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[GasProblem]

What's up with the AI of that fiend? It just walks back and forth.


Something feels off, I think it's a combination of the AI looking bad, the animations being a bit off and the weapons not having a real impact.

I'm still excited because hey, it's Mass Effect, but I'm definately dialing down my hype a bit until I see some positive reviews.

I was really excited for FFXV, but was dissapointed with it and sold it. I don't want to go through that again

 

[Schlorgan]

WHO ARE YOU?

WHO AM I?

 

[Ushay]

So what do we know about each profile then? I can see there are specific skills and abilities tied to them.

Engineer - Combat Drone
Adept - Greater Biotic Damage
Soldier -?
Sentinel - Tech Armour
Infiltrator - Stealth?
Vanguard - Biotic Charge?
Explorer -?

 

[Diancecht]

Only 6 squad mates? Isn't that a bit disappointing?

 

[gspec]

Why? Outside of trying to cram a whole arsenal of powers into a controller instead of a keyboard and not wanting players to go into a wheel to activate them...

Why? Why any of this?

The only reason this is being done is because of multiplayer. They are making the single player game play like the multiplayer part so that the single player strike missions can allow multiplayer coop.

This is the only reason, period.

multiplayer is affecting single player and that is not a good thing most of the time. And I love the ME3 coop multiplayer.

ME3 multiplayer only allow three ability per class. The ME3 single player as well as ME1 and ME2 gave the player more abilities. It is that obvious.

 

[xam3l]

Only 6 squad mates? Isn't that a bit disappointing?

A question or insecurity?

I dont think it's disappointing.

ME 1 had 6.
ME 2 Vanilla had 10 if you wanted to.
ME3 had 7. 6 if you didnt had Javik

So far we know of 6, maybe there is more to come?

 

[Tovarisc]

Only 6 squad mates? Isn't that a bit disappointing?

Quality over quantity. Only disappointing thing in squad is that roster is bland and safe bets from Milky Way. Where is new, Andromeda based, synthetic squadie?

 

[Jarmel]

Ok now that I'm at a computer, let me explain this a bit further. So in the OG ME trilogy, the player had access to the power wheel which gave a player access to possibly half a dozen powers at once. When you ran up against an enemy in ME3, you could use any of those powers in any order you see fit. That gave the player a degree of freedom and allowed for some cool experimentation. Now in Andromeda, if you wanted access to all six, you would slot three and then have to switch to the other three. The player then gets hit by an extended cooldown and aspects like Singularity disappear in the meantime. This serves to both reduce combination possibilities and leave you helpless for a longer duration. This is a double penalty compared to how the power system worked in ME3. It's also especially stupid when playing on PC where the controller limitations don't exist but whatever.

On top of that, it doesn't fix the other problem caused by the new power system in that while this restriction doesn't make you as potentially powerful, it still doesn't make your companions necessary like in the OG trilogy. Since you can switch to whatever powers you want, your dependency on the companions is minimized.

So we're left with a power system that is both more restrictive than its predecessor while also introducing new problems due to its openness.

 

[A-V-B]

The only reason this is being done is because of multiplayer. They are making the single player game play like the multiplayer part so that the single player strike missions can allow multiplayer coop.

This is the only reason, period.

So much for the "we won't let multiplayer seriously affect single player" point, eh...

Ok now that I'm at a computer, let me explain this a bit further. So in the OG ME trilogy, the player had access to the power wheel which gave a player access to possibly half a dozen powers at once. Now when you ran up against an enemy you could use any of those powers in any order you see fit. Now in Andromeda, if you wanted access to all six, you would slot three and then have to switch to the other three. The player then gets hit by an extended cooldown and aspects like Singularity disappear in the meantime. This serves to both reduce combination possibilities and leave you helpless for a longer duration. This is a double penalty compared to how the power system worked in ME3. It's also especially stupid when playing on PC where the controller limitations don't exist but whatever.

On top of that, it doesn't fix the other problem caused by the new power system in that while this restriction doesn't make you as potentially powerful, it still doesn't make your companions necessary like in the OG trilogy. Since you can switch to whatever powers you want, your dependency on the companions is minimized.

So we're left with a power system that is both more restrictive than its predecessor while also introducing new problems due to its openness.

sigh... This is feeling like Mirror's Edge Catalyst again.

"The game could be super great!!! Except for this thing here that really hurts the game and is pervasive across all levels."

 

[Kneecap]

Um, wtf? So this is actually worse than having cross-class powers in the trilogy? Make sure all your powers are in a single favorite preset?

