All Articles: Mass Effect: Andromeda

Splatoon 2 is swimming in green ink as the best-selling game from July 2017

Posted on August 18, 2017 by John Scalzo

The first year for Nintendo’s Switch continues to go swimmingly, and another exclusive release for the console has claimed the top spot in The NPD Group’s monthly tally of best-selling games.

Splatoon 2 was the top-selling game in July, beating out Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy (#2) and a resurgent Grand Theft Auto V (#3). Three other Switch games managed to crack the Top 20, including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (#5), Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (#7), and Arms (#17).

According to GamesIndustry.biz, the Switch was also the best-selling console in July. Nintendo’s new device is so popular that it helped push monthly sales to $588 million, a 19% increase over July 2016.

The remainder of the Top 20 was made up of the usual suspects, including Tom Clancy games (Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege at #9 and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands at #11) and three Call of Duty games (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered at #12, Call of Duty: Black Ops III at #13, and Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare at #15).

The NPD’s complete “Top 20 Best-Selling Games” from July 2017 can be found after the break. (more…)

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The Switch continues to soar as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe was the best-selling game in April 2017

Posted on May 19, 2017 by John Scalzo

Nintendo continues to dominate the retail charts with another strong showing in April for their Switch console. According to The NPD Group, Nintendo added another 280,000 Switch consoles to its tally last month, and the newly-launched Mario Kart 8 Deluxe sold more than 459,000 copies (in just two days) to take the top spot on the list of best-selling games. The company’s success also seems to be great for the industry as a whole, as the industry generated $636 million in sales in April 2017, a 10% increase over the year before.

The other big news in April is that Persona 5 pushed the franchise and gave the RPG the #2 spot on the best-seller list, just below Mario Kart 8.

“Persona 5 experienced the strongest debut month for any title in Persona franchise history, with packaged dollar sales five times that of the previous best-selling debut, Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4,” NPD Analyst Mat Piscatella told GamesIndustry.biz.

Additional new releases were thin on the ground in last month’s Top 20, but Lego Undercover‘s re-release on the PC and current-generation consoles helped it secure a spot (#13). And as expected, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild continued to sell well, landing in the #3 position for the month. But the big retail winners in April all came from the backlist, including Grand Theft Auto V (#6), Overwatch (#9), Call of Duty: Black Ops II (#10), and Minecraft (#20).

The NPD Group’s complete list of best-selling games for April 2017 can be found after the break. (more…)

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Nintendo smashed sales records in March 2017… but Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands was the top-selling game

Posted on April 20, 2017 by John Scalzo

Nintendo told us all about their record-setting sales month last week, but the NPD Group made it official today when they revealed their retail report on the video game industry for March 2017.

NPD analyst Sam Naji told GamesIndustry.biz: “March 2017 will go down in history books as the month Nintendo broke records.The Nintendo Switch had the biggest hardware launch for a Nintendo platform and the second biggest launch for any video game platform since 1995, the time NPD began tracking this category.”

However, even though The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild managed to sell more than 900,000 copies, it wasn’t able to secure the #1 spot. Instead, Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands was the best-selling game last month, likely due to Nintendo’s unwillingness to share their digital sales figures with the NPD Group. Other strong sellers on the Switch included 1-2 Switch (#13) and Super Bomberman R (#17).

Big debuts weren’t limited to Nintendo’s Switch, and it was a banner month for several new releases last month, as Mass Effect: Andromeda (#3), Horizon: Zero Dawn (#4), and Nier: Automata (#9) also smashed expectations. Combined with impressive Switch hardware sales, these games helped the industry record more than $1.36 billion in total sales for the month, a 24% year-on-year increase over March 2016.

The complete list of best-selling games from March 2017 can be found after the break. (more…)

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Meet Sara Ryder in this new Mass Effect: Andromeda trailer

Posted on March 24, 2017 by John Scalzo

Though players could customize Commander Shepard in dozens of different ways, EA and BioWare definitely treated the main character as the face of the original Mass Effect trilogy. Even “FemShep” got her own special edition for Mass Effect 3. But Ryder, the star of Mass Effect: Andromeda, is still something of a blank slate to most gamers. The game’s latest trailer doesn’t do much to dispel this mystery, but it does introduce fans to “Sara Ryder,” the official female version of the game’s main character:

Put on the uniform of the Pathfinder as Sara Ryder and fight for humanity’s new home. Explore dangerous worlds, keep your crew alive, and unravel the mysteries of Andromeda. The journey begins now. How far will you go?

