Complete Mass Effect Trilogy Coming in November
Image via Bioware
Bioware have confirmed that the Mass Effect Trilogy, a collection of all three games in the series, including DLC for the first two games, will be released for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on November 6th. At least, the PC and Xbox version will, as the PS3 release date is still to be decided.
The collection will include the Bring Down the Sky and Pinnacle Station DLC packs for the first game, the former of which I remember as a fun romp with some tough-as-nails combat sections and some difficult decisions to make; the latter boils down to a fairly by-the-numbers, wave-based combat simulator. Note that they’ll only be available for the PC versions of the game; if you want them for the Xbox, you’ll have to buy them separately.
Mass Effect 2 comes with the Cerberus Network, which includes extra character Zaeed and his side-mission, the Firewalker vehicle-based mission, the Normandy crash site mission, and bonus equipment in the form of the Cerberus Assault Gear and the Arc Projector heavy weapon. It’s nice to see Zaeed in there, as his voice-work is perfectly matched to the character. The Firewalker pack is fun, but throw-away, and the Normandy crash site is a short but touching mission that will please players who are emotionally invested in the supporting cast. I’m disappointed not to see The Shadow Broker pack in there. That may be due to my being a bit of a Liara fanboy, as that particular DLC is all about her, but it’s also fairly important given that the events that take place there are directly and repeatedly referenced in the third game.
Speaking of which, Mass Effect 3 will come with an Online Pass to enable multiplayer. And nothing else. Granted, there’s really only been the Leviathan DLC for Mass Effect 3, but it would be nice to see it in there.
This isn’t quite breaking news, but I wanted to wait until there were a few more details before writing anything up. Not least of which is just what’s happening with the PS3 version. The original Mass Effect was never released on PS3, which potentially means the DLC would essentially have to be re-created for the system. Bioware aren’t saying anything about this, simply saying that “information on PlayStation 3 DLC will be available soon.”
My Spidey-sense tells me that’s corporate-speak for “We’re not doing it, and are frantically writing a press release full of platitudes.” The PS3 isn’t without its share of DLC-related problems, just ask Skyrim players, so there’s certainly precedent.
Bioware also confirm that the original Mass Effect will be available as a separate download on Playstation Network on the same day the collection is released for PS3, whenever that ends up being.
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