Mass Effect 4 Details Possibly Leaked

[flying_whimsy]

considering it will require origin, I won't be getting it anyways (just like me3, sadly). That said, I'm glad to hear the mako's back: exploring with that thing was one of my favorite parts of the first game, especially when it actually tied into the story.

I mean, yeah, it's still just rumor, but it's not like EA was going to let the franchise just end. I love the idea that to try and put some distance between me4 and the colossal fuck up that the ending to me3 was, they took that literally and just set it in a galaxy far far away.

 

[JamesStone]

Actually, that's possibly the ONE thing I'm not bothered with concerning ME4. Even if the ending of ME3 hadn't been tri-colored frosting I wouldn't have wanted a sequel on a scale spanning a galaxy to be close enough in time or space to be a simple retread. By placing it in a new galaxy it allows them to change the nature of the enemy and politics and technology encountered. Immediately following ME3, what could one possibly encounter in the Milky Way that wouldn't have turned the ME series into CoD plot retread wise? The only way to have a successful plot set in the milky way that wouldn't be a retread would be to set it far enough in the future that the current species had split into multiple different species and there was some sort of extragalactic threat invading. Instead, they make the Milky way the invaders which is a rather interesting twist in a video game. Of course, all that's going to be wasted since Bioware no longer has the legs to do something like that justice, but still.

Really? I hope you don't have any aspirations of being a writer. Do you have any idea how enormous the galaxy is? And the plot could be about anything. A lot of fans would like a plot that's more personal, smaller, instead of galaxy saving usual crap. Why couldn't they make a crime drama set in Mass Effect universe? How about an RPG where you can play either as a criminal or Spectre that has to stop him. And depending on who you are, you end up with a different crew and completely different missions and outcomes. Possibilities are endless, and they opted for the same old "you're the chosen one" crap. For fuck sake, give us something new and exciting for a change. Not Dragon Age Inquisition set in Mass Effect universe that isn't even set in the right galaxy.

After creating that universe, they could have opted to make every other Mass Effect basically Grand Theft Auto in space if they wanted to. Hell, they could have made a Sims game set in ME universe or SimCity or anything else. They have an entire universe to play with and instead they chose to abandon it and start all over. It's bullshit.

Completely agree. Sci Fi Writes Have No Sense Of Scale, I suppose. Mass Effect is a great universe to explore the day-to-day life. There are ton of opportunities: A Elite: Dangerous style game, crime drama as you said, Mercenary life, the aftermath of the Reaper War...

However, let me present a counterpoint to both our arguments

The Mass Effect Universe has been tainted by the ending. Most people just don't want to explore Synthesis and Control, because they're near literal fairytale endings (How lovely from a company which prizes itself in complex stories and worlds) - In Synthesis it's stated that most conflict ends because everyone's the same (Organic + Machine) so they understand each other (what a deeply racist message we've got here. There can only be peace between the same race). In Control, you pretty much got Fairy Godmother/father watching over and making sure you're safe, or Space Robot!Stalin ruling over you with an Iron Fist made of Reapers.


The original trilogy made one crass mistake (Besides that piece of shit ending) - it decided it wanted to be Space Opera right at the end, so every ending besides "Destroy" is a corny-ass EPIC! tale where the life in the Galaxy is changed forever and ever. Meaning the Mass Effect Universe we want to see explored is gone, as good as dead, because everything not Destroy changes it forever.


Which brings me to the counter-counterpoint. Why make a new Mass Effect game at all? Why not simply create a new IP? Or better yet, if you want so hard to cash in that sweet Mass Effect fan dosh, make a small-budgeted Choose Your Own Adventure visual novel that overrides the end of Mass Effect 3 and replaces it entirely. Stupid as all hell? Sure, but not as stupid as what we have now. Bioware wants to distance itself as much as possible from the trilogy, but there's no distance in the literal universe where you can separate complete genetic rewrite of every living being in the universe or Space Big Brother from your world. How the hell will they handle that short of making Destroy 100% canon - fucking with us even more than they already have by reducing the already stupid A, B, C choice to A, Eat Shit, Eat Shit Harder - and if you're doing that, why even go to another galaxy? Why not use the one you already have?


