Anthem

[Peppermint Lounge]

Gggmanlives blacklisted by EA after they pay him for this Anthem review.

[guttermouth]

I can't believe how dull and boring the missions are.

[pilonv1]

I can't believe how dull and boring the missions are.

Sounds like an MMO then

[Candy Arse]

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2019 ... -andromeda" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

DOA

RIP Bioware

[Madmya]

Mmmm, this could actually kill them if sales are very bad.

[t0mby]

Not defending it but don't retail sales in UK only account for about 20% of sales now? When I went back to London back in 2016 heaps of games stores I used to frequent were goneburger and with half of GAME closed down.....

[lestat]

20% is low, I'd say the number is around 50-60% now. But yes the retail share keeps shrinking against online.

This is going to flop at retail, EA did the whole early access 1 week thing, word got out quickly about the games issues and the reviews have compounded on top of that.

[Candy Arse]

Given how quickly they abandoned Mass Effect Andromeda it's not hard to see this thing being canned quickly.

[GeneraL CyberFunK]

Got it for 48 bucks from EB games because they matched Harvey Norman. Wtf indeed.

So. Combat is very much like Andromeda but you can fly.. still getting used to it but I see potential but I am worried that the special abilities may not be various enough. Just unlocked the interceptor so maybe that will change. I’m enjoying it a lot but combat will get boring if there isn’t enough diversity in enemies.

I got it on PS4 pro and it does have graphic issues. Draw in/ texture pop in is noticeable.

Fort Tarsis does look pretty but is sparse in comparison to the pre launch stuff.

I’ve not really played enough to say the game hasn’t got enough content but I can safely say that it’s not brimming with stuff to do compared to Monster Hunter World. That concerns me so early on. Atm I actually don’t know what I’m meant to be doing story wise but flying around doing some world events has been fun. When you do get into a fight they feel challenging and aren’t over quick - provided you encounter it first. The drop in online stuff is a bit meh..

EA will probably can it soon. But hey I got it for half price so I’m not upset as atm it’s a 7. I hope they really add more though. More javelins and more enemy types and more bosses will make it better

[Peppermint Lounge]

[guttermouth]

Haven't touched Anthem for at least 2 weeks, after playing Division 2 on the weekend, can't see me ever going back to it.

[Rorschach]

That review absolutely nails it.

[luro]

I'm having fun with Anthem. I look at it like Warframe light.

[Peppermint Lounge]

Interesting read with a tonne of in-house accounts from people who worked on the game.

https://www.kotaku.com.au/2019/04/how-b ... ent-wrong/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Ambrose Burnside]

It's a great article, but what really frustrates me is that they learned nothing from Andromeda. It's the same issues, but worse. For example, totally ignoring the experience of the Old Republic guys at building an online world that works.

And what really pisses me off (given I don't play online anymore so was never going to buy Anthem) is this:

On June 29, 2017, BioWare’s Mark Darrah published a tweet that may seem odd today. He noted that he was the executive producer of the Dragon Age franchise, then gave a list of games he was not currently working on: ”Anthem; Mass Effect; Jade Empire; A DA Tactics game; Star Wars…” The implication was that Darrah was producing Dragon Age 4.

At the time, this was true. This iteration of Dragon Age 4 was code-named Joplin, and those who were working on it have told me they were excited by creative director Mike Laidlaw’s vision for the project.

But Anthem was on fire, and by October, BioWare had decided to make some massive changes. That summer, studio general manager Aaryn Flynn departed, to be replaced by a returning Casey Hudson. As part of this process, the studio canceled Joplin. Laidlaw quit shortly afterward, and BioWare restarted Dragon Age 4 with a tiny team under the code name Morrison.

Fuck

[Ambrose Burnside]

Also, Soderburg sounds like the type of high flying muppet making decisions that affect everyone at the organisation without actually understanding how the organisation does anything.

Surprised my employer hasn't hired him yet :/

[Peppermint Lounge]

Bioware's response to the Kotaku piece:

http://blog.bioware.com/2019/04/02/anth ... velopment/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[GeneraL CyberFunK]

Bioware's response is piss poor. It's that positive and professional response that does nothing to reduce frustration and build trust because it reads like they refuse to believe there is an actual problem.

