MASS EFFECT: ANDROMEDA
The hype behind Mass Effect: Andromeda was undeniably massive as both fans of the original trilogy and newcomers to the series waited with bated breath for the anticipated March 21 release.
BioWare’s Mass Effect series is extremely well-known for its memorable characters, impactful choices, interstellar exploration, and saucy romances. The franchise has become one of the most recognizable in gaming, and the latest entry promised a fresh new protagonist venturing out of the Milky Way and into the Andromeda galaxy.
Unfortunately, a great deal of issues both technical and general have arisen since its release. Weird animations have been circulated on Twitter continuously, and glitches that both break immersion and openly disrupt gameplay are present throughout. Character models and movements seem, especially for the humans, mediocre. While talking to other characters, they can disappear and reappear at random, and dialog often doesn’t quite line up with their lip movement, making them feel robot-like and lifeless.
The overall story has received mixed reviews, with fans of the series noting the characters you can interact with feel duller than those included in past entries. Another common complaint was that the crafting system felt cumbersome due to a clumsy user interface. One positive note most can agree upon is that the combat system was greatly improved upon, excluding the automatic cover system that takes away the player’s choice to duck in and out of cover with the press of a button, making some combat situations frustrating to control, especially if one of your team members is ducking behind something that you want to use as cover.
With all the excitement Mass Effect: Andromeda had behind it, it would have been hard enough to pull off exemplary reviews even if animation issues, bugs, and technical problems weren’t present throughout. Andromeda had huge shoes to full, and unfortunately it didn’t live up to the hype that players had for it.
