Mass Effect 3 is an action role-playing gae developed
by BioWare and
published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft
Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Officially
announced on December 11, 2010, the game was released March 6,
2012 and marks the final chapter in the Mass
Effect trilogy of video games, completing the story of
Commander Shepard.
Gameplay in Mass Effect
3 is influenced by decisions made in Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2,
for players who have completed those games. Combat has been changed and
refined; in particular, the cover system has been improved, there are more
options for moving around the battlefield, instant melee kills and more
conventional grenades are introduced as well as improved artificial intelligence. A four
player multiplayer co-op mode is also
available
Gameplay
Players with saved files from Mass Effect and Mass
Effect 2 are given the option of
importing them into Mass Effect 3. If a saved file is imported, over
1,000 variables are pulled that will help shape how the final chapter is
experienced. If there are no
saved files available, there are no origin-story comics for new players to help
them make quick decisions like there were in Mass
Effect 2. Imported characters' appearance and class are changeable, with more
features and hair-styles included in the character creator than in Mass Effect 2. Commander Shepard will always start
the game with some powers. Upon finishing the game, there is a New Game+ option that allows players to continue
playing after the main story ends or start again with their finished Shepard
and collect items they missed the first time around. The game has 82 minutes of cut-scenes
Mass Effect 3 has three pre-set campaign modes:
Action Mode, Story Mode, and RPG Mode. In
Action Mode, conversations will have automatic replies and a normal combat
difficulty. In Story Mode, conversations will have manual replies and a minimal
combat difficulty. In RPG Mode, conversations will have manual replies and a
normal combat difficulty. This last mode is reflective of the typical Mass Effect series experience. Overall, the RPG
elements in the game have been improved over those in Mass Effect 2, with a more detailed
leveling up system and increased weapon customization. To level up characters,
players will have skills that start along a single path and then eventually
splinter into two branches where they can select only one upgrade or the other
along a sequence of possibilities. Players
will also be able to customize their weapons with different scopes, mods,
barrels and ammo types. There are
25 weapon mods total — five per weapon type — and each of them will
have multiple power levels to collect. To select dialog options, players can
use Kinect to speak their choices instead of
selecting them with a controller.
As of August 23, 2011, BioWare has confirmed
the return of previous characters Liara T'Soni, Kaidan Alenko or Ashley
Williams, Miranda Lawson, the Illusive Man, Garrus Vakarian, Legion, Samara,
Morinth, Tali'Zorah, Urdnot Wrex, Jack, Mordin Solus, David Anderson, Zaeed
Massani, Kasumi Goto, Kelly Chambers, Thane Krios, Jacob Taylor and Ambassador
Donnell Udina from Mass Effect and Mass
Effect 2. Some characters will not return if they were killed at any point
during the previous games. The number of characters available as permanent
squad mates are smaller than in Mass
Effect 2 for the purposes of
deeper relationships and more interesting interplay, including same-sex
relationship options for both male and female Shepards. If players achieved a love interest in
both Mass Effect and Mass
Effect 2, then both previous love interests vie for Shepard's attention in Mass Effect 3. This "love triangle" is
resolved by the end of the game. BioWare has also confirmed new characters
names James Vega (voiced by Freddy Prinze Jr.) and Diana Allers
(voiced by Jessica Chobot, a
staff writer from IGN).
The search and analysis mini-game has been
changed from Mass Effect 2.
Rather than scan individual planets, a setup described as tedious and boring the Normandy scans a region of space for
salvage or War Assets. If these are detected on a planet, the scanner system is
still used to locate, but planets are no longer scanned individually. If an
area being scanned has been invaded by the Reapers, the Reapers will eventually
detect the Normandy's scans and move to intercept it.
The ongoing war against the Reapers is
controlled by War Assets and Military Readiness. War Assets are collected
throughout the game or are provided from previous game accomplishments.
Military Readiness is predominantly affected by the multiplayer aspects of the
game. As the player's Readiness increases, War Assets become more valuable. The
number of Assets and the player's Military Readiness determine the player's
success in the final battle against the Reapers.
Combat
Combat in Mass
Effect 3 has been changed and
refined from Mass Effect 2, and
further emphasis has been put on third-person
perspective aspects to make the
game more commercially viable. In
a preview for IGN, editor Arthur
Gies went so far as to say the game "plays like a shooter" and that
"combat-wise, Mass Effect 3 is in an entirely different
space" from the first two games. In an article for bitgamer, Joe Martin
gave a conflicting impression, noting that with regard to combat, "not a
lot has changed".
