The Frozen Shepard Theory - Wait, WHAT? | Mass Effect 4 Theory

[@MrHulthen]

What do we call this theory? The Captain Shepard theory or The Popsicle Shepard theory?

[@IsengardMordor]

popsicle shepard theory

[@MrGabyGaming]

A better theory would be if shepard will be back is a Cryogenic Stasis, Liara or someone alse finds him and places him in a Cryogenic Stasis so it does not die until it is healed. At the same time if liara does not find him first the trailer could mean that Liara is searching for him. Shepard could not be found on earth because at the end he was on the citadel and he could heave been thrown in space. As well as the beam on earth transported shepard to the Citadel, something like that could heave activated when the Crucible fired. I don't think that the race that designed the Crucible planned to kill the one that activates it. About the Angara and Shepard's possible return it could be that around the end of ME 3 the Jardaan arrives in the Milky Way with some Angara an then the Jardaan could heave the technology and share it with the Milky way to get faster to Andromeda Galaxy.Since The Jardaan left Andromeda so many years ago it could be around the end of ME 3 there are a lot of possibilities its crazy when you think about them all. And i think it would be Epic if the jardaan comes to the milky way, maybe kett as well, who would be best for Peace Galactic Preservation then shepard, as well if the game will start as default with the Destroy ending if you go full paragon and save all people possible there will not be many death friends, EDI's body could heave been destroyed but her core could heave survived since the Normandy was fine at the end. So the only deaths will be the Geth(maybe not all of them) and Mordin because he cured the genophage. As well i would not mind if the start of the next game if its after the ME3 ending could change a bit, like release another ending for me 3 cut seen that makes the Catalyst a liar( by this i mean that when the the Crucible fired it killed the reapers affected all other tech but not destroy them only damage them for a time i mean the geth/edi and other VI). They could do it in 100 ways i can't wait to see what they heave decided. What do you think?

[@net343]

Popsicle

[@Theox710]

Captain Shepard

[@thegreatkate3336]

“Captain America-Winter Shepherd” theory

[@harbinger6045]

1000 years after ME3. You walk into a shop on the citadel: " I am commander Shepard and this is my favorite shop on the citadel."

[@jeffmccowan3164]

I was gonna say Nexus, but yeah lol

[@nightmarezero8465]

@@jeffmccowan3164 the nexus is completely different than the citadel. Both exist. You didn't get to be on the citadel

[@jeffmccowan3164]

@@nightmarezero8465 I know, I was joking about Shepard in Andromeda.

[@HunterDrone]

if it's my shep i'd picture an asari hearing that ad and facepalming "they're still using dad's endorsement clip..."

[@danstathevikingman5596]

Shepard doesn't even have to survive to return. This is Mass Effect, as long as there is a body, there is nothing stopping the writer from doing a Lazarus 2.0.

[@Let_The_Foolish_Take_The_Lead]

That would certainly be the most convenient way to bring him back, but also ridiculously lazy.

[@thatbloomer5642]

Would've been more interesing if he's still alive, yet his wounds are too fatal for it to heal naturally. Therefore, a Lazarus 2.0 would only be used to heal his wounds. Which should makes sense, since neither the Alliance or the Galactic Allied Forces built the thing, it should have less capabilities than the original. And it wouldn't take like 2 years to bring him back, therefore the story would flow much smoother without another time skip.

[@Skipullgacha]

I think Lazarus 2.0 is possible, considering many cerberus scientists defected to alliance in ME3 story

[@efxnews4776]

@@Let_The_Foolish_Take_The_Lead it isn't lazy, its jusT SIMPLE! The tech to bring him back already exist, or at least is proven possible. The tech to.presearve his body also exist.

[@efxnews4776]

About the angaran... It could be actually a quarian...

[@edgelessspace7180]

Isn’t the story of Mass effect 2 basically a captain america story? - “Dies” in the beginning only to get “resurrected” years later - shady organization is responsible for bringing him back to life (shield) (Cerberus) - is tasked to lead a team composed of other special people (the avengers)

[@troyscribner4342]

Huh, nice connection.