I really want this game to be good, and I really want to finally take the foul taste of ME3's last ten minutes out of my mouth.

I'm still somewhat hopeful, because it looks like the worst case scenario is a DA:I, good but not great, but this stinks of kneejerk reaction. And they still managed to fuck it up, because a proper kneejerk would be doing what most fans asked you and fix your goddamned ending

 

[MirenBainesUSMC]

Is there anyone really surprised? They kind of painted themselves into an impossible corner with the ending of ME3. Which ending of the bad endings would they choose as cannon? Would it have been a game where you started off with low-tech to build it back up to the point where the races were reaching Protheon levels? Where in the Galaxy would you start at? And how would you out-match a near extinction by a mechanical/alien race that suddenly either A. Fell dead all of a sudden along with your own implants, AI's, Tech, and lights B. You found yourself glowing an eerie Matrix green and felt like the lawn mower man, or E - saw the extinction of your race before the big terrible machine suddenly stopped what they were doing and went away.

Boy. Such Choices!

And a blue print from DA:I? I don't want to re-hash what many have already posted. MMO lite with a dash of single player. Plus more gravy train micro-transaction filled multi-player because god knows we don't get enough 5 year olds telling you off in racist/sexist language they don't understand yet and some bored hacker that shuts the place down and takes your bank account in the same process.

I'd say wait for more facts before killing the horse but.... you know we once had an option by Bio-Ware where the general fan base was aloud to list what would royally piss them off concerning how Mass Effect 3 was going to be like and about 6 months later, the exact things listed and mentioned became a dark reality at its release so... if this is what it will be I am sure it will be another ho-hum.

The problem is --- as there are some of us whom will refuse to buy it, too many will because they are already shouting " Take my Money!" and all that nonsense. Players basically get what they cry for and there is nothing really that can be done because you know very well they will gin up the PR campaign and stuff the day 1 release with enough Nerd bait to make themselves a nice pay day to rinse and repeat later for the next one.

Sorry after what Casey Hudson and the gang had done years back, its leaves too much of a bitter almond tea to drink.

 

[white_wolf]

You know the whole build your colony angle by helping people do things sounds exactly like a fan post on the BW forums we were all just toying with the idea of what 3 would/could be like. This was a popular idea for a home base arrangement.

It doesn't sound that interesting to play Columbus in space though maybe they're working on the thing(s) that are going to try to kill us moreso then the local populous of the planets we reach?

The last artwork I saw looked too much like destiny aliens I wasn't impressed. The whole vault angle doesn't sound like it fits the ME universe already and sounds more like they'd like to be Tomb Raider or Borderlands in space. I don't like the idea of purely playing as a human just because I wanted to be my Qurian commander as she decimates the galaxy but given the plot is centering on human interest it's a give in hopefully I can make my fem hero awesome and they advertise her existance from the get go.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

snip

They could make a million games set before the events of Mass Effect 3. Or any of them for that matter. It's such a rich universe. It would actually be a lot more fun to set the game before because then you'd still have The Shadow Broker, Cerberus and The Collectors to play with. You know, you can make a game about almost any of the characters in Shepard's crew and the game could be amazing. A game about Wrex, or Garrus during his time as a C-sec officer or as Archangel. How about a game all about the adventures of Jack or Samara, Mordin, Kasumi, young Zaeed, Thane etc. Bioware doesn't even have to look very far to come up with amazing ideas. And that's if they want to be lazy instead of coming up with a new character. So why the fuck would they go to a completely new galaxy when there is so much untapped potential in the old one?

 

[MirenBainesUSMC]

I wouldn't mess with pre-quel content myself, that seems to be more associated with fan based fiction or left for books/comics to fill the void.

I think people would more or less want to play a game that has a suspenseful progression than pretty much knowing what will occur years down the road, it kind of kills the expectations.

 

[pearcinator]

Cool. My thoughts on subject matter:
1) It's not a Mass Effect game at all. Other place with different setting, no connection to story of ME1-3 or characters. If those will pop up, it will be dumb.
2) Absolutely stupid premise with intergalactic colonization.
3) Obvious attempt to distance from ME3 fiasco. Too late, sorry.
4) Even less RPG then before. More crafting and shooting. Mentioned 'diplomacy' will boil down to 'tough choice' between two groups you don't give a fawk about.
Final verdict: don't care.

