Many years ago, in the darkness that was 2004 (or 2005), I took an online survey. I'd received an email from BioWare probably because I'd registered for their forums way back even before Mass Effect was a twinkle in their eye. It was regarding a possible Jade Empire 2. I'd loved Jade Empire and was excited at the prospect the survey represented - namely, that BioWare was going to make Jade Empire 2. Sadly, that never happened.
What definitely is happening, however, is Mass Effect 4 (I'm just calling it that now because it's easier than that stupid [untitled] crap I was trying out before). It would appear that BioWare has issued another survey. The details of which have been leaked and much of Mass Effect 4 can be gleaned from it - if it's real. Right now we have no idea. However, to me it sounds pretty legit.
The most interesting detail is that Mass Effect 4 will be a sequel and it won't take place in the Milky Way galaxy. Instead, it takes place in the Andromeda galaxy - more specifically in the fictional Helius Cluster which encompasses hundreds of star systems. Your playable character is a so-called pathfinder tasked with scouting out new planets for the races of the Milky Way to colonize.
There are hundreds of planets you can fly to in your new upgradeable starship, Tempest, scan, land on, and explore in the new upgradeable Mako. Furthermore, you're supposed to be able to do all your flying to, landing on, and exploring without sitting through loading screens.
Size-wise, Mass Effect 4 is supposed to be 4 times as big as Mass Effect 3. So I guess you could call that "Dragon Age Inquisition" big.
The two new alien races that are mentioned in the leak are the Khet, who seem like the game's main antagonists (like the Geth in the original Mass Effect), and the Remnant. The Remnant are possibly extinct and have left lots of tech caches for the playable character to find. These Remnant Vault Raids will be a new mission type that will reward players with loot and Star Keys, which are used to unlock Orbital Facilities that award stat bonuses and "narrative acclaim."
Mass Effect 4 will also feature something similar to Dragon Age Inquisition's war table where you can send strike teams on timed missions. You can also do Active Strike Teams using multiplayer characters. You'll even have the option to join other player's Strike Teams.
The other two game modes are Horde Mode which will be similar to ME3's multiplayer and Khet Outposts which will function like single-player Horde Mode and will reduce Khet power in the area.
Finally, you'll be able to customize the way you colonize planets, with each kind of colony offering a certain bonus. Mass Effect 4 will also feature branching dialogue, party members, and skill trees just like anyone who has played Mass Effect will recognize.
So, for me, if this leak is real then I'm very excited for Mass Effect 4 (well, even more excited). It really seems heavily influenced by Dragon Age Inquisition and that's okay by me. Honestly, I'm just happy it's not a prequel. I hate prequels.
[via: Gamespot]