[@seal2560]

Is later tasked with destroying the same organisation for being corrupt

[@Jasonth131]

And Grunt is the Hulk

[@fluffy4090]

@@Jasonth131 garrus is iron man Miranda is black widow jacob is warmachine shepard is cap samara is gammora jack is scarlet witch thane is hawkeye Kasumi is nebula liara is mantis legion is ultron if he was good zaeed is thor I can't think of one for mordin

[@seal2560]

@@fluffy4090 What about tali?

[@Taco1011]

I'm still convinced it takes place relatively soon after Mass Effect 3. Biggest evidence? The relay (and it IS a relay, it just looks kind of obscured because of the debris and dust) is still messed up from when the Crucible overloaded it.

[@MrHulthen]

Nice catch!

[@Taco1011]

@@MrHulthen Thanks, but I wasn't the first one to notice that. For a LONG time I thought it was the Citadel. Some one pointed it out, and corrected me, that it wasn't the Citadel and that it was a Relay. It's so hard to tell though because of all the dust and debris.

[@Agherosh]

Buuuut, there's artwork of a new Mass Relay, so it's doubtful they'd build a whole new one just like that so soon

[@Taco1011]

@@Agherosh there’s a possibility that’s a red herring and might not be used in the final game.

[@Taco1011]

@@Agherosh either way I hope we get some more details. I’m itching to play some new Mass Effect… Or at least find out more about the next game

[@oelacs]

I hope mass effect 4 takes place right after 3. I need to see where my romance options go! I need to know!

[@commandershepard5450]

If it’s centuries later I need to start preparing now for the feels of seeing Tali’s and Garrus’ graves

[@ram64man]

Totally agree. I want Miranda to return badly after all she tried to walk away but if you romanced her she stays . Plus she is genetically perfect so won't age the same as a normal human well beyond the 120 years mentioned in me3

[@weenis3746]

@@commandershepard5450 yep same im prepared to be sad 😥😥

[@acheron5900]

@@commandershepard5450 That would be hard mate... That's why i prefer the game to take place right after 3

[@thel1355]

Depends if the mass relays are destroyed. Without the mass relays, all the star clusters are essentially like isolated islands. They're too far apart for travel and communication between them to be practical. If they're destroyed, then they need to be rebuilt, and the races of the galaxy don't really know how. It makes sense for things to occur way in the future.

[@Arcian]

The connection to Andromeda might just be an indication that they plan on making more games set in Andromeda, not necessarily that Andromeda will be part of the next game. As in, "Oh, the next game will be set exclusively in the Milky Way, but don't worry, we have plans to make a sequel to Andromeda as well."

[@Sandman5O2]

I think the connection to andromeda is they’re planning on merging both galaxies, the mass relays have been upgraded to launch you between the milky way and the andromeda galaxy that would be pretty cool!

[@masterchiefcarlos]

I just want to throw out this idea: Remember the first halo 5 trailer. Story wise, it was close-ish, guardian, chief having a broken helmet, chief searching for cortana, but little else was in the game. No dessert planet like that one, no jedi robe, no necklace with cortana's chip, and not even the same music. Point is, this trailer and concept art, could be leading us to believe something different, so while it is fun to theory-craft, remember a few things: 1: It's EA 2: It's bioware and 3: trailer and concept art may be a bit different in the final game.

[@editorrbr2107]

Aside from Liara, Shepard and possibly Grunt, everyone else would be long dead. One of the charms of ME is the cast; can you imagine a Mass Effect game with Shepard standing alone - no Garrus, for instance?

[@justsomeguy4099]

No Garrus......I dont like that....not at all

[@malif1279]

No Shepard without Vakarian (and Tali)

[@Fingerscrossedout]

Nohhhhhhh 😢

[@UltimatesoldierX]

It could be 5 to 10 years after Asari can hit matriarch stage by not have a lot of sex and the only person she had sex with is the commander depends on if you did romance her

[@masterblaster3508]

Grunt is a new born babe even if he is a young krogan adult his plates are not mature. Meaning Grunt and Liara are the only ones who can live a long tike. Wrex is only 700+ years old and could live to be 1400 if not longer given how drakk is around that age.

