BioWare Asks: Next Mass Effect - Sequel or Prequel?

After drawing fire for Mass Effect 3's conclusion, BioWare seems to be treading with a little more care by gauging fan responses.

"Parsing through your thoughts on the next #ME game. Would you be more interested in a game that takes place before the trilogy, or after?" asked Mass Effect Executive Producer Casey Hudson in a tweet.

Following either route would make for an interesting narrative. No doubt, developing a prequel would be the easier course for BioWare, considering that it has plenty of Mass Effect history already developed through the games and all the transmedia tied into the games. The only challenge would be to craft a narrative that manages to tie into the trilogy without bringing up any conflicting material.

Considering the drama of Mass Effect 3's ending though, BioWare doesn't seem to be the type to tell the easy story.

Making the next Mass Effect game a sequel would possibly force the developer's hand in making one of the many Mass Effect 3 endings canon, though avoiding a mention of the direct ending isn't wildly unimaginable. It would definitely make for an interesting story, especially since it would show how the universe dealt with the world post-Reapers and Reaper technology. The plot of the original three was largely driven by the over-arching threat of the Reapers, and the BioWare writers will have the freedom (and challenge) of writing in some sort of new problem that the universe must deal with to drive the plot of the game.

So what will it be, prequel or sequel? It's altogether possible that BioWare has enough fiction to develop both.

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  • darkavenger123
    I want sequels. Hate prequels. Don't want to know anything that already happened.
    Reply
  • omnimodis78
    Sequel! Hands down. Prequels always mess things up, they always come off forced. There's always a shadow over the characters and story. No matter how it's written, twisted or re-arranged, the fact is that it has to all come together in the end to form the predefined story of the existing Mass Effect trilogy. A sequel has to respect the lore, but it can go anywhere from the point where it breaks away from the original. No shadows...
    Reply
  • vitornob
    Sequel OMG
    Reply
  • sp0nger
    I actually wouldnt mind a prequel

    it would be cool it import my ME character and depending on the history i selected for shepard in ME1 the prequel could play out differently to reach the start of ME1
    Reply
  • balister
    I can think of one prequel that would be fairly cool, being put in Anderson's shoes when he was being looked at as a Spectre canidate so we could get a little more story in on Saren. Given, you wouldn't be able to play a female, but playing as a young Anderson, even though we know how it ends up, would be interesting. We could learn more about Anderson and see how his Spectre canidancy shaped him to what he would become in the ME trilogy.
    Reply
  • bustapr
    future. the events in ME3(depending on some choices) could definitely come to bite civilization in the ass. Krogans restarting their rebellion would be a good plot. if it were a prequel, Id be interested in seeing the whole battle of when krogans were neutered. but definitely best to see a sequel.
    Reply
  • nameon
    Lol, bioware already messed up by allowing the possible death of the whole crew in ME2, anyways prequel should be the way to go, would be cool to not play human for once, maybe get into the boots of a turian during the rachnii wars and krogan rebellion, would be interesting to see how the turian culture is, got only a glimpse of it in ME3...

    and you guys saying prequels are bad..., I take it you didn't play halo: reach....
    Reply
  • boju
    This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the prequel pill - the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe.

    You take the Sequel pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes.
    Reply
  • casualcolors
    Well, here we go. Bioware started caving to player-agency in a single player story-driven rpg, and apparently now that's going to be a trend for them. Which, largely defeats the purpose of playing a single player story-driven rpg. In before they standardize multiple ending DLC and you pay for which ending you want to see. Nevermind canon.
    Reply
  • mt2e
    SEQUAL.....HATE PREQUALS
    Reply