Mass Effect Andromeda will not have a season pass, BioWare says

BioWare general manager Aaryn Flynn has revealed that Mass Effect: Andromeda will not feature a Season Pass. Responding to fan queries on Twitter, Flynn was asked by a fan whether the upcoming sci-fi RPG will include a season pass to which the studio manager responded with a simple, "Nope".

When asked by the same what that would mean for Andromeda's DLCs, Flynn said, "We'll talk more about that later."

In October, EA's other triple-A title Titanfall 2 also announced that it would not offer a season pass either and offer all post-launch maps and modes for free to avoid "splitting up the audience". Developer Respawn Entertainment also took a swipe at the practice saying, "Remember when buying a game got you everything?"

Flynn also dropped a few new details about Andromeda's resolution and frame rate saying that last time he checked, the developer had the game running on par with other Frostbite games on PS4 and Xbox One.

"As Mark Cerny from Sony has shared, Mass Effect: Andromeda is running at 1800p with checkerboard rendering on PS4 Pro," Flynn wrote on NeoGaf. "Last I checked, we were like other Frostbite games on PS4 and Xbox One — 1080p and 900p respectively. All are at 30fps [frames per second]. PC has uncapped framerate. I think we've even gotten over the 30fps cap in cutscenes, but I'll double-check in the next couple of weeks."

Meanwhile, the official Mass Effect Twitter account confirmed EA Access members will get to play Andromeda prior to its official launch for a "limited time". Producer Michael Gamble said that early access to the game will be available for Origin Access subscribers on PC.

In recent months, BioWare has continued to trickle bits of information about Mass Effect: Andromeda, one of the most anticipated games of 2017, particularly on social media.

Lead designer Ian Frazier recently revealed that the game will be available as an Origin exclusive or as a physical, disc-based release, and will not be distributed through Steam. He also clarified that while the game's protagonists Scott and Sara Ryder will have preset personalities, fans will still have "a ton of opportunities to roleplay as you see fit".

At Nvidia's CES keynote last week, BioWare unveiled some brand new Andromeda footage giving fans a brief, but more detailed glimpse of some of the enemies they can expect to face off, a new volcanic planet, swift combat with robotic creatures, skill trees and more. Earlier the same day, the developer finally revealed the release date for the latest addition to the popular space-faring franchise.

"Mass Effect: Andromeda is our most ambitious Mass Effect game to date," Flynn wrote in a blog post. "We're telling completely new stories, creating new characters, new planets, new species, and introducing new gameplay systems.

"We are just a couple of months away from delivering a brand new Mass Effect experience to you for the first time in five years - richer, deeper and ready for exploration. We're excited about how far we are going with the franchise, and we hope you find it's been worth the wait."

Mass Effect Andromeda is slated for launch on 21 March in the United States and 23 March in Europe for PS4, Xbox One and PC.