Automatic vs Manual cover

When they say automatic cover I assumed they mean something like the cover system in The Last Of Us. If that's the case I've got no problem.

I don't care, after all it depends on execution. In LoU you aren't "glued" to anything. In ME3 cover was manual but same button could make you jump over it, not the most pleasant feeling. I like bashing games as soon as possible, but right now you aren't know what are you voting for without seeing it in action.

Hard cover got less and less used while playing both SP and MP. Soft cover is pretty much all you needed. The way it's now in BF1 suggests we can have fluent animations without any keystrokes and hatesurfing into cover position.

That sounds interesting - I've not played any BF so no idea how it works in Frostbite. So it will only auto cover if you aim down sights, but if you don't aim you can stay in soft cover behind a wall?

I suppose my worry is thinking back to ME1 and that system which was really clunky.

Unfortunately not owning a console I've not played LoU, so I don't know how that cover system works either. Will have to watch some youtube videos.

I will adjust to whatever they decide but to be honest I do not like the sound of auto cover. I hate games that suck you to cover when you are running by cover.

In TLOU there's no button to enter cover.  You can crouch behind obstacles big enough to cover you and if you're standing and press against a wall, you lean into it for cover.  Nothing grabs you, you don't get stuck. If you want to break cover you just move away from the object that covers you.  It's very fluid and I actually prefer that style than what's in the ME series.

Automatic all the way, even when it sucks. Cover works nicely in TLoU and not so good in ME1 but I like both honestly. In the german magazine covering Andromeda they mentioned the cover, at the time (a build from october) felt too sticky and they would need to get more adjusted to it. That can certainly be a problem, if the character unintentionally sticks to a wall when you meant to run past a corner, but I'm still onboard for this over "press space for everything" just because it creates a more natural flow of movement IMO. However, I really hope they haven't omitted sliding over cover. I did that all the time in ME3 and it feels so slick.

I would also like crouching to be a thing again, not that it could be used for anything besides hilarious walk-run animation glitches, but I'd still like it back just because I like needless movement abilities lol. Reminds me of that "melee from cover" move you can do in ME3 that feels like it's missing sound effects and strangely goes into slow motion when used. No part of the tutorials even mention its existence as if the developers forgot they implemented it.

I agree. I do enjoy ME3 improving combat so much and Andromeda taking on that mantle, but I don't want every single mission to be based in combat. If the goal is exploration of a new setting, allow for some downtime where you're just taking in the view or visit completely solitary spaces and maybe make tension through diplomatic incidents on the Arks or something. They did mention "politics" in that german magazine cover story, which could be mistranslated, but it leaves me hopeful we'll have more to do in the field than simply run and gun.

Something tells me cover won't be nearly as integral to the combat loop as it used to be. Surviving largely out of cover is already quite viable in ME3, but that's mainly due to a lack of challenge than deliberate design. However, if Andromeda is keeping the same core mechanics and then emphasizing movement even more, then manual cover is even less necessary than ever. BioWare just need to get the "stick" range and ratio to a point where it doesn't hinder movement. If the implementation is as good as Tomb Raider's, then it'll be fine.

I also highly doubt BioWare will suddenly allow us to have decent key binds.

That is true, and I will say the hardest thing about playing on "veteran" or "insanity" in any of the ME games IS THE CONTROLS OMG. So honestly, if they fix that, it will be great. I can't tell you how many times I will tell my character to do something and he wouldn't, or he'd do something else. And in that split second, you're dead. Threw my controller across the room so many times... I'm okay with dying because "I" screwed up, but not the damn controller!

It's not automatic cover, ME1 had automatic cover. It's 'Dynamic Cover' which I realize sounds similar but it's different. I vastly prefer dynamic cover over automatic or snap cover. It just allows for a greater degree of movement.

If you want examples of dynamic cover, look at the new Tomb Raider games or The Last of Us. It's fast, it's fluid and it doesn't get in the way. And you quite literally don't have to deal with having button prompt mixups.

Course we'll be jump packing when trying to pick up dead people, but that's not the cover systems fault this time.