EA Help @eahelp Hey Freelancers, we have planned server downtime for scheduled maintenance on all platforms from 7-9am CDT on Tuesday, March 19th. Please plan your adventures in #anthemgame accordingly.
EA Help @eahelp We are starting to see recovery for connectivity. You may experience small delays when trying to reconnect. Thanks for sticking with us.
Whew. How’s everyone doing out there? It’s been a wild ride these last few weeks. On the one hand it’s been a rougher launch than expected. But then as I think back we also knew that big new online games tend to hit some kind of problem once they go live, so as much as we tested and prepared to make sure everything was ready, we were also ready for the possibility that unexpected issues might arise at launch. And we continue to be committed to responding to them.
We launched a game that so many of you tell us is really fun at its core, but we also had a degree of issues that did not reveal themselves until we were operating at the scale of millions of players. We were of course very disappointed about that, as were many of you. I’ve been in there playing with you since those early days (I’m a Ranger in Edmonton Oilers colors!) and it makes me sad to hear about any issues that would hold someone back from fully enjoying the game. I take that very personally, and it’s been our top priority to get improvements out to you in the fastest, safest way.
Combat Balance Meeting in Austin
In these first few weeks, our Live team has worked hard on that, delivering over 200 improvements through patches and live updates, across stability, loot and progression, customization, and more.
We also continue to listen to your feedback, with more improvements to endgame loot and progression, game flow, and stability and performance coming soon – so there’s a lot more work that we intend to do. This is all a learning experience for us, and as we work to make sure the game is improved and perfected, we can’t emphasize enough how much we appreciate you staying with us. Especially because the next stage is where things really get exciting.
The Story is Just Beginning
As we move through this most difficult period of launching a new game and IP, we are also working on the things that will really show what Anthem is capable of – a series of world events, new story content, and new features, that all build towards the Cataclysm later this spring.
But we understand there is skepticism out there. We hear the criticisms and doubts. But we’ll keep going anyway, working hard every day on Anthem – an ever-changing world, constantly improving and growing, and supported well into the future by our team of passionate developers.
With Anthem we’re trying something a little different than we’ve done before. And likewise our upcoming games will be different from Anthem. But with everything we do, we focus on staying true to our mission, creating worlds that inspire you to become the hero of your own story. So what’s most important to us is you, the players who have supported us in this journey. And we’re excited to prove that with Anthem, the best is yet to come.
As revealed in The Art of Anthem, the game’s premise was very different once upon a time. Early drafts featured a colony ship from Earth that had crash-landed in what was essentially the ‘Bermuda Triangle’ of space. “Survivors would have to settle, survive, and somehow thrive on a harsh and dangerous world,” writes the game’s Art Director, Derek Watts. “These ships were only in that first iteration. We took this quite far along before we switched to what Anthem would eventually become.”
What followed was a Robinson Crusoe-style struggle against the odds as your crew salvaged modules into houses, ramshackle bars, and outposts. An entire settlement is seen to have sprung up around the carcass of this ship in later concept art, and its citizens are dressed in what’s left of old Earth clothing.
Jason Schreier @jasonschreier Via NPD data, this seems like a good sign for anyone worried that EA might not give BioWare the time to keep updating and fixing Anthem
Jason Schreier @jasonschreier Via NPD data, this seems like a good sign for anyone worried that EA might not give BioWare the time to keep updating and fixing Anthem
Emily (aka Domino) Taylor pentapod Woah, the best selling game of Feb 2019 and second bestselling game of 2019 so far! Yay freelancers! Strong alone, stronger together! ❤️ So glad folks are having fun playing #AnthemGame 🤗
Aaron @dcbeastltyhealz It's a good game with a lot to be fixed. My worry is will the game be worth playing after they have the game completely fixed? Like will there still be others still playing to do strongholds ect without waiting a hour for 1 to pop.
Emily (aka Domino) Taylor pentapod Well, I would say that it's not "completely fixed" until the people playing it are happy! And, since it's a live game with ongoing updates, happily, we can (and do) take feedback from players to make the changes they want 😊
“The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the universe to know itself.”
Andrew Johnson @untdrew Alright friends -- Where do you stand on Slow Mode for Twitch chats? We're kicking around the idea for future #AnthemGame streams, but I've heard mixed feelings about it.
Ben Irving @benirvo Excited to be back in Austin after my Brothers wedding. It was a great break but I am excited to get back to all things Anthem. #timetogettowork
Destin Legarie @destinlegarie ANTHEM A FAILURE. Meanwhile... at Nielsen "Anthem makes over $100 million in digital revenue at launch. Anthem was the top-selling title by units on console in February, with an above-average digital download rate. In-game spending came in at $3.5 million across both platforms."
Jos Hendriks @sjosz It's a good feeling to be working on something that has you excited to return to it after the weekend. I am working on such a thing.
GameSpot @gamespot #GIVEAWAY We’re giving away a one-of-a-kind replica #AnthemGame javelin helmet! LIKE and REPLY with your favourite Javelin customisation no later than 31/3 11 PM GMT for a chance to win. GB, 18+. Needs Twitter account. 1 entry pp. T&Cs: bit.ly/2TOMDrc #ad
Riley Radford @radford_17 @benirvo Hi Ben! Fellow Aussie here. When can we expect to be able to earn/acquire armour sets in Anthem?
Ben Irving @benirvo Elysian chests should be up next week
My bad here, i read the question as "when can we earn vanity in Anthem" as opposed to "when can we earn armor" - There are no armor packs in the Elysian Caches but there are a lot of very cool Vinyls, Arrival Animations, Victory Poses and Emotes. More details coming.
