Gab Hernandez 
Bioware has just released a possible teaser for Mass Effect 5 to celebrate N7 Day and fans are speculating about what this possibly means.
Bioware has had its fair share of difficulties in the past few months. The company made sweeping layoffs earlier in the year and is facing legal action from its former employees. This was followed by reports of delays for Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. Still, the company wanted to give fans something to sink their teeth into for N7 Day.
N7 Day is celebrated by developers and fans alike on November 7 every year, to commemorate the Mass Effect franchise. This year, Bioware was giving hints of what the next game might look like, and the final teaser video gives fans a glimpse of a new character and a new style of N7 armor.
Is the upcoming Mass Effect 5 a sequel to Mass Effect: Andromeda?
Teases in the trailer suggest that the next game will have ties to Mass Effect: Andromeda.
Throughout N7 Day, Bioware was dropping hints about the next Mass Effect game. One of the hints directly mentioned Andromeda. In particular, a code snippet released by Bioware stated “ANDROMEDA DISTRESS SIGNAL DETECTED.”
The distress signal also included a message about not underestimating humans. Whether the message is heroic or villainous is up for debate.
This all preceded the teaser clip released on Mass Effect’s social media channels. The short video showcased an unknown figure with a cyberpunk-style trenchcoat. Notably, said trenchcoat has the N7 logo on it, implying once more that humans will be the central species of Mass Effect 5, or whatever this new project might be. Many fans have noted the new outfit is reminiscent of Destiny’s aesthetics, which could mean a new visual direction for the Mass Effect franchise.
Reports have suggested that the next Mass Effect game will return to the level design of the original trilogy and will move away from the new gameplay elements introduced in Andromeda. The teaser could also foretell a plot or gameplay transition from the running and gunning of Commander Shepard to something more clandestine and secretive.
Does Mass Effect 5 have a release date?
No official release date for Mass Effect 5 has been announced.
Some have speculated that a new Mass Effect game will be coming out in 2024, but Mass Effect 5 was still in pre-production as of June 2023. It’s unlikely it has advanced significantly past that stage since then.
The layoffs may have significantly slowed down progress on both Mass Effect 5 and Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. Financial reports suggest that something significant could come out from Bioware in 2024, but it’s unclear what that might be.
