If you’re as excited about this idea as we are, please like the video and share with as many people as you can! 📺 Watch our video on the dynamic storytelling of Mass Effect 3's "Cure the Genophage" mission: bit.ly/3zdQvTH 🎧 Listen to our podcast episode on Mass Effect with Mark Brown of Game Maker's Toolkit: bit.ly/3baUZ38
I think it could be an awesome animated show! Like Futurama, but serious! The animation would definitevely mande things cheaper and more individual, there is a lot of live-actions out there! But an animated adult action series!? Thais couro be awesome
I, ah, don’t suppose there’s any way to peruse your in-progress pitch notes, is there? Cos the little you did show was super interesting, and I’d love to see how you’re dividing all the missions and character beats into episodes and arcs and seasons
3 things, but I overall ADORE your guy's spunk. 1: Please don't pull a GoT Season 8 2: If you need a writer, donut boy, etc. Where Do I Sign Up? PLEASE? 3: I expect at least 1 calibration joke...for the fans. 👀
"So...anyone want to talk about their people's history?" "Nope." "So I'm the only one who misses when we used to chat in the elevators back on the citadel?" "Yep." "So disappointed."
There has never been a better time for a Mass Effect series. The Expanse has shown that high budget, politically nuanced Sci-Fi that looks amazing and tells a complex story, is totally possible. The Witcher has shown that video games (I know they were books but the games popularised it) CAN be be popular with non-gamers in other forms of media. GOT has shown that a show set in a massive alternative world with centuries of backstory and lore IS translatable to screen. This is the moment and the time is now.
I was thinking about that too... The Expanse shows that we can have all of that in a popular show. And that is just what I would want for a Mass Effect show. There is so much world building to explore and so much story to tell and I would pay good money to see it
@@BoneistJ It was brought back once by Amazon after a massive fan campaign. Plus if you know where the story is going to go from the books- It makes perfect sense to stop the current run by next season.
@@BoneistJ The opposite of what you're arguing is true. Its not that it got cancelled twice, and btw it wasn't twice. It got resurected because it was that beloved. It was only cancelled once because syfy mishandled it's release and distribution. They had to cancel because of their own problems, not the shows. On Amazon prime it's being given a proper end with the people behind it being cryptic about potential opportunities to tell the story of the last 3 books.
@@joker6558 Yep it's why he hasn't posted on this channel in so long, he got hired to work with the story team on the next Mass Effect game though not a show.
Well I'm not down him immediately choosing to make Shep female for TV.. like every main character in all media for the past ~8 years. Gives me pause on what other modern day social bias he's gonna inject into the most amazing game trilogy ever. Fingers crossed but get ready for analogies to Trumpism and trans stuff in a scifi about reapers.
Yeah and then the main character would be arbitrarily brought back to life once and never again and television audiences would be like “????”. I love how successful Heroes was, killing people and bringing them back. People love that.
Michael, I just saw the news of you working on the next Mass Effect. Congratulations! I wish you an amazing experience, and that this opens even more doors for you.
Episode 1: In Which Conrad Asks Commander Shepard For An Autograph Episode 2: In Which Conrad Gets A Selfie With Commander Shepard Episode 3: In Which Conrad Gets A Gun Shoved In His Face Episode 4: In Which Conrad Becomes Truly Extreme
@@KeithFraser82 plot twist of episode #4: Commander Shepard shoots at Conrad's foot Conrad: Ah hahaaa, I can't believe you did that! Shepard: It was a blank Conrad... you're fine. Conrad: What, really?! Huh Shepard: How do you expect to survive "undercover", if you can't take a simple bullet scare. Makes a good roll reverse when they meet again on the Citidel 😎
Oh God, I can imagine a whole episode centered around Conrad telling a story in a bar about how he and Commander Shepard saved some colonists in a dire situation :P
@@Artem2034 And in Conrad's "flashback", he's played by a different actor or just looks much more dashing/rugged, Shepard has exaggerated makeup and fawns over him (as do a bunch of other characters), he shoots dozens of bad guys like Chuck Norris, etc. That can be the first part of the episode, then Shepard comes in and tells the story of what really happened. Stunt casting: have Conrad be played by Joey Batey (Jaskier from The Witcher).
What i honestly hope for out of this show more then anything is too see the characters I love have more fleshed out relationships with each other rather then just with shepherd.
For the romance aspect, I would do something like this: play out the scenes of i.e. the Garrus romance in the same way as the game but with Tali instead of Shepard, and do the same with all the other good fan favorite romances that would get left out. My personal pick would be Femshep and Liara as the main romance, since Liara is one of the highest picked romance options and a really good one that gets fleshed out from the first game and Liara and Shep's relationship goes through a lot of ups and downs so it would make for good drama lol
That is problem with movie world - “spaceships goes pew pew” is what spins heads of producers. On the side of tv shows there are either need to check “boxes” or cant get grip on themes.
The "Citadel"... Do you know what the Citadel is? It's the home of the Council whom we tell about the Reapers over and over until they dismiss that claim.
@@gh0st_proxy "Look, there's a Reaper here to tell you they exist!" REAPER, at 350 decibels: "I EXIST, CITADEL COUNCIL. I AM A REAPER, HERE TO EXTERMINATE BIOLOGICAL LIFE, AS WE DO EVERY SO OFTEN. SHEPHARD IS RIGHT." Council: "Well, it would say that, wouldn't it? I'm not falling for propaganda from a damn Reaper!"
"Mass Effect should be the Next Game of Thrones" You mean well-written story with great characters, both hated and loved, that get killed off in gut-wrenching scenes and having an ending pretty much everyone hated with a passion? Pretty sure it already is.
If we’re talking the original ending then for sure but I think it gets a bit better with extended edition and leviathan. Still not great but way better than the clusterfuck that was GOT S8
How come I can't like this a hundred times!? This story absolutely needs to be told in long form, there's absolutely too much subtlety for a movie. Even a trilogy of three hour movies would be tough to get right.
Thanks Erik! Agreed! The problem with even a trilogy is that each one needs to have a three-act structure and satisfy all the movie requirements, which despite a longer run time would still constrain the kind of storytelling that could be done.
Yes! Mass Effect is so well written "filler" episodes could be added in and provide great comic relief, bonding, etc. The games are just That deep. I still need to finish the 3rd though...
@@dropkickpherby6994 Shep talking to Zabaleta on the Citadel about his PTSD could be included in one of these filler episodes and that has the potential to be an amazing character moment. Filler episodes would be great in this.
One of the most interesting and potentially controversial aspects of making mass effect into a series would be the character deaths. In the game they aren't static. In the show even fans wouldn't be sure, going into the climactic scenarios, who was going to die.
I almost forgot about this, in the games especially in ME2 you can lose your entire crew in the suicide mission, or don't lose anyone at all, how they would make this work in a tv series? Popularity of the characters? You can't lose someone like Tali or Garrus in that mssion, they are way to important on the plot (Tali) or to popular (Garrus) to be cut short... Jacob is an obvious choice, because nobody likes him, Ash or Kaidan, aren't in that mission, but they were on Virmire, again, if it is the female Shepard, that means Ash would die on Virmire, but Kaidan is boring, Ash is way more cool than him, but i don't think they should kill either one. Theres also Wrex, would he die by Ash / Shepard hands on Virmire? Would he be spared?
I would like to add the fact that every shepard is unique, I could prefer the paragon-male Shepard, but what if The show goes for a renegade-female Shepard?? In that regard I would play it safe: male shepard with 70% paragon and 30% renegade choices, like the ones of killing the council, or reacting with R2 to counter kill Kai Leng and that sort of things. And making the "canon" choices: save ashley, kill Kaidan and rescueing almost every team mate in Me2 with some slight twists exceptions (I would kill Kasumi and Zaeed in ME 2), so we can suffer the death of Mordin and Legion in 3. I would include some easter eggs, like punching Khalisah Al Jilani (the reporter) and intimidating Conrad Verner.
@@efxnews4776 Character deaths can really enhance a story provided they’re justified and lead to interesting developments. For example, (and this will be very controversial) having Wrex die in Mass Effect 1 actually gives the story in the remaining games much more depth. Throughout Mass Effect 3 you have to deal with his dick brother Wreav, whose leadership of the Krogan makes the decision to sabotage the Genophage cure an actual considerable option. Meanwhile, everyone keeps reminding you how good and easy it would’ve been if Wrex were still alive, but alas. Now we just have to hope Eve can be a regulating influence on him. It’s pretty cool to approach the Mass Effect games with the mindset of a showrunner trying to write interesting character arcs and plot twists, rather than as Shepard trying to make all the right choices. One of my favourite character arcs is to have Ashley shoot Wrex on Virmire while Shepard tries to talk him down. Come the attack on the Citadel in ME3, however, Ashley finds herself in the same position as Wrex, being talked down by Shepard. Does she redeem herself and avoid the same mistake Wrex made? Or does she get gunned down by Garrus in a moment of karmic justice?
This would be a great idea. I think what’s cool is even though many of us have played the game to death and know the story it’s still going to be a mystery what characters live and die and what choices are made. Who will be romanced, who lives/dies will Shepard save the space hamster?
There has to be a space hamster. I'm okay with it escaping a few times, but there has to be a space hamster. It ain't Mass Effect without one in Shepards cabin. ;)
Hollywood really needs to stop making 10+ hours-long stories into a standard movie length. That's what they do every time they make a movie based off a video game and they've all just been terrible! You guys have the right idea. I would throw all my money at you for a Mass Effect tv series. You clearly know what it's all about.
Not knowing what will happen next or more specifically how it'll end was one of the best things about game of thrones. Mass effect cant have that because the major story (the sheperd trilogy) is already finished and a lot of the audience already knows whats going to happen. It also has the same problem of a hated ending.
@@jmo5755 game of thrones was still ongoing when the series came out. The show got ahead of the books many years later and it went downhill when it did. While some people knew what was going to happen, the big questions were still unanswered in the books. It was also going from a literary medium to a visual one while mass effect would be going from visual to visual.
@@lastword8783 the problem with the ending in Mass Effect was a technical one, is related with the nature of the game that is mostly about choices, story wise the ending was expected: evil race of lovecraftian machines erased, galaxy saved, ultimate hero sacrifice (?). It is an expected ending, and to be honest, to me in terms of GAMING the ending that makes more sense, is the secret one that is basicaly Shepard raising the middle finger to the catalyst (symbolic gesture to Bioware) by shooting him. I could see this ending making more sense like, the ending of the cycle be inevitable, and a 4th game become a race of survival in a post apocalypitic galaxy In terms of gameplay, this makes more sense than Andromeda, wich, beside being completly unwanted, is actually pointless, because canonicaly Shepard save the galaxy. Yes, the ending of the trilogy would be grim, but that would open a room for a decent sequel, in wich Shepard didn't die, and instead of fighting the Reapers, gather as many survivors in a desperate plan to outmanuever the reapers and avoid extinction of the species (the protheans also try that, and despite their whole species didn't survive, one of them did, Javik), you can even follow along with the Andromeda initiative, and use the Arks as means to escape the galaxy in a eventual 5th game. One theme that could go along is the theory that Shepard was indocrinated, but his squadmates search for the means to cure his mind. One thing that must be relevated in this scenario, is that the Reaper solution to deal with organics is failing, folks like the Asari may have the means to overcome indocrination with their melding abilities, and could be able to heal Shepards mind (or any organic). This may come as a surprise ending for a tv show, and one surprise to expand the series in a different direction. I can totally follow along with some sort of Space Mad Max:Fury Road, with pirates running amok, with the species fighting desperatly trying to survive as much as they could and with a handfull of people making plans to evacuate the galaxy (but NOT SOONER than needed, like in Andromeda).
