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Post by Link"Guess"ski on Mar 27, 2017 1:08:02 GMT
Mass Effect Andromeda is an overall enjoyable game but the enjoyment, for me anyway, never comes without a tinge of tedium, a sense of draining generality that makes it seemingly impossible for this game to ever impress or truly excite me. There's loads of issues in it that are obvious such as the horrible animations, but that aside there's other really fundamental issues such as a mediocre plot that jumps whenever it pleases... but the next best thing would be hanging out with the squad or getting to know the characters.
While ME2 did not exactly have a great plot, it did have a good sense of drama and impact and it all came from the cast because basically all ME2 had going for itself was the characters when the main plot was as paper thin as it was (and the lore and backing context for the thin plot remained as substantial as ever) so what is wrong with MEA since even the characters don't allow for the sense of catharsis that ME2 or even 3 could, now that its plot is kind of weak?
It's the design of the dialogue choices and the writing regarding Ryder and his crew. BioWare has fallen for a sort of "over-focus" on what their fans liked. "The story is about the characters", "Our fans love the romances", "Fans love the banter!". So, let's put all of that in the game and focus on that, right? The problem is, unlike Inquisition's roleplaying, Scott and Sara only get to decide what manner of tone they address their squad in but the specific tones that BioWare chose never truly allows for disagreement or conflict. We're always going through the pre-set path of Ryder's character whenever we're not outright making a "choice that matters" decision. Since the design is this way, it should follow that it's up to BioWare to also pre-design a character-arc or "companion arc" between Ryder and the squad, but all we get are loyalty missions where Ryder tag along while his team-mate deals with their personal stuff as we cheer them up or pat them on the back along the way.
EVERYTHING WE DO INVOLVING THE SQUAD IN THIS GAME IS TOO FRIENDLY.
See, there? In capital letters? That's the problem of why Andromeda never peaks. It's a saying, if everybody's special, nobody is special. If Ryder is always just getting along with his crew and everyone on the tempest are Bros the only conflict has to come from elsewhere. Since the plot is a stinker, there is no conflict, where the closest I ever feel is the subplot of Sara and Scott and their family mystery but that's just a mystery. Not much of a conflict except it makes them feel uneasy not knowing something about people they cared about, and it doesn't help that neither of them give a shit when something happens to Daddy in the beginning.
But basically, this game had a chance of redeeming itself with a meh plot and meh companions if Ryder was at least allowed to disagree with his squad or if the pre-set path for the companions had not always been to befriend them right away or press the flirt-option.
It's just bad narrative design, really. I actually like some of the companions but their company cannot erase this sense of generality that keeps me from ever truly caring, because I can tell that nothing is truly ever at stake, on an emotional level.
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Post by fraggle on Mar 27, 2017 1:25:38 GMT
I've read a post from someone here describing it as the "4 ways of Paragon". So accurate I'm super disappointed by the dialogue system. I looked forward to a more complex system and I was even ready to move away from Paragon and Renegade for more complex relationship with the squadmates. I didn't like the auto-friendship in the trilogy, but I really really dislike it here, because they could've done something great with it - but they didn't. As a result Ryder feels a bit flat and boring to me so far. At this point I'm going so far as to say I'd rather have played Daddy Ryder.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 27, 2017 1:41:14 GMT
I don't disagree with some of the points made here - but I will say that I'm not especially disappointed with the actual game because it's more or less what I expected.
Ryder thought s/he was going to Andromeda with Dad leading the way. This character is quite young, and had a huge responsibility thrust on her/him in the wake of a tragedy. This is young Ryder's first time in the saddle, and I rather expected the character would be somewhat malleable, still trying to get his/her bearings, bending over backwards to keep everything together and keep moving forward.
Ryder is not notShepard, but a completely different type of character.
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Post by adrynbliss on Mar 27, 2017 1:45:09 GMT
that's right, paragon/renegade has been replaced with...casual nice/professional nice, the most unfortunate thing is trying to shorten these in to something like para/reg or combining them like paragade, cassional just doesn't have the same panache.
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Post by Andrew Lucas on Mar 27, 2017 1:46:29 GMT
I should really make a thread for every stuff I enjoy about Andromeda, but that would be a lot.
Question, could you not be best bros with Garrus, in the trilogy? Or Liara BFF's? Andromeda's system is miles head.
