The asari are depicted as beings with a feminine appearance by non-asari standards, a pansexual-panromantic orientation, and the capability of reproducing with any sentient species. Asari are encouraged to mate outside their species (to diversify the gene pool) and have utilitarian outlook on their pairings, since so many other species have short lifespans. Asari can live for over a thousand years and go through three stages of life, which is analogous to the Triple Goddess archetype in Neopagan religious and spiritual traditions. Asari culture is depicted as being egalitarian, xenophilic, pro-diversification, pro-multiculturalism and anti-eugenics. The asari appear in most Mass Effect games and media: several are major characters, such as Liara T'Soni, Matriarch Benezia, Samara, Aria T'Loak, Lexi T'Perro and Pelessaria "Peebee" B'Sayle. In addition, the asari are playable characters in the multiplayer modes for Mass Effect 3 and Mass Effect: Andromeda.
The asari have been recognized as an important aspect of the universe of Mass Effect and are popular among fans as subjects for expressions of fan labor, though they have received a wide range of positive and negative critical responses from their various appearances.
Concept and design
As the initial step in the design process for alien races, the writing team would first supply a short paragraph describing the species.[1] According to associate art director Matt Rhodes, the writers wanted a race of "beautiful, blue aliens" designed to add a familiar science fiction element to the series.[2][3] Their blue skin references the Orion species from Star Trek.[3] The Bioware team was also influenced by the 1992 space game Star Control II, with writer Patrick Weekes acknowledging the influence of the Syreen on the conception of the asari, with their feminine presentation, innate psychic abilities, and cultural emphasis on utopian ideals of cooperation and enlightenment.[4]
Unlike the design process of most other alien races where their concepts would be focused outside of a human being's frame of understanding, Rhodes noted that for the asari, the process went in the opposite direction as they were "idealized".[3] More alien-looking or unconventional designs for the asari were made, but were discarded for their lack of attractiveness from a human perspective.[3] Due to budget concerns, BioWare realized they would be unable to make both male and female versions for each of the races, which led to the creation of an all-female one.[5] Rhodes recalled that a drawing for a male asari individual was concepted by a team member, but it has since been lost.[3]
Rhodes noted that the silhouette of the asari's fringe was originally concepted as a hair style, and the final design of the species' hair fins mainly arose from the designers' experimentation with different shapes.[3] He indicated that the spiny fins hinted at the species' capability as a potential threat, as the asari would have developed over millennia of conflict and interactions with their environments.[3] The asari's fins, also described as scalp tentacles, evoke the image of a woman "emerging from the water with her hair swept back".[2] Inspiration was drawn mainly from sports-gear, such as climbing and scuba gear, particularly its "pliable, flexible" qualities.[6] After the addition of the hair fins, the asari looked more aquatic, and thus their design was altered to fit with that; this also led to the writers altering the asari home climate to be more wet.[3] Their clothing is meant to be both "alluring and sexy" while keeping a sense of "class and style", akin to a "Hollywoodred carpet feel".[2] Different silhouettes of clothing were made by the design team trying to find looks that a woman would wear, which would appear both futuristic but not "too far", while also keeping with the kind of clothes that would be worn in more aquatic environments.[3]
To help create visual variation for many of the alien faces, art director Derek Watts came up with the idea of different face paints and tattoos, which were added to many of the races.[3] Like many other races, asari too use facepaints, which helped with diversifying the characters.[3] The asari's anthropomorphic faces, derived from face scans of professional models as well as manual tweaks performed by team members, helped made asari characters distinct from each other.[3]
Attributes
Biology
The asari homeworld, Thessia, is rich with Element Zero, a fictional material which, when subjected to an electric current, releases dark energy.[7] Within series lore, Element Zero is so abundant on Thessia that the water and soil contain large amounts of it, thus life on Thessia has adapted and evolved to its presence, including the asari's natural affinity for biotic abilities.[8] While the asari mostly closely resemble humans in terms of biology, their blood color is markedly different due to the presence of Element Zero, which causes a violet-blue coloration at a molecular scale.[8]
The asari have been variously described as all-female and mono-gendered,[9][10] or hermaphroditic and sexually ambiguous.[11][12] Most asari choose to use feminine third-person, singular personal pronouns as an efficient means of conversing with gender binary species on terms they could understand.[12][10] The asari are evolutionarily conditioned to be pansexual and panromantic, biologically capable of procreating with any sufficiently sentient life form, and can reproduce with any known sex, gender or species—their offspring are always asari, regardless of their "father's" genetic species. They can get physically intimate as part of the process, but it isn't required, which has led to in-universe claims of asari promiscuity.[12][10] Instead of trading cellular material directly like other biological organisms, asari reproduce by "melding": linking their nervous systems with their partner's and utilizing the electrical pattern of their partner's system to provide a template for half the DNA of their resulting child.[13]
