It's been a while since the announcement of a brand new entry in the beloved Mass Effect series. Here's everything we know so far.
Details may be kept under tight wraps so far, but one thing is for sure: Mass Effect will continue. After Andromeda didn't quite meet fans' expectations back in 2017, BioWare is giving it another go.
The initial announcement of Mass Effect 5 – if we treat Andromeda as "Mass Effect 4", which is exactly what we'll do – has already been a while back, in 2020 to be exact. Since then, fans had lots of time on their hands to speculate, so here's everything we know so far.
Mass Effect 5 – Is there a release date yet?
Let's get the most important question out of the way first: Do we already have a release date? I'll make it quick and painful: no, we don't. We don't even have an official release window, so it's anyone's guess at this point when Mass Effect 5 will hit the shelves. But, according to Rolling Stone, BioWare's full attention now lies back with Mass Effect after the release of Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
Speaking of – the latest Dragon Age didn't quite meet fans' expectations...
Disappointed with Dragon Age: The Veilguard and fearful what it means for Mass Effect 5?
BioWare's latest big release, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, didn't receive much love, not even from die-hard fans of the franchise – especially not from them, in fact. Many players were left disappointed with the game they waited ten long years for and were quite fearful that Mass Effect may get the same lackluster treatment.
That's when Michael Gamble, project director on Mass Effect 5, spoke up to ease fans' worries:
Lots of people asking me about Mass Effect now that Veilguard reviews are out, and Oct 31 is close. Both are from the studio, but Mass Effect is Mass Effect. How you bring a Sci Fi RPG to life is different than other genres or IPs...and has to have different kinds of love.
— Michael Gamble (@GambleMike) October 28, 2024
"Regarding tone questions: Mass Effect will maintain the mature tone of the original Trilogy. This is all I'm gonna say for now", he added.
Hopefully, he keeps his word – nothing left to do but wait and see at this point.
Mass Effect 5 – Check out the teaser trailer
Back in 2020, we got a first look at the next Mass Effect and let's just say one thing: fans are hyped, especially with a N7 helmet making an appearance. Check out the trailer for yourself right here!
On N7-day of 2023, we got another, way smaller update from BioWare.
Transmission complete! Thanks to everyone that helped hunt down the footage. Here's the full video stitched together! #N7Day pic.twitter.com/6Q8kEQkb5b
— Mass Effect (@masseffect) November 7, 2023
Fans remained a bit unsure, though – BioWare has been going through a little bit of a rough patch for years at this point and players developed "trust issues" – several disappointing titles left an impression with fans, fearing that the "old BioWare is gone with their magic." And this is a fair point to make: the team working on the new Mass Effect is quite different from the one working on the original Trilogy.
Mass Effect 5 – Plot, setting and Commander Shepard
We can only speculate at this point where the plot will take us this time, but the latest updates are suspiciously Andromeda-coded in our opinion. However, promo art of the Geth teases the Milky Way as well.
There's another thing that sent fans into a collective meltdown, though: we've already seen Liara T'Soni making an appearance in the teaser trailer, hinting that the newest entry in the franchise could focus on the original characters again. Of course, this could mean we get the beloved Commander Shepard back – that, for sure, would break the internet.
Still, don't forget these are all speculations at this point and as long as BioWare doesn't come forward with some news, you should take it with a grain of salt. Nothing worse than having high hopes crushed, after all. Rest assured we'll update you on the latest Mass Effect 5 news, though!