Mass Effect Andromeda: 12 Critical Reactions You Need To Know

12. It's A Technical Mess

"This is one of the most technically uneven games I've ever reviewed, though also one of the more beautiful. On a good day you can expect frequent texture pop-in, facial animations that run the gamut from "just had my Botox" to "quick, phone the exorcist", and performance that sags from 30 frames a second into what feels like single digits. And on a bad day?...The least bothersome bugs include enemies getting stuck in mid-air after leaping out of dropships, or trapped inside objects...It's staggering, nonetheless, that the game made it to retail in this state." - Eurogamer

"Andromeda is more than a little rough in the technical sense. On PlayStation 4 and Xbox One...it’s prone to major frame rate drops and hitches regardless of what’s happening on screen. I’ve seen it drop to slideshow levels when simply walking around the Nexus (the Citadel-like seat of government), driving through a flat wasteland, and fighting in a dense jungle...Though some bugs are to be expected in a game of this scale, between myself and a few other players at IGN we’ve seen a fair share of broken quests. (BioWare has been aggressively issuing patches in response to our reports and claims to have resolved at least some of the problems already.)" - IGN

"In terms of visuals Andromeda is a very peculiar mix. The landscapes and interior are often stunning, and yet even on a PS4 Pro they’re prone to serious frame rate issues. Other bugs and glitches are far less common than the early complaints would have you believe, but the animation is awful no matter what happens – especially when it comes to faces." - Metro

Andromeda has been something of a running joke online over the last few days, after those playing the EA Access trial began posting clips of janky animations and almost game-breaking bugs.

Unfortunately even with BioWare fielding out patches, however, the product sent to reviewers is riddled with technical issues, all the more frustrating as many critics cite how gorgeous the game can be, especially in terms of the diverse planet environments you'll traverse throughout.

In short, if you're especially allergic to jank, you might want to sit this out for a while until it's been heavily patched into a more stable state.