Mass Effect: A Masterclass in World Building

 Mass Effect: A Masterclass in World Building

    Have you ever wondered what could lie just outside the reach of our atmosphere? In the depths of space in a seemingly everlasting expanse beyond our solar system? What planets there are to see, the potential of life and species far older or more advanced than our own? These are questions I have found myself asking countless times throughout my life since I first discovered Science Fiction as a kid and it lead me to question all kinds of things about the universe around me. Whether or not these things will be discovered by Humans one day is still unknown, however Mass Effect allowed me to experience what it could be like to have these questions answered, and as I hope to explain in this blog post is a masterclass in world building.

Background

    Mass Effect is a Action-Roleplaying game released by BioWare in 2007 for the Xbox 360, later brought to the PC and Playstation 3 in 2008 and 2012 respectively, and has since been enhanced and remastered in 2021 for current consoles and PC in the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition. For many Role Playing game fans BioWare is a notable name as the makers of Star Wars: Knights of The Old Republic, and many other classic titles.

    Mass Effect takes place within the Milky Way Galaxy in the year 2183, Humanity has become a part of an intergalactic society made up many species across the galaxy coming together under common interest. However, this unification aside there are still many instances of aggression between the species, particularly humans discriminating against other species, and those species discriminating against humans. Within this setting of intergalactic politics, you play as Commander Shepard (John or Jane depending on the gender you choose or you can pick your own first name) Shepard being one of the best soldiers Humanity has to offer is elected as the first Human Spectre, a soldier chosen by the Council to uphold law throughout the galaxy while having independent power from the Council.

    Your true mission as Commander Shepard is to travel the galaxy hunting ex-spectre Saren and have him answer for his crimes against humanity and the rest of the Galaxy, along the way you will meet people of many species who join your crew on the hunt for Saren as you travel the countless planets along the Milky Way, and this is where the true joy and genius of Mass Effect comes to play, as this creates excellent tools for world building.

    World Building is the process of creating a fictional world complete with history, cultures, and locations to make this fictional setting passable as a real world within the heads of the viewer. Mass Effect does world building naturally through your journey instead of just explaining it to you, Along your journey across the stars you will go into many different solar system's besides our own and encounter many planets and people, all of which are explained to the player in a natural way.

Planets

    Throughout your journey in the Milky Way you will enter many different systems of planets aside from our own solar system. Each of these systems offer you one planet to land on and explore freely and usually 2-4 other planets that you can survey from outside the atmosphere for natural resources. Each one of these planets is given a description of its surface or climate and atmosphere, it's density, it's minerals and geological makeup, sometimes even providing a picture of the surface. This is done for every single planet in the game regardless of if you can land on it or not, from the simplest gas giants to rare earth like planets. You even have the ability to go back to the Sol System where earth is located, the game gives you the option to land on our moon and explore it's surface, read a description of how earth has changed, and each planet description in our system is accompanied by a real photograph satellites have taken of that planet, while of course the fictional planets have artist rendered depictions.

    As for the planets you have the ability to land on, there are a wealth of lost artifacts to find, planet side research facilities, excavation sites, and side missions to complete. Although absolutely none of this services the core plot happening in the game and a large majority of it can be cut from the game without harming that plot, I think it is what makes this version of our own galaxy believable. Constantly invoking me with that stargazing feeling I had as a child questioning what could be beyond the stars awaiting discovery, and I believe it is a core part of Mass Effect's identity to me.

Species and Culture

    Planet exploration is only one half of what makes Mass Effect such an amazing world to explore and immerse yourself into, because what is the point of a galaxy if there are no people to populate it? The world of the Milky Way through Mass Effect is populated with many unique species that all differ in their appearance, their culture, and their abilities. Without explaining Humans because they are ourselves, there are Asari, Turian, Krogan, Salarian, Quarian, Geth, and many more.

    The Asari are a human-esque alien species with skin tone varying in different shades of blue and violet, they are mono gendered and the concepts of Male and Female don't quite exist for the Asari, although they all seem to resemble a Human Female in physical appearance. The Asari live for roughly a thousand years and are incredibly intelligent and powerful with abilities comparable to psychic proportion. They are unique from other species from the fact that they can repopulate with any gender from any species as it is more of a mental and spiritual experience and this allows them to grow as a species taking genetic traits from other species and combining it with their own. The Asari were the first to discover the citadel and found the Council.

    The Salarians are a bipedal amphibious like creature that are capable of very quick thinking and reflexes making them natural for scientific pursuits and even espionage. The Salarians are known for creating the bio-weapon that caused a disease called the "Genophage" upon another species, however this was done with the safety of the galaxy in mind. they were the second species to join the council.

    The Turian's are humanoid in figure as well but also resemble the much more typical depiction of an extra terrestrial species such as scaly gray skin and elongated body parts. Turians are often seen for having a strong ethic of public service within the Council race's and have contributed many ships and soldiers to their fleets and security teams. The Turians were the species that unleashed the Genophage, despite it being created by Salarians. They were the third race to join the council.

    Kroagn are reptilian bipeds who almost resemble humanoid dinosaurs. They are natural born warriors and have very bulky body types. Their homeworld is harsh, and yet they thrived, they are some of the strongest in the galaxy. With the help of the Salarians the stopped the infestation of an insect like species called Rachni. However, ironically after this the Krogan began to breed at rapid rates and had rebellions, causing the Salarians and Turians to use the Genophage upon their species. They do not have a seat on the council but if friendly are welcomed at the citadel.

    The Quarians are a nomadic humanoid species who leave their planet at a young age in search of something of value to bring home to their community. They are highly skilled with technology and electronics. They have very weak immune systems and due to this are constantly wearing a environment safety suit to protect from any disease and infection. Like Krogans they do not have representation by a council member but are welcomed at the citadel.

    The Geth are a synthetic robotic species created by the Quarians that eventually grew out of control and pushed their makers close to near extinction. They are the closest thing to an enemy the Council has at the start of the game and are the games main enemy to be fought.

    All of this information is only a tiny fraction of the detail and information given to the player and I picked and chose what I wanted to discuss here as my most interested topics of the game personally. However, the true magic in this world building is the way it is delivered to the player. Naturally. The player learns this information mostly from the individual species' themselves or others that are well informed on them, this serves to immerse the player completely and make them feel like a true visitor in this foreign world experiencing and learning about new cultures and people that inhabit it. Any information found and recorded on species, planets, or even technologies can be recorded into the players codex and can be re-read and investigated at any time for ease of connivence.

Final Thoughts

    To many this whole blog post serves as pointless rambling of an obsessed fan. This may be partially true, and I won't deny, however it also serves to prove the point of the wealth of information and fascinating characters for players to take in and find interest in within the world of Mass Effect. When striving to create a fictional universe the first thing you want to accomplish is making it believable to the player, viewer, or reader and I firmly believe that Mass Effect is a must play experience for anybody striving to learn how to write fiction of this level, or anybody who enjoys beautifully crafted experiences.