Not only this, but biotics in particular may need to "waste" a power slot to get a different detonator for singularity. One favorite for singularity + throw + annihilation field (e.g.) and then have another favorite for (again, e.g.) singularity + a different detonator other than throw + some other 3rd choice biotic power. So, in this scenario, to get this flexibility with detionations for singularity, you'd need to "waste" a second slot on it.

And, it seems that these consequences are, if not unintended, consequences that the developers have no clue or care about.

 

[Jarmel]

And, it seems that these consequences are, if not unintended, consequences that the developers have no clue or care about.

The fact that the lead designer didn't know initially is very telling.

 

[Man Called Aerodynamics]

What's up with the AI of that fiend? It just walks back and forth.

Yeah, it was very noticeable that the Fiend seems to go out of its way NOT to attack the player. I'm assuming the difficulty was cranked down to zero for the purposes of the demo. You can also see in the status screens that Ryder is level 1 but has hundreds of skill points available.

 

[Trey]

Ok now that I'm at a computer, let me explain this a bit further. So in the OG ME trilogy, the player had access to the power wheel which gave a player access to possibly half a dozen powers at once. When you ran up against an enemy in ME3, you could use any of those powers in any order you see fit. That gave the player a degree of freedom and allowed for some cool experimentation. Now in Andromeda, if you wanted access to all six, you would slot three and then have to switch to the other three. The player then gets hit by an extended cooldown and aspects like Singularity disappear in the meantime. This serves to both reduce combination possibilities and leave you helpless for a longer duration. This is a double penalty compared to how the power system worked in ME3. It's also especially stupid when playing on PC where the controller limitations don't exist but whatever.

On top of that, it doesn't fix the other problem caused by the new power system in that while this restriction doesn't make you as potentially powerful, it still doesn't make your companions necessary like in the OG trilogy. Since you can switch to whatever powers you want, your dependency on the companions is minimized.

So we're left with a power system that is both more restrictive than its predecessor while also introducing new problems due to its openness.

Pretty much. Expanding the player's control over their companions so directing them is as seamless as possible should've been a priority, not a goal to work against.

 

[A-V-B]

Pretty much. Expanding the player's control over their companions so directing them is as seamless as possible should've been a priority, not a goal to work against.

I tried pointing that out yesterday but it didn't go too well.

 

[Jarmel]

Pretty much. Expanding the player's control over their companions so directing them is as seamless as possible should've been a priority, not a goal to work against.

If the player had more control over their companions like in previous games, the player could direct a companion's power set while the player switched his favorites power set. That would have made the player feel less helpless during the transitions and reducing lulls in combat, foster team dynamics, while also keeping that degree of openness and experimentation that the developers are seeking.

 

[Kneecap]

Pretty much. Expanding the player's control over their companions so directing them is as seamless as possible should've been a priority, not a goal to work against.

But really, it's a moot point anyhow as a good fraction of the powers and combos won't work as advertised. (I'm only kinda joking here, as you can see from the developer's tweet that there seems to have been nowhere near enough testing/QA of powers -- par for the bioware course.)

I am excited for the game - preordered it in fact. I just wish bioware would involve fans more and pay more attention to QA and polish.

 

[Collateral22]

Requirements for PC are up for people that were wondering. Don't know if this warrants a new thread or not.

https://www.origin.com/irl/en-us/st...t-andromeda/super-deluxe-edition#requirements

MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

OS: 64-bit Windows 7, Windows 8.1 and Windows 10
PROCESSOR: Intel Core i5 3570 or AMD FX-6350
MEMORY: 8 GB RAM
VIDEO CARD: NVIDIA GTX 660 2GB, AMD Radeon 7850 2GB
HARD DRIVE: At least 55 GB of free space
DIRECTX: DirectX 11

RECOMMENDED SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

OS: 64-bit Windows 7, Windows 8.1 and Windows 10
PROCESSOR: Intel Core i7-4790 or AMD FX-8350
MEMORY: 16 GB RAM
VIDEO CARD: NVIDIA GTX 1060 3GB, AMD RX 480 4GB
HARD DRIVE: At least 55 GB of free space
DIRECTX: DirectX 11

 

[Salvadora]

Only 6 squad mates? Isn't that a bit disappointing?

It isn't the number that bothers me, but there there isn't Quarian, Geth or Salarian squadmates.

Humans are really boring - and there are 3 of them in the squad including the player character. Sad!

I'll reserve judgement until playing the game, of course.

