One thing Bioware have made clear is that the story of Andromeda WILL continue to be told.

Not quite sure what this thread is about. Will they tell more stories from Andromeda with Novels/Comics? Sure. As they always do, they will tell prequels (the next book starring Cora Harper), sidequels (the third book still slated to come out later revolving around the Quarian Ark) and more stuff giving more background to side characters in the game.

But will they continue with the Pathfinder as protagonist in books? That's very doubtful, because they have never done this before, so my answer would be no. No, THE Andromeda story will not continue through comics and novels. At least that isn't what Bioware said in their statement.

I would have read the novels if they hadn't been DLC reduced to a book format. If they had been side stories like Ascension then that would've been awesome, instead, they cut all the DLC that was obviously planned and heavily hinted at in favour of a book. For thematic reasons our mission just is not complete until Ryder saves the Quarian Ark, it just does not feel complete at all, and a book won't help. I would've read the books if we had had quarian ark dlc, but when they replace dlc for a book then I lose all interest.

Still, I don't want to rain on your positivity here, it's good to see someone trying to see the silver lining of a very dark cloud, but I just don't share your positivity, I feel ME's at its death knell. I'll be interested to hear what you think of the comics and novels to come, though.

Of course they're replacing DLC, you don't seed the end of a game with a massive plot hook to then say "Go forth and read about it instead!", the Lost Ark book was likely to have originally been a tale of the troubles before leaving the Milky Way and the initial struggles when they get to Andromeda, telling the background of the situation that the DLC would've dealt with. I expect that the author has had to add to the plot with some additional chapters to bring the story to a conclusion rather than leaving it as a form of exposition for a DLC. A company the size of EA doesn't just decide to do DLC willynilly, they pre-plan them so they can judge their quarterly profits, and the game released with big teases for it.

Even if any further development to the SP is effectlvely dead from today, Bioware did not tell  us that the stories of Andromeda were cut short or executed on a kiling floor.

I'm dissapointed none of these story additions will be in our SP, but I'm also glad that these additions EXIST in some shape or form. The story hasn't stopped nor is it dead.

I think more than anything a true loss would have been the discontinuing of ANY further story. Yes, the Andromeda canon has been pretty much relegated to APEX missions and novels and comics now, but those things  still  tell us ME:A is not infact dead or that Bioware/EA have completely given  up every sembelence of any acknowledgement of the game's existence. That the galaxy  and the aliens  and the lore they crafted wasn't thrown in the bath water. There was no abandonment. I think that would have been incredibly worse. This official update by no means  has any indication of  EA/Bioware putting the ME series out back and putting it out of its misery. 

It means there's still something to look forward no matter how it may minimal  it may seem and it means this board won't be a future ghost town.



(And rereading the update post over and over, I'm led to believe BioWare NEVER intended for any SP DLC)

I wouldn't bother with MP if all you want is story/lore. They have released some brief setups for unique Apex missions over the past few months and given the MP characters very simple background summaries, but that's about it. I would be shocked if they started giving us anything more in-depth.

This is probably the most interesting of the Apex briefings because it tells you a tidbit about Evfra's past:
www.masseffect.com/apex-missions/apex-mission-brief-09

Comics and novels should flesh out and give more context to what we experience in game. Not replace it. This would be like if LoTSB and trespasser had been novels instead of in game DLC content that we as players have experienced.

At the very least the Quarian Ark and Ellen Ryder should have been DLCs.

Disagree. IMO the Quarian tease in the game was just there to tell you that Quarians will be in the next Mass Effect game (and maybe characters in Multiplayer), while the "how did they get there and in what kind of problem did they run?" was always planned for the book. But we will see. 

Though unless they tell a Ryder Jr. story in a book, there is still nothing replacing DLC.

But what if Ryder has nothing to do with what was teased? That was the impression I got the whole time. Wouldn't it be nice, if one of the pathfinders proves capable to save his own ark and doesn't have to be saved by Ryder? Again: I think the tease should just tell you that Quarians will be in the next MEA game (if there is one). What Mass Effect: Annihilation (the novel) also could be about is a bridge to an enemy in the next game. Maybe they ran into the species that drove the Jardaan away?

That's totally fine to be told in a book, while in game only stuff that Ryder is involved in matters. I never got why so many fans were focused on Ryder saving even the last ark. Can't anyone else prove at least a little competent?

In a hypothetical scenario where the quarian ark becomes part of a follow-up game, I think an interesting approach could be to have the entire prologue of the game put the player in the shoes of the Pathfinder of the quarian ark temporarily, and that character saves their own ark and eventually makes their way to the Nexus, and from there we get some lead-in to either return to our actual character.

The terribad Baldur's Gate books by Athans' did canonize a Human Male protagonist as a Bhaalspawn, and Karpushyn's books canonized Revan & told his story after the events of KOTOR. I would rather not see that again.

Disagree. IMO the Quarian tease in the game was just there to tell you that Quarians will be in the next Mass Effect game (and maybe characters in Multiplayer), while the "how did they get there and in what kind of problem did they run?" was always planned for the book. But we will see. 

Though unless they tell a Ryder Jr. story in a book, there is still nothing replacing DLC.