Will Anthem be Better than Mass Effect?

“That’s why I love hanging out with you guys. Why shoot something once when you can shoot it 46 more times?”

Recently Bioware announced that anthem will have no paid story DLC. Breaking from the industry trend of blocking the story behind a paywall. This introduces a whole new aspect to the game and begins to deliver on the developer’s promise to make the game a unique world. This game instantly becomes more interesting because I know there will be something to come back to, I can put the game down, come back and find new story missions all free. Of course, there will more than likely be a trade-off, there will be a different form of monetization included to offset the major change in standard procedure. That is an article for another day, right now though, the big question on everyone’s mind right now is whether or not Anthem can surpass the very high bar set by Bioware’s previous classic trilogy (yes, trilogy) Mass Effect.

The original Mass Effect series is widely considered to be one of the high points in gaming. It included some extremely fun RPG elements, mixed with a deep and compelling story and fantastic graphics for the time, and this was a very memorable series for sure. All three games were critically acclaimed and loved by fans, even though the series had its low-points. Except for the final ending, which suffered a fate many games in this same style suffer of a lackluster ending, the original three games are considered classics and will be remembered along the lines of the original Super Mario Brothers, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Final Fantasy, which sets a pretty high standard for the company in general. And, with the exception of Mass Effect: Andromeda, the company has met that high standard every time. Andromeda was such a flop though, that confidence in the developers are pretty shaky right now. After Andromeda was canceled and the Mass Effect brand was shelved for a little bit, it shows EA’s confidence is shaken too, (EA owns of Bioware.)

So far though, Anthem is looking like a return to form, while details on the story itself are sparse, we know that the story will be developing in real time, with more story seemingly being built in regularly. The multiplayer aspect has also been stripped back from what the original indication was. It is starting to feel like a single-player game that you can play with your friends. Grinding and leveling up will be done much in the way of Destiny, but story will be done in the way of Mass Effect. The game is looking like a good hybrid between the two styles without one aspect outshining the other. Which seems incredibly hard to do along with keeping the quality of the overall game up to where we hope it is. It seems to be going well though, every time I see and hear more about the game I buy in a little more. This genuinely feels like a return to form for the storied company.

However, we will just have to wait to see, there are no announced alphas or betas yet, but there will be a demo for the game in February, shortly before its release on the 22nd of that month. This game has been a long time coming for both EA and Bioware, and it really seems like this game is shaping up to be another hit for the legendary developer. If it will surpass or even meet the legacy of its predecessors has yet to be seen. But, with the way the game looks now, February can’t come fast enough.

But, that’s just my opinion, what do you think? Are you excited for Anthem? Do you like Mass Effect 3’s ending? Let me know in the comments down below! And don’t forget to Like, Share, and Subscribe for more BYOG.

Sources

https://www.pcgamesn.com/anthem/anthem-demo