Calling it. Bioware will be shutdown after Anthem turns out to be a massive failure.

It's not even a bold prediction because anyone who's played this game can tell it's going nowhere. I'm not sad to see them go because the real Bioware left the company before even this gen started.

I really enjoyed my time with the demo.

In what sense is it going nowhere? I'm only a little less than 3 hours in, but i'm enjoying my time. Story seems a little sparse considering what ME was, but it's sufficient. Gameplay is solid, and so far the world is beautiful. I'll talk more about the nitty-gritty once I have some more hands-on time.

I'm done with Battle Royale and looter shooters. Bioware picked a really stale genre to enter into imo.

I don’t know but it looks quite good and fun from what I’ve seen. Anyway I’m hoping that it’s successful but if not I definitely don’t want it to be the end of BioWare as I’m still very much looking forward to the next Dragon Age game and would also like to see them return to Mass Effect and possibly even Jade Empire.

Sadly, it is starting to look pretty grim for Anthem and BioWare. I've had a bunch of YouTubers who live and breathe looter shooters tell me how disappointed they are in the game, and now even big sites like Gamespot and PC Gamer are giving it a lukewarm first impression. Not looking good.

That said, Anthem is far from the first looter shooter to flop out of the gates, then go on to be a much better game later, and its problems are actually very common in the genre. I would say wait six months before passing our final judgements.

Played the demo, immediately deleted it off PS4.

EA = into the trash it goes

Post 2012 Bioware = into the trash it goes

Shitty online focused destiny clone, with no narrative structure and "game as a service" the primary focus = into the trash it goes

"Game as a service" = into the trash it goes

Microtransactions and lootboxes = into the trash it goes

All its missing now is "Battle Royale" and "Rogue-Like" "procedurally gennerated content", and we would've have the ultimate culmination of literally every shitty thing from this gen, wrapped up into one shit sandwich, with a shit bow ontop.

Honestly was just pondering the "battle royale/multiplayer shooter" thing and I think we're nearing the end of that craze. I don't forsee Anthem being very good or leaving a longlasting impression. Bioware was never my favorite company but i'm unsure where they go from here.

I appreciate the passion of this post

All these people hating on a game they haven't played. Sad.

Look, I get it if you say "Not for me, no thanks" and move on. But to form opinions like you already played the game? Nonsense. Haters gonna hate, though, I suppose

*shrug*

Now, from what I've played of the game, I can tell you right now I am enjoying it 10x more than I ever enjoyed Destiny 2 and any of the Borderlands game. Honestly, the only reason I tried Anthem is because I have an EA Origin Access sub. But the reason I keep playing Anthem is because it's a damn fun game.

Where Destiny is drawn out and boring, Anthem is concise and fun. The missions can be a bit repetitive, but, darn it all, they're fun! So far the game is tight, well-honed, and high-quality.

I was also not impressed with the demo, but here I am, playing the game and liking it.

Many people and youtubers are only hating the game because it’s ea and BioWare. I enjoyed the game just playing the demo, yes the vip demo was riddled with problems but the open demo showed a much smoother version so I look forward to the 22nd and getting started.

Also it doesn’t make sense to be upset that the game has microtransactions. Many players don’t want there to be paywalled content due to destiny burn, and lootboxes thankfully are taboo. The microtransactions are also cosmetic only at this point which is the only kind of acceptable microtransactions you can have based on player feedback.

So unless you have another way to pay employees to continuously work on a game and add free game content you’re gonna need cosmetic microtransactions.

Find better YouTubers. The ones I follow live and breathe looter shooters. and have expressly been very open-minded on Anthem - and at least two of them were even actually cheering on the game. Their criticisms were detailed and factual. "EA" was nowhere in their critiques, and "BioWare" was used as a positive. Their general sentiment is not "hate" but disappointment; they wanted and expected a better game.

I mean if they are reasonably priced then it doesn't need to be a problem.

Anthem is great, it anthem is also very very short and with a serious lack of endgame content... might be fixed in the future, but wouldn’t recommend anyone paying full price for this in its current state!

However if you need a good fun shooter, with some VERY impressive visuals, then definitely sub for a month of ea premier. That’s plenty of time to expirence everything it has to offer

Weren't the Phantasy Star Online games loot based and repetitive? I enjoyed it. From the descriptions Anthem sounds like one of those games.

It makes me sad to read that. My biggest frustration with Destiny 2 was that it was content-starved. Sounds like publishers are just rehashing the same formula. /sigh Warframe will forever be king in this genre.

To be fair, Warframe has been adding content constantly since 2013. Destiny 2 only came out in 2017, and Anthem only just came out right now, hence why I recommend anyone interested to wait six months and have another look.