[@infernalskepandaen2127]

The only planet that fits the whole trailer, snow+moons+N7 armor remains is Alchera, which happens to be the Normandy Crash Site in ME2

[@adot704]

this is exactly what i was thinking, and it makes sense as to why there would be a reaper on that planet, probably to see what they can get on Shepard, his/her crew, and the alliance. The only problem with this the trailer shows a planet with only 2 moons, but Alchera has 3, And also Legion wears a piece of Shepard’s armor, but that makes the geth artwork for mass effect 4 more interesting

[@jenitoten2212]

Like Liara wouldn't have all the details of the Lazuras Project? Please, she's not gonna let Shepherd go.

[@adot704]

@@jenitoten2212 exactly, and if miranda is still alive then that highly increases the chances of lazarus 2.0

[@jenitoten2212]

@@adot704 and remember Miranda was genetically engineered. So who knows how long her life span is. Or her sisters for that matter.

[@adot704]

@@jenitoten2212 iirc she does say that her lifespan is slightly a bit longer than a normal human’s which i’ve seen is normally 100-120 years in mass effect

[@Theox710]

Bioware could run with put shep in a cyro pod to save his life like they did with Ryder's mom. So when they got the tech to bring him back. Just a idea how the Captain Shepard theory could play out..

[@fenrisvermundr2516]

I still do not understand why she is even a thing. She adds nothing to the actual game beyond they wasted space carrying a braindead corpse.

[@35doddsy]

I like it. Cryogenic storage. May work, but how could it tie in with the breath scene at the end of ME3 after the catalyst is detonated?

[@Theox710]

They also have your romantic partner at the end holding your name plack and smile . So that leaves the thought that they know he is alive and he may already be in the cyro pod. The end of me3 did leave a lot left up in the air.

[@jackcassidy9963]

@@fenrisvermundr2516 It's Andromeda not many things and characters mattered

[@jackcassidy9963]

@@35doddsy Possibly he was on the brink of death which gave them enough time to preserve him

[@justcreed4024]

I honestly reckon that if that's an Angara in the trailer, Shepard is long gone but obviously not forgotten. Liara is looking for Shepard's broken armor pieces because she's gone back to being an Archaeologist or she loves Shepard and wants the armor for sentimental purposes

[@yeetin_yeti69]

I really hope the game isn’t going to be a scavenger hunt

[@wolfder6661]

Thing is tho for those who Didn't romance Liara it'd make no sense for her to hold onto he/She's armor for sentimental value what could possibly make sense is Maybe the Shepard Liara is looking for isn't The Shepard we know but the offspring of Shepard and whoever he/she romanced problem with that is if Shepard romanced a non human there'd be no offspring Only the Human characters could bare the Shepard DNA so Ashley Jack Miranda Kelly Liara would be the only possible mother's and For Femshep Kaiden and Liara

[@okcoolshades2203]

@@wolfder6661Miranda is Sterile

[@wolfder6661]

@@okcoolshades2203 that I did not no

[@weenis3746]

Bro people gonna be pissed they blue balled the players like how samara did to me 😔

[@randybutternubs8815]

I like the captain shepard idea. My question was why did Liars wait all that time to look for him/her. She is the shadow broker and wpuldnt have too much trouble finding him/her.. she did it before, even if the reapers messed up the universe I think rebuilding shouldn't have taken too long

[@BlackDemon5886]

That's why I think it's after a few yrs tbh

[@tsdobbi]

"My question was why did Liara wait all that time to look for him/her." I mean maybe she didn't wait. Assuming, destroy is canon, shepard survived, whose to say he didn't go on some spectre mission afterward where everyone who had intel was killed and Shepard never returned and she had been searching for him the entire time, but basically was searching for a needle in a haystack.

[@alexanderbaldwin1298]

Yeah and it's almost definitely gotta be in the Sol system, the sun's gravity wouldn't let pieces of the citadel drift away THAT far. My guess is its say, Europa or Enceladus. But yeah, couldn't be too long after ME3.

