Michael Gamble @gamblemike I want to clarify this, as the title simplifies it far too much. Anthem has a main story and that story concludes. But it also allows us to continue the storytelling soon after launch, and keep the world alive and changing and fresh. New adventures, characters, and fun.
In other words, DA and ME (assuming it comes back) will have main story arcs that conclude, but will have "live service" features that enable microreleasing new content over an extended period of time. Pretty much what we suspected. It doesn't mean that DA or ME would fundamentally lose their single-player story-centric natures, but probably would no longer have traditional DLCs. That effort would instead go into continual content releases.
Inquisitor: Is that innuendo? Sera: No, it's at the front!
Michael Gamble @gamblemike I want to clarify this, as the title simplifies it far too much. Anthem has a main story and that story concludes. But it also allows us to continue the storytelling soon after launch, and keep the world alive and changing and fresh. New adventures, characters, and fun.
In other words, DA and ME (assuming it comes back) will have main story arcs that conclude, but will have "live service" features that enable microreleasing new content over an extended period of time. Pretty much what we suspected. It doesn't mean that DA or ME would fundamentally lose their single-player story-centric natures, but probably would no longer have traditional DLCs. That effort would instead go into continual content releases.
I wouldn't discount the possibility of getting more traditional DLCs - but they may be rarer and smaller (in a sense that they'd just be focused on story content, instead of adding things like new sets or abilities and so on; that would likely come in separate patch/update). I'd put a bet on there being an 'epilogue' or 'transition' DLC like Trespasser, which everybody seems to have really liked overall. Other than that I can't say I don't like the idea - imagine if DAI was getting a steady stream of various updates spread across a longer period of time, as we wait for the next installment. The Long Wait wouldn't feel as long...
Last Edit: Sept 4, 2018 0:44:49 GMT by midnight tea
“The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the universe to know itself.”
In other words, DA and ME (assuming it comes back) will have main story arcs that conclude, but will have "live service" features that enable microreleasing new content over an extended period of time. Pretty much what we suspected. It doesn't mean that DA or ME would fundamentally lose their single-player story-centric natures, but probably would no longer have traditional DLCs. That effort would instead go into continual content releases.
I wouldn't discount the possibility of getting more traditional DLCs - but they may be rarer and smaller (in a sense that they'd just be focused on story content, instead of adding things like new sets or abilities and so on taht would likely come in a separate patch/update). I'd put a bet on there being an 'epilogue' or 'transition' DLC like Trespasser, which everybody seems to have really liked overall. Other than that I can't say I do like the idea - imagine if DAI was getting a steady stream of various updates spread across a longer period of time, as we wait for the next installment. The Long Wait wouldn't feel as long...
Did you mean, "I can't say I don't like the idea," that is, you like it? Because what you wrote means you don't like the idea.
I agree that they might have something like a traditional DLC, but it would be an Expansion class DLC, meaning bigger with major game system changes, rather than smaller. There's no economic advantage in smaller DLCs, since they could do those with live services more cheaply. Hmm, unless they collect them into physical media for those without download capability?
Inquisitor: Is that innuendo? Sera: No, it's at the front!
I wouldn't discount the possibility of getting more traditional DLCs - but they may be rarer and smaller (in a sense that they'd just be focused on story content, instead of adding things like new sets or abilities and so on taht would likely come in a separate patch/update). I'd put a bet on there being an 'epilogue' or 'transition' DLC like Trespasser, which everybody seems to have really liked overall. Other than that I can't say I do like the idea - imagine if DAI was getting a steady stream of various updates spread across a longer period of time, as we wait for the next installment. The Long Wait wouldn't feel as long...
Did you mean, "I can't say I don't like the idea," that is, you like it? Because what you wrote means you don't like the idea.
I agree that they might have something like a traditional DLC, but it would be an Expansion class DLC, meaning bigger with major game system changes, rather than smaller. There's no economic advantage in smaller DLCs, since they could do those with live services more cheaply. Hmm, unless they collect them into physical media for those without download capability?
