BioWare’s Anthem was met with a lukewarm reception from fans and critics alike when it launched back in February. The game’s first major content update was slated to launch sometime this month, with the roadmap promising guilds, a new mastery progression system, a new stronghold, the game’s first big event, and much more. In a live stream earlier today, however, BioWare announced that Anthem fans will have to wait a while longer for the majority of these features.
The new stronghold is the only promised feature that was added in Anthem‘s 1.10 update, which is live now on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. Anthem players can take on the new Sunken Cell stronghold anytime after beating the main story.
Some quality of life fixes were added as well. The Forge is now accessible from anywhere, even outside of Fort Tarsis. Now players are able to change their gear and customize their loadout at any time, similar to the systems in Destiny and The Division. Contracts can now be selected from the expedition screen, removing the need to walk around Fort Tarsis to pick them up. New missions can be launched from the end of expedition screen too. Fort Tarsis messed with the pacing of endgame grinding, forcing players out of the action and increasing downtime, so these new improvements go a long way in making Anthem‘s pacing much better.
While these additions are surely welcome additions, the overwhelming majority of what was promised to be released in Anthem at this point in time has been delayed indefinitely. The mastery system, guilds, the second phase of legendary missions, leaderboards, and new freeplay events won’t make an appearance in the world of Anthem until they’re ready. On top of that, the Cataclysm event, which is supposed to be the first event that makes significant changes to Anthem‘s world that adds new items and story tidbits, has been delayed as well.
BioWare updated the community on the state of development on the game’s subreddit. “We have been prioritizing things like bug fixes, stability and game flow over the new features of Act 1,” wrote BioWare in the post. “We set aside time for this work, but the reality is there are more things to fix and improve than we planned for.”
BioWare then addressed the game’s disappointing loot system, stating that they’re aware of the community’s concerns. “We agree that our loot and progression systems need to be improved and we are working towards this. When we have more information to share, we will,” said BioWare.
They also had some things to say about their communication habits, which have been less than ideal in the weeks following Anthem’s initial launch. “A lesson we have learned is we have been talking about things too early,” wrote BioWare. “There are so many factors that can cause us to pivot on our plans – whether it’s bugs & stability issues, player feedback, or complications with a feature that require us to take more time to deliver it.”
You can check out the full post here.
BioWare didn’t give a timeframe for when players can expect to see these delayed features, but PC players will be able to get their hands on new content early. BioWare is introducing a “Player Feedback Environment” (a test server) where players can provide feedback on new features before they go live for the general public.
“We believe in Anthem,” wrote BioWare. “We believe the game will be great, but we recognize getting there will take a lot of hard work. We want to do that work and we want you all to join us on the journey to get there.”
Anthem is available now on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.