The world of Anthem will constantly be in flux and is intended to function fundamentally like a Netflix TV series. BioWare’s CEO Casey Hudson hopes that players will keep coming back because they are captivated by the exciting storyline.
BioWare aims to follow a TV series approach: In an interview with Variety, BioWare’s CEO Casey Hudson stated that the developers compare Anthem to a TV series. Players are meant to return repeatedly due to story events, discussing the latest happenings in Anthem with excitement.
TV series work by creating suspense and curiosity: Series are often designed to build tension to encourage viewers to want to be present for the next episode. Small events are sprinkled in here and there, hinting at a significant climax. These can be open questions, such as “Did John survive the explosion at the power plant?” Fans start discussing the wildest theories, sharing this suspense together. Series like “Game of Thrones” are a prime example of this.
Away from large DLCs: Inserted events are the future for BioWare
BioWare wants to change the way their games receive new content: In the past, BioWare would develop a game and design it to receive a major expansion. Such a DLC, however, is essentially its own mini-game in production. The developers want to move away from that.
For Anthem, a wide range of events has been prepared that can be sprinkled into the game. There should be hints here and there, and a few weeks later, the “big thing” will come that the game has been hinting at all along. In this way, they also aim to tell a long, interactive story.
Event content should maintain excitement for players: Hudson expects that a portion of players will play Anthem for a long time without interruption. However, this is only a small share. Most players will reach out to other games after a while. Hudson hopes that these players will continuously return for this new event content, just like someone might tune in after months to their favorite series to see how it continues.
This approach requires thorough planning: The most challenging aspect of this approach is that developers must think far ahead. Returning and new players need to remain on a level with those who are constantly engaged in Anthem. This includes level scaling and a narrative approach that avoids spoilers when players in various stages of the story play together. It’s also important not to fragment the community through paid content.
More than Weeklys or Dailys: Anthem should be in continuous evolution
The world will change and players can discover it anew: “The world changes when you return. If you’ve already been to that one town and soaked up the content there, we can say that this weekend a catastrophic snowstorm is taking place in the town. The lake you usually dove through is suddenly frozen, and you can walk on it and discover a new cave,” Hudson said.
This should be linked to a continuous story: Anthem should offer more than daily or weekly events that eventually repeat. The story will evolve in the long term. This should also lead to players wanting to return repeatedly to see what has changed and what happens next. There will be gameplay and missions, but the context will keep evolving.
Anthem should be an experience that players share with each other
Anthem should remain a topic for discussion among players: Hudson hopes with this approach that Anthem always holds a certain relevance for players. His ideal situation would be that players talk about their experiences with exploits in combat or changes in the world. He wishes for characters to be discussed loudly, who suddenly disappear or appear in the game.
Players need an easy return for this to work: For this approach to succeed, BioWare must hold players’ hands well. With constant changes, it can be challenging to stay up to date. Therefore, they are considering providing summaries like those series offer their audiences, in the style of “What happened last week in Anthem.” They hope players are excited enough to share all events with each other. A dynamic could develop where players simply provide each other with updates.
Event-focused storytelling will become a stronger trend
Other games have already pursued this event approach. BioWare is not the only developer building on this type of event.
In Fortnite Battle Royale, there was a massive comet that hovered over the map for a long time. This comet was endlessly discussed in the community. Everyone wanted to know what it was all about, and fan theories were created. These were shared on social networks. Ultimately, the comet even destroyed part of the map and caused a drastic change.
Destiny 2 has one of the players’ favorite characters die in a trailer. The community is in shock! Some players build shrines, while others are already planning a joint revenge for this offense.
In both examples, the storytelling approach worked. The community is brought together and experiences significant events in their game together. Anthem seems to want to build exactly on this and fully bank on this strategy. It initially sounds like an ambitious project that could work. Whether the plan will work out for Anthem remains to be seen.