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Post by duskwanderer on Mar 27, 2017 2:14:14 GMT
Honestly, I would've disliked the opposite more: Eternally antagonizing someone and suffering for it merely because I was dropped into some random choice.
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Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquistion, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda
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Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquistion, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda
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Post by tziwen on Mar 27, 2017 2:19:09 GMT
Mass Effect Andromeda is an overall enjoyable game but the enjoyment, for me anyway, never comes without a tinge of tedium, a sense of draining generality that makes it seemingly impossible for this game to ever impress or truly excite me. There's loads of issues in it that are obvious such as the horrible animations, but that aside there's other really fundamental issues such as a mediocre plot that jumps whenever it pleases... but the next best thing would be hanging out with the squad or getting to know the characters. While ME2 did not exactly have a great plot, it did have a good sense of drama and impact and it all came from the cast because basically all ME2 had going for itself was the characters when the main plot was as paper thin as it was (and the lore and backing context for the thin plot remained as substantial as ever) so what is wrong with MEA since even the characters don't allow for the sense of catharsis that ME2 or even 3 could, now that its plot is kind of weak? It's the design of the dialogue choices and the writing regarding Ryder and his crew. BioWare has fallen for a sort of "over-focus" on what their fans liked. "The story is about the characters", "Our fans love the romances", "Fans love the banter!". So, let's put all of that in the game and focus on that, right? The problem is, unlike Inquisition's roleplaying, Scott and Sara only get to decide what manner of tone they address their squad in but the specific tones that BioWare chose never truly allows for disagreement or conflict. We're always going through the pre-set path of Ryder's character whenever we're not outright making a "choice that matters" decision. Since the design is this way, it should follow that it's up to BioWare to also pre-design a character-arc or "companion arc" between Ryder and the squad, but all we get are loyalty missions where Ryder tag along while his team-mate deals with their personal stuff as we cheer them up or pat them on the back along the way. EVERYTHING WE DO INVOLVING THE SQUAD IN THIS GAME IS TOO FRIENDLY. See, there? In capital letters? That's the problem of why Andromeda never peaks. It's a saying, if everybody's special, nobody is special. If Ryder is always just getting along with his crew and everyone on the tempest are Bros the only conflict has to come from elsewhere. Since the plot is a stinker, there is no conflict, where the closest I ever feel is the subplot of Sara and Scott and their family mystery but that's just a mystery. Not much of a conflict except it makes them feel uneasy not knowing something about people they cared about, and it doesn't help that neither of them give a shit when something happens to Daddy in the beginning. But basically, this game had a chance of redeeming itself with a meh plot and meh companions if Ryder was at least allowed to disagree with his squad or if the pre-set path for the companions had not always been to befriend them right away or press the flirt-option. It's just bad narrative design, really. I actually like some of the companions but their company cannot erase this sense of generality that keeps me from ever truly caring, because I can tell that nothing is truly ever at stake, on an emotional level. Yes! I agree but... No. ME2 is an accident and doesn't suit the MAss Effect ambitions and goals. ME2 isn't about exploration or sci-fi goodies. ME2 is about politics with real TV material seeing the tattoed girl ranting at the pretty plastic bimbo. The whole game is about putting high profile characters in a narrow space. Don't get me wrong, ME2 's my go to game but it could be any other IP and it would work the same. Mass Effect was about humanity place in space, discovering worlds andd civilisations... Not about a few new humans, a Wrex clone and old pals sharing a beer talking about how Ellusive is the dude paying their salary. You just love Hell's Kitchen in Space not ME... So do i.
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Post by suikoden on Mar 27, 2017 2:35:00 GMT
I should really make a thread for every stuff I enjoy about Andromeda, but that would be a lot. Question, could you not be best bros with Garrus, in the trilogy? Or Liara BFF's? Andromeda's system is miles head. 74% - with almost every single review talking about how the dialogue is juvenile and weak. Even the positive reviews mention this. But you're in the minority, that's cool too! Everyone is a special snowflake and everyone gets along. Even the villain in Andromeda is cute!
