EA Provides Hope for Mass Effect Remasters

Electronic Arts has, to date, avoided entering the game-remastering business, even speaking out against the practice. That may change going forward, and it could potentially start with remasters of the Mass Effect games.

EA Studios boss Patrick Soderlund spoke about the subject with Game Informer at Gamescom. Asked if anything has changed for EA in terms of making remasters, such as one of the Mass Effect trilogy, Soderlund said, "What's changed is that there is proof in the market that people want it, maybe more than there was when we spoke [in 2015]. There were some that did it before, but I think there is even more clear evidence that this is something that people really want."

Game Informer also mentioned Activision, which initially avoided remastering games but has begun to produce them more recently (with mixed results).

"The honest answer is that we are absolutely actively looking at it," Soderlund said of remasters. "I can't announce anything today, but you can expect us most likely to follow our fellow partners in Activision and other companies that have done this successfully."

Soderlund noted the importance of "choosing the right brands for the right reasons at the right time." He added, "A remaster is something that you can just do or do it really well. I want to make sure that if we were to do it, we would do it really well and that people feel that it's the same game but it feels so much better in this new shape and form."

This is by no means a confirmation of a Mass Effect remaster (or any other specific project). It is, however, quite the about-face for the publisher.

While BioWare's Aaryn Flynn asked fans what they'd want from such a remaster in 2014, EA made it clear last year that it wasn't a priority. Soderlund admitted at the time that EA looked at the possibility but decided that "it's about weighing where we spend our resources. Is it better for them to be working on a completely new IP, which you know BioWare is, or should they be remastering a Mass Effect?"

Later in 2015, EA's Peter Moore took this further, describing the company as one "that just likes to push forward," adding that remastering games "feels like pushing stuff out because you've run out of ideas."

The next original Mass Effect game, Mass Effect: Andromeda, is slated for release between January and March of 2017.