A small section of the asari population is affected by a genetic condition which manifests at sexual maturity and develops over time, causing the death of whomever the individual mates with instead of reproducing offspring. Known as Ardat-Yakshi or "demon of the night winds" in the asari language, these individuals are offered the chance to accept a monastic life of supervised asceticism upon diagnosis in order to overcome the psychological needs of their condition, but some are addicted to the "ecstasy" that advances with each fatal union.[14] In Mass Effect 3 the Ardat-Yakshi serve as a basis for the Banshee, synthetic-organic creatures described in designer notes as "the Reaper version of an asari Matriarch". The Banshee's silhouette is wispy and intimidating as a result of being stretched taller by the Reapers' conversion process.[2]
Asari can live for over a thousand years,[12] and go through three developmental psychology stages of life: the Maiden stage, where they explore the world out of curiosity and restlessness, with many trying their hand at dancing in bars or working as mercenaries during this time; the Matron stage, where they begin to feel the desire to settle down to raise children; and finally the Matriarch stage, where they are often elevated as leaders of their communities, dispensing wisdom from centuries of life experience.[10][15]
Culture
Avina, the VI hologram integrated into various Citadel information terminals, adopts the silhouette of an asari.
The asari's long lifespan makes them comfortable with observation and centuries long planning, and influences their conservative yet convivial attitude toward other species and their belief that their ideologies and values will inevitably shape the general galactic culture in the long term.[16] In diplomacy, this manifests in a tendency to centrism for the asari, as they seek millennia-spanning investments to maintain stable balances of economic, political, and military power.[16]
The asari were the first to discover the Citadel, and proposed the creation of a multispecies governing council after they made first contact with the salarians.[10] As part of the Citadel Council, they serve as its "mediators and centrists".[10] The asari have the largest economy of all the Milky Way species; their economic power and diplomatic reputation allowing them to wield persuasive influence throughout the galaxy.[12][16] In spite of their galactic-wide influence, the asari do not have a single organized world government; politically, Thessia is composed of loose confederacies known as the Asari Republics which are similar in concept to the polis of Ancient Greece.[17] Policy is decided through the ebb and flow of public opinion within sprawling but well-organized electronic democratic institutions, with the opinions of local Matriarchs being treated with deference and the closest analogue to an executive decision-making body.[16] The military strength of each Asari Republic is essentially a collection of local warrior bands which are not sufficiently organized for large-scale military campaigns but nevertheless have individual members who are well-armed and exceptionally skilled in biotic abilities.[16] An asari commando, who is dressed in a tight military style as opposed to the flowing clothing preferred by asari civilians,[2] is more powerful than the best human biotic adept, whereas lack of biotic talent will exempt an asari individual from military service.[16]
The visual design of asari architecture is inspired by the work of Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava.[2] The smooth curves and horizontal lines of Nos Astra, the capital of the asari-influenced world Illium reinforce the signature Mass Effect style.[2] A typical building in Thessia is characterized by large, swooping curves, while the Temple of Athame where Commander Shepard uncovers a secret artifact in Mass Effect 3 has upward-swooping lines like a cathedral.[2] The worship of the goddess Athame was originally the predominant mainstream religion before the asari achieved spaceflight. Siari is the most popular religion in contemporary asari society, which is grounded on pantheism and the belief that all life is fundamentally similar.[18]
Appearances
The asari first appear in Mass Effect: Revelation, the franchise's inaugural media installment. The Citadel Council is introduced in Revelation and is presented as the governing body and ultimate authority in Citadel space: the councilors pass judgement for violations of Council law, settle disputes between interstellar governments, and occasionally provide direct intervention in the form of special operations by delegating to its special forces personnel, the Spectres, which count asari commandoes among their number. A representative from the asari is always a member of the Council along with the salarians and the turians. In the video games, asari characters are encountered either as non-player characters or enemy units in innumerable missions and scenarios. Several asari character variants are playable in the multiplayer modes of Mass Effect 3 and Mass Effect: Andromeda. Asari characters are featured prominently in several Mass Effect media including novels, comics and an animated film, either as main or supporting characters.