No one talks about how INSANELY good the first two hours of Mass Effect are. They establish setting, conventions, emotional stakes, central conflict, and the skinny on near every alien race by the time you finish with the Council. So good!
@IntrepidTit they didn’t have a lot of experience doing that, they traditionally developed CRPGS which are extremely tactical. You can even see that in ME1 - it’s basically a KOTOR game without lightsabers. And even then, by game 3 they still had a heavy tactical pause element in combat. Andromeda, for all its faults, has one thing right - they finally nailed on creating an engaging third person combat. But it took them 10 years to get there, which is completely normal - each studio has their specialty.
@IntrepidTit because then they'd get sued for copyright infringement? in order to 'copy the basic mechanics' of COD they'd need to literally copy the code. further: maybe they didn't want *make* the game feel like COD or some generic shooter. they had a specific vision in mind that they wanted to go with. even further: you gotta consider control schemes. specifically: there's an entire layer of extra options you have in ME that you don't in cod, your teammates. and your powers. trying to integrate normal shooter mechanics could very easily clash with those, just in terms of the buttons you need to press.
@@TheWefikus I enjoyed the combat in Andromeda, but I would say that I really missed the pause menu at times. Being limited to just three abilities at any given point, was really frustrating. It severely limited your combo abilities and you couldn't issue commands to your squadmates, which begs the question of why you have a squad to begin with. If you can't have access to their abilities. I would be happy with the Andromeda combat, if they reintroduced the pause menu for people who want to be a little more tactical, they can make it optional. The combat in Andromeda became stale as you reused the same three abilities over and over again. Switching profiles resets your cooldown timers which was just frustrating as well. Just my two cents.
I always thought a Mass Effect show would be too expensive to make, but looking at shows like Stargate SG1, Andromeda, Battlestar Galactica, The Expanse, Farscape, and so many more, it could 100% be made these days and look good.
I agree with you, there is 3 human caracter on the normandy (not counting the crew) and that would require a lot of convincing CGI or makeup, it is totally doable, but require a busload of money. That would require convincing major studio: HBO please! (netfils maybe?). they should first have a household name attached to the project behind or in front of the camera.
There's not many people I would trust with my favourite media franchise, but I think you guys nailed it. It is so obvious that you guys completely understand what Mass Effect stands for and how it could be translated to the small screen. This touched me to my core, I'm actually crying. So glad to be able to share the love i have for this franchise with other people.
@@LessonsfromtheScreenplay absolutely!!!! going back to play all 3 games in my down time feels similar to returning to one of my favorite TV shows (GoT, The Wire, Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, etc.) and just binging it through. A great series mean you fall into it, you disappear into it. you imagine certain storylines from within the world, or the memories your favorite characters might harbor, having become the personalities they are... a great show, is a great world... you develop that world right, you've got an entire audience hooked.
I came across this video just now, after news of Amazon being in negotiations about a potential ME series. I too welled up a bit when I saw that they understood it so well and approached it with so much love. Also, all the memories hitting me when seeing snippets of the games.
Phenomenal work! Didn't dawn on me how similar Mass Effect is to Game of Thrones (including a disappointing ending oddly enough). And yeah, totally agree on the TV show direction. I think turning something as deep and expansive as Mass Effect into a 2 hour movie is crazy. It'd be The Last Airbender all over again. The budget on this thing though would have to be INSANE for it to work. Amazon is spending $465 million on the LOTR show. And I think (given the VFX, makeup and CGI needed) Mass Effect's budget would have to exceed even that! Hopefully the LED panel technology used in The Mandalorian can bring the cost down.
I think the budget requirements would probably be similar to game of thrones. The amount of vfx shots required would be similar I think. Its actually easier to make shots of spaceships feel "real" than what was done in game of thrones, too
@@noxabellus i think the biggest strain on the budget would be cgi or fx makeup for all the aliens. Species like the turian, salarians, and krogan would take a lot of work to make individuals look distinct and emotive, and they all have characters who are central to the plot.
@@JP-dw9tv At leat the aliens were all designed to work over human skeletal proportions (since the models had to be modularly swapped with human characters), so "guy in rubber suit" technology is a good match. You might have to forego Salarian concave chests or tiny Turian waists, though.
Me: "Mass Effect is an amazing story as a game series. Not everything has to be adapted to film". Lessons from the Screenplay: "We're thinking Emily Blunt from Edge of Tomorrow as Shepard" Me: "Yeah okay, you got me. I'm all the way in."
I still kind of feel that the ME franchise exists in the right medium, but this is extremely well thought out and I would probably look forward to each episode.
@@Connor8609 Since 2017 the films she's been in are My Little Pony: The Movie, the two A Quiet place movies written by her husband, the sequel to Gnomeo and Juliet, the Mary Poppins reboot and Jungle Cruise. If she gets the opportunity to play a space hero in a long spanning show with both complex characters and deep thematic relevance, that also pushes the boundaries of both the medium and social constructs, I think that's at least worth considering given the movies she's been a part of for the last 5 years.
Technically the male Shepard would be cannon, but since the games have the option, fem Shepard is one of the few instances that i wouldn't complaint about gender swapping. Let it be! Fem Shepard, i wouldn't mind, especially with Emily Blunt in the role.
@@Connor8609 Buddy, you have no idea of how big is this franchise in the gaming comunity, aren't you? Didn't Henry Cavil, the mighty Superman pushed to play as Geralt of Rivia in the Witcher? Why not Emily Blunt as Fem Shepard? If you think the Witcher is the greatest RPG of all time, you is saddly mistaken, way before the Witcher be a thing, bioware was making its fame with Mass Effect franchise after the HUGE success of kotor games. Kotor is still regarded as the best RPG of all time but since it is from Star Wars universe, you can only expect Disney would make something with it. Mass Effect is basically all lessons learned in Kotor, put in a whole new franchise. Anyone cast as Shepard would be imortalized on the role, the same way you can imagine anyone else aside from Cavil as Geralt of Rivia.
If you are ok with many absolutely banal characters, cringe inducing cliche dialogues and overused personality types, The Expanse is a series for you. I personally love the idea of the show, therefore I gave it chance THREE separate times. Never got past the beginning of the 2nd season.
@@rayhoodoo847 Wait so you've seen like 12 episodes and you've completely made up your mind about a 5 season show? Yeah sounds sensible enough, Watching 12 episodes and preaching to strangers on the internet how shit a show is lmfao.
@@ishaan863 . I'm not judging the plot for which 12 episodes would be too little. The plot is ok anyway. But 12 long episodes is completely enough to have a valid impression on the things I talked about.
A Mass Effect TV series would be a dream come true, but I honestly think the biggest obstacle would be Shepard him/herself... Personally, I wouldn't even want to watch a femshep TV series. BroShep+Liara is the only way I'd want to see it go. And I'm sure there are other fans of the game who feel the exact opposite as me, and would be completely uninterested in a maleShep-lead show. The beauty of the game is, everybody wins here. In a TV show, not so much...
I understand you don't want to give a lot away if you're trying to get this project made and mad props to you for the obvious effort you've put into it. But assuming it doesn't work out; I would absolutely die to see a deep dive into your vision for a five season treatment of Mass Effect after all is said and done. It's my favorite series of all time and I can tell you guys did your research and know your stuff when it comes to the nuts and bolts of effective storytelling. Congrats guys! You've got me hooked!
yeah, i hope they plan on changing a lot of things in the story. it is not as "simple" as adapting a book, a lot of elements can not be easily transfered
Me: I don't think Mass Effect should ever be adapted. The element of player choice is too important and an adaptation could only ever represent the experience of one playthroug. You guys: Emily Blunt as Shepard Me: I think Mass Effect should be adapted
while i do agree that a huge part of the appeal of the ME games is the player choices, i don't think thats really a hurdle for a ME show to worry about. for me, at least, the big thing with the 'branching story' was less about being able to replay the game and get a different story. It was about playing the game and having hte story shape around my choices, my philosophies. it was about me being able to consider the issues presented, and have the story react to that consideration. a ME TV show would obviously not allow my input on the outcome, but it could still compel the same level of consideration. so i think it'd be ok.
Emily Blunt as Shepard is a big no go. And honestly, i can't imagine a credible femshep with someone else then Scarlett Johanssen. You need an actress with great physical ability (can you imagine Batwoman vs a Yag? it would be like baseball bat vs ping pong ball) and a great register in her acting ( it will be tough job to find an actress with the range of Jennifer Hale). Sorry, the best choice for the moment for a credible Shepard is Henry Cavill. And simply can't imagine Emily Blunt head-butting a Krogan without a rebound. on the other hand, Emily Blunt as Liara ....
Emily Blunt as Liara, and someone like Gwen Christie or Charlize Theron as femshep: tall actresses who can project physicality and with a proven role playing a in-your-face character. A human shaped like Cavill and a human shaped like Theron as she was in The Old Gaurd are equally incapable of headbutting a krogan, that's more or less an in-game joke made possible by cybernetics. I would think FemShep with a well known actress might be a good way to pad viewership: some of those fans lost because 'that's not my playthrough' could be reclaimed from new folks who were sold on the girl power element. Also I don't want a show where a live action performer tries to match Mark Meer doing the voice, because that's like starting out saying "I'd like to get a B in this class, not an A+". I want them competing with Hale.
I got so many chills towards the end of this video. I also got a bit emotional because It showed me other people out there care about the idea of Mass Effect becoming an expansive series which dives into the lore and story the writers created in the first place. I hope one day I can sit down and watch a Mass Effect series exactly as you described.
The Expanse shows that these kind of stories can work, be succesful, and we now have the technology to make them look amazing. A Mass Effect show would require a significantly larger budget for sure, but The Expanse definitely works as a proof of concept and I'm sure is just the start of boundary pushing tv sci-fi
The biggest challenge in adapting Mass Effect into a GoT style show would be to de-center Shaperd as the protagonist. GoT benefited from focusing on a large cast of characters without singling out a specific protagonist, and that was it's greatest strength
It can also be a TV show's greatest flaw though, since I fell out of love with it for precisely this reason. After too many characters have been introduced, they start to feel a bit washed out as if the writing has lost focus. I guess it's personal preference.
I don’t think it would be that difficult, Shep’s not where ME’s writing shines 99% of the time. They’re normally just a Mary Sue that provides conclusion. Just give every character more agency in their loyalty missions/side quests.
