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Mass Effect: Andromeda multiplayer will sell weapons individually and in RNG card packs

Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer

BioWare have discussed the changes they’re making to Mass Effect 3’s co-operative wave defence multiplayer as they revamp it for Mass Effect: Andromeda. It sounds like everything’s about to get faster and more dynamic.

As details continue to trickle out, we continue to update everything we know about Mass Effect: Andromeda so far.

Game Informer’s coverage of Mass Effect: Andromeda continues with a look at five major changes coming to its multiplayer mode.

Compared with Mass Effect 3, the shop has seen an encouraging change in that, as well as card packs containing random loot, some cards will be sold individually on a rotating basis. What loot comes on sale each time the stock refreshes is random, but at least you’ll know what you’re purchasing.

“If you don’t want to be at the mercy of the random number generator for the cards, you’re still at the mercy of what’s in the store right now, but it’s like, ‘Oh, that’s the Black Widow and I really want it!'” says lead designer Ian Frazier. “You can buy them with real-world money if you want to, but again, nothing requires that.”

GameInformer also speculates on how multiplayer will tie in to Andromeda’s campaign mode. Frazier acknowledges that players didn’t like being forced to play Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer to build ‘galactic readiness’ to improve the game’s ending, and assures us that there will be no comparable obligation to play Andromeda’s multiplayer. That said, the mission funds you obtain in multiplayer will have “tendrils going out into the rest of the game,” says Frazier.

The rest of GameInformer’s article focuses on gameplay changes. Mainly, be prepared to move around more. Some enemies are designed to flush you out of cover, while others are intended to force you into it. Andromeda’s new powers and mobility options should make you more competitive when you’re out in the open, while defensive play remains important, so combat will feel more varied and dynamic.

“Everything is more fluid, fast-paced, there’s a lot of action going on,” says producer Fabrice Condominas. The controls are also more responsive. All of that is on purpose; we really wanted to increase the dynamism and how accessible it is while retaining the depth and going into more layers.”

Key among the mobility changes is the jetpack, which you can use to make quick manoeuvres from side to side, vault enemies and obstacles, and jump quickly from floor to floor without having to ponderously climb a ladder, as in Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer.

However, “it’s not a permanent rocket that you use to fly around,” says Condominas. “There is a beginning and an end to the [jumps] – a momentum curve – based on when you do your input.”

Powers also have individual cooldowns now, meaning you can dump everything on one enemy at once or keep something in reserve for emergencies as you choose. You also have more flexibility when it comes to coordinating with your teammates to unleash deadly combos.

Mass Effect: Andromeda is scheduled to release in spring next year.