Asari characters are first encountered in Mass Effect following the departure of the SSV Normandy from the human colony Eden Prime. Councilor Tevos features as the asari representative of the Citadel Council during the game's events, and depending on Shepard's actions, can be killed during the final battle. Matriarch Benezia, a notable leader among her people, is initially sighted as an aide of the rogue turian Spectre Saren Arterius on board the Reaper Sovereign; she is later encountered in the planet Noveria as a boss, supported by a squad of asari commandoes. One of her subordinates, Shiala, is encountered on the planet Feros where she had been absorbed by the Thorian, an ancient sentient plant-like creature capable of mind control abilities and creating clone copies of Shiala to use as its avatars; her once-blue skin had turned a shade of green as a lasting result of being integrated into the Thorian's physiology. Benezia's daughter, Liara T'Soni, is located on the world of Therum by Commander Shepard, where she joins the crew of the SSV Normandy afterwards as a party member and plays a pivotal role in discovering the location of Ilos, a lost Prothean world which contains an artifact sought by Saren.
Mass Effect 2 introduces Illium, a colony world operated by asari corporate interests which serves as an entrepôt between the Terminus Systems and the Asari Republics, as one of its primary settings. Numerous asari characters appear either as allies or enemies. Two notable asari who first appear in Mass Effect 2 include Aria T'Loak, the de facto ruler of the space station Omega, an important hub in the Terminus Systems, and the owner of the Afterlife nightclub; and Samara, a potential companion of Commander Shepard and a member of the Justicars, a class of extrajudicial law enforcement officers and executioners operating almost exclusively within asari territory. Samara's subplot introduces the Ardat-Yakshi into series lore, and involves her hunt for her Ardat-Yakshi daughter Morinth. In the Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC, Liara temporarily joins Shepard as a companion in Illium, where she avoids an attempt on her life by an asari Spectre who is secretly an agent of the Shadow Broker. She assumes the role of the Shadow Broker after locating and killing the incumbent.
In Mass Effect 3, Liara reunites with Shepard at a Mars research facility, where she has discovered plans for the Crucible, a Prothean superweapon theorized to be capable of defeating the Reapers. Numerous asari worlds are invaded by the Reapers during the progression of the game's narrative, including Illium and their homeworld of Thessia. The Banshee, altered from asari with the Ardat-Yakshi genetic condition, is introduced as a new enemy type and recurring element of the Reapers' ground forces. Following an unsuccessful incursion in the krogan homeworld of Tuchanka by Reaper forces, the asari councilor (either Tevos should she have survived the events of the first game, or her successor Irissa should she have perished) is saved by Shepard, who is simultaneously gathering information on a concept known as "the Catalyst", from a coup attempt at the Citadel by the human supremacist paramilitary group Cerberus. The asari councilor later provides Shepard with a lead about a classified artifact secretly housed at the Temple of Athame in Thessia, which may have connections to the Catalyst as well as the completion of the Crucible. The artifact is revealed to be a Prothean beacon containing a VI called Vendetta, whereas information discovered in the temple indicated that Athame is in fact a guise crafted by the Protheans, with the implication that they have intervened in asari development during antiquity and may be responsible for the asari's natural ability to develop biotics, a notion emphasized by the Prothean squad mate Javik if he is present. Shepard may also assist Aria T'Loak with retaking Omega station from Cerberus forces in the Omega DLC.
