Anthem - good/bad/indifferent?

[maflynn]

Has anyone played Anthem?

Seems like a nice game if you're into the co-op type of shooting/looting but the reviews on YT have been mostly negative.

This style of game is not for me, but I enjoy seeing what's out there but I can't help but think this game is not that great - at least if you go by what's being posted on youtube.

 

[skottichan]

I've been really enjoying it, tho man it really feels like Mass Effect 1 sometimes. I get that some game heads have a limited number of ideas, but Drew K keeps going back to ME. The female Freelancer sounds a LOT like femShep and I've already run into Anthem's equivalent to Conrad Werner.

That said, you can play the game from beginning to end as a single player (or just you and your friends) experience, especially since the story is fully single player inside Fort Tarsis. I really enjoy it, but then again, I really dig Warframe, The Division and Destiny. Anthem is definitely in this genre, but actually has a more coherent single player narrative.

But, that said, it's just my personal opinion, and YMMV.



Edit: It just dawned on me, what the other reason is to why I enjoy Anthem over most other MMO shooters. It's one of those games that rewards you for exploring in Free Play. I mean BioWare did an amazing job in creating a multilayered, and lush map. It's definitely a world where it encourages you to explore and think in 3 dimensions.

 

[gkarris]

Played Alpha and Open Beta.

It seems just like a re-skinned Mass Effect Andromeda or Destiny. Pass....

Upsetting to see that they essentially abandoned ME:Andromeda for this thing...

 

[JayMysterio]

I played the Beta on the final day. I wasn't impressed, and we got hit with constant communication errors & problems.

I've been watching streamers play the game, grumbling about the brutal RNG / drop rate, and I lose interest in 3 - 5 minutes.

The most common response I've seen from streamers that like the game, is to wait a few months. See where the game is going, and give the devs time to get the game in the shape it should have been at launch.

 

[BritishApple]

Loving it, and yeah the loading screens are a bit intrusive but I’ve done this journey from beta to present day with The Division, and love it having put close to 1000 hours in over the main campaign, end game, dark zone, and DLC’s.

We just need to hope EA support BioWare in the same way that Massive were supported by Ubisoft.

 

[Ben Harley]

so far the reviews are good.. I have yet to try it though.

 

[BritishApple]

so far the reviews are good.. I have yet to try it though.

The reviews for Anthem?

Mate, they’ve been awful, it’s a 6.0 on Metacritic. It’s a game you need to try, I don’t trust reviews on mainstream sites anymore, I check out YouTubers and Streamers if I can’t play it for myself.

There’s a 10 hour trial on EA access.

 

[gkarris]

The reviews for Anthem?

Mate, they’ve been awful, it’s a 6.0 on Metacritic. It’s a game you need to try, I don’t trust reviews on mainstream sites anymore, I check out YouTubers and Streamers if I can’t play it for myself.

There’s a 10 hour trial on EA access.

Definitely do the demo - glad I did.

I ended up over the past holiday buying Destiny 2 and SWBFII and Titanfall 2 Deluxe for $10 each on PC over the holidays - I can play online for free (didn't renew my XBox Live Gold), plus keyboard/mouse on these games is easier...

 

[Ben Harley]

The reviews for Anthem?

Mate, they’ve been awful, it’s a 6.0 on Metacritic. It’s a game you need to try, I don’t trust reviews on mainstream sites anymore, I check out YouTubers and Streamers if I can’t play it for myself.

There’s a 10 hour trial on EA access.

yeah that is true. I read a few they were good. Although I don't trust them completely and I will definitely try it for myself.

 

[maflynn]

Mate, they’ve been awful, it’s a 6.0 on Metacritic

the user rating is even lower

Bioware/EA just rolled out an update that has nerfed a bunch of drops, and people are royally pissed off. The video I linked is from a guy that has been fairly positive about the game, I've seen videos from other YTers who tend to only post negative stuff, regardless of the game. He's one of the more postive ones and yet he's saying how people are so upset about the latest patch.

This nerfing reminds me of Fallout 76 which Bethesda made the game so grindy that i didn't want to play.

This game is not selling well at all
Anthem Sold 10% What Destiny 1 Sold in UK Retail

If these details are accurate, then it means that roughly 40,000 boxed copies of Anthem were sold in the UK during its first week, as the original Destiny sold around 417,000 tangible copies in the region during its first week

 

[gkarris]

Discount bin in 3... 2... 1...

 

[BritishApple]

I don’t pay attention to gaming YouTubers who peddle negativity and toxicity for clicks and hits.