In Mass Effect 2 something like this already happened with Loyalty Missions, where you focus on individual NPC characters, and you help them out with something to get something. Miranda - The Prodigal, Jacob - The Gift of Greatness, Garrus - An Eye for an Eye, etc. Although you as the gamer help these characters, the reality is they could have done it on their own with other characters without Shepard, this opens the ME show to function a lot more like GoT with different perspectives at different places in the same time frames. And not to forget: Shepard had to be brought back to life at the start of ME2, and there's more content in between 1 and 2 to fill in without Shepard. Then you got Cerberus, they have back story with the Illusive Man they can play out too.
To be fair, the cast of characters involved are numerous enough to be substantial, but not too much that it can be overbearing...you of course would have Shepard and his crew with their own stories, but you also have Admiral Anderson handling politics on the Citadel, the potential for internal conflict with Saren and Benezia, and in future seasons, a perspective on Cerberus from the Illusive Man.
Congratulations Micheal for officially becoming part of the Bioware team developing the next Mass Effect! I am really excited to see what you'll be able to contribute to the upcoming game and the return of Mass Effect!
You know, I love Mass Effect, but I didn't think the writing was strong enough on its own to make for a very compelling TV series in the same way George RR Martin's writing was. But the way you described your version of Shephard and the way each character wrestles with the themes sold me. I need this in my life.
I have to agree. The worldbuilding and atmosphere were really great and phenomenal in the time ME first came out, but the various lore contradictions, retcons (Asari, Ardat-Yakshi, Genophage, Quarian-Geth, etc.) and characters shifts in between ME, ME 2 and ME 3 as well as the last-minute/DLC only lore addition (Javik, Leviathan, etc.) already added a lot of issues in the game series.
"We want Mass Effect to be the next Game of Thrones... ... but, ya know, with a better ending." That singlehandedly warrants a like and comment for the algorithm.
Agreed. ME3's e doing is I famous, but unlike GoT, it didn't ruin the characters or the world. Playing ME Legendary edition was a blast to revisit. I cant even get .myself to rewatch GoT's earlier episodes despite how good they are due to knowing how it all doesnt matter much in the end.
For those who want a show that is, "Game of Thrones, but in space!", you should watch "The Expanse." It has multiple warring factions, politics, sheming, action, adventure, rich history that led the factions/cultures to who they are now... and also a possible "outside threat" comparable to the White Walkers or Reapers.
The Expanse has shown that we now have the technology to make sci-fi look amazing on the small screen and achieve moderate success too. Mass Effect sounds like it would be a great next step for sci-fi tv
The CGI isn't the issue. Good CGI is well within a sci-Fi budget, especially a space opera, since "Space CGI" isn't that complex (compared to, say a CGI animal). What makes such a show expensive are the different alien outfits, varying locations and large vistas. To compare, most of the Expanse is shot within fairly contained quarters. And that keeps the budget managable.
Dragon Age would do better as a TV show. The fact that each game has a different protagonist would work like GoT. You could start it during the 5th Blight and follow both the Warden and Hawke, and continue with both stories in parallel, especially if it’s a Warden that romances Morrigan and survives the Battle of Denerim, since Morrigan eventually gets involved in Orlesian politics. With the Inquisitor, you’d just have to flesh out their backstory and make them appear seasons earlier. Same with the DA4 protagonist. Introduce Solas earlier, too. They could all tie together due to the Blight, which is ultimately the antagonist of the series, and Flemeth’s machinations.
recently bought and played it for the first time and my first thoughts were "why isn't this a TV show? They have so many different directions they could go within the mass effect universe"
@@Squeekysquid I think it should start with Shepard, but then we could have spin-offs series, anthologies, mini-series, or movies about those events. There's so much to work with from Mass Effect it's ridiculous!
@@concernedcitizen6313 I don't think it should start with Shep, for one reason: there are so many different ways that we all view Shepard as a character that it would inevitably cause a lot of division among fans. I think it would be safer to go with a story that doesn't involve Shepard or even Ryder because that way if they write the character in a way that we don't associate with either of them it won't be a problem.
Simply retelling the trilogy, ‘adapting it’, is a terrible idea. Expanding with new stories set in the same universe would be great, but recreating the trilogy as a film or TV series is not what any real fans want. We don’t need remakes and retellings of a story we already know, especially an interactive story with varied choices that can’t be reflected in a TV series
‘Does this unit have a soul?’ The Mass Effect Trilogy is my favorite video game trilogy of all the time. It helped me through a difficult period of my life, falling in love with their characters and the complex deep themes and stories it tells. Game of Thrones is my favorite tv show for the same reason, so it would be such a dream come true to see the trilogy coming alive is such a fascinating way. Thank you Michael, and keep up with the good work!
@@Icepick614 don't apologize, every human being with living neurons could easily understand your message (even considering I don't even speak english). And yes, that would make sense... I honestly don't want a ME movie, I rather prefer nothing.
I've been saying that a TV show is the only thing that can do Mass Effect justice for years. Also, when my day job was political journalism, I'd unwind at night practicing the screenwriting process by adapting Mass Effect. I landed on six seasons of 8 to 10 episodes, and I definitely wrote the scripts up to Virmire. I am going to go dig up those files and look at them. Anyway, good luck and if you end up getting the right attention here, let ya boy send some samples for that room! ;)
BioWare really did an unbelievable job with the world of Mass Effect. I just love existing in that world, with all the politics and moral philosophy and interesting characters... You're completely correct that TV would be the better format for an adaptation.
Congrats on the Mass Effect position! I’ve loved your series for so long now and I am genuinely excited to see where the next game goes with your influence (for how big or small that may be) Either way, your fans have faith in you :D
I was sold on the idea of Mass Effect being a television series before I even clicked on the video. Now I'm going to be straight up sad that this probably wont ever exist. This is some really amazing work. Also, Emily Blunt as Fem Shep is an inspired choice. Great frame of reference, and honestly, I think she could work perfectly as is.
Bran died, the three eyed raven took his body and wargd/skinchanged his way to the kingdom. The whitewalkers tried to stop it happening but well y'know
Bran being King made sense, but the show never shows you why. Every King plunges the land into chaos for greed, love, fear, or being manipulated. Bran has no desires, he cant be manipulated because he knows everything, and he's a fair person at heart.
This video shows far more care, effort, and dedication to providing a good story and faithful treatment of an i.p. than anything that has come out of Hollywood for at least two decades. I sincerely hope someone with pull sees this and makes your dream a reality! Best wishes!
A Mass Effect movie would be such a disservice to the game's story and entire fanbase. The moral questions and quandaries are what make Mass Effect... wlll... Mass Effect.. and you cannot possibly cover that sort of thing in a movie/couple of movies. Sure you could probably touch on one of those topics really well but there are soooo many important moral conversations in Mass Effect you simply cannot do each topic justice in a movie.
This must be done! IT MUST. I am in tears right now because i see two people who are so in love with a story, with a world, with its characters that they just HAVE TO realise it. I just hope that the big studios and streaming services out there see this, listen to it and make it possible. And as a filmmaker and Mass Effect fan of the first second my self i would work my ass off if i had the possibility to work on this show. So much love to you guys, i hope your dream comes true!!!!
The inclusion of the Mass Effect Andromeda main theme music made me SO HAPPY! I honestly wish you could do this, because it seems like you've already put so much effort and thought into it!
I think Horizon Zero Dawn could also be adapted into a fantastic series in the right hands. Incredibly original world building and lore, factions of tribes to be explored. You could intertwine the post apocalyptic story with Aloy and the past "modern" world of Elizabet Sobeck before the machines took over.
OOOH, I would go for this rather than an ME series adaptation--mostly because HZD's lore is still relatively untouched and free of retcons/contradictions that sequels often bring (well, until Forbidden West at the last). I also feel HZD has a relatively 'easy to ingest' kind of worldbuilding versus ME which may be overwhelming to a lot at the start.
This would be so fantastic!! If they can pull off The Expanse being a great TV show with great looking sci-fi and grounded physics, Mass Effect would be doable too and with a great budget could look incredible as well! (P.s. Amazon, people are going to want more space shows when The Expanse is over so please pick this up, work with Lessons from the Screenplay, and throw all your money at it.)
The Expanse contains all of the elements named in this video, when you think about it - right down to each of the divided factions beting represented on the main character's ship. I would love to see a Mass Effect show, but I would definitely want it to distinguish itself from the look and feel of the Expanse's world, which IMO is the best sci-fi show in recent history.
@@j3steven you're right. Thinking about it now it does have all those elements. The only thing it's missing is that special something that made GOT instantaneously popular. It could just be that people aren't as interested in sci Fi or it's not as easy to understand as a GOT style show (you don't need to explain how swords work or anything to have the show make sense)
@@EET321 It's possible that the "something special" is that GoT has a heavy emphasis on family and killing established characters unexpectedly, whereas the Expanse is more focused on crew relationships and has more predictable deaths (which is not a bad thing, just different). The average person probably feels much more strongly about seeing a father/daughter/son cut down in front of their family as opposed to losing a comrade in battle, which probably made GoT's emotional appeal very strong. I think you're right, too, about SciFi perhaps not having the broad appeal that medieval fantasy can have. A lot fewer warm tones and beautiful landscapes, you know?
@@j3steven They technically share similar elements but only on the most superficial level; they aren't about the same things, even in the sci-fi sense. To reduce it to one thing, the Expanse is about Space, and Mass Effect is about Aliens - and while each has both, neither actually cares about the other. The Expanse uses alien life as a plot device to drive the action and explore other themes (politics, etc.) - it's not really interested in thinking that much about it. Mass Effect technically takes place in space, but it isn't interested in exploring what that means in the way that the Expanse is.
@@KaterynaM_UA most people would be distrustful of yet another medieval fantasy story being sold to them. Not that Dragon Age's story and lore is bad, but it just wouldn't market well
@@Lomaxxx53 not really. Witcher generated a lot of buzz and a lot of profits even young adult show Shadow and bone went out with quite a bang considering there is not much to its source material. It's also the reason Amazon dropping crazy money on that LOTR show no one really asked for. People are salivating for this niche to be filled.
@@KaterynaM_UA nah... i can't bare watch ANOTHER medieval fantasy, also, the witcher tv show is CRAP compared with the games (and still is watchable). Those diversity quota bs ruined the show, "black elves", older and ugly Triss, imature Yennifer (and by the way, the actress isn't nearly as beautifull as the Yennifer from the games, seriously, CDPR made a wonderful job in making a desirable female character out of outdated graphics of the witcher 3 engine), the ONLY good thing in the Witcher is Cavil and the story itself. All the rest is BS. The real problem is make it a Mass Effect tv show right, you don't need gender / race swaping characters the ONLY exception is John / Jane Shepard because both already exist, the game already allow you play as male or female. Also, Dragon Age have a good story and lore, but i don't think it is good enough to be adapted, theres hundreads of other great medieval fantasy that could be made in series, some even from videogames like Baldur's Gate... And again, we don't need another fantasy series, most people didn't even watch all those who already exist, most folks aren't even excited with the LoTR show that is coming, and this says a lot. What folks REALLY want is a NEW STAR WARS, and this NEW Star Wars is MASS EFFECT (or Kotor that also is from Star Wars universe).