[@randybutternubs8815]

@@tsdobbi that's true, but would Shepard leave liara in the dark like that after everything they had been through? Even after being resurrected he still wanted to know where his old crew was

[@matthewanthony4606]

Instead of “him/her” you can just say Shepard

[@MidratsSnack]

Perhaps not too long after the victory Shepherd and surviving crew get sent to andromeda because they are the heroes who know how to fight reapers or whatever version in that galaxy? Maybe not too far behind in ftl traveling. I wish

[@alexanderbaldwin1298]

I like this theory, but one part of it makes me very worried Since it's Liara who finds the N7 thing, it could be hundreds of years after ME3, given her lifetime. I DON'T want that to happen, because that means Shepard will have to leave behind anyone who isn't Liara or Grunt. This would include any love interests that weren't Liara. I wouldn't want that to happen to Tali, for instance, that's too cruel. If it is Shepard and he is coming back, I want it to be maximum 10 years that he's been frozen. Then, even though significant time will have passed, it won't be so much that none of his other friends or love interests are around anymore. I think 5-10 years is a reasonable amount to change the Galaxy's state and rebuild some of the the relays, granted the Charon relay is still destroyed in the trailer, so it can't of been that long, given that Charon would probably be one of the first repaired. And since we know Shepard died/got very badly injured on the Citadel, it's almost guaranteed he's in the Sol system, so they wouldn't have to look for long. My guess is the trailer is on Europa or Enceladus, if this is indeed Shepard. Gravity just wouldn't allow him to be anywhere else, right?

[@PB-ji5rb]

even europa or enceladus aren’t easy to explain, he’d have to have gone from earth to Jupiter or Saturn, both are way too far away to be within reason

[@UltimatesoldierX]

It could be done if the citadel part he was on went and crash or that the reaper that there could of had him in it try to control it but falling to that place

[@matthewanthony4606]

Oh shut up

[@sweetdaddydee1314]

If he ended up on eurpoa, then why in the trailer did we not see Jupiter or Saturn in the background? In addition to the planet liara is being to/on, we only see two other space objects that are noticeably smaller than the original planet, making the assumption they're moons. If this was europa or enceladus we would of most certainly seen Jupiter or saturn in the trailer.

[@dasdas7752]

You probably already know this by now, seeing that this comment was made 1 year ago, but its very likely going to be set in 2190 4 years after ME3.

[@lewylewy2483]

from what I know Miranda said after waking Shepard in me2 before leaving the facility Miranda says in your case of two lives also you can also take into account that the shepard somehow survives

[@joshstephens413]

I think there is a possibility that the N7 rank Liara finds in the trailer is someone else's N7 insignia. Shepard wasn't the only N7 in the System's Alliance military. I think she finds it as she is looking for allies and it reminds her of Shepard and then also reminds her that Shepard's line continued through whoever you might choose during a tutorial and Liara returns to that person to chat with that person and that person is convinced to join as a party member.

[@calybselfridge4415]

A theory that I have is the story starts in the milky way just after the reaper war and later they travel to the Andromeda galaxy further down the story line.

[@Shaco.]

"Where the only person you know is Liara, would you really like that?" Well if she was Shepards LI, why not? Also seeing uncle Wrex and Eve again.

[@commandershepard5450]

Samara and grunt could also potentially be alive!

[@MrGabyGaming]

Would be nice to see a big party after the war talking with Wrex, Eve, the quarians... and all other survivers. What did Jack call him, the king of the Boy Scouts? :D

[@alexanderbaldwin1298]

But for everyone who didn't pick Liara and instead picked Tali, or Miranda, or Jack... yeah it'd be pretty terrible.

[@commandershepard5450]

@@alexanderbaldwin1298 visiting their graves and hearing how they Carried on without him would be tragic, but also pretty deep

[@meteora4478]

Wrex and Samara were already really old in me3, doubtful they’d live another 600-700 years.

[@nicholaslietzan9721]

To answer your question, EVERYONE wants shepard back, also , am I the only one who thinks liara didnt even look that old? Edit- id also be okay with retconing the ending of 3, the beginning of the next one could be the ending of #3

[@Wilhelmofdeseret]

Yea liara doesn’t look that old and people are pulling at straws with that. She literally has those wrinkles and crows feat in OG trilogy in certain scenes especially when she smile

[@dirtydan9153]

@@Wilhelmofdeseret to add to that, Liara digs up N7 piece with a single swipe lol. if 600 years passed that thing should be buried deeper. i say at most a week or more has passed.

