‘Mass Effect Andromeda’ Is An Open World Game, BioWare Voice Acting Competition

“Mass Effect Andromeda” is going to be an open world game, according to the General Manager at BioWare, Aaryn Flynn. This is a distinct departure from the franchise’s roots and a gamble on the part of the developers. Also, BioWare is holding a competition where the prize is the chance to voice two characters in the game. The contest is set to end on September 28th.

The first three games in the Mass Effect series were all linear, which meant that player could not go anywhere they pleased or do anything they wanted as they could with games like “Skyrim” or “Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.” In an interview with VG247, Lynn confirmed that one of the challenges that BioWare is facing right now is turning the already good, if restrictive, gameplay of the previous titles and turning it into one that provides more freedom.

“To bring Mass Effect to more of an open world play style where players are not just moving down a very linear narrative, albeit a very highly polished linear narrative… But also giving players the chance to move in the direction they want to go much more openly, explore where they want to go too, and then the narrative keeps up… that’s been a real big learning point for us,” Lynn said.

As to how well this new formula is going to work, fans will need to wait until November to learn more. For now, anyone who is interested in becoming a part of the Mass Effect universe in a big way can participate in the competition that BioWare has set up. The prize is the opportunity to voice two of the characters in “Andromeda.”

According to IGN, the characters in question are the amateur documentary maker “Jardan Tate” and someone who is only known as “Tough Mercenary.” Participants are required to record their voices while reading a script and then sending it to BioWare via contest page.