It's interesting to see what happened to your idea - I worked at HBO for many years, on the 'classic' era shows - 'the Wire' 'Sex & the City, 'Sopranos' - but I also wrote screenplays on the side - my first actually got picked up by Scorsese's production company (and sadly, never made) - but I also wanted to option a self-published science fiction series of books that I'd carefully broken down into what I thought (still do) would be an amazing series. When I tried to negotiate for the rights, I discovered Ridley Scott and another production company were in a bidding war for the rights - Ridley won. Like with Mass, it would be do much better as a series than a stand-alone film! But you can't outbid the money if you're small. Ridley's had too much on his plate & he isn't young, so I still have some hope he'll give up on a film version and someone with the $ like Amazon will have an interest.
...Not necessarily with today's tech. Like the real time Unreal engine based surroundings would be a nobrainer in my opinion...it wouldn't be too different from The Expanse, tho maybe more approachable.
Every time I think of Game of Thrones I get so sad. An incredible show, ruined because the creators essentially didn’t want to make it anymore. We will never get to see the intended seasons 7-10, created by people who still love the story.
Man I really hope whoever has the ME rights give you guys a call. It is pretty clear to me that if you had the opportunity we would be gifted with an amazing show.
ME has a rich story and lore perfectly suited for a TV series. Though I feel that the CGI required to make convincing alien species, space ships and planets would blow out the budget for a debut series. At least GoT only had to show the CGI dragons a handful of times. But hey, I would love to be proven wrong!
I guess one test could be wheel of time and how it looks vs how much it cost to make. A proper adaptaion of WoT while probably less expensive in most episodes than a potential ME series, is probably waayy more expensive than GoT... just a thought
Each year it gets eaasier. Now we are using CGI for humans. This might be the right time. Imagine Season 1 of ME the Series and the new Mass Effect game in same year.. HUGE cultural event.
ME1 is fairly low budget and smaller scale compared to 2 and 3 though (later games have much larger scale, bigger battles, bigger cast of characters, more plotlines, etc...). So a cheaper first season (or even movie) would not cost anywhere near as much as later seasons would.
The Mandalorian did it. Though, the aliens were mostly practical effects, makeup, and puppets. While it works for the Star Wars universe, I don't know if it'd work for Mass Effect.
Mass Effect is one of my favorite game series and it would totally be an amazing long-form series. I didn’t know I wanted this but Emily Blunt would totally make an amazing FemShep. This needs to happen! Ahhhhh! 🤩🤩
Wait! Where’s the call to action? Where’s the petition to sign? The subreddit to join? The studio head to call / email? You sold me. Now make me a soldier.
While a Mass Effect TV show could be a resounding success, there is a huge difference with the GOT adaptation: its source material is a videogame, not a book. The reader is, instead, a player who makes active decisions in the story, from gender (male or female) to morality (Paragon or Renegade). Faithfully adapting the Mass Effect videogames would imply building a "canonical version" that would inevitably come into conflict with the varied experiences of the players, who spent tens and even hundreds of hours basically creating their own Mass Effect universe. For instance, simply having a Shepard either female or male as a protagonist would generate controversy regardless of the choice, the same with their moral actions, sexual choices, etc. On this particular topic, I could only think of one logical choice: the ME Andromeda method. The story could be adapted with both "Shepard siblings", who would replace Ashley and Kaidan in the equation (two characters that aren't exactly popular anyway) while adapting the central theme into a need for both siblings to stay together in order to maintain the galaxy united, both with different visions regarding humanity's role. At the same time, as the series progresses, one can choose the Paragon path while the other opts for the Renegade way, their journeys parting (like the Stark family in GOT) to eventually converge near the end of the story. This could also give a new dynamic to the secondary characters, having to choose a side and thus making decisions that could show us new facets of them which weren't explored in the videogames. It could even give us new stories to keep the narrative fresh, allowing the show to build its own identity.
This is fantastic, all that's left is money and a stellar writing and production team.... but my heart has been broken before...stop giving me all this hope, Michael!
Season 1 was so good and so promising for a rich storytelling universe. But I felt like the good screenwriters moved on and it became a play-by-numbers sci-fi show with decent effects after the first season :( So sad about that. Not that I stopped watching it, but it didn’t hook me like the promise from the first season.
Thank you! I was hoping someone had made this comment. I have not played Mass Effect but listening to the summary of the game sounded familiar to say the least :D
I'd love to see a TV Movie that covers the First Contact war, but finding a way to use the end of the movie to introduce Shepard and his/her origin story, even if it's done in such a way that he/she isn't a named character. I think that could be an interesting bridge to a GoT style tv series
Next Game of Thrones... on popularity one could hope, but as you talked about Mass Effect couldn't help but note how much it has in common with Babylon 5. Been many years, been meaning to replay the games again :) There aren't all that many games that can get its hooks into you and hold onto them over several games.
I get that Brie Larson is a toxic piece of garbage but goddamn she’s not bad as Captain Marvel. I don’t understand why everyone feels the need to trash her performance, this is an Oscar winner we’re talking about over here. My only problem is her lines are atrocious and her film was a clusterfuck with zero depth and had the least bit character growth or development. Emily Blunt won’t change that or make it any better. Just requires better writing.
@@Lite727 true but Emily blunt being likable would make the character a bit more appealing because as captain marvel is now, she is the blandest most unreasonably op character in the mcu
@@Lite727 She's not. That's complete internet-meme BS and lies. Brie is one of the sweetest and kindest persons in Hollywood. Stop believing all the BS and gaslighting nonsense that reddit and toxic youtubers spout. Also, don't bother with the "simp" or "White knight" replies to this, people are tired of that. If you actually bother to fact-check yourself or your lies, I'll be really surprised.
If you’re as excited about this idea as we are, please like the video and share with as many people as you can!
📺 Watch our video on the dynamic storytelling of Mass Effect 3's "Cure the Genophage" mission: bit.ly/3zdQvTH
🎧 Listen to our podcast episode on Mass Effect with Mark Brown of Game Maker's Toolkit: bit.ly/3baUZ38
I think it could be an awesome animated show! Like Futurama, but serious! The animation would definitevely mande things cheaper and more individual, there is a lot of live-actions out there! But an animated adult action series!? Thais couro be awesome
Can you please do a walk through of all your amazing Notion templates for writing?!?!? The tease at the beginning of the video was too much for me
I always appreciate your video game analysis, more in-depth and thoughtful recognition for an ever-growing medium from an amazing channel like yours.
I, ah, don’t suppose there’s any way to peruse your in-progress pitch notes, is there?
Cos the little you did show was super interesting, and I’d love to see how you’re dividing all the missions and character beats into episodes and arcs and seasons
3 things, but I overall ADORE your guy's spunk.
1: Please don't pull a GoT Season 8
2: If you need a writer, donut boy, etc. Where Do I Sign Up? PLEASE?
3: I expect at least 1 calibration joke...for the fans. 👀
Will there be a bottle episode set in a Citadel elevator?
This is genius. Yes.
Ha!
The elevator loading times🤣
"So...anyone want to talk about their people's history?"
"Nope."
"So I'm the only one who misses when we used to chat in the elevators back on the citadel?"
"Yep."
"So disappointed."
That would be the Party episode before the final battle begins.
There has never been a better time for a Mass Effect series. The Expanse has shown that high budget, politically nuanced Sci-Fi that looks amazing and tells a complex story, is totally possible. The Witcher has shown that video games (I know they were books but the games popularised it) CAN be be popular with non-gamers in other forms of media. GOT has shown that a show set in a massive alternative world with centuries of backstory and lore IS translatable to screen.
This is the moment and the time is now.
I was thinking about that too... The Expanse shows that we can have all of that in a popular show. And that is just what I would want for a Mass Effect show. There is so much world building to explore and so much story to tell and I would pay good money to see it
The Expanse got canceled twice. The Expanse was a solid show, except for the last season, but the market isn't there.
I think the biggest cost difference would be the shit ton of non-human looking aliens that WILL require makeup, prostetics and CGI.
@@BoneistJ It was brought back once by Amazon after a massive fan campaign. Plus if you know where the story is going to go from the books- It makes perfect sense to stop the current run by next season.
@@BoneistJ
The opposite of what you're arguing is true. Its not that it got cancelled twice, and btw it wasn't twice. It got resurected because it was that beloved. It was only cancelled once because syfy mishandled it's release and distribution. They had to cancel because of their own problems, not the shows. On Amazon prime it's being given a proper end with the people behind it being cryptic about potential opportunities to tell the story of the last 3 books.
Congratulations on getting hired by Bioware. I really believe you guys truly understand the essence of Mass Effect at its core and it's reassuring.
They were hired by BioWare?
@@joker6558 Yep it's why he hasn't posted on this channel in so long, he got hired to work with the story team on the next Mass Effect game though not a show.
@@debodatta7398 Whaaaaaaa?! Ok I’m excited now
Well I'm not down him immediately choosing to make Shep female for TV.. like every main character in all media for the past ~8 years. Gives me pause on what other modern day social bias he's gonna inject into the most amazing game trilogy ever. Fingers crossed but get ready for analogies to Trumpism and trans stuff in a scifi about reapers.
@@_AutoCoder That's a strange leap in logic.
The opening scene of Mass Effect 2 would make one hell of a season finale cliffhanger.
I mean it would, but narratively it would belong at the start of a season like in the game
I agree with you .... but maybe season #2
was thinking the Kaiden vs Ashley choice would be a great season 1 ending
I think first season should end on virmire
Yeah and then the main character would be arbitrarily brought back to life once and never again and television audiences would be like “????”. I love how successful Heroes was, killing people and bringing them back. People love that.
The coldest open in media history.
"Welcome to the Sequel! You're fucking obliterated."
GOD I AM SO HERE FOR THIS.
Mass Effect fan huh?
why? you want a Halo tv show? The porn parody of Halo?
Michael, I just saw the news of you working on the next Mass Effect. Congratulations! I wish you an amazing experience, and that this opens even more doors for you.
I know nothing about mass effect but I’m sold. This was an excellent pitch. Best of luck shopping this around-I would totally watch this!!!
Thanks Michael! :)
Check it out! It's a great game for non-gamers and they recently released a remastered update of all three games in the trilogy
All three games are together in one package now.
Think of a modern Star Trek with mix of survival horror, entertaining characters, well written lore and action set pieces
If you have time, go to Steam and Get the Mass Effect Legendary Edition. It's worth the price, the time and the choices you make in the game.
I can see it now
"The Tales and Exploits of Conrad Verner"
Episode 1: In Which Conrad Asks Commander Shepard For An Autograph
Episode 2: In Which Conrad Gets A Selfie With Commander Shepard
Episode 3: In Which Conrad Gets A Gun Shoved In His Face
Episode 4: In Which Conrad Becomes Truly Extreme
@@KeithFraser82 plot twist of episode #4:
Commander Shepard shoots at Conrad's foot
Conrad: Ah hahaaa, I can't believe you did that!
Shepard: It was a blank Conrad... you're fine.
Conrad: What, really?! Huh
Shepard: How do you expect to survive "undercover", if you can't take a simple bullet scare.
Makes a good roll reverse when they meet again on the Citidel 😎
Oh God, I can imagine a whole episode centered around Conrad telling a story in a bar about how he and Commander Shepard saved some colonists in a dire situation :P
@@Artem2034 And in Conrad's "flashback", he's played by a different actor or just looks much more dashing/rugged, Shepard has exaggerated makeup and fawns over him (as do a bunch of other characters), he shoots dozens of bad guys like Chuck Norris, etc. That can be the first part of the episode, then Shepard comes in and tells the story of what really happened.