Yea, I've decided to rephrase that part on the fly and I messed it up What I mean is that I do like the idea.
And I think that ultimately they may try and sell them in bundles - or, more than likely, offer it in GOTY (or something like 'Complete' or 'Ultimate') edition after they're done with major updates.
“The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the universe to know itself.”
IMO, this is not bad and may even come into play for MEA … as a bridge/continuation to an MEA2.
Which if the current "franchise" games still continue to be mostly single player, albeit with a MP game attached (as in ME3, DAI and MEA) … would mean that the "current" game could remain fairly fresh, with additional replayability, prior to the release of the next game, beyond the MP aspect.
Although done via DLC, ME2's "Arrival" DLC is a good example of continuing a story and bridging to the next game's release. The same thing could be said of DAI's "Trespasser" … sold and released as a DLC, but a great expansion of the story and a potential bridge to the next iteration of DA.
If I were to guess how "live" would work, I would suspect that we would get bits and pieces of something like Arrival, rather than getting it in one big chunk (The first installment might be breaking out of the Batarian prison. The next update might be discovering what was going on WRT the artifact. The third installment might be fighting through the indoctrinated team, to enable destruction of the Alpha relay). You could break up Trespasser in a similar manner, though I think it was larger than Arrival. There is probably a year's worth of updates that could be pushed over time.
Seems like a decent concept … keeps fan interest, keeps replayability high (or at least returning to the game) and keeps things fresh and in the fans' minds until the next game is released. Again, similar to how ME2 bridged fairly well to ME3, with the DLC. Anthem is different … not a single player RPG … though it does have some of those elements … but the "live" aspect could very well be a positive for true single player RPGs.
In this model, Edmonton could be the place where new games … or the next iteration of the franchise … are developed and Austin is charged with creating the live content that bridges major game releases. This keeps the majority of the new game development work in Edmonton, with the Austin team being fully engaged with the various franchises' "live" updates. If it takes two years of full development to produce a great AAA game, then we could expect a 4 year cycle for DA and ME (every two years, alternating franchises, getting a new game), with Anthem being a bit of a different animal with it's supposed 10 year cycle.
I wouldn't discount the possibility of getting more traditional DLCs - but they may be rarer and smaller (in a sense that they'd just be focused on story content, instead of adding things like new sets or abilities and so on taht would likely come in a separate patch/update). I'd put a bet on there being an 'epilogue' or 'transition' DLC like Trespasser, which everybody seems to have really liked overall. Other than that I can't say I do like the idea - imagine if DAI was getting a steady stream of various updates spread across a longer period of time, as we wait for the next installment. The Long Wait wouldn't feel as long...
Did you mean, "I can't say I don't like the idea," that is, you like it? Because what you wrote means you don't like the idea.
I agree that they might have something like a traditional DLC, but it would be an Expansion class DLC, meaning bigger with major game system changes, rather than smaller. There's no economic advantage in smaller DLCs, since they could do those with live services more cheaply. Hmm, unless they collect them into physical media for those without download capability?
If Anthem is a money maker, my view is that future DA+MEs will be multiplayer first and Anthem like story telling second. Bio needs to come back to the good graces of EA.
Morpheus: "know what happened happened and that it could not have happened in any other way".
If I were to guess how "live" would work, I would suspect that we would get bits and pieces of something like Arrival, rather than getting it in one big chunk (The first installment might be breaking out of the Batarian prison. The next update might be discovering what was going on WRT the artifact. The third installment might be fighting through the indoctrinated team, to enable destruction of the Alpha relay). You could break up Trespasser in a similar manner, though I think it was larger than Arrival. There is probably a year's worth of updates that could be pushed over time.
I'm going to assume in this scenario that each "part" would be longer than the 30 minutes they are now? Because I don't really find the concept of having to wait months to finish Arrival all that enticing given there wasn't much there to begin with.
