Rumor: Mass Effect 3 to be revealed at the VGAs, will include multiplayer [update]

by David Hinkle on Dec 9th 2010 4:30PM

Joystiq has learned from a trusted source that BioWare's enigmatic teaser from last month represents the first glimpse of Mass Effect 3. As many have guessed, the third installment looks to feature something brand new to the series: multiplayer. We're currently unable to confirm that the multiplayer component will be part of the game's unveiling at the upcoming Spike Video Game Awards.

The Spike VGAs will air this Saturday night, preceded by a good deal of internet speculation brought on by the above teaser image. As spotted by one of our commenters, Arth Vader, the gun above looks exactly like the M-29 Incisor Sniper Rifle from Mass Effect 2. BioWare has also blasted out curious QR codes via its Twitter feed, all of which indirectly reference things from the Mass Effect universe, including the Vostok system and the surface temperature of the planet Aequitas.

So, who's ready for more Mass Effect? Do we even need to ask?

Update: While the game was indeed revealed during the VGAs, Game Informer's feature article on Mass Effect 3 has seemingly ruled out multiplayer (though it may appear in a different game tied to the franchise).

Tags: bioware, ea, mass-effect, mass-effect-3, microsoft, multiplayer, pc, playstation, ps3, rpg, vga-2010, xbox

Reader Comments (119)

i don't see Mass Effect 3 coming out till 2012 but if it is ME3 I will pre order on sunday

@WigglesPNG

Wouldn't you want to wait until they announce a special edition?

@Prboi

Why? It'll just be full of booklets and other useless shit that's irrelevant to the game.

@This Little Man Says His Name Is

Exclusive guns & armor? It seems like ME fans really care about that stuff

yaaaaay! XD

Didn't they say, when they released that image/trailer, that the game was a new IP?

@jsx92 No

@Dante True, my memory sucks.
http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/17/bioware-revealing-new-project-at-vgas-on-december-11/

@jsx92
Browsing the comments section of that, I've come to believe that it at least takes place in the ME universe.

I hope the multiplayer is just multi-path conversations.

@A Sandwich

Text example:

You have spotted an enemy soldier.

Enemy: I surrender! I surrender! Just don't shoot me!
A) I won't shoot... if you pledge to join my team!
B) I respect that and will capture you unharmed.
C) Say hello to me li'l friend! *Shoot them*
D) Let's see you dance sucka you got nothin' on me!

@A Sandwich
Reporter:Hello Sheperd i interviewed you a year ago on the citadel do you mind if i ask you some more questions?
A)Sure why not
B)Thought you learned your lesson last time*Falcon Punch*
C)Now's not the time
D)What type of questions

Player 2,3,4
A)Be a dick
B)Interrupt player 1 and be a dick
C)Be more of a dick
D)Be the biggest dick you can possibly be.

E) Look at your ______.

@Prinnywithascarf

F) whip out your dick.

the guy looks like he is from shadowrun.

If multiplayer means I can be a tricked out Turian with custom armor, I think I could live with that.

I'm mainly interested for the single player but the idea of adding multiplayer to the game intrigues me. I'm not going to dismiss the idea until I try it out. After all, Mass Effect 2 was very much a third person shooter so I don't think multiplayer is all that far fetched of an idea.

@Mcmax3000
Question: Did you think Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2 lacked anything by not having multiplayer? Do you really think that it would have been better with some lame death match component?

I tricked you, it was a rhetorical question. The answer is "no".

@fohf

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood proves you can have a great singleplayer game and add multiplayer.

Hell, Brotherhood had the best singleplayer campaign of the AC series yet.

@fohf

No I didn't.

Mass Effect lacked a lot of things but multiplayer wasn't one of them and I'm more then thrilled with the way Mass Effect 2 turned out. I wouldn't have changed a thing about it.

That said, I'm also not going to close my mind to something that could end up being really cool and fun. As long as Mass Effect 3 has a single player campaign and story as epic and as fun as the second game, I'll be more then happy with my purchase as I am with Mass Effect 2 but if it turns out they can add some cool multiplayer to it too, that's even better.

End of the series right? It best go out with a bang or have clues to the next installment.

Hopefully the MP wont be an after thought and works good.

If all this is true that is.

THE AGE OF HUMANITY COMES TO AN END.