Yong Yea has a good vlog about it and it includes an email from Casey Hudson that is less cunty than the Bioware blog response. It doesn't excuse Hudson from being a cunt. He is the GM - he should have delayed the launch because there is stuff in the game currently that is ridiculously stupid.

My "favourite" problem is where the game sends you on a mission that directly relates to the story but it insists on making it a public expedition. It will player matchmake and that means there is an unacceptably likely chance it will dump you into a story mission expedition that is already underway. That means you miss out on potentially important and story building dialogue. So much for being the hero of your own story.

All in all - it has picked up in terms of interest. A good twist and some really GOOD Bioware story bits have shown up. It hasn't been nearly as grindy as I told it would be (the Tombs were all easily accessed for me) and I enjoy having skirmishes with the various enemies in the game.

[Peppermint Lounge]

How is it for single players? I've read varying accounts.

[GeneraL CyberFunK]

I'd say it depends..

If they are strong and independent singles who are happy.. they might be disappointed.

If they a lonely and prone to depression from being disappointed.. I'd say stay away.

... oh.

It basically plays like a single player game that has others dropping into your mission. You are the hero and the other players are just randoms who as far as they are concerned.. they are the hero and you are the random player dropping into their game. I'm playing on PS4 Pro and I've not been talking or heard anyone talking. The strongholds are fun though I can see what people would get bored after the 1000th run.

I think if you had a group of people you knew playing it would be fun.. but in terms of playing it on your own.. it's pretty standard. I'm enjoying it but the single player story can't quite suit the game as service and online demands of having drop in players.

There is room for improving it all - the question is - Will Bioware know how to do it.. because so far, launching in this state and just the development process in general - that doesn't fill me with complete confidence.

[Reka]

I played it through purely single player and it was fine. It’s a decent enough game. Definitely no Destiny killer but decent enough to play through once.

Pick it up cheap and play through the story and you shouldn’t be disappointed. I’ll be honest though: I haven’t turned it on since I finished the story. I felt no need to grind for better gear. I just went back to Destiny and started a Titan from level 1 again, Destiny 2 is 2 years older and has far more end game content than Anthem, so you’d expect Anthems end game content to be lacking by comparison.

[GeneraL CyberFunK]

I finished it the other night. Didn't come close to dying during the last mission.. Though I feel that my experience with Andromeda helped me get used to the controls heheh

I feel like it has potential to be more interesting given the reveal at the end - I'll get to level 30 and then see where things head from there - by the time I do this - the May update will have arrived I think.

[Ambrose Burnside]

May as well go here. Another Kotaku expose, this time on Dragon Age 4:

The Past And Present Of Dragon Age 4

Then:

Another former BioWare developer who worked on Joplin [the original version of Dragon Age 4] called it “some of the best work experiences” they’d ever had. “We were working towards something very cool, a hugely reactive game, smaller in scope than Dragon Age: Inquisition but much larger in player choice, followers, reactivity, and depth,” they said. “I’m sad that game will never get made.”

You’d play as a group of spies in Tevinter Imperium, a wizard-ruled country on the north end of Dragon Age’s main continent, Thedas. The goal was to focus as much as possible on choice and consequence, with smaller areas and fewer fetch quests than Dragon Age: Inquisition. (In other words, they wanted Joplin to be the opposite of the Hinterlands.)

There was an emphasis on “repeat play,” one developer said, noting that they wanted to make areas that changed over time and missions that branched in interesting ways based on your decisions, to the point where you could even get “non-standard game overs” if you followed certain paths.

A large chunk of Joplin would center on heists. The developers talked about building systemic narrative mechanics, allowing the player to perform actions like persuading or extorting guards without the writers having to hand-craft every scene. It was all very ambitious and very early, and would have no doubt changed drastically once Joplin entered production, but members of the team say they were thrilled about the possibilities.

Now:

A tiny team stuck around to work on a brand new Dragon Age 4, code-named Morrison, that would be built on Anthem’s tools and codebase. It’s the game being made now. Unlike Joplin, this new version of the fourth Dragon Age is planned with a live service component, built for long-term gameplay and revenue.

Fuck off cunts

[Peppermint Lounge]

Anyone still playing? At JB Hi-Fi:

[lestat]

that price tag.