Upcoming Mass Effect title will reportedly scrap Andromeda’s open-world design

BioWare is said to be returning to Mass Effect's "classic format" for the series' next entry, as opposed to the open-world environments found in the franchise's most recent mainline title, Mass Effect Andromeda.

The details:

• In a recent episode of the Xbox Two Podcast, Window Central's Jez Corden stated that he has heard rumors that BioWare is planning to "ditch open world and go back to [Mass Effect's] classic format." Although he goes on to say that it could be false and that it's just an industry rumor, it certainly makes sense given Andromeda's poor reception in comparison to the original franchise trilogy.
• Despite the notorious ending of the third game, the original Mass Effect trilogy has been regarded as one of the best sets of RPG titles ever created, with a linear, narrative-heavy structure focused on player choice that was well received. Andromeda, on the other hand, was panned by both fans and critics for a slew of technical issues and design decisions that were seen as a massive step back from previous games, as well as a weaker story.
• It's unclear when the upcoming Mass Effect game will be officially revealed, but it has been confirmed that a portion of its development team has been moved to Dragon Age: Dreadwolf, with a smaller team handling pre-production work. BioWare also laid off around 50 employees in August, which could have an impact on development.

More gaming news:

• Nintendo reportedly showed its new console to developers behind closed doors at Gamescom 2023, with the system powerful enough to run Epic's The Matrix Awakens demo, which was previously used to demonstrate the power of the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.
• Final Fantasy XIV director Naoki Yoshida has stated that Square Enix has no plans to make the MMORPG free to play and will instead continue to expand the game's generous free trial over time. Without a subscription, players can currently play the base game and its first two expansions for free.