So there should be some warnings before I begin. I am a bit biased when it comes to this game. First and foremost, I am a SciFi addict. This plays into how enchanted I am by Andromeda. Also, I love Bioware. I've played and owned every one of their games, so there's that. Also, I've not beaten the main campaign. I'm at about 20% completion with 16 hours logged.
Now that being said, I am not above the flaws that Andromeda has, I just don't put as much stock into them as many are exhibiting. Are there animation issues? Yes. From one of the first scenes in the game, it's pretty apparent. My character, before ever leaving the opening, did this Exorcist-like turn creating this mess of his neck. Also, his eyebrows react oddly throughout conversations. Not to mention the "less-than-important" characters that you can have a conversation with, but their animation doesn't change one bit from in-convo to out-of-convo. But the upside to Andromeda has made this more than bearable. But on top of the animations, the character creation is one of the lightest I've seen. It was quite disappointing, but also something I completely forgot about once I started in on the story.
People have noted that the writing or voice acting in the game is below-par, but from what I've seen it's quality. While there are a few hiccups, the grand adventure of the Andromeda galaxy keeps me pretty occupied.
Now, let's talk about the good points. From the very beginning, it is overly apparent that Bioware was using Andromeda and the Andromeda Initiative as a metaphor for their previous entries in this series. And they've definitely nailed the spirit of exploration and beginning anew in an alien galaxy, in my opinion. All the meanwhile, there's story details that explain that they plan to bring the heart of the Milky Way (the races and whatnot) back to Andromeda in a later game, something I am looking forward to. From creating outposts on completely alien planets to first contact events, Andromeda is reminiscent of Star Trek, going boldly where no man has gone before.
And they pulled no punches when designing Andromeda. At the center of the galaxy is a black hole, and upon visiting it the first time it sent chills down my spine. The rest of the systems, with all their written detail and design are equally impressive. And then there's the landing on completely unknown and alien planets, which were designed with great care.
If I were to point out one thing that is a little bothersome with Andromeda, it's just how much there is to the game. As I've pointed out, after 16 hours, I've completed about 20% of the game. The main issue is that there are so many systems in this game to level up and gear up that it seems extremely daunting. Couple that with play-time gating that constantly sees you back-tracking, you'll eventually end up feeling like I do; "man, these aliens could really use my help in knocking down the big-baddies, but I've got about 20 quests on this planet that I really ought to do." But this game is massive, a particular trait that I tend to treasure in RPGs.
With all that being said, Andromeda is a really strong SciFi rpg. So if you're a fan of either Mass Effect or SciFi, I'd tell you to ignore what most people's first impressions with early access were, and give this game the chance it deserves. The design is on point, the combat is really fun (which I hadn't been a fan of since the first Mass Effect) and it's got this unique story and sub-stories that will bring the inner-astronaut out in you.
I just hope that this foray into Andromeda at least carries on at least a little into the future games of the series.
Mass Effect: Andromeda 7/10
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