So I finished the story just now and enjoyed the game tremendously. Finished at lvl 50 + Show Spoiler +
lvl up after returning to the tempest
First time playing with a gamepad so turining around in fights was kinda slow and clunky but after a bit of adaptation and fininfinding out about profiles (lmao) the progress was fluent. Could've been a broader variety in opponents but that diddn't really bother me much.
As someone said here earlier, the game picks up later on story-wise and I agree. + Show Spoiler +
the Angara's faces could even show a hint of emotion! No tbh the animations were funny (like people hopping over crates and up walls after talking to you on the Tempest), could've been more sophisticated (displaying something different to a stoic face, when talking to people you'd magically be placed where you were supposed to stand during the cutscene instead of the person adjusting to you, minor I know but both kinda hurting the immersion). Moreover I really liked Peebee, Jaal (later on he gets more interesting) and Drack! What a gramps! Suvi and Kallo could've gotten a crew-mission (minigame space shooter with the Tempest? Woohoo) and I totally missed everything about Gil. Would also have hoped for a possibility to dethrone Tallo (or whats his name again)
On April 02 2017 05:33 Artisreal wrote: So I finished the story just now and enjoyed the game tremendously. Finished at lvl 50 + Show Spoiler +
lvl up after returning to the tempest
First time playing with a gamepad so turining around in fights was kinda slow and clunky but after a bit of adaptation and fininfinding out about profiles (lmao) the progress was fluent. Could've been a broader variety in opponents but that diddn't really bother me much.
As someone said here earlier, the game picks up later on story-wise and I agree. + Show Spoiler +
the Angara's faces could even show a hint of emotion! No tbh the animations were funny (like people hopping over crates and up walls after talking to you on the Tempest), could've been more sophisticated (displaying something different to a stoic face, when talking to people you'd magically be placed where you were supposed to stand during the cutscene instead of the person adjusting to you, minor I know but both kinda hurting the immersion). Moreover I really liked Peebee, Jaal (later on he gets more interesting) and Drack! What a gramps! Suvi and Kallo could've gotten a crew-mission (minigame space shooter with the Tempest? Woohoo) and I totally missed everything about Gil. Would also have hoped for a possibility to dethrone Tallo (or whats his name again)
now im rambling time well used
The Angara have some great voice acting though.
All in all, I haven't finished the game yet but it feels so much like ME1. The only thing that really kills Andromeda is the fact Witcher 3 and the Original Trilogy came out to compare it to. Witcher 3 did everything better than Andromeda regarding character interactions and talking cutscenes. OT is 3 games and people compare ME:A to the entire OT it feels like.
ME1 was a strong but flawed game. Same with Andromeda.
Flawed in slightly different ways, but flawed all the same.
Facial animations a bit stiff at times in ME:A? ME1 had some stoic as hell characters in its non set piece conversations.
Similar enemies? ME1 had a bunch of pure recycled enemies too.
Long load times between planets? Hi ME1, how are those elevator load screens on modern machines feeling nowadays?
Spending a lot of time to get a single unneccessary collectible? Hi ME1.
Some of the battle environments feel copy pasted at times? ME1 .... Was literally 4 indoor fight zones copy pasted across most planets
The bar is higher for ME:A than it was for ME1, so it definitely suffers from the time it came out. But its a strong game, even for all its flaws. What makes it mediocre is the fact we have so many other games to compare it to. ME1 had fewer contemporaries so people focused on the sci-fi world building and writing.
One thing I really wish they didn't do was copy paste the face models so much. If theres one thing I hope they fix in a patch its to make the asari have more than 1 face model. Please. Just patch in a 2nd face model at least.
And animate the fingers. Everyone has paralyzed hands on the ends of their stick arms. Just move your fingers a little to give the illusion of being alive lol
Gameplay, gunplay, and customization for Ryder: all top notch (even if the UI is clunky, again, like ME1)
And to people who say they want to customize their allies - lets be honest with ourselves. The AI in the OT in ME2/3 had perfect aim, and unlimited ammo so all we did was give them the highest damage weapon in our inventory anyway (maybe a high clip size.
On April 02 2017 23:12 ZeromuS wrote: And to people who say they want to customize their allies - lets be honest with ourselves. The AI in the OT in ME2/3 had perfect aim, and unlimited ammo so all we did was give them the highest damage weapon in our inventory anyway (maybe a high clip size.
The strongest weapon to equip for companions in ME2 is the Incisor sniper, for some odd reason the companions do full damage with it (compared to the normal 33% I believe) and never miss, it makes Zaeed, Garrus, Thane, and Legion very powerful, those who can't, equip them with the Tempest SMG, the companions always hit even if the spread is very large.
