We already know that BioWare is making a new game in the Mass Effect franchise. Heck, the series' executive producer even went on Twitter to ask fans what they want to see next.
Now, though, BioWare has taken to their official blog to announce that BioWare Montreal is working on a new Mass Effect game and for the first time, they'll be using the Frostbite 2 as its game engine.
So, just who is BioWare Montreal and is the Mass Effect brand in good hands with them? In the blog post, BioWare Montreal Studio Director Yanick Roy commented on the contributions they've done for the Mass Effect franchise. They did about half of the cinematics for Mass Effect 2, as well as most of the game's N7 Missions. For Mass Effect 3, they "took charge" of the game's multiplayer, and as well as making "significant contributions" to the main campaign. Also, BioWare Monteal is the studio behind the upcoming ME3 single-player DLC "Omega," which will see release on November 27.
Here are a few key parts of Roy's post.
To ensure a proper and effective transition, we’ll continue to be supported by the Edmonton studio through the game’s development, working with and learning from them on some critical initiatives. On top of that, Casey remains the Executive Producer, but he will have a Project Director under him, working in Montreal, leading our development team and making day-to-day decisions for the game. We all care very much about Mass Effect and make our decisions based on what’s best for the game.
There is really not much I can tell you about the game right now, except that it will be built with the amazing technology of Frostbite as its foundation, enhanced by many of the systems that the Dragon Age III team has already spent a lot of time building.
The other thing I can tell you is that, while it will be very respectful of the heritage built over the course of the first three games, with the original trilogy now concluded and the switch over to a new engine, we are exploring new directions, both on the gameplay and story fronts. You can still expect the pillars the franchise is known for to be fully intact though, including diverse alien races, a huge galaxy to explore, and of course rich, cinematic storytelling.
It seems this new Mass Effect game is in good hands, no? For those not familiar with Frostbite 2, it's a game engine made by the tech wizards at DICE (Battlefield) over in Sweden and is now being used for a lot of EA's games. Most recently, it's been used for Danger Close's Medal of Honor Warfighter and will be used for Visceral Games' Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel.
Seeing as BioWare is in the early stages of development, I assume this new Mass Effect game will be for next-gen platforms. If so, that bodes well for the game engine, since current-gen games seems to have a hard time running it properly…at least from what I've experienced.
Are you happy that the new Mass Effect game is being built on Frostbite 2 or is this a cause for concern?
