Mass Effect: Andromeda

It's finally here, my Mass Effect: Andromeda review. Initially, I wasn't very hyped up for it. I'm generally a big fan of Bioware games but the Dragon Age series is what made me the western RPG fan I am today. Mass Effect wasn't huge for me until this game changed my idea for it in terms of gameplay. It put me in a tight spot simply because Persona 5, A game I've anticipated and patiently waited for at least 5 years came out at the same time, was already out. Lo and behold, I'm 10 hours in Mass Effect: Andromeda and I've fallen in love with it, believe it or not.

To put it bluntly and plainly, Mass Effect: Andromeda gave me mixed feelings and it is full of polarizing views in every aspect of the game. Starting with its functionality and presentation, it has caused a great deal of outrage in terms of technical issues and animation problems. Players have given up halfway through to wait for more patches, since the animation used for the game's models were out of place, often making it seem sarcastic. On the other frustrating end, to my amazement, were the technical issues. I've went through a lot of extremely long loading times, bugs that caused missing models and sprites, to quests not turning in due to lag. The technical issues were all over the place, up until my 50 hour journey. Those are the initial issues that caused a problem for players before actually delving into the game, which I'd like to note for you, have made the game lose credibility whether I liked it or not.

Moving on to presentation and story, this is a completely new story arc for the series and I am still glad, after beating it that they are not done with it. There is definitely more room for exploration in our space ventures, and that is exactly what differentiates Andromeda from the previous Mass Effect game. Yes we were still getting used to new mechanics in the old series, in both story and gameplay, but the way I see it was that there was an ongoing threat for our characters and Shepard's goal was to stop that. Over here it was kind of serene and better for me to sit back and enjoy the view. All the races are present in Andromeda, moving on to a different galaxy, and exploring the unknown. The game slowly builds itself up and sure enough you are still trying to get to know your surroundings, both environments and your squad members.

Perhaps to me personally, the game's lowest point are the characters themselves. They are mediocre and indistinct when it comes to RPG material. Liam for example doesn't stand out as a character and other characters' motives aren't as grand as other characters we've grown to like aside from a few like Jaal. It might be nitpicky of me but eventually I grew to like these characters. I didn't feel attached to them, though I commend the developers for creating a great backstory for our Protagonist, Scott Ryder but regardless, I'll give them a break since they've started a new arc, might as well see them in different situations and eventually decide. The dialogue options have changed from the three old obvious choices that were either a paragon decision, renegade decision and a neutral one to other four general choices (Logical, Casual, Professional, and Emotional responses). It's good to note that no matter how often these choices are changed, I find myself constricted to choosing the logical and/or the professional options. Other players might have been more flexible but it's hard to see someone like Scott Ryder, placed as a pathfinder for the human race act all cheesy and casual in a moment of tension.

Exploration is Andromeda's strongest suit. I was very skeptical about every decision in the new Mass Effect but I grew to like it in every possible way. The best addition to me was the Nomad. It made me forget how frustrating it was in the first Mass Effect. Going around every planet was smoother and easier, the nomad allowing you to boost around and climb frustrating heights like the ones I could never hope to pass while playing Skyrim. Fast traveling also makes it easier, making it easier for the player to go back and forth to finish quests as well as managing through hazardous environments, whether its a freezing planet or a scorching one. The Nomad also allows the player to mine materials through mining nodes aside from you planting probes in other planets just like the previous games There is a lot of content, I'll give you that. You'll land on an unexplored planet, hoping to resolve its hazardous issues and while driving around a lot of other quests will pop up for you enough to make you busy for quite a while in a single planet.

The second strong point in Mass Effect: Andromeda and the pillar of this game that broke most expectations is its combat. They've made changes that I thought would make me uncomfortable but it surely made me at ease. In the previous games, combat was centered around taking cover and shooting, moving from one point to another. In Andromeda, I believe it adds variety and enforces the players to explore more aggressive builds and classes. Ryder can hover while shooting enemies and taking cover happens automatically if  you are behind a wall or a barricade. I've always been a vanguard in older Mass Effect games so I figured I'd do the same here. There is nothing more satisfying than shooting while hovering then charging at them, using a nova and releasing a shockwave on a line of enemies in the background. Last but certainly not the least in combat is the combo factor, which I like the most. Your other squad members can use detonation skills and biotic skills, so you could pair that with them by adding more to it, causing an explosive attack depending on the element, whether its freezing attacks, biotic or flame attacks. It really changes perspective of combat through you picking your squad members and also changing your build. Experiment with it and I'm sure you will find a fun way to play it, there is a whole tree I haven't experimented on since the first game as well, the tech tree.

Andromeda is a huge game and the galaxy map here is to prove that. You have 5 main planets, each with their own viability percentage and quests. The viability meter works like your own experience bar, the more you explore, the more points you get and with them you can invest these points either in scientific research, military expertise or commerce points. There is also the multiplayer factor to this game, which I have yet to explore if I miss the combat, but with it you can send strike teams to gain resources if you are too lazy to mine for materials with your nomad. Loyalty missions here were mostly fun but not as engaging as previous games. The soundtrack is as great as any Mass Effect game can really be. Ambient tracks that blend so well with the environments and my favorite track is always the galaxy map theme that usually plays out while you're exploring other planets or being in the tempest, talking to your squad members in your ship. This might be disagreed upon, but Mass Effect: Andromeda gave me a sort of Star Trek vibe more than all the previous games combined mostly because it is just about exploration in every aspect. Not that I'm a die hard fan of Star Trek so don't judge. 

Though the opinions may be opposites, I think Bioware did a great job on their new Mass Effect and I can't wait for more games from them. Rarely do I find myself being a completionist with a game, but Mass Effect rekindled that interest for me. Mass Effect: Andromeda is filled with a lot of content to explore and its great to just lose yourself in an expansive universe and spectacular combat. I started this game frustrated and ended it satisfied. Mass Effect: Andromeda is available for purchase on consoles and PC on Origin. I've been Ahmed Jadaa and see you on my next review.