BioWare dropped a trailer for the next chapter in the Mass Effect franchise at The Game Awards this month. The video appeared to show a Reaper, old companion Liara T’Soni, and a lost piece of N7 armor. Together, this strongly suggests that Mass Effect 4 will take place in the Milky Way.
This makes it seem unlikely that Mass Effect: Andromeda will be getting a direct sequel any time soon. However, the new project's lead Mike Gamble has already said that the visual references to both the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies in the opening of the new trailer were "intentional." Not only are there ways for BioWare to integrate the characters and species from Andromeda back into the main series, but BioWare may already have plans to do so in Mass Effect 4.
The Angara
Mass Effect: Andromeda struggled to step out of the original trilogy’s shadow. At launch Andromeda was plagued by animation problems as BioWare’s now defunct Montreal studio struggled to work in EA’s Frostbite engine. The bigger issue, however, wasn’t technical. The game’s story was unable to quite capture the imagination in the same way as the original trilogy.
Andromeda only took advantage of its new galaxy to introduce one main new species, the Angara. The game’s Angara companion Jaal was among the best received characters in the last Mass Effect game, likely in part because he attracted the curiosity of players for whom the Turians, Salarians, and other Citadel races were already familiar.
There is evidence to suggest that there will be an Angara character in Mass Effect 4. The recently released image “mud skipper” showed a ship with the silhouettes of its crew on the horizon. These silhouettes appear to have mostly been made using old assets. The two silhouettes on the far right, for example, use the outlines of Mordin Solus and Thane Krios from the Mass Effect 2 squad selection screen.
The figure to their left appears to use the outline of Jaal from Andromeda, and zooming in on the figure even shows them wearing what look like a similar outfit to Jaal's. It’s possible that this silhouette was created using an old Jaal asset and is not supposed to represent an Angara. The mud skipper scene is used at the end of the trailer, but remains out of focus in the background.
If BioWare does want to reintroduce the Angara, there may be a way. Judging by the dead Reaper, Mass Effect 4 takes place after the Destroy ending to Mass Effect 3. This means that the Mass Relays were also destroyed. In the original trilogy the Mass Relays connect the solar systems of the Milky Way and enabled faster-than-light travel using the fictional scientific principle that gives the series its name.
Unless Mass Effect 4 takes place exclusively in Earth’s solar system – where Shepard and Liara would likely be after the end of Mass Effect 3 – BioWare will need to figure out a way for interstellar travel to be made possible again in the Mass Effect universe. It’s possible that whatever discovery allows this to take place will also help connect the Andromeda and Milky Way galaxies.
Connecting Andromeda and the Milky Way
There is one major problem. Andromeda takes place centuries after the end of Mass Effect 3, and seems to show the Milky Way species’ first contact with the Angara. The plot of the game also suggests that the Angara themselves were a biologically engineered species created by a precursor race, the Jardaan. All of this complicates the possibility of any Angara being able to make it to the Milky Way in time for the events of Mass Effect 4.
Asari like Liara are very long-lived, however, living to over 1000 years of age. It’s possible Mass Effect 4 takes place centuries after Mass Effect 3. The events of Andromeda take place roughly 600 years after the events of the original trilogy. Liara is only 106 years old in the first game, and would naturally live to 706 with ease. It’s possible that Mass Effect 4 will take place long after the original trilogy, after the discovery of a new form of FTL travel that also helps connect the Milky Way and Andromeda, bringing the Angara back into the fold.
In that case, however, BioWare would need a very good explanation for Shepard’s return if the piece of N7 armor suggests the old protagonist is alive as many fans are speculating. Shepard already survived their own death at the start of Mass Effect 2, so it’s possible that Shepard somehow survived due to the effects of the Lazarus Project or the Crucible. That might feel slightly ad-hoc, but setting the game in the Milky Way centuries after ME3 would also give the writers a great deal of creative freedom.
Liara isn’t the only character who could return if Mass Effect 4 takes place centuries after the final battle with the Reapers. Krogan can also live to over 1000 years old, which means characters like Grunt could still be alive and kicking in the next game. However, it’s also possible that BioWare may be reluctant to include the Angara at all. The studio may try to leave Andromeda far behind, attempting to bring the series back to its core original characters and past strength with the next game. Though Jaal was a popular character and the species’ connection the Jardaan was interesting, they might not be considered worth adjusting Mass Effect 4’s timeline for.
For now, Mass Effect fans will have to wait for more updates on the new games’ setting. The closer Mass Effect 4 is to the events of Mass Effect 3, the less likely it is that the new game will be able to feature Andromeda, or any of its inhabitants. Much about the premise of the new game has yet to be revealed. BioWare is evidently willing to make some big decisions about the Mass Effect canon in order to continue the series. What those decisions are, and whether or not they will allow room for Andromeda, remains to be seen.
A new Mass Effect game is currently in development.