The Mass Effect trilogy might be getting the remaster it deserves
It definitely needs some calibrations
Say those three words and I'm yours forever: Mass Effect remaster. The rumour mill has lit up today following a titbit of news from EA stating that a HD remake or remaster of one of their games is planned to release sometime this year. VentureBeat claim it's going to be a remaster of the Mass Effect trilogy. Or maybe a remake. The article uses both words which is a little misleading.
But, what would we actually want from a Mass Effect remaster? I think it's an important distinction to make that these games don't need to be remade. But at the same time, there are plenty of things I would love BioWare to fix.
The first game in a great series is kind of like the first pancake you make. It goes a bit wrong but it still tastes kinda good, then you try the next ones and they're so tasty you didn't realise how shit the first one was. This is how playing the first Mass Effect felt for me. The combat is a bit bleh, the side quests are horrible, and don't get me started on driving that damn Mako. I'm not saying I want ME1 to be remade to play more like the other two, it just needs a lot of tweaks to make it a smoother experience.
Of course, there are a couple of specifics I'd love an ME1 remaster to address. Saren, for example. He is, without a doubt, one of my favourite video game antagonists. However, his character model makes all those beginning bits of the game where the council don't believe he's evil make zero sense. He literally has metal tubes coming out of him! He has an actual Geth arm! I'm Commander Shepard and this is the dumbest shit on the Citadel. All I want is an early game model of Saren where he's not an obvious walking Reaper slave.
This has actually just reminded me of yet another Turian character model that could do with some love. In Mass Effect 2, poor Garrus gets a rocket to the face, then wanders around for the rest of the game wearing armour embellished with a giant hole from said rocket. He gets a bandage for his messed up head, sure, but no one thought to even shove a bit of cloth in there, or something? You get an alternate armour for him after his loyalty mission, and even that has the hole in it! The only way to get him some clothes that aren't messed up is to buy a DLC pack. Now, I don't want to turn this into DLC bashing, because that's a whole other thing with these games. But please, BioWare, fix Garrus's armour. He deserves it.
I guess I can't leave this without mentioning something that Mass Effect 3's could do with changing. Rather than going for the obvious criticism - everyone's favourite game ending - let's just go with a slightly simpler thing instead. I think it would be nice if certain end-game scenarios weren't linked to how much multiplayer you've done. Don't get me wrong, I love the multiplayer and would jump back on it in a heartbeat. But for players who don't care about that stuff, it means they have to do extra side quests or play the game in a certain way to make sure they have enough war assets to actually get specific endings.
In the end, I feel like what we're likely to get from a Mass Effect remaster is something akin to the Dark Souls one. Updated graphics, improved multiplayer, changing a few bits and pieces to make gameplay a bit nicer - that sort of thing. Hell, it might not even be getting a remaster! But it's a fun conversation to have anway. So reader, what would you want to see revamped in a Mass Effect remaster/remake?
