Mass Effect Andromeda Romance options for male and female Ryder, including squadmates, ship crew and other characters
How to flirt your way to your chosen squadmate's heart.
Mass Effect Andromeda romance options are arguably the most tantalising interactions in the game, allowing you to strike up close relationships with your squadmates and other crew members, dabble in a spot of flirting and, if you seal the deal, a rather intimate scene for your efforts.
Romancing is a fairly simple process, but there are some restrictions and caveats to be aware of, which we'll be explaining below.
If you're after help for parts of the game, consult our Mass Effect Andromeda walkthrough and guide. Over at our sister site, Jelly Deals, you can find a guide to the absolute best Mass Effect merchandise available including everything from T-shirts to hoodies to colouring books.
Mass Effect Andromeda Romance options for Male Ryder and Female Ryder
It's worth noting your choice of Male or Female Ryder at the start of the game will restrict you from engaging in certain romances, though there are several characters in the game who can be romanced by either.
As Male Ryder (Scott Ryder) you can romance the following characters:
- Squadmate Cora
- Squadmate Peebee
- Squadmate Vetra
- Avela (historian)
- Gil (Tempest technician)
- Keri (journalist)
- Reyes (smuggler)
As Female Ryder (Sara Ryder) you can romance the following characters:
- Squadmate Liam
- Squadmate Jaal
- Squadmate Peebee
- Squadmate Vetra
- Avela (historian)
- Keri (journalist)
- Reyes (smuggler)
- Suvi (Tempest science officer)
If you have your eye on another character and they aren't on the above list, you're out of luck! That means no romance with squadmate Drack, or Nexus / Tempest characters such as Addison, Tann or Lexi.
All squadmates join your party after A Better Beginning, while Jaal joins after the following mission, A Trail of Hope. You'll bump into other characters as you get accustomed to the Tempest or visit cities and planets as part of the story.
How romance works in Mass Effect Andromeda
Like previous Mass Effect games, romance is a fairly simple process - talk to the character you wish to get together with as much as possible and if applicable, complete their specific missions. Here's how to get the most out of the romance system:
- You can usually flirt right off the bat with a character on your first encounter, so try to do it at the first opportunity.
- You can flirt with anyone romanceable, so if you haven't made your mind up of who you'd ultimately like to court, don't worry - but note you cannot take things further with anyone else once you become exclusive with one particular character. This can be signified with a kiss, or something more obvious when you reach this point of no return. Some characters such as Peebee give you the choice of being exclusive or not, too.
- There are some exceptions to the above; the only character you can romance once you are exclusive is Keri, who you can engage in a fling with at any time if you so choose. You also cannot be exclusive with Avela at all.
- As far as we know, the only character who will be affected by a story choice is Reyes, who can only be romanced if you turn down Sloane's deal during the Hunting the Archon mission.
- Wherever you can, choose the heart dialogue option, which usually allows you to flirt with that character. Usually one flirty remark will lead to another, so make sure you don't miss any of these opportunities. But if you do, though every character looks to have a finite amount of opportunities to romance, there should be more than enough to satisfy the exclusivity requirement.
Want more help? Our Mass Effect Andromeda walkthrough and guide provides steps to completing every main mission, and our on-going Remnant Decryption puzzle solutions can help with the many Sudoku-like challenges the game can throw at you. Meanwhile, we can help with Memory Trigger locations, Architect locations and the hidden Fusion Mod of Adrenaline, as well as helping you decide on the many Mass Effect Andromeda Romance options for both male and female Ryder.
- While many opportunities to flirt or get close will crop up throughout the game, specifically talk to them after finishing any significant moments - Priority Ops, once the main story has concluded, establishing a planetary outpost or completing that character's Loyalty Mission. This logic also applies to shipcrew and other non squadmate characters, so be sure to look out for their own mission chains. Remember to look at their emails, too.
- Similarly, there will be specific QTE prompts in the corner that will lead to romantic gestures, from a hug to a kiss, so keep an eye on those, especially if you're after exclusivity.
- Remember that since you can continue playing after the story ends, don't feel you have to speed through a romance - but again, it's worth talking to everyone as much as you can, when you can, to keep your options open.