The Mass Effect franchise allows players to interact with some of the most iconic characters in video games. The Mass Effect Trilogy included companions that stuck with Shepard across the three games, giving them the time and space to develop while letting players grow attached to them as the years passed, as they continued to replay each title. Some companions were only featured in one or two games, but still made an impact because of their deep stories, such as Wrex and Mordin.
While squadmates in Mass Effect are one of the most popular parts of the series, they can become too much of a good thing when there are too many of them. Squadmates can feel superfluous either because they come across as flat, there are too many, or their skillsets begins to repeat. Mass Effect 4 can avoid this pitfall by limiting the pool of squadmates who can be recruited. A smaller cast of well-rounded and interesting characters, with deep connections to the lore and story, is better than a bigger cast that includes characters who most gamers will leave behind on the ship.
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The Issues Too Many Squadmates Bring in Games Like Mass Effect
Mass Effect's companions were incredibly important to its world, which came in addition to their mechanical importance during combat, covering Shepard's weaknesses or synergizing with their abilities to trigger combos. As one of Mass Effect's most important features, Mass Effect 4 needs to get its companions right both in terms of their stories and personalities, but also in terms of their classes and abilities in combat.
Companion numbers can be difficult to get right because of balance. Too few companions can make it difficult to represent every class and limits the player, as they may feel pigeonholed into certain classes to make up for it. On the flip side, too many companions can become overwhelming for players, and limits on resources during video game development can mean that the companions aren't as nuanced or interesting as they could be.
While both of these problems are valid, the problem of shallow companions is arguably worse, especially for a BioWare game where characters are expected to be one of the highlights. Balancing the party can still be done with around six companions, but having nine or more can result in characters who are flat, underwhelming, and forgettable.
The Benefits of Mass Effect 4 Having a Smaller Squad
Mass Effect 2 had the largest group with thirteen companions. While most of this squad were likable and included some of the most popular characters in Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2's plot was focused on the squad and developing the characters. Even so, characters like Jacob were left on the Normandy more often than not, whereas Legion had to overcame becoming a squadmate far too late in Mass Effect 2. He did, however, benefit from having his story continue as an important NPC in Mass Effect 3, ensuring that he was a beloved companion that evolved the lore of the geth.
Having fewer companions, such as in Mass Effect, Mass Effect 3, and Mass Effect: Andromeda, which only has six to seven companions, would mean there's more time to focus on each character and have their arcs and roles be truly meaningful. Including any more companions than this would result in squadmates who are essentially filler characters, with repeats of combat abilities, or bland personalities and stories that result in most players ignoring them. Resources that go to filler characters, such as writing, design, and animation, would be better spent on providing depth for a smaller cast of characters, and also give them more screen time.
Mass Effect 3
- Released
- March 6, 2012
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood, Partial Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- BioWare
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 3
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Franchise
- Mass Effect
