Mass Effect 2 trailer debuts, BioWare says keep original saves

Over the weekend, Mass Effect fans got their first look at Mass Effect 2, the follow-up to BioWare's critically acclaimed sci-fi role-playing game. Clocking in at just over 1 minute, the first teaser trailer features data from the military record of Commander Shepard, the original game's protagonist, superimposed over shots of his or her armor. (The customizable character can be either gender.) At the trailer's end, the record says Shepard is, in fact, deceased, and the camera pans up to show that his armor is being worn by a Geth, the Cylon-like robot race, which is the game's go-to enemy.

With its implication that the original game's protagonist is dead, the Mass Effect 2 teaser trailer appears to quash rumors that saved games from the first Mass Effect could be carried over to the sequel. However, on the official Mass Effect forums, BioWare community coordinator Chris Priestly urged players of the original to keep their saved games. On the same thread, two other BioWare developers issued similar statements, though none of the three said exactly what Mass Effect 2 would do with the data.

Of course, with Mass Effect having been released on the Xbox 360 and PC, only those two platforms will be able to use saved original games. Currently, Electronic Arts is planning to publish Mass Effect 2 during the first quarter of 2010.The title is being officially designated as "multiplatform," with no specific consoles yet mentioned.