Mass Effect: Andromeda
Mass Effect: Andromeda is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. The fourth major entry in the Mass Effect series, it was released in March 2017 for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. The game is set within the Andromeda Galaxy during the 29th century, where humanity is planning to populate new home worlds as part of a strategy called the Andromeda Initiative. The player assumes the role of either Scott or Sara Ryder, an inexperienced military recruit who joins the Initiative and wakes up in Andromeda following a 634-year sleeper ship journey. Events transpire that result in Ryder becoming humanity's Pathfinder, who is tasked with finding a new home world for humanity while also dealing with an antagonistic alien species known as the Kett, and uncovering the secrets of a mysterious synthetic intelligence species known as the Remnant.
For Mass Effect: Andromeda, BioWare incorporated a lighter tone than previous installments in the series, utilized open world elements, and placed an emphasis on exploration. Many of the series' traditional gameplay elements remain, while others are modified, such as combat, which is less cover-based and more mobile. The game is the largest in the series, and offers the player the freedom to focus on either the main quest or side quests. Its score was composed by John Paesano and aims to match the game's mood by capturing the adventure of space exploration.
In contrast to the original Mass Effect trilogy, which was spearheaded by BioWare's Edmonton studio, Mass Effect: Andromeda was handled by a new team out of Montreal. The game experienced a troubled production cycle that saw many members of its leadership team depart mid-project and numerous changes in creative vision. It was built using Frostbite 3, which required that BioWare construct all systems, tools, and assets from scratch as the previous entries of the series were built using Unreal Engine 3. Following the game's release, BioWare released several patches in response to critical feedback, but decided not to release further single-player downloadable content additions.
Mass Effect: Andromeda was announced in June 2015. Upon release, it received generally mixed reviews from critics, who praised the game's improved combat, atmosphere and visuals, while criticizing its story, character animations and technical issues. Following the game's disappointing commercial and critical reception, BioWare Montreal was merged into EA's Motive Studios and the Mass Effect franchise was temporarily put on hold.