The series' cover system has been improved so
players no longer need to slide into cover and then hop over objects. Players
will have more options for moving around the battlefield, including a refined
sprint capability, combat rolling, and the use of climbable ladders. Players
can also blindfire their weapons from covered positions, and have opportunities
to shoot selected armor pieces and limbs off enemies. Verbal orders can be issued to move
squad mates and use their powers with the use of Kinect. Moving and shooting, a
"suicidal maneuver" in Mass
Effect 2, will be a viable option because of a revised melee system. Players
are able to execute formidable punches and attacks, and instant melee kills are
introduced specific to each class; for example, by holding down the melee
button, a soldier Shepard will deliver a killing blow with a tech-blade in
his/her wrist armor. Actual, round, conventional grenades will also be
available.
Mass Effect 3 plans to be the most difficult in the
series, with increased artificial intelligence to challenge players and
increase the sense of reward. Enemies
no longer act as individuals as they did in the previous games, instead
fighting and supporting each other in units. Enemies include 15-foot (4.6 m)
tall Cerberus mechs, assault troopers, and ninja-style shock troops, as well as
Reaperized husks of all races and Reaper ships ranging from 500 to 2,000 metres
(1,600 to 6,600 ft) long. Some
changes are made to already-existing class types; for example, Engineers are
able to build turrets.
Multiplayer
Mass Effect 3 will offer a multiplayer co-op mode
called "Galaxy at War".In the mode, players are able to play
alongside up to three other players in unique missions that can impact the
outcome of the single player campaign. Each
mission was designed specifically for multiplayer, and will involve taking over
enemy strongholds. By completing these missions, players will give themselves a
better chance of attaining a perfect ending in the single player campaign;
although, they are not necessary to do so. The mode has been compared to Gears of War's horde mode.
No characters from the single player campaign
are featured in the multiplayer mode. Players will create brand new characters
for themselves and be able to play as members of non-human species, including
asari, drell, krogans, salarians, and turians. Every race will have unique powers –
such as a "Krogan Charge" for krogans and different movement options
out of cover between drell and humans. All classes are playable. The maximum level that created
characters are able to reach is 20, and just like in the single player mode,
leveling up will include skill branches.
The majority of missions are wave attacks in
various locations against different enemy factions. The selections during
configuring the game can affect experience gained and the overall difficulty of
the mission. During the missions, random tasks will be assigned, allowing for
the collection of credits to purchase equipment between missions. After a
certain number of waves, the players retreat to an extraction point which they
must hold until extracted.
Equipment and characters are acquired by the
purchase of kits which contain random weapons, characters, and mods. The kits
are purchased with multiplayer in-game credits or Microsoft Points.
Gameplay in the multiplayer mode will only
allow for players to carry two guns at a time in their inventory, and there is
no ring menu to change weapons; instead, weapons are changed by holding down a
button. Only three powers per
class are also available as opposed to those available during the single player
game.
Downloadable content
As with the previous games, downloadable content (DLC) allows players quests that may
or may not be tied to the main story. The first DLC mission is called From Ashes, which was leaked onto Microsoft Xbox Live Arcade. This gives
players a Prothean squad mate, one weapon, an alternate costume for Shepard's
squad, and lets them revisit Eden Prime, a world from the original Mass Effect. It is available as
a free incentive to those that pre-order the N7 Collector's Edition. It was
available the same day as the game.
The second DLC pack is called the Resurgence Pack, released on 10 April
2012, for free. It includes 2 new multiplayer maps, new weapons, and new
character classes and races to be unlocked in multiplayer--the Asari Justicar
Adept, Krogan Battlemaster Vanguard, Batarian Soldier, Batarian Sentinel, Geth
Engineer, and Geth Infiltrator.[
Synopsis
See also: Plot
of Mass Effect, Plot
of Mass Effect 2, and Setting
of Mass Effect
The Mass
Effect series of videogames
details the adventures of Systems Alliance Commander Shepard as he/she tries to
defeat a race of machines called the Reapers. In the Mass Effect 2 DLC Arrival,
Shepard is contacted by Admiral Steven Hackett, who requests Shepard go into
batarian space to rescue a deep cover agent named Dr. Amanda Kenson. After
rescuing Kenson, Shepard learns that the Reapers are close to returning and
delays them by destroying a mass relay. Consequently, 300,000 batarian
colonists are killed and Shepard is ordered to appear on Earth for a trial
regarding his/her decision.