[@makisa.6853]

You are not alone no. The "wrinkles" people have been going on about could be, in example, lines from all the tears she has shed for her lover/friend

[@JohnStormForge]

Shepard's resurrection in ME2 could explain why he could still be alive 600 years later. Shepard was dead like super dead, spaced then burned up on re-entry. So they would have to ramp up his cells ability to regenerate slowing if not stopping the aging process. Couple with his cybernetics as well as the cybernetic upgrades you could opt for, would make death by natrual causes almost impossible. I wrote this prior to the mentioning of the Lazarus Project in this video.

[@Mikimarux]

If you upgraded the med Bay in ME2 and used it it removes all traces of cybernetics in Sheps body as a result of the Lazarus project.

[@JohnStormForge]

@@Mikimarux The upgraded Med Bay doesn't remove the cybernetics just the scaring, for people who disliked them

[@Mikimarux]

@@JohnStormForge yes it does, the text when you use it reads "Remove facial scarring and all traces of cybernetic implants".

[@JohnStormForge]

@@Mikimarux but you can still research cybernetic upgrades for Shepard like enhanced muscle fibers, and protective skin weaves that provide buffs for Shepard that arent removed after you heal his scars using the Med Bay.

[@JohnStormForge]

@@Mikimarux but you can still research cybernetic upgrades for Shepard like enhanced muscle fibers, and protective skin weaves that provide buffs for Shepard that arent removed after you heal his scars using the Med Bay.

[@javiersantanaaviles5885]

Bioware: Prepare for Proyect Lazarus 2.0 Shepard: Can I just die? Everyone: NOOOOOOOOOO

[@weenis3746]

Naw fam you got to plant your seed before you go

[@sweetdaddydee1314]

No shepherd should stay dead tbh

[@zanythos3716]

I still want a proper ending to Andromeda, I know I'm in the minority on this, but a decently long DLC that finishes the story would have been nice. I've got the book, but it still doesn't feel like a proper ending, more of a total cop out.

[@jeremytodd8745]

Your not the only one pal.

[@Idle1996]

What book even talks about an ending? Thought all of them were side stories that explained some details

[@zanythos3716]

@@Idle1996 Annihilation is supposed to be the DLC we never got about the Quarian Ark, and it's the loose ending of that part of the franchise (not including anything they do with the new upcoming ME5 or w/e they end up calling it). That said... it's no where near a decent ending.

[@matthewanthony4606]

No thank you

[@VELVETPERSON]

Plot twist: throughout the game, we will collect Shepard's used condoms to create an army of Shepard's clones. After all, who else will BANG THE GALAXY?

[@weenis3746]

Already sounds better than andromeda jk it was okay disappointing but okay better than cyberpunk 2077 that’s for sure

[@PR-xm5zc]

I just hope everyone doesn't get their hopes up for something insane, and be disappointed with what actually happens and kill the franchise for good

[@UltimatesoldierX]

I don’t think that will happen tbh every one want to play as commander but I think if they do bring him back I hope it make sense

[@ThomasakaDes]

The game is called Mass Effect 4, and not something like Mass Effect Andromeda. WHen it's called nr 4, it means it's a sequel to the real Mass Effect story, and not a side story. Of course people will get their hopes up for something insane. My hopes is that a new and "better" antagonist will come. The reapers were part of the Milky Way, and not the whole universe. So maybe Bioware will make a new antagonist who controlls more of the universe and not just a galaxy.

[@ThomasakaDes]

But I doubt we'll see the game until like end of 2022 or sometime 2023. I doubt it'll be out next year, probably more likely it'll be out end of 2023.

[@matthewanthony4606]

They can’t do no worse than andromeda, only way from here is up

[@w3ndigogames]

Back at it again with a banger intro! Besides, let’s say that Heaven exists in the ME universe - would Shepard really want to be torn back out of heaven just to fight once again? I’d like them to rest in peace. However, if Shepard is the next protagonist and it takes place after ME3’s destroy ending then Shepard’s injuries would be very likely to put them out of commission. If they do come back, I don’t think they’d still be a soldier but it would be cool to have Shep back. Also, I know Liara’s Bioware’s favourite but a lot of fans don’t really like her all that much

[@jacobmiller6289]

Their Shepard:dies and goes to heaven. My Shepard: “send me back, there remains asses to kick.”

