KyoZz
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Let's discuss the ME3 ending and what could follow!
PLAY ME
Let's talk about the obvious first:
Mass Effect 3 canon ending is the "Destroy" ending
Shepard rejects the Catalyst's other options and prioritizes eradicating the Reapers at all costs.
This ending has The Crucible Wave destroy all synthetic life form (Reapers, Geth if alive, EDI, Husks) but spares organics. It's widely considered the "best" or most hopeful by fans and developers as it breaks the Reaper cycle decisively. The Citadel and Mass Relays have suffer massive damage and won't be exploitable anymore.
We know The Destruction is canon (meaning the Reapers are indeed destroyed) and not any other choice since of the repercussions:
Other ending 1 is Synthesis which consist of a despotic end of individualism, forced DNA/mental fusion into an hive-mind like Geth consensus. The teasers for ME4 showed no sign of this (glowing skin for example).
Other ending 2 is Control, Shepard merges with the Catalyst and becomes an immortal Reaper god-AI. Reapers now obey him and "help" rebuild/fix relays but eradicate every superior race. Not canon for obvious reasons.
BioWare's clues also confirm the "Destruction" ending as canon.
The Geth Are Alive
Now you might ask: how is the "Destroy Ending" canon if the Geth are still alive? Well, it seems some survived The Destruction thanks to their 'ark' (the massive virtual server/consensus structure built in Perseus Veil, you enter it virtually to fight heretic code/disable fighters). In short, it's a Geth 'world' beyond physical platforms.
In parallel to this, not all Geth were online during the pulse of the Destruction Ending. We have hints of this in ME4 artworks/codex. Also, the Ark is in Perseus Veil which is a nebula, so it could have protected them from the explosion of every Mass Relay. They could return as allies (post-peace with Quarians) or fragmented threat (heretic remnants?).
But now I'd like to bring your attention to the crew coming out of the ship:
Number 1 is most likely Liara (which will play a very important role, more on that later)
Number 2 looks like a Krogan
Number 3 could be a Quarian
And they're heading into a corpse of what looks like a Geth?
We don't have much more than this unfortunately.
A New Krogan Civil War
An inevitable civil war among the Krogans took place after the genophage bombs (ME3 cure) stopped, leading to a massive population boom and a resource war. Multiple clan are now fighting for superiority, as a classic Krogan cycle. This post-ME3 chaos sets stage for a good ME4 conflict.
This artwork is also confirmed to take place AFTER the events of ME3 by Michael Gamble himself.
Cerberus Is Still Alive, Well, and Xeno-friendly
Bioware said everything they share is important and has hints, and we can see on this artwork that the color choice is very reminiscent of Cerberus. You can also note the 'MR7' which could stand for 'Mass Relay 7'. This is the device that could be used to travel from the Milky Way to Andromeda. What's also obvious is that Cerberus went into an heavy 'dédiabolisation' cycle after potentially being taken over by Miranda Lawson (the famous loyal operative who defects). These new relay are build on the remains of Mass Relay as seen with the fractured center in this artwork.
The shifts from humans-only to the opening/inclusion of alien races for galactic unity can be determined thanks to the text at the bottom left. It has the name of the pilot and he is clearly not Human (most likely a Quarian):
Kert Empire? Liara searching for answer (possibly the next big threat)?
The Kert Empire from Andromeda can potentially invades the Milky Way via a new relay. This is teased in the MEA ending + ME4 trailers/artwork.
But just like the previous poster, I want to bring your attention to the center of the image as this is probably the most important thing we have right now:
Look closer:
Yes, it is indeed Liara (with a bodyguard?). We know that Asari can live much, much longer than any human so it makes sense that she's still alive.
But that's not the only thing we can deduce from this image, as the person speaking to Liara is an Angara and they are only found in the Andromeda Galaxy. The fact that Liara and an Angara are talking therefore indirectly confirms that it is now possible, in one way or another, to travel between galaxies (Hello you, the brand new 'Mass Relay 7' we saw in a previous artwork!). Another hint we have is this:
"Andromeda distress signal detected"
Those who have played Andromeda know that the expedition (which takes 633 years to arrive) doesn't go as planned. So it's no surprise that they sent a distress signal. This would also state ME4 634 years after the events of ME3.
