BioWare and publisher Electronic Arts are giving up HymnThe planned 2019 game revision – referred to as Anthem Next or National Anthem 2.0 – is coming to an end, BioWare said in an update on the status of HymnThe studio will continue to run the current live service Hymn
“In the spirit of transparency and closure, we wanted to share that we have made the difficult decision to quit our new development work Hymn (also known as National Anthem NEXT), ”BioWare executive producer Christian Dailey said in a post on the BioWare blog. “We will Hymn live service runs as it currently exists. “
Dailey noted that the COVID-19 pandemic and home office orders “had an impact on our productivity.”
“I know this will be disappointing to the community of Hymn players who were excited about the improvements we’ve been working on, ”said Dailey. “It’s also disappointing for the team that did a brilliant job. And for me personally, Anthem brought me to BioWare, and the past two years have been some of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my career.
Game development is difficult. Such decisions are not easy. Looking ahead, we need to focus our efforts as a laser-focused studio and strengthen the following Dragon Age and Mass Effect titles, while continuing to provide quality updates for Star Wars The Old Republic
BioWare announced in February 2020, a year later Hymn launched a lukewarm response from fans and critics that it planned to redesign the game. The purpose in revision Hymn was to “reinvent the core of the gameplay loop,” said BioWare CEO Casey Hudson at the time. (Hudson has since left BioWare.)
[We] recognize that there is still more fundamental work to be done to unleash the full potential of the experience, and that it requires a more substantial reinvention than an update or expansion, ”said Hudson last year. He explained that BioWare was pausing seasonal updates for Hymn to focus on “a longer term redesign of the experience, working specifically to reinvent the core of the gameplay loop with clear goals, motivational challenges and progression with meaningful rewards – while maintaining the fun of flying and fighting in a huge science fantasy environment. “
BioWare has released a handful of public status updates on Hymn in the following months. BioWare Austin studio director Christian Dailey told players that the Hymn the team’s work would be “a longer process” if it went back to the drawing board. Dailey has posted two gameplay updates, one targeting loot and gear targets and one targeting Javelin builds. Dailey has since become the executive producer of the Dragon Age series, replacing Mark Darrah, who left BioWare in December.
Hymn was released in January 2019 for PlayStation 4, Windows PC and Xbox One.