In ME3 you equip the companions with high damage wide spread assault rifles, there is the Typhoon DLC gun, it makes every companion who carries it unstoppable, especially James once he has maxed out Incendiary Ammo.
Most of the augmentations are crap and the good ones can only be researched once. Most of the armor is very specific to a playstyle (combat, biotic or tech) so there's only really one set that will match and I've gotten most of it from vendors or as drops anyway.
As for the guns, the one I have decimates everything and just upgrading that doesn't burn through my research at all, not to mention I have research for 3 factions, all sitting at 1.5k+.
Do have some questions that I can't really get an answer for in the game:
Do regular attacks (just shooting with regular ammo) trigger combos if you fire enough on a target? There is a tech skill that states it increases the combo priming rate. Does that affect regular fire or only with special ammo?
Is there anything that reduces the waiting time on Remnant weapons for when they refill their ammo?
Also, do weapon augmentations work when equipped or only when used? As in, if I put a tech recharge augmentation on my pistol but never use it (other than putting it in my loadout) will I still benefit from the augmentations on it?
On April 03 2017 02:48 Thezzy wrote: I'm not sure what to do with all my research.
Most of the augmentations are crap and the good ones can only be researched once. Most of the armor is very specific to a playstyle (combat, biotic or tech) so there's only really one set that will match and I've gotten most of it from vendors or as drops anyway.
As for the guns, the one I have decimates everything and just upgrading that doesn't burn through my research at all, not to mention I have research for 3 factions, all sitting at 1.5k+.
Do have some questions that I can't really get an answer for in the game:
Do regular attacks (just shooting with regular ammo) trigger combos if you fire enough on a target? There is a tech skill that states it increases the combo priming rate. Does that affect regular fire or only with special ammo?
Is there anything that reduces the waiting time on Remnant weapons for when they refill their ammo?
Also, do weapon augmentations work when equipped or only when used? As in, if I put a tech recharge augmentation on my pistol but never use it (other than putting it in my loadout) will I still benefit from the augmentations on it?
In the other games, if I remember properly, you get bonuses from weapon bonuses with them holstered so I assume same is here
On April 02 2017 23:12 ZeromuS wrote: And to people who say they want to customize their allies - lets be honest with ourselves. The AI in the OT in ME2/3 had perfect aim, and unlimited ammo so all we did was give them the highest damage weapon in our inventory anyway (maybe a high clip size.
The strongest weapon to equip for companions in ME2 is the Incisor sniper, for some odd reason the companions do full damage with it (compared to the normal 33% I believe) and never miss, it makes Zaeed, Garrus, Thane, and Legion very powerful, those who can't, equip them with the Tempest SMG, the companions always hit even if the spread is very large.
In ME3 you equip the companions with high damage wide spread assault rifles, there is the Typhoon DLC gun, it makes every companion who carries it unstoppable, especially James once he has maxed out Incendiary Ammo.
Yep ME1 was probably the only one where the stats actually mattered for what you gave your allies. People complaining they can't give their teammates a bonus biotic armor or bonus acc must be forgetting those did nothing before.
On April 03 2017 02:48 Thezzy wrote: I'm not sure what to do with all my research.
Most of the augmentations are crap and the good ones can only be researched once. Most of the armor is very specific to a playstyle (combat, biotic or tech) so there's only really one set that will match and I've gotten most of it from vendors or as drops anyway.
As for the guns, the one I have decimates everything and just upgrading that doesn't burn through my research at all, not to mention I have research for 3 factions, all sitting at 1.5k+.
Do have some questions that I can't really get an answer for in the game:
Do regular attacks (just shooting with regular ammo) trigger combos if you fire enough on a target? There is a tech skill that states it increases the combo priming rate. Does that affect regular fire or only with special ammo?
Is there anything that reduces the waiting time on Remnant weapons for when they refill their ammo?
Also, do weapon augmentations work when equipped or only when used? As in, if I put a tech recharge augmentation on my pistol but never use it (other than putting it in my loadout) will I still benefit from the augmentations on it?
I use the remnant revival or whatever its called armor but what weapons do you use? I've got fire sword but I keep switching between the duran and a krogan shotgun while leaning on the black widow to carry me most of the way.
Augments are pretty badly done I agree but the weapon veriety isn't as black and white I don't think. The soned is good for arcitect hunting as its spread stays within the hitboxs and dumps damage
On April 03 2017 02:48 Thezzy wrote: I'm not sure what to do with all my research.
