It’s been a long, rough road for BioWare’s Anthem, but one that developers have yet to stop traveling. After a rocky launch and subsequent criticism by the community, BioWare announced in early 2020 that it would be giving the game a serious overhaul that would likely take a significant amount of time to accomplish, a fact made even more true after COVID-19 landed. Since the announcement, little has been published by the developers, though that has changed today with a brand new blog post. In this update, devs give players and fans a peek into Javelin gameplay, skill trees, and builds.
The retooled way of progressing and attaining skills is a welcome change. Rather than obtaining abilities through random drops, players will now be able to unlock them through the skill tree and enhance them through gear. Players will be able to create loadouts, manage gear/abilities through the Loadout Screen, and much more.
Choice and Experimentation in your Loadout
- All items are categorized to one of the 11 available equipment slots
- Weapons are either Primary or Secondary, allowing distinctiveness in their role
- Mods and Artifact slots replace Components
- Manage Equipment and Abilities in your Loadout Screen
Reliably Create Builds
- Abilities are unlocks, not drops! Play with the Abilities you want, when you want
- Empower your Abilities by equipping them with Mods
- Builds are defined by the synergies of Specializations, Abilities, and Equipment
- Inscriptions improve build synergies but are no longer the primary factor
Provide Choice and Progression through Skill Trees
- Each Javelin can level up, awarding Skill Points
- Skill points can be spent to unlock Abilities, Passives, and Stat Boosts
- Each Specialization has its own Advanced Skill Tree
Expand on the Fantasy and Playstyles of Each Javelin
- Javelins have access to multiple specializations that cater to different styles of gameplay
- Each Javelin now wields a powerful Artifact that can be customized
Developers are also promising that players will be able to take on the game in a way that best suits them through the use of Skill Trees. Each Javelin type will have a tree with baseline Abilities, Passives, Triggered Abilities, and Stat Boosts. Each spot along the tree can be unlocked through gameplay and by unlocking the previous markers along each branch. Players will be able to “focus on the specific style of gameplay you like best about your Javelin”. The team is even exploring the concept of Specializations once the basic tree is filled out.
The team also introduced the new Artifact system. “Artifacts are pieces of super-powered tech that set your Javelin and Freelancer apart. Each Javelin type would have a distinct Artifact catering towards its class fantasy. For instance, your Ranger’s rocket pod would be upgraded into the Skyfell Launcher Artifact, a pair of back-mounted pods that transform into powerful rocket launchers.”
Check out the full post on the Anthem official site.
