Why is BioWare building hype for sorely needed 'Mass Effect' fixes?
What's going on, BioWare?
Here's the deal, folks. Mass Effect: Andromeda has issues. What those issues are and which of them are most pressing depends a lot on who you're talking to, but it is objectively correct to say that BioWare's latest game arrived in less-than-perfect shape.
Even the studio admits it. A Wednesday announcement on Twitter takes general ownership of Andromeda's post-release criticisms, and promises "to share more of our immediate plans" on Tuesday, April 4.
See here:
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Now. Why is this so strange? It's not unusual for developers and publishers to address criticism after a game's launch. That's what BioWare is doing here.
Yes, but the studio is also putting what amounts to a countdown timer on that discussion. Instead of saying "Hey, thanks for the criticism, here's what we're doing right now to fix things," BioWare is turning the continued conversation into an Event You Should Look Forward To.
There's really no other way to put it: this message exists to build hype.
Where BioWare should be moving expediently to communicate fixes, it is instead planting a flag on a specific date. "Hi friends, we're sorry, we know things are kind of messed up right now. Come back next week for more!"
That plan -- which builds buzz without delivering any meaningful information -- serves only one audience: the interests that stand to benefit from Mass Effect lingering in the public conversation. In other words: BioWare, Mass Effect publisher Electronic Arts, and the latter's investors.
Here are the follow-up questions I think we should be asking BioWare right now:
If you do know what's wrong, why not serve your audience as swiftly as possible and discuss it now?
If you don't know what's wrong -- in full or even just in part -- why are you chaining yourself to a countdown clock?
To be clear: I'm not saying there's nefarious intent here (nor am I saying there isn't). But accepting criticism in one breath, then attempting to build up customer anticipation for another week without actually addressing the specifics of that criticism in the next breath... it just doesn't add up.
If you spent $60 on BioWare's latest game, you are entitled to expect some kind of tangible fix. And you are equally entitled to demand that answers come without the constraints of an inexplicable countdown clock. This isn't some exciting, new piece of content. This is fixing a mistake.
If there's an overriding sentiment I want to leave you with, it's this: don't buy into BioWare's reveal-event-treatment of what should be a mea culpa.
Topics Gaming
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