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Post by fraggle on Mar 27, 2017 2:59:32 GMT
Ryder thought s/he was going to Andromeda with Dad leading the way. This character is quite young, and had a huge responsibility thrust on her/him in the wake of a tragedy. This is young Ryder's first time in the saddle, and I rather expected the character would be somewhat malleable, still trying to get his/her bearings, bending over backwards to keep everything together and keep moving forward. Ryder is not notShepard, but a completely different type of character. I don't disagree with this. I was prepared that it won't be Shepard and I was looking forward to Ryder a lot. But it feels to me as if Ryder can't be anything than dorky/funny/witty, because a lot of his autodialogue comes across like that. And while I have to say picking sarcastic/casual responses fits the dialogue tone perfectly for me, it's not exactly what I had hoped. I actually think he acts like it's not a big deal to be in Andromeda. It's not a big deal what happens with his family. It's not a big deal that he has to follow in his fathers' footsteps. I hoped they may get rid of audiodialogue and that we can have a distinctive range of emotions to choose from. Sad, funny, hopeful, angered, etc. They left out Paragon and Renegade and talked about a more dynamic dialogue and relationship building. I cannot find this in the game and I just miss that bit of bite and amount of choices Paragon, Renegade and the 2-3 other options offered. I'm not saying I'd have wanted Paragon or Renegade in this game, I can live just fine without those. But the dialogue has been stripped down to something that feels very one-sided and doesn't really make it exciting for me to replay or properly RP it because I already know that all Ryders will feel very close to each other. Kind of ironic, seeing how the CC is also so limited that most Ryders will look the same I guess Ryder can grow on me. I think I'll at least try a sassy FemRyder to see if my impressions are correct. I just expected so much more from a dialogue system that's so close to Dragon Age.
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Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquistion, KOTOR, Jade Empire
PSN: PlagueDoctorD
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Post by Plague Doctor on Mar 27, 2017 3:51:18 GMT
I should really make a thread for every stuff I enjoy about Andromeda, but that would be a lot. Question, could you not be best bros with Garrus, in the trilogy? Or Liara BFF's? Andromeda's system is miles head. 74% - with almost every single review talking about how the dialogue is juvenile and weak. Even the positive reviews mention this. But you're in the minority, that's cool too! Everyone is a special snowflake and everyone gets along. Even the villain in Andromeda is cute! Its not "almost every single review", talk about hyperbole. Because of people like you i feared for the worst pre-release, until i actually checked the reviews for myself, and guess what? Writing quality is the thing reviews are most split over. For every "The dialouge is juvenile and weak" there is one "Companions and dialouge are great, and the strongest part of the game". I once thought the Biodrones were in denial about this game, but the haters are way worse. Go watch smudboy videos, he and his fans like to overreact to everything too. Andromeda is fine. It has a LOT of flaws, but the writing is not one of them. ( Except Addison, whoever wrote her should be fired.) Im more interested in the Remnant than i ever was in the Protheans for example. Tone change doesnt mean the dialouge is bad, its just not catered to you. As someone whos fine with any tone (Id watch a grimdark GotG and a silly comedy Saw sequel) i honestly just think youre not the target audience anymore. So move on. Wait for Cyberpunk, im sure itll be great and more up your alley. This is not specifically directed at you btw, more to all people who either blow things way out of proportion or dont realize that dialouge from a younger, lighter perspective doesnt equal "bad writing". Also, what are you talking about, the Kett are horrifying. If a potential sequel focuses more on their empire its gonna be dark as hell. (Sorry for grammar, am tired as hell and writing on a PS4 ^^)
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Post by ticktak77 on Mar 27, 2017 4:13:15 GMT
