Despite being one of the most beloved sci-fi RPGs of all time, it’s not always gone swimmingly for BioWare’s Mass Effect series.
WhenMass Effectwas first released in 2007 it came with high expectations to be one of the best games of its generation. After all, BioWare had already given in to the likes ofBaldur’s Gate,Star Wars:Knights of the Old Republic,Jade EmpireandDragon Age: Origins. Thankfully for fans as well as the folks at BioWare and EA,Mass Effectdid not disappoint with a Metacritic score of 91.
Check out the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition trailer below!
Three years later, we were treated toMass Effect 2which improved on its predecessor in almost every way. Then we had the controversialMass Effect 3in 2012, an amazing game in its own right but its ending had angered some fans so much thatBioWarecreated a new optional ending just to appease them.
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So with all three of the Mass Effect games garnering critical and commercial acclaim, there was an embedded recipe for success and nothing could go wrong when it came to this beloved series, right? Sadly,Mass Effect: Andromedaarrived in 2017 and it launched as a buggy mess which had fans questioning whether BioWare had lost its spark.
In 2020, BioWare had the golden opportunity to right recent wrongs whenMass Effect 5was announced at The Game Awards and with its teaser trailer featuring Dr Liara T’Soni discovering the debris of the Normandy ship and it teased that the band is getting back together.
Unfortunately, since that time, other than a brief teaser on N7 Day in 2023, we’ve heard little else about the progress ofMass Effect 5(assuming that it will carry a number in its name). What’s more, not only has the voice of FemShep, Jennifer Hale stated thatshe’s not been approachedto reprise her role (and so too it seems for the voice of MaleShep, Mark Meer) but there’s a good chance thatMass Effect 5could skip this current console generation.
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This means that ifMass Effect 5were to skip this generation and is released onPlayStation 6 and the next-gen Xbox, we could be waiting until 2026 for the N7 crew to arrive in the landing dock and that’s if we’re extremely lucky. There may be a chance thatMass Effect 5could arrive in the next couple of years, but for that to happen, we’ll probably have to receive a sufficient update on its developmental progress in the next 12 months.
That being said, fans can look forward toDragon Age: The Veilguardat the end of this year, but with its pending arrival, BioWare or EA might not be in a major hurry to pushMass Effect 5out the door and I’m ok with that.
After the launch mess ofMass Effect: AndromedaandAnthem,Dragon Age: The Veilguardhas a golden opportunity to help gain some lost trust of BioWare which will in turn lay the foundations forMass Effect 5.
As much as I’d love to playMass Effect 5right this second, I’d much prefer it to launch in an amazing state and that is worth its weight in gold. For the more immediate,Dragon Age: The Veilguardwill be released for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.
Topics:Mass Effect,Dragon Age,Bioware,EA,Features,PC,PlayStation,PlayStation 5,Xbox,Xbox Series S,Xbox Series X