But above all, Liara seems to play a central role in the story, she's omnipresent in all promotional materials. Something we haven't talked yet is the audio that was found on N7 day 2022:
Full transcription:
"Some Geth talking"
Liara : "Exactly, the council will be furious. Although they should know by now not to underestimate human defiance. It always was their most defining characteristic."
"Some Geth talking more"
Liara: "I didn't see it. How did we miss this?"
The actress who plays Liara also confirmed that she did the VA for both this teaser, and this one:
Liara climbs what looks like a mountain, but it's actually a Reaper (and another one can be seen in the background as she climbs).
Full transcription:
[0:00 - 0:08] "We know now that in the early years of the 20th century, this world was being watched."
[0:16] "Roger. Copy. Eagle, Houston. You're go for landing. Over."
[0:21 - 0:26] "Arcturus Station. Unknown vessel approaching. We need first contact protocols."
[0:27 - 0:29] "Humanity now stands as partners of the galaxy."
[0:32 - 0:34] (Hackett?): "Ark 6 is away. Godspeed."
[0:39 - 0:45] "What's that?" / "Oh my god." / "Gonna take down the dreadnought." / "Engines are going crazy." / "Abandon ship!"
[0:44] Sovereign-class Reaper roar: "BLAAARRRGHHHH."
[0:47 - 0:51] "Is anyone receiving this? We've lost contact."
[0:52 - 1:02] [Inaudible/mumbled]: Anomaly readings? / Computerized voice / "Over".
These lines recap the ME timeline: First Contact War → Citadel accession → Andromeda Arks → Reaper invasion.
I think that's it for now, feel free to quote me if I missed anything or if you want to add something. I created this thread after watching this video (it's in French, sorry) and I realized I missed some information. So why not sharing a recap.
PLAY ME Let's talk about the obvious first:
Mass Effect 3 canon ending is the "Destroy" ending
Shepard rejects the Catalyst's other options and prioritizes eradicating the Reapers at all costs.
This ending has The Crucible Wave destroy all synthetic life form (Reapers, Geth if alive, EDI, Husks) but spares organics. It's widely considered the "best" or most hopeful by fans and developers as it breaks the Reaper cycle decisively. The Citadel and Mass Relays have suffer massive damage and won't be exploitable anymore.
We know The Destruction is canon (meaning the Reapers are indeed destroyed) and not any other choice since of the repercussions:
Other ending 1 is Synthesis which consist of a despotic end of individualism, forced DNA/mental fusion into an hive-mind like Geth consensus. The teasers for ME4 showed no sign of this (glowing skin for example).
Other ending 2 is Control, Shepard merges with the Catalyst and becomes an immortal Reaper god-AI. Reapers now obey him and "help" rebuild/fix relays but eradicate every superior race. Not canon for obvious reasons.
BioWare's clues also confirm the "Destruction" ending as canon.
The Geth Are Alive
Now you might ask: how is the "Destroy Ending" canon if the Geth are still alive? Well, it seems some survived The Destruction thanks to their 'ark' (the massive virtual server/consensus structure built in Perseus Veil, you enter it virtually to fight heretic code/disable fighters). In short, it's a Geth 'world' beyond physical platforms.
In parallel to this, not all Geth were online during the pulse of the Destruction Ending. We have hints of this in ME4 artworks/codex. Also, the Ark is in Perseus Veil which is a nebula, so it could have protected them from the explosion of every Mass Relay. They could return as allies (post-peace with Quarians) or fragmented threat (heretic remnants?).
But now I'd like to bring your attention to the crew coming out of the ship:
Number 1 is most likely Liara (which will play a very important role, more on that later)
Number 2 looks like a Krogan
Number 3 could be a Quarian
And they're heading into a corpse of what looks like a Geth?
