BioWare is rumored to be confirming the Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy in October. After a slew of recent disappointments for BioWare including Anthem and Mass Effect: Andromeda, the studio will likely be keen to restore fan faith with a return to their flagship sci-fi series.
While Andromeda was poorly received, there was one change it made that could be a great addition to the Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy if included as an option. While many fans will want to replay the games exactly as they were just with a graphical upgrade, this change could help a replay of the trilogy feel more original and nuanced the second time around.
The Paragon/Renegade Binary
Mass Effect: Andromeda did away with the Paragon/Renegade morality system seen in the first three Mass Effect games. As most Mass Effect fans will remember, the system divided dialog options in three major groups: neutral, Paragon, and Renegade. Neutral options included things like asking questions and forming relationships, Paragon generally forwarded options that placed personal morality ahead of practicality, while Renegade options included both practical but amoral options as well as the opportunity for some hilariously flippant lines from Shepard.
However, there was a big problem with the way the morality system was implemented in the original Mass Effect trilogy. The system encouraged players not only to prioritize either Paragon or Renegade options, but went so far as to lock the player out of certain dialog options if they had not exclusively chosen one or the other. Squadmate conflicts like Tali and Legion’s argument in Mass Effect 2 could only be resolved without picking a side by a player who had a high enough percentage of either Renegade or Paragon points.
This limits the opportunities for the players to totally immerse themselves in the game and to choose what they believe to be the right choice when faced with difficult decisions. For example, when rescuing Garrus Vakarian from the Omega mercenaries, a quick-time Renegade option pops up to stun-gun one of the mercenary leaders while his back is turned before the fighting even begins.
In order to unlock all of the Paragon options – and almost all Mass Effect players chose Paragon – the player has to step outside of what the character would do in that moment when making their decision. The only reason many players do not stun the mercenary leader is because it is listed as a Renegade option, when in fact there are plenty of ways to morally justify knocking someone out instead of letting them lead an attack which the player knows they’re going to sabotage.
Managing Change in the Remaster
The trouble with the Paragon/Renegade system is that it makes every moral choice in the game extremely easy to make depending on what sort of playthrough the player is trying to do. There is no reward for judging each situation as it presents itself, and an expedient Shepard will simply find themself with fewer options later in the game.
Without the Paragon/Renegade RPG morality system, the story could become one where the choices the player makes do not have an easily identifiable karmic outcome, making them feel far more genuine. The option could even mix up the order of some of the dialog options so that Paragon isn’t always on top and Renegade on the bottom of the dialog option wheel, or at least give an option to turn off this requirement so that certain outcomes later down the road aren't locked behind such a morality system.
BioWare should of course be careful when changing things for the Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy. Many fans will want to relive the vanilla experience as closely as possible, including the morality system. While BioWare is also busy with Dragon Age 4, the studio should consider including an option to turn off the morality binary and to experience the story of Mass Effect in an entirely new and more nuanced way.
The Mass Effect Trilogy Remaster is reportedly in development.