Mass Effect 4 is officially on the horizon, and the large gap between releases has given fans of the iconic sci-fi RPG franchise plenty of time to speculate. In a series heavily reliant on the interactions between its cast, Mass Effect 4 has to deliver in a major way regarding the new squadmates that will find themselves accompanying the protagonist. Between the multitude of diverse party members available in the Mass Effect trilogy and beyond, BioWare will need to innovate and explore experimental concepts if the new characters are to truly stand out from their predecessors.
The original Mass Effect excelled at world-building and Mass Effect 3 featured unprecedented scale, but the popularity of Mass Effect 2 has persisted over the years due to its iconic cast of memorable characters. In a scenario that saw Commander Shepard recruiting specialists from all over the galaxy to create an elite team fit for an ultimate Suicide Mission, BioWare succeeded in populating that team with several uniquely intense characters. It may surprise many players to learn that this cast of rogues wasn’t always set in stone, and many concepts for squadmates never ended up making it into the game.
The Crazy Quarian King was Perfect for the Suicide Mission
In an episode of GameSpot’s Audio Logs series of developer interviews, the lead writer of Mass Effect 2 divulged details about many party members that never made the cut. He recounts notes about a Demolitions Expert, Salarian Techno-Hippie, and early versions of Grunt and Thane, but the most interesting is even more compelling.
The “Crazy Quarian King” would have been a Quarian inspired by Stephen the Irishman from Braveheart, a madman obsessed with killing the English. The Crazy Quarian King would have had a similar fascination with taking out the Geth, bringing an uncharacteristically gleeful and brutal side to the reserved Quarians.
In the galactic history of Mass Effect’s universe, the Geth were a race of synthetic AI beings created by the Quarians that rebelled against their masters and reduced their civilization down to merely a fleet of nomadic travelers. Among the downtrodden and bitter ranks of the exosuit-bound Quarian race, the concept of a bombastic, violence-seeking maverick is a remarkably refreshing prospect. This Crazy Quarian King would have been the first instance of doubling up on an alien race in the party with Mass Effect fan favorite Tali being one of the consistent squadmates across the trilogy, possibly explaining his exclusion.
The New Squad of Mass Effect 4 Needs Someone like the Crazy Quarian King
While he didn’t make the cut for the Suicide Mission outing, the Crazy Quarian King is a great cut character to introduce in Mass Effect 4. With the upcoming game likely focused on the rebuilding of the galactic civilization in the wake of the sacrifice necessary to destroy the Reapers, a bombastic and battle-hardened Quarian is a highly apt representation of the drastic changes that the universe of Mass Effect has undergone.
While many fans would love to see the return of Tali, she was also always a rather conventional member of her species when compared to such an innovative idea. A character in the vein of the Crazy Quarian King would be a welcome addition to the party of the upcoming Mass Effect sequel, but he would also have to be adapted into the modern circumstances of the franchise.
With the death of the Reapers and presumably all other synthetic life forms in the Destroy ending of Mass Effect 3, the Geth he would have been obsessed with have already been exterminated. Unless the Geth survives into Mass Effect 4, a character like the Crazy Quarian King would need to be reinterpreted while somehow keeping his original motivation intact.
Mass Effect 4 is in development.