 

[Tovarisc]

Requirements for PC are up for people that were wondering. Don't know if this warrants a new thread or not.

https://www.origin.com/irl/en-us/st...t-andromeda/super-deluxe-edition#requirements

We have one going: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1347281

 

[Slaythe]

Requirements for PC are up for people that were wondering. Don't know if this warrants a new thread or not.

https://www.origin.com/irl/en-us/st...t-andromeda/super-deluxe-edition#requirements

This is the first time my PC is literally the recommended specs. That's funny.

 

[Squire]

The fact that the lead designer didn't know initially is very telling.

This is why devs hate talking to you guys. For real.

 

[A-V-B]

This is why devs hate talking to you guys. For real.

I mean, he probably just forgot.

 

[Principate]

Ok now that I'm at a computer, let me explain this a bit further. So in the OG ME trilogy, the player had access to the power wheel which gave a player access to possibly half a dozen powers at once. When you ran up against an enemy in ME3, you could use any of those powers in any order you see fit. That gave the player a degree of freedom and allowed for some cool experimentation. Now in Andromeda, if you wanted access to all six, you would slot three and then have to switch to the other three. The player then gets hit by an extended cooldown and aspects like Singularity disappear in the meantime. This serves to both reduce combination possibilities and leave you helpless for a longer duration. This is a double penalty compared to how the power system worked in ME3. It's also especially stupid when playing on PC where the controller limitations don't exist but whatever.

On top of that, it doesn't fix the other problem caused by the new power system in that while this restriction doesn't make you as potentially powerful, it still doesn't make your companions necessary like in the OG trilogy. Since you can switch to whatever powers you want, your dependency on the companions is minimized.

So we're left with a power system that is both more restrictive than its predecessor while also introducing new problems due to its openness.

I think it's more to make the gameplay in line with ME3 multi rather than single player (which is rather obvious considering everything they've shown). You can't pause the game in multiplayer thus the power wheel is rather redunant and you only have access to about 4 skills thus the gameplay is much faster than single player. Keep in mind ME3 multiplayer waa intially an entirely different game that these guys were working on that was later combined. Most of their design decisions are informed by that more than everything else. Each skill set is essentially a multiplayer character you can switch between. Squad matches basically exist just to detonate your bio/tech/fire/ice comboes (yes there were in fact 4 different types of Comboes available in ME3).

 

[Staf]

I think it's more to make the gameplay in line with ME3 multi rather than single player (which is rather obvious considering everything they've shown). You can't pause the game in multiplayer thus the power wheel is rather redunant and you only have access to about 4 skills thus the gameplay is much faster than single player. Keep in mind ME3 multiplayer waa intially an entirely different game that these guys were working on that was later combined. Most of their design decisions are informed by that more than everything else. Each skill set is essentially a multiplayer character you can switch between. Squad matches basically exist just to detonate your bio/tech/fire/ice comboes (yes there were in fact 4 different types of Comboes available in ME3).

This is my fear. As someone who have zero interest in MP i worry that the combat system in SP will be hampered by striving to make the SP and MP combat 1:1. Wouldn't be surprised if this was the thinking behind Dragon age: Inquisitions 8 skill limit as well.

Though the combat is always the least interesting part of a Bioware game for me. Haven't liked the combat in a Bioware games since KOTOR and DA:O.

 

[Squire]

I mean, he probably just forgot.

That's the rational conclusion, yes.

 

[Back-In-Black]

This is my fear. As someone who have zero interest in MP i worry that the combat system in SP will be hampered by striving to make the SP and MP combat 1:1. Wouldn't be surprised if this was the thinking behind Dragon age: Inquisitions 8 skill limit as well.

Though the combat is always the least interesting part of a Bioware game for me. Haven't liked the combat in a Bioware games since KOTOR and DA:O.

I don't really give a shit because ME3 MP was pretty much the greatest thing ever, so I trust that team when it comes to improving combat. If they felt the power wheel was a hindrance then I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

 

[GavinUK86]

It isn't the number that bothers me, but there there isn't Quarian, Geth or Salarian squadmates.

Humans are really boring - and there are 3 of them in the squad including the player character. Sad!

I'll reserve judgement until playing the game, of course.

That's because the Quarian and the Geth aren't a citadel race. The Geth aren't in the new game because of obvious reasons. Maybe some Quarians are, but I doubt it for it the same reason. There's a Salarian pilot so that's one less human. 2 Human squadmates is the same as the original Mass Effect which is obviously what this game is going for. It wants to be a modern Mass Effect 1 before it got bogged down with "the end of the world". So nothing is really "sad" at all. Granted, the new squadmates could be insanely boring, but I guess, like you said, we'll have to wait and see.

