Mass Effect 5 Needs To Learn This Crucial Lesson from Baldur's Gate 3

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If wants to earn a similar reputation for being a cutting-edge RPG like the original trilogy, it will need to take some important cues from . At the time of their release, the original games were lauded for their in-depth story and how players’ choices could carry over from one game to the next. However, at this point, those qualities are old news, and RPGs like have improved on them significantly.

offered players a wide range of branching dialogue trees with an astonishing number of hidden options. Players could even get some rare voice lines from companions like Shadowheart depending on the race they chose to play as. Going back and replaying the original games reveals just how far games have come in terms of their dialogue options, and how far will need to go to catch up with the current expectations of RPG players.

One of the most dated aspects of ’s dialogue options was the way it telegraphed the Paragon and Renegade options. Although it may take players a few conversations to catch on, it quickly becomes apparent that all the options to the top right of the dialogue wheel are Paragon options, and the bottom right is Renegade. After a while, this can lead to players checking out of a conversation and just tilting the thumbstick in the direction they want to score points in.

If Mass Effect 5 allows players to play as multiple different races, then it should include these popular races from the game as options for players.

Additionally, dialogue options on the left side of the dialogue wheel are typically optional and just meant for exposition. On rare occasions, dialogue on that side of the wheel does matter; it is usually colored either blue or red, again signposting which option is Paragon or Renegade. This means that players might get into the habit of ignoring the left side of the wheel when it isn’t colored.

In contrast, simply presents dialogue as list options to choose from. While things like Persuasion checks and class-specific dialogue options are