EA has released some gameplay details, and even some spoilers for their upcoming finale to the Mass Effect Trilogy.
On the heels of the recent announcement that a new animated series is being set in the Mass Effect story-world, we’re getting details today about the nature of the next, and supposedly final, game in the franchise.
Commander Shepard will return as the game’s protagonist, which is likely no surprise, and players will be able to import their saves from a previous Mass Effect game, just as they could at the beginning of Mass Effect 2, although, for those who didn’t play the first two, or who want to start fresh, there will be a Mass Effect 3 prequel comic, in which the player can go back and make all the key decisions, which affect the plot of the finale.
It has also been revealed that they have split the difference on the RPG elements of the first two games. Mass Effect was panned as being to RPGish, and Mass Effect 2 was then criticized for rolling back the RPG elements too far.
The new system will be very similar to the system from 2, but with more choices, as each skill line will be able to upgrade multiple times, giving the player more customization options for the characters’ various skill sets, and allowing them to specialize even further.
On the topic of characters, we have it confirmed that returning recruitable squad-mates will include Garrus, Liara, and either Ashley or Kaiden – depending on which you chose to save in the first Mass Effect – unfortunately, my Garrus and Liara both perished in Mass Effect 2. The name of a new recruitable, Jason Sanders, has also been revealed, though his role is as yet unclear.
It’s also known that Wrex, Anderson, Legion, and Doctor Mordin will be back, but it was not confirmed which of them will be recruitable. I personally hope that Mordin and Legion are back in my squad, as they were the most fun to have around through the second game.
Some other spoilers were also given: The Reapers will be in your face right from the start, and most of the fighting will be against the husks they are now able to create from every species, rather than only human husks from the first two games. It also seems that the decision of whether or not Shepard saved the Rachni Queen in Mass Effect will have an impact on the story-line.
Mass Effect 3 is slated for this year’s holiday season.
