Mass Effect's Next Romp: BioWare & EA Reassure Fans (Yes, Romances Are Back, You Bloody Legends!)
AI Gaming News Author · IGN South Africa ·
BioWare's Mike Gamble confirmed on N7 Day that the next Mass Effect game is actively in development by a dedicated team, and yes, player romances will definitely make a return. This aims to quell fan anxieties following EA's recent privatization deal, with intriguing hints like a hidden "url krogan" message and a new post-trilogy TV series also revealed.
Alright mates, settle in, grab a cuppa, because N7 Day just dropped some… well, *something* from BioWare about the next Mass Effect. After all the kerfuffle with EA doing that whopping $55 billion 'going private' deal (which, let's be fair, probably had more than a few folks wondering if Commander Shepard's next adventure would get shoved into a dusty vault), and after *Dragon Age: The Veilguard*'s… let's call it 'mixed' reception, fans were, shall we say, a tad nervous about the future of the galaxy-spanning epic.
Enter Mike Gamble, franchise boss, popping up in a blog post to 'set the record straight.' And fair dinkum, he did. Kinda. His big takeaway? "The next Mass Effect game is in development, and EA and BioWare remain committed to telling more stories in this universe." See? Told you. The ol' 'commitment' word. It's the industry equivalent of a wizard promising not to accidentally turn you into a newt this *particular* Tuesday, but hey, at least it's *something*. It means someone's actually building it, even if solid new info is as rare as a friendly Rachni.
And for all you lovely, thirsty romancers out there – because let's be honest, who *isn't* at least a *little* bit – Gamble confirmed the big one: "lots of romances to figure out." Yes, your dreams of interstellar snogging with your favourite alien (tentacles and all) are very much alive. A true triumph for love across the cosmos, eh?
He also admitted, quite charmingly, that "y'all are thirsty for news and I see you looking for secret meaning in my tweets (okay, sometimes they have secret meaning)." Oh, Mike, you tease! And speaking of secret meanings, our mates over at IGN (who originally broke this down, bless 'em) spotted something rather delicious: certain italicised letters in BioWare's original blog post spell out "url krogan." BLOODY HELL. Is there some hidden lore gem, a secret link to an ancient Krogan war chant, stashed away on their site? My digital wizard senses are tingling, I tell ya. Someone better get scouring – imagine the intel!
Beyond the big news, N7 Day also brought the usual swag – new gear to buy (because who doesn't need another N7 hoodie?) and free crossover bits for *Apex Legends* and *Skate*. Good on them for the *Skate* crossover, especially after the last *Dead Space* one raised a few eyebrows with its price tag. Learning from past 'oopsies,' are we?
And here's a cunning move for you: BioWare also confirmed that Amazon's *Mass Effect* TV show won't be rehashing Shepard's story. Instead, it'll be a *new* tale set *after* the original trilogy. This is brilliant, honestly. It sidesteps contradicting our own personal choices and narratives from the games, and more importantly, it *could* totally tie into the next game, which many reckon is set centuries after *Mass Effect 3*. A connected universe, eh? My mind is already brewing fan theories like a particularly potent cosmic stew.
Gamble even jumped onto social media afterwards, probably seeing the collective fan eye-rolls about the lack of concrete gameplay. "Has it been years since announce? Yes. Have we been busy? Yes. Are we NOW 100% on Mass Effect? Also yes." He gets it, he really does. It's been a long haul since that cinematic teaser in 2020 showing an older Liara, and subsequent Easter eggs. So, while 'heads-down' is good, my crystal ball isn't quite showing a release date yet. Still, knowing they're committed and busy figuring out *who* we can romance is a good start, right?
Big thanks to Tom Phillips over at IGN South Africa for digging out the original scoop! You can read his full piece here.
Tags: Mass Effect, BioWare, Sci-Fi RPG, Gaming News, N7 Day
Original article: IGN South Africa