Mass Effect: Andromeda - Single Player Support Canceled

Oh, I just got "head cinema" (Kopfkino), as how we call it in German language.

I'm thinking rather in pictures, that's why ...

It's the EA way-- maximize profits over product. More of the same, here. I'm sure we'll see single player "mode" in future BioEA games, but it will be secondary to console-based multiplayer.

I enjoyed ME:A, but it was clearly written for a 12 year old with the attention span of a fruit fly. They want Grand Theft Auto-like sales. The 12 year old multiplayer market is where it's at.

Also... No way in hell did they sell 3million copies.

I agree absolutely Chaos. EA, Ubisoft and now Bioware use the same approach and are all dead to me.

MEA=Multiplayer Electronic Arts?

So, when they release another single player game this will all be what?

I still can't believe how much they f*cked up the ME franchise - one of the most popular in gaming history. Sure there was some negativity from those still upset about ME3's ending but if EA/BW had come back with an engaging and polished game those voices would have been drowned out by the ringing of virtual cash registers.

Instead they changed the focus from curated storytelling to open-world fetch quest busywork - which apparently helped blow out their production schedule - and which was something players had been complaining about in the ME series to begin with. And they gave it to a team lacking in experience.

This suggests to me that in their minds, EA had devalued ME after the ME3 ending furor and were already setting their sights on Destiny style multiplayer (targeted at 12 year olds) as their next big cash cow.

EA really is a poison chalice for quality game studios.

@Madjack
Does EA even have anything on the books for Bioware that isn't multiplayer for the forseeable future? If they could charge you to reload ammo clips they would, sad as that is.

If the base game had been a big financial success I'm sure we would have seen dlcs and expansions. This is in my opinion an indication that EA is dissapointed by sales. Don't forget Witcher 3's expansions followed an incredibly successful base game (both in terms of citic and sales)

Game is pretty big and meaty as it is, so I don't think it's a big problem in and of itself.

About the only thing I think it's missing is a greater variety of weaponry and equipment. The crafting of weapons was delightful - and I would have loved more toys and enhancements for that system.

However, as I really liked the game - I do think it's unfortunate that it's considered such a failure.

Never understood the appeal of MP in Mass Effect - but I guess some people really like it. So, I don't mind that they get more of what they want.

That said, I'd love a coop campaign mode - but that's hardly likely.

Seems the future of the series is going in a different direction than would be my preference.

I find it particularly unfortunate because I adore sci-fi and "epic" RPGs in that setting like Andromeda almost never come around.

I guess the next game will be more like Mass Effect 2 and 3. Meaning more semi-linear spectacle shooter with talky bits than freeform RPG with an emphasis on exploration and discovery.

Oh well, yet another waste of potential.

ChaosTheory said:

They want Grand Theft Auto-like sales. The 12 year old multiplayer market is where it's at.

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Because it is where GTAs sell their millions. Of course.

BoboTheMighty said:

Nonsense. Psychological projections based on only a small percentage of actual player base. I know a number of huge ME/BW fans, who were disappointed and it has not even the slightest to do with anything you mentioned.

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And they are not psychological projections.

As so often, off the mark. It was not meant to be an exhaustive list. Only a short list of causes that led to official responses.
No projection then, the mere acknowlegement that they reacted to things.

ChienAboyeur said:

Because it is where GTAs sell their millions. Of course.

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They actually do....don't assume it's just adults playing this game.

luj1 said:

I agree absolutely Chaos. EA, Ubisoft and now Bioware use the same approach and are all dead to me.

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I learned last year or that year before a - said to be U.S.-american - corporations saying :

"If something works, then run it into the ground."

rune_74 said:

They actually do….don't assume it's just adults playing this game.

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Of course not. Because every teenager wants to be oh so cool like a Gangsta.

ChienAboyeur said:

And they are not psychological projections.

As so often, off the mark. It was not meant to be an exhaustive list. Only a short list of causes that led to official responses.
No projection then, the mere acknowlegement that they reacted to things.

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Sorry Chien, I don't take empty statements seriously.

forgottenlor said:

If the base game had been a big financial success I'm sure we would have seen dlcs and expansions. This is in my opinion an indication that EA is dissapointed by sales. Don't forget Witcher 3's expansions followed an incredibly successful base game (both in terms of citic and sales)

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Likely it is financial success, when you account for Multiplayer, though it never really take off ( as it goes with popular IP's).
Kind of odd actually, not much competition and it has enough wide appeal with a strong, recognizable name.
EA likely sees the brand as too toxic instead and is shifting BW away from rpg audience.
Disappointing is how their coming Anthem seems too much of a step back in comparison.

Anthem is MMO garbage. It's not RPG.

Please 3 or 4 millions, a success? They probably just paid back their budget and some few cents. Suits are making noises to save the face.

3 or 4 millions units is certainly not the kind of player base you can milk with DLC or bonus paid stuff. For comparison, Skyrim is around 30 millions of units and that is several year sales meaning than you have a solid and loyal player base you can DLC feed for 2 or 3 years. MEA is a sale failure of huge proportions.

Another factor is than they are not stupid, they look at the history of the sales. In the case of Skyrim it pre sold and sold strong on start because of the IP and Bethesda name and it went on and on because of the positive feedback. It did that for years.
For MEA, it pre sold strongly because of ME name, sold averagely because of the reviews and just crashed few weeks after when the feedback was awful.
Game is dead and IP is probably in a catatonic state.

And please.. MP? Who plays that game? No one either in SP or MP. How could EA think about MP with such awful feedback and such small player base? No one to milk or to sell some nice armour skin or whatever…

Most of the people who loved this game in the world are apparently members of this site and they don't look like MP players.

Aerth said:

Please 3 or 4 millions, a success? They probably just paid back their budget and some few cents. Suits are making noises to save the face.

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That's what EA was expecting for the game before it even released...and no BioWare game ever sold more than 4 millions in the same time frame anyway.

In the meantime you just had games like Skyrim and Witcher 3 in terms of reference for sale numbers. EA expects games to have a lifespan of at least 2/3 years now to sell DLC and cosmetic stuff. Games with a negative feedback and no possibility of developing a stable player base (mp) over time are canned.

Actually, prior to release of ME:A, EA was expecting sales of 6-9 million copies total




All of this was widely reported at the time. Actual sales of 3-4 million (most discounted), would be less than half of what EA expected. So sales were much less than expected but probably sufficient to cover development costs.

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