Mass Effect: Andromeda is Amazing (so far)

I've played just a hair under two hours of Mass Effect: Andromeda, and thus far, it speaks to me more than the other three games.

That's quite a claim, I agree. I absolutely love the series. Allow me to explain.

In Mass Effect 1-3, you're Mr. Military Man (or woman) (Shepard), and you're fighting this HUGE big-ass Space Threat. You're fighting it over the course of three games. You're also helping a Quarian kid get off Omega, helping a widow decide whether or not to genetically alter her baby, and banging beings of all species. It's a great trilogy that's very dear to my heart.

In Andromeda, though, you're an explorer, and that's hammered home repeatedly in the first couple hours. Yeah, there's the requisite violence, but there's still an overarching sense of being an explorer. You're part of a team that's trying to establish new colonies, and you're scanning, and you're taking on all kinds of activities that are based around learning and expanding your understanding of this odd little slice of space.

It's a really refreshing change for the series. I'm all about it. It's a whole new game that takes place in the Mass Effect universe, and a very smart choice for the future of the series. None of this, so far, feels reheated or tired. I'm really enjoying the new direction.

All that being said, I fear some folks are going to be off-put by the fact that it doesn't feel like classic Mass Effect. Personally, I find the change invigorating, but so-called 'gamers' are notoriously hyper-conservative when it comes to games. While I'm as guilty of 'oh no, they're dumbing it down for the filthy casuals' mentality as some of them, I try to balance that belief with a more open, embracing perspective.

In this case, though, I see change happening for two reasons: 1) to keep the series fresh, and 2) an artistic choice to shift the tone to something more positive and uplifting; ME1-3 got REALLY fucking dark. While this game presents challenges, they're intriguing and full of mystery, rather than oppressively grim.

I've avoided the early impressions and streams. I really wanted to go in totally blind, and I'm so glad that I did. It was a breathtaking experience, free of biases and preconceptions, and it was all mine.

I actually took in the first hour and change by myself, in the dark, by the pool out back down here in Key West. Just the cool night air, the Hyperion Ark, and me. It was wonderful.

I love this game so far. I love the positivity, the hope, the intellectual challenge being put forth, the switch from a military man to an explorer. It speaks to who I am, someone that is passionate about science and someone that believes that the future of humanity depends on inclusion and the embrace of a dogged pursuit of knowledge and exploration. Maybe I'm reading too much into this game too early on, but I believe that Mass Effect: Andromeda is the game that we need right now.

I played another less than an hour today, and I'll probably squeeze in a little more tonight. After that, I'm pretty busy, and don't anticipate much time with the game beyond maybe a little on Saturday night, after we're back in St. Louis. Then, I'll burn whatever remains of my 10 hour trial on Monday, and then I'm marathoning on Tuesday, starting at around 6AM.

Have you played it yet? What do you think?

-Blaine