Mass Effect is an action role-playing game 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.
The M35 Mako is a fictional vehicle that appears in the Mass Effect video game franchise. A six-wheeled tank / utility vehicle, it appears in the original Mass Effect as a drivable transport vehicle which is also capable of providing combat support. The Mako was originally intended for inclusion in Mass Effect: Andromeda, though a similar vehicle known as the ND-1 Nomad was featured instead. The Mako was widely criticized for being awkward to control in the game's vehicle sections, which was also described as lacking in meaningful content, leading to its removal as a drivable vehicle from later titles due to the substantial negative feedback. However, retrospective opinions of the vehicle have recognized it as an iconic aspect of the series in spite of its gameplay flaws.
Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Microsoft Game Studios and Electronic Arts for Windows and Xbox 360 in 2010 and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 3 in 2011. It is the second installment in the Mass Effect series and a sequel to the original Mass Effect. The game takes place within the Milky Way galaxy during the 22nd century, where humanity is threatened by an insectoid alien race known as the Collectors. The player assumes the role of Commander Shepard, an elite human soldier who must assemble and gain the loyalty of a diverse team to stop the Collectors in a suicide mission. Using a completed saved game of its predecessor, the player can impact the game's story in numerous ways.
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.
Ashley Madeline Williams is a character in BioWare's Mass Effect franchise, who acts as a party member in the first and third games in the series. Within the series, she is a human Systems Alliance Marine, who is a potential romance option for a male Commander Shepard throughout the first three Mass Effect games. Ashley becomes part of Shepard's squad during the first observed Reaper attack in the first Mass Effect. In a late-game choice on the planet Virmire, the player must choose whether to save Ashley or Kaidan Alenko in order to advance the narrative; this choice leads to the latter character's death. If Ashley is saved, she will make a cameo appearance in Mass Effect 2, followed by a more substantive appearance in Mass Effect 3 as a potential member of Shepard's squad. Ashley is voiced by American voice actress Kimberly Brooks.
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.
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.
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.
Legion is a character in BioWare's Mass Effect franchise. The character first appears in Mass Effect 2 as a party member. After Mass Effect 2, Legion returns in Mass Effect 3 as a supporting non-player character. Legion is voiced by American actor D. C. Douglas.
Jack is a fictional character in the role-playing video game series Mass Effect by BioWare. Jack appears as a squadmate in Mass Effect 2, and may appear in Mass Effect 3 as a supporting character provided she survives the events of the previous game. Jack is voiced by Courtenay Taylor. Within the series, Jack was orphaned at an early age and was kidnapped by the anthropocentric paramilitary group Cerberus to be exploited as a test subject. Designated Subject Zero by Cerberus, she is considered to be one of the most powerful human biotics in existence in the Mass Effect trilogy as the result of unethical experiments conducted by Cerberus to enhance human biotic ability, though her traumatic experiences have molded her into an antisocial and psychopathic individual.
Tali'Zorah, or Tali in short, is a character in BioWare's Mass Effect franchise, who serves as a party member in all three games in the Mass Effect trilogy. She is of the quarian alien race. Within the series, she is a skilled technician and the daughter of Rael'Zorah, a member of the quarian judicial review Admiralty Board. Ash "Liz" Sroka voices Tali in each of her appearances. Outside of the trilogy, Tali appears in Mass Effect: Homeworlds, a comic series with individual issues on each of several Mass Effect 3 squadmates.
Mass Effect 3: Leviathan 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 on August 28, 2012, with a delayed release in Europe on the PS3 platform set for August 29, 2012. The pack follows Commander Shepard and the crew of the SSV Normandy SR-2 starship as they investigate the truth about the origins of the Reapers.
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.
Jeff "Joker" Moreau is a character from BioWare's Mass Effect franchise. In the original Mass Effect video game trilogy, he is the pilot in command of the Normandy-class SR, a highly advanced series of spacecraft with stealth capabilities which serve as the base of operations for the player character, Commander Shepard. In Mass Effect 2, Joker briefly becomes a playable character when the Normandy is invaded and the majority of its crew captured by hostile forces. Outside of the video game series, Joker appears as the central character of the 2013 comic book, Mass Effect: He Who Laughs Best, which explores the backstory behind how he became the pilot of the Normandy. He is voiced by American actor Seth Green, who was given a level of creative freedom to improvise the character's dialogue during recording sessions.
The Suicide Mission is the final level in the 2010 video game Mass Effect 2, part of the Mass Effect franchise developed by BioWare. It involves the efforts of Commander Shepard and their crew to enter the Omega-4 Relay and infiltrate the Collector Base, a space station operated by hostile aliens under the command of Harbinger, a member of a fleet of sentient starships known as the Reapers, who has brainwashed their leader, the Collector General. The attack is considered a suicide mission due to the danger posed by the Omega-4 Relay, hence the name. Once inside the base, crew members must be assigned to certain tasks depending on their strengths in order to allow the crew to fight through overwhelming odds, rescue kidnapped humans, and ultimately destroy a "Human Reaper", a tremendous android under construction in the core of the base.