Stunt casting: have Conrad be played by Joey Batey (Jaskier from The Witcher).
What i honestly hope for out of this show more then anything is too see the characters I love have more fleshed out relationships with each other rather then just with shepherd.
💯
Yes!
For the romance aspect, I would do something like this: play out the scenes of i.e. the Garrus romance in the same way as the game but with Tali instead of Shepard, and do the same with all the other good fan favorite romances that would get left out. My personal pick would be Femshep and Liara as the main romance, since Liara is one of the highest picked romance options and a really good one that gets fleshed out from the first game and Liara and Shep's relationship goes through a lot of ups and downs so it would make for good drama lol
I pray the writing gods smile on you and you’re brought in atleast should someone else look into this project. You deserve it
That is problem with movie world - “spaceships goes pew pew” is what spins heads of producers.
On the side of tv shows there are either need to check “boxes” or cant get grip on themes.
And let hope, it's won't be a SJW Mass Effect ...
Your sentence makes no sense
@@117MasterSpartan and you liked your own comment.
@@CYMotorsport i liked the comment not him lmao
I'm Commander Sheppard and chaos is my favorite ladder on the Citadel.
Tbf, chaos turned Shepard from some special forces guy into most famous human in the galaxy.
The "Citadel"... Do you know what the Citadel is? It's the home of the Council whom we tell about the Reapers over and over until they dismiss that claim.
@@gh0st_proxy "Look, there's a Reaper here to tell you they exist!" REAPER, at 350 decibels: "I EXIST, CITADEL COUNCIL. I AM A REAPER, HERE TO EXTERMINATE BIOLOGICAL LIFE, AS WE DO EVERY SO OFTEN. SHEPHARD IS RIGHT." Council: "Well, it would say that, wouldn't it? I'm not falling for propaganda from a damn Reaper!"
I'm Cmdr Shepard and this is my favorite comment on the Citadel.
Little finger reference?
"Mass Effect should be the Next Game of Thrones"
You mean well-written story with great characters, both hated and loved, that get killed off in gut-wrenching scenes and having an ending pretty much everyone hated with a passion? Pretty sure it already is.
Disagree wholly
The ending was fine.
In Mass Effect that is.
If we’re talking the original ending then for sure but I think it gets a bit better with extended edition and leviathan. Still not great but way better than the clusterfuck that was GOT S8
Hard agree. All that beautiful setup just to have the color trifecta ending was disappointing as hell.
@@devilsadvocate22289 Whatever anyone may think about "Subverse," that color-coded-ending jab from the kickstarter advert was PERFECT.
How come I can't like this a hundred times!? This story absolutely needs to be told in long form, there's absolutely too much subtlety for a movie. Even a trilogy of three hour movies would be tough to get right.
Thanks Erik! Agreed! The problem with even a trilogy is that each one needs to have a three-act structure and satisfy all the movie requirements, which despite a longer run time would still constrain the kind of storytelling that could be done.
Not to mention that's only 9hrs, or one season of GoT
Harry Potter had 8 movies. Mas Effect must have at least 6.
Yes!
Mass Effect is so well written "filler" episodes could be added in and provide great comic relief, bonding, etc.
The games are just That deep.
I still need to finish the 3rd though...
@@dropkickpherby6994 Shep talking to Zabaleta on the Citadel about his PTSD could be included in one of these filler episodes and that has the potential to be an amazing character moment. Filler episodes would be great in this.
One of the most interesting and potentially controversial aspects of making mass effect into a series would be the character deaths. In the game they aren't static. In the show even fans wouldn't be sure, going into the climactic scenarios, who was going to die.
I almost forgot about this, in the games especially in ME2 you can lose your entire crew in the suicide mission, or don't lose anyone at all, how they would make this work in a tv series? Popularity of the characters? You can't lose someone like Tali or Garrus in that mssion, they are way to important on the plot (Tali) or to popular (Garrus) to be cut short... Jacob is an obvious choice, because nobody likes him, Ash or Kaidan, aren't in that mission, but they were on Virmire, again, if it is the female Shepard, that means Ash would die on Virmire, but Kaidan is boring, Ash is way more cool than him, but i don't think they should kill either one.
Theres also Wrex, would he die by Ash / Shepard hands on Virmire? Would he be spared?
I would like to add the fact that every shepard is unique, I could prefer the paragon-male Shepard, but what if The show goes for a renegade-female Shepard??
In that regard I would play it safe: male shepard with 70% paragon and 30% renegade choices, like the ones of killing the council, or reacting with R2 to counter kill Kai Leng and that sort of things.
And making the "canon" choices: save ashley, kill Kaidan and rescueing almost every team mate in Me2 with some slight twists exceptions (I would kill Kasumi and Zaeed in ME 2), so we can suffer the death of Mordin and Legion in 3.
I would include some easter eggs, like punching Khalisah Al Jilani (the reporter) and intimidating Conrad Verner.
@@infoluminux Hahhaha forget the punching reporter, unless is the female Shepard they WOULDN'T EVER let that go to the screen!
@@efxnews4776 Character deaths can really enhance a story provided they’re justified and lead to interesting developments. For example, (and this will be very controversial) having Wrex die in Mass Effect 1 actually gives the story in the remaining games much more depth. Throughout Mass Effect 3 you have to deal with his dick brother Wreav, whose leadership of the Krogan makes the decision to sabotage the Genophage cure an actual considerable option. Meanwhile, everyone keeps reminding you how good and easy it would’ve been if Wrex were still alive, but alas. Now we just have to hope Eve can be a regulating influence on him.
It’s pretty cool to approach the Mass Effect games with the mindset of a showrunner trying to write interesting character arcs and plot twists, rather than as Shepard trying to make all the right choices. One of my favourite character arcs is to have Ashley shoot Wrex on Virmire while Shepard tries to talk him down. Come the attack on the Citadel in ME3, however, Ashley finds herself in the same position as Wrex, being talked down by Shepard. Does she redeem herself and avoid the same mistake Wrex made? Or does she get gunned down by Garrus in a moment of karmic justice?
@@TheRybka30 yeah...
Watching this after reading your recent tweet. Dude, to say that you're making me excited is an understatement.
This would be a great idea. I think what’s cool is even though many of us have played the game to death and know the story it’s still going to be a mystery what characters live and die and what choices are made. Who will be romanced, who lives/dies will Shepard save the space hamster?
And will Shepard be male or female😂
I just want a Garrus/Tali romance arc. So I feel like the main Romance should be Liara for one and three and Miranda to throw a wrench in things in 2.
Exactly what I want, liara as main romance
@@skylerfoxwell5107 ashley/jack/miranda/liara is the best romance ark
There has to be a space hamster. I'm okay with it escaping a few times, but there has to be a space hamster. It ain't Mass Effect without one in Shepards cabin. ;)
Hollywood really needs to stop making 10+ hours-long stories into a standard movie length. That's what they do every time they make a movie based off a video game and they've all just been terrible! You guys have the right idea. I would throw all my money at you for a Mass Effect tv series. You clearly know what it's all about.
Not knowing what will happen next or more specifically how it'll end was one of the best things about game of thrones. Mass effect cant have that because the major story (the sheperd trilogy) is already finished and a lot of the audience already knows whats going to happen. It also has the same problem of a hated ending.
@@lastword8783 but game of thrones was a bool series first so some people did know what was going to happen, same thing with their mass effect series.
@@jmo5755 game of thrones was still ongoing when the series came out. The show got ahead of the books many years later and it went downhill when it did. While some people knew what was going to happen, the big questions were still unanswered in the books. It was also going from a literary medium to a visual one while mass effect would be going from visual to visual.
@@lastword8783 the problem with the ending in Mass Effect was a technical one, is related with the nature of the game that is mostly about choices, story wise the ending was expected: evil race of lovecraftian machines erased, galaxy saved, ultimate hero sacrifice (?).
It is an expected ending, and to be honest, to me in terms of GAMING the ending that makes more sense, is the secret one that is basicaly Shepard raising the middle finger to the catalyst (symbolic gesture to Bioware) by shooting him.
I could see this ending making more sense like, the ending of the cycle be inevitable, and a 4th game become a race of survival in a post apocalypitic galaxy
In terms of gameplay, this makes more sense than Andromeda, wich, beside being completly unwanted, is actually pointless, because canonicaly Shepard save the galaxy.
Yes, the ending of the trilogy would be grim, but that would open a room for a decent sequel, in wich Shepard didn't die, and instead of fighting the Reapers, gather as many survivors in a desperate plan to outmanuever the reapers and avoid extinction of the species (the protheans also try that, and despite their whole species didn't survive, one of them did, Javik), you can even follow along with the Andromeda initiative, and use the Arks as means to escape the galaxy in a eventual 5th game.
One theme that could go along is the theory that Shepard was indocrinated, but his squadmates search for the means to cure his mind.
One thing that must be relevated in this scenario, is that the Reaper solution to deal with organics is failing, folks like the Asari may have the means to overcome indocrination with their melding abilities, and could be able to heal Shepards mind (or any organic).
This may come as a surprise ending for a tv show, and one surprise to expand the series in a different direction.
I can totally follow along with some sort of Space Mad Max:Fury Road, with pirates running amok, with the species fighting desperatly trying to survive as much as they could and with a handfull of people making plans to evacuate the galaxy (but NOT SOONER than needed, like in Andromeda).
Someone give these men money now! I want this TV series!
No one talks about how INSANELY good the first two hours of Mass Effect are. They establish setting, conventions, emotional stakes, central conflict, and the skinny on near every alien race by the time you finish with the Council. So good!
Best Story-ME1 Best Characters ME2(because it brings back OG's), Best Gameplay-ME3.
@IntrepidTit Actual gameplay is bigger than just the combat.
@IntrepidTit they didn’t have a lot of experience doing that, they traditionally developed CRPGS which are extremely tactical. You can even see that in ME1 - it’s basically a KOTOR game without lightsabers. And even then, by game 3 they still had a heavy tactical pause element in combat. Andromeda, for all its faults, has one thing right - they finally nailed on creating an engaging third person combat. But it took them 10 years to get there, which is completely normal - each studio has their specialty.
@IntrepidTit because then they'd get sued for copyright infringement? in order to 'copy the basic mechanics' of COD they'd need to literally copy the code.
further: maybe they didn't want *make* the game feel like COD or some generic shooter. they had a specific vision in mind that they wanted to go with.
even further: you gotta consider control schemes. specifically: there's an entire layer of extra options you have in ME that you don't in cod, your teammates. and your powers. trying to integrate normal shooter mechanics could very easily clash with those, just in terms of the buttons you need to press.
@@TheWefikus I enjoyed the combat in Andromeda, but I would say that I really missed the pause menu at times. Being limited to just three abilities at any given point, was really frustrating. It severely limited your combo abilities and you couldn't issue commands to your squadmates, which begs the question of why you have a squad to begin with. If you can't have access to their abilities. I would be happy with the Andromeda combat, if they reintroduced the pause menu for people who want to be a little more tactical, they can make it optional. The combat in Andromeda became stale as you reused the same three abilities over and over again. Switching profiles resets your cooldown timers which was just frustrating as well. Just my two cents.
