In Anthem, you can fly around in the air with your Javelin for a long time. Although flying is integrated into the gameplay, there is currently no clear focus on it in the game. Air races or obstacle courses could provide a lot of fun and variety.
Here is the idea: Who wouldn’t want to prove their flying skills in Anthem and compete against friends in a race? Or maneuver through a swarm of Wyverns with skilled aerial maneuvers, as well as in the first cutscene before the Heart of Rage?
The world of Anthem seems to be made for this, but currently, flying only serves the purpose of traveling from point A to point B.
This is how flying is used in Anthem: The only challenge that tests your flying skills is the spherical echoes. You must collect these during certain battles and turn them in at a Shaper relic.
It can be challenging on higher difficulty levels to collect the glowing spheres under enemy fire, but it feels more like a tedious task than an intense speed experience.
Whether there will be more complex mechanics in the future remains to be hoped.
This is why flight races fit into Anthem
The mechanics are already there: To hold flight races in Anthem, not much more is needed. The most important aspects are already included in the game:
- All Javelins fly at the same speed
- There is an overheat gauge that limits flight time
- There are target rings that you can fly through
- You can cool your engines using the environment
- There are several movement modes (double jumps, hover mode)
- There are “Shaper tubes” that allow you to cover larger distances quickly and without overheating
- There are various weather conditions that can affect the Javelin
What else would be needed for a flight race? Since all Javelins fly at the same speed, a race would require the ability to temporarily increase a Javelin’s speed. The target rings could act as a course to show players where they need to fly.
Once you pass a ring, you could receive a significant speed boost that subsides after a few seconds. To prevent the thrusters from overheating so quickly, the rings could also temporarily suppress heat buildup.
Comparison to the ‘Sparrow Racing League’ in Destiny: The SRL in Destiny 1 follows a similar principle. The motorized space bikes, known as Sparrows, are all about the same speed, but the drivers receive a speed boost when they zoom through certain boost gates on the track. The one who passes the most gates and maintains the best line is usually the winner.
In the following video, you can check out the races:
Flight sports have great potential: In Anthem, there are countless ways to make this idea more exciting and large-scale.
You could incorporate the Anthem of Creation, which, for example, generates a huge storm and unleashes countless Wyverns. You could engage in impressive aerial battles in hover mode while strategically cooling your engines through inverted waterfalls.
Flight races would give Anthem a PvP foundation for the first time without significantly disrupting the game’s balance. You could compete against renowned racing pilots, set lap records, and unlock aerodynamic armor pieces for the Javelins.
Ideas for future mission types
Dominion Lancer Pursuits: A mission type where you chase an enemy Dominion Lancer through the air. The target rings serve as guides. After you have chased him long enough, he will be forced to land, where you will ultimately face him in a final showdown.
Obstacle course with boss fight: In this expedition, you will test your flying skills. For example, you will fly into a Wyvern nest, having to dodge incoming waves of enemies.
Due to the fire attacks of the Wyverns, the Javelin will overheat immediately and crash upon getting hit. You would need to cleverly circumvent the enemies while zipping through narrow passages and tunnels. After successfully completing the course, you will reach the interior of the nest, where a mini-boss awaits you.
If you defeat the mini-boss, you must immediately escape the nest before it goes up in flames. A timer for this already exists in the game. A final small obstacle passage ultimately brings the team back out into the open, as everything behind them goes up in flames.
Seasonal competitive races: Similar to the SRL in Destiny, a limited-time event could challenge the competitive spirit of the Freelancers.
Bastion could host the “Javelin Racing League” as a celebration, inviting pilots to a friendly speed competition. Target rings distributed around the last city would outline the course. Shaper tubes, underwater passages, and spider webs could provide for the most exciting flight paths.
Components and inscriptions that extend flight time would either be advantageous or excluded for fairness. Players could be allowed to create entire racing loadouts or impose various restrictions for equality.
Javelin training as a world event: To provide some variety in the world events, Freelancer Yarrow could insist on giving the player some flight training.
If the weather conditions are right and the thermals are good, he could suggest a few target exercises, where you must collect echo-like items within a certain time or perform certain stunts, such as “Stay in a dive for 5 seconds” or “Do a loop”.
Alternatively, similar challenges could also be added to the Cortex.
Why flight races would be good for Anthem: Flight races and aerial challenges would greatly enrich the fun component in Anthem and provide players with a refreshing alternative to the grind for loot.
Most of this is already integrated into the game and works, so it’s only a matter of time before BioWare meaningfully incorporates these mechanics into a game mode.
Many players would be pleased if there were something in Anthem that focuses on fun and skill rather than just the best possible equipment.
What do you think? What kind of flight sports would you like to see in Anthem? Let us know in the comments!