YOUR FATE IS SEALED. THE CYCLE CANNOT BE BROKEN.

Guh of all the franchises I can think of that might be begging for multiplayer, ME is pretty low on the list. I wonder if this ties in to the EA prez proclaiming that "single player is dead" :(

@rigmutton

Thats what I said about Assasins Creed. Don't doubt creative people's ability to surprise.

@rigmutton He didn't claim that, despite how many people spun it that way.

He claimed complete offline experiences were dead.

That doesn't mean that the future will be multiplayer only, it means that the future of single player games will also include significant DLC offerings instead of the experience being limited to what is on the disc.

@rigmutton

for me, ME doesn't even appear on that list. why add multiplayer? why?! you can have a huge fanbase without it, EA, so why divide dev time between two modes now? obviously, this news did not make my day.

@Liquidfingers

Like the above comment said. Look at assassins creed. That game never needed muliplayer, & now that it's available, it's incredibly fun. Bioware is an amazing company & if anyone can pull it off, it's them. Mass Effect reached it peak with Mass Effect 2. They can only add to what they already have. Why not multiplayer? & they never said it would be a multiplayer like 16 people in one match. They could just add a co-op online mode where you can party up with people and do missions Red Dead Redemption style

@Prboi

The point everyone seems to be missing in this comments section is how completely different of games Assassin's Creed and Mass Effect are on a very fundamental level.

Despite being super shootery, ME2 is still essentially a Bioware RPG. Its all about player choice and dialog trees.

The things that make Mass Effect great don't translate to multiplayer, unless its a full MMO leap like they're attempting with with TOR. The idea smells a lot more like Bioshock multiplayer than Assassin's Creed multiplayer.

@Prboi

look man, i like bioware as much as the next guy and have been a fan of theirs since baldur's gate. there's one small thing that sets them apart from a developer like ubisoft and that is that they have absolutely no experience developing multiplayer games. they've never needed to, and why would they now? i doubt it would even be a thought in their heads if they weren't owned by EA. they've been plenty successful thus far without getting into it, why do it now? that's just one thing that bothers me about this, but this trend of releasing multiplayer modes for every game is really just stupid.

@Liquidfingers

It's a way to get people to interact with each other, instead of sitting alone playing by yourself. Sure, I enjoy that on days where it's snowing or something but there are times where I just want to play with friends. & the thing with Bioshock 2 is, Bioshock 1 never needed a sequal. So it was already doomed from the start without the multiplayer. Mass Effect is a great single player games but, eventually, they need to try something new for future projects. I mean, how long is it before people start complaining that their games are always the same? Previous generations ago, this wasn't a problem but games didn't come out every 2 or 3 years so people didn't get tired of them as often. What it boils down to is, just try your best to embrace the things Bioware tries to innovate in. I KNOW for a fact that they won't slap on MP & they will take their time on it, it this rumor is true. Don't shoot them down based on one feature that is an option. If it was MP only then I would feel your pain, but for now, be open to new things

@Prboi

If Bioware wants to try a MP game, thats great, but it should be a game built for MP from the ground up, a la TOR.

Have you played ME1 and 2? I doubt I know anyone that has that could honestly tell me to my face "ME multiplayer is a good idea." Everything from the storyline, conversations, gameplay, and especially the combat (which allows mid fight pausing to queue up weapon changes/power usage for your party at any time) are very specifically designed for single player.

If the MP is anything but some sort of co-op, I will be very shocked and braced for failure.

*This post written by someone who has played and beaten every major Bioware release since KOTOR 1*

Goddamnit I might actually watch this thing now.

@Kjartan Why? Gaming blogs wioll have the news up (and respective trailers up) in seconds.

@Petebot330

Knowing how most of them have the cam quality at first & then regular the next day. It's also the thrill of watching the unveilings as they happen. Which is why people watch E3. Just watch it. It's not like you have anything else to do on a Saturday night.

Mass Effect 3 = YAY!
Multiplayer = NAY!

@TraV says the guy with an AssCreedBros avatar

@TraV

Agreed. If they want to cash in on multiplay addicts....I wish they'd do it in a separate game entirely instead of wasting resources that could have been used in the actual game.

You know what? I'm going to go out on a limb and say that yes, ME3 will be announced at the VGAs BUT, the game pictured above isn't ME3.