Alright so when does it start shooting? Why aren't studios throwing money on the screen for this? ❤️
I don't even need to watch this to agree
After watching this, I'm trying to sign their pitch but I can't find my omni-pen...it's that good.
I always thought a Mass Effect show would be too expensive to make, but looking at shows like Stargate SG1, Andromeda, Battlestar Galactica, The Expanse, Farscape, and so many more, it could 100% be made these days and look good.
Babylon 5 is literally Mass Effect
it was on in the 90’s and written by J Michael Stravinsky who went on to write a few marvel movies
Apple TV is coming out with Foundation later this year. That looks like a big budget sci fi series too. So yeah it seems Mass Effect is possible.
I agree with you, there is 3 human caracter on the normandy (not counting the crew) and that would require a lot of convincing CGI or makeup, it is totally doable, but require a busload of money. That would require convincing major studio: HBO please! (netfils maybe?). they should first have a household name attached to the project behind or in front of the camera.
There's not many people I would trust with my favourite media franchise, but I think you guys nailed it. It is so obvious that you guys completely understand what Mass Effect stands for and how it could be translated to the small screen. This touched me to my core, I'm actually crying.
So glad to be able to share the love i have for this franchise with other people.
Wow, thank you so much! Mass Effect truly is special, there's a reason the story is so moving and has brought together this awesome community.
@@LessonsfromtheScreenplay absolutely!!!! going back to play all 3 games in my down time feels similar to returning to one of my favorite TV shows (GoT, The Wire, Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, etc.) and just binging it through. A great series mean you fall into it, you disappear into it. you imagine certain storylines from within the world, or the memories your favorite characters might harbor, having become the personalities they are... a great show, is a great world... you develop that world right, you've got an entire audience hooked.
I came across this video just now, after news of Amazon being in negotiations about a potential ME series. I too welled up a bit when I saw that they understood it so well and approached it with so much love. Also, all the memories hitting me when seeing snippets of the games.
I really hope you guys get the chance to make this into a show. Good luck on Mass Effect 4! I can't wait to see what you have in store for us
Phenomenal work! Didn't dawn on me how similar Mass Effect is to Game of Thrones (including a disappointing ending oddly enough). And yeah, totally agree on the TV show direction. I think turning something as deep and expansive as Mass Effect into a 2 hour movie is crazy. It'd be The Last Airbender all over again.
The budget on this thing though would have to be INSANE for it to work. Amazon is spending $465 million on the LOTR show. And I think (given the VFX, makeup and CGI needed) Mass Effect's budget would have to exceed even that! Hopefully the LED panel technology used in The Mandalorian can bring the cost down.
I think the budget requirements would probably be similar to game of thrones. The amount of vfx shots required would be similar I think. Its actually easier to make shots of spaceships feel "real" than what was done in game of thrones, too
@@noxabellus i think the biggest strain on the budget would be cgi or fx makeup for all the aliens. Species like the turian, salarians, and krogan would take a lot of work to make individuals look distinct and emotive, and they all have characters who are central to the plot.
Hey Ross! Glad you enjoyed this video as much I do
@@JP-dw9tv Yeah thats a great point
@@JP-dw9tv At leat the aliens were all designed to work over human skeletal proportions (since the models had to be modularly swapped with human characters), so "guy in rubber suit" technology is a good match. You might have to forego Salarian concave chests or tiny Turian waists, though.
This is honestly terrific. Congrats on putting together such a convincing pitch!
Thanks Spenser! :)
Very cool now since Michael is involved with working on the new Mass Effect game
Me: "Mass Effect is an amazing story as a game series. Not everything has to be adapted to film".
Lessons from the Screenplay: "We're thinking Emily Blunt from Edge of Tomorrow as Shepard"
Me: "Yeah okay, you got me. I'm all the way in."
I still kind of feel that the ME franchise exists in the right medium, but this is extremely well thought out and I would probably look forward to each episode.
Why the fuck would Emily Blunt agree to probably 8 years presumably of a show? That's beneath an A list star and makes no sense.
@@Connor8609 Since 2017 the films she's been in are My Little Pony: The Movie, the two A Quiet place movies written by her husband, the sequel to Gnomeo and Juliet, the Mary Poppins reboot and Jungle Cruise. If she gets the opportunity to play a space hero in a long spanning show with both complex characters and deep thematic relevance, that also pushes the boundaries of both the medium and social constructs, I think that's at least worth considering given the movies she's been a part of for the last 5 years.
Technically the male Shepard would be cannon, but since the games have the option, fem Shepard is one of the few instances that i wouldn't complaint about gender swapping.
Let it be! Fem Shepard, i wouldn't mind, especially with Emily Blunt in the role.
@@Connor8609 Buddy, you have no idea of how big is this franchise in the gaming comunity, aren't you?
Didn't Henry Cavil, the mighty Superman pushed to play as Geralt of Rivia in the Witcher? Why not Emily Blunt as Fem Shepard?
If you think the Witcher is the greatest RPG of all time, you is saddly mistaken, way before the Witcher be a thing, bioware was making its fame with Mass Effect franchise after the HUGE success of kotor games.
Kotor is still regarded as the best RPG of all time but since it is from Star Wars universe, you can only expect Disney would make something with it.
Mass Effect is basically all lessons learned in Kotor, put in a whole new franchise.
Anyone cast as Shepard would be imortalized on the role, the same way you can imagine anyone else aside from Cavil as Geralt of Rivia.
Love Mass Effect and would be fun for a TV series ... also when I watch The Expanse it feels like the closest thing so far
If you are ok with many absolutely banal characters, cringe inducing cliche dialogues and overused personality types, The Expanse is a series for you. I personally love the idea of the show, therefore I gave it chance THREE separate times. Never got past the beginning of the 2nd season.
@@rayhoodoo847 Characters way complex than anything mass effect has
@@rayhoodoo847 Wait so you've seen like 12 episodes and you've completely made up your mind about a 5 season show? Yeah sounds sensible enough, Watching 12 episodes and preaching to strangers on the internet how shit a show is lmfao.
@@ishaan863 . I'm not judging the plot for which 12 episodes would be too little. The plot is ok anyway. But 12 long episodes is completely enough to have a valid impression on the things I talked about.
@@glock7061 I agree, Mass Effect characters suck even more. Most at least.
And now you are working for BioWare, let's go!
WOW! Never thought I'd see Mass Effect on this channel, this is freaking dope!
You should watch Story Mode, their other channel.
@@evilbeardedman I know about story mode, I just didn't expect to see an adaptation here
A Mass Effect TV series would be a dream come true, but I honestly think the biggest obstacle would be Shepard him/herself... Personally, I wouldn't even want to watch a femshep TV series. BroShep+Liara is the only way I'd want to see it go. And I'm sure there are other fans of the game who feel the exact opposite as me, and would be completely uninterested in a maleShep-lead show. The beauty of the game is, everybody wins here. In a TV show, not so much...
I understand you don't want to give a lot away if you're trying to get this project made and mad props to you for the obvious effort you've put into it. But assuming it doesn't work out; I would absolutely die to see a deep dive into your vision for a five season treatment of Mass Effect after all is said and done. It's my favorite series of all time and I can tell you guys did your research and know your stuff when it comes to the nuts and bolts of effective storytelling. Congrats guys! You've got me hooked!
Would love to know how they would handle the... let's say controversial, ending 🤔
yeah, i hope they plan on changing a lot of things in the story. it is not as "simple" as adapting a book, a lot of elements can not be easily transfered
Me: I don't think Mass Effect should ever be adapted. The element of player choice is too important and an adaptation could only ever represent the experience of one playthroug.
You guys: Emily Blunt as Shepard
Me: I think Mass Effect should be adapted
while i do agree that a huge part of the appeal of the ME games is the player choices, i don't think thats really a hurdle for a ME show to worry about. for me, at least, the big thing with the 'branching story' was less about being able to replay the game and get a different story. It was about playing the game and having hte story shape around my choices, my philosophies. it was about me being able to consider the issues presented, and have the story react to that consideration.
a ME TV show would obviously not allow my input on the outcome, but it could still compel the same level of consideration. so i think it'd be ok.
please god no shepard. no existing plot from the games. please. the mass effect universe is so massive. it doesn’t need shepard.
it was has been adapted as Babylon 5
Emily Blunt as Shepard is a big no go. And honestly, i can't imagine a credible femshep with someone else then Scarlett Johanssen. You need an actress with great physical ability (can you imagine Batwoman vs a Yag? it would be like baseball bat vs ping pong ball) and a great register in her acting ( it will be tough job to find an actress with the range of Jennifer Hale). Sorry, the best choice for the moment for a credible Shepard is Henry Cavill. And simply can't imagine Emily Blunt head-butting a Krogan without a rebound. on the other hand, Emily Blunt as Liara ....
Emily Blunt as Liara, and someone like Gwen Christie or Charlize Theron as femshep: tall actresses who can project physicality and with a proven role playing a in-your-face character. A human shaped like Cavill and a human shaped like Theron as she was in The Old Gaurd are equally incapable of headbutting a krogan, that's more or less an in-game joke made possible by cybernetics.
I would think FemShep with a well known actress might be a good way to pad viewership: some of those fans lost because 'that's not my playthrough' could be reclaimed from new folks who were sold on the girl power element.
Also I don't want a show where a live action performer tries to match Mark Meer doing the voice, because that's like starting out saying "I'd like to get a B in this class, not an A+". I want them competing with Hale.
I got so many chills towards the end of this video. I also got a bit emotional because It showed me other people out there care about the idea of Mass Effect becoming an expansive series which dives into the lore and story the writers created in the first place. I hope one day I can sit down and watch a Mass Effect series exactly as you described.
All of the reasons why Mass Effect would make a great TV show is exactly the reasons why The Expanse IS a great TV show. Highly recommended!
The Expanse shows that these kind of stories can work, be succesful, and we now have the technology to make them look amazing. A Mass Effect show would require a significantly larger budget for sure, but The Expanse definitely works as a proof of concept and I'm sure is just the start of boundary pushing tv sci-fi
Emily Blunt as FemShep is a dream I never knew I had
I knew it since Edge of Tomorrow. Second choice - Stana Katic
My choice is Jessica Henwick
Natalie Dormer already worked on both Game of Thrones and Mass Effect. She's the best choice
@@Naugdil And then make Nathan Fillion, Joker...
The way you synced the Andromeda theme with your conclusion was inspired.
For what it's worth, I support this idea with my entire nerdy being.
I would literally subscribe to an entire streaming service with thousands of garbage shows if only it was the source of your vision for Mass Effedt.
The biggest challenge in adapting Mass Effect into a GoT style show would be to de-center Shaperd as the protagonist. GoT benefited from focusing on a large cast of characters without singling out a specific protagonist, and that was it's greatest strength
Gotta agree, the comparisons made were valid but this is pretty glaring
It can also be a TV show's greatest flaw though, since I fell out of love with it for precisely this reason. After too many characters have been introduced, they start to feel a bit washed out as if the writing has lost focus. I guess it's personal preference.
