Mass Effect '5' speculation (Official Thread)

Hasn't it been said that Anthem isn't quite the same as SWTOR? I'm not clear on it, though. I do believe we will NOT see more ME, and possibly not DA, if Anthem fails. People seem to think BioWare would be dismantled, which would be very bad news for SWTOR.

If they ever get around to it, an Andromeda sequel is most likely, though I doubt they'll do a direct follow-up to MEA.

I think a smart move that might budget well is to give ME1 a high-definition update, with a similar gameplay to MEA (or even ME3,) and gauge how the reaction to it is to determine how new games in the franchise might go.

BioWare has to make sure they really understand Frostbite so they can not waste their time with that again and instead work on developing the storyline. Also, the procedurally-generated planets really don't need to exist. Well, maybe the random ones with nothing much on them, but that's it.

It's hard to imagine being able to generate enough hype to continue in Andromeda...I do not believe the fanbase is there, particularly after abandoning MEA without dropping a single DLC. If for no other reason EA is not going allocate the financial and personnel resources to back it. I said from long before MEA dropped that if it tanked you could expect a reboot to Shepard's story. I could imagine the hype just based on a 10 second clip showing the N7 logo followed up by a shot of Shepard's iconic look and a coming 2021 statement. Personally I think this is the best way to revive the franchise and introduce it to an entirely new generation of gamers (and hopefully not fubar it this time).

As much as I loved the original trilogy, I think the only way they could continue with a Mass Effect in the Milky Way is if they remaster the trilogy with an alternate ending that keeps the Milky Way, Citadel, and Mass Relays somewhat intact after the end of the Reaper War.  I just don't see BioWare/EA going that direction with producers like Mike Gamble stating that they take player choice seriously and that there is no canon ending.

The future of the Mass Effect is in Andromeda.  If they spent as much time on characters and plot for the sequel as they did on procedural planet R&D for ME:A, you could have a kick-ass game.

Here is a wild story for ME5. The first cut scene is a floating human Destroyer floating lifeless in space, having taken considerable damage, approaching a large star. The scene transitions inside the ship which is literally frozen, including the crew. As the ship is nearing the star, whatever led to the flash freeze of the ship and its crew starts to reverse and revive.

This destroyer is a victim of the Reaper war that was forced into an unknown space anomaly fighting for Earth's survival, but as they regain consciousnesses, they discover they are now 500 years into the future. The Milky-Way is no longer the same, as they discover that after the Battle of the Citadel and we thought Sheppard had won, actually resulted in a counter-attack by the true masters of the synthetic monsters. The MIlky-Way is now a wasteland of barely surviving planets, filled with ruins and suffering beings under the enslavement of this master race.

The Reapers had no Masters. They simply, are.

I'd rather have another large time change where a now highly advanced and Human led Citadel Races reestablish communication with the Initiative, however because of just how long it's been there's immediate animosity and tension between the two organizations and a sort of Cold War brews. Perhaps Earth had been building their own  Relay network out toward Andromeda to use as a more practical bridge and plan to send a "Relief Fleet" to effectively take command of the Initiative.

At the same time the Initiative-Angaran Alliance have been preparing for the inevitable return of the Khett to the Cluster. All the while efforts have been made into uncovering more secrets behind the Jardaan and their Remnant creations. Mysterious Alien Technology and their old secrets, an inevitable war, and the sting of animosity between your new home and the old. Science, Mystery, Politics, and War. All the makings of a thick story.

Agreed. I consider Sovereign a poser because it had to lie to an inferior organic being whose entire race it was about to annihilate. Why lie unless you know they actually pose a threat? Anyway, I don't need to see a new master for the Reapers. They have an origin, they're dead now (or not, I suppose, if you decided they aren't), let's just let them go.

Sorry, but you're a fool. Witcher is the best RPG to of the past decade. Games like that only come out once or twice per 10 year span.

Everyone has their own tastes, but there's always that one guy who loves eating shit. That's you.

