For future Mass Effect, what are deal breakers for you

It's extremely doubtful the next Mass Effect game will feature the Ryders in any capacity given that they'd have to make another 600 year stasis trip back to the Milky Way, which would make Liara about 1300 years old and very much dead by old age, which we know isn't the case.

"They probably built a Mass Relay to travel back."

Even if they could, which is an incredible stretch of the imagination considering even the Protheans struggled to build Mass Relays, what could it possibly connect to? The only relay in the Milky Way that's even remotely powerful enough is the Citadel, and literally no one except Shepard's crew knew the Citadel was a Mass Relay, so there's just no way the Initiative would know to make use of it. Even if they did, which again is an incredible stretch of the imagination, it's not like the Council would allow them to.


This is such an oddly specific thing to be concerned about.

Besides, I can't recall a single instance of incest in any BioWare game besides FANS asking for it in Dragon Age 2 because Bethany was such a babe. I legitimately have no clue why you're afraid they would start introducing incest now, let alone for player characters of all things.


It's "death knell", but okay.


I hate Andromeda with every fiber of my being so I literally couldn't care less about the Ryders than I already do, but Shepard as a non-playable character wouldn't upset me at all. In fact, I hope we get to play a new character that can be of any of the main races, with Shepard either playing an Anderson-like mentor figure or even a squadmate. But if they make Shepard playable again, you won't hear me complain - another journey with Femshep isn't something I'll say no to.

Cerberus, though, is welcome to burn in a nuclear garbage fire. It is the single worst thing ever added to this franchise, and yes, I say that knowing ME3's endings exist. Cerberus is THAT bad.

Honestly, bringing Shepard back at all is pretty close to a deal-breaker for me. Bringing Hawke back in DAI didn't work for a lot of Hawkes. Shepard's an even harder problem, and there is zero chance that Bio will invest enough resources to solve it.

Utterly boring side missions that exist only to pad out play time and whose only positive aspect is "they are optional but you can do them for XP" à la DAI and MEA. I want a game with more bone and muscle and way less fat.

Another goofball protagonist with a bland team that makes me dread "doing the rounds" to check for new dialogue after each main story event.

Poorly balanced combat that reduces guns to priming devices for powers due to that silly "prime and boom" mechanic. Especially bad if we also get Anthem's "damage of a pea shooter, screen shake of Hiroshima" style gunplay.

While not a deal breaker I'd greatly prefer if they left Shepard alone.

I will echo alanc9's sentinment and say that a returning Shepard would be a deal-breaker for me. Shepard's story is done, let it rest.

I could deal with a returning Shepard if the game takes place shortly after ME1 but before ME2 (the month(s) where Shepard is alive before the Collector Attack). But that's it. But even in that scenario I would prefer Shepard to be relegated to a cameo and you play as someone else.

I think we should expect the final nail in the coffin to be the next ME game. The chances of a well-written game have been dwindling away. At this point, I think ME needs to be handed off to someone who wants to seriously craft a story. BioWare (or EA, if that's the source) don't seem to be it anymore.

Bringing Shepard back would be a good thing. Besides, his/her story is not finished. People will moan and groan if that were to happen, but with the release of the remaster, and by accounts did well, it wouldn't be hard if Shepard were to return. Shepard not returning would not be a deal breaker for me.

What I would consider a deal breaker may not prevent me from buying the game. If anything, it would cause me to wait till the game is available at the $ store, and would play it just to say I played it.

So, deal breakers?

No Cerberus. This is the big one. Cerberus is ME not Shepard. Without Cerberus, the reapers would have harvested this cycle.
No Harbinger. One of the best characters in the trilogy who shared one of the best scenes with Shepard in Arrival. Plus my Shepard liked that Harbinger was talking smack to him/her.
No Jacob Taylor. I say he should have been the one in the teaser not t'soni.
No Javik. What's there to be said. This character was awesome.
Playing as a lame duck again
Having the stowaway and traitor return
No Udina. This is one of the details that have changed. Udina was not killed. He suffered a wound to his right shoulder. Someone telling the story decided it would be better to have him killed. 
Using the green ending. I find this ending to be a joke. The ending was made for comedians to use for their opening act to give the audience a good laugh
No SR2. It was built by Cerberus. It's better than that ship that didn't have enough space for everyone on the ship.

At the moment there's only one that would prevent me from buying the game no matter what. Playing as t'soni's kid. I don't see that happening. That would likely be the end of ME.

that is why i prefer a limited playable cameos that makes sense within the context of the story with Ryder twins or Shepard return if we have a new protagonist.

yes it does. And it should be a nightmare sequence for the Player Character.

My Shepard would likely jump off a cliff to get rid of that crap. Or at the very least tell the sam voice thing to shut the **** up.

I can't think of a way they could do Shepard as the player character in a sequel that wouldn't annoy me. Anythings possible I suppose, but I doubt such a game would appeal to me, which I guess makes it a "deal breaker".

Deal Breakers:
Large sections of compulsory melee or stealth. I want to hunker down behind cover and shoot things.
A Prequel

Disappointing and potential wait for sales:
A return to linear environments. MEA showed you could do things with more open environments well (as well a poorly with the side quest writing).
Shepard as protagonist
Plot where space ancients did all the hard work now you have to push the button. It was poor in ME1, really bad in ME3, lets not return to it. The protagonist and the current races should have the agency. Funnily enough I didn't mind it so much in MEA because there it wasn't the way to defeat your enemies. I still wasn't completely happy with it though.