Mass Effect 4raised many questions when it was first announced, with the most common question concerning how it would deal with the game’s different endings. But regardless of how the developer opts to address this, the legacy of the game’s main antagonists cannot be understated inMass Effect 4.
The Reapers wereMass Effect’s primary antagonistsin the first threegames. Reapers were a race of sentient machines that helped cultivate civilization throughout the Milky Way Galaxy only to wipe them out every 20,000 years or so. Players had to defeat one in the firstMass Effectgame, only to contend with an entire fleet of them in the third installment. Before the credits rolled, players ultimately had to decide the fate of the Reapers and radically change the galaxy in the process.
RELATED:If Dragon Age: Dreadwolf Breaks from the Norm, Mass Effect 4 Should Double Down on It
The Reapers' Role in the Mass Effect Games
The Reapers in the games can almost be described more as an omnipotent presence or a force of nature rather than as a traditional video game antagonist. Most Reapers are the size of skyscrapers and generally rely onindoctrinated humanoid agents throughoutMass Effectto get many of their tasks done.
In the firstMass Effect, the Reaper Sovereign relied on Saren and the Geth. In the second game, they primarily acted through the Collectors before effectively conscripting the Illusive Man and Cerberus inMass Effect 3. However, the damage that they inflicted on the galaxy throughoutMass Effect 3cannot be understated.
By the time the third game begins, the Reapers are already on their way to Earth with the firstMass Effect 3trailer teasing the fall of the planet. Throughout the game, they cause untold levels of devastation to virtually every civilization throughout the galaxy; for example, the Turian military might is crippled by the Reapers. Earth and many of its major cities are decimated by the Reaper attacks and every ending of the game indicates that there is going to be a lot of rebuilding to do. This is something that cannot be ignored byMass Effect 4, especially if it is a sequel toMass Effect 3 as its teases of the Milky Way would suggest.
How Mass Effect 3’s Endings Can Affect the Reapers' Legacy
Mass Effect 3features three principal endingsthat all generated a good chunk of controversy when the game was released. The Destroy ending sees all inorganic life, but mainly that of the Geth and Reapers, destroyed. The Control ending has Shepard actually take control of the Reapers and has them depart from the worlds they are currently devastating before helping to rebuild the galaxy. The Synthesis ending ends on a similar note with the Reapers departing and helping rebuild the galaxy as synthetic and organic life merges.
The way thatMass Effect 4can ultimately honor the Reaper’s Legacy is dependent on what ending the developer opts to go with or if they opt to give the player a choice on the matter. It’s been argued that theDestroy ending inMass Effect 3makes the most senseand will likely use them as a cautionary tale on the dangers of Artificial Intelligence.
The Control ending would probably also see civilization fearful of the Shepard-controlled Reapers, with some remembering the devastation they caused and others having faith in them, remembering who Shepard was. The Synthesis ending would probably see them as a new faction that is probably feared and distrusted and could make for a potent subplot.
It’s too soon to say how BioWare will handle the endings in regard to the upcoming game. Games likeDragon Age: DreadwolfandMass Effect 4are rumored to be a long way out, so whoever is in charge of the game will likely have time to decide how to handle the situation. Regardless of how they do it, the developer will need to honor the legacy of the Reapers and not ignore their impact on the galaxy.
Mass Effect 4is currently in development.
MORE:Mass Effect 4 Will Be a Thing of Beauty in Unreal Engine 5
