Similar to other games from BioWare, Mass Effect: Legendary Edition is packed to the gills with shout-outs to other media. The easter eggs in Commander Shepard's story include references to literature, other video games (both from BioWare and others), films, and even real-world events.
The largest category is that of references to other science fiction. Some of them are obvious --squad mate Jack looks like Vin Diesel's character from The Chronicles of Riddick, for example-- and there are countless references to Star Wars and Star Trek, but others are a bit more obscure. Most of them are hidden in plain sight, waiting for eagle-eyed fans to uncover as they traverse the stars.
10 Alien: In Space, No One Can Hear You Press X
In all three games of the acclaimed original trilogy, players meet the Rachni, an insectoid alien race. While the aliens themselves reference any number of other similar races in other works (including the bugs from Starship Troopers), the missions involving them feature many, many references to the classic Alien film series. In the first game, when landing on the icy planet Noveria, the player is told that the supposedly dead Rachni were cloned after a company found some eggs on a derelict ship. A familiar setup.
Continuing the reference, a side mission in Mass Effect 3 has Shepard and company use flamethrowers to clear an underground nest of the bugs, as a shout-out to the marines doing the same thing in Aliens. Additionally, the colony in Aliens is called Hadley's Hope, while the Zhu's Hope colony appears on the planet Feros in MassEffect. There's another easy-to-miss reference on the planet Maji in the first game. While exploring, players may come across a strange skull that can't be identified. A closer look reveals that the skull is similar to the Alien Queen.
9 The X-Files: The Truth Is Out There
This popular show gets a couple of references throughout the trilogy, particularly in the Leviathan DLC of Mass Effect 3. During this series of missions, a scientist will state "The truth is out there," referencing a popular line from Mulder and Scully.
In addition, the main character of The Illusive Man (leader of the secretive organization Cerberus) is often seen smoking a cigarette in the shadows and plays all the angles. This is a reference to the Cigarette Smoking Man from the show. Also known as CSG, this enigmatic power broker alternatively helped and hindered the main cast of The X-Files, just as The Illusive Man helps and opposes Commander Shepard depending on the situation.
8 Firefly: Big Damn Heroes
While Commander Shepard and the crew of the Normandy are always "big damn heroes,"much like the crew of the Serenity from the cult classic TV show Firefly, there are a couple of other references as well. First, squad mate Zaeed Massani states the quote verbatim upon his recruitment in Mass Effect 2, while side character Kal'Reegar is a marine voiced by Jayne Cobb himself, Adam Baldwin.
Furthermore, Zaeed founded the Blue Suns mercenary band, which is a reference to the Blue Sun corporation from the show. Finally, the character of Jack has a backstory that is very similar to River's, and a planet called Canton is also referenced.
7 Hugo Gernsback: The Father Of Science Fiction
In the second game, early squad member Jacob Taylor will eventually give Commander Shepard a mission to find his missing father, who served on a ship called the Hugo Gernsback. While the name might seem random, it's actually anything but.
Hugo Gernsback was a magazine publisher and writer who is widely considered to be the founder of science fiction, as he published the very first sci-fi magazine. In fact, his work was so influential that the awards presented at the World Science Fiction Convention are named the "Hugos."
6 Halo: A Ship Remembered
Surprisingly, this wildly popular shooter series, which tells the devastating tale of the war between humanity and the Covenant, doesn't have as many references in the Legendary Edition as one might expect. However, there's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it reference in Mass Effect 2.
When passing through the Omega-4 Relay during the climax of the story, the Normandy enters a spaceship graveyard filled with derelict ships of all kinds. While most of the wreckage is nothing special, look closely in the background and The Pillar of Autumn can be spotted, which famously served as the first level of Halo: Combat Evolved, the very first installment.
5 Karel Capek: Do Robots Dream?
When going through Mass Effect 2, Commander Shepard will eventually stumble upon a chain of side missions that involve shutting down a virus that is causing mechs to go rogue. While this is a common science fiction plotline, what's unusual is that the mission takes place on the planet Capek.
Karel Capek was a Czech writer who, along with his brother Joel, coined the term "robot" in his 1920 play R.U.R. The entire quest thus becomes a reference to one of the most influential names in science fiction.
4 Helen O'Loy: A Robotic Love Story
Here's another robotic reference. Lester del Rey was a science fiction writer whose short story "Helen O'Loy" features a robot and a human falling in love. This parallels the romance between the Normandy's pilot Joker and the AI called EDI in Mass Effect 3.
However, there's another reference to the story in the second game's "Firewalker" downloadable missions. During this quest, players can find a note referring to the wife of a missing scientist; the wife shares her name with the title of the story.
3 Strontium Dog: Fighting The Good Fight
Another side quest in the second game tasks the Commander with boarding a ship called the Strontium Mule and recovering some cargo. The ship's name is a shout-out to the comic series Strontium Dog, which was created in 1978 and shares a universe with fellow comic hero Judge Dredd.
This particular comic features bounty hunter Johnny Alpha pursuing criminals in the 22nd century, much like Commander Shepard can do throughout the trilogy alongside companion Zaeed, who is the stated to be the best bounty hunter in the Milky Way.
2 Doctor Who: Traveling With Companions And A Dog
As the world's longest running science fiction TV series, it's not surprising that Doctor Who gets referenced several times throughout the Legendary Edition. One that's very easy to miss takes place during the Lair of the Shadow Broker downloadable content for Mass Effect 2. At the climax of the final mission, when confronting the Broker himself, he states that Commander Shepard's squad member Liara --who is a doctor-- travels with "fascinating companions." This is a reference to the Doctor's practice of taking on companions to travel with in the TARDIS.
In addition, a further reference shows up in Mass Effect 3, which features a small robotic dog that wanders around the SSV Normandy's lower armory deck. Previously a preorder bonus, the Legendary Edition gives the dog to all players. This dog is called KEI-9, which is a reference to the Doctor's robot dog that appeared in both Doctor Who and its spinoff show The Sarah Jane Adventures.
1 Blade Runner: The Eyes Have It
Perhaps the most easily-missed reference of all takes place in the Citadel DLC for Mass Effect 3. During the first mission of this add on, Commander Shepard passes through the freezer section of a restaurant while attempting to escape from their attackers. Standing in this freezer is a worker taking a break, who will react to the Commander's presence. Stand near the worker longer enough, however, and he'll eventually state, "look, I only do eyes."
This is a reference to the character of Hannibal Chew from the 1982 science fiction classic film Blade Runner, who uttered this line when standing in a frozen room and discussing artifical eyes with the character of Roy Batty. These are just a few of the galaxy's worth of references in Mass Effect: Legendary Edition.
Mass Effect: Legendary Edition is available now, for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.