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Set and primed to hit the stores on the 15th of May, the ultimate rendition of the original Mass Effect trilogy is almost here! If you, too, are wondering about the exact extent of Mass Effect: Legendary Edition changes, want to learn about its PC system requirements, and are interested in hearing more about it - you've come to just the right place.
Today, we're going to go over all the important info we have on the game. From DLC inclusion all the way to the Bioware Gear exclusive items. There's a lot of ground to cover, so let's get started.
What Are The Mass Effect Legendary Edition Changes?
First things first, of course. Mass Effect purists will certainly be most interested in hearing what's changing compared to the games' original release. The simple answer is: not quite as much as you might expect! The very first game - which is also the most outdated - is getting serious revamps, to be clear. Otherwise, though, we're getting new-gen hardware support, visual fidelity updates, and content streamlining. This is, for the most part, precisely what we were hoping to hear.
Down below, we've assembled a comprehensive list of changes we've seen so far.
Mass Effect 1 Legendary Edition Changes
- Vastly improved visuals
- Modernized HUD
- Improved cover functionality and movement
- Removal of class-specific weapons
- Improved squad AI
- Better implementation of Mako sections
- XP rebalance pass (no need to go NG+ for level 60)
- Autosave improvements
- Better boss encounters
- Revamped FemShep to resemble her lauded ME3 likeness
Other Mass Effect Legendary Edition Changes
- Unified control scheme across all three games
- Performance and graphics improvements in the following areas:
- Tonemapping
- Anti-Aliasing
- Fog and Volumetrics
- Bokeh/Depth of Field
- Subsurface Scattering
- Ambient Occlusion
- Support for ultrawide (21:9) resolutions and high refresh rate gameplay
- Single character creator
- Introduction of a single game launcher for all three titles
- Full revamp of ME3's Galactic Readiness feature
- Addition of controller support on PC (!)
Pretty neat, right? Naturally, Legendary Edition won't come out looking like a game that's actually been made from the ground-up in 2021, but it's going to look and feel far more modern than its historic releases do. This, combined with the rest of the improvements and optimizations, makes for an impeccable package.
The Latest Scoop: In-Depth Overview of Gameplay Changes
Just recently, EA and Bioware have into considerable depth with showcasing the latest batch of changes to Mass Effect games with the Legendary Edition re-release. While we did have the broad strokes beforehand, we now have a more comprehensive look at what's what and what's not.
"Mass Effect was heavily influenced by traditional RPG mechanics," explained Bioware's blog post, "As a result, weapons in Mass Effect often felt less accurate and reliable than the gunplay in Mass Effect 2 and 3."
For example, some of you may recall that a substantial amount of Mass Effect 1 enemies didn't have a crit-spot at all, and the armaments and abilities often felt mush and imprecise across the board. Thankfully, this is all being tweaked and changed with Legendary Edition. The end product should play much more similar to the following two games at launch.
This will be facilitated further with a number of changed and redesigned encounters, as well as a full-on melee and sprint functionality rework. Remember: melee used to be a contextual action based on Shepherd's proximity to an enemy unit.
We now also know how the infamous 'Galaxy At War' feature will be revamped. Instead of removing it altogether, Bioware has instead retooled it to keep track of trilogy progression. The more content you complete, the better end result you'll get, which does make perfect sense when you think about it.
"This legendary vehicle from the first Mass Effect has been “calibrated” to perform better than ever," said Bioware about the Mako. We're to expect a wide array of improvements and additions to make it more enjoyable and less... jerky.
Stellar news across the board, and if you'd like to get a more granular scoop, be sure to check out the official blog post from the devs themselves.
The Latest Scoop #2: New Comparison Trailer
Legendary Edition DLC: Are We Getting All Of It?
As it stands, one of the most important Mass Effect 3 Legendary Edition changes is that its DLC will no longer be sold separately. Often a major point of contention, Mass Effect DLC availability has, up until now, been a bit of a hit-or-miss situation. It was just about impossible to buy the games with DLC included, for example. Not an issue on its own had DLCs not been absolutely crucial for the games' respective narratives.