In Mass Effect: Andromeda, the asari are one of the Milky Way species participating in the Andromeda Initiative, a civilian project which sends settlers on board "ark ships" on a one-way trip to the Andromeda Galaxy prior to the events of Mass Effect 3. Two asari characters join the crew of the Andromeda Initiative Survey Ship Tempest: Dr. Lexi T'Perro, a medical doctor who arrived in the Andromeda Galaxy on board the human Ark ship, and Pelessaria "Peebee" B'Sayle, who accompanies the human Pathfinder as a squad mate or companion.
Promotion and reception
Mass Effect fans at PAX South 2015, two of whom cosplayed as asari characters.
The asari are featured as a themed skin for Anthem player characters, released on November 7, 2019, in commemoration of "N7 Day", an informal celebration of the Mass Effect franchise observed annually.[19]
The asari has been the subject of varied critical commentary; most critics recognize the asari's potential as a form of social commentary as well as a critical exploration of gender identities, but differed on opinion with regards to the effectiveness of their depiction within the series. Bob Mackey from 1UP highlighted the paradox of their role within the series as its most dignified race due to their "long-lived and well-preserved nature", as well as a blatant substitute "for all the green alien babes that Captain James T. Kirk would bed".[20] Lucas summarized the polarized opinions of the asari as "intelligent, thoughtful, sensual, over sexualized, objectified, infantilized".[15]
In her article published by Central European University in December 2015, Eva Edina Zekany argued that the asari could have been subject of vigorous discussion by anyone with an interest in analyzing the "subtleties of gender, sex, and nonheteronormativity", and yet they are "most commonly coded as embodiments of traditional femininity" within the series and by the fandom as a whole, which supersedes their potential as signifiers of a genderless sexuality.[21] Ryan Winterhalte from 1UP.com alleged that the asari as one of three areas where Mass Effect 2 was sexist, citing how they were always eye candy and questioning the appearance of Samara and Matriarch Benezia, and concluded that BioWare's work in diversifying the race seemed "wasted".[22] Mumu Lin from the Daily Californian criticized the overall depictions of the asari in the original trilogy as "straight male fantasy" as opposed to realistic writing, claiming that this shows the anthropocentric views of the game's writers when attempting to come up with a "diverse" world. She noted that in the Mass Effect series, female identifying aliens tend to align with depictions of human cisgender women in other popular media or do not appear at all until much later in the series due to the writers' "limited view of possibilities in alien races".[23]
In an article published by Glixel, Amanda Hudgins analyzed Lucas' presentation on the asari at the GDC 2018 Game Narrative Summit in March 2018. Hudgins remarked that the asari life cycle is about "community and self-actualization"; noting that the species are a conscious reaction to a sexist 1960s science fiction trope, she argued that it would be in the developer's best interest to continue its subversive portrayal of the asari as seen in the most recent games as it increases the franchise's inclusivity and profitability.[24] Evan Narcisse, in an article published by The Atlantic, highlighted in-game dialogue between Liara T'Soni and Commander Shepard about mainstream asari culture being pro-diversification and pro-multiculturalism, which he believed to be "an incredibly progressive organizing principle for a whole society". He was moved by the notion that "there's a whole society that actually encourages mating outside the tribe", noting he had personal experience dealing with the scornful experiences from society towards interracial relationships.[25] In a 2020 article, Stacey Henley from VG247 observed that the Mass Effect series have since moved away from an initially crude and fetishistic portrayal of the species in the first game and asari characters began to gain more agency and prominence as nuanced characters in more recent installments. She disclosed that she relates strongly to the asari as she experiences gender dysphoria and identifies as transgender, and that she finds comfort in BioWare's overall depiction of the species in Mass Effect media.[26]
