Beyond mechanical and graphical improvements, BioWare has implemented a fully cohesive character creator. While this isn’t entirely a surprise, it’s still nice to know that players won’t have to restart their character design in every game. The biggest surprise is that Mass Effect: Legendary Edition will feature a photo mode. This has become a bit of a standard for RPGs recently, but the Legendary Edition’s photo mode could mean more than meets the eye.
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Mass Effect Photo Mode Will Be Legendary
The original Mass Effect games were full of beautiful imagery and characters that players fell in love with. Screenshots have pretty much always been possible with a bit of timing and patience, but even those screenshots often had the UI at the forefront. Photo modes remove the UI and allow players to zoom in and focus on whatever it is their heart desires. For many, the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition photo mode will be an excellent opportunity to take pictures (perhaps too many) of their favorite characters.
Having a photo mode is already exciting enough, but it gets even better when considering the graphic improvements that have been made to all three games. Not only will characters and settings be stunningly rendered, but photo mode allows for players to capture images from angles previously unseen in past Mass Effect games. Fan-favorite characters will look incredible in-game and in photos, especially against the backdrop of newly-improved settings and locations. Mass Effect: Legendary Edition already looks beautiful, and now players can enjoy the story alongside great pictures of their favorite moments.
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What Photo Mode Could Mean for the Future
While photo modes have become a staple in a lot of different games, RPG or otherwise, BioWare hasn’t ventured into having one until Mass Effect: Legendary Edition. As exciting an addition it’ll be, this photo mode could mean big things for future BioWare games. Hopefully, implementing a photo mode will be a norm going forward for BioWare rather than having it be a one-time specialty for Mass Effect: Legendary Edition.
BioWare is known for its beautifully detailed atmospheres and storylines. Most of the time, players know that a BioWare RPG is going to have an immersive story and characters with lots of personality. This has been true for the Mass Effect series, but also Dragon Age as well. With new Mass Effect and Dragon Age titles in the making, fans of the developer and games can only hope that photo mode will now be a permanent fixture in new BioWare games. The photography possibilities within both of those series would be incredible with photo mode.
Photo mode is a feature many players look forward to when choosing a game. It may not be the sole reason players pick up a game, but it’s an added bonus that definitely isn’t overlooked. BioWare choosing to incorporate a photo mode in Mass Effect: Legendary Edition is a win for Mass Effect fans everywhere, but it could mean bigger things for the developer itself. Hopefully, photo mode will be a norm in future BioWare games.
Mass Effect: Legendary Edition releases May 14 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
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