BioWare Asks Gamers if They Want a Mass Effect Prequel

[MikeWehner]

BioWare Asks Gamers if They Want a Mass Effect Prequel

BioWare's epic space opera will continue, but whether it will move forward or backward remains undecided.

In an interesting bit of fan crowdsourcing, BioWare's Executive Producer, Casey Hudson, polled his sizable Twitter following [https://twitter.com/CaseyDHudson/status/270668914273443840] as to what they want out of the next Mass Effect title. More specifically, Hudson asked whether or not gamers would be interested in a prequel to the original Mass Effect trilogy, or if an adventure taking place after the current games is preferable.

His tweet reads: "Parsing through your thoughts on the next #ME game. Would you be more interested in a game that takes place before the trilogy, or after?"

BioWare has already revealed [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/120596-BioWare-Montreal-Takes-Over-Mass-Effect] that work on a new Mass Effect title is underway. It remains unclear whether the upcoming title is early enough in development that a concrete storyline isn't decided upon yet, or if Hudson is referencing a future Mass Effect title not yet conceived.

Responses to Hudson's impromptu poll were predictably varied, with vocal proponents of both theoretical timeframes. Those wanting a prequel claim they don't want to tarnish Mass Effect 3's ending with an additional adventure, while others demand that the series move on, letting history remain history. Where do you stand?

Source: GameSpot [http://www.gamespot.com/news/bioware-asks-if-fans-want-mass-effect-prequel-6400376]

Permalink

 

[Occams_Razor]

I think it should definitely be after. New character, new story, even a new time period, where the events of the original Mass Effect trilogy are in history, so they can be referenced but doesn't necessarily have to dictate what happens in the new game.

The issue that can come up with a prequel is you have to avoid stepping on the toes of every possible set of events in the original trilogy, or the continuity wont line up. Just feel like it might feel oddly forced.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

My answer? No. I kind of lost interest in the series after the second game.

 

[Thoff09]

I would like to see a prequel to be honest. It would be interesting to play before the humans joined the council, maybe even get a choice to play as a different spiecies.

 

[sailor_960]

I want to see a game that takes place over a few thousand years, wherein you actually get to see the ramifications of Shepherd's actions. Heck, a game where you play as a priest/cleric of the Shepherd-based religion hinted at in the Mass Effect 3 epilogue would be really cool. But here's the rub, it's not an imported Shepherd, having no idea what is and isn't canon outside of what you can deduce through the game would make for some interesting mysteries, especially if you are charged with building and spreading a religion based upon the mythical figure that you played in the last franchise.

Yeah, I'd play that.

 

[Radoh]

Well I feel as though it would have to be a prequel, since based on Shepard's choice either the Geth are dead, Reapers are floating around the galaxy acting as Space Police, or everything sentient has synthetic/organic bits.

Also, why even bother giving us ALL that Andersen backstory if we aren't going to see him in the leading role?
We've got him as the First True Human Spectre, fought with Kai Leng, has a romance interest already set up in Doctor what's-her-face, and saw Saren's asshatishness firsthand.

 

[Korten12]

No, since if it's a prequel, we still know how it ends. :/ I mean you could make your choices matter a lot, but years or so how long ever the prequel takes place before, Shepard will still make that choice.

 

[Kipiru]

My answer? No. I kind of lost interest in the series after the second game.

"No" to what? If you're saying No to another game in the series, then please go hide in a hole and stop bothering us. If not- then clarify.

 

[kajinking]

No to the prequel simple as that.

 

[StriderShinryu]

Nice to see they're going to the fans on this question.

My choice? After.

If, however, they do a prequel it should essentially be one in name only. The worst part about prequels is how you already know how they're going to end, but if they set the ME prequel so far removed from the ME trilogy in time/space that it has nothing to do with anything we've seen already it could work. The mythos they've created is certainly deep and wide enough to do that successfully.. but I'd still choose after.

 

[JediMB]

A prequel would be better than a sequel.

They could also let the franchise die with what little dignity remains after ME3. Which isn't much.

 

[Screamarie]

Well I personally wouldn't mind a game where you play as commander Shepard and getting to choose to go through one of the three histories, you know, war hero, ruthless and...whatever that last one was...maybe even a brief look into Shepard's childhood and adolescence.