The asari is considered to be synonymous with the Mass Effect franchise. Susana Polo from Polygon described as the asari as "possibly the most infamous alien race to appear in the Mass Effect series".[12]Digital Spy opined that "almost everyone could name the game, if not the race" if they are shown a visual image of the asari.[27] Mike Suszek, of Joystiq, cited them as his favourite fictional race in video games, commenting that the asari as a whole intrigued him, "from their intellectual ways and place in the universe to their biotic prowess."[28] Brittany Ferrendi from South California Gay News consider the asari to be collectively one of the best non-binary video game characters.[29] Fans have embraced the asari as a popular choice for fan art as well as cosplay at gaming and science fiction conventions since the franchise's inception.[30][31]
Analysis
GameSpot uploaded a video in April 2012 which analyzed the plausibility of life in other parts of the universe, and if complex extraterrestrial life exists, the probability of convergent evolution which the Mass Effect series has adopted for the conception of most of its alien races. The asari's physiology and gender status was compared to that of hermaphroditic animal species found on Earth, such as snails.[9]
In Chapter 4 of the 2017 book Digital Love: Romance and Sexuality in Games, Alexandra Lucas analyzed the asari life cycle, which is inspired by the Triple Goddess archetype, and suggested that it promotes a comprehensive representation of female sexuality in video games.[15]
Jordan Youngblood drew attention to the parallels between the Ardat-Yakshi and the term sinthomosexuality as proposed by Lee Edelman: "the cultural fantasy that conjures homosexuality, and with it the definitional importance of sex in our imagining of homosexuality, in intimate relation to a fatal, and even murderous, jouissance".[14] Youngblood considered Ardat-Yakshi characters like Samara's daughter Morinth to be representations of the "fatal lure of sterile, narcissistic enjoyments" as well as problematic assumptions about the lives of queer-identifying individuals.[14]
Related Research Articles
Mass Effect is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Microsoft Game Studios, originally released for the Xbox 360 in November 2007. It is the first game in the Mass Effect series, and takes place within the Milky Way galaxy in the year 2183, where civilization is threatened by a highly advanced machine race known as the Reapers. The player assumes the role of Commander Shepard, an elite human soldier who must stop a rogue agent from carrying out the Reapers' galactic invasion. The game involves completing multiple quests that generally involve space exploration, squad and vehicular combat, and interaction with non-player characters.
Commander Shepard is the player character in the Mass Effect video game series by BioWare.
The Reapers are a fictional fleet of sentient starships that serve as the main antagonists of the Mass Effect trilogy. The design of the Reapers was inspired by H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos deities. Within the series, the Reapers cause galactic-level mass extinctions every fifty-thousand years. The Reapers and their technology are capable of brainwashing organic life through a mind control process called indoctrination. The Reapers employ servants who are often altered into synthetic-organic life forms.
Mass Effect 3 is a 2012 action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. The third major entry in the Mass Effect series and the final installment of the original trilogy, it was released in March 2012 for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. A Wii U version of the game, entitled Mass Effect 3: Special Edition, was later released in November 2012. The game is set within the Milky Way galaxy in 2186, where galactic civilization is invaded by a highly advanced machine race of synthetic-organic starships known as Reapers. It concludes the story of Commander Shepard, an elite human soldier who is tasked with forging alliances between species for the war. It was the first title in Mass Effect series without involvement by Microsoft Game Studios.