Setting
Locations in Mass Effect 3 will include the salarian homeworld
Sur'Kesh, the asari homeworld Thessia, the turian homeworld Palaven, the
quarian homeworld Rannoch, a human mining base in a Martian crater, and a giant city on Earth
representing the combination of Vancouver and Seattle.
Players will also return to Tuchanka — the krogan homeworld — and the
Citadel.
Plot
See also: Characters
of the Mass Effect universe
Mass Effect 3 begins on Earth, with Commander
Shepard relieved of duty for the consequences of his/her actions in the Mass Effect 2 DLC pack Arrival, as the forces of Earth are
overwhelmed by an oncoming Reaper onslaught. Admiral Anderson tasks Shepard
with uniting the forces of the galaxy while he coordinates human resistance
forces on Earth. Before leaving the system, Shepard stops at a research
facility on Mars and saves former squadmate Liara T'Soni from Cerberus
troopers. T'Soni has discovered blueprints in the Prothean ruins to a weapon
that may have the power to destroy the Reapers. The blueprints are forwarded to
Hackett, who dubs the weapon "The Crucible" and begins preparations
for its construction.
The Citadel Council is reluctant to provide
aid to Earth with Reapers attacking their own systems. To foster goodwill,
Shepard is sent on various missions throughout the galaxy, gathering allies for
the ongoing war and resources for the Crucible. In addition to opposition from
the Reapers, Shepard must also fight the pro-human organization Cerberus, as
the organization's leader, the Illusive Man, believes controlling the Reapers
is better for humanity than destroying them.
Key missions include:
Delivering a cure to the krogan genophage, to unite krogan and turian forces. Shepard must decide whether or
not to actually cure the krogans or trick them to gain support from the salarians, who first devised the
genophage to stop krogan expansion.
Repelling a Cerberus attempt to take over the
Citadel. If Shepard can't convince former squadmate Kaidan Alenko or Ashley
Williams (one is guaranteed to have died during Mass Effect 1) that Councilor Udina
organized the attack, Shepard must kill him/her. Udina dies in the process and
Shepard encounters to Cerberus operative Kai Leng for the first time. Shepard
may also be able to win salarian support by saving their Councilor from death
at Leng's hands.
Dealing with the quarians' attempt to retake their
homeworld Rannoch from the geth.
Shepard can side with one group in annihilating the other, or unite them.
Defending the asari homeworld, Thessia, from the Reapers,
whilst simultaneously attempting to gather information critical to the
Crucible's construction. Shepard is directed to visit a specific asari temple,
which contains a secret Prothean VI, Vendetta. Just as it is about to
reveal information on the Catalyst, a crucial component of the Crucible, Kai
Leng ambushes Shepard's team and steals it.
Attacking Cerberus headquarters, as the first
step towards repulsing the Reapers. The Illusive Man escapes, though Shepard
kills Kai Leng and recovers Vendetta. It reveals that the Citadel itself is the
Catalyst. Because the Illusive Man has been indoctrinated, he has shared this
information with the Reapers, who have moved the Citadel to a defensive posture
in Earth's orbit; as such, the series' final battle takes place there.
Admiral Hackett assembles the galaxy's forces
and delivers an attack on the Reapers designed to retake the Citadel and
combine it with the now-completed Crucible. Shepard is part of the assault on
London, identified as the focal connection point from Earth to the Citadel. Due
to heavy opposition, Shepard and Admiral Anderson are the only ones able to
actually make it aboard the Citadel. They meet an obviously indoctrinated
Illusive Man and manage to stop him, but not before Anderson is mortally
wounded. Shepard opens the Citadel and the Crucible docks with it.
Shepard is then transported to the pinnacle
of the Citadel, where the Crucible is docked and an artificial intelligence (resembling a child Shepard saw die on
Earth) appears, identifying itself as the Catalyst and the Reapers' creator. It
reveals that the Reaper cycle is an attempt to prevent organic life from wiping
itself out by creating synthetic life; creators, the Catalyst argues, are
always doomed to be destroyed by the created. The Catalyst characterizes the
harvest as an ascendance, wherein advanced organic races are preserved in
Reaper form and space is left for more primitive species to rise, evolve, and
advance.
