The Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy is looking more likely than ever. Rumors that BioWare could be working on a remaster of their sci-fi series began as far back as 2014, but EA’s announcement of an “HD Title” due before the end of the fiscal year and Dark Horse's announcement of a new book of concept art due in February 2021 has many fans hoping that the remaster will be confirmed on November 7 this year, AKA N7 Day.
While fans likely do not want major story changes in the remaster, even to Mass Effect 3’s controversial ending, there are a few small details which many will be hoping BioWare might change. There is one small detail in particular that BioWare should change which could have a surprisingly large effect on The Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy.
The Tali Controversy
Tali’Zorah is one of the most beloved squadmates in Mass Effect. She appears in all games in the original trilogy, and has one of the most interesting visual designs of all of the characters. As a Quarian, Tali is hypersensitive to alien bacteria, and has to wear a sealed suit for almost all of the original trilogy. As a result, Tali’s face is not revealed until near the end of Mass Effect 3, when a Shepherd who has romanced Tali will see her face in a photograph on their nightstand towards the end of the game.
The reveal, however, caused a lot of controversy back in 2012 when Mass Effect 3 released. It wasn’t long until fans showed that Tali’s face was only a lightly edited stock photo of a model, and many felt disappointed that a huge reveal for one of their favorite characters felt rushed. It isn’t entirely fair to place the burden of this solely on BioWare.
The game faced a very fast development process that meant that a lot of content had to be cut from Mass Effect 3. It is very likely that the stock image was used in order to save time while under pressure to deliver the game by its deadline.
However, this makes the Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy a great opportunity to fix details that didn’t work as well simply because BioWare was not given the time to fully develop them. This includes bigger details like re-integrating companions, like Javik, who have greater roles in the story that were cut so that they could be repackaged as non-essential DLC characters. However, by changing small details like Tali’s face, a remastered Mass Effect 3 could help deliver the closure that many fans felt the retail release lacked.
Tali's Original Face
Mass Effect's original concept artist for Tali, Matt Rhodes, had some very interesting designs for the character before it was decided that her face could be covered. He has also said that he considers one of these designs to be the canonical Tali, at least in his mind, despite the reveal in Mass Effect 3, so it is possible that this could be the design used as a new basis in the remaster.
If BioWare goes down that path, then some of the key themes of Tali’s character could be more satisfyingly realized. Players make a genuine connection with Tali despite not being able to see her, and many come to love the character based on her personality alone.
By revealing that she essentially resembles a traditionally attractive human woman, Mass Effect 3's face reveal slightly undermines the true value of the relationship. Some fans, of course, will not want any changes to be made in the Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy beyond graphic improvements. For many, however, this slight change to Tali’s reveal could help satisfy an emotional arc that was left hanging by the original release of the trilogy.
The Mass Effect Trilogy Remaster is reportedly in development.