74% - with almost every single review talking about how the dialogue is juvenile and weak. Even the positive reviews mention this. But you're in the minority, that's cool too! Everyone is a special snowflake and everyone gets along. Even the villain in Andromeda is cute! Its not "almost every single review", talk about hyperbole. Because of people like you i feared for the worst pre-release, until i actually checked the reviews for myself, and guess what? Writing quality is the thing reviews are most split over. For every "The dialouge is juvenile and weak" there is one "Companions and dialouge are great, and the strongest part of the game". I once thought the Biodrones were in denial about this game, but the haters are way worse. Go watch smudboy videos, he and his fans like to overreact to everything too. Andromeda is fine. It has a LOT of flaws, but the writing is not one of them. ( Except Addison, whoever wrote her should be fired.) Im more interested in the Remnant than i ever was in the Protheans for example. Tone change doesnt mean the dialouge is bad, its just not catered to you. As someone whos fine with any tone (Id watch a grimdark GotG and a silly comedy Saw sequel) i honestly just think youre not the target audience anymore. So move on. Wait for Cyberpunk, im sure itll be great and more up your alley. This is not specifically directed at you btw, more to all people who either blow things way out of proportion or dont realize that dialouge from a younger, lighter perspective doesnt equal "bad writing". Also, what are you talking about, the Kett are horrifying. If a potential sequel focuses more on their empire its gonna be dark as hell. (Sorry for grammar, am tired as hell and writing on a PS4 ^^) I agree with you on the writing - I don't think it's bad at all. The only criticism I do have with the writing however, is that the gradual world building that occurred via dialogue in the original trilogies, is quite shoe-horned in in this one. Most situations early on feel super contrived and heavy-handed in trying to make you understand something, rather than in the original trilogies, where the pacing was much better. Also - the Kett? Horrifying? No chance. When I first saw the Archon on the Habitat 7 vault, I legitimately thought the game was throwing a red herring at me and that he was eventually going to become an ally; there's nothing terrifying about their appearance. Perhaps there can't be, given we are coming off the horrific Reapers and there's not too many places you can go from there. But I didn't find the Kett terribly scary at all. Not until you get to the story beat that explains their motivation; which, let's be honest, isn't really a bone-shattering cause for fear either.
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Post by zipzap2000 on Mar 27, 2017 4:24:36 GMT
I should really make a thread for every stuff I enjoy about Andromeda, but that would be a lot. Question, could you not be best bros with Garrus, in the trilogy? Or Liara BFF's? Andromeda's system is miles head. In Mass Effect 1 you can blast both characters to the point they become pets. In ME2 you can: Have Garrus Killed. Get threatened by Samara. Have Jack stop talking to you. (Casual sex) Loyalty arguments lead to bigger problems. Tali will go you if you dob her father in. In ME3 you can blast Joker and he will stop talking to you unless you apologise. Chambers will side with Cerberus if you're not nice enough to get a date off her and not be seen again by ME3. Not giving Miranda intel will get this response: I should have known better than to ask you for help. Liara won't give you her gift if you're not friends. So the answer to your question is a firm yes. You could play through easily witjout being best friends with everyone.
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Post by maximusarael020 on Mar 27, 2017 4:28:39 GMT
74% - with almost every single review talking about how the dialogue is juvenile and weak. Even the positive reviews mention this. But you're in the minority, that's cool too! Everyone is a special snowflake and everyone gets along. Even the villain in Andromeda is cute! I once thought the Biodrones were in denial about this game, but the haters are way worse. Go watch smudboy videos, he and his fans like to overreact to everything too. Andromeda is fine. It has a LOT of flaws, but the writing is not one of them. ( Except Addison, whoever wrote her should be fired.) Im more interested in the Remnant than i ever was in the Protheans for example. Oh, man. Never tell anyone to go watch Smudboy. His videos are so cancerous and awful. He tries to be Cinemasins, but without humor, intelligent commentary, or insight. Jeremy from Cinemasins at least laughs at himself and never takes himself so seriously. Smudboy actually does videos to make fun of other Mass Effect YouTube content creators like Mass Effect Follower. For what reason? Jesus, I don't hate many people on this Earth, but I really do hate Smudboy. He has zero class and is a complete waste of everyone's time. He does create a nice echo-chambers for the people still butthurt about ME3's endings and Bioware "pandering" and "SJW" stuff.