And as far as the new powers system goes, I'm completely fine with it because I don't want a new Mass Effect game to play like the previous trilogy. I want some completely new and fresh. This looks like just that. I don't want studios to keep rehashing the same thing year after year, so if that means altering the combat to this extent, do it.

 

[Chirotera]

It isn't the number that bothers me, but there there isn't Quarian, Geth or Salarian squadmates.

Humans are really boring - and there are 3 of them in the squad including the player character. Sad!

I'll reserve judgement until playing the game, of course.

For story reasons Geth would be impossible. They have not yet been free'd by Shepard. The only reason we got one in ME2 is because Legion was a bit of an anomaly. The Geth don't come into play until after they are freed in ME3. The Andromeda Initiative leaves well before the events of that game.

We have a Salarian pilot, at least.

And we still don't know if Quarians are in the game at all. It doesn't seem like a race that is devoted to leaving its flotilla to find goods and resources to take back to that flotilla would be all that inclined to take a one way trip to another Galaxy. The only ones, then, that would show up would have to be exiles of some sort - and given that the council races are heavily involved and that they already treat Quarians with disdain and distrust, the chances that one would be allowed onto an Ark ship are pretty slim. Maybe we'll see some stow-away, but I wouldn't count on it.

 

[Squire]

I don't really give a shit because ME3 MP was pretty much the greatest thing ever, so I trust that team when it comes to improving combat. If they felt the power wheel was a hindrance then I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

I think it's really weird that people seem unable to fathom a game having tactical merit without you being able to pick options off of a static menu.

 

[Principate]

I don't really give a shit because ME3 MP was pretty much the greatest thing ever, so I trust that team when it comes to improving combat. If they felt the power wheel was a hindrance then I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Yeah it was great probably the best horde mode/co-op experience of last gen and their was a massive amount of depth to it. The fact the gameplay seems like multi on steroids seems great to me though I can understand if you didn't like that sort of game play focusing on it to the detriment of others would be a concern.

At the very least it's looking like this will be a top tier third person shooter rather than a servicesble one. Which means great things from a multi point of view if they don't mess with it too much.

 

[Staf]

I don't really give a shit because ME3 MP was pretty much the greatest thing ever, so I trust that team when it comes to improving combat. If they felt the power wheel was a hindrance then I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Well, like i previously said i haven't liked a Bioware combat system in a long time, including ME3 MP, so...
¯\_(&#12484_/¯

I'll probably just put it on the lowest difficulty and blaze through it for the story and characters.

 

[Exploratory]

I don't really give a shit because ME3 MP was pretty much the greatest thing ever, so I trust that team when it comes to improving combat. If they felt the power wheel was a hindrance then I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Here here.

 

[MosquitoSmasher]

I was very skeptical about this game when they started releasing material of this game last year but with this latest trailer and especially some previews, my hype is starting to rise. I watched the IGN and Game Informer impressions video and both said the planet they visited was very interesting to explore, plenty to see and do too. Definitely not a Mass Effect Inquisition at all. That's good to hear because in the combat trailer i spotted a few rather very empty and boring looking environments and that worried me.

Game Informer did say that the gunplay felt lousy to him, a step back from ME3. That's odd though because it sure doesn't look that way in the videos. Good thing is we'll find out for ourselves on the 16th.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

The point isn't to combo between profiles. The profiles should be set up to handle a specific situation on their own. You should combo within a specific profile with your teammates

If I have to depend on teammates ai to combo then that's just fucking shitty. Either i have two powers of the three solely to combo or I have to hope that my teammate ai knows to combo a certain power with one of theirs. Every single time.

Now I'm sitting here thinking that maybe shit like singularity and the turret isn't worth investing for my character, and instead hope that the party member I bring can get one of those and that they use it often enough in appropriate situations

 

[shinobi602]

Game Informer did say that the gunplay felt lousy to him, a step back from ME3. That's odd though because it sure doesn't look that way in the videos. Good thing is we'll find out for ourselves on the 16th.

Combat and gunplay were definitely more satisfying than ME3 to me.

 

[MosquitoSmasher]

Combat and gunplay were definitely more satisfying than ME3 to me.

Oh nice! That sounds really good then. It's probably a preference thing at the end of the day. It looks really damn nice and fun in the videos so far. Seems like they have nailed the combat.

Bring on the 16th. March is insane for gaming.

 

[Kneecap]

That's the rational conclusion, yes.

This is why devs hate talking to you guys. For real.

