Mass Effect 5 has the chance to be a new start to the series, but EA could always have the team bring back features that didn't get enough attention or were utilized poorly. The Mass Effect 3 multiplayer was outstanding, but ultimately became a victim of poor implementation, as the main issue was the war assets, not the mode itself.

Many would consider Mass Effect Legendary Edition to be worse without multiplayer. Multiplayer could have been added, but unfortunately, it went missing, as it would have taken a lot more work to release the game with that addition. Mass Effect 5 needs to fix this because EA has a chance to build a great multiplayer live service with an existing blueprint.

Legendary Edition Didn't Add The Great Multiplayer

The Biggest Missing Piece

When the Mass Effect Legendary Edition came out in 2021, fans of the sci-fi RPG series were thrilled. However, the Mass Effect 3 caused a lot of debate. Leaving out this feature, which lets players team up in co-op missions tied to the main story, upset many people who had spent hours fighting off enemies with friends or random players.

While the Multiplayer was laid out and easy to see, it would have cost the team time. The developers of Mass Effect Legendary Edition made the right decision not to include multiplayer because it would have let players focus more on the story of all three games. The multiplayer would have taken attention away from the main story, and by keeping it out, the focus stayed on single-player.

Remastering the multiplayer would have taken a long time, depriving players of the remaster they had waited for so long. That's not just making the multiplayer but also setting up servers to work across different consoles and deciding whether to keep the original game’s microtransaction system. That's resources spent on a feature that may not be functioning today.

Mass Effect 3's Multiplayer Was Ahead of Its Time

The Gameplay Loop Was Amazing

Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer mode came out in 2012. It was a fresh, exciting idea that mixed the fun, repeatable action of horde-style shooting with the deep character-building and customization usually seen in RPGs. This special mix made it stand out from other games at the time, creating an experience that stayed popular long after its release. If you haven't played it but have played Outriders, it's incredibly similar.

While most Horde modes back then were just about surviving waves of enemies, Mass Effect 3 added extra strategy by including random objectives during matches. These tasks involved hacking computers, protecting moving drones, or taking out key enemies. It forced players to change their plans and move around the map, making each match feel different and more engaging than just holding out until the end.

A big reason the mode worked so well was its detailed character customization. Instead of only letting players pick basic soldier types, the game offered a wide range of classes, each with its own skills and abilities that fit into the Mass Effect universe. Adepts used powerful biotic attacks to control the battlefield, throwing enemies around or creating protective barriers. Engineers used tech skills to shock foes, deploy helpful drones, and weaken enemy defenses.

Soldiers specialized in heavy weapons and explosives, while infiltrators focused on stealth and precise sniper shots. Players could also choose from different alien species, leading to multiple ways to build their characters. Gear choices also mattered, offering useful bonuses that could change how the game felt. Teamwork was key, and players worked together. They used their strengths to help each other and cover weaknesses, making the experience feel well-balanced.

The War Assets Were The Worst Part

It Should Not Have Affected Single-Player

In Mass Effect 3, the War Assets system was added to give players a sense of control over how the game would end. As you played, you collected different resources, like soldiers, ships, tech, and allies, all of which added to a number called your "Total Military Strength." That number was then adjusted by another number called the "Readiness Rating," which gave you your final score, the "Effective Military Strength".

This Effective Military Strength score decided how well-prepared you were for the last mission, "Priority: Earth," and affected how the story ended, including what happened to Commander Shepard. So far, it should sound great because that was a smart way to collect all the decisions made over multiple games. Many decisions players made in other Mass Effect games would get referenced and help or hurt the overall score.

People loved the multiplayer mode but hated how it was tied to the story mode.

Unfortunately, there was a big problem with how the Readiness Rating worked as it was tied to the game’s multiplayer mode. If you played the online co-op missions, your Readiness Rating went up, which meant your Effective Military Strength score got higher. On the other hand, those who only played the single-player story would see their Effective Military Strength end up much lower. Because of this, two players who made the same choices in the story could get very different endings just because one played multiplayer and the other didn’t.

This forced connection between multiplayer and the single-player story was very unfair. The ending should be based only on what happened in the main story, not on whether time was spent in a separate game mode. What's worse is that a player who spent too much time in multiplayer could make every bad decision and end up with the perfect ending out of all Mass Effect 3's endings, because multiplayer's bonus strength wasn't capped and would rise with each character reaching a certain level in multiplayer mode.

Mass Effect 5 Needs A Multiplayer System

We Want The Gameplay Loop Back

Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer wasn’t perfect, but it was a fun and different experience compared to the single-player game. If Mass Effect 5 includes multiplayer, it could make the game even better by giving players more reasons to keep playing and giving players the great mode they loved. Instead of just fighting waves of enemies like in the past, the game should improve the combat by making it more tactical and skill-based.

The old loot box system, which relied too much on luck and money, should be removed. Instead, the game could use a battle or seasonal challenges that give players cosmetic items and special abilities, not direct power boosts, so that rewards feel fair and based on effort, not random chance. Mass Effect 5 could add new classes with different playstyles to make the multiplayer even more interesting. The game could also include new playable races, like the Hanar or Elcor, which weren’t in combat roles before.

People loved the multiplayer mode but hated how it was tied to the story mode. That's something that would be easy to avoid in Mass Effect 5. Right now is a great time to make a lasting multiplayer, and EA just has to put some resources into it. If not, the game will miss out on a special part of Mass Effect 3.