1. Actually it sounds more like Mass Effect 1. Exploration was key in that game (although I think they were a bit too ambitious; The Mako didn't really synergize with the environments and as a result it made exploration more of a chore).

2. We hardly know anything yet. The idea of 'intergalactic colonization' is so broad right now. We don't know the motives, stakes or how they even got there etc.

3. Well Bioware have said time and time again that they want to distance itself from the 'Shepard trilogy'. As long as the same alien races are present (along with new ones) I will be happy. Maybe a wormhole appeared and every race sent through a colonization fleet? I don't know, frankly they could write anything as long as Humans, Krogans, Drell, Hanar, Asari, Salarians, Volus, Elcor, Turians, Batarians, Quarians and the rest are all there for the ride!

4. I think Mass Effect 3 had the perfect balance of RPG and TPS combat. I hope they stick with that because it was fun and actually quite deep (play the MP and you will see how deep it can be). However, I agree on you with crafting. It makes loot pointless and generally brings the pace of the game to a screeching halt! Before every mission you'll have to upgrade your weapons and armour with your new found crafting materials from the previous mission! No thanks!

Final Verdict: Optimistic but there are a lot of little niggles I have that could detract from the game if not implemented well. I need to see more before I get angry about it though.

 

[Keith Fraser]

My (probably wrong) theory on how this alleged ME4 will avoid dealing with the multiple ME3 endings is this: the humans (and other races, if they're present) in Andromeda set out before the end of ME3. Either they found some sort of technology from these Remnant people (like a wormhole or extra-large mass relay or intergalactic FTL drive) or they managed to build one or more generation starships; either way, they left the Milky Way to escape the Reaper War and never went back, either because they didn't want to (e.g. they assumed everyone was dead) or because it was a one-way trip.

The ending to ME4 could involve potentially contacting the Milky Way again, and only then would the people from ME4 find out what ending you picked in ME3 (or the default ending, probably Destroy, if you're not using an imported save). If there's a ME5, this ending might still have comparatively little effect if the people in Andromeda can talk to the people in the Milky Way but not get back there.

 

[R Man]

My (probably wrong) theory on how this alleged ME4 will avoid dealing with the multiple ME3 endings is this: the humans (and other races, if they're present) in Andromeda set out before the end of ME3. Either they found some sort of technology from these Remnant people (like a wormhole or extra-large mass relay or intergalactic FTL drive) or they managed to build one or more generation starships; either way, they left the Milky Way to escape the Reaper War and never went back, either because they didn't want to (e.g. they assumed everyone was dead) or because it was a one-way trip.

There are some logical problems with this though. Going to another Galaxy would not be easy. It would require years of preparation, custom built spacecraft, even entire ecosystems. And would this be for one race, or did we invite everyone? In that case how do we feed the Turians? How come no indoctrinated forces did not discover it? And how were we able to organise this while in the middle of a massive but short war? While also sending our best personnel, the personnel needed to build these intergalactic vessels, to work on the Crucible. And why set of for Andromeda if you are desperate, surely just go far enough into intergalactic space and then come back. Or to the closer Magellan Clouds. Going to Andromeda in this way would be like falling out of a boat, and instead of swimming to a nearby peer, instead deciding to swim to Tasmania.

The ending to ME4 could involve potentially contacting the Milky Way again, and only then would the people from ME4 find out what ending you picked in ME3 (or the default ending, probably Destroy, if you're not using an imported save). If there's a ME5, this ending might still have comparatively little effect if the people in Andromeda can talk to the people in the Milky Way but not get back there.

What, sort of like Star Trek Voyager?

 

[TheVampwizimp_v1legacy]

snip

They could make a million games set before the events of Mass Effect 3. Or any of them for that matter. It's such a rich universe. It would actually be a lot more fun to set the game before because then you'd still have The Shadow Broker, Cerberus and The Collectors to play with. You know, you can make a game about almost any of the characters in Shepard's crew and the game could be amazing. A game about Wrex, or Garrus during his time as a C-sec officer or as Archangel. How about a game all about the adventures of Jack or Samara, Mordin, Kasumi, young Zaeed, Thane etc. Bioware doesn't even have to look very far to come up with amazing ideas. And that's if they want to be lazy instead of coming up with a new character. So why the fuck would they go to a completely new galaxy when there is so much untapped potential in the old one?