So, like you,I'm excited for this game and I've had fun with previous ME and other bioware games. Does that mean I have to believe that, in most respects, the developers know best or even fully know how their gameplay decisions will work?

And when I read a comment like the first above, what I see intended is this "That's the (only) rational conclusion." I do apologize if that was nowhere near the intended meaning, but these "discussions" take on a defensive tone quickly.

I know the bioware forums were uneven. Also it was my observation that the moderation of those forums was extremely uneven.However, I believe that a large part of why the forums were closed reflects the increased assimilation of bioware into EA. A "we know best" and "money spent to moderate forums does not increase profits" attitude i see in EA. Bioware does not listen or communicate as they used to and i am interestrd in how this affects and is reflected in their gameplay decisions. It seems that you may not be.

 

[SoRuffShoNuff]

Not only this, but biotics in particular may need to "waste" a power slot to get a different detonator for singularity. One favorite for singularity + throw + annihilation field (e.g.) and then have another favorite for (again, e.g.) singularity + a different detonator other than throw + some other 3rd choice biotic power. So, in this scenario, to get this flexibility with detionations for singularity, you'd need to "waste" a second slot on it.

And, it seems that these consequences are, if not unintended, consequences that the developers have no clue or care about.

Or maybe the game isn't meant to be played the same way as the previous games. It's quite telling that almost all of the complaints are based on how something differs from the previous games in the series. It doesn't matter if this system wouldn't work well for insanity in ME2 because this isn't ME2. They are going to tune insanity to work with the system in Andromeda.

 

[Wulfram]

Not only this, but biotics in particular may need to "waste" a power slot to get a different detonator for singularity. One favorite for singularity + throw + annihilation field (e.g.) and then have another favorite for (again, e.g.) singularity + a different detonator other than throw + some other 3rd choice biotic power. So, in this scenario, to get this flexibility with detionations for singularity, you'd need to "waste" a second slot on it.

And, it seems that these consequences are, if not unintended, consequences that the developers have no clue or care about.

I'm pretty sure what you're complaining about is very much an intended consequence. Each profile is supposed to be its own, self contained thing designed for particular tactical purposes, not just a way to extend your power selection.

 

[HeisenbergWW62]

Only 6 squad mates? Isn't that a bit disappointing?

No, but it's disappointing that only one is a new race

 

[Playsage]

I don't believe those six are the only squadmates we are getting...

 

[Rap2thaMoon]

No, but it's disappointing that only one is a new race

Would be interesting having an squad mate who's a Kett, like Farscape. You know the whole "We need to work together sins they both hate us" kind of thing.

 

[HeisenbergWW62]

Would be interesting having an squad mate who's a Kett, like Farscape. You know the whole "We need to work together sins they both hate us" kind of thing.

Yeah, and I wish there was at least one who was a secret up until the game is out. Someone who is a new race we don't know about yet. I really hope there's several new races we haven't seen, im sure there is

 

[Kayo Police]

Squad selection screen:

Nice so far there are no Characters as offensive as EDI was. Really liking the progressiveness Bioware has shown so far.

 

[martino]

It isn't the number that bothers me, but there there isn't Quarian, Geth or Salarian squadmates.

Humans are really boring - and there are 3 of them in the squad including the player character. Sad!

I'll reserve judgement until playing the game, of course.

Same here, synthetic like geth or EDI will be a big miss

 

[Riposte]

The character design in this game blows. Humanoids look like crap, though I guess the black guy is passable. It's like BioWare is seeking out the uncanny valley rather than avoiding it. Going to look wonderful with that world class animation. Peebee lol

I'm not sure how I feel about the combat changes. Seems like a bit much, but I guess it might lead to a lot of creativity. The squad mechanic seems to be falling into the background.

Can't say I'm optimistic.

 

[Tovarisc]

Nice so far there are no Characters as offensive as EDI was. Really liking the progressiveness Bioware has shown so far.

What was offensive about EDI?

 

[Bisnic]

What was offensive about EDI?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unXBOSxTwFU

 

[Lime]

What was offensive about EDI?

Probably the cameltoe thing and the need to make her into a sexbot (I wouldn't call it offensive, just eye-rolling and the former a bit creepy though)

 

[Tovarisc]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unXBOSxTwFU

Um..? That exchange more or less fits Jack's personality, she never was big on normal pleasantries or pleasing people around her by "fitting to norms". Still not sure how EDI was offensive character [design] when we consider all other female character designs before her, if we approach them from sexualized perspective. Edit: Because then there was quite a few female characters before her who crossed that line first.