Most of the augmentations are crap and the good ones can only be researched once. Most of the armor is very specific to a playstyle (combat, biotic or tech) so there's only really one set that will match and I've gotten most of it from vendors or as drops anyway.
As for the guns, the one I have decimates everything and just upgrading that doesn't burn through my research at all, not to mention I have research for 3 factions, all sitting at 1.5k+.
Do have some questions that I can't really get an answer for in the game:
Do regular attacks (just shooting with regular ammo) trigger combos if you fire enough on a target? There is a tech skill that states it increases the combo priming rate. Does that affect regular fire or only with special ammo?
Is there anything that reduces the waiting time on Remnant weapons for when they refill their ammo?
Also, do weapon augmentations work when equipped or only when used? As in, if I put a tech recharge augmentation on my pistol but never use it (other than putting it in my loadout) will I still benefit from the augmentations on it?
I use the remnant revival or whatever its called armor but what weapons do you use? I've got fire sword but I keep switching between the duran and a krogan shotgun while leaning on the black widow to carry me most of the way.
Augments are pretty badly done I agree but the weapon veriety isn't as black and white I don't think. The soned is good for arcitect hunting as its spread stays within the hitboxs and dumps damage
The equalizer smg is amazing for snipers. It chews through shields like no other then you just pop the head and they die.
Not ME:A, but recently, I finished my 2nd all-ME playthrough career (first time was male Paragon Shep, this time, Renegade Femshep), now on ME3, and playing on Insanity for first time.
LOL the Grissom Academy fight. Holy fuck that was brutal.
After talking to more ppl about ME:A, sounds like you at the very least, get your moneys worth in terms of content in this game.
On April 04 2017 03:33 sung_moon wrote: Not ME:A, but recently, I finished my 2nd all-ME playthrough career (first time was male Paragon Shep, this time, Renegade Femshep), now on ME3, and playing on Insanity for first time.
LOL the Grissom Academy fight. Holy fuck that was brutal.
After talking to more ppl about ME:A, sounds like you at the very least, get your moneys worth in terms of content in this game.
I like it a lot.
Its not without its flaws, and it does take a little while to REALLY open up, but I enjoy it.
A couple QoL things in a patch would go a long way but I generally enjoy it.
I agree, it's not a perfect game, but it is enjoyable. The foundation for a good game is there and some bug fixes and glitch fixing along with cutting the time to investigate planets and the game would be so much less rage inducing. I don't mind the facial expressions or the teleporting teammates as much as the bad storytelling and time wasted exploring planets.
I think we all expected ME2-quality after 5 years of development and feel disappointed now. The game might not be worth 60$ in its current state, but I still get a feeling of fulfillment and fun playing through it, I dunno.
I finished my first completionist playthrough on Insanity, stalled out at 99% because of two broken tasks. Loved most of the characters and the ending + epilogue was great. Time played was 86:21:19. I really hope they close out the game with a Trespasser-like DLC.
Out of interest what story thread do you think deserves a Trespasser-like DLC. To be honest DA:I and it's ending pissed me off a lot until Trespasser came out, but I'm still divided if I actually like the place where Trespasser left the franchise either
The Sequel hook is so friggin obvious in Trespasser (heck they explicitly mention it) that I feel somewhat annoyed. I prefer my games to be at least somewhat standalone (and yes that critique might also fit the original ME games, but I feel they got worse with DA:I).
Me:A on the other hand finishes it's major plot (as stereotypical as it is) the threads left undone (refer to my previous spoiler post if you have doubts what I mean) are sidestories. Meaning ideal for a DLC but not truly necessary for the game itself. Personally I am looking forward to the DLCs mostly because Bioware actually did those right in their last few games, both Omega and Citadel DLC were a delight and most of the DA:I DLC packs were also worth their money (possible exception being that Deep Road expedition, that didn't really blow me away). I guess I'll decide on how well they actually patch their game before I make any buying decisions for DLC.
While I'll say this game was worth my money I must admit some disappointment of how far they have fallen cannot be denied.
I mean the sequel hook for ME:A to me - although it may as well be a hook for a full trilogy - seems like + Show Spoiler +
it's the Kett Empire that has only brought a fraction of its full strength to bear on the Heleus Cluster in the name of Exaltation.
I haven't played any of the DA games so I don't know what the Trespasser DLC really is. But I reckon the ideal plot thread to make a DLC that plays into the next game would be + Show Spoiler +
On April 04 2017 21:16 Elentos wrote: I mean the sequel hook for ME:A to me - although it may as well be a hook for a full trilogy - seems like + Show Spoiler +
it's the Kett Empire that has only brought a fraction of its full strength to bear on the Heleus Cluster in the name of Exaltation.
