years. Rumour has it that the main reason Battlefield 1 (with it's really unusual and at the time untested WW1 setting) was greenlit at all was because DICE has very good connections to the EA CEO and managed to convince him the informal way.

In 2008-2011 they still published and paid for the development of games like Dead Space 1-2, Brütal Legends or Shadows of the Damned which is a far cry from what they do nowadays.

 

[Alter_Fridge]

perfect

 

[Darkstorne]

Maths my friend, at least 10.5m across 3 games

The 1~2 sales do not include the ME Trilogy either which released ME1 on the PS3 for the first time.

Didn't the Bioware Doctors talk up Mass 3 before by release by saying that 10 million is their sales target, and always will be with their big IP going forwards? I'm sure someone from Bioware or EA was saying that. Maybe that helps explain why the series was passed on to their new team and the experienced team was given a new IP.

 

[GlamFM]

It's not out of this world sales, but still a good profit generator for EA.

I mean, what did DA:I do? Can't find anything concrete on the internet other than 2~2.5m?

Banned tracking site puts it roughly at 5 mil across 5 platforms.

 

[Portugeezer]

Price drop it is.

Still waiting on that Mass Effect II-2

 

[Fbh]

Scores seem about what I expected after those previews.
A shame really, despite my issues with the ending of 3 , Mass Effect was still on of my favorite franchises from last gen. The potential for a current gen sequel was amazing.

I wonder how this will sell. With stuff like Zelda, Horizon or Nier it seems like there are so many better options if you are looking for an RPG

 

[WhateverItTakes]

The RPS review :/



Why even go somewhere new if everything is basically the same as before with even worse clichés?

I wanna see a game with alien races like in The Sandman: Overture. Hive minds, sentient plants, living stars... Would be hard as hell to pull off but could make for excellent exploration and discovery.

 

[Shredderi]

Not surprising, but disappointing all the same. The biggest disappointment is the over familiarity even though they had the golden opportunity for a fresh new start. Even Horizon, which is set on earth, has a more fresh and new vibe. The game doesn't seem bad overall, but it doesn't seem too good either and in this period of seemingly stellar releases up the ass, I can't justify spending money on this when I still have Horizon to finish, Hollow Knight to play, yakuza 0 to finish, Nier Automata to buy.

 

[SomedayTheFire]

EA got what they deserved, and Usgamer need to be called out on their bullshit between this and Horizon score, like wtf.

No they don't.

 

[Lime]

I don't get why they hired the Halo 4 writer as the lead writer, considering his only work ever within video game writing was only Halo 4 and nothing else. How can you enter such a prominent position when you don't have the CV for it? Why put the writing aspect of the reboot of a huge franchise into the hands of someone so inexperienced with video game writing? Seems irresponsible by whoever vouched for him.

 

[Audioboxer]

Didn't the Bioware Doctors talk up Mass 3 before by release by saying that 10 million is their sales target, and always will be with their big IP going forwards? I'm sure someone from Bioware or EA was saying that. Maybe that helps explain why the series was passed on to their new team and the experienced team was given a new IP.

I can't remember to be fair. It would no different than Square with their dumb ass rants about sales needed by TR to "succeed". Multi-million sellers still make good money, so it's never an excuse to say "we threw the game under a bus because it was only selling 3~4m copies".

Devs on this should have had to play ME1~3 till their eyes were bleeding (mostly ME2!) and seek help/support if unsure. Literally no one was asking for ME to be a totally "new" thing. Only severe criticism it ever got was an iffy ending in 3.

Banned tracking site puts it roughly at 5 mil across 5 platforms.

Not bad! Probably in line with what ME could roughly do on all platforms, with digital included.

 

[Intheflorsh]

I don't get why they hired the Halo 4 writer as the lead writer, considering his only work ever within video game writing was only Halo 4 and nothing else. How can you enter such a prominent position when you don't have the CV for it? Why put the writing aspect of the reboot of a huge franchise into the hands of someone so inexperienced with video game writing?

Makes you wonder how they got the Halo 4 job too.