Diablo 3 developer and former Blizzard producer Travis Day has perfectly explained the biggest issues plaguing Anthem right now, and offered solutions for how the game can be improved. This comes on the heels of Anthem‘s launch late last week, which has received a mixed response from both critics and fans.
The biggest source of negativity related to Anthem‘s release is due both to its lack of previously promised content upon release and its heavily flawed loot drop system. It also doesn’t help that the game’s physical launch sales were not all that great, reportedly selling half that of Mass Effect: Andromeda, itself considered a disappointment for developer BioWare and publisher Electronic Arts. Still, Anthem does have its defenders and many have taken to social media sites like Reddit to not only defend the game, but offer constructive feedback on how the game can be improved in the future, including Day.
Related: Anthem Review: A Looter Shooter Without A Soul
Posting on Reddit under the username TravisDay, the former Blizzard employee made a lengthy post on Anthem‘s flaws and how they can be fixed. The main issue that Day pointed out was Anthem’s rewards system, or loot, and how it’s structured in the game. Day argued that there’s not enough reward incentive in the game, especially in Anthem‘s boss encounters. Day made it a point to stress that he was enjoying the game, but offered a plethora of options in improving the game’s risk vs rewards mechanics, such as more focus on activities that target different kinds of loot as opposed to boss and dungeon farming.
Day not only worked on Diablo 3 during its development, but was also one of the biggest influences for the game’s restructured “loot 2.0” system, which received a warm reception from both fans and critics (which was noteworthy after the original release of Diablo 3 received a lot of criticism for its reward system). Day left Blizzard last year and currently works at Phoenix Labs on their upcoming Dauntless, a Monster Hunter-like free to play game expected to launch in April. Needless to say, a lot of fans would argue that Day knows what he’s talking about when it comes to loot-based games like Anthem and how to improve them.
Still, the damage may have already been done in the case of Anthem. It’s officially BioWare’s worst-reviewed game of all time on Metacritic and it’s received many negative comparisons to that other loot-based shooter series Destiny. Hopefully BioWare and EA can implement some big changes, some of which are hopefully based on Day’s suggestions, and salvage what’s honestly been a disastrous launch for Anthem.
