On May 19, 2025, a newMass Effectgame set outside the Milky Way dropped. The hype at the time was palpable; after all, BioWare’s reputation was at the top of its game. There had been stumbles, but theME1-ME3were still highly celebrated andDragon Age: Inquisitionwas yet another feather in BioWare’s cap. So, whenMass Effect: Andromedadropped, many were highly disappointed.
The thing to keep in mind is thatMass Effect: Andromedawas NEVER a bad game, but it didn’t hit the same marks as the trilogy. It’s hard to live up to what’s come before, especially when that’s theMass Effect Trilogy. But 5 years later, it seemsAndromedawill always be remembered as part of theMass Effectworld, not as a discarded cousin.
RELATED:Mass Effect 3’s 10-Year Anniversary is a Reminder That Shepard Should Remain Dead
What Mass Effect: Andromeda Got Right
First and foremost,Mass Effect: Andromeda’s combatwas a diamond in the rough. It was refined and allowed players to change abilities on the fly to fit whatever it is they needed. Indeed, it’s something that hopefullyMass Effect 4gets right. Some of the characters were lackluster, but many of them were also as compelling as ever. Jaal, PeeBee, Cora, and more all likely find their place in many fans’ hearts. The worlds and exploration was another feather in its cap, but the thing is,Andromedawas NEVER as bad as many seemed to remember it for a while.
Mass Effect: Andromeda’s Criticisms and Changing Fan Perception
Of course, the criticism andreviews ofMass Effect: Andromedawere not unfounded. It currently sits at a 72 average score and about 40% of critics recommend it. Part of this was a plethora of bugs and technical issues, with the character animations—particularly the eyes and facial expressions—ofMass Effect: Andromedagetting picked apart. In comparison to theMass Effect Trilogy, the story had less impactful choices and was much more straightforward than most had anticipated. Other issues include excessive menu diving, overloaded tutorials, heavy exposition dumps, and more.
RELATED:What Hogwarts Legacy’s Companions Can Learn From Games Like Mass Effect
While not everything could be fixed, BioWare did a lot of work to improve some things like character animations. Many—either dissatisfied by the game, disappointed by the cancellation/lack ofMass Effect: Andromeda’s DLC, or unwilling to return for one reason or another—would be forgiven for never realizing how much support was put intoAndromeda.The changes were clear whenMass Effect: Andromedawould release on Steam years later.
As of this writing,Mass Effect: Andromedasits at over 7,000 reviews and 224 of them being recently on Steam.Mass Effect: Andromeda’s Steam reviews scale to Mostly Positive, not just because of how the game improved but because of the overall shifting perception. With its biggest issues fixed, it may not hit the highest bar of anyMass Effectgame, but it becomes clear it’s a solid, fun game.
Mass Effect: Andromeda is Proof Any Game Can Be Redeemed
Many sawAndromedaas a death knell for the beloved franchise. Not only didBioWare announce it was icingMass Effectafter its release, but it seemed to be moving on with new games likeAnthem. Of course, even those who were largely forgiving ofAndromedafelt betrayed by the release quality ofAnthem.
Its continued development was eventually canned, but had BioWare been able to fully pull off theAnthem 2.0 Reboot(made harder by the pandemic), it could have been inAndromeda’s shoes one day. Indeed, any game can be redeemed in the eyes of fans, should it openly tackle the issues. This goes forCyberpunk 2077, which has trended upward ever since releasing at rock bottom, andBattlefield 2042—should EA pursue it thoroughly.
What’s clear is thatAndromedahas found its way into the hearts of many fans, and BioWare isn’t abandoning it. There had to be some temptation to choose another new IP overMass Effector to return to the Milky Way, ignoring the events of the Andromeda Galaxy. It may have once been seen as the best option, but BioWare has made it clearAndromedais going nowhere. There was an intentional two-galaxy shot ofAndromeda and the Milky Way in oneMass Effect 4trailer, and somehow bringing them together is incredibly ambitious. It also bodes well for the overall franchise.
But for many fans, it’s also incredibly exciting to see a game that once was considered the low hanging fruit of the franchise be lifted up—as far as its technical faults, as far as its place in the franchise, and as to the future of the new worldMass Effect: Andromedashowed fans.
Mass Effect: Andromedais available on PC and PS5.