This is all going to change with Legendary Edition, thankfully, because it's going to include most of the originally available DLC. We say 'most' because long-time fans will notice one of them missing: the Pinnacle Station from Mass Effect 1. According to sources, the source code for Pinnacle Station was lost while Bioware was busy porting the game over to PlayStation 3. Efforts were made to restore it, but in the end, it was concluded that doing so was impossible. Not ideal, to be sure, but the whole thing was just a set of simulated combat arenas.
Everything but Pinnacle Station will be made available, though! That means over 40 pieces of DLC spread across all three of the games. And hey, better to have lost something like the Pinnacle Station than the Leviathan DLC!
Is Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer Coming Back, Too?
We mentioned changes to ME3's Galactic Readiness feature already, but the full extent of them is that Bioware is getting rid of the game's lauded multiplayer feature. That's right: if you were hoping to get busy with the surprisingly awesome co-op horde mode multiplayer after finishing the story, we're sorry to be the bearers of bad news.
Mass Effect Legendary Edition PC System Requirements
Of course, all those visual updates and improvements don't come without a cost. Running Mass Effect Legendary Edition is going to be significantly more taxing than running the original games was. For old times' sake, let us recall the first game's recommended PC system requirements. Just to see how far it's come since 2008.
Mass Effect 1 Original System Requirements
- OS: Windows XP / Vista / 7
- CPU: Intel 2.6 GHz / AMD 2.4 GHZ
- RAM: 2 GB
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce 7900 GTX / ATI X1800 XL
- DirectX: 9.0c
- Storage: 12 GB
Mass Effect Legendary Edition Minimum System Requirements
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- CPU: Intel Core i5 3570 / AMD FX-8350
- RAM: 8 GB
- GPU: Nvidia GTX 760 / AMD Radeon 7970 / AMD Radeon R9 280X
- DirectX: 11
- Storage: 120 GB
Mass Effect Legendary Edition Recommended System Requirements
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- CPU: Intel Core i7 7700 / AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
- RAM: 16 GB
- GPU: Nvidia GTX 1070/ AMD Radeon Vega 56
- DirectX: 11
- Storage: 120 GB
Incredible storage requirements aside - because these are three games in one - the sheer jump in GPU requirements is nothing short of incredible. Purely as a reference, UserBenchmark says that the GTX 1070 is a whopping 5,098% faster than the 7900 GTX. It's downright mind-boggling how much more powerful modern hardware is.
Now, it's worth pointing out that the GTX 1070 is still a reasonably powerful GPU, but we reckon that anything even moderately modern will have no trouble running the Legendary Edition. The minimum hardware recommendations, for example, are pretty darn low-end, all things considered.
The Mass Effect Legendary Cache: What Is Included in The Bioware Store Exclusive Version?
The final bit of info we'd like to cover today is that Legendary Edition does have a - wait for it - special edition available. The so-called Legendary Cache is only available via the official Bioware store, and, predictably, doesn't contain a copy of the game, either.
Sitting at a hefty $149,99, it's a tall order, for sure, but the list of goodies you get makes it a veritable collector's wet dream:
- Metal game case for Mass Effect: Legendary Edition (no game copy, again)
- Morality Spinner Pin
- Shepherd's N7 acceptance letter
- 2 Canvas art prints
- Full-color custom box featuring ME: Legendary Edition artwork
- Wearable N7 helmet with Paragon Blue / Renegade Red switchable LEDs
So... yeah. If you've got a neat $150 to spare, and don't mind paying an additional $60 for the actual game, we reckon the items featured above are highly collectible and are only going to rise in price moving forward.
Wrap-Up
There you have it: the most important bits of info about the upcoming Legendary Edition of one of the most beloved science fiction video game IPs ever conceived. To tell you the truth, Bioware could've only taken the easy road and re-released all three games with DLC included and we'd be happy. Everything else is just a cherry on top, even though there's no extra content coming in any way, shape, or form. This is one of those what-you-see-is-what-you-get situations, and we're excited to play it on May 15th!
Get in the Game ! 
