After a few years of gameplay teasers, EA was finally willing to talk in detail about what we can expect when the long anticipated Anthem hits store shelves. When developers of the game, including Bioware’s Casey Hudson, came on stage at the EA press conference to talk about what players can expect, the discussion focused heavily on creating a whole new world that is an expansion on the typical Bioware experience.
That said, this is a Bioware game, so the developers described a game that focuses heavily on world building and story telling. Much of the gameplay that was shown during the press conference depicted shared game-spaces for a large number of players to explore together and “bases” that function as the single-player sections of Anthem. According to Casey Hudson, “This is where your story lives and breathes.”
Unfortunately the gameplay sequence that was shown didn’t really explain the story, but the developers on hand did break down a few of the fine points. The world of Anthem is not our world, but instead one where god-like beings left behind their tools of creation, and these tools are causing the world to slowly unravel. As a result of the constant conflict, the world of Anthem will be dynamic in some way.
The gameplay that was shown was fast paced and pretty, however, some comparisons can still be made to Destiny. For example, in Anthem the player will be a freelancer wearing a suit of armour that is known as a Javelin. There are four different types of Javelins with different skills and at least some level of customization.
The four classes are ranger, colossus, interceptor, and the storm. The ranger suit is an all purpose suit created for general one-on-one combat situations. As you would imagine, the colossus is a massive tank packing as many weapons as possible. EA decided to skip the descriptions of the final two suits of armour, but I would expect the storm suit to be special in some way. This is based on the fact that the word storm was mentioned a bunch during the conference in which Anthem was discussed.
Other information to note is that the game will feature cosmetic-only microtransactions and no lootboxes, no PvP, and no AI party members. Another interesting aspect that will surely please some players (and disappoint others) is that loot is tied to one player and cannot be shared or stolen. The game will run at 30 fps on consoles with an unlocked framerate on PC.
In a break from standard Bioware gameplay mechanics, Anthem will also have no romances and simpler dialogue branches. Character creation will be available but all characters will be human.
That said, probably the most interesting news is that Anthem will release on February 22, 2019 on PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.
Stay tuned to CGMagazine for all the latest updates from E3 2018. Check out or coverage of FIFA 19 and Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order.
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