Anthem Release Date, Further Details Revealed

During its EA Play conference in Los Angeles, EA revealed that BioWare’s Anthem will be released on January 22, 2019, for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The sci-fi action RPG received both a cinematic trailer and a fifteen-minute presentation detailing the game and its features, both of which are viewable below.

Anthem will be an always-online title in a shared open world, while the single-player story revolves around a hub base called Tarsis. Its structure is designed so that new story content can be added at a later point, perhaps focusing on particular characters. Anthem is set on a world “left unfinished by the gods”. However, the creative tools of the gods were left behind, and these clash with a force called the Anthem of Creation, causing the world to be in constant flux with the constant appearance of new storms, mutated creatures, and giant monsters.

Those investigating the world need to wear a suit of powered armor called a Javelin to be able to survive in the hostile environment. Players are freelancers working with the people of Tarsis to survive, with a currently-nebulous rival faction named the Dominon stated to be on the verge of being able to weaponise the Anthem of the Creation. There are four types of Javelins, which effectively work as classes: Ranger, Colossus, Interceptor, and Storm. Players are not bound to a single Javelin, and can switch to another based on the circumstances of their mission, allies’ Javelin selections, etc. Players will be able to buy certain vanity cosmetic items, but there will not be any loot boxes in the game.

After the presentation, BioWare’s executive producer Mike Darras answered some additional questions from fans and gave a few more details about the game. Anthem is structured so that players will advance their character’s individual story by interacting with NPCs at the game’s Tarsis hub, but these characters will not accompany the player on missions. The game will feature relationships between characters, though unlike prior BioWare titles, there will not be any romance options for players. The game will be playable solo and feature matchmaking, though there will be no PvP at launch. Enemies will drop loot, but this will instanced for individual players.