Gah, 'it was all a dream' feels a little on the nose. I don't have a problem with them retconning the ending of ME3 in a remaster but I just want them to continue the Andromeda story.

1)  I don't necessarily have a problem with the "hand waving" of the original Mass Effect 3 endings, especially "Synthesis", but I'm not sure how much the overall community would embrace it.  Any future "Mass Effect" games set in the Milky Way will depend on the fans of the original trilogy so, question is, does a "it was all a dream" explanation after Shepard ascends on the platform alienate your core audience?  Hard to say.  Maybe it will be embraced as a resolution to their previous gripes about the endings.  Maybe BioWare will be viewed as cowards for abandoning their original vision for the trilogy.  

Personally, I feel that whole sequence after Anderson's death sends the endings into a weird place as soon as Shepard levitates on the platform.  Never mind the conversation with the Catalyst, the location and function of that platform felt very coincidental and arbitrary...it made little sense unless it was symbolic of the moment when Shepard lost consciousness and their subconscious dealt with the Citadel's "intelligence". 

From that moment, Casey Hudson and company could tweak the narrative in such a way where "Destroy" is a symbolic breaking with the Catalysts attempts to convince Shepard that he/she could "Control" the Reaper forces or that "Synthesis" would be anything more than the Catalyst completing their mission of finding a solution of the inevitability of a Synthetic intelligence overtaking it's organic creators.  However, with the "Extended Cut", though, Hudson and company pretty much showed their cards in regards to how they wanted to cap the trilogy.  They wanted the three choices to be the final statement with added cinematics for Shepard's memorial on the ship. 

With that in mind, it obviously makes you wonder about the purpose of the "breath scene", though.  If they had meant for that scene to symbolize "Shepard Lives!", why the memorial?  If the EMS is enough to not torch Earth but no enough to get the "breath scene", the memorial makes sense.  But, at the highest EMS, the scene is the same.  You would think that, with the highest EMS and combined with the Extended Cut, they could have provided a chance for the Normandy to return to the demolished Citadel to search for Shepard who has somehow indicated (homing device, bio-metric readout, etc) that they are still alive.  Here, I think, is the opportunity for Casey Hudson to make a tiny tweak to the highest EMS Destroy "Shepard's Breath" ending...remove the cinematics of the Relays being destroyed, have someone on the ship, moist likely Traynor, relay a message to Joker that Shepard's vitals indicate they are alive, and have Joker turn around and rescue Shepard form the Citadel.  This way, those that want Control and Synthesis can still have it but, for those who worked to get all the EMS they possibly could would be allowed to get this ending which, in turn, would allow for the Mass Effect Relay network to stay intact and the series to continue.

2)  Honestly, I can't see an easy way to continue the series in Andromeda that makes sense without a direct sequel to the events of ME:A.  You have the Kett, Jardaan/Opposition, and Benefactor storylines that have to be resolved.  That's a lot of narrative dump to be put in emails and datapads in-game.  It's a shame that BioWare Montreal was absorbed into EA Motive as this basically ensures that you will not see a new Mass Effect game until the 2020's after the release of "Anthem" and "Dragon Age 4" and I only think "Mass Effect" happens if either the "The Old Republic" MMO is wound down and Austin takes over the task with guidance from Edmonton or EA and BioWare agree to expand Edmonton or open a new BioWare affiliated studio to execute the development.          

Bailey surviving and finding Shepard alive on a devastated Citadel would a good way to continue to the trilogy through "Destroy" with a high enough EMS.  I'd be down with that.  One of the missing sequences of ME3 is what happened to the people on the Citadel after the Reapers assumed control and brought it to Sol.  I don't think it was ever addressed.  If it was possible, Bailey would certainly so his duty and try to protect survivors and/or attempt to determine how to regain control.  If he received Hackett's announcement that Shepard had made it on board the Citadel. he'd likely attempt to reach Shepard to determine their status or assist.  If there was a new game post-ME Trilogy, Shepard could live but not be the main protagonist...more of an adviser.