An Ark to Andromeda – Literature and Immigration

What’s the Story?

In the Video Game Mass Effect: Andromeda you play as a Human Pathfinder on their way to colonize the Andromeda Galaxy due to an ongoing threat in the current civilizations of the Milky Way. The player will either choose Scott or Sara Ryder to play as during the events of the game so regardless of what gender the player chose, the community just refers to the player character as Ryder which I will be doing for the rest of the post. Essentially, Ryder wakes from their Cryosleep to the year 2819, around 600 years after their ship left on its initial voyage. After the first ground mission to what was originally observed to be a planet capable of colonization goes extremely poorly as massive storms and inhospitable atmosphere obliterate the surface of the planet. Ryder’s father, Alec, the missions original Pathfinder is killed when Ryders helmet is destroyed during conflict with an Alien race known as the Kett. Instead of letting his child die to the inhospitable atmosphere, Alec removes his own helmet and places it on Ryder to save their life. After returning to the ship, the Helmets AI system tells the player that they were the new designation for Pathfinder and now in command of the Andromeda colonization efforts. From then on, the rest of the game is about managing and colonizing planet locations to fulfil your fathers unfinished duties as Pathfinder.

My Experience in Andromeda

I enjoyed the very familiar feelings the game brought to me of being out of my own element. I related the on ground planetside feelings of Paranoia to my own individual feelings of being in a new country on deployment during my time in the Marines. This gave me a very understanding viewpoint of the circumstances that the new colonists were feeling during the majority of the game. It also helped me make the decisions throughout the game to benefit those under Ryder’s charge as I already had lived experience in similar conditions. One moment that was very relatable to a lot of my military training was the first introduction to the Kett which the game refers to as First Contact Protocol:

Classifying My Experience

Throughout my many hours invested in the game, I felt a mixture of experiences and emotions ranging from Paranoia listed above to Resilience, to Righteousness, and many in-between. The overall experience I’d like to commit to though would be the all-encompassing Immersion. To be placed into a game where my decisions change the outcome of a colonization event in a military style engagement system felt so uncomfortable but yet welcoming to me. I could really understand and feel the stakes of every single decision or every engagement with the hostile Kett.

The game also gives you character specific ways to immerse yourself into the world, by forming bonds with team members and relationships with certain characters. What better way to feel truly connected to a game world than to have people you’re actually afraid to lose? There are many companions the game allows you to take as well as many romantic interests that allow Ryder to grow as an individual and learn more about each characters motivations which help shape your decisions throughout the game.

Another massive part of the game which continues on this trend of Immersion would be the ability to monitor and set individual colonies. These locations are chosen by the player and are maintained by the people you put in charge of them. Should any issues arise that are not maintainable by those places in charge of an individual colony, it falls on you as the pathfinder to resolve conflicts and protect the new migrants as they begin making their new life.

Narrative Technology

The type of Narrative Technology that fits the best with my experience of this game would be Revenge Plot + Soliloquy The game begins with the Final Mission of Alec Ryder and a new mission to carry on his legacy set in front of the player. Every action taken throughout my playthrough was steeped in the idea of making Ryder’s father’s death mean something. The idea of a family sacrifice being the catalyst event to the campaign gives any favorable outcome a type of revenge plot. Revenge being winning the conflict against the Kett or even just fulfilling Alec’s initiative of colonization despite the conflict and setbacks.