Colt Eastwood, Dealer, Zalker are far more level headed, realistic and subjective.
[doublepost=1551448820][/doublepost]

Discount bin in 3... 2... 1...

First 51 seconds of that video he lost me because he clearly doesn’t understand what an online RPG/MMO is. The fact that BioWare would/could fix it over time “didn’t matter to him”?

Yes, Anthem has issues. Mainly the intrusive loading screens, and especially the mid mission ones. But it’s an easy win for Tubers right now, stuck a negative Anthem video out and watch the haters come rolling in (and the views and cash that comes with it).
[doublepost=1551449281][/doublepost]

the user rating is even lower
View attachment 823636

Bioware/EA just rolled out an update that has nerfed a bunch of drops, and people are royally pissed off. The video I linked is from a guy that has been fairly positive about the game, I've seen videos from other YTers who tend to only post negative stuff, regardless of the game. He's one of the more postive ones and yet he's saying how people are so upset about the latest patch.

This nerfing reminds me of Fallout 76 which Bethesda made the game so grindy that i didn't want to play.

This game is not selling well at all
Anthem Sold 10% What Destiny 1 Sold in UK Retail

Yet it still outsold Far Cry New Dawn and sat No 1 in the UK games charts. We need digital numbers to make an informed comment on that, not half the story (ie: physical sale comparisons). It likely is still lower than Andromeda, but the Mass Effect name had real clout back then. Anthem is a new IP.

 

[maflynn]

Yet it still outsold Far Cry New Dawn and sat No 1 in the UK games charts. We need digital numbers to make an informed comment on that, not half the story (ie: physical sale comparisons). It likely is still lower than Andromeda, but the Mass Effect name had real clout back then. Anthem is a new IP.

While it did initially outsell Far Cry, I think that's partilly due to the hyped up demand of Anthem, vs what amounts to be a DLC of Far Cry. Also Anthem tumbled pretty quick.

I like Open World Games The author of the video I linked because he's mostly a positive YTer and provides balanced videos, so when he posts about complaints they carry more weight. Btw, thanks to the public outcry bioware is updating anthem to fix the loot drops that were nerfed and pissed off so many people.

The game has some significant design short comings, that people have been complaining about, but that doesn't mean the game in of itself is not fun. I'm not sure its a game for me, but I'm enjoying the following of how this is transpiring. I also think boxed sales while incomplete are a good indicator as how well a game is fairing, must like how quickly it gets discounted which Anthem is. I think many people agree that anthem didn't really sell all that well and I'd say that's partially due to EA's confusing release schedule that requires diagrams and exhibits to understand when someone can buy the game.

Early access players were brutal on the game, and here's the rub. Those are the people paying most for the game to get early access yet they had to wait for the day one patch, so they played with the most unstable version and that caused a wave of negativity which had to hurt the game sales

 

[44267547]

Bottom line:

EA and BioWare didn’t execute what needed to be portayed here. Anthem has been boasted for almost 2 years, and it looks stunningly gorgeous, that’s not enough against the actual gameplay, micro transactions and everything else that’s not implemented very strategically.

I had every intention of pre-ordering this game before 2019 was even here yet, and I completely held off knowingly that I wanted to see more hands-on videos of demos that would display the actual gameplay, and when I actually did get to watch some of those, I knew immediately this game was not going to be a “AAA title”.

All I know is this, EA and BioWare are _not_ compatible together, and it’s clear that EA is really earning a poor reputation in execution of their games, as they are becoming the most mocked among all the developers that are upping in categories that they seem to be failing/lacking at.

Gamers are typically very smart individuals, and $60-ish for a disk is a lot of money to them, and it’s becoming to the point that other developers like a -Rockstar, Naughty dog and CD Project Red- are taking longer to develop/put out solid material, and are accomplishing that expectation moving forward for 2019. Gaming needs to be held to a new standard, and certain developers are raising the bar, and others are evidently not.

 

[BritishApple]

While it did initially outsell Far Cry, I think that's partilly due to the hyped up demand of Anthem, vs what amounts to be a DLC of Far Cry. Also Anthem tumbled pretty quick.

I like Open World Games The author of the video I linked because he's mostly a positive YTer and provides balanced videos, so when he posts about complaints they carry more weight. Btw, thanks to the public outcry bioware is updating anthem to fix the loot drops that were nerfed and pissed off so many people.

