The Mass Effect Legendary Edition was released on May 14, 2021, after a highly anticipated wait. The collection contains all three of the Mass Effect trilogy and the numerous DLC’s for each game. The trilogy follows Commander Shepard as he/she fights to save the galaxy from a constant looming threat known as the Reapers.
Players can customize their Commander Shepard, choosing male or female, the name, and the look of the player character. The character can be imported across the three games, and if players have an old save of a character from the original games before the remaster, they can import their file and see their old character now in high definition.
The games are the same as the original, however, all of the graphics have been entirely redone to give the games a fresh new look. While the graphics aren’t exactly next generation, they do serve to make the game look close to the new-gen style. In terms of improvement, it takes Mass Effect 1, which was released in 2007, and makes it look as if it came out in roughly 2013. Each of the games is better than the last in terms of graphics, however, Mass Effect 3 does struggle a bit at the beginning. Mass Effect 3’s HUD system is a hard variation from the two previous games, which makes it feel slightly less improved.
An interesting thing to note is that the quality of the game on the player’s screen versus a Twitch stream is different. I streamed all three games for a friend of mine and I couldn’t help but note that my Twitch stream looked even better at times than what I was seeing. This could have something to do with the television I was playing on, but I would need to further examine this. Mass Effect 1 and 2 had such high improvements that Mass Effect 3 felt slightly lackluster in the beginning. Part of this had to do, I believe, with the HUD changes. Oftentimes, animations would change from the prior games which also led to a clunkier feel.
This being said, the graphics are incredible. Cutscenes particularly have high definition and look stunning. Each character got a significant overhaul and looks more realistic. The environments feel more realistic. Expressions on faces feel more synced and save for a few glitches, the game runs smoothly. It’s an immersive experience and fans new and old will enjoy the games. Those who have played before will get a sense of nostalgia but even those who haven’t played before will enjoy it.
Mass Effect Legendary Edition is available now on Xbox, Playstation, and PC.
Jeri Hensley
Executive Editor/Creative Director