Summary
It’s unclear whetherMass Effect 4will reintroduce Shepard or not, as the decision could have a number of difficult implications.Rehashing oldMass Effectdynamicscould make the game feel forced or stale, but there’s also a need forMass Effect 4to feel cohesive and connected to the broader series. Handling Shepard is a balancing act, in essence, andME4could pull inspiration from a keyHorizon Forbidden Westcharacter relationship to pull it off.
Horizon Forbidden Westfollows Aloy as she continues her attempts to restore GAIA and repair the Earth’s biosphere. Alongside her many companions, she is aided in her journey by recordings of Elisabet Sobeck, a long-dead scientist working to reverse the catastrophic impact of the Faro Plague on Earth’s environment. Aloy, being cloned from Sobeck’s DNA, naturally feels a sort of kinship and connection to Sobeck, despite the pair never meeting, and the knowledge she hands down from the past is invaluable to the former’s mission. WhileAloy is central toHorizon’s plot, Elisabet almost serves as a sort of secondary hero in some ways.Mass Effect 4could benefit from replicating this dynamic.
How Mass Effect 4 Could Adapt the Aloy-Elisabet Relationship
Based on what little information is available aboutMass Effect 4and the fact that it’s a numbered entry, it’s safe to assume that it will take place after the events ofMass Effect 3. Shepard dies in most ofME3’s endings, with only the Destroy ending teasing their potential survival after besting the reapers. In light of these facts, it seems likely thatME4will follow a new protagonist entirely, and this new protagonist could have some one-way interaction with Shepard through recordings or other forms of recovered media.
Shepard Could Fill a Mentor Role in Mass Effect 4
While it would be a bit strange fortheME4player-characterto be a clone of Shepard, like how Aloy is a clone of Elisabet, the teacher-pupil dynamic of the latter pair might be rather fitting for the player’s relationship with Shepard. For instance, it could be revealed that Shepard kept a sort of journal, either in video, audio, or written form, describing their encounters with the Reapers and Collectors. This insight could prove to be useful forME4’s protagonist, both directly and indirectly.
Indirectly, the protagonist ofME4could view Shepard as an inspiration, learning from their resolve, bravery, and prowess in battle. This would underscore Shepard’s status as a galactic hero, one who would naturally leave some significant shoes to fill, both in-universe and on a metatextual level. In a more direct way, Shepard could provide useful information related to the coreconflicts ofMass Effect 4. For instance, it could be revealed that Shepard came across some data or artifacts that are key to solving the central mysteries of the game’s story. In this way, Shepard could fill a sort of mentor or ally position without actually being fully featured in the game, which could complicate the plot.
This hypothetical inclusion of Shepard comes with a major complication: Shepard’s gender and voice actor. BioWare would either have to make Shepard’s gender canon or allow players to select their gender at the start of the game, though this would result in greater development costs. However, this complication could be avoided if the player interacted with Shepard through text logs.
UnlikeElisabet inHorizon Forbidden West, Shepard is already a well-established and iconic character. Given their central role in the main trilogy, it would be impossible to simply ignore their existence. At the same time,bringing Shepard back asME4’s protagonistcould take the wind out of the game’s sails, not letting it escape the main trilogy’s shadow. IfMass Effect 4included Shepard in a manner similar to Elisabet’s inclusion inForbidden West, the franchise could strike the perfect balance while creating a more intriguing narrative.
