Anthem: Demo Thoughts

After taking a break from playing console games, I was excited to get back online with the friends to explore a new game called Anthem. It is expected to be one of the biggest games of the year after seeking to capture the attention of the Destiny community. As Destiny 2 has tried to fix its predecessor model, they have run into some issues with their community, The developers of Anthem have looked to see how they engage players for a broader experience. However, they offer similar features to the Destiny world. The developers of Anthem have looked to see how they engage players for a broader experience. However, they offer similar mechanics to the Destiny play style.

For example, you can select three different types of classes. Unfortunately, I did not play enough to try or three but was entertained with the differences and features of the ones that I’ve played and those that my friends chose in our adventures. The game also had NPCs and a social space to interact with in the game. They also have taking customization to another level where virtually anything on or that your character uses can be changed. It is also a loot driven game as drops are frequent as well as material can be found around the world. I can say that many of my friends enjoyed scavenging and farming the open world to discover new areas and materials.

There are also some interesting differences in the games. Anthem seem to be much more open world in Destiny. The gameplay mechanics are quite diverse as each class has varying abilities that can be improved over time. While this also occurs in Destiny, I think it is much more strategic in the world of Anthem. It also seems to be a much more hardcore game given the difficulties settings. The main difference which is probably why I am still in the middle of deciding whether I will purchase it or not is the fact that it is played mostly in third person whereas Destiny is the first person point of view which I have grown more accustomed to in the years of my online multiplayer gaming.

It was an entertaining two weekends that I was able to play with my friends as they became attracted to the game as well but it felt that the interest in Anthem was more to do with the lack of other games currently available than that of the game itself. While it was open world, I really didn’t get the feeling of the differences and locations as I did when playing destiny for the first time. I also think that my bias towards Destiny impacts my ability to open my thoughts to converting completely to a new game. And while I haven’t play Destiny 2 in a while, I am always hoping for new engaging content that will get me playing hours at a time like I used to. While I am willing to do so, the question is whether my friends are which is the main reason I play online at all. The full game is set to release later this month and will be interesting to see how it engages the player base.

Thanks!