A few tips to help you through the first few hours of the game
Don't Worry
The learning curve for Andromeda is extremely gentle and forgiving. While Ryder may be thrown from crisis to crisis, you will be introduced to each mechanic in a slow methodical fashion, with plenty of autosaving waypoints to prevent lost progress. There are also no unmissable collectibles or one-time-only achievements in the early hours, or any dialogue or relationship choices that will set the tone for the rest of the game. Even the few skill and gear choices you make are easily undone later, so just relax and let the extragalactic adventure wash over you.
Knowledge is Power
As in previous games, learning more about the universe isn't just good for the the brain, it also results in tangible rewards of XP, resources, and new quest hooks (as well as quite few easter eggs). You're going to want to explore all dialogue options with pretty everyone you meet, and run a scanner over every new creature, object, and natural phenomenon you encounter. Not only will this fill up your codex for easy reference later, but it'll help you level up your skills and gear even faster.
Precise Searching
Sometimes an objective is in a 'search area,' meaning when you get close, the objective marker disappears, and you have to locate the desired item or location with a crude sonar. A trick here is that, before it disappears, the objective marker is exactly where you need to be, Just remember where it was to quickly home in on your goal. You can sometimes gain a similar advantage by checking your map when a distance. Note: there are some rare exceptions inside buildings, where the objective marker is pointing to a door into the search area.
Charge It
Unless you're really wedded to another playstyle, give serious throught to the Scrapper training background for the game's early hours. The biotic charge that comes with this class (a match to the Vanguard charge you may remember from previous games) is both fun and versatile, and an easy way to handle some of the tough terrain on Eos and Habitat 7. It also works on flying enemies, so even hovering Remants aren't safe from your fists. As foes eventually get tougher, you may decide to switch to another discipline, but early on the the thrill of the charge is tough to beat (it can be a little harder when playing on Insanity, but if you're doing that, you probably already have your favorite class picked out). A special plus in Andromeda- your jump jets make it easy to charge in, then quickly leap to safety, rather then getting caught in an enemy mob. The same jump jets make it easy to target enemies in cover- leaping high to get a glimpse, then going to warp.
Cryo Choices
Once you found your first colony, you'll have a choice of which colonists to thaw first. Each group grants a special bonus, and the choice can be a little overwhelming. In a way, you can think of this as being a referendum of which part of the game you hate the most. Hate mining? Then get the mineral and resource bonuses. Hate scanning every single object in the game? Get the research bonus, et al. If you don't have strong feelings one way or another, I recommend setting your sights on the Advanced Training Bonus, which gives an extra 10% XP from encounters. There's no level cap in Andromeda, so those extra points will go a long, long way. As a prerequisite, the Reconnaissance perk can be surprisingly handy- not only do the caches save crafting/mining time by giving you rare items right off the bat, the caches also scale with you, ensuring valuable items throughout the game.