We don't have much more than this unfortunately.
A New Krogan Civil War
An inevitable civil war among the Krogans took place after the genophage bombs (ME3 cure) stopped, leading to a massive population boom and a resource war. Multiple clan are now fighting for superiority, as a classic Krogan cycle. This post-ME3 chaos sets stage for a good ME4 conflict.
This artwork is also confirmed to take place AFTER the events of ME3 by Michael Gamble himself.
Cerberus Is Still Alive, Well, and Xeno-friendly
Bioware said everything they share is important and has hints, and we can see on this artwork that the color choice is very reminiscent of Cerberus. You can also note the 'MR7' which could stand for 'Mass Relay 7'. This is the device that could be used to travel from the Milky Way to Andromeda. What's also obvious is that Cerberus went into an heavy 'dédiabolisation' cycle after potentially being taken over by Miranda Lawson (the famous loyal operative who defects). These new relay are build on the remains of Mass Relay as seen with the fractured center in this artwork.
The shifts from humans-only to the opening/inclusion of alien races for galactic unity can be determined thanks to the text at the bottom left. It has the name of the pilot and he is clearly not Human (most likely a Quarian):
Kert Empire? Liara searching for answer (possibly the next big threat)?
The Kert Empire from Andromeda can potentially invades the Milky Way via a new relay. This is teased in the MEA ending + ME4 trailers/artwork.
But just like the previous poster, I want to bring your attention to the center of the image as this is probably the most important thing we have right now:
Look closer:
Yes, it is indeed Liara (with a bodyguard?). We know that Asari can live much, much longer than any human so it makes sense that she's still alive.
But that's not the only thing we can deduce from this image, as the person speaking to Liara is an Angara and they are only found in the Andromeda Galaxy. The fact that Liara and an Angara are talking therefore indirectly confirms that it is now possible, in one way or another, to travel between galaxies (Hello you, the brand new 'Mass Relay 7' we saw in a previous artwork!). Another hint we have is this:
"Andromeda distress signal detected"
Those who have played Andromeda know that the expedition (which takes 633 years to arrive) doesn't go as planned. So it's no surprise that they sent a distress signal. This would also state ME4 634 years after the events of ME3.
But above all, Liara seems to play a central role in the story, she's omnipresent in all promotional materials. Something we haven't talked yet is the audio that was found on N7 day 2022:
Full transcription:
"Some Geth talking"
Liara : "Exactly, the council will be furious. Although they should know by now not to underestimate human defiance. It always was their most defining characteristic."
"Some Geth talking more"
Liara: "I didn't see it. How did we miss this?"
The actress who plays Liara also confirmed that she did the VA for both this teaser, and this one:
Liara climbs what looks like a mountain, but it's actually a Reaper (and another one can be seen in the background as she climbs).
Full transcription:
[0:00 - 0:08] "We know now that in the early years of the 20th century, this world was being watched."
[0:16] "Roger. Copy. Eagle, Houston. You're go for landing. Over."
[0:21 - 0:26] "Arcturus Station. Unknown vessel approaching. We need first contact protocols."
[0:27 - 0:29] "Humanity now stands as partners of the galaxy."
[0:32 - 0:34] (Hackett?): "Ark 6 is away. Godspeed."
[0:39 - 0:45] "What's that?" / "Oh my god." / "Gonna take down the dreadnought." / "Engines are going crazy." / "Abandon ship!"
[0:44] Sovereign-class Reaper roar: "BLAAARRRGHHHH."
[0:47 - 0:51] "Is anyone receiving this? We've lost contact."
[0:52 - 1:02] [Inaudible/mumbled]: Anomaly readings? / Computerized voice / "Over".
These lines recap the ME timeline: First Contact War → Citadel accession → Andromeda Arks → Reaper invasion.
I think that's it for now, feel free to quote me if I missed anything or if you want to add something. I created this thread after watching this video (it's in French, sorry) and I realized I missed some information. So why not sharing a recap.
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