But otherwise I'd rather the series just move on. If it's a prequel of an event before Shepard and we're not using him/her all I'll wonder is what Shepard is doing.

Maybe, MAYBE a prequel of the First Contact War with a compelling male/female choice might work...

Course who am I kidding, they put on another AAA Mass Effect and I'll hand over the money faster than Fry.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

My answer? No. I kind of lost interest in the series after the second game.

"No" to what? If you're saying No to another game in the series, then please go hide in a hole and stop bothering us. If not- then clarify.

Thank you for so kindly accepting my opinion.
/angry sarcasm

 

[Candidus]

I'm glad that most of the Twitter responses seem to be going 'after'. I'm not interested in a prequel at all.

 

[Proverbial Jon]

Well I feel as though it would have to be a prequel, since based on Shepard's choice either the Geth are dead, Reapers are floating around the galaxy acting as Space Police, or everything sentient has synthetic/organic bits.

Also, why even bother giving us ALL that Andersen backstory if we aren't going to see him in the leading role?
We've got him as the First True Human Spectre, fought with Kai Leng, has a romance interest already set up in Doctor what's-her-face, and saw Saren's asshatishness firsthand.

This. I'd go with a prequel every time, mostly so I can continue to pretend that ME3's ending never happened.

But seriously, there's so much established lore and history in the universe that it's pretty much crying out for a game. The first contact war, the creation of the geth and the morning war, the creation of human biotics and jump zero etc...

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Definitely after... mostly because I'm a sadistic prick who wants to see them try and write their way out of how they finished the trilogy.

 

[Kipiru]

My answer? No. I kind of lost interest in the series after the second game.

"No" to what? If you're saying No to another game in the series, then please go hide in a hole and stop bothering us. If not- then clarify.

Thank you for so kindly accepting my opinion.
/angry sarcasm

Sorry- i've just had it with haters. Your oppinion on the subject is valid, if you still have vested interest in the franchise, otherwise it would be just trolling. No to the idea of a prequel is actually my thought as well.

 

[Radoh]

Well I feel as though it would have to be a prequel, since based on Shepard's choice either the Geth are dead, Reapers are floating around the galaxy acting as Space Police, or everything sentient has synthetic/organic bits.

Also, why even bother giving us ALL that Andersen backstory if we aren't going to see him in the leading role?
We've got him as the First True Human Spectre, fought with Kai Leng, has a romance interest already set up in Doctor what's-her-face, and saw Saren's asshatishness firsthand.

This. I'd go with a prequel every time, mostly so I can continue to pretend that ME3's ending never happened.

But seriously, there's so much established lore and history in the universe that it's pretty much crying out for a game. The first contact war, the creation of the geth and the morning war, the creation of human biotics and jump zero etc...

Oh god, I know right?
First contact war would be amazing, though unfortunately a lot of the cool things like the Rachni Wars, Krogan Rebellion, Morning War etc would all not have Humans in it. I'd be totally fine playing a Quarian or something, but it would probably sell less as a result, which is a hard pitch to make to investors.

 

[Josh123914]

No prequel, primarily because Bioware HAS to have humans in there somewhere and there's a really small window between First Contact and ME1, meaning there's very few interesting things to play with without either already knowing about how it started and ended (First Contact war, Batarian issue) or them completely retconning a war in (I can imagine them pulling some old 'Oh yeah and the Quarians tried fighting the Geth 5 years ago, and humans were involved, and there were new guns to play around with that were conveniently missing from the future games'*glares at Halo Reach*)

 

[Nihlus2]

It really worries me when Bioware says they are already producing the next title... yet apparently are able to alter such a "minor" thing is where the game is taking place in the timeline. That is kind of a big thing to have down on paper before you start working guys

When they made Kotor, it took them nearly a year from conceiving the story to start developing anything, if the articles of the past are to be believed at least. Same seems to go for Mass Effect and Dragon Age.

That said, a prequel will probably just hurt more than do good, considering how much they are retconning to make the Starchild work... a prequel would probably be attempted to solidify the new ending over the original ideas.

So if you have to go with something, go for sequels, wipe the damn slate clean. Start over. And this time don't change writers in the middle/conclusion to your triology and start retconning stuff.