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Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquistion, KOTOR, Jade Empire
PSN: PlagueDoctorD
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Post by Plague Doctor on Mar 27, 2017 4:48:48 GMT
Its not "almost every single review", talk about hyperbole. Because of people like you i feared for the worst pre-release, until i actually checked the reviews for myself, and guess what? Writing quality is the thing reviews are most split over. For every "The dialouge is juvenile and weak" there is one "Companions and dialouge are great, and the strongest part of the game". I once thought the Biodrones were in denial about this game, but the haters are way worse. Go watch smudboy videos, he and his fans like to overreact to everything too. Andromeda is fine. It has a LOT of flaws, but the writing is not one of them. ( Except Addison, whoever wrote her should be fired.) Im more interested in the Remnant than i ever was in the Protheans for example. Tone change doesnt mean the dialouge is bad, its just not catered to you. As someone whos fine with any tone (Id watch a grimdark GotG and a silly comedy Saw sequel) i honestly just think youre not the target audience anymore. So move on. Wait for Cyberpunk, im sure itll be great and more up your alley. This is not specifically directed at you btw, more to all people who either blow things way out of proportion or dont realize that dialouge from a younger, lighter perspective doesnt equal "bad writing". Also, what are you talking about, the Kett are horrifying. If a potential sequel focuses more on their empire its gonna be dark as hell. (Sorry for grammar, am tired as hell and writing on a PS4 ^^) I agree with you on the writing - I don't think it's bad at all. The only criticism I do have with the writing however, is that the gradual world building that occurred via dialogue in the original trilogies, is quite shoe-horned in in this one. Most situations early on feel super contrived and heavy-handed in trying to make you understand something, rather than in the original trilogies, where the pacing was much better. Also - the Kett? Horrifying? No chance. When I first saw the Archon on the Habitat 7 vault, I legitimately thought the game was throwing a red herring at me and that he was eventually going to become an ally; there's nothing terrifying about their appearance. Perhaps there can't be, given we are coming off the horrific Reapers and there's not too many places you can go from there. But I didn't find the Kett terribly scary at all. Not until you get to the story beat that explains their motivation; which, let's be honest, isn't really a bone-shattering cause for fear either. I dont know. I get the impression that they are a vast empire that has exalted hundreds of races already. When i think about all the culture, knowledge, and individuality that was lost, the fact that the exalted actually retain a personality and still fight and kill their loved ones, how they think its for a higher purpose and that they think they are completely justified because religion....i get shudders all over.
YMMV though. What scares me seldom scares other people. ^^
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Atemporal Vanguardian-Debugger
N6
At sunrise there is the sunset.
To find the secrets of the universe: Think in terms of energy, frequency & VIBRATION -Nikola Tesla
Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Shattered Steel, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, SWTOR
Origin: NO. NEVER. AGAIN.
XBL Gamertag: No.
PSN: No
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To find the secrets of the universe: Think in terms of energy, frequency & VIBRATION -Nikola Tesla
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Post by laughingbanana on Mar 27, 2017 5:06:15 GMT
I should really make a thread for every stuff I enjoy about Andromeda, but that would be a lot. Question, could you not be best bros with Garrus, in the trilogy? Or Liara BFF's? Andromeda's system is miles head. In Mass Effect 1 you can blast both characters to the point they become pets. In ME2 you can: Have Garrus Killed. Get threatened by Samara. Have Jack stop talking to you. (Casual sex) Loyalty arguments lead to bigger problems. Tali will go you if you dob her father in. In ME3 you can blast Joker and he will stop talking to you unless you apologise. Chambers will side with Cerberus if you're not nice enough to get a date off her and not be seen again by ME3. Not giving Miranda intel will get this response: I should have known better than to ask you for help. Liara won't give you her gift if you're not friends. So the answer to your question is a firm yes. You could play through easily witjout being best friends with everyone. To add to this, in Dragon Age Inquisition you can: - Make a virtuous woman, Cassandra, into an alcoholic due to her intense dislike of you, - Make Leliana become a murderous psychopath, - Force Cullen into the path of a Lyrium addict and live a life as a beggar on the street before he's killed, - Punch Solas, - Make Dorian hates you so much. Oh, you can punch him on the face too. - Make Sera hates you so much she threatened to kill you. Or you can also excise her from the group whenever. - Make Vivienne hates you so much she... rearranges your furniture without your permission, lol. - Kills' Varric's best friend, - Force Iron Bull to sacrifice his long-time team and friends, which will make him betray you in the end, - Leave Blackwall to rot in Orlesian prison or force him to serve the Inquisition under the name he's not willing to use anymore due to immense sense of guilt or exile him along with the order he claimed to represent. Etc etc etc.
