BioWare - No "Shepard 2" for Mass Effect 4

Speaking with VG247, BioWare is taking feedback from the team on the direction of Mass Effect 4:

“This is really our starting point. Now the Mass Effect universe is vast, and very, very rich. So at this point in time, we don’t even know what kind of time frame we’re going to be in. All we’re doing is more gathering ideas from the teams, gathering feedback to see several things.”
“So first, we don’t want to make ‘Shepard 2′, or Mass Effect 4 with like, ‘oh there’s no more Shepard but you’re a soldier in the universe’. So this will be a very, very different context for sure, and nothing has been decided on the rest.”

More information.

You cant come back after the "Contact" ending, sorry. Not interested, one bit.

Very different to Shepard? In that case, I look forward to playing as a Volus protaganist in the next game.

An excellent opportunity to make a voiceless protagonist so you can play anything from a Volus merchant to an Asari matriarch, and return to the multi-hub, 'galaxy is your playground' ME1 formula.

An opportunity which they will almost certainly miss… though I have no doubt the result will be a really strong and polished Gears of War 5 competitor.

Bioware holds in the ME universe the only Sci Fi franchise written over the last two decades. ME is this generation's Sci Fi reference.

It is their best asset and they are going to milk it. It is the only bit that is certain here.

For the rest, Bioware has shown they want to turn the page and go for combat games, either shooter or fantasy warriors.

Just wondering how they are going to be able to pull out a shooter that is not centered on a soldier figure.

Space exploration/travel is the salt of any Sci Fi game. Bioware barely touched it in ME1 and totally gave up on that in 2 and 3.
Maybe they can put out something decent here.

Originally Posted by ChienAboyeur
Bioware holds in the ME universe the only Sci Fi franchise written over the last two decades. ME is this generation's Sci Fi reference.

Halo. Gears of War. Starcraft. Babylon 5 (started 18 years ago), since you didn't mention games-only. How is ME the only SF franchise in the past 20 years?

20 years is maybe too large. But even with that, Starcraft is not included.

Starcraft is a mere rip off of the Warhammer 40K universe which is older. For the rest, it is the same.

You can call everything a rip-off if you want to: Mass Effect (and every other space-opera) is basically a Star Wars/Trek rip-off.
And Mass Effect as the only SF-game? You forgot about these:

Fallout, Red Faction, Deus Ex, Borderlands, Anachronox, Beyond G&E, Dead Space, Doom/Quake/Rage, Unreal/UT/Bulletstorm, Portal, Prey, Crysis, Turok, Timeshift/Singularity, Homeworld, C&C. Even Assassin's Creed has some SF elements.

I'm sure there are countless others I haven't even heard of. Steam has dozens of indie games in the SF-genre.

Good, I think his story was played out fully.Time for a new lead.

Not wrote games but franchise. Studios/firms/companies are probably more interested in exploiting their franchise than developping games.

It was one Bioware's grievances in the past (when they were working on ADD base: having their own thing so they could exploit it the way they wish)

I strongly doubt that Bioware would be sued when expanding their universe because it is a SW/ST rip off. Bioware with the ME universe has a lot of room to manoeuver.

For Starcraft, it is very different. They are walking a fine line. Warhammer 40K is GW primary franchise. In decades, GW have managed so far to retain command on their universe. There are very few alternatives when building a W40K army, you have to buy GW minis. That is because GW has secured their territory. As Starcraft is just a rip off of W40k, they have to be careful that any developpment made in their universe is not covered by GW or they will get sued.

Blizzard must keep an eye on what GW does. Their hands are tied in the way they could developp their universe.

Bioware with ME universe? Nope, they are free to milk that franchise the way they want.

Very few things are new these days. I wont call ME universe a rip off. I doubt it provides original elements, everything is probably déjà vu. But the way they mix it all, which is the current way to pretend providing something new, is good enough to give Bioware room.

Starcraft? Nope, even the way it organizes elements is W40k.