Mass Effect is a military science fiction media franchise created by Casey Hudson. The franchise depicts a distant future where humanity and several alien civilizations have colonized the galaxy using technology left behind by advanced precursor civilizations.
Miranda Lawson is a fictional character in the role-playing video game series Mass Effect by BioWare. In it, Miranda is an officer of the pro-human group Cerberus, first appearing in the 2009 iOS game Mass Effect Galaxy, and then serving as a squad mate in Mass Effect 2. In addition to these, the character also makes an appearance in the Mass Effect: Redemption comic series, in Mass Effect 3 if she survived the events of the suicide mission in Mass Effect 2, and in issues 5, 6, 8 and 9 of the Mass Effect: Foundation comic series. She is revealed to have been genetically designed by her father, Henry Lawson, to be perfect, and ran away from home to join Cerberus.
Mass Effect: Paragon Lost is a 2012 American-Japanese adult animated science fiction action film set in the Mass Effect science fiction universe during the events of Mass Effect 2. It is produced by BioWare, FUNimation, T.O Entertainment and animated by Production I.G. The film was screened in select theaters on November 29, 2012. It was released for digital download on Xbox Live and PlayStation Network on December 14, 2012, and on DVD and Blu-ray on December 28, 2012.
The Illusive Man is a fictional character in BioWare's Mass Effect video game franchise. He is the leader of the pro-human group Cerberus. The Illusive Man wears an open suit that connotes both futuristic style and the "casual swagger of a charming billionaire". His eye implants make him appear slightly inhuman. He is normally seen in an empty office with no indication of his living arrangements. He is voiced by Martin Sheen.
Kaidan Alenko is a fictional character in BioWare's Mass Effect franchise, who acts as a party member in the first and third games in the series. The character is initially introduced in the original Mass Effect as a human Systems Alliance Officer and primary squad member in Commander Shepard's team. Kaidan's fate on the planet Virmire is part of a pivotal decision which the player has to make in order to advance the narrative.
Thane Krios is a fictional character in BioWare's Mass Effect franchise, who first appeared in Mass Effect 2 as a party member. The character is a drell, a race of extraterrestrial reptilian humanoids who form a sociopolitical alliance with the hanar, a sentient species of jellyfish-like entities. Thane Krios is voiced by Keythe Farley in the video game series.
Samara is a fictional character from BioWare's Mass Effect franchise, who serves as a party member in Mass Effect 2. She is an asari, a feminine species in the Mass Effect universe who are naturally inclined towards biotics, the mental ability to manipulate dark energy and generate various psychokinetic effects. Samara is a member of a highly respected and feared ascetic order of mystic warriors known as the Justicars. Samara's features were based on model Rana McAnear, and she is voiced by American actress Maggie Baird.
The turians are a fictional extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Mass Effect multimedia franchise developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. Turians are the first alien species to have come into contact with humanity within series lore, which inadvertently sparked a brief but vicious period of conflict which is eventually de-escalated due to the intervention of the Citadel Council, a multispecies governing body based on the Citadel space station. The aftermath of the so-called First Contact War as well as the underlying tensions between humanity and the turians form a recurring narrative theme in the Mass Effect series, which began with the franchise's debut work, the 2007 novel Mass Effect: Revelation. Turians are conceived as an avian humanoid species with an exoskeleton, whose biology is radically different from that of humanity and several other species, and are culturally rooted in a stratocratic society. Turian characters have appeared in most Mass Effect games and media with several playing major storyline roles, such as Garrus Vakarian, Saren Arterius, Nyreen Kandros, Vetra Nyx and Tiran Kandros. In addition, the turians are playable characters in the multiplayer modes for Mass Effect 3 and Mass Effect: Andromeda.