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, Anthem, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
There will not be a player hub at launch but we will have several ways to show off your sweet Javelins.https://t.co/RyOSy6ppwG
— Mark Darrah (@biomarkdarrah) September 2, 2018
Hm... Really? Why one wonders?
The most obvious one is when you're out in Free Play mode or on a mission. Another one, that hasn't been talked about for a while, is also the Player of the Week. Not sure if you remember, but during the E3 2017 demo, before the Freelancer got into their suit, there was a Colossus javelin with a title over it that said "Player of the Week." It's possible that if a player contributes to helping enough lower leveled teammates, or simply participates in the most amount of matchmaking sessions, their javelin is featured for all to see at Fort Tarsis.
ShapersArchive @shapersarchive @biomarkdarrah @gamblemike in strongholds etc will there be any incentive *not* to just skip past as much content as possible? i.e. Speed run to the boss? Or do you think that'll be a common strategy?
Mark Darrah @biomarkdarrah There will be incentives but in some cases that may be a viable strategy
Post by therevanchist25 on Sept 4, 2018 16:04:16 GMT
I don't know if this has been asked or not, but I wonder if Anthem will have an In Game Codex for lore, or if they'll try to tell everyone to go to a website to read dopey little "lore cards" that they'll promptly abandon in Anthem 2...
I don't know if this has been asked or not, but I wonder if Anthem will have an In Game Codex for lore, or if they'll try to tell everyone to go to a website to read dopey little "lore cards" that they'll promptly abandon in Anthem 2...
It has an in game codex, it was mentioned at the PAX panel.
Michael Gamble @gamblemike We talked a bit about Matthias this weekend. He’s an arcanist. Always getting into trouble trying to learn about the shapers. A scientist. But he grew up in the streets and is kind of a badass too. What possibly could go wrong?
Ben Slevan @benslevan @biomarkdarrah does the interceptor javelin come from the Corvus faction kind of like how the technology for the storm javelin came from the dominion, or is this just a symbol you can put on your javelin if you want?
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Mass Effect Andromeda, Anthem, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Yeah, I'm a bit disappointed by that too. For me, that was one of the biggest negatives of DAI's gear progression vs. crafting. You do this interesting/hard side quest and get a cool weapon as a reward that you can't immediately use, and/or by the time you can use it, you've crafted something way better.
This was somewhat mitigated by the fact that, on a subsequent playthrough, you could time the completion of that side quest to coincide with the correct level, given foreknowledge. But they've said that creating new characters and starting the critical path over again is pretty pointless for Anthem.
Last Edit: Sept 5, 2018 15:42:46 GMT by PapaCharlie9
Inquisitor: Is that innuendo? Sera: No, it's at the front!
Emily (aka Domino) pentapod "Trying to wrangle a cart full of clowns with two hands tied behind our back. That seems to be the name of the game." "...While carrying a sack of badgers, I forgot that part." #overheardintheoffice #gamedev
Sheryl @sherylchee I would 100% play a game named "No-Hands Clown-Cart Wrangler: Badger Edition."
Here’s everything you need to know from Anthem’s PAX West panel.
You came, you saw, you asked all the questions. Our Anthem™ PAX West 2018 panel was a blast thanks to everyone who attended, and all your awesome queries. Whether it was how to get the best gear in the game or how long you can spend time cruising through the world (before the folks back home start to worry), you brought your A game (A for Anthem).
Didn’t get a chance to check out the panel in person or online? Below are the five biggest takeaways.
1. You and Your Friends Will Experience the Same Things in Anthem’s Open World
The world of Anthem is a completely shared experience. When you team up with other Freelancers and explore its environment together, you’ll see everything that they do, and vice versa. “You can play with your friends, you can go out in the world. There’s these cool world events – storms, day and night – and that is common between everyone who’s playing the game,” says Lead Producer Mike Gamble. “That’s what we call ‘Our World.’”
