History Trivia / MassEffect

* CelebrityVoiceActor: ''All'' over the place. Creator/SethGreen, Creator/AdamBaldwin, Creator/YvonneStrahovski, Creator/TriciaHelfer, Creator/MartinSheen, Creator/ClaudiaBlack, [[Film/TheMatrix Carrie-Anne Moss]]... the list goes on. In fact, it could be said that the in-development movie could very well be made with many of the characters literally being played by their voices (in fact, FanDumb might result if anything else were to happen in some cases!)

* LongRunners: Ten years and counting. The series started in either November 2007 with the release of the first game, or May 2007 with the release of the first novel and lore guide, and it was still receiving new content (in the form of MP DLC) by at least December of 2017, with [[https://www.dailystar.co.uk/tech/gaming/639235/Mass-Effect-Andromeda-DLC-BioWare-release-date-Dragon-Age-Anthem plans]] for at least one more main game. Since then the series has had four main games (''1'', ''2'', ''3'', and ''Andromeda''), two more-or-less independent multiplayer modes with their own mechanics and extensive unique content (for ''3'' and ''1''), and roughly 20 hours of single-player DownloadableContent missions with their own stories. Other content includes 7 novels, 2 GaidenGame IOS titles (''Infiltrator'' and ''Galaxy''), 8 comic book miniseries (rather short ones though), and a straight-to-DVD animated film (''Paragon Lost'').

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: At one point, it was going to be possible to [[spoiler:save both Kaiden and Ashley. This was removed when the developers realized no one would want to go on to further games with one of them dead if given the option]].

* AscendedFanon: [[FandomSpecificPlot It's been a common trope]] in BioWare based FanFic, starting with ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' [[note]] Where having two versions of Revan was a done as a nod to the Skywalker twins [[/note]] to have ''both'' the male and female version of the protagonist character as a SiblingTeam (or, in the case of VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins, two or more of the potential Wardens) along for the adventure. ''Andromeda'' just cuts to the chase and makes it canonical, though you can only play as one Ryder sibling.

* WritingByTheSeatOfYourPants: Different interviews with writers across the series reveals that many things about the series' overall plot and some bits of lore was more or less constantly in flux and changed around quite a bit as members of the writing team were added or left (most notably the lead writer for the first ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'', Drew Karpyshyn, left around half-way through the production of [[VideoGame/MassEffect2 the second game]] and was replaced by Mac Walters). According to interviews in the interactive documentary about [[VideoGame/MassEffect the third game]], ''Final Hours'', the (quite controversial) ending was not decided upon up until a few months before the game's release.

** When Creator/DrewKarpyshyn was still attached as head writer, the Reapers' motivation was originally linked to the buildup of dark matter in the galaxy from overuse of eezo; hence the strange readings from Haestrom's sun in ''Mass Effect 2'' (see AbortedArc). Their rationale was going to be that the energy can't accrue if there's nobody in the galaxy advanced enough to make it. When Karpyshyn was re-assigned to ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' after ''Mass Effect 2'', the new writers instead went with [[spoiler: the general conflict between organics and synthetics]] we see in ''Mass Effect 3''.

* CashCowFranchise: Not quite yet, but due to the universe's detail, depth, and extreme popularity, many are expecting Creator/BioWare to take it in this direction.
** Four novellas, two comics (plus two free mini-comics), and three spinoff [[IOSGames iPhone]] games, so far.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: At one point, it was going to be possible to [[spoiler:save both Kaiden & Ashley. This was removed when the developers realized no one would want to go on to further games with one of them dead if given the option]].
** When Creator/DrewKarpyshyn was still attached as head writer, the Reapers' motivation was originally linked to the buildup of dark matter in the galaxy from overuse of eezo; hence the strange readings from Haestrom's sun in ''Mass Effect 2''(see AbortedArc). Their rationale was going to be that the energy can't accrue if there's nobody in the galaxy advanced enough to make it. When Karpyshyn was re-assigned to ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' after ''Mass Effect 2'', the new writers instead went with [[spoiler: the general conflict between organics and synthetics]] we see in ''Mass Effect 3''.

* CashCowFranchise: Not quite yet, but due to the universe's detail, depth, and extreme popularity, many are expecting BioWare to take it in this direction.

* [[BannedInChina Banned In Singapore]]: For about two days.

