Former Mass Effect lead writer Mac Walters says the success of the Legendary Edition helped convince him to leave BioWare: 'I don't want to do any more Mass Effect after this'

Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition was as close as we’ve got to a major new GTA release in a decade, and it was roundly criticized by players and critics upon its launch in 2021, owing to the technical state that it launched in and the less-than-ideal “improvements” it made to three bona fide classics. Even now, the remastered trilogy remains in a state where there’s plenty of room for polishing and improvements- and it seems some of those could be coming in soon, on PC at least.

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The Mass Effect Trilogy’s former lead writer reveals his next sci-fi game is more action-oriented, rather than the RPG you might expect from such a BioWare veteran.

Former BioWare writer and project lead Mac Walters recently gave some insights on the new game from Worlds Untold. While details are scarce, we know it'll be a sci-fi action-adventure game, and not at all an RPG like Mass Effect. During an interview with the MinnMax gaming podcast, the studio head of Worlds Untold talked about his career at BioWare and what's next for him at his new venture. According to him, this next project will be a mix of elements from Mass Effect and, surprisingly, Apple TV's grounded sci-fi show Severance.

It's fair to say that the most defining work from developer BioWare is the Mass Effect series, which would become an influential RPG franchise. But in the years since the conclusion of the main trilogy, the sequel Andromeda, and the Legendary Edition, the studio has undergone several changes following many key creatives departing for new opportunities elsewhere. As successful as Mass Effect has been, many of the key creatives who've worked on the series are content with the work they accomplished and have moved to new projects. Recently, former lead writer of the Mass Effect series Mac Walters had an interview with the MinnMax gaming podcast, where they talked about moving on from BioWare to found the new studio Worlds Untold. Along with reflecting on the series' success, they were also quite frank about knowing when it was time to step away from BioWare and Mass Effect.

An earlier Apple Vision Pro launch timeline stated that the mixed-reality headset’s shipments would start in February next year, with the company’s supply chain working in overdrive mode to avoid any further delay. Now, one analyst believes that if the current schedule is maintained, the device will start getting stocked in stores beginning in late January. Aside from these launch predictions, the analyst also states that the mixed-reality headset will be Apple’s most important product for 2024 and also provides shipment estimates for next year.

There have been leaks left and right for several games and their companies this week. While the Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League leak has fallen out of the spotlight in favor of the Insomniac ransomware leaks, It was still a terrible leak for Rocksteady. In their case, these leaks are coming out a recent closed beta, as some testers have decided to break their NDAs and spoil parts of the game.

Something we’re seeing more and more of in recent years is once-established game developers changing on the inside and becoming something that gamers don’t recognize. That might sound very “doom and gloom” but it’s the truth, and Bioware is an excellent example of this concept. They were once an “underdog” developer that made some of the best RPG titles around, with Mass Effect being one of its “crown jewels.” But, over time, they started to lose the people who made the place special. EA bought them, and now they’re a shell of their former selves.

I'm just now getting to know Minthara in Baldur's Gate 3—both on my evil necromancer playthrough and my Honour Mode run, where I intend to pick her up from Moonrise Towers after risking my neck to knock her out. Still, I've cast off the shackles of spoilers after completing my first playthrough—gleefully getting my mitts on whatever details I can about my future drow bestie—which makes this a good point to mention that there'll be spoilers for Minthara's full plot line below. In a recent interview with IGN, Larian CEO Swen Vincke and co-lead writer Adam Smith discussed her character arc and the nature of evil, and they come to a conclusion I find genuinely fascinating: Minthara may grow to adore her compatriots, but she's still evil with a capital E. «She has this very unexpected story where she does soften,» says Smith, «and you see her learning how to deal with being part of a group.» However, Smith's keen to point out that her story «is not a redemption arc.» Minthara's tenderness, Smith implies, is a facet of her character from the get-go that you slowly discover—not something the player creates for her. Another surprising revelation is that Minthara can actually question why you slew the tieflings at the grove if you went full murder with it—even if that was the only way to recruit her until recently. "[Minthara] says, 'Okay, so now I'm not hearing the voice of The Absolute anymore … I killed all those tieflings, it's because I was brainwashed. What is your excuse?'" He goes on to point out that if you just reply 'cause I'm evil', she actually really dislikes that.

BioWare and Mass Effect veteran Mac Walters has discussed his reasons for departing the studio after 19 years to begin work with a fresh team on a new sci-fi franchise.