After receiving a considerable tongue-lashing over the ending to Mass Effect 3 developer BioWare is turning to their harshest critics for advice on where to take the Mass Effect franchise in the future. Borrowing a page from the Dragon Age 3 development team, BioWare’s Casey Hudson is looking to fans to provide some guidance on what they’d like to see in the next Mass Effect.
While Mass Effect 3 concluded the Commander Shepard trilogy of the franchise, BioWare had earlier this year revealed they still had plenty more stories to tell, and are now sticking to that claim. Though it’s unclear if this next game will be called Mass Effect 4, we do know for sure it will represent the Mass Effect brand.
The first confirmation of a development on a new Mass Effect comes courtesy of Casey Hudson, who served as Creative Director on Mass Effect 3, and has suffered a large portion of that game’s backlash. But, since it is N7 day – a chance for fans to reflect on the Mass Effect franchise, and prepare for the launch of some new DLC – Hudson thought he would clue fans into what his team is working on next.
Perhaps it’s a peace offering, or maybe it is a way to show that BioWare is listening, but Hudson took to Twitter to post this message:
We’re in early stages of designing a completely new Mass Effect game. What would you want to see in it?
— Casey Hudson (@CaseyDHudson) November 8, 2012
Some of the many suggestions coming in from Hudson’s followers include completely reinventing the Mass Effect concept or further exploring some outside characters included in the fiction (for example in the Mass Effect novels).On second thought, probably best to avoid the most recent novel — that one didn’t go over so well.
One of the most intriguing suggestions was to make a Wing Commander-style game that is set in the ME universe. Zipping through the Mass Relays has only been something experienced in cutscenes, but could you imagine what they would feel like from the cockpit of a ship like the Normandy.
Whether or not BioWare will accept fan suggestions whole cloth is yet to be determined, but the fact that they are being more receptive in the pre-development phase hints that they have learned from past mistakes. There was a major disconnect between what fans hoped for out of Mass Effect 3 and what the game eventually delivered — even after they released a set of Extended Endings — but from here on out we hope BioWare checks in for some fan feedback from time to time.
What do you hope to see out of a new Mass Effect game? Do you think BioWare is trying to build a more collaborative relationship with their fans?
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Source: Casey Hudson – Twitter
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Take us back to the Protheans, we still don’t know much about their race since in Mass Effect 3 the Prothean we had was just a normal soldier. We can find out more about their intelligences and also find out about the Asari being weak and unintelligent. If not then just let the series end where its at no need to go further in the future because that wouldn’t make any since you can only go back. You can even take it back to the point where the humans haven’t met any alien race. We can fight in that Taurian war. You can take this game in any direction it isn’t hard. Just like they could of made at ten different endings to Mass Effect 3. They need to talk to the gaming community.
This was my tweet to Casey and all of the fans of Mass Effect
@CaseyDHudson U turned TheReapers into GiantHusks that takes orders from a higher AI.WhoCaresWhatYouDo in theUniverseThere’s NO more mystery
im a huge fan of ME, but I just can’t get past the ending of mass effect 3. To make such a complicated story and then just pull the rug out from under every fan of the series is just too much. The sad part is they still don’t think they didnt do anything wrong. Their arrogance/Ego was the death of mass effect. They could have fixed it, if they wanted to. but Casey would half to alter his and only his ending. If he would’ve made Drew Karpyshyn Ending, 90% of the fans would’ve been extremely satisfied with the ending. Even when Shepherd gets shot by harbinger you could still of edited in Drew Karpyshyn ending but Casey ego got in the way and now he has to live with that. I personally think it’s pathetic to ask the fans of which direction a high production Game or movie goes.
there’s an old saying in sports for Coaches
“you start listening to fans you’ll end up sitting with him.”
I think it should be post reaper war so you can see the decisions you made shape the galaxy as we know it…now I like someone else’s idea of an extra galactic war with new(no super machine Intelliegence)…and make it personal…what I loved about me3 was the emotion and how well they showed it In the game( thanes death scene with his son,mordin,grunts almost dying etc..) maybe a lil interaction with shepards former teammates set into the future like 200 years or so(example liara,grunt,wrex) so you can hear little anecdotes of shepards story from your previous saves…but with the complaints that mass effect strayed from its rpg roots and turn into a cover based shooter? Can you tell me a shooter game trilogy that comes anywhere close to mass effect?between the story,gunplay, and emotional impact of your choices and thier repercussions?…I don’t think many can..so please BW make more mass effect and keep me here in this unit eras for a lil longer
Q: Why do you call these stories “The Final Hours”? A: The name describes the “Final Hours” of development on a game, which I document during the opening pages of each story with a fly-on-the-wall perspective. The name doesn’t refer to DLC for the game or the “lost” ending of Mass Effect 3 as some fans have speculated.
Damn autocorrect…races* and keep me in this universe a little longer* I f-inh hate apple’s auto correct*
I think they will do whatever they want because in the end I think Bioware are no longer the company they once were.
They flat out lied about ME3 in their advertising and the EC was so pathetic and lazy it seemed like they just wanted to hush us up and be done with it (sad thing about that is that it mostly worked).
So yeah. They will do as they please, ignore fans, give us the finger and tell us to just enjoy what they make.
Wow. I used to hail Bioware like a God among men. The ME3 crisis has really turned me bitter.
I think it was more DA2 that killed Bioware’s credibility. ME3 just cast it in doubt, the final nail in the coffin
Let me rephrase… it is the plethora of mediocre games coming out of Bioware that killed Bioware’s credibility. Mostly ME3 was a good game, except for the ending.
I would like to choose my own race. I realize this would make voice acting very difficult and while Shepherd’s voice acting was outstanding, it would be far more enjoyable if everyone could play the race they wanted. I would like the scope of danger toned down. I’m tired of saving the world/galaxy. I would like it to remain a 3rd person shooter. Halo 4 did a great job incorporating vehicles into their campaign I’m sure Mass Effect could incorporate something better than the tank that jumps.
The best outcome, in my oppinion, for ME4 would be the appearance of a new hero character – more specific: Commander Sheppard’s son/daughter (depends on romance option). Lots of action, drama and romance could be formed from this point. Reminiscence of his late father, following in his footsteps, saving colonies, search and destroy a new race of aliens who seek nothing but destruction and death. Whatever the case, i hope new game will be awesome. Cheers! and thank you Bioware for such a great ME gaming experience so far.
Take us to the post-story after the trilogy, as Shepard! There are still so many questions about what happens! If you played the game right, Shepard survives, myself i got the scene where S/he “Breaths”. And i dont want her/his story to end like that!! For all that is holy, i put my heart and soul into my relation with Liara T´soni! I dont want it to just simply end like that!
All i am saying is that a lot of people here spend there hearts and souls into refining their characters personality and fought trough the game not only simply to finish it, we wanted a good conclusion to the game, and the conclusions given (even after the DLC´s) dosent give the conclusion most fans wanted, sure the ending i chose (Destroying the reapers) was indeed the most epic ending of gaming history, no doubt about that!
*Speaks with an overly epic voice* But i want Love to flourish, not sadness! If i am to take full control of of Shepard then i would do anything, and i mean ANYTHING to get back to my love, Liara. They where ripped away from each other too many times already!
Let them have love for once! I did gave Liara a promise to help raise some blue bavies after all, and i intend to keep that promise!!