I don't think you could drum up much interest for these kinds of stories. We already know what happened to these people, because Shepard got to be there for the best parts and even decided some of their fates. Certainly Garrus and Wrex and Jack and others are good characters, but we already know them. Besides, Mass Effect is an ensemble piece, none of them could carry a game alone.

If so many people can't even replay the series because they know where it will all end, they won't make any profit by giving us details on stories we already got the gist of.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

2. From what I'm reading, it's not that the humans got there first, it looks like the ME races have all sent their own colony fleets to the andromeda galaxy, humans likely arrive around the same time or slightly before all the other ME races, still setting this way in the future of post ME3 which is why it's never mentioned in those games.

3. This is something that most people thought happened, but got retconned after the ME3 extended cut ending. The mass relays were not destroyed, they were damaged, but the epilogue in the extended cut reveals that they were rebuilt, meaning that a trans galaxy relay would be able to be repaired as well. Given that this game likely takes place a long time after ME3, it is also possible that the ME races simply built their own mass effect relay, or discovered another form of FTL.

The relays work on a point-to-point system with one acting as an entrance, and one as an exit. The reapers would have a presence in the new galaxy if that is the case. It's being set in the Andromeda galaxy, 2.5 million light years away.

I want to play as an Asari, or Turian. There is (apparently) a Krogan team member.

It is EA, so I am not counting on it being a complete game at launch.

 

[Vault101]

huh....interesting

its not clear weather or not this is a full sequel and the "galaxy far far away" angle seems to be retconning/handwaving I can get behind the idea of a clean slate though


I'm well past any emotional investment in this so I'm mildly interested to say the least,
also:

[quote/]It's professionally written and not fan-fiction[/quote]
it ALWAYS professionally written...even if one does doubt the quality

See this is exactly what I'm worried about, hand waving.

*shrug*

they fucked themselves over so badly that they really have no choice BUT to handwave

in other words they made their bed, now they got to lie in it...or set it on fire

Many here are not fond of Inquisition, which is interesting cause most of the reception I've heard has been quite positive.

*shrug*

I'd say its a real divide between what thease kinds of games were and what direction they are going, not to mention Bioware games get really polarizing due to the amount of emotional investment people have (there's a reason ME3's ending was what it was)

and I wouldn't even say its unfounded, personally for me its for different reasons

not because the games aren't "hardcore11RPG" anymore but because they have to be such big bloated projects that only have the option of being huge hits or blazing Hindenburg's

. If they wanted a cheap way out they could have used the silly fanmade Indoctrination Theory.

that ship has long since sailed.....

and as I said ...there IS no solution here, if they aren't going to wash their hands of the series (because MONEY) then a soft reboot is the less shitty option

cut your losses....start again, I'm actually not against that

 

[Islandbuffilo]

I love it. I see many people not happy about the new galaxy part, but to me it's the best thing about this whole thing (which I hope will end up being true).

To me, dwelling too much in the same place tends to get stale. We've seen a lot of the Milky Way.

Did we? Did we really? We've seen about 6 planets with some form a civilization on them, and countless other empty barren recolored planets with a few bases on them, and even then most planets you couldn't explore, there's still a lot of planets that allegedly have things going on in the Milky way that we haven't even made eye contact with.

 

[Beliyal]

I love it. I see many people not happy about the new galaxy part, but to me it's the best thing about this whole thing (which I hope will end up being true).

To me, dwelling too much in the same place tends to get stale. We've seen a lot of the Milky Way.

Did we? Did we really? We've seen about 6 planets with some form a civilization on them, and countless other empty barren recolored planets with a few bases on them, and even then most planets you couldn't explore, there's still a lot of planets that allegedly have things going on in the Milky way that we haven't even made eye contact with.

