The upcoming rerelease of theMass Effecttrilogy, remastered and upgraded for modern platforms, is highly anticipated. BioWare is taking its time to ensure that it’s changing the experience for the better, but only in ways that don’t meaningfully change the games themselves. One example being thatMass Effect: Legendary Editionwill have much shorter elevator rides. But another area getting revamped by BioWare is camera angles, with a specific focus on howMass Effectpresented women.
In an interview with Metro, character and environment director Kevin Meek talked about some of the limitations that are part ofupdating theMass Effect: Legendary Edition. Meek explains that the team was restrained in what it could change with regards to animations. However, what it could do was change how the camera was positioned to better represent animations.
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These changes to the camera are particularly of use with regards tofemale Shepard, according to Meek. And not just in oneMass Effectgame, but across the entire trilogy. BioWare apparently made several such small changes so that female Shepard was “a bit more on par with male Shepard.” Examples of changes that BioWare made to this effect include subtle face shape changes, as well as “some wrinkles or support” so that Shepard’s face better caught light to a similar degree to how male Shepard’s face does.
Another subject area was also addressed in these updates to theMass Effecttrilogy. That being howMass Effecthad many camera shots that would overtly sexualize certain characters. Meek explains how, as an example, one camera shot prompted him to ask, “why was that focusing on Miranda’s butt?” In certain cases, Meek says that the team decided to make a change. The exact goal of these changes and how wide-reaching isn’t clear, but the general idea makes sense.
Meek was also asked about the possibility ofMass Effect 3’s endingbeing changed with theMass Effect: Legendary Edition, as well as how BioWare approached the issue or if it looked at it as an issue at all. Meek says that the team “put all options on the table to start with,” but there doesn’t seem to be any serious thought put intoMass Effect 3’s ending. The goal, says Meek, is to rereleaseMass Effectas “what people remember it to be.” TheMass Effect 3ending is certainly a part of that.
From the sound of it, these small changes being made by Meek and the team at BioWare are unlikely to even be noticeable by the average player. The game will look better due to avariety of visual enhancements, but it won’t look like a different experience. That way,Mass Effectplayers can focus on reliving the classic sci-fi RPG series as they see fit.
Mass Effect: Legendary Editionreleases on PC, PS4, and Xbox One on May 14.
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