List of Mass Effect characters
The player-controlled Ryder later succeeds their father as the Hyperion's Pathfinder, and is tasked with leading their crew on the command ship The Tempest, successfully settling the Heleus Cluster, and improving life aboard the Nexus, a galactic hub for the colonizer races from the Milky Way.
Kaidan Alenko is a human Alliance Navy officer with biotic powers, who serves aboard the SSV Normandy as Staff Lieutenant and head of the ship's Marine detail.
Garrus is initially a C-Sec officer who joins up with Shepard to escape from all the "red tape" in his job but becomes a vigilante under the alias Archangel on Omega in Mass Effect 2 before his squad is killed.
[31] On the other hand, Wes Fenlon indicated in his articles written for PC Gamer and Gamesradar that he was disturbed by BioWare's decision to give EDI a sexy robot body, and involving the character in a romance subplot with Joker.
He is a key member in the science team that researched the remodification of the Krogan Genophage, an action that he initially considered the best possible solution to a once growing problem, as he believes in acting in the best interests of the galaxy.
[36]PC Gamer staff noted that while there is not much to the character "beyond punching things and talking about fighting", dealing with Grunt could be a "refreshing change from the philosophizing and soul-searching of the rest of the crew.
[40] Morinth's planned dialogue options were trimmed down due to scope reasons and time constraints encountered during development, and the team opted to give the character an appearance which is identical to Samara, instead of cutting her from the game completely.
Video game developer Brian Kindregan, who wrote Morinth for Mass Effect 2, described her as a free spirit, a character who decides her own destiny and flaunt society's rules even if others are harmed in the process.
To explore the dark underside of sapient or sentient beings that Morinth is drawn to, the decision was made to shift her original role from the leader of an underground cult to a hedonistic sexual predator who prowls for victims at a nightclub on Omega space station.
"[41] Unlike most other levels in Mass Effect 2, Morinth's nightclub scene does not involve any combat sequences; instead, it entirely revolves around a story-driven gameplay mechanic Kindregan called a "puzzle conversation".
[9] András Neltz from Kotaku commented that "the sheer audacity of a scam this huge—setting out to recruit a virtuous Asari Justicar, and coming back with her black widow of a daughter instead, passing her off as the real thing—is truly amazing.
[40] To establish a simple but compelling motive for him, Turner pitched Zaeed's loyalty mission as one based on revenge, with his personality shaped into that of a grizzled survivor who has endured all kinds of death-defying situations with the stories and scars to prove it.
[42] Head models for the character went through various iterations, which included scarring, tattoos with the Blue Suns insignia, and potential breathers inspired by hockey masks and welding helmets for intimidation purposes.
PC Gamer staff member Wes Fenlon calling Zaeed a "less interesting retread of KotOR's Mandalorian Canderous Ordo" and expressed doubt about his ineffectiveness as a squad mate.
[44] Originally cut from the base game, Kasumi allowed the character's writer Jay Turner the chance to provide a "glimpse into a wild underground where there are art heists and Bond villains and respect among thieves" in Mass Effect 2.
[43] Hoy noted that Kasumi's cultural background is specifically stated to be of Japanese descent, and that the casting call required a candidate who could carry the mystique of an elusive personality along with projecting a vaguely Asian-sounding accent.
[54] This iteration would have wielded a special walking cane that serves to focus his dark energy powers; he was later redesigned to be an elite soldier like Shepard, and is depicted as wearing armor and conventional weapons instead.
[67] András Neltz from Kotaku consider the Collectors to be tragic figures, and "a demonstration of what evil the Reapers are capable of; a twisted shadow of a once-proud race, forced to serve the ones who destroyed them.
[70] Megan Logan from Inverse praised the depiction of Cerberus in the series as a villainous entity, and opined that "nuanced complexity built upon an understandable motivation is what makes a compelling antagonist".
He wears a coat similar to Thane's over a uniform with Cerberus colors, and his face and body is equipped with visible cybernetic implants to compensate for the injuries he sustained in Retribution courtesy of David Anderson.
[71] Early direction of Kai Leng's concept involve inhuman-looking metallic legs and hard armor as upgrades, which were streamlined during the later period of the development cycle of 3 into a stealthier appearance along with his hairstyle, coat length and visor type.
Maya Brooks is the alias of a former Cerberus operative who serves as the main antagonist of the story campaign of the Mass Effect 3 DLC Citadel; she initially presents herself to Shepard as a Systems Alliance staff analyst.
[79] The Broker's final facial design, with his triangular mouth and multiple eyes, is unlike anything BioWare has done in the past, and custom work had to be done to animate his face properly as Mass Effect 2's digital-acting system could not handle the graphical stress.
Communications Specialist Samantha Traynor appears in Mass Effect 3, serving in a similar role to that of her predecessor, Yeoman Kelly Chambers as Commander Shepard's personal assistant.
[5] IGN included the running gag where Shepard can prematurely end their interview sessions with al-Jilani by punching her as a renegade action throughout the original trilogy in their list of 13 Best Mass Effect Moments.
[83] Captain Kirrahe was the Salarian Special Tasks Group (STG) intelligence officer who uncovered Saren's facility on Virmire, and fights alongside Shepard's squad during the assault.
[36] Aria T'Loak, also known as "the Pirate Queen", is an asari organized crime boss who serves as the de facto ruler of Omega Station, an important hub in the lawless Terminus Systems.
[98] In Mass Effect 3, Kal'Reegar sacrifices his life on Palaven off-screen, repairing and protecting a communications tower used for relaying critical mission information back to the Turian Hierarchy.
The Stargazer is a humanoid entity of indeterminate race and background from the far future who narrates Commander Shepard's deeds, a legendary figure in their timeline, to a child companion in the ending of Mass Effect 3.
[50] Jarun Tann is a salarian politician, who plays a prominent role in the Andromeda Initiative's efforts to establish a government in the new galaxy, though his actual competence as an administrator may be called into question.