Well, considering the size of the galaxy, maybe it was stupid of me to say that we've seen "a lot" of it. But I don't know, I still think the rest of it would get stale. I'd rather see how they imagine a completely different galaxy, rather than just build more in the Milky Way. As one example, we know that the Milky Way is littered with the remains of the Protheans and those remains don't vary a lot. Despite my intense love for alien ruins, I'm more excited about seeing new alien ruins than coming back for the old ones. Surely, they can create more of new stuff for the Milky Way, but if that is the case, they might very well put it in another galaxy anyway.

Basically, the only reason to have the Milky Way is to tie the new franchise into the old one and show us familiar stuff, which is something I'd rather not have. If they are inventing something absolutely different and novel, then it doesn't matter where it is. It actually makes more sense to put it in a different and novel place. Of course, that's just my preference. If this turns out to be a false rumour and the new games are still in the Milky Way, I won't be bothered much, though I still prefer something new over old.

 

[R Man]

Well, considering the size of the galaxy, maybe it was stupid of me to say that we've seen "a lot" of it. But I don't know, I still think the rest of it would get stale. I'd rather see how they imagine a completely different galaxy, rather than just build more in the Milky Way. As one example, we know that the Milky Way is littered with the remains of the Protheans and those remains don't vary a lot. Despite my intense love for alien ruins, I'm more excited about seeing new alien ruins than coming back for the old ones.

So there can not possibly be any other type of alien ruin in the entire 99% of the Milky Way that we have not yet explored?

Surely, they can create more of new stuff for the Milky Way, but if that is the case, they might very well put it in another galaxy anyway.

Why? The Milky Way is where we actually live. It makes sense that we'd be there. We do not live in Andromeda, and it is really far away. Not only that, there are some serious logical problems with going to Andromeda. A comparison would be going to a restaurant.... at Alpha Centauri. First of all, we can't actually get there. Even if we could, we don't know if there is a restaurant there. And even if there was, you'd probably not actually be able to eat anything there. The only way to make travel to Andromeda possible is either through a contrivance, or to change the setting so much that the game might as well be a different franchise. Turn this position on its head. Anything they could create for Andromeda could be placed in the Milky Way, and it would not have any of the massive logical problems that comes with inter-galactic travel.

Basically, the only reason to have the Milky Way is to tie the new franchise into the old one and show us familiar stuff, which is something I'd rather not have. If they are inventing something absolutely different and novel, then it doesn't matter where it is. It actually makes more sense to put it in a different and novel place. Of course, that's just my preference. If this turns out to be a false rumour and the new games are still in the Milky Way, I won't be bothered much, though I still prefer something new over old.

Then why are you buying/playing a Mass Effect game? I might be wrong about this, but isn't this why a player becomes invested in a franchise? Franchises are recognisable because they have unique features that are relateabe (sp?) between games. Be it in a consistent setting, characters, art style, lore, or even game mechanics. The Elder Scrolls has Tamriel, other dimensions filled with monsters, Tomb Raider has tombs and Lara Crofts mighty ....pistols, Warcraft has Orcs and Humans, Mass Effect has element zero, Blasto, and the damn Citadel, which is a place. Place is important, and unless they intend to move the Citadel to Andromeda too, leaving it behind is a problem. Change it and you might as well start a different franchise.

 

[Beliyal]

So there can not possibly be any other type of alien ruin in the entire 99% of the Milky Way that we have not yet explored?

There is of course. I'm merely stating that I'm also down for exploring more than just our galaxy.

Why? The Milky Way is where we actually live. It makes sense that we'd be there. We do not live in Andromeda, and it is really far away. Not only that, there are some serious logical problems with going to Andromeda. A comparison would be going to a restaurant.... at Alpha Centauri. First of all, we can't actually get there. Even if we could, we don't know if there is a restaurant there. And even if there was, you'd probably not actually be able to eat anything there. The only way to make travel to Andromeda possible is either through a contrivance, or to change the setting so much that the game might as well be a different franchise. Turn this position on its head. Anything they could create for Andromeda could be placed in the Milky Way, and it would not have any of the massive logical problems that comes with inter-galactic travel.