I bet it would be a shooter. Shooters sell very good these days, and EA is about nothing but money.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
I bet it would be a multiplayer shooter. Shooters sell very good these days, and EA is about nothing but money.

Fixed it for you.

Originally Posted by ChienAboyeur
Not wrote games but franchise. Studios/firms/companies are probably more interested in exploiting their franchise than developping games.

It was one Bioware's grievances in the past (when they were working on ADD base: having their own thing so they could exploit it the way they wish)

I strongly doubt that Bioware would be sued when expanding their universe because it Ois a SW/ST rip off. Bioware with the ME universe has a lot of room to manoeuver.

For Starcraft, it is very different. They are walking a fine line. Warhammer 40K is GW primary franchise. In decades, GW have managed so far to retain command on their universe. There are very few alternatives when building a W40K army, you have to buy GW minis. That is because GW has secured their territory. As Starcraft is just a rip off of W40k, they have to be careful that any developpment made in their universe is not covered by GW or they will get sued.

Blizzard must keep an eye on what GW does. Their hands are tied in the way they could developp their universe.

Bioware with ME universe? Nope, they are free to milk that franchise the way they want.

Very few things are new these days. I wont call ME universe a rip off. I doubt it provides original elements, everything is probably déjà vu. But the way they mix it all, which is the current way to pretend providing something new, is good enough to give Bioware room.

Starcraft? Nope, even the way it organizes elements is W40k.

Here is a history lesson for you, Starcraft looks a lot like war hammer 40k because it started out as a game for games workshop…who decided at they didn't want to persue it after it was pretty much done. Hence blizzard released Starcraft.

I am NOT interested in multiplayer games, so Mass Effect: "Online" would be a no-go for me. But if they make Mass Effect: Origins (prequel), that could be interesting.

Originally Posted by cptbarkey
You cant come back after the "Contact" ending, sorry. Not interested, one bit.

Agreed. But more like I cannot intellectually appreciate BioWare anymore…that ending…so…so…intellectually insulting. Worst writing ever. Deus ex machina for the FAIL. So yeah…zero interest in Mass Effect. I just pretend only ME1 happened and I leave the story where Shepard is going to go hunt down the reapers after ME1…just like I pretend only the Matrix 1 happened…

EA/BioWare…may they shut down very soon.

I'm sure there will be sex and there will be boobs. It'll sell with or without Sheppard.

Originally Posted by rune_74
Here is a history lesson for you, Starcraft looks a lot like war hammer 40k because it started out as a game for games workshop…who decided at they didn't want to persue it after it was pretty much done. Hence blizzard released Starcraft.

A history lesson for me? More for people who state that everything can be call a rip off, failing to notice how close W40k Starcraft is (and relatively to the topic, how limitating to Starcraft universe developpment that is)

It is a rumour that has no bearing on the topic at all. Some say it was GW's order, others say it was made by fans of the W40K who were never to be licensed by GW.

Does not matter. What matters is that from that strong similitude, the Starcraft franchise gives much less room for being milked the way the ME universe allows.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
I bet it would be a shooter. Shooters sell very good these days, and EA is about nothing but money.

Hard to avoid the you're a soldier in the universe in a ME shooter.

Originally Posted by ChienAboyeur
Starcraft is a mere rip off of the Warhammer 40K universe which is older. For the rest, it is the same.

And all of that military science fiction can trace its roots back to Robert A. Heinlein's novel Starship Troopers (the book, not the laughable movie). With its jingoistic military dictatorship for a human government, its power-armored Mobile Infantry (the inspiration for Space Marines everywhere), its monstrous unstoppable bug-like aliens, and so on. You can easily read Starship Troopers and picture imagery from 40k or Starcraft.


On the subject of Mass Effect: I'm interested to see where they take the franchise next. I think it's a pretty cool setting.

I'm fine with leaving Shepard behind - but I really, really hope ME4 isn't a prequel or otherwise set in an earlier time period. I'll be a lot less interested if it doesn't move the universe time period forward after ME3's annoying ending.