A Whole New Galaxy
The original Mass Effect trilogy took place completely in the Milky Way galaxy. By the time we stared down the Reapers and told them to suck it, we’d explored nearly every planet in every star system, whether by probe (oh, so many probes) or by touching down on it. There were memorable locations we visited, such as Illium, Palaven, and Rannoch, and those memories are going to stick with us forever. But it’s time to see something new.
Mass Effect: Andromeda will thankfully give us a new galaxy to explore. Even though we won’t be able to see all of what it entails this first time around, there’ll be a bevy of planets for players to touch down on and establish a home. Each planet will contain secret bases for players to go through that BioWare has designed to test the player’s skill, along with the standard random zones with enemies and loot. They’re lengthy and will contain some kind of reward that’ll definitely prove invaluable later on.
With a new galaxy comes new mysteries and gear. As an action RPG, the latter is the most important part of a game like Mass Effect. Along with the classic Alliance weapons that players have come to know and use over the years, there’ll also be weapons exclusive to the Andromeda galaxy. Fans of the first game’s overheat system will be happy to hear the Remnant-type weapons use this method, while Helius Cluster-type guns are more plasma-based. In a first time move for the series, Andromeda also introduces melee weapons for Ryder to kill enemies with. If you want to shank someone with some space shivs or bash their head in with a Krogan hammer, you can do that. And it only took a 600 year journey to a new galaxy!