You can venture forth with a specific mission in mind, or adventure at your own pace, uncovering secrets and lore that give you clues about the world’s many mysteries. Plus, there’s some sweet gear to unlock out there through both missions and exploration.
2. Your Choices Impact Your Story in Fort Tarsis
Inside Fort Tarsis is where you define your own story. “Tarsis is a place where you can interact with characters. You can make decisions, you can roleplay, and you don’t have to do that when you’re with your friends,” says Gamble. Representatives from different groups in Anthem will seek you out to help them with missions and tasks, and as you get to know them, they'll interact with you on a more personal basis.
How you treat them and the decisions you make will change how you're received. Spend time in Fort Tarsis to learn about the people who live there and discover who they truly are. Together, your story and the shared story mentioned above define the central idea of Anthem: Our World, My Story.
3. Your Crew Will Stay with You Whether You’re Out in the World or in Fort Tarsis
Your crew is made up of three important characters - Haluk, Faye, and Owen, each with their own unique abilities and role:
- Owen is an optimistic and ambitious young cypher who’s learning the trade at your side. “Cyphers are people that – because of the Shaper world – they have super telepathic abilities,” says Lead Writer Cathleen Rootsaert. “But they need to go to school to hone those. Owen has gone to the ‘community college’ version of that.” He's a vital and enthusiastic member of our team, though he can get himself in trouble in his urge to prove himself. - Faye is a mysterious and work-obsessed cypher who comes from a more prestigious background than Owen - the 'Harvard' of Anthem, according to Rootsaert. Faye has long been fascinated by the Anthem of Creation and is driven to learn more about it. Unfortunately, her personal relationships have suffered as a result, and she carries more than a few secrets with her. - Haluk is a grumpy but dedicated Freelancer who keeps your Javelin in working order. “Early in the game you are on a team with Haluk,” says Rootsaert. “He’s a legend in the Freelancer world. He’s a mentor, and yet he doesn’t want to be your teacher.” He's also voiced by actor Nick Tarabay, who has plenty of nice things to say.
Out in the open world, these three follow close behind in your strider, a mobile base of operations where you can regroup. Back in Fort Tarsis, you can interact and bond with them, and they may open up to you.
4. You'll Accept Missions and Contracts from Agents Who Represent Some of Anthem's Factions
Within Fort Tarsis, you’ll find a variety of different factions, including the Sentinels (the main defensive force of the Kingdom of Antium, Anthem's capital city), the arcanists (scientists trying to unearth and understand the world’s secrets), and Corvus (a shadowy organization as mysterious as their work). As you explore the fort, you’ll meet representatives from all of these groups, including:
Brin, a socially awkward Sentinel who monitors Scar activity outside the fort Matthias, a dedicated arcanist fascinated by Shaper technology who suffers from a strange affliction Yarrow, a retired Freelancer who worries that their traditions and worth are being forgotten.
Your interactions with these agents don't have to be strictly professional - throughout Anthem, you'll have opportunities to bond with each of them. “Your relationships with them [develop] through the missions,” says Level Designer Sabine Rosgren. “Once you come back to Tarsis [after they've accompanied you on a mission], something might have changed.” The more time you spend in Fort Tarsis with the agents, the more you learn, giving you the chance to discover who they truly are.
5. There Are Other Factions That Want to Destroy You
Your allies aren’t the only organized ones: there are factions outside Fort Tarsis as well, and they don't play nice. The first you’ll encounter is the Scars, a race of insect-like creatures that have a starring role in Anthem’s latest gameplay video. Their motivations and why they’re battling against the Freelancers will be revealed over the course of the game.
Then, there’s the Dominion, a warlike faction in the North that acts as an ever-present threat to Fort Tarsis. They’re led by the Monitor, a ruthless leader who plans to utilize the Anthem of Creation for his own destructive desires – and you are in his way.
That's not all we learned about Anthem this week. Check out our full breakdown of Our World, My Story, learn all about how multiplayer works, get ready for Anthem's upcoming demo, and more.
What I mean is that I do like the idea.