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Post by rasande on Mar 27, 2017 5:44:47 GMT
I agree, like you said they noticed that most people wanted to be friends with their squad members so didn't really want to "waste" their time. I always played my Shepard as a hard ass, she's their commanding officer not some school counselor and was friendly to a few(like Garrus ) and only in private. And i miss it, but realize i'm probably in a minority. It pissed me off when my codex entery noted i was becoming BFFs with Gil, the worst written character in the history of shit characters, it's like he's just there to be the token gay and they gave the job to some amateur. Where is the person that wrote Dorian when you need them? One of my fav Bioware characters, period. Seriously, the writing in the game is so wildly inconsistent i think the team responsible just fell apart/bailed during development since the project seems to have been seriously badly managed. Some parts are just as good as the other ME games but then there's the start of the game like that insanely awkward first convo with Cora and characters like Gil it's like most left and they had to give writing duties to people who aren't, well, writers, to keep the deadline/in budget half way through the project. Ok i kind of went off on a tangent there, but really, fuck Gil.
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Post by taritu on Mar 27, 2017 6:18:11 GMT
I actually think that the best dialogue system Bioware ever did was DA2. Diplomatic, Angry and Sarcastic Hawke really felt different. I was shocked at how different my fight with my brother was during my aggressive playthru, for example. Thought it might actually come to blows.
And Sarcastic Hawke, omg, s/he was funny, and it was totally appropriate dark humor, even when totally inappropriate, because Hawke's story is an endless goddamn tragedy.
"Well, if they aren't dead there are a lot of boneless women flopping around Kirkwall."
So wrong, so right.
But, point being, distinctive choices. There was autodialogue, but it was appropriate as well, to how you had played your character.
And aggressive Hawke /took no shit/. Which is an option I would sometimes like for my Ryder. 22 isn't that young, both Ryder's have served in the military, and I've known badass 22 year olds with attitude.
(I still remember the smuggler trying to threaten Hawke and her response was along the lines of "you know I made my reputation slaughtering my way thru the city's underworld?")
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ATR16
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Games: Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Jade Empire
Origin: ATR16
XBL Gamertag: pydsie31
PSN: pyder31
Posts: 367 Likes: 603
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Post by ATR16 on Mar 27, 2017 6:30:38 GMT
I've read a post from someone here describing it as the "4 ways of Paragon". So accurate I'm super disappointed by the dialogue system. I looked forward to a more complex system and I was even ready to move away from Paragon and Renegade for more complex relationship with the squadmates. I didn't like the auto-friendship in the trilogy, but I really really dislike it here, because they could've done something great with it - but they didn't. As a result Ryder feels a bit flat and boring to me so far. At this point I'm going so far as to say I'd rather have played Daddy Ryder. I'll take credit because I've been bitching about that since they announced the change. As for OP, the way you can only agree with your squad, the fact you don't have squad based combat like you used to and never having any option to be intimidating or an asshole in any dialogue are probably the top three reasons why at no point in this game have I felt it being "Mass Effect" and that seriously and deeply saddens me.
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Post by Andrew Lucas on Mar 27, 2017 10:44:36 GMT
I should really make a thread for every stuff I enjoy about Andromeda, but that would be a lot. Question, could you not be best bros with Garrus, in the trilogy? Or Liara BFF's? Andromeda's system is miles head. 74% - with almost every single review talking about how the dialogue is juvenile and weak. Even the positive reviews mention this. But you're in the minority, that's cool too! Everyone is a special snowflake and everyone gets along. Even the villain in Andromeda is cute! I didn't know Andromeda got a 74% only because of its dialogue. Sorry, try harder.
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Post by Andrew Lucas on Mar 27, 2017 10:47:09 GMT
I should really make a thread for every stuff I enjoy about Andromeda, but that would be a lot. Question, could you not be best bros with Garrus, in the trilogy? Or Liara BFF's? Andromeda's system is miles head. In Mass Effect 1 you can blast both characters to the point they become pets. In ME2 you can: Have Garrus Killed. Get threatened by Samara. Have Jack stop talking to you. (Casual sex) Loyalty arguments lead to bigger problems. Tali will go you if you dob her father in. In ME3 you can blast Joker and he will stop talking to you unless you apologise. Chambers will side with Cerberus if you're not nice enough to get a date off her and not be seen again by ME3. Not giving Miranda intel will get this response: I should have known better than to ask you for help. Liara won't give you her gift if you're not friends. So the answer to your question is a firm yes. You could play through easily witjout being best friends with everyone. Having Garrus killed to avoid being befriended by him is like saying you don't dislike the ending because you never finished ME3. Liara is your friend regardless of the gift. Once I didn't get it because I missed a conversation. Those are the two examples I mentioned, no everyone. It's there.