I don’t think it would be that difficult, Shep’s not where ME’s writing shines 99% of the time. They’re normally just a Mary Sue that provides conclusion. Just give every character more agency in their loyalty missions/side quests.
In Mass Effect 2 something like this already happened with Loyalty Missions, where you focus on individual NPC characters, and you help them out with something to get something. Miranda - The Prodigal, Jacob - The Gift of Greatness, Garrus - An Eye for an Eye, etc. Although you as the gamer help these characters, the reality is they could have done it on their own with other characters without Shepard, this opens the ME show to function a lot more like GoT with different perspectives at different places in the same time frames.
And not to forget: Shepard had to be brought back to life at the start of ME2, and there's more content in between 1 and 2 to fill in without Shepard. Then you got Cerberus, they have back story with the Illusive Man they can play out too.
To be fair, the cast of characters involved are numerous enough to be substantial, but not too much that it can be overbearing...you of course would have Shepard and his crew with their own stories, but you also have Admiral Anderson handling politics on the Citadel, the potential for internal conflict with Saren and Benezia, and in future seasons, a perspective on Cerberus from the Illusive Man.
Congratulations Micheal for officially becoming part of the Bioware team developing the next Mass Effect! I am really excited to see what you'll be able to contribute to the upcoming game and the return of Mass Effect!
You know, I love Mass Effect, but I didn't think the writing was strong enough on its own to make for a very compelling TV series in the same way George RR Martin's writing was. But the way you described your version of Shephard and the way each character wrestles with the themes sold me. I need this in my life.
I have to agree. The worldbuilding and atmosphere were really great and phenomenal in the time ME first came out, but the various lore contradictions, retcons (Asari, Ardat-Yakshi, Genophage, Quarian-Geth, etc.) and characters shifts in between ME, ME 2 and ME 3 as well as the last-minute/DLC only lore addition (Javik, Leviathan, etc.) already added a lot of issues in the game series.
"We want Mass Effect to be the next Game of Thrones... ... but, ya know, with a better ending."
That singlehandedly warrants a like and comment for the algorithm.
But did they mean the GoT or MA3 ending? ;)
ME3's ending was mishandled.
GoT's last season was whole other level of aweful. Not sure if I have seen a show have as much of a drop in quality.
@@charlietwoteas3676 Yes
@kshamwhizzle Agreed, I would even throw some of season 6 in there. Once they ran out of books to adapt it went to shit fast.
Agreed. ME3's e doing is I famous, but unlike GoT, it didn't ruin the characters or the world. Playing ME Legendary edition was a blast to revisit. I cant even get .myself to rewatch GoT's earlier episodes despite how good they are due to knowing how it all doesnt matter much in the end.
For those who want a show that is, "Game of Thrones, but in space!", you should watch "The Expanse." It has multiple warring factions, politics, sheming, action, adventure, rich history that led the factions/cultures to who they are now... and also a possible "outside threat" comparable to the White Walkers or Reapers.
The Expanse has shown that we now have the technology to make sci-fi look amazing on the small screen and achieve moderate success too. Mass Effect sounds like it would be a great next step for sci-fi tv
We allready had the technology its just a high risk exspencive gamble in sci fi, sci fi shows cost alot to make and their a chance their fail
The CGI isn't the issue. Good CGI is well within a sci-Fi budget, especially a space opera, since "Space CGI" isn't that complex (compared to, say a CGI animal). What makes such a show expensive are the different alien outfits, varying locations and large vistas. To compare, most of the Expanse is shot within fairly contained quarters. And that keeps the budget managable.
@@dee-jay45 that new virtual set tech that was used in The Mandalorian can take care of some of those issues
It looks passable to decent. I wouldnt call it amazing. Battlestar Galactica looked way better.
And if people want to play it safe. You can do Game of Thrones but with Dragon Age.
This. I feel like DA2 and Inquisition would do. As much as I love Origins, it feels like it has too much road travelling for a tv show.
@@rachelnicolas4518 Have you seen Game of Thrones? Half of the scenes in the first four seasons are people walking or camping in the countryside.
Dragon Age would do better as a TV show. The fact that each game has a different protagonist would work like GoT. You could start it during the 5th Blight and follow both the Warden and Hawke, and continue with both stories in parallel, especially if it’s a Warden that romances Morrigan and survives the Battle of Denerim, since Morrigan eventually gets involved in Orlesian politics. With the Inquisitor, you’d just have to flesh out their backstory and make them appear seasons earlier. Same with the DA4 protagonist. Introduce Solas earlier, too. They could all tie together due to the Blight, which is ultimately the antagonist of the series, and Flemeth’s machinations.
I the LOTR books they walked for months lol still great movies
recently bought and played it for the first time and my first thoughts were "why isn't this a TV show? They have so many different directions they could go within the mass effect universe"
Yeah, you could honestly make an anthology of hour long episodes about ME lore and have material for 10 seasons.
@@Squeekysquid I think it should start with Shepard, but then we could have spin-offs series, anthologies, mini-series, or movies about those events. There's so much to work with from Mass Effect it's ridiculous!
@@concernedcitizen6313 I don't think it should start with Shep, for one reason: there are so many different ways that we all view Shepard as a character that it would inevitably cause a lot of division among fans.
I think it would be safer to go with a story that doesn't involve Shepard or even Ryder because that way if they write the character in a way that we don't associate with either of them it won't be a problem.
If I was a producer I'd be smashing my head onto the invest button.
This is a really solid pitch. I hope it convinces someone who's connected.
Simply retelling the trilogy, ‘adapting it’, is a terrible idea. Expanding with new stories set in the same universe would be great, but recreating the trilogy as a film or TV series is not what any real fans want. We don’t need remakes and retellings of a story we already know, especially an interactive story with varied choices that can’t be reflected in a TV series
Inject Legion referring to itself as “I” after several seasons of buildup directly into my veins.
‘Does this unit have a soul?’ The Mass Effect Trilogy is my favorite video game trilogy of all the time. It helped me through a difficult period of my life, falling in love with their characters and the complex deep themes and stories it tells. Game of Thrones is my favorite tv show for the same reason, so it would be such a dream come true to see the trilogy coming alive is such a fascinating way. Thank you Michael, and keep up with the good work!
well would you look at that. i immediately came to this video after the announcement.
I'm still convinced that the Henry Cavill thing is more likely him getting a role in the upcoming game sequel but I'm up for anything
Which sequel
@@jmo5755 the one that was teased at game awards
@@Icepick614 oh the game?
@@jmo5755 yes sorry for the lack of clarification
@@Icepick614 don't apologize, every human being with living neurons could easily understand your message (even considering I don't even speak english).
And yes, that would make sense... I honestly don't want a ME movie, I rather prefer nothing.
Love the Alt Shift X call out
I've been saying that a TV show is the only thing that can do Mass Effect justice for years. Also, when my day job was political journalism, I'd unwind at night practicing the screenwriting process by adapting Mass Effect. I landed on six seasons of 8 to 10 episodes, and I definitely wrote the scripts up to Virmire. I am going to go dig up those files and look at them. Anyway, good luck and if you end up getting the right attention here, let ya boy send some samples for that room! ;)
If this ever happens I pray they follow the Shepard/Garrus relationship and keep the scene where Mordin warns about the dangers of banging a Turian.
is the only romance option that actually makes sense with fem Shepard...
BioWare really did an unbelievable job with the world of Mass Effect. I just love existing in that world, with all the politics and moral philosophy and interesting characters... You're completely correct that TV would be the better format for an adaptation.
Except for Andromeda... Andromeda is a piece of garbage.
Congrats on the Mass Effect position! I’ve loved your series for so long now and I am genuinely excited to see where the next game goes with your influence (for how big or small that may be) Either way, your fans have faith in you :D
Wait did he get hired on the next Mass Effect game??
@@jonathonhollis7080 yiss
I was sold on the idea of Mass Effect being a television series before I even clicked on the video. Now I'm going to be straight up sad that this probably wont ever exist. This is some really amazing work.
Also, Emily Blunt as Fem Shep is an inspired choice. Great frame of reference, and honestly, I think she could work perfectly as is.
Ending: ‘What unites people? Is it a good story? Bran has one.’
Viewers: ‘We should go.’
Tyrion: "I should have pushed the Democracy button..."
Bran died, the three eyed raven took his body and wargd/skinchanged his way to the kingdom. The whitewalkers tried to stop it happening but well y'know
@@KeithFraser82 or the Whopper Button.
"Who has a better story, than Bran the Broken?"
"Shepard."
"Wrex."
Bran being King made sense, but the show never shows you why. Every King plunges the land into chaos for greed, love, fear, or being manipulated. Bran has no desires, he cant be manipulated because he knows everything, and he's a fair person at heart.
This video shows far more care, effort, and dedication to providing a good story and faithful treatment of an i.p. than anything that has come out of Hollywood for at least two decades. I sincerely hope someone with pull sees this and makes your dream a reality! Best wishes!
A Mass Effect movie would be such a disservice to the game's story and entire fanbase. The moral questions and quandaries are what make Mass Effect... wlll... Mass Effect.. and you cannot possibly cover that sort of thing in a movie/couple of movies. Sure you could probably touch on one of those topics really well but there are soooo many important moral conversations in Mass Effect you simply cannot do each topic justice in a movie.
*Sees the title* : "Please no"
*realizes these guys actually know what they are talking about* : "..... ok MAYBE!"
This must be done! IT MUST. I am in tears right now because i see two people who are so in love with a story, with a world, with its characters that they just HAVE TO realise it. I just hope that the big studios and streaming services out there see this, listen to it and make it possible. And as a filmmaker and Mass Effect fan of the first second my self i would work my ass off if i had the possibility to work on this show. So much love to you guys, i hope your dream comes true!!!!
The inclusion of the Mass Effect Andromeda main theme music made me SO HAPPY! I honestly wish you could do this, because it seems like you've already put so much effort and thought into it!
ME:A was a good videogame :-)
It’s also a chance to improve certain characters who weren’t as popular with some fans. Like Kaiden and Jacob.
It sounds to me like HBO is waiting for your voice to be heard. This is an amazing pitch!
I’ve always thought HBO should pick up mass effect, it’s cool to feel validated 😁
Jessica Chastain would be one hell of a FemShep imo.
I think Horizon Zero Dawn could also be adapted into a fantastic series in the right hands. Incredibly original world building and lore, factions of tribes to be explored. You could intertwine the post apocalyptic story with Aloy and the past "modern" world of Elizabet Sobeck before the machines took over.
OOOH, I would go for this rather than an ME series adaptation--mostly because HZD's lore is still relatively untouched and free of retcons/contradictions that sequels often bring (well, until Forbidden West at the last). I also feel HZD has a relatively 'easy to ingest' kind of worldbuilding versus ME which may be overwhelming to a lot at the start.
Where have I heard that game
This would be so fantastic!! If they can pull off The Expanse being a great TV show with great looking sci-fi and grounded physics, Mass Effect would be doable too and with a great budget could look incredible as well! (P.s. Amazon, people are going to want more space shows when The Expanse is over so please pick this up, work with Lessons from the Screenplay, and throw all your money at it.)