Warframe also has its own endgame problem, and last year had several content droughts, which seemed to have spilled over into this year. It's mid February, and we haven't had a major content update yet, though the transmission teasers seem to suggest the "Wolf of Saturn" Alerts and Challenges overhaul is imminent. Melee 3.0 Phase 1 also looks close to release.

If it does. It might end up being a good thing. At least the devs will be free to get together and crowdfund their own game without publishers interfering and we might get something thats actually new and original. At least until they sell themselves to another publisher and get into the same mess all over again. But its unlikely to happen, were probably going to see a Jade Empire rehash next /shudder.

Ahh, to have original games be mainstream again.

Bioware are the gaming equivalent of Tommy Gunn in Rocky 5.

They need a jolly good beat down.

LOLOLOLOLOLOL!!1

"I follow better YouTubers than you!" This is what the world has come to. How about forming your own opinion, dude?

How are we at the end of the craze when there are 3 Battle Royale games that are the top played games in the world (minus China's shooter which is even higher) ... and MP shooters are still big?

How is it a craze? why is it not just "the new norm"? PUBG has been around what 4 years now?

Were MOBA's crazes too despite still being some of the most played games out there?

What is a craze in this case? or a fad?

I'm enjoying the game right now so I don't know what you're talking about.

Whoosh. The post was addressing the oversimplistic claim that YouTubers are hating on Anthem because it's, quote, "EA and BioWare." The YouTubers I came across had factual and legitimate criticisms, and "EA and BioWare" had nothing to do with them. Their opinions were also not "hate," but disappointment.

1) seems destined to sell well, even if it's full of "meh" elements.

2) they are already developing the next Dragon Age, which is also destined to sell well

So I don't see EA shuttering them. EA doesn't care if you (or even critics) call something generic trash. If it will sell then they want it made

^ true

All the previews are very "meh" its not the hit EA/Bioware were hoping for the traditional bioware fan base is not impressed as well not sure who is going to buy this game

people that like MP co-op games.

alot of people.

They better hope it does well, with EA in the business of shutting down studios they don't think are financially lucrative enough to keep open.

As much as I DON'T want people to lose their jobs, I do hope that EA shuts down so many studios, and pisses off so many of their development staff that no one wants to work for them anymore, and they go out of business and have to sell all their exclusive licenses to developers who actually want to do something with them.

I think a large part of why I've been so ho-hum about this generation is because so much passion for games development has been sucked out of the industry, and been replaced with commercial-focused income generators. I binged Ghost of Tsushima content last night and am legitimately hyped. Sucker Punch is entirely passionate about creating that game, and focusing on art, cinematographic style and scene composition while still making a fun-to-play game has me tickled pink.

@madrocketeer: I view video games as comparable to food. Sometimes I like what others like and sometimes I don’t. Sometimes an expert may suggest a certain dish saying it’s a cut above the rest but when you try it you don’t seem to taste what they’re tasting. Basically everyone is different and enjoy different things to varying degrees.

The best way to judge a game for yourself is to just try it yourself. There was a open demo that some didn’t even try so if anyone missed out on that they could borrow it, rent it, or do the trial through the ea thing.

The level of a persons hype also clouds judgement. You said ea wasn’t mentioned but BioWare was used as a positive. This can be viewed as those ones went into the game with certain expectations and because the game didn’t meet those expectations it resulted in dissapointment. This is common too when it comes to game reviews and another reason to be wary.

Sure, people have their tastes and your mileage may vary. Hence why I pretty much suggested the same thing as you in another thread, with the added condition that if you're not super into what you've played, wait six months and have another look.

As I said, they were expressly open-minded and their expectations were not sky-high. They didn't spend every day uploading videos about how this was going to be awesome; they just said they hoped it would be good. The use of "BioWare" as a positive was simply acknowledgement of their past achievements. And again, their criticisms were factual: the frequent and long loading screens, the 13-15 hour long campaign, the gameplay-stopping story-telling, the severe lack of endgame, and the chores-like filler stuff, like the increasingly infamous "Four Temples" quest.

My issue with Anthem, not having played it yet (will try the 10 hour trial soon with origin access basic) is simply that it is a looter shooter with a generic story and seemingly lame writing/characters.

Even if its a really good one of those types of games, its just not what I want from Bioware. It seems like a game any well funded AAA studio could have made, with nothing that marks it as coming from a studio known (at least historically) for story-driven games with great characters.

From what I can tell they took out the parts of their usual formula that provides context to the action and would make me give a shit.

