Will Pathfinder Ryder return as the protagonist in the next game?

Definitely hope for more Ryder, there's potential there to see them grow. While I like DA, I was never as attached to any of my protags as I am to Shepard. This bond is magic, both with the player and the crew.

I surely hope Ryder returns along with the crew. I feel like we only scratched the surface of their backgrounds and would like to see the story and characterization for them all continue. The new home they are building is just beginning and I'm definitely curious to see the results of the choices made in the first game. I was thinking Ryder can still be Pathfinder since they are still settling and even if he/she move on from that, they are still Captain Ryder with some authority and have shown they can get stuff done. Gimme more Ryder.

I want Ryder and the crew back for the next game. I want this to be a trilogy like the previous series. I want all of them to mature, evolve and develop as individuals. That is what made ME1-3 characters memorable.
I do not want DA approach where you keep changing characters and never really grow to like someone as if you know him/her since long time. With Garrus, Liara, Wrex, Tali we had a long journey and had the opportunity to see them growing and changing. I want the same here.

The better question is: Will there be a next game?
I mean I really liked the game but general response is obvious, it would be too much risk for EA to make a sequel

Unlike most people here I'm not that attached to current crew, so I wouldn't mind to see most of them go. Not Ryder however, I want to see their further development along with Initiative. Ryder's development so far is only the tip of the iceberg. If Ryder's idealistic view on Andromeda colonization wasn't challenged yet, it sure will in next chapters.

I don't really think I want a new trilogy. Maybe a huge expansion would be enough, then a new story with a new cast for the next game would be cool. Cameos of the Andromeda cast would be nice, but I would love BioWare to focus on something new.

Voted yes but like the poster above me I worry if we'll even get an ME:A2

Continuing protagonist and crew is part of what makes Mass Effect special. I would not have been so attached to Shepard and the squad if they had been a one off and then replaced. And cameos from old companions in the DA franchise ("for continuity's sake") are not satisfying in the least to me. I want continuation of the relationships, so if the Warden is not around I don't want to see Alistair.

Mac Walters in an interview talked about how special the "shooting bottles with Garrus" scene was for fans and how the Bioware team wanted to recapture that magic. Well, that scene would have had very little impact if it happened in ME1. It was special because it had the weight of years of growth behind it. I don't think the Trespasser DLC for DAI had nearly the reaction that the Citadel DLC did for the same reason.

It was smart of Bioware not to promise a trilogy and to wait until they got feedback. IIRC, Hawke was originally going to be the face of Dragon Age, but the backlash after DA2 caused them to start the line of "oh, no, we've always wanted a new protagonist each game." (Which was fine for me because I loathed Hawke.) Bioware didn't want to be boxed in if everyone hated Ryder. So far I think most people like Ryder (apart from model/animations and lack of renegade dialogue) because Tom and Fryda did great work, so it's likely Ryder will be back if the next game gets greenlit. And that's as it should be, IMO.

I don't love the MEA squad yet, but I didn't love Tali and Garrus after one game either, so I'm happy to see them come back and develop further.

I feel that MEA is The Force Awakens for the ME universe. It mostly wipes away the stain of what came before and offers an engaging new cast with promise for the future. It's also not universally loved. I like both (don't LOVE them as much as I'd hoped I would) but think they are good starts and hopefully a springboard to something even better.

I hope so as I like them I wouildn't say I'm quite as attached as I am to the trilogy's characters yet but it took a couple of playthrough's to really get the trilogy's characters too. I think MEA shows promised but it largely depends on how things are received in general relating to the game yes the reviews have generally been bad which I think is a bit of a mistake but that's I guess what you get when you're creating a game coming off a trilogy like what we had. Hopefully in general it's stil well received though because it is a good story and they are good characters and the game does not deserve the hate it's been getting. TBH I'm glad that they tried at least to carry on despite what happened with 3's ending because ME as a whole is a good series. A dodgy end to one game shouldn't be enough to desrtoy a promising franchise like what ME is. All Bioware can do is learn to try not to repeat the mistakes of ME3. I'm pretty sure they won't be repeating those mistakes even if it takes them a little longer to get their story straight.

If there is a sequel I expect it to be Ryder as the PC again. I would like to see the crew change a bit, but BioWare kind of put themselves in a corner making 5/6 squad mates a romance option. But if they make the former squad have a solid amount of content, I think it would be fine. I enjoyed Jack romance in Mass Effect 3(especially including Citadel content) over any other Mass Effect 3 option.

I'd like to only have the human squad return, because they are the Pathfinder team, the aliens were just guests on the ship and post Archon, have their own shit to deal with. Ryder, Cora, Liam have nothing else to do except their jobs, which is finding planets for us to live on, so leaving Heleus and discovering new planets/species, that's their job.

I wish they didn't have two pathfinders die. Would be nice if they were all on the team as well. What better way to push past Heleus than to have four(I guess add in Quarian to make 5) Pathfinders.

That's fair. I only suggested a squadmate because I'd really like the sibling to be a major part of the story. I was disappointed the sibling was incapacitated for 90% of the game. I want to have conversations with them and actively engage with them throughout the story. A squadmate just seemed logical, but they could also become a Pathfinder or do something else given they also have the same SAM implant.

Andromeda is already something new. I think it would be a mistake to build this whole new galaxy and get rid of the only thing that's familiar to fans currently.

Even though I'm sure EA is not pleased with the metacritic score, what will ultimately determine whether we get a sequel or not is how much money MEA 2 generates. That being said, given how iconic the Mass Effect franchise is, I'm fairly certain EA would give BioWare another chance even if MEA stumbled a bit.

Agreed, although I don't like The Force Awakens for the simple fact it's a copy/paste of A New Hope. MEA is actually new and different from ME1, although an argument could be made MEA essentially is the same story Halo 4 had (same lead writer wrote both). Regardless, I like having one protagonist build over multiple games. I wanted that with the Hero of Ferelden/Warden Commander and instead got two other protagonists I never wanted to play as. Having cameos or references to previous protagonists didn't make the situation any better in DAI either.

In fairness, folks only mention those two approaches because that's all BioWare has done at this point. I just don't want Ryder to be a one hit wonder. I'd like to see that character develop over time. Whether that's two more games or four more games, I don't really care. I just love the continuity with the protagonist and crew, even if its a coding nightmare for BioWare taking into consideration all of the various choices. The payoff is well worth the effort.

Agreed. It would be a shame for what I believe to be one of the strongest cast of characters in a BioWare game to be canned due to a mediocre metacritic and some over the top negative criticism. The game has some technical issues, but that shouldn't completely destroy what BioWare has built (ever Mass Effect game had something weird).