The opponents in Anthem might seem familiar to some players. This is because most archetypes come from Mass Effect.
In the past few days, I ventured into Anthem with a few friends and took advantage of the “Early Access”. Even though some bugs still cloud the game, it is a lot of fun. However, you can’t help but draw numerous parallels to Mass Effect, as many aspects of the games are identical.
Many Opponents in Anthem come from Mass Effect
Especially noticeable is this mainly with the various enemy types. Many of the opponents are enemies already known from Mass Effect, just in a new guise.
For example, there was an enemy in Mass Effect 3 called “Nemesis” – it was a sniper who had shield energy and health points. If you are targeted by the Nemesis, you will see the targeting laser on the screen’s edge slowly focusing on the player and giving a clear warning signal before the shot is fired. This is identical to the approach of the Scar snipers.
I also think of these flying enemies that wrap themselves in a shield barrier and float across the battlefield. Only when the barrier is shot down do they lose balance and crash to the ground. Then they are vulnerable to “real” damage for a few seconds before their barrier regenerates and they soar back into the air. I have no idea what this enemy type is called, as in my mind it’s a “Kett Ascendant” from Mass Effect: Andromeda – which did exactly the same thing.
You can find more about the enemies in Anthem here..
Then there is this large, gorilla-like enemy that we instinctively named “Brute” – as he acts just like a Brute from Mass Effect, with minor changes. He charges, stomps angrily on the ground, and hurls players aside. He can also throw rocks, so you are not safe just because you can fly.
Even the large gray opponents of the Dominion, the Valkyries (I only know the name because I asked in the editorial team), immediately reminded us, Mass Effect veterans, of Banshees from Mass Effect 3. Back then, they had a much cooler “one-hit” animation.
Of course, Anthem is not Mass Effect, and there is nothing wrong with reusing known and proven types of enemies. However, it is very noticeable that the enemy types behave, for the most part, exactly like their counterparts from the RPG.
In Discord, this led us to only call out the names of the opponents known from Mass Effect and struggle to remember the names from Anthem – the enemies are just too similar.
The Combo System was taken 1:1
Also, the combo system is not really new, even though many players celebrate it. Anyone who has played Mass Effect 3 or Andromeda (whether solo or multiplayer) will already be familiar with the system. There was already a combo system that worked according to exactly the same rules.
Some abilities applied a “primer” skill to enemies, such as a persistent burn effect. Other skills could then trigger a “tech explosion” or a “biotic explosion”.
A real development of the system is not recognizable here. It is nearly identical; only the names of the different damage types have been exchanged. However, the effects are exactly the same.
That’s good because it works and is fun.
The cursed last hit point
Another parallel is the pesky last hit point. This is not a feature that only existed in Mass Effect, but in many games, yet I still want to mention it.
Have you ever noticed that very few attacks can kill you with a single shot, regardless of how much health you had before?
Most devastating attacks leave you with one hit point and ensure that enemies do not shoot you for 1-2 seconds or “miss”. At least on the “Easy”, “Normal”, and “Hard” difficulty levels, this is the case.
No matter how devastating the attack, most leave you with one hit point and thus a chance to take cover before the enemies open fire again.
This is supposed to ramp up the adrenaline and provides considerable action – but it is also a mechanic that was especially used in multiplayer in Mass Effect.
Anthem is an inflated multiplayer of Mass Effect
In addition, there are many other aspects. The controls, the effects of the weapons, and the general gameplay feel of the characters strongly resemble the last two installments of Mass Effect.
I don’t want to say that all these parallels are “cheap” or “bad” – because they aren’t. They have taken some of the best aspects of Mass Effect, expanded them with flying, and thrown out irritating components like the inflexible cover system. This results in a much more rounded gameplay feeling with the nice side effect that veterans from Mass Effect feel right at home.
All of this results in Anthem feeling like a massive multiplayer version of Mass Effect that has been inflated. So far, that is a good thing that is quite fun. I hope this stays true for many weeks to come.
Have you also noticed the parallels to Mass Effect? Do you think it’s good that BioWare integrated the best of the games into Anthem? Or do the parallels bother you?