I liked the first couple Borderlands games because they were pre-Destiny and the looter-shooter concept was unique, and I enjoyed the irreverent tone - those games were silly and they knew it.

I liked The Division because it had an amazing setting with great atmosphere, and the environmental storytelling picked up the slack left by the actual story.

Destiny and seemingly Anthem just have the most awful, generic writing, trying to be serious but also have smartass humour at the same time and I just hate that kind of non-commital tone. Seems like its pandering to 12-year olds and people who like Marvel movies because they tend to have the same shitty tone. Andromeda's writing was going a bit in that direction and it annoys me more than anyone could know. its like instead of choosing to be actually funny or actually dramatic, they try and do both and fail at both.

I hate the Destiny series because it just feels slimey and so transparently about keeping players "engaged" and spending money rather than just providing a fun experience, and I'm getting the same vibe from Anthem. I was really hyped for this game until about a month ago and now, seeing what it really is, I barely even want to try it.

for all intents and purposes, it seems like Bioware is already dead.

Of course this is mostly speculative rambling just based on gameplay videos and not first hand experience, and I normally hate it when people do that without actually playing a game.

Fallout 76 almost assuredly killed the specific studio that made it. It was a huge mess and I think only their 2nd game?

Anthem is not as bad, but still kinda meh. Not sure if the Bioware studio that made it will survive yet or if it will topple all of Bioware. Do they currently have any other game in development? Like a real RPG?

@madrocketeer: you mean that same ones who been fueling hate for the game from its announcement? Who made and jump on bored claims of $20 skins only find it's only $8 and you easily buy with in game currency?

Dude. There many looter shooter youtubers who like the game and much as one who say they hate it. And most who say they hate do it for the views.

So I'll wait before blindly truating any review anyone makes now.

@madrocketeer: and these youtubers are....?

@with_teeth26: I stopped reading when you said you did not even play the game yet. Everything you are complaining is something you could not know till you played the game.

How are you going to know how the story is until you played the game?

@dreman999:

Nope. One of them was cheering on the game for 3 years since it was first announced, another simply wanted it to be good so it would force Digital Extremes to respond and fix their own game. The rest were just open minded and expressly hoped it would be good. Microtransactions were hardly mentioned, as there was a general "Well, BioWare said it was an iteration, so let's give them a chance." As I said, no hate here, just disappointment.

And as I said, their criticisms were specific and factual, as detailed above.

Couldn't have said it better myself. Im playing BC games that are enhanced on the X like Skate 3 and whatnot because games the last few years have been complete sheot.

I did the same when.

@madrocketeer: I'll ask again....the names of these youtubers?

@dreman999:

I made it a personal policy to not indirectly add toxicity to other people's social media feeds, though in SkillUp's case, he's a relatively big channel and an aspiring general game reviewer, so he can probably take it. He's the one who's been cheering the game on for 3 years, and while he generally dislikes EA, he gives credit where it's due, and recently posted a glowing review of Apex Legends.

The rest are smaller and Warframe-centric, but again, they play many different looter shooters, and have been expressly open minded about the game. It's their opinions that matter here, not their names.

mostly I complain about the writing/dialogue which doesn't change magically from a video to actual gameplay

@with_teeth26: based on the demo that is one mission and some off comment from side charaters.

Mind you that mission has a good preformance from a guy who is split into 3 people which is already more interesting then what destiny has.

None it is from the main story.

So....point stands.

@madrocketeer: have you taken the time to read anyone else's opinion on it because the worst I got from anyone is "loading screen issues"

https://www.reddit.com/r/AnthemTheGame/hot

Note all bioware games have that issue.

What I mean is, I think we've reached the saturation point and it's on the decline from here.

I mean, the last line in my long-ass post is
"Of course this is mostly speculative rambling just based on gameplay videos and not first hand experience, and I normally hate it when people do that without actually playing a game."

but I have yet to hear a single person say the story/dialogue is actually good in the full version of the game. I'll start the 10 hour trial this afternoon and we'll see how it goes.

@dreman999:

As I concurred with Zidaneski earlier, games and people who play them are very, very YMMV, and people should try the game and see if they like it. If they do, great! Good for them. Otherwise, wait six months and have another look, then pass judgement.

Still, the issues highlighted by the YouTubers I cited are factually stated: lack of content, lack of endgame, too much filler, forgettable story, and of course the loading screens. I'm glad the Redditors are happy with their game, but well-reasoned dissenting viewpoints are legitimate too.

My biggest annoyance so far... I already mentioned the wonky judder, but the loading screens are excessive and long.

@madrocketeer: you really need to look up how citations works... if you don’t mention who you citate, it’s meaningless and might as well be something you made up...