Since no other cycle had ever assembled the
Crucible, the Catalyst has lost faith in the Reaper Cycle's ability to achieve
its goal. Depending on the player's Effective Military Strength, the Catalyst
gives Shepard up to three choices: destroy the Reapers and all synthetic life
(including Shepard, who is partly synthetic), take control of the Reapers
directly, or convert all galactic life into a new form that is a synthesis
between organic and synthetic life. Regardless of Shepard's choice, all three
endings result in Shepard's apparent death and the destruction of the entire
mass relay network. London, and by extension the rest of Earth, can suffer
varying degrees of additional damage, dependent on the number and strength of
the allies Shepard gathered. The Normandy,
fleeing Earth via a mass-relay jump, crashes and becomes stranded on an alien
planet.
If the player's Effective Military Strength
is high enough and the "destroy" ending is chosen, Shepard is briefly
seen lying in ruins, potentially still alive. Finally, a post-credits sequence
depicts an old man (voiced by Buzz
Aldrin) and a child on an alien planet. looking at the stars. The child asks
the old man to tell him another story about "the Shepard", implying
that Shepard's legacy lives on.
Development
Origins
From the start, BioWare envisioned the Mass Effect series as a trilogy, with the first
two games being a preamble to the third. For
this reason, BioWare was able to begin production on Mass Effect 3 before Mass Effect 2 was even released. The game was directed by Casey Hudson,
who previously led the production of the first two Mass Effect games and Star Wars: Knights of the Old
Republic. To design the game, BioWare made sure to use fan feedback,
similar to what they did for Mass
Effect 2. In particular, the
game's development team paid close attention to past mistakes in the series as
well as the critical failings of other BioWare titles such as Dragon Age II. The team was able to devote most of
their time to gameplay and storytelling because, according to BioWare Edmonton
General Manager Aaron Flynn, they didn't have to worry about technology as it
was "pretty maxed out". Initially,
the game was predicted to be released at the end of 2011 or early 2012.
The lead writer of Mass Effect 3 is Mac Walters, who previously wrote
on other games in the Mass Effect series as well as Jade Empire. One of the goals set by the writing
staff at the beginning of production was to treat the game like a movie and
make sure that players playing it for the first time would "just be able
to jump in". Emphasis was put
on making the story user friendly for players inexperienced with the franchise
because BioWare felt they "didn't do a really good job of new player
orientation" in Mass Effect
2. To begin the writing process,
Hudson and Walters sat down and created a story document no longer than three
or four pages that contained all the major plot points. Once the document was
complete, Walters took the document to the writing staff and began filling out
minor details including minor plot points and missions. Once these details were
complete and the "backbone of the story" was established, each writer
was put in charge of specific levels and missions. Work done by each writer was
reviewed in-depth by the rest of the writing staff and others.
Reveal
On December 10, 2010, Electronic Arts posted
the official synopsis for Mass
Effect 3 on their website,
although the listing was later removed pending an official announcement at the
2010 Spike Video Game Awards. The following day, the game was
confirmed for a "Holiday 2011" release and accompanied by a teaser
trailer. On March 21, 2011, Tricia
Helfer announced via Twitter that she would reprise her role from Mass Effect 2 as EDI, and had already started
voice-recording sessions. Seth
Green soon followed, announcing
that he would reprise his role fromMass Effect 2 and the first Mass Effect as Joker.
The first detailed information regarding
development of Mass Effect 3 started being released in April 2011.
On April 20, Belgian website 4gamers.be reported that BioWare were
collaborating with Battlefield developer DICE in
weapon development for the game.[ The
same day, Game Informer released the first-ever screenshots of Mass Effect 3 to help promote their May 10 cover
story. On May 3, 2011, IGN announced that Mass
Effect 3 would be presented and
demoed by Electronic Arts at the 2011 Electronic
Entertainment Expo. The next day,
BioWare announced that the game's release date had been pushed back to early
2012,[ in part so it
could be tweaked to appeal to as wide a market as possible.[ On June 1, EA Games' online store
uploaded artwork by mistake which revealed the game will have Kinect support. The artwork was later removed. At the
2011 E3 Convention, BioWare finally confirmed Kinect support in a gameplay
video. The game's collector's edition, cover art, a new teaser trailer and
official release date of March 6, 2012 were also revealed. For the first time,
fans were shown actual gameplay videos, including a 15 minute demo supervised
by Casey Hudson. At Comic-Con 2011, fans were given an opportunity
to play a demo version of the game. Hudson and lead writer Mac Walters were
both in attendance, with Hudson sitting on the Legendary Pictures panel to talk about the upcoming Mass Effect film and Walters sitting on the Dark
Horse Comics panel. At Gamescon 2011, a new trailer was released demonstrating
50 seconds of combat gameplay. The
game was also demoed at PAX Prime 2011.
