Mass Effect - 6 Ways the Next Mass Effect Can Be Better

Silver

Spaceman
Staff Member
Joined
February 13, 2014
Messages
9,312
Location
New Zealand
Twinfinite state their ideas for making the next Mass Effect the best it can be.

With the recent announcement that a new Mass Effect game is in "Early Stages" stages of development, fans have already begun speculating about the direction the series will take. Will it continue the Mass Effect Andromeda story? Or does Bioware want another fresh start?

While no one will know for certain until Bioware tells us as much, there is plenty of room to speculate and hope. As such, we've put together a list of six ways we believe the next Mass Effect can bring the series back to the form fans know and love.

[...]

Main Character Race Choice

The first Mass Effect features one of the coolest character creations in gaming. Not only do players get to customize their Shepard's look and sex, they even get to pick specific backstories that alter dialogue and missions throughout the series.

Ever since that incredible first character creation, fans have always wanted to take the next step; allow players to alter their character's race as well. Getting to play as a species like the Drell or Turians opens up so many possibilities.

Like the first game in the series, backstory and interactions can differ depending on the race you choose, helping the story feel less linear. Alongside this, races can also have unique perks, as seen in the Mass Effect 3 multiplayer mode.

Considering how long fans have been begging for this feature, it seems like this is one of the easiest and most essential things BioWare can do to win back its fans' loyalty.
More information.
 
Joined
Feb 13, 2014
Messages
9,312
Location
New Zealand
Bah just give the developers all the time and resources they need to finish the game properly. Seriously no shortcuts with auto software again like Mass Effect Andromeda.
 
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,183
Location
Spudlandia
It doesn't need six ways to be better. Just don't make such a bloated game again. That was the primary downfall of Andromeda. It wasn't a bad game in most ways. It just had far too many generic and boring side quests.
 
Joined
Oct 21, 2006
Messages
39,136
Location
Florida, US
…as long as it's not a prequel, I'll be excited for it.
I agree never had any interest in a prequel. They should make Andromeda 2 or set the new game far in the future were Shepherd is a myth like Revan in the KOTOR games.

This way you can bypass the star child ending.
 
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,183
Location
Spudlandia
They don't mention the one thing I really want (and wanted but didn't get from Andromeda) and that's more creativity and some risk taking in the worlds and aliens and technology you encounter. I want the universe to feel truly alien at times. I was very disappointed that this new galaxy was so similar to the old one, with just a few new ideas thrown in.

But Bioware has not shown themselves to be willing (or maybe not capable) of any real originality in their settings. Dragon Age and Mass Effect are both fairly standard affairs in terms of setting. Though the ME trilogy had more work put into its setting than Andromeda did, which was content to just recycle lots of elements from the first three games.
 
Joined
Aug 31, 2013
Messages
4,881
Location
Portland, OR
Ironically, Anthem is probably the most original game Bioware has developed in a long time.

I think Andromeda is better than what many people give it credit for though. The mechanics are solid, and the moment to moment action is better than ME 1-3 imo. It could have been really good if it just had more inspired writing and quest design. Still, it's a lot better than review scores would lead people to believe.
 
Joined
Oct 21, 2006
Messages
39,136
Location
Florida, US
And I thought "that incredible first character creation" was a watered-down standard fare of RPGs that had existed for decades before ME1…
 
Joined
Jun 19, 2020
Messages
1,100
Location
Norway
Meh. I don't know. For me Andromeda despite its potential stuck too close to a particular formulae. It had some interesting characters and ideas but the large strokes were too similar to prior products. It worked for Star Wars The Force Awakens, so perhaps that is not a valid criticism. In some ways I hope for originality or to be actually surprised and so suggest the maxim, perhaps we don't know what we want.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Mar 2, 2015
Messages
264
Location
New Zealand
"Everybody dies" ending would have been perfect for the series. Pity that they had no balls to do it.
 
Joined
Jun 19, 2020
Messages
1,100
Location
Norway
"Everybody dies" ending would have been perfect for the series. Pity that they had no balls to do it.
It would've killed the IP. Never had a chance of happening. The more I think on it some type of Warlord campaign where every race is stuck in a Dark Age might work as well.
 
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,183
Location
Spudlandia
It would've killed the IP. Never had a chance of happening. The more I think on it some type of Warlord campaign where every race is stuck in a Dark Age might work as well.

If the resetting has been going on for over a billion years, why should this time be any different? They could always do a fresh start with the next cycle :p
 
Joined
Jun 19, 2020
Messages
1,100
Location
Norway
If the resetting has been going on for over a billion years, why should this time be any different? They could always do a fresh start with the next cycle :p
If you think the star child caused a fan riot just imagine your ending. Fans would've burned down the studio if everything you did, and your decisions meant nothing.

(They still didn't but that's par the course with BioWare sequels)

Ultimately the reapers let Shepherd decide the galaxy's fate that's the ending. Why who the hell knows it's an ancient AI that hasn't solved it's main purpose yet.

As every cycle is a damn failure. It was probably just tired of everything.:lol:
 
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,183
Location
Spudlandia
If you think the star child caused a fan riot riot just imagine your ending. Fans would've burned down the studio if everything you did and your decisions meant nothing.

Haha, I like this thought game. Who says that the in-game choices would be for nothing? One could always make *different* ways to die depending on the choices you did. This would have been great. It would have shocked people but could have been remembered as the epic way to end a trilogy.

It would be believable and have reflections on our lives too. Life has no more meaning than that. To end to begin again.
 
Joined
Jun 19, 2020
Messages
1,100
Location
Norway
The kicker is you can let the reapers kill everyone like your theory above.
Mass Effect 3 Refusal Ending

Another Mass Effect 3 ending allows players to refuse all of the options presented to them, effectively allowing the Reapers to win. It's a dark ending and a little out of character for Shepard, since the character is essentially giving up instead of finding a way to stop the Reapers.
(Don't bitch about spoilers as the game is seven years old now.)

Commander Shepherd is the next vanguard of your destruction.:rotfl:

Now that would make a new setting with different races. Your a genius.
 
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,183
Location
Spudlandia
Make Mass Effect better? Oh, there are so many things . . .

Warning, unpopular opinions will follow:
To me, the ideal ME would be small and episodic - just like a long season of Star Trek.
There would be an overall story arc, but the game would be broken into smaller, self-contained episodes, where player choices would eventually determine the season closure (nothing serious, just like in e.g. Arcanum / Fallout's closing vignettes).

Fire the writing department please. This game needs a fast paced script delivered in terse prose and sharp direction -- and not endless rambling text passages no one cares about (especially get rid of those unnecessary SJW "serious message" content. These are silly beyond point and just pour oil on the flaming sh*t we call "social activism")

Also: get rid of the schizophrenic RPG / action game and continue Andromeda's design: create a cool, tight 3rd person cover shooter. Get rid of the bane of every modern game design: useless talent trees. (Hint: choices would affect your sidekicks only, Freedom Fighters style - so if you play your cards right, you can hire e.g. a great marksman to complement your generic space marine hero)

Oh, and there would be no romances. Seriously, these are so lame in every Bioware game, they should have given up the concept already. Stick to pure waifu fanservice and that's it.

Hmmm.
Just realized: this is not a Mass Effect game at all, but a cool pulp scifi action game instead.
All right then, let sleeping dogs lie.
 
Joined
Mar 3, 2008
Messages
820
Back
Top Bottom