BioWare confirms a brand new Mass Effect and remasters are coming

BioWare has announced it’s working on a collection of Mass Effect remasters, as well as a brand new entry in the series led by a “veteran team”.

Mass Effect: Legendary Edition will be released for consoles and PC in 2021, the developer confirmed on Saturday.

The three-game collection will include all DLC from the original versions, BioWare’s studio GM Casey Hudson said, and various graphical improvements such as 4K Ultra HD textures, better character models and new effects.

“We’ve heard (for years!) your requests for a Mass Effect remaster, so we’re super happy to finally reveal that we’ve been working on a remastered edition of the Mass Effect trilogy,” Hudson said.

“Our goal was not to remake or reimagine the original games, but to modernize the experience so that fans and new players can experience the original work in its best possible form.

“It’s been amazing to see the adventures of Commander Shepard take on new life in super-sharp resolution, faster framerates, and beautiful visual enhancements.”

Far more surprising for fans is the news that an original Mass Effect title has started development. BioWare confirmed that the “next chapter of the Mass Effect universe” is being made by a “veteran team” at the company.

The studio GM, who recently rejoined BioWare, was himself the original creative director for Mass Effect.

“We are in early stages on the project and can’t say any more just yet, but we’re looking forward to sharing our vision for where we’ll be going next,” Hudson said.

Last year a Kotaku report claimed that a new Mass Effect game was in the “very early” stages of development at BioWare Edmonton.

The game was said to be being directed by Mike Gamble. Gamble has worked at BioWare for a decade, serving as development manager on Mass Effect 2 and in producer roles on Mass Effect 3 and the last entry in the series, 2017’s Mass Effect Andromeda.

More recently Gamble served as lead producer on Anthem, a title which is reportedly in line for a major overhaul as BioWare looks to turn around the fortunes of its first new intellectual property in over a decade.

Mass Effect Legendary Edition was classified by South Korea’s Game Rating and Administration Committee in September 2020.

Publisher EA reportedly planned to announce and release Mass Effect Legendary Edition in October 2020 before delaying the game’s launch to early 2021 due to quality concerns.

Given the popularity of the series (the original three games had sold some 14 million units as of 2014), it’s perhaps surprising that they haven’t been remastered for modern platforms before now.

However, the fourth Mass Effect game, 2017’s Andromeda, received the most divisive reviews of the series, which could have reduced excitement around the franchise.