Mass Effect 5 Wishlist: 10 Major Risks Bioware MUST Take
Bringing back the finest sci-fi franchise of all.
BioWare seems to be on its knees right now, but all it will take is one great game to get them back on top. After Andromeda and Anthem both flopped, the developers need to claw back some credibility, and fast.
Dragon Age 4 is apparently next on the cards, but that is slightly insulated from blowback due to Dragon Age: Inquisition being BioWare’s last great game. Fans are a little concerned, certainly, but Mass Effect is the title which really feels in danger.
If BioWare is brave enough to go again, they’ll have to take some major risks.
Neither Andromeda nor Anthem were irredeemable, but in a world where games are either great or terrible, both games had enough wrong with them to land on the scrap heap. Anthem had far too many dull spots, including a ridiculous midgame grind to stretch things out, and literally set consoles on fire.
Likewise, Andromeda’s buggy facial animations made it an internet laughing stock. It’s actually fun in places, although the uninspired story didn’t help and the characters were short of the original trilogy’s quality. Hopefully the fifth will right those wrongs.
10. No Live Service Model
This one perhaps feels like less of a risk than it is a no brainer.
However, games as a service models are definitely here to stay, and publishers EA know that when they get it right, they can make a lot of money. One of the first questions EA allegedly asks of their new games is ‘where’s your Ultimate Team’ and the truth is, Mass Effect doesn’t really have one.
It’s a single player game which doesn’t really have much in the way of loot drops or cosmetics, and that’s how it needs to stay. If they end up making squadmate skins purchasable, that’s not going to cause any issues, but that seems a bit meh, really.
Online mode in Mass Effect 3 was surprisingly solid, while bugs put paid to Andromeda’s before it ever really had a chance. Live service for an ME3 level online mode wouldn’t be too bad either, but at its core Mass Effect is a solo player experience.
DLC at the quality of Lair Of The Shadow Broker or Citdael would be a good use of monetisation, but locking a key squadmate like Javik behind a paywall or cutting content like Quarians for DLC would only generate more controversy.