Mass Effect: Andromeda (book series)

In June 2016, Titan Books announced that it would publish a series of four novels which will become part of the overarching Mass Effect series.[6] The focus would be on key characters from Mass Effect: Andromeda game and "answer the many questions fans have been asking". The publishing company also revealed that the first novel, to be written by author N.K. Jemisin, would be released in August 2016.[5] The second and third novels were slated for release in March 2017 and September 2017 respectively and did not have author credits at the time of the June 2016 announcement.[5] The fourth and final was to be penned by Mac Walters, the creative director of the Mass Effect series and lead writer of Mass Effect 3.[5]

Titan Books made a further announcement in December 2016 and confirmed that there would be three tie-in novels for Mass Effect: Andromeda instead four.[7] The publisher said that the novels takes place concurrently with events in Mass Effect: Andromeda and feature storylines developed in close collaboration between the publisher and BioWare game development team.[7] The first book was subtitled Nexus Uprising, written by Jason M. Hough and K.C. Alexander, which would be released on March 28, 2017. The second book was subtitled Annihilation by Catherynne M. Valente and slated for a summer 2017 release, while Initiation by N.K. Jemesin, which was initially expected to be the first novel in the series, arriving in fall 2017.[6]

Walters explained in an interview with Eurogamer that as part of BioWare's joint venture with Titan Books, he was supposed to pen a fourth book which bridges to a potential Mass Effect movie adaptation.[8] The planned fourth novel was effectively canceled, as Walters' duties as creative director of Andromeda eventually took precedence, and development has stalled for the Mass Effect film.[8] He explained that BioWare's position was to adopt a wait and see approach, in order to ascertain whether people "will want to see more of Andromeda before they want more of a bridge to a possible future movie", and that the trilogy of novels should serve as a good indication of fan demand for the series.[8]

Following the launch of Mass Effect: Andromeda, the release dates for both Initiation and Annihilation were delayed. Initiation would be released in November 2017, and Annihilation was slated for release in June 2018.[9] Following BioWare's rev that Andromeda would not receive any single-player DLC in August 2018, Annihilation would serve to conclude loose story threads from the game's ending sequence, which includes addressing the fate of the quarian-led ark ship.[9][10]

Andrew Liptak from The Verge responded with enthusiasm to Titan Books' December 2016 announcement about the involvement of Jemisin and Valente with the book series, claiming that it felt "like Isaac Asimov or Arthur C. Clarke coming down from the mountain to write a Star Wars novel".[12] Liptak noted that Jemisin won the 2015 Hugo Award for Best Novel for The Fifth Season while Valente is a multi-award-winning author who won acclaim for her Fairyland series, and that these "authors could add a new flavor to the next Mass Effect novels".[12]

Nexus Uprising met with varying reviews. Matt Heywood was of the view that as a tie-in novel, Nexus Uprising competently added more understanding to the plot of Andromeda, as it fleshes out the events that took place prior to the events of the game. While he considered it a mandatory read for players, he felt that it is also an entertaining sci-fi book for science fiction enthusiasts who are unfamiliar or indifferent to the video game series.[13] Keri Honea from Playstation Lifestyle thoroughly enjoyed the book, and expressed a bewilderment as to "why the game wasn’t written half this well".[14] Brendan Lowry from Windows Central said he like the book due to its unique premise, noting that "this survival type of story is something that hasn't really been explored with Mass Effect before". He considered Nexus Uprising to be a good prequel to the video game, and also explains why the Nexus ended up in its run down state when encountered in the game.[15] Sci-Fi & Scary scored the novel 3 out of 5 Stars, concluding that it was a good book which fell short of greatness, and the authors did a solid effort of making the extensive cast of characters "distinct from each other".[16] Black Girl Nerds scored the novel 3.5 out of 5 Stars, praising it as a worthwhile read but criticized the dull, slow pace of the middle chapters as its main weakness.[17] Jacek "Pottero” Stankiewicz from the Polish website Nerdheim scored the book 6 out of 10.[18]

Liz Bourke from Tor.com praised the authors of Initiation for writing a fun book which has the feel of the original Mass Effect trilogy, noting that it is more light-hearted in tone than co-author Jemisin’s original solo work.[19] She praised the novel for being "fast-paced and full of action", and that it successfully maintains its tension throughout the narrative.[19] Bourke found the novel's version of Cora Harper to be a recognizable version of the video game character, but one who's more fully-fleshed-out. [19] She compared the Andromeda book series favorably to previous novel tie-ins, which she considered have failed to live up to the standards of excellence set by the original trilogy.[19] Luke K from Critical Gamer found Initiation to be much more enjoyable then the game it is supposed to serve as a tie-in prequel to, noting that the reader does not need to be familiar with any other works from the Mass Effect franchise to understand or appreciate the novel. He considered the novel to be "definitive proof that a story told in this universe without player agency can most certainly work", and that Cora comes across as a likeable protagonist though her video game iteration is noted as a divisive character among players.[20] Merrin from Speculative Chic praised Initiation as an unusual tie-in novel which is well-written and engaging, and opined that Jemisin was more competent at fleshing out character motivations and backstory then the game's writers. She was impressed by Jemisin's ability to add depth to Cora's characterization, and address plot holes from Mass Effect 3 and Andromeda within the constraints of a shorter novel.[21]

Liz Bourke from Tor.com praised Annihilation as a "fast, tense, deeply enjoyable novel in a space opera setting", and its author for having a "deft touch with characterisation, giving us people who aren’t types, but who have interesting relationships to whole cultures that in the games are mostly glimpsed only in passing".[22] She commented that Valente "expertly manipulates pacing and tension", so that the narrative's combination of "buddy-cop dynamics, murder mystery, investigative thriller, and unfolding disaster story comes together into a smooth and riveting whole".[22] She felt the "conclusion to the plague problem feels a little rushed, but the character work is on point and full of feeling", and that Valente should write more material in the Mass Effect universe.[22] Patrick Sklar from TheGamer scored the book 4.5 out of 5 stars, noting that the narrative's three story arcs are all wrapped up neatly by the author and that each conclusion was satisfying to various degrees. He singled out Yorrik as an "absolute delight" given his amusing speech patterns, and considered him to be the best elcor character the franchise has ever seen.[23] He concluded that it will satisfy fans of the Mass Effect franchise but is not easily recommendable as an entrance for newcomers to the lore of the series.[23] Julian Benson from PCGamesN commented that "all the missing races being off on a different ship bears more than a passing resemblance to a story from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: Golgafrinchan Ark Fleet Ship B".[10]