The Expanse contains all of the elements named in this video, when you think about it - right down to each of the divided factions beting represented on the main character's ship. I would love to see a Mass Effect show, but I would definitely want it to distinguish itself from the look and feel of the Expanse's world, which IMO is the best sci-fi show in recent history.
@@j3steven you're right. Thinking about it now it does have all those elements. The only thing it's missing is that special something that made GOT instantaneously popular. It could just be that people aren't as interested in sci Fi or it's not as easy to understand as a GOT style show (you don't need to explain how swords work or anything to have the show make sense)
@@EET321 It's possible that the "something special" is that GoT has a heavy emphasis on family and killing established characters unexpectedly, whereas the Expanse is more focused on crew relationships and has more predictable deaths (which is not a bad thing, just different). The average person probably feels much more strongly about seeing a father/daughter/son cut down in front of their family as opposed to losing a comrade in battle, which probably made GoT's emotional appeal very strong.
I think you're right, too, about SciFi perhaps not having the broad appeal that medieval fantasy can have. A lot fewer warm tones and beautiful landscapes, you know?
@@j3steven They technically share similar elements but only on the most superficial level; they aren't about the same things, even in the sci-fi sense. To reduce it to one thing, the Expanse is about Space, and Mass Effect is about Aliens - and while each has both, neither actually cares about the other. The Expanse uses alien life as a plot device to drive the action and explore other themes (politics, etc.) - it's not really interested in thinking that much about it. Mass Effect technically takes place in space, but it isn't interested in exploring what that means in the way that the Expanse is.
Imagine they recreate The "leaving earth scene " from ME3 in put it on a serie with The same soundtrack!!! Jeeeeeez
you guys should contact henry and the directors and whoever needs the pitch
dragon age: *looking forlorn like kermit from that one meme where he’s looking out a frosty window*
Underrated comment. Dragon age would make for a much better successor to Thrones too.
I'm just waiting for DA4! I got a egghead elf I need to wreck!
@@KaterynaM_UA most people would be distrustful of yet another medieval fantasy story being sold to them. Not that Dragon Age's story and lore is bad, but it just wouldn't market well
@@Lomaxxx53 not really. Witcher generated a lot of buzz and a lot of profits even young adult show Shadow and bone went out with quite a bang considering there is not much to its source material. It's also the reason Amazon dropping crazy money on that LOTR show no one really asked for. People are salivating for this niche to be filled.
@@KaterynaM_UA nah... i can't bare watch ANOTHER medieval fantasy, also, the witcher tv show is CRAP compared with the games (and still is watchable).
Those diversity quota bs ruined the show, "black elves", older and ugly Triss, imature Yennifer (and by the way, the actress isn't nearly as beautifull as the Yennifer from the games, seriously, CDPR made a wonderful job in making a desirable female character out of outdated graphics of the witcher 3 engine), the ONLY good thing in the Witcher is Cavil and the story itself.
All the rest is BS.
The real problem is make it a Mass Effect tv show right, you don't need gender / race swaping characters the ONLY exception is John / Jane Shepard because both already exist, the game already allow you play as male or female.
Also, Dragon Age have a good story and lore, but i don't think it is good enough to be adapted, theres hundreads of other great medieval fantasy that could be made in series, some even from videogames like Baldur's Gate...
And again, we don't need another fantasy series, most people didn't even watch all those who already exist, most folks aren't even excited with the LoTR show that is coming, and this says a lot.
What folks REALLY want is a NEW STAR WARS, and this NEW Star Wars is MASS EFFECT (or Kotor that also is from Star Wars universe).
It's interesting to see what happened to your idea - I worked at HBO for many years, on the 'classic' era shows - 'the Wire' 'Sex & the City, 'Sopranos' - but I also wrote screenplays on the side - my first actually got picked up by Scorsese's production company (and sadly, never made) - but I also wanted to option a self-published science fiction series of books that I'd carefully broken down into what I thought (still do) would be an amazing series. When I tried to negotiate for the rights, I discovered Ridley Scott and another production company were in a bidding war for the rights - Ridley won. Like with Mass, it would be do much better as a series than a stand-alone film! But you can't outbid the money if you're small. Ridley's had too much on his plate & he isn't young, so I still have some hope he'll give up on a film version and someone with the $ like Amazon will have an interest.
Or Netflix
What project did Ridley Scott win
It would make for an expensive tv show, for sure. Cool, though.
@@parkivich and the expanse
Make it animated
@@thekidfromcanada Yeah I thouht this would also solve the impracticability of depicting turians, salarians or krogans IRL
...Not necessarily with today's tech. Like the real time Unreal engine based surroundings would be a nobrainer in my opinion...it wouldn't be too different from The Expanse, tho maybe more approachable.
@@mrm0bius Nah, a few animatronics it's all you need.
Every time I think of Game of Thrones I get so sad. An incredible show, ruined because the creators essentially didn’t want to make it anymore.
We will never get to see the intended seasons 7-10, created by people who still love the story.
What do you mean? The show only had 6 seasons and then mysteriously stopped production. /s
Seriously though I can't wait for winds of winter
Mass Effect TV show, don't we already have The Expanse?
Man I really hope whoever has the ME rights give you guys a call. It is pretty clear to me that if you had the opportunity we would be gifted with an amazing show.
The amount of absolute shite that gets made nowadays it makes me sad there aren't more good stories like mass effect.
HOW CAN YOU MISS THE OPORTUNITY TO END WITH "I SHOULD GO"? OH! THE HUMANITY!
The expanse has been doing quite well on Amazon, I don't see why it couldn't work.
Fantastic vision you presented!
Mordin: breathes deeply some else would have gotten it wrong hade to be me.
ME has a rich story and lore perfectly suited for a TV series. Though I feel that the CGI required to make convincing alien species, space ships and planets would blow out the budget for a debut series. At least GoT only had to show the CGI dragons a handful of times. But hey, I would love to be proven wrong!
I guess one test could be wheel of time and how it looks vs how much it cost to make. A proper adaptaion of WoT while probably less expensive in most episodes than a potential ME series, is probably waayy more expensive than GoT... just a thought
Each year it gets eaasier. Now we are using CGI for humans. This might be the right time. Imagine Season 1 of ME the Series and the new Mass Effect game in same year.. HUGE cultural event.
Your not wrong sadly sci fi tv is high cost high risk
ME1 is fairly low budget and smaller scale compared to 2 and 3 though (later games have much larger scale, bigger battles, bigger cast of characters, more plotlines, etc...). So a cheaper first season (or even movie) would not cost anywhere near as much as later seasons would.
The Mandalorian did it. Though, the aliens were mostly practical effects, makeup, and puppets. While it works for the Star Wars universe, I don't know if it'd work for Mass Effect.
I've been saying this for 10 years now. I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet.
So this is what got you hired... Great video!
Mass Effect is one of my favorite game series and it would totally be an amazing long-form series. I didn’t know I wanted this but Emily Blunt would totally make an amazing FemShep. This needs to happen! Ahhhhh! 🤩🤩
Wait! Where’s the call to action? Where’s the petition to sign? The subreddit to join? The studio head to call / email? You sold me. Now make me a soldier.
I'm convinced, I hope they don't just take your idea and not include you. You deserve to be involved when this is done, it's a great idea!
Wow amazing job.
Question: What program/website did you use to make the series bible shown at 1:40?
I’m curious as well!
Its called Notion. You can download it for windows and mac too. www.notion.so/desktop
While a Mass Effect TV show could be a resounding success, there is a huge difference with the GOT adaptation: its source material is a videogame, not a book. The reader is, instead, a player who makes active decisions in the story, from gender (male or female) to morality (Paragon or Renegade). Faithfully adapting the Mass Effect videogames would imply building a "canonical version" that would inevitably come into conflict with the varied experiences of the players, who spent tens and even hundreds of hours basically creating their own Mass Effect universe. For instance, simply having a Shepard either female or male as a protagonist would generate controversy regardless of the choice, the same with their moral actions, sexual choices, etc.
On this particular topic, I could only think of one logical choice: the ME Andromeda method. The story could be adapted with both "Shepard siblings", who would replace Ashley and Kaidan in the equation (two characters that aren't exactly popular anyway) while adapting the central theme into a need for both siblings to stay together in order to maintain the galaxy united, both with different visions regarding humanity's role. At the same time, as the series progresses, one can choose the Paragon path while the other opts for the Renegade way, their journeys parting (like the Stark family in GOT) to eventually converge near the end of the story. This could also give a new dynamic to the secondary characters, having to choose a side and thus making decisions that could show us new facets of them which weren't explored in the videogames. It could even give us new stories to keep the narrative fresh, allowing the show to build its own identity.
This is fantastic, all that's left is money and a stellar writing and production team.... but my heart has been broken before...stop giving me all this hope, Michael!
You should probably watch The Expanse. Everyone should watch The Expanse.
Also, amazing job. Now we need to figure out how to do this.
Season 1 was so good and so promising for a rich storytelling universe. But I felt like the good screenwriters moved on and it became a play-by-numbers sci-fi show with decent effects after the first season :( So sad about that. Not that I stopped watching it, but it didn’t hook me like the promise from the first season.
Or “Babylon 5”
because this entire pitch is literally that tv show
@@qzbnyv I really don't know what to tell you, because I feel like the first season was the weakest.:)
Mass Effect TV show is called Babylon 5.
It aired in the 90’s had a cult following was critically acclaimed, but never reached a large scale audience.
Thank you! I was hoping someone had made this comment. I have not played Mass Effect but listening to the summary of the game sounded familiar to say the least :D
But would definitely watch the hell out of this show too!
@@bluejeanserenade Oh for sure
babylon 5 is awesome and so is mass efect
I'd love to see a TV Movie that covers the First Contact war, but finding a way to use the end of the movie to introduce Shepard and his/her origin story, even if it's done in such a way that he/she isn't a named character. I think that could be an interesting bridge to a GoT style tv series
that could be cool
Next Game of Thrones... on popularity one could hope, but as you talked about Mass Effect couldn't help but note how much it has in common with Babylon 5. Been many years, been meaning to replay the games again :) There aren't all that many games that can get its hooks into you and hold onto them over several games.
Emily Blunt would have made a much better Captain Marvel.
Shame she's not interested in playing superhero characters
@@recover2077 Didn't she addition as Black Widow?
I get that Brie Larson is a toxic piece of garbage but goddamn she’s not bad as Captain Marvel. I don’t understand why everyone feels the need to trash her performance, this is an Oscar winner we’re talking about over here. My only problem is her lines are atrocious and her film was a clusterfuck with zero depth and had the least bit character growth or development. Emily Blunt won’t change that or make it any better. Just requires better writing.
@@Lite727 true but Emily blunt being likable would make the character a bit more appealing because as captain marvel is now, she is the blandest most unreasonably op character in the mcu
@@Lite727 She's not. That's complete internet-meme BS and lies. Brie is one of the sweetest and kindest persons in Hollywood. Stop believing all the BS and gaslighting nonsense that reddit and toxic youtubers spout. Also, don't bother with the "simp" or "White knight" replies to this, people are tired of that. If you actually bother to fact-check yourself or your lies, I'll be really surprised.