Releasing this year, Mass Effect: Andromeda will be the first of the series to come to current-gen consoles. While the game will take full advantage of the currently released hardware, two upcoming consoles might not be as lucky.
Speaking with Stevivor, Mass Effect producer Michael Gamble had bad news for Microsoft and Nintendo hopefuls. While Gamble promised an experience that will be optimized to the strengths of the PS4 Pro console, Bioware has “no plans right now” to release the game on Microsoft’s Scorpio or the Nintendo Switch. However, Gamble explained, “…we never want to close doors like that,” which suggests that Mass Effect: Andromeda might eventually see a Scorpio or Switch release.
Refering to the improvements players will see on the other current-gen consoles however, Gamble used Mass Effect’s iconic galaxy map as an example of how current-gen technology will improve familiar mechanics.
“If you recall in the original trilogy your navigation through the map was on a 2D plane. You kind of move your Normandy to and fro,” says Gamble. “In Andromeda, that’s totally different. You look up the windscreen of the Tempest, and space is rendered in front of you 180 degrees. If you go to the back of the Tempest, you’ll see that the star that’s behind the ship is actually there, reflecting light beautifully on the conference room in the Tempest. Then, as you fly to a different area with a black hole, you see that affects things differently.”
Even though Gamble stated that players in Mass Effect: Andromeda will see how stars of various intensities and colors actively affect lighting in and on their ship, what he said about black holes is even more intriguing due to how they warp and bend light in real life. While this would not be the first time players have seen black holes in Mass Effect, Gamble implied that the black holes in Mass Effect: Andromeda will impact the lighting and visuals in real time.
Mass Effect: Andromeda is planned to be release sometime in 2017. For more Mass Effect news, keep watching Gamespresso, Commander Shepard’s favorite website on the internet.