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Post by Zemgus on Mar 27, 2017 11:14:19 GMT
I agree 100% OP. I'm only at the beginning of the game (Voeld to be specific) but unlike in other Bioware games I'm kind of bored with my squad and Ryder's interaction with other characters in Andromeda. You said it the best: it's generic and flat. This is exactly what I feared when they said they were getting rid of the paragon/renegade system for a more grey morality system: four shades of paragon as someone put it. *sigh*
I love the combat and exploration so much that talking to people including my own squad feels like a chore, lol. So yes this would probably be the biggest disappointment in the game for me the lack of drama and conflict and darkness. Makes me appreciate the original trilogy in a new way though.
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Post by Ahriman on Mar 27, 2017 11:33:04 GMT
I actually think that the best dialogue system Bioware ever did was DA2. Diplomatic, Angry and Sarcastic Hawke really felt different. I was shocked at how different my fight with my brother was during my aggressive playthru, for example. Thought it might actually come to blows. And Sarcastic Hawke, omg, s/he was funny, and it was totally appropriate dark humor, even when totally inappropriate, because Hawke's story is an endless goddamn tragedy. "Well, if they aren't dead there are a lot of boneless women flopping around Kirkwall." So wrong, so right. But, point being, distinctive choices. There was autodialogue, but it was appropriate as well, to how you had played your character. And aggressive Hawke /took no shit/. Which is an option I would sometimes like for my Ryder. 22 isn't that young, both Ryder's have served in the military, and I've known badass 22 year olds with attitude. (I still remember the smuggler trying to threaten Hawke and her response was along the lines of "you know I made my reputation slaughtering my way thru the city's underworld?") I wouldn't mind similar system for MEA, except they could replace "aggressive" with logical/professional "cold" hybrid and leave aggressive flip outs for interrupts.
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Post by keldaur on Mar 27, 2017 12:42:00 GMT
In Mass Effect 1 you can blast both characters to the point they become pets. In ME2 you can: Have Garrus Killed. Get threatened by Samara. Have Jack stop talking to you. (Casual sex) Loyalty arguments lead to bigger problems. Tali will go you if you dob her father in. In ME3 you can blast Joker and he will stop talking to you unless you apologise. Chambers will side with Cerberus if you're not nice enough to get a date off her and not be seen again by ME3. Not giving Miranda intel will get this response: I should have known better than to ask you for help. Liara won't give you her gift if you're not friends. So the answer to your question is a firm yes. You could play through easily witjout being best friends with everyone. Having Garrus killed to avoid being befriended by him is like saying you don't dislike the ending because you never finished ME3. Liara is your friend regardless of the gift. Once I didn't get it because I missed a conversation. Those are the two examples I mentioned, no everyone. It's there. Stop splitting hairs, You asked if you could genuinely not be best bros with someone. You could. Back on topic, yeah i agree that DA2 conversation system was the best for me out of all bioware games, even tho it wasn't the game i enjoyed the most (not the least tho).
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Post by Link"Guess"ski on Mar 27, 2017 12:57:27 GMT
I don't disagree with some of the points made here - but I will say that I'm not especially disappointed with the actual game because it's more or less what I expected. Ryder thought s/he was going to Andromeda with Dad leading the way. This character is quite young, and had a huge responsibility thrust on her/him in the wake of a tragedy. This is young Ryder's first time in the saddle, and I rather expected the character would be somewhat malleable, still trying to get his/her bearings, bending over backwards to keep everything together and keep moving forward. Ryder is not notShepard, but a completely different type of character. And when was Shepard the sort of character who couldn't move on from tragedy besides Thessia which was a terrible moment? In ME1 you can relate to him in how he addresses the loss of Kaidan or Ashley. He's torn but he's a leader so he gets to respectfully say "We'll honor their sacrifice" or "I had to choose" and then move on. Ryder is a younger, more emotional character and despite saying he didn't know his dad too well he almost doesn't even flinch the second he's told that stuff happened to his dad. In fact all he does is ask "What happened to the others?" or "What happened?" but there's never even one moment when you can tell he's hurt. It's completely juveneile almost inhumanly written.
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