BioWare on Mass Effect squads: choosing teammates will be like choosing friends
According to the IGN-hosted BioWare Q&A entry by Project Director Casey Hudson, the sci-fi epic shooter Mass Effect will allow the player to be accompanied by up to two more companions to provide aid during intense firefights. The magic number for BioWare is three: with two only either you or the other player take part in a situation, while four or more tends to skew some members from being focused on.
And the size of the squad is manageable, since you can go through each member quick enough, assigning tasks to do, where to position and what abilities to use before the big shootout. But perhaps the biggest revelation for the game is that aside from being able to freely “select the class” of the squad members, the player will be choosing buddies the same way they choose friends.
Hudson explains, “YouÂ’ll find yourself picking squad members the same way you choose who to hang out with in real life – by their personality, and how interesting they are to have around.”
Because the triple team member arrangement gives equal footing to all, the player will find that communication between the two additional characters and the communication between the player and either one of the other teammates will bring about interesting preferences.
Hudson reiterates, “For example, your squad members comment on places you explore and decisions you make. But since there are two other characters, theyÂ’ll actually have conversations between themselves.” But given as sometimes the most comfortable of companions don’t start out competitive in the “combat department,” Hudson reassures that the player can develop each of their squad members’ abilities with the same control the player has over his own character.
Sweet.
According to the IGN-hosted BioWare Q&A entry by Project Director Casey Hudson, the sci-fi epic shooter Mass Effect will allow the player to be accompanied by up to two more companions to provide aid during intense firefights. The magic number for BioWare is three: with two only either you or the other player take part in a situation, while four or more tends to skew some members from being focused on.
And the size of the squad is manageable, since you can go through each member quick enough, assigning tasks to do, where to position and what abilities to use before the big shootout. But perhaps the biggest revelation for the game is that aside from being able to freely “select the class” of the squad members, the player will be choosing buddies the same way they choose friends.
Hudson explains, “YouÂ’ll find yourself picking squad members the same way you choose who to hang out with in real life – by their personality, and how interesting they are to have around.”
Because the triple team member arrangement gives equal footing to all, the player will find that communication between the two additional characters and the communication between the player and either one of the other teammates will bring about interesting preferences.
Hudson reiterates, “For example, your squad members comment on places you explore and decisions you make. But since there are two other characters, theyÂ’ll actually have conversations between themselves.” But given as sometimes the most comfortable of companions don’t start out competitive in the “combat department,” Hudson reassures that the player can develop each of their squad members’ abilities with the same control the player has over his own character.
Sweet.
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