I can't really go into detail here. We only have a rumour and that rumour excited me. We'll see if it's true and how they plan to handle it. Maybe it will be handled in a great way, maybe it won't. It's their risk to take. Just to be clear, I'm perfectly fine if we don't get the new galaxy and I also have some questions as to how do we get there, who developed intergalactic travel and how, when and so on. I'm interested to see if they are willing to develop a feasible reason and way for that. If they are and if they succeed, don't you think it will be an interesting take on those concepts? The technology, the logistics, the reasons and the ambition to explore a new galaxy, that's something I'd like to see the intelligent races of the Mass Effect universe dealing with.

Then why are you buying/playing a Mass Effect game? I might be wrong about this, but isn't this why a player becomes invested in a franchise? Franchises are recognisable because they have unique features that are relateabe (sp?) between games. Be it in a consistent setting, characters, art style, lore, or even game mechanics. The Elder Scrolls has Tamriel, other dimensions filled with monsters, Tomb Raider has tombs and Lara Crofts mighty ....pistols, Warcraft has Orcs and Humans, Mass Effect has element zero, Blasto, and the damn Citadel, which is a place. Place is important, and unless they intend to move the Citadel to Andromeda too, leaving it behind is a problem. Change it and you might as well start a different franchise.

I agree here to an extent, but I also think that a franchise sometimes needs innovation. I've played hundreds of hours of this trilogy and think that it can work on its own merits even without the recognizable things like the Citadel. Of course, it will be different and not everybody's cup of tea, but it will also create a new set of things that will, hopefully, one day become like the Citadel or Blasto. I'll miss the Citadel just as much as anyone else, but I'm also looking forward to seeing something new that I might come to love equally. We'll see, I might as well change my opinion when we get more information. So far, I am intrigued by this prospect of putting the game in some other place. And through these rumours alone, we know that not everything is scraped (there is mention of the original aliens and biotics for example, and unless they change the name, I guess the universe will still have the same physics and technology regarding mass effect fields. How is that going to work in another galaxy which, presumably, didn't have the Reapers and mass relays? I don't know, but I think it's an interesting question worth exploring).

 

[Adultratedhydra]

"Dialogue: "Meaningful choices". Deeper control over responses, such as interrupting conversation. Action based choices are physical choices to shape the course of conversation, such as pulling out a weapon and forcing them to open a door instead of attempting to do so purely via conversation."

Fool me once Bioware. I'm sure at the end of the game you will take the "Meaningful choices" and let Casey hudson jerk off over the ending again.

 

[Diablo2000]

"Dialogue: "Meaningful choices". Deeper control over responses, such as interrupting conversation. Action based choices are physical choices to shape the course of conversation, such as pulling out a weapon and forcing them to open a door instead of attempting to do so purely via conversation."

Fool me once Bioware. I'm sure at the end of the game you will take the "Meaningful choices" and let Casey hudson jerk off over the ending again.

Isn't that basicly just the action system that ME2 and 3 had some moments?
I may have to wait for the game, but I don't see anything new here...

 

[Adultratedhydra]

"Dialogue: "Meaningful choices". Deeper control over responses, such as interrupting conversation. Action based choices are physical choices to shape the course of conversation, such as pulling out a weapon and forcing them to open a door instead of attempting to do so purely via conversation."

Fool me once Bioware. I'm sure at the end of the game you will take the "Meaningful choices" and let Casey hudson jerk off over the ending again.

Isn't that basicly just the action system that ME2 and 3 had some moments?
I may have to wait for the game, but I don't see anything new here...

Basicly yes that seems to be all. Dont get me wrong. If they can pull it off without pulling that ending again then go Bioware, I cant wait for the romance option of the Mako because Tanks need love too.

 

[Diablo2000]

"Dialogue: "Meaningful choices". Deeper control over responses, such as interrupting conversation. Action based choices are physical choices to shape the course of conversation, such as pulling out a weapon and forcing them to open a door instead of attempting to do so purely via conversation."

Fool me once Bioware. I'm sure at the end of the game you will take the "Meaningful choices" and let Casey hudson jerk off over the ending again.

Isn't that basicly just the action system that ME2 and 3 had some moments?
I may have to wait for the game, but I don't see anything new here...

Basicly yes that seems to be all. Dont get me wrong. If they can pull it off without pulling that ending again then go Bioware, I cant wait for the romance option of the Mako because Tanks need love too.

Oh. That sexy, sexy beast. Can't wait to hold hands and climb mountains for days...