Mass Effect 4: 10 Essential Things It Must Get Right

4. A Focus On The Characters

One of the most enjoyable plot-threads throughout the franchise was resolving the age-old war between the Quarians and the Geth - the latter being an advanced A.I. race that took off across the galaxy after being born by the former. Delving into the motives of both sides made for some great moments of getting lost in morally grey areas, but in the end you could actually unite them once again, making for a high point specific only to a handful of players that chose to embark down this path. Although in the end it was made pointless by the Starchild, (hopefully) it's a positive memory those players still carry with them. What we're getting at here, is some of the best moments in the entire trilogy are powered by - and focussed on - the characters, rather than any particular set-piece. Coming up against Saren at the very end of the first game let you actually talk him out of his indoctrination at the hands of Sovereign if you were specced the right way, again making for a characterful moment that resonated with specific players. When we got to part three and it was turret sequences and one particular scene where a gigantic Thresher Maw took down a Reaper ship, they were serviceable enough, but felt more like Bioware punching for the action-loving crowd rather than those who had invested time in developing relationships with any number of the crew.