Don’t let the reddit thing scare you off
Oh, another story about apparent leaks. I can already hear you screaming “this is bullshit”, but bear with me because there are things which actually give some credence to this one. Okay? Okay.
A reddit user has claimed to have taken a survey that leaked some pretty big information about everyone’s favourite upcoming Star Trek sim Mass Effect 4. There’s a buttload of information here, so I’m going to bullet point the main things.
- Set in the uncharted Helius Cluster in the Andromeda Galaxy. All the previous games have been pretty firmly set in the Milky Way. The cluster is apparently 4x the size of Mass Effect 3‘s map. You, playing as a pathfinder, will “encounter the remains of a once powerful and mysterious alien race.” Gee, I wonder where I’ve heard that before?
- Resource and colony building: resources can be found on planets to improve your weapons and armour, and build up your arsenal to explore further into the cluster. You’ll also be able to establish settlements on habitable planets and specialise them to produce more resources, or scout out more missions.
- Seven new crew members. The leak says there is one is called Cora (species currently unknown, but it does sound very Asari to me,) and there is also a Krogan named Drack. Quests will revolve around making sure your crew members remain loyal and supportive, but that doesn’t sound all too different from the previous games.
- More refined conversation options: you’re able to brute force people by threatening with your gun and interrupt conversations. Whether this will be similar to the Paragon/Renegade interrupt options seen in Mass Effect 2 and 3, I really don’t know.
- Deployed Strike Team Missions, AI-controlled mercenaries can be sent off to complete tasks while you’re busy with something else. Alternatively, there’s also Active Strike Team Missions where you will be able to play in a multiplayer co-op horde mode.
- Oh yeah, there’s a multiplayer co-op horde mode. Surprise!
- There will be no loading screens when travelling the cluster and exploring planets, the transition from ship to the planet side Mako vehicle is said to be totally seamless. The Mako is now also upgradeable and customisable, and hopefully a bit less shit than it was in Mass Effect.
- New raids, including Remnant Vaults and Khet Outposts. Both give you different kinds of rewards and can be found while exploring outback planets.
“But Joe!” I hear you yell, “This is all still from a reddit user! It’s probably totally rubbish!”
Mass Effect: Details leaked through survey (yes this is the real deal) http://t.co/DGTWsWZ861 pic.twitter.com/cCf0qYElNs
— shinobi602 (@shinobi602) April 18, 2015
That is where you’re wrong, dear friends. Shinobi602, an infamous leaker of accurate game info, has tweeted out the NeoGAF thread discussing this and claims it is real. He’s got a pretty long history of being reliable, as reported by OnlySP.
Shinobi602’s accurately leaked the Halo 5: Guardian‘s title, Battlefield: Hardline‘s existence, The Order: 1886‘s release date, the Homefront sequel, Halo 2: Anniversary, and a few smaller things. Because of that, I’m willing to bet on this Mass Effect information also having some truth to it. So smite me down if I am wrong, lord! I mean, smite Shinobi first, but then me. If you’re not too tired. Thanks, lord.
I’ve got to be honest: all I want is a fully fledged Mass Effect dating simulator. I want to be able to take my Krogan boyfriend on a date, and then have a hot and sweaty affair with a Turian behind his back. They’re the alien artefacts I want to explore, not some old dead race’s tech crap again. I’m sure we’ll hear more about Mass Effect 4 at E3, but no matter what I’ll probably be disappointed.