Dr. Liara T'Soni is a fictional character in BioWare's Mass Effect franchise, who serves as a party member in the original Mass Effect trilogy. She is an asari, a female-appearing species from the planet Thessia who are naturally inclined towards biotics, the ability to "manipulate dark energy and create mass effect fields through the use of electrical impulses from the brain". Within the series, Liara is noted for being the galactic scientific community's foremost expert in the field of Prothean archaeology and technology, specifically evidence concerning the demise of the ancient Protheans, believed by the galactic community to be the pre-eminent civilization in the Milky Way galaxy until their sudden disappearance fifty thousands years before the events of the first Mass Effect.
Mass Effect 3: Omega is a major downloadable content (DLC) pack developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for the 2012 action role-playing video game Mass Effect 3. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 on November 27, 2012, with a delayed release in Europe on the PlayStation 3 platform set for November 28, 2012. The pack follows Commander Shepard and the asari pirate queen Aria T'Loak as they attempt to liberate the space station Omega from the anthropocentric terrorist group Cerberus. Omega expanded beyond the developers' original plan during its development cycle, both in response to a mandate of freedom by BioWare management and as a result of the development team's desire to develop the experience they wanted, and incorporates cut content from the main game.
The Krogan are a fictional extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Mass Effect multimedia franchise developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. A member of the species is first introduced in the 2007 novel Mass Effect: Revelation. The Krogan are typically depicted as large reptilian bipedal humanoids who are physically tenacious, favor mercenary work, and thrive on conflict and violence. The Krogan are native to the planet Tuchanka, which is presented as a post-apocalyptic wasteland as a result of the Krogan's global thermonuclear civil war in the distant past. The Krogan are presented as having a complicated relationship with the rest of the Milky Way galactic civilizations, especially the Salarians; a past conflict led to the other interstellar species unleashing a genetically engineered biological weapon called the Genophage on the Krogan, drastically reducing their population and potentially driving the species to a slow and inevitable extinction.
Mass Effect 3: From Ashes is a downloadable content (DLC) pack developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for the 2012 action role-playing video game Mass Effect 3. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 as a standalone download on March 6, 2012, and included with all retail copies of Mass Effect 3: Special Edition for Wii U. Set within the Milky Way galaxy during the 22nd century, From Ashes follows Commander Shepard and the crew of the Normandy as they investigate an attack on the colony of Eden Prime by the anthropocentric terrorist group Cerberus, where a Prothean artifact had recently been unearthed.
The Mass Effect media franchise, developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts, is set in the distant future where various extraterrestrial species coexist with humanity. The developers created extensive background lore for the universe of Mass Effect and its alien species, with detailed explanations documenting the complex relationships between the universe's various factions and the setting's phenomena from a scientific perspective. The developers were inspired and influenced by numerous fantasy and science fiction works, as well as real world cultural and scientific concepts. Dark energy, a form of energy theorized to massively affect the universe, forms a key part of the franchise's concept and background.
Mass Effect 3 is an action role-playing video game and the third installment of the Mass Effect video game series, developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts (EA). Upon its release March 6, 2012 for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Microsoft Windows, Mass Effect 3 generated controversy when its ending was poorly received by players who felt that it did not meet their expectations. Criticisms included the ending rendering character choices inconsequential, a general lack of closure, plot holes, and narrative inconsistency.
The Citadel is a fictional space station and megastructure in the Mass Effect franchise of video games developed by BioWare. An ancient station supposedly constructed by the long-dead Protheans, it serves as the hub of interstellar politics and society in the Milky Way galaxy due to its status as the capital of the Citadel Council, the dominant galactic polity within the Mass Effect universe. The Citadel was praised by critics for its design, lore, and the diversity of its inhabitants enhancing the game world.
↑ Mass Effect Limited Collector's Edition, Bonus DVD.
↑ BioWare. Mass Effect. Codex - Biotics: Biotics is the ability of rare individuals to manipulate dark energy and create mass effect fields through the use of electrical impulses from the brain. Intense training and surgically-implanted amplifiers are necessary for a biotic to produce mass effect fields powerful enough for practical use. The relative strength of biotic abilities varies greatly among species and with each individual. / There are three branches of biotics. TELEKINESIS uses mass-lowering fields to levitate or impel objects. Mass-raising KINETIC FIELDS are used to block or pin objects. DISTORTION uses rapidly shifting mass fields to shred objects.
