You can now sample 10 hours of Mass Effect Andromeda mediocrity for free on PS4, Xbox One and PC

EA is now offering people the chance to play the first 10 hours of sci-fi RPG Mass Effect: Andromeda for free on all platforms. The trial will allow users to carry over their progress to the full game should they choose to buy it after they've run out of time.

Available until 1 November, the free trial includes both single-player and multiplayer, the former letting players explore the planet of Eos, the latter including all the game's competitive and cooperative modes.

You can download the free trial here for PC, here for Xbox One and here for PlayStation 4.

The trial is similar to those offered by Origin Access on PC and EA Access on Xbox One. If you're a subscriber to either service and played the Andromeda trial before, so long as you didn't complete the 10 hours you'll be able to pick up where you left off.

Mass Effect: Andromeda marked the anticipated return of one of the last console generation's most beloved new franchises, but the game was generally considered a disappointment, marred by technical faults and wholly inferior to the three previous games.

It wasn't a complete disaster however. BioWare is still BioWare, and it's not within its powers to make an out-and-out stinker. Andromeda is fine, often stunning and includes a handful of great characters.

We're talking about Peebee. Peebee is great.

The first 10 hours are certainly worth checking out for free if you have any interest. It's also worth playing simply to sample for yourself the Mass Effect entry that reportedly sunk the whole franchise - at least for now.

BioWare has of course moved on. At EA's pre-E3 showcase the studio announced brand new sci-fi IP Anthem, and there are high hopes for the co-op action RPG.