* HeyItsThatVoice: The narrator for the Codex data files is [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3 Colonel Volgin]].
** [[KeithDavid Goliath]]/[[Franchise/{{Halo}} The Arbiter]] is Captain Anderson.
** Creator/LanceHenriksen is Admiral Hackett.
** [[Creator/SethGreen Oz]]/[[WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy Chris Griffin]] is Joker.
** [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Counselor Troi]] is Matriach Benezia.
** [[Creator/DwightSchultz Barclay]] is Navigator Pressly.
** [[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine Quark]] is the Salarian councilor (Valern) and Fai Dan.
** [[WesternAnimation/RegularShow Rigby]] is Mordin Solus, at least in the third game!
** [[Series/BattlestarGalactica2003 Colonel Tigh]]/[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim General Tullius]] is Commander Bailey.
** Major Coats is [[VideoGame/DragonAgeII Hawke.]]
** [[Creator/AdamBaldwin Jayne Cobb]] is the Quarian marine Kal'Reegar.
** The Illusive Man is [[Creator/MartinSheen President Bartlett and Captain Willard]].
** Lord Darius is [[WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles1987 Michaelangelo]] and [[Literature/WheresWally Waldo]].

** [[RegularShow Rigby]] is Mordin Solus, at least in the third game!

* InternetCounterattack: If you're an author who is claiming the game is a sex simulator, don't shriek you've never played the game. Just...don't. Cooper Lawrence learned this lesson soon after her claims when her book was bombarded with poor reviews beginning with, "I've never read the book, but..." (Hilariously, the reviews that ''didn't'' begin with that phrase were rarely much better!)

* RelationshipVoiceActor: Almost example, as Mark Meer ([=MaleShep=]) is married to Belinda Cornish, who voices Rana Thanoptis, the asari scientist who shows up on Virmire and has a minor role in the next two games. Don't forget that Shep has the option to ''shoot'' Rana.

* RelationshipVoiceActor: Almost example, as Mark Meer ([=MaleShep=]) is married to Belinda Cornish, who voices Rana Thanoptis, the asari scientist who shows up on Virmire and has a minor role in the next two games.

** When Creator/DrewKarpyshyn was still attached as head writer, the Reapers' motivation was originally linked to the buildup of dark matter in the galaxy from overuse of eezo; hence the strange readings from Haestrom's sun in ''Mass Effect 2''(see AbortedArc). Their rationale was going to be that the energy can't accrue if there's nobody in the galaxy advanced enough to make it. When Karpyshyn was re-assigned to ''StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' after ''Mass Effect 2'', the new writers instead went with [[spoiler: the general conflict between organics and synthetics]] we see in ''Mass Effect 3''.

** When Drew Karpyshyn was still attached as head writer, the Reapers' motivation was originally linked to the buildup of dark matter in the galaxy from overuse of eezo; hence the strange readings from Haestrom's sun in ''Mass Effect 2''(see AbortedArc). Their rationale was going to be that the energy can't accrue if there's nobody in the galaxy advanced enough to make it. When Karpyshyn was re-assigned to ''StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' after ''Mass Effect 2'', the new writers instead went with [[spoiler: the general conflict between organics and synthetics]] we see in ''Mass Effect 3''.

** [[Series/BattlestarGalacticaReimagined Colonel Tigh]]/[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim General Tullius]] is Commander Bailey.

* CelebrityVoiceActor: ''All'' over the place. Creator/SethGreen, Creator/AdamBaldwin, [[Series/{{Chuck}} Yvonne Strahovski]], [[Series/BattlestarGalacticaReimagined Tricia Helfer]], Creator/MartinSheen, Creator/ClaudiaBlack, [[Film/TheMatrix Carrie-Anne Moss]]... the list goes on. In fact, it could be said that the in-development movie could very well be made with many of the characters literally being played by their voices (in fact, FanDumb might result if anything else were to happen in some cases!)

** The Reapers' motivation was originally going to be linked to a buildup of dark energy due to eezo use, but it was changed when Drew Karpyshyn left as head writer; see AbortedArc on the main page.

** The Reapers' motivation was originally going to be linked to the buildup of dark energy due to eezo use, but it was changed when Drew Karpyshyn left as head writer; see AbortedArc on the main page.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: At one point, it was going to be possible to [[spoiler:save both Kaiden & Ashley. This was removed when the developers realized no one would want to go on to further games with one of them dead if given the option]].

** [[Creator/SethGreen Oz]]/[[FamilyGuy Chris Griffin]] is Joker.

* RealLifeWritesThePlot:
** The reason Tali'Zorah isn't romanceable by a female PlayerCharacter. Her actress, Liz Sroka, reportedly refused to record romance-related lines for [=FemShep=].

** [[KeithDavid Goliath]] is Captain Anderson.