Mass Effect: Andromeda has been one of the most sought after games information wise leading up to its release this March. Bioware and EA have been mum on the details so far, but we now have some new information on the multiplayer aspect of it.
Speaking with Kotaku, Bioware's Mike Gamble detailed the new Strike Team function. This was revealed initially last April when Bioware sent out a feeler asking fans how they would feel with such a game. Gamble noted that it wouldn't be totally seamless as there would be a loading screen, but you won't need to quit to the main menu in order to play.
"There's a system that we use called the Strike Team system, and fundamentally it allows you to go between singleplayer and multiplayer within the game and it's packaged around a meta-story of what's going on in Helios."
If it sounds a little familiar, it's because Dragon Age Inquisition uses pretty much the same mechanic, and is also on the Frostbite engine like Andromeda. There will also be fully single player Strike Team missions, where you send your team out on missions to see them return about 20-30 minutes later with earned XP and new gear. In the leaked survey from last year, the details on the Strike missions were as follows
When you encounter a Strike Team mission in the Single-Player mode, you can leave your Strike Team at their base and decide to tackle the mission yourself with your Multiplayer roster of characters. You also have the option of tackling the mission by yourself, or recruiting up to three friends to play with you. The more friends you bring, the greater the challenge and the greater the reward. These missions will play out using the Next Mass Effect’s multiplayer Horde mode (more details on this later). These missions will include a variety of thematically appropriate objectives, like defending a Settlement against Khet attacks, or recovering a Remnant artifact off of a planet before an outlaw gang gets there first. By taking an active role in strike team missions, you can earn special Single-player rewards in addition to the usual multiplayer specific characters, weapons, weapon mods, and pieces of equipment which can be customized between missions. Additionally, players who join another person’s Strike Team mission will receive bonus in-game currency and multiplayer XP for helping others with their missions.
As you can tell, it does mention a rather seamless transition and states that you can play either yourself with your multiplayer roster or with up to three friends (four total) in order to earn rewards in the single player. As Gamble notes with Kotaku, you won't need to play multiplayer in order to unlock the full story, as it's designed as a more immersive experience. The standard multiplayer mode, the Horde version from Mass Effect 3, has also already been confirmed to return.
So far, everything in the survey has been confirmed to be in the game, with the exception of the Vault Raids. These have yet to be mentioned either way, but may, in fact, be revealed during the newest gameplay reveal tomorrow.
We'll have to wait and see until tomorrow, and we'll keep you updated as we hear more. What are your thoughts on the new Strike Team missions? Let us know.