1 2 Willcocks, Luke (2018). "Why do Asari have different coloured blood to humans?". Journal of Interdisciplinary Science Topics. 7. Journal of Interdisciplinary Science Topics, University of Leicester. Archived from the original on March 11, 2024. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
1 2 3 4 5 6 BioWare. Mass Effect. Codex - Asari: The asari were the first species to discover the Citadel. When the salarians arrived, it was the asari who proposed the establishment of the Citadel Council to maintain peace throughout the galaxy. Since then, the asari have served as the mediators and centrists of the Council. / An all-female race, the asari reproduce through a form of parthenogenesis. They can attune their nervous system to that of another individual of any gender, and of any species, to reproduce. This capability has led to unseemly and inaccurate rumors about asari promiscuity. / Asari can live for over 1,000 years, passing through three stages of life. In the Maiden stage, they wander restlessly, seeking new knowledge and experience. When the Matron stage begins, they "meld" with interesting partners to produce their offspring. This ends when they reach the Matriarch stage, where they assume the roles of leaders and councilors.
1 2 3 Lucas, Alexandra (2017). McDonald, Heidi (ed.). Digital Love: Romance and Sexuality in Games. CRC Press. From Smoldering Justicar to Blue-Skinned Space Babe: Asari Sexuality in Mass Effect. ISBN978-1-35164-473-0.
↑ BioWare. Mass Effect. Codex - Asari: Government: The asari came late to the concept of world government. For centuries, their homeworld of Thessia was dotted with loose confederacies of great republican cities. The closest Earthly equivalent would be the ancient Mediterranean city-states. Since the asari culture values consensus and accommodation, there was little impetus to form larger principalities. Rather than hoard resources, the asari bartered freely. Rather than attack one another over differing philosophies, they sought to understand one another. / Only in the information age did the city-states grow close. Communication over internet evolved into an "electronic democracy". Asari have no politicians or elections, but a free-wheeling, all-inclusive legislature that citizens can participate in at will. Policy debates take place at all hours of the day, in official chat rooms and forums moderated by specially-programmed virtual intelligences. All aspects of policy are opened to plebiscite at any time. In any given debate, the asari tend to lend the most credence to the opinions of any Matriarchs present, nearly always deferring to the experience of these millennia-old "wise women". / Achieving consensus through public debate may take too long in a crisis. In cases where prompt, decisive action is required, the asari defer to the wisdom of local Matriarchs.
↑ BioWare. Mass Effect. Codex - Asari: Religion: The pantheistic mainstream asari religion is siari, which translates roughly as "All is one." The faithful agree on certain core truths: the universe is a consciousness, every life within it is an aspect of the greater whole, and death is a merging of one's spiritual energy back into the greater universal consciousness. Siarists don't specifically believe in reincarnation; they believe that spiritual energy returned to the universal consciousness upon death will eventually be used to fill new mortal vessels. / Siari became popular after the asari left their homeworld and discovered their ability to "meld" with nearly any form of life. This ability is seen as proof that all life is fundamentally similar. Siari priestesses see their role as promoting unity between the disparate shards of the universe's awareness./ Before the rise of siari pantheism, asari religions were as diverse as their political opinions. The strongest survivor of those days is the monotheistic religion worshiping the goddess Athame. Like the asari, the goddess cycles through the triple aspects of maiden, matron, and matriarch.
↑ Eva Edina Zekany (2015). ""A Horrible Interspecies Awkwardness Thing": (Non)Human Desire in the Mass Effect Universe". Central European University.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
↑ Ferrendi, Brittany (August 5, 2016). "South California Gay News". South California Gay News. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