Mass Effect: Andromeda is now available for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

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Xbox Store Today: Mass Effect Andromeda, This Is the Police, Troll and I, more

Posted on March 22, 2017 by John Scalzo

We dream of exploring the unknown, discovering what lies beyond.

It’s time to explore the furthest reaches of space once again with Mass Effect: Andromeda. Electronic Arts and BioWare have launched the fourth entry in the sci-fi franchise, and it’s now available to download for the Xbox One. Humanity needs a hero, and players will explore the mysterious and uncharted Andromeda Galaxy in Mass Effect: Andromeda in hopes of ensuring our survival.

Also available to download for the Xbox One today is This Is the Police, a 70s-set police drama that asks players to take on the role of “gritty” Police Chief Jack Boyd. Jack is nearing retirement, and he way he maneuvers the “ugly underbelly” of Freeburg will determine his future.

Finally today, Xbox One owners will also be able to download a story of a boy and his troll (Troll and I), as well as the adventures of a working class astronaut (Blue-Collar Astronaut).

More information on all of these games can be found after the break. (more…)

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Mass Effect: Andromeda, Zero Escape: The Nonary Games, Freedom Planet, more added to PlayStation Store

Posted on March 22, 2017 by John Scalzo

After Mass Effect 3‘s ending divided fans, BioWare wiped the slate clean for the fourth entry in the franchise, Mass Effect: Andromeda. Now available to download for the PS4 through the PlayStation Store, players will explore the uncharted Andromeda galaxy in a search for humanity’s new home.

Also available to download this week is Zero Escape: The Nonary Games, a two-game collection featuring Nine Hours Nine Persons Nine Doors and Virtue’s Last Reward. Launching on the PS4 and Vita for the first time, The Nonary Games follows two groups forced to compete for their lives in a deadly game. One group is trapped on a sinking boat, and the other is locked in a facility, but can they all escape?

Another well-liked game making its PS4 debut today is Freedom Planet, a retro-themed side-scroller that was inspired by Sonic the Hedgehog’s heyday on the Genesis.

And finally this week, Sony is kicking off their “Play Collective” promotion with the release of Everything, a PS4 game that the developers are pitching as “an interactive experience where everything you see is a thing you can be.”

You can learn more about all of these games (and nearly a dozen other new releases) after the break. (more…)

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New Retail Releases: Mass Effect Andromeda, Mario Sports Superstars, Zero Escape The Nonary Games, More

Posted on March 19, 2017 by John Scalzo

Venture into new worlds with this week’s new retail releases…

BioWare will help Mass Effect fans explore the unexplored this week thanks to the release of Mass Effect: Andromeda for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Leaving behind the rest of the universe, players will visit the Andromeda galaxy and discover “rich, alien worlds in the search for humanity’s new home.”

Mario and friends will also get to try new things this week in the biggest “Mario Sports” game ever. Coming to the 3DS on Friday, Mario Sports Superstars will include Mario-themed versions of baseball, golf, tennis, horse racing, and soccer. The game will also feature support for a new line of Amiibo Cards that’ll power up your favorite athlete in the Mushroom Kingdom.

Oculus VR owners will be able to become a different kind of superstar this week with the release of Rock Band VR. Harmonix’s latest rhythm game will offer “unprecedented stage presence” in virtual reality and a brand new soundtrack.

But if you’re worried about stage fright and would much prefer to battle giant beasts, Koei Tecmo and Omega Force will release Toukiden 2 for the PS4 and Vita. And if you’d rather explore a more familiar world, Aksys Games will bundle together Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors and Virtue’s Last Reward for the PS4 and Vita in Zero Escape: The Nonary Games.

You can find even more new releases after the break. (more…)

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Mass Effect: Andromeda’s CES 2017 trailer includes a look at combat and menu options

Posted on January 5, 2017 by John Scalzo

Gaming gadgets became a rare sight at the annual Consumer Electronics Show after the organization of the first E3 Expo in 1995.

But a few companies still make the trek to Las Vegas, and this year, Nvidia offered BioWare a chance to show off the latest Mass Effect: Andromeda gameplay trailer on the big stage. The new trailer features a heavy focus on combat, but fans also got a glimpse at the game’s upgrade tree and menu options.

And in case you missed it yesterday, BioWare confirmed that Mass Effect: Andromeda will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on March 21.

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