Earlier, CVG UK had another image (http://www.computerandvideogames.com/viewer.php?mode=article&id=242933) of the game on their site and their source also had this to say:

“I won’t spoil it for everyone by telling you what the game is. But it’s going to have a lot of hardcore BioWare fans jumping out of their seats.”

My guess? It's MDK3.

@bigwhiteyeti

A cross over between Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Jade Empire & Knights Of The Old Republic?...

I'M ON BOARD!!!

I hope the multi-player won't take away from the single player, Ex-sample ME2 was a single player stretched on 2 disc's, What are they going to do with ME3 the main story on 2 disc's and the multi-player in a third disc.

I don't think so, which Tell's me I'm going to lose single player story to make room for a multi-player. ME2 sold enough on it's own it doesn't need a multi-player angle...

@Shimmy Ha! You know what I'm worried about? That there's gonna be like a dev diary talking about how they further tightened up the gameplay, streamlined the interface and brought action to the next level... and then we're gonna get a 2-person party, with the sidekick being controlled entirely by AI, and control system more akin to gears of war... and of course they'll explain that all those changes were made due to feedback from the fans :)

I am not bitter, not at all.... >:/

@Shimmy Oh yeah, and it's gonna be about 6 hours long, with a zero-day DLC that gives you access to MP, and 2 weeks after release a new map for MP will be released for $5 dollars

(this may be a bit over the top now, but y'all know it's heading towards that)

@2late2die capitalism lol

Hrmmmm I thought it was supposed to be a spin-off?

@Petebot330

There was that reference to something Mass Effect-related in a recent conference call, but I was told the VGAs teaser is Mass Effect 3:

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/02/08/ea-something-far-reaching-coming-for-mass-effect-in-early-201/

@Petebot330

I kinda thought that the far reaching thing was the PS3 version of ME2. Which is releasing in the up coming finacial quarter. I could be wrong.

I can only hope this is co-operative and not competitive.

@wormania

That still doesn't sound appetizing to me.

Bioware games are about adventuring with your party: talking to them, listening to them talk to one another, seeing the sights together. They aren't about hearing your friend's baby crying in the background through his 360 headset, or making him stand around while you go AFK for a bathroom break.

Crippling the directed character interaction by throwing another real person in isn't a fair trade. It'll either be competitive, or a very detached dungeon running system akin to Horde Mode.

Never thought that comment would pay off. Yay me!

If ME is really a trilogy and this is the last installment, why bother with MP?? Don't EA have enough IPs with MP. Just concentrate on kick ass singleplayer and leave MP for other games. And really, nothing against MP as such, just feels odd to add it to the last game in the series.

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Mass Effect 3

Rumor: Mass Effect 3 to be revealed at the VGAs, will include multiplayer [update]

Reader Comments (119)

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:34PM WigglesPNG said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 6:46PM Prboi said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 8:29PM This Little Man Says His Name Is said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 9:22PM Prboi said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:34PM DTwirler said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:34PM jsx92 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:39PM DanteSparda504 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:45PM jsx92 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:59PM Phoenix said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:35PM A Sandwich said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:43PM sonicspike41 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:22PM Special Agent Bob said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:56PM Prinnywithascarf said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 11:01PM maveric101 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:35PM Rizraz said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:37PM JohnDM said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:37PM Mcmax3000 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 8:13PM fohf said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 8:31PM Invigilator said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 11:24PM Mcmax3000 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:37PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:38PM I Am Sovereign said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:40PM rigmutton said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:11PM Dirty said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:46PM Mcmax3000 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:55PM Liquidfingers said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 7:02PM Prboi said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 7:10PM Chareth Cutestory said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 7:18PM Liquidfingers said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 7:55PM Prboi said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 9:29PM R Planteer said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:40PM Kjartan said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:15PM Petebot330 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 7:42PM Prboi said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:40PM TraV said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 10:36PM TheDarkWayne said

Posted: Dec 10th 2010 2:41AM ShadowXIII said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:41PM bigwhiteyeti said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 7:08PM Prboi said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:41PM Shimmy said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:50PM 2late2die said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:52PM 2late2die said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 7:08PM pigon toucher said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:42PM Petebot330 said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:00PM Dave Hinkle said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:13PM Dirty said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:43PM wormania said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 7:17PM Chareth Cutestory said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:44PM artyerb said

Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:45PM 2late2die said

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