Mass Effect: Andromeda Cleared For March 21st Launch Date
The long and arduous wait for Bioware's space epic Mass Effect: Andromeda is nearly at an end. That is because the game finally has a release date—Aaryn Flynn, General Manager of Bioware announced today that Mass Effect: Andromeda will launch in North America on Tuesday, March 21, 2017. It will then release a couple of days later in Europe on Thursday, March 23.
"We appreciate your patience (and in fact, even your lack of patience in some instances) as we’ve been focused on completing the game," Flynn stated in a blog announcing the release date.
It has not always been easy for eager fans anxiously waiting for the next Mass Effect installment. The game was originally scheduled to release in 2016, but in May of last year Bioware announced that it was delaying the launch until early 2017. Prior to that, Electronic Arts CFO Blake Jorgensen hinted that things had gone slightly off schedule when stating in an earnings call that Mass Effect: Andromeda would release in EA's fourth fiscal quarter, which works out to the first quarter of 2017.
We're not even a full week into 2017 and already Bioware has good news for fans. In addition to announcing a release date, Bioware sounds confident that the wait will be worth it, promising that what it ships will be the "best possible experience." It just took a little bit of extra time to get there, both because this is the "most ambitious Mass Effect game to date" with completely new stories, characters, and more, and because it's the first Bioware has brought Mass Effect to the Frostbite game engine.
Flynn also let Mass Effect fans in on some interesting behind-the-scenes information.
"Over this holiday break, developers at Bioware took home a version of the game in what we call the 'holiday build'. This is a longstanding studio tradition that goes back to the early days of the original Mass Effect. Many load up a PC or console and go home to play as much as possible at their leisure. Coming back from holiday, the feedback has been great. Getting the endorsement from members of our studio, many of whom played key roles on the original trilogy, was definitely a key factor in helping us lock in on the date," Flynn said.
Mass Effect: Andromeda takes place 600 years after the first three Mass Effect games. It's also the first in the series to put gamers in an open world setting. And for the first time, players will choose from half a dozen character classes to begin the game, each of which has a unique skill set.
"We appreciate your patience (and in fact, even your lack of patience in some instances) as we’ve been focused on completing the game," Flynn stated in a blog announcing the release date.
It has not always been easy for eager fans anxiously waiting for the next Mass Effect installment. The game was originally scheduled to release in 2016, but in May of last year Bioware announced that it was delaying the launch until early 2017. Prior to that, Electronic Arts CFO Blake Jorgensen hinted that things had gone slightly off schedule when stating in an earnings call that Mass Effect: Andromeda would release in EA's fourth fiscal quarter, which works out to the first quarter of 2017.
We're not even a full week into 2017 and already Bioware has good news for fans. In addition to announcing a release date, Bioware sounds confident that the wait will be worth it, promising that what it ships will be the "best possible experience." It just took a little bit of extra time to get there, both because this is the "most ambitious Mass Effect game to date" with completely new stories, characters, and more, and because it's the first Bioware has brought Mass Effect to the Frostbite game engine.
Flynn also let Mass Effect fans in on some interesting behind-the-scenes information.
"Over this holiday break, developers at Bioware took home a version of the game in what we call the 'holiday build'. This is a longstanding studio tradition that goes back to the early days of the original Mass Effect. Many load up a PC or console and go home to play as much as possible at their leisure. Coming back from holiday, the feedback has been great. Getting the endorsement from members of our studio, many of whom played key roles on the original trilogy, was definitely a key factor in helping us lock in on the date," Flynn said.
Mass Effect: Andromeda takes place 600 years after the first three Mass Effect games. It's also the first in the series to put gamers in an open world setting. And for the first time, players will choose from half a dozen character classes to begin the game, each of which has a unique skill set.
