The next chapter in the Mass Effect franchise won’t necessarily relate to the exploits of Commander Shepard, as depicted in the original trilogy, BioWare has said.
Mac Walters, the lead writer on the Mass Effect series, indicated that the studio is keen to put Shepard and pals behind for the next game, while still maintaining the core aspects of the sci-fi RPG franchise.
“Well, I can’t get into details, but the idea is that we have agreed to tell a story that doesn’t relate necessarily to any of the Shepard events at all, whatsoever,” he told Complex.
"That’s what we’ve been deciding for a while. But throughout it all, one of the key things is that it has to be Mass Effect. It can’t just feel like a spin-off. It has to feel like a Mass Effect game at its heart, at its core. Just without the Shepard character or the Shepard specific companions."
BioWare has yet to divulge any significant details on Mass Effect 4 since its confirmation last year, and it remains unknown if it will be a prequel or sequel to Mass Effect 3.
The final entry in Shepard’s struggle against the Reapers was released in March 2012, and was met with massive backlash from fans and critics alike regarding the game’s controversial ending. As a result of the criticism, BioWare released the free update Extended Cut, which fleshed out the ending sequence offering more closure on the state of the galaxy and Shepard’s comrades.
For Walters, Mass Effect 3’s ending has been a lesson learned.
It’s been 18-19 months since it came out and my thoughts on it are that we addressed it the best we could in the Extended Cut," Walters explained. "We’re obviously not going to be changing anything now. We’re only going forward.
"To be fair, I get people, especially at the conventions, who will say, ‘I loved it. It was heart-wrenching, but I felt it was right for my Shepard.’ And to me, that’s why it was the right path. But because there was no choice, it was going to be right for some people, and for others, in the middle, and other people were obviously very upset about it. In hindsight, I don’t think there was anything we would have changed about that, but it is a really good lesson learned."
Stay tuned for more information on Mass Effect 4 as we get it.