Building Up Ryder
Commander Shepard was the face of the original Mass Effect trilogy. As the first human Spectre, you connected with them over three games and tons of content that made them the best hero (or jackass) the galaxy had in the fight against the Reapers. Their influence was so powerful that they managed to resolve century-long stalemates such as the Genophage and Quarian/Geth War, and the Reapers certainly feared them by the time the trilogy had wrapped up.
Ryder, Andromeda’s new protagonist, is not Shepard. At least, not yet; they know how to fire a gun and perform a variety of moves that’ll be helpful in the game, but they don’t have the decorated war history that our original had. In place of military history is family history; players can choose between playing as twin siblings Scott or Sarah as both join their father Alec on a 600-year journey to the Andromeda galaxy. Having your family present in the story–whichever Ryder you don’t pick will continue to exist in the world and do their own thing–allows for a different kind of history in the game, and you’ll be learning more about the family over the course of the game.
Gameplay wise, Ryder brings some differences to Mass Effect: Andromeda. Instead of the typical class system present in the first trilogy, they can switch between the skills of the different classes at any time. Any points you have in one area of expertise can be reshuffled into another for when the mission requires it. Ryder can also craft weapons and name them, and use a jetpack to get around the environment. Needless to say, the new Pathfinder has a handful of skills that makes them different from Shepard, and building them is going to be a huge part of the fun.