The game has some significant design short comings, that people have been complaining about, but that doesn't mean the game in of itself is not fun. I'm not sure its a game for me, but I'm enjoying the following of how this is transpiring. I also think boxed sales while incomplete are a good indicator as how well a game is fairing, must like how quickly it gets discounted which Anthem is. I think many people agree that anthem didn't really sell all that well and I'd say that's partially due to EA's confusing release schedule that requires diagrams and exhibits to understand when someone can buy the game.

Early access players were brutal on the game, and here's the rub. Those are the people paying most for the game to get early access yet they had to wait for the day one patch, so they played with the most unstable version and that caused a wave of negativity which had to hurt the game sales

I’m now hitting the wall with Anthem mate, the Legionnaires challenge is an absolute buzzkill. Forced to play solo in freeroam to hit these quest requirements so I can access the tombs? It’s so bad, even if you can earn some of the items on the checklists prior to entering the challenge itself.

The sad thing is that the combat and Javelin flight mechanics are great, but when you start to get immersed, you get torn out the experience by another loading screen. It’s insane when you consider that games like Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (and even the smaller Origins before it) have such vast open worlds which require very little, if any at all, loading when moving from region to region.

My other issue now is that I’m Level 16 (Gear Score 155) and my Javelin doesn’t feel any more powerful versus enemies than it did when Level 1. The “power ladder” feels somewhat skewed, you should have a tangible feeling of power when hitting higher levels, I know the Division done that very well even before end game and any patches, you felt the effects of the better weapons, could take more damage due to better gear. I don’t get that feeling in Anthem yet.

Initial wonderment has turned into a slog. The ten hour EA access trial led to a hasty purchase, if I could go back I’d tell myself to buy Metro Exodus instead.

 

[maflynn]

Initial wonderment has turned into a slog.

I know you tend to avoid watching various YT videos, but sadly that's the consensus, even metacritc rating is absurdly low. From what I've seen on those reviews, there's some really nice features of the game play but it has nothing what was promised in E3 show, and things seem to be grindy for no real reward. I was tempted but I may grab RDR2 or Metro Exodus.

Word is getting out the PS4 update can causing bricking of the console. Some people are reporting not only that game is crashing, but for some its shutting the PS4 down, and i've seen one video reporting that it actually bricked the PS4, i.e., will not re-start.

I have no idea of the validity of latter claim, but I do offer a word of caution.

 

[gkarris]

I know you tend to avoid watching various YT videos, but sadly that's the consensus, even metacritc rating is absurdly low. From what I've seen on those reviews, there's some really nice features of the game play but it has nothing what was promised in E3 show, and things seem to be grindy for no real reward. I was tempted but I may grab RDR2 or Metro Exodus.
View attachment 824794

Word is getting out the PS4 update can causing bricking of the console. Some people are reporting not only that game is crashing, but for some its shutting the PS4 down, and i've seen one video reporting that it actually bricked the PS4, i.e., will not re-start.

I have no idea of the validity of latter claim, but I do offer a word of caution.

Another thing that turned me off during the Alpha and Demo is that for a "Science Fiction" game, there seems to be MOSTLY rocks, jungles, trees, and plants...

No...

(people must be getting tired of it)

 

[maflynn]

Looks like the bricking risk has been refuted, BUT the hard crashing of the console is still an issue.

 

[gkarris]

Looks like the bricking risk has been refuted, BUT the hard crashing of the console is still an issue.

I heard about this too.

It may look "bricked" but you have to physically unplug it from the wall, then plug it back in and hit the button the actual console to turn it back on...

 

[cyclingplatypus]

I have played it a few times on onex and it just feels...wrong. So wrong that I can't believe that they left the Quarians drifting in Andromeda to make Anthem. There are glimpses of Mass Effect in it but it is clunky - I find myself very concerned for the upcoming Dragon Age game if this is a sign of the state of BioWare.

 

[maflynn]

So I've seen a number of Anthem videos, and one thing that struck me, as that this game has been in development for 6 years. Based on seeing a number of YTs, I get the impression that this game was not originally a looter/shooter game as a service. I bet EA pushing for additional revenue streams, directed Bioware to change gears.

I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case, because 6 years ago, games as a service wasn't really a major thing, now everyone is jumping on the bandwagon, and seemingly nearly everyone is failing at it.

 

[cyclingplatypus]

Could not agree more - what it was and what it is now is undoubtedly a result in EA. I wish BioWare never got bought out but being bought out by EA was the worst thing that could have ever happened - I think we'd be enjoying better games if instead of EA it would have been Ubisoft.

Suppose it could have been worse and we could have ended up with Mass Effect 76 or Anthem 76....too soon?!