I haven't played any of the DA games so I don't know what the Trespasser DLC really is. But I reckon the ideal plot thread to make a DLC that plays into the next game would be + Show Spoiler +
the Kett empire and whatever else is outside of the Heleus Cluster is ample room for a full trilogy. Heck there is loads of stuff with the remnant and the scourge left to explore as well
but to me most of those issues scream "full game release" instead of "8 hour DLC".
Trespasser as an example was about 5-6 hours worth of gametime which answered one of the burning questions left by the Inquisition ending and posed 2-3 new ones for a sequel :D
To use another example from Bioware the ME 3 DLCs: Citadel was basically a fanservice DLC to really cap off the trilogy. It didn't really add anything storywise but it gave you another few hours to dick around with your favorite party members (including characters which were not originally included in ME3). Frankly if they try to sell something like that for Andromeda I'd be very surprised (we aren't really that invested in our party/playable characters yet to be honest).
Omega and Leviathan DLC on the other hand explored sidestories connected to the main story or simply left open in the Universe (it really doesn't matter for the reapers who exactly rules Omega, but it was an obvious DLC hook when suddenly Aria shows up on the Citadel. If she had not been part of the main game I simply wouldn't have spent a second thinking about Omega). So I expect similar DLCs for this game. Maybe something with the mentioned + Show Spoiler +
salvage what is left of the Kett expeditionary force (or whatever you want to call it) in Heleus
edit: I seldom link to outside stuff because I prefer to express myself in my own words, but this: really hits the nail on the head regarding my feelings for the game currently. It seems I am in the "well at least it's more Mass Effect" category of gamers
In the new patch (1.05) for Mass Effect: Andromeda, our focus was on bug fixes and improvements to the player experience.
We’ve introduced a number of balance changes to single player and multiplayer, and resolved some issues with saves not working properly. We’ve also improved lip-sync and facial acting during some conversations, and have implemented a much-requested change that allows players to skip the autopilot sequences in the galaxy map.
Patch 1.05 will begin to roll out on Thursday, April 6th.
"Exact" notes in the link. Seems to address many of the biggest complaints in some way.
Fixed an issue with Ryder’s movements when running in a zig zag pattern. (My personally biggest annoyance after the enemy that got stuck in a room I couldn't get into during a kill all enemies segment.)
Increased inventory limits --> nice Added option to skip autopilot sequences in the galaxy map --> fuck yes, that even makes me wanna play again although I already finished the game with like 90% or so Improved logic, timing, and continuity for relationships and story arcs --> I found it weird when I skipped some conversations that I would have to talk to someone twice to actually get the current story conversation. You can't build an open world game and expect people to follow the progression linearly. I wonder if that's included or just the Tempest's crew. Improved lip-sync and facial acting during some conversations, including localized VO --> let's see how that pans out
Also the promise to improve the eyes is quite nice. Those dreary, dead stares were horrible.
Still alot to go to make it an amazing game, but these are steps in the right direction.
Increased inventory limits --> nice Added option to skip autopilot sequences in the galaxy map --> fuck yes, that even makes me wanna play again although I already finished the game with like 90% or so Improved logic, timing, and continuity for relationships and story arcs --> I found it weird when I skipped some conversations that I would have to talk to someone twice to actually get the current story conversation. You can't build an open world game and expect people to follow the progression linearly. I wonder if that's included or just the Tempest's crew. Improved lip-sync and facial acting during some conversations, including localized VO --> let's see how that pans out
Also the promise to improve the eyes is quite nice. Those dreary, dead stares were horrible.
Still alot to go to make it an amazing game, but these are steps in the right direction.
The promise of a first balance pass for multiplayer is also very important. To be honest I am still surprised that they did that bad of a job on first try since they did have quite a bit of data from a very similar system to fall back upon (for all intents and purposes ME3 MP is very similar regarding weapons and powers some gameplay stuff has changed regarding movement and wave spawns but how could they do such a bad job with 80% of the weapons and all power combos?).
Anyway, it looks as if they are working hard to salvage what they can, but I think this will leave a mark on biowares reputation. So far all they have promised sounds at least good, but let's see what they can deliver (and how fast)
Faces seems better now, eyes were mentioned especially though old ones didn't really bother me much. General improvement for most characters according to reddit. Still havn't found the full patch notes including balance changes for both singleplayer and multiplayer anywhere.
EPT
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