Anthem’s Map Size Cannot Be Described In A Meaningful Way, Says BioWare

Pretty recently, we got some solid details on Anthem’s map and its full size (or almost full, anyway). If you’re wondering, however, how big it will feel taking into consideration the game’s traversal mechanics (which basically allow you to fly around like Iron Man), the answer may not be that simple.

BioWare’s Brenon Holmes was recently asked the question on Reddit, and he said that it’s hard to judge Anthem’s map size in a meaningful way. “It’s difficult to describe the size of the map in a way that would be meaningful,” he said. “A lot of what you’re getting at is a function of how you move through the space… and since our movement is a bit different from a lot of other games it’s hard to make a direct comparison.”

In a separate thread, Holmes also talked about premade groups in the game, and whether or not players will have to remake groups every time they leave Fort Tarsis or their Strider, both of which are going to be strictly single player areas. “When you form a premade group you stay together between missions,” he said. “You don’t have to reform or anything. A lot of it will depend on what kind of activities you and your friends enjoy. You’ll need to play some of the crit path to unlock some of the systems – but that’s generally all done fairly early on.”

“If there are activities that you enjoy, you should be able to just do a bit of that – return to the Strider and then go back out rather quickly,” he explained further. “Alternatively, if you want to dive deep into the story with your friends, you should be able to do that as well!”

Meanwhile, he also spoke a bit about the game’s recently announced demo in a different thread. If you’re worried that the demo is too close to the game’s full launch and won’t give BioWare enough time to take feedback based on it into account, don’t be. Apparently, there’s going to be plenty of alphas and betas for that purpose before the demo, and the demo itself is more to get people hyped for the game than anything else.

“There are a number of technical alphas & betas planned between now and the demo,” Holmes said. “Those are specifically to test infrastructure, systems and technology. The demo is for people to get a taste of the full game and (hopefully!) get excited about.”

Anthem launches on February 22, 2019 for the PS4, Xbox One, and PC, while its demo will be made available not long before that, on February 1.