Mass Effect: Andromeda release date, news and rumors

Latest: Bioware has dropped the cinematic trailer for Mass Effect: Andromeda and you can find it below.

Set to be the fourth installment in Bioware’s hugely popular sci-fi role playing franchise, Mass Effect: Andromeda is one of the most highly anticipated games of 2017. Promising to take fans on an exciting new adventure across unexplored worlds with fresh characters, the game promises to be a huge "open-galaxy" adventure.

Cut to the chase

• What is it? The fourth game in Bioware's sci-fi RPG Mass Effect franchise
• When's it out? Before the end of March 2017
• What systems is it coming out for? Xbox One, PC, PS4, and PS4 Pro

Officially revealed to be under development at E3 2014 on June 9 where fans were treated to some early concept footage, we’ve been eagerly awaiting more solid information on the game for a while now. 

The game was originally slated for a 2016 release but was delayed to an early 2017 release instead, with Bioware stating that it needed more time to make sure it could deliver “everything the game can and should be.”

Following the game's delay, EA released a trailer at E3 2016 which didn't give much away in terms of story but did show that the game will have some impressive visuals. 

The game will be released on PS4, Xbox One and PC. It was also revealed in September that the game would also run 4K on Sony's new PlayStation 4 Pro system. 

The new pathfinder

We don't know much about Andromeda's story yet. From what little we've been shown and told, it seems that the game will take players beyond the Milky Way in a space ship called the Tempest. 

From what little the new cinematic trailer reveals, it seems that humanity is fleeing to Andromeda to look for a new safe place to call home but when it gets there finds quite the opposit. 

With the protagonist being dubbed "the new pathfinder" it seems it will be up to the player to naviagte this hostile and unfamiliar galaxy and lead their crew to safety.

There's a sense of desperation and urgency in the trailer which will give the game a completely different tone. With a whole new galaxy, ship, and the familiar Commander Shepherd gone Andromeda will stand far apart from the rest of the games in the series. 

N7 celebrations

As it’s November 7, or N7 day (the official date fans and Bioware celebrate the franchise), it’s widely expected that more announcements will be made.

EA has already started teasing these announcements on Twitter, posting that we’ll learn about the “new characters” and “new worlds” of the game on N7 day:

Adding fuel to the fire, the official Mass Effect Twitter account has confirmed that there will be a whole new trailer drop:

As recently as November 1 we were treated to a teaser trailer which involved the Andromeda Initiative, a group tasked with travelling outside the Milky Way galaxy. 

In the trailer a narrator, who was later revealed to be the father of the game’s main character, said “The time has come to prepare ourselves for a future beyond the Milky Way; a future that begins 600 years from where we stand, in a time and a place among unknown stars and unseen dangers.“

This mention of 600 years has left fans speculating about Andromeda’s setting in time in relation to the other titles, but Bioware is currently refusing to give anything else away with the game’s producer tweeting “We said 600 years...but from when? That, we did not say :)”

The cinematic trailer for the game officially dropped on the Bioware YouTube channel and you can watch it right here:

It's another cinematic trailer and it doesn't appear to feature much (if any) gameplay, but the visuals are certainly impressive. 

Fans eager to stay on top of the latest announcements are able to sign up to the Andromeda Initiative on the game’s website which states that “Registered recruits will be among the first contacted to receive critical mission information, special training opportunities, and will also be eligible for reward upon program completion.”

• Thinking of getting a PS4 Pro just for Andromeda? Why not read our PS4 Pro review

November 08, 2016 at 12:22AM
Emma Boyle