TheMass Effecttrilogy was an epic adventure throughout the Milky Way, with Commander Shepard leading a motley crew of amazing characters who all save the galaxy. Although each game had its own array of enemies like the misguided Illusive Man or the indoctrinated Saren, the Reapers were the overarching antagonists that tied the first threeMass Effectgames together. Their ominous presence in dark space was felt throughout each game as Shepard desperately tried to convince the frustratingly oblivious Council of the threat they posed, and their eventual final confrontation and defeat was the perfect culmination of Shepard’s story arc.
Now a new game is in development, andMass Effect 4may present a whole new threat for players to deal with. Not much is known about the focus or story of the upcoming entry or even which galaxy it will be set in (although there is some suggestion the story could combine both Andromeda and the Milky Way into one story). As a result, player speculation is rife regarding potential returning characters, how the next game will fit into the timeline, and if new alien races will feature. But even if the Reapers don’t make a comeback,Mass Effect 4has the potential to reframe the antagonistic raceand their actions throughout the original trilogy.
RELATED:Mass Effect 4: What Happens After ME3’s Destroy Ending
The Reapers' Place In The Mass Effect Series
The Reapers are introduced early in the firstMass Effect, although the full danger they possess and the damage they’re capable of inflicting are explored more slowly here than throughout the trilogy. Players learn about their terrifying fifty-thousand-year cycle that sees the sentient synthetic-organic starships emerge from hibernation in dark space to wreak havoc among space-faring societies. Alongside the more game-specific missions, like recruiting companions inMass Effect 2or curing the Genophage inMass Effect 3, themain quest that drives Shepard and their crewis stopping this cycle and defeating the Reapers once and for all.
While theMass Effectgames do explore some of their antagonists and portray some arguably sympathetic villains with slightly understandable goals instead of just black and white baddies, the Reapers never really get this treatment. It may be because they don’t really get a lot of gameplay time outside of combat and confrontations, so players are really only presented with a Reaper when they’re in a threatening position. This doesn’t leave a lot of space for nuance, and it also doesn’t help that Reapers are some of the least humanoid ofMass Effect’s many species, which doesn’t engender a lot of natural sympathy or understanding.
Re-evaluating the Mass Effect Antagonists
Reapers target the galaxy’s most advanced races in a cyclical purge to help keep the balance of life in the galaxy and avoid the inevitable synthetic vs. organic conflicts that arise again and again once organic species become advanced enough. While players are automatically pitted against this highly-advanced machine race, they are given a choice at the end ofMass Effect 3of whether they want to merge and control the Reapers or even synthesize all organic and synthetic life to avoid the need for the cycle. However, it is strongly implied that the’Destroy' ending is the canon ending forMass Effect 4, as it is the only one that gives Shepard a chance at accomplishing their goals and potentially surviving the encounter.
With the Reapers possibly canonically destroyed for good, it’s incredibly unlikely that they’ll be seen again inMass Effect 4. But this doesn’t mean that they won’t feature at all; they were a massive part of the galaxy’s history, as well as an instrumental factor in the state that theMilky Way will probably find itself in duringMass Effect 4. It’s likely that even if there is a time jump in the narrative to accommodate races and returnees from Andromeda, Reapers will be at least a talking point in the next game.
This means thatMass Effect 4could explore a slightly more nuanced take on the Reapers. Players didn’t have a lot of time to dwell on their motivations in the first three games, besides knowing that “Reapers” equals “bad” and they needed to be stopped at all costs, even if that means blowing upthe Alpha Relay and destroying a planet of batarians. Their methods are slightly suspect and seemingly cold-hearted, but the Reapers were essentially only ensuring that life continued on in the galaxy. With organics apparently destined to always create synthetics that would lead to their downfall and wipe out all organic life as they knew it, the Reapers could sort of be seen as a necessary evil.
RELATED:Mass Effect 4 May Have to Canonize Certain ME3 Choices
Possible Directions For Mass Effect 4
With the inevitable fallout ofMass Effect 3to handle,Mass Effect 4has a lot to explore. If BioWare does make the ‘Destroy’ ending canon as it has been suggested, that means that while the Reapers are gone, so too are the Mass Relays and all synthetic races. With non-organic characters like EDI and Legion presented as sympathetic and even endearing characters, their lossmakes the ending ofMass Effect 3feel less like a victory. By Reaper logic, Shepard hasn’t really done much except buy some time until the inevitable downfall of organic life throughout the Milky Way anyway.
The destruction of the Mass Relay network and the separation of large parts of the galaxy could be a really fascinatingstory arc to follow inMass Effect 4. Seeing how the galaxy recovers after the devastating Reaper invasion is fertile narrative territory and could offer something really different from the previousMass Effectentries. An exploration into the complicated victory could be interesting as well, and Shepard’s decision to end the cycle could be seen by some characters as the wrong one given the consequences. This would also reframe the Reapers as something other than simple villains.
The question of what the next big threat will be in theMass Effectseries is a big one. With the Reapers out the way,Mass Effect: Andromeda’s Kettcould muscle their way into the top villain spot, but considering the game’s initially and slightly lackluster reception, BioWare may be keen to distance itself from some of its major plot points, even if Andromeda is looking like it will make an appearance. Or a new, even bigger threat could be established, possibly something that the Reapers knew about and were combating in their own way with the cycle. This would again explore another interpretation of the Reapers' actions and could put a new spin on Shepard’s ultimate choice.
