Redbull interview

OK, the part about doing something different with an inexperienced hero had me laugh out loud. Ummmm, so Ryder will be like EVERY Dragon Age protagonist then? LOL. Yeah, totally new idea there.
Almost all RPGs I can think of have always told the story of a nobody who rises to greatness. I am baffled about this statement. The industry has not evolved out of the action hero sterotype. Especially not shooters/action games. There have always been these two different approaches in RPGs! Both are power fantasies.
The only time Bioware did something different was with Hawke, and most people hated playing a character who fails to save the day.

After the doormat of an inquisitor I am actually in favor again of somebody like Shepard. Somebody who acts like a leader and knows what they're doing. Not a clueless puppet of an organization where you just do what the advisors tell you. The entire game I kept wondering why everybody admired my inquisitor so much. Every other character was more interesting than my own.

To me Shepard is the greatest videogame hero of all time. Absolutely badass but also kind and smart. A truly inspiring story that still moves me to tears years later.
However, if Ryder turns out to be like Hawke, I'll be happy. Hawke was a GREAT tragic hero. So if the family story is modeled after DA2, that's awesome. If Andromeda is Inquisition in space, then not cool at all.

Visually the 4K demo looked EXACTLY like the DAI caves with some shiny bling bling added. If they want me to get excited about exploration, they need to show something actually new and alien. But maybe that's just me.
However, I have no doubt that MEA will look stunning. DAI was a beautiful-looking game and I DID enjoy just exploring the maps immensely even if there was little to do. If they really added "meaningful exploration" this time, it will be a big step up from DAI. And I can't wait to get out there and see it all for myself.

Despite my conflicted feelings about an ordinary person as the protagonist, I really really like the idea of a group of explorers. I could easily spend an entire game just doing that. Meeting new alien species, learning their cultures. All that accompanied with a truckload of funny banter. I don't need a threat like the reapers. I'm actually really worried about a repeat of the evil machine/alien race. DA2 showed that small personal stories can work just as well. In fact, DA2's story was far superior to that of DAI, and maybe even DAO imo. No cartoon villain please or a reaper clone.

I would totally dig a story that is centered around survival in an unknown world. Building stettlements (and cities!), dealing with new flora and fauna. The psychological aspect of it all. Being away from everything you know, leaving everything behind. Nothing will be like expected. Dealing with setbacks, maybe even facing starvation. Sort of like the American frontier story set in space. With all the cowboy stuff from the first trailer that would make sense. There doesn't need to be a massive threat for the game to be interesting. The refugee theme of DA2 would make sense as well. However, refugees are the opposite of explorers. They are an unwanted burden on an existing society. Explorers claim new "free" land. So mixing both is tricky but definitely doable. Andromeda will not be uninhabited. Maybe Ryder and the others will have to beg for food and shelter somewhere at some point?

I really hope they get the balance between story and exploration right...

Right on spot here. There is no "evolution" or "progress" in such approach. That's just marketing word-play on contrast with ME.

They are suspiciously evasive on this at the moment, so it's quite possible that ME:A is stand alone game. Which could mean that Ryder will get from inexperienced to Second Shepherd in one game.
I'd be glad to be wrong on this one.

Sorry for any bubbles burst, but... probably? I'm thinking they're talking about the tech demo from the Sony thing.

We are basically playing as Samantha Traynor: intelligent person, a scientist, a lab person more than a soldier, then because of the Reaper invasion you have to change your line of work completely...
YES!



Samantha Ryder
Traynor Ryder

 Or like Liara, from awkward scientist to pistol-wielding Shadow Broker (just not monosexual, or blue)

"Daddy issues - the best kind of issues." - BioWare

Apparently, while the devs aggressively checked out Skyrim, the writers did the same with Twilight. The Inquisitor is the Bella of Dragon Age.

If it was hard to type, it should be hard to read...

I am going to spend my first 300 credits on a mass effect field tooth brush.

and with mommy issues! OF COURSE!

I am happy to read that 'exploration' and 'alien' being used, though I really hope that this means that we actually get more of a non-human element to the games rather than just a pretty vista with some floating rocks in the back ground "Oh sooooo alien there." 


I want to see Mass Effect: Andromeda being capable of giving us a setting that is more than our human way of looking at things. People are excited about the possibility of being like Captain Picard in Star Trek, but I don't want that to mean that we get to go see humans in rubber masks and then show them how much more "evolved" and "superior" humanity is. I want to see a narrative that allows us to see things that are wholly non-human and quite happy at being so, and for the writing not try and make it out like such a state is wrong or evil.