[@jamesorr7509]

Tali for life

[@nicholaslietzan9721]

Nah, shepards job isnt done, I feel like these were just the first wave reapers, theres no way the reapers didnt have a contingency plan

[@MattHunX]

I'm probably one of few who didn't have any problems with the ending(s) of the trilogy. That said, only the destruction of synthetics (the renegade) option had Shepard actually breathing in the end, hinting at his/her survival. So, the only way I'd accept a living, human, flesh and bone Shepard in ME4 as the player character (or even as an antagonist) is if the renegade/destruction option was made canon. But, Shepard's story is done! The small conversation between the kid and the parent gave that impression and it should be so. Time for a new protagonist. Also, if the destruction of synthetics would be canon, then, I'd wager only some Asari and Krogan would be old enough to remember it, and they might not care so much for the destruction of all synthetics. Whereas Quarians and other species with short lifespans may keep the stories alive through records or word of mouth. Or not. So no one would really be berating a live-Shepard for their decision to kill all synthetic, potentially sentient life. But, I'd like to think the control option was canon, since it is by far the most beneficial to every race. Since, through Shepard's control the remaining Reaper forces could've helped the races repair the relays, so they could re-establish connections with their lost systems and home-worlds and help rebuild them MUCH faster (as without the relays, it would've been impossible or impossibly long). And they could've built a whole new citadel in the process, too. The synthesis option is just icky. Yeah, sure, they wouldn't think of them themselves in that way, since there would be no difference between organic and inorganic life, but looking at it from an organic's perspective, those green energies running through the bodies is a bit...eww. But, the synthesis option has the least chance of being canon. And if the Control option turns out be canon, then, where would that leave Shepard's consciousness inside the Reapers? Where would the controlled Reapers be? Just hanging around, chilling? Or constantly building stuff, like a universal, super-efficient labor-force? It would be weird to have the controlled Reapers around and still be worried about ANY new enemies that could possibly threaten their current galactic society. What could possibly be a bigger threat that has Liara searching for (Shepard?), likely hundreds of years later? Shepard's story should be done.

[@CullenPC]

It's possible. If Shepard was pushed through a relay because of the blast with a piece of the Citadel or any piece of reaper tech, the tech alone could help sustain him while in ice for the period in question. We saw in ME2 I believe how reaper tech could still effect people even after being destroyed. In the trailer, if it is Shepard Liara has found, could he potentially be entombed within the reaper she's walking on? I mean it will take a hell of a writer to put it all together but the Mass Effect writers are pretty damn good. Also we don't know what techniques were used in regenerating Shepard during the Lazarus project. Could that be boosting his ability to survive the time in ice? Humans live up to 150 years in the ME universe and I remember Miranda saying she will live twice as long as the average human because of her enhancements. She was the project lead during that project, so who knows. So many questions in the air, not to mention the Prothean Beacon, the tech within Shepard, who knows. I'm just really excited to see what they do. Even if he is dead, if they could restore him after getting spaced 600 years prior, who knows that they can do with tech that's advanced within that 600 years. I would say though it could be interesting to see Shep dealing with the loss, and dealing with the decisions he made but as you say if it is set in the future, the only friends that could possibly be around are Wrex, Grunt and Liara and I guess Edi, if they somehow saved her from the destroy ending. If they do a time skip, I'd much rather it be something like 70 years or 100 years later, where a lot of you former squad could still be alive. Most of them would be very important people within their home worlds. Maybe even Council members. Shep walking into a council meeting after all that time and surprising a lot of people could be a really good scene.

[@FickleLilith]

I actually genuinely enjoyed andromeda, no it wasn't the greatest but it definitely had its charm. I had lot of glitches but i still had fun playing it. I'm looking forward to see what direction they take on the mass effect. I miss liara😭

[@Vesp3r1987]

1:12 My reaction aswel. Hate to be the guy who roin everything but didnt BioWare already said multiple times that Shepard's story is over? Also i dont think it will have huge success if they add Shep as a player character again. We need to move on from that name and im sure they will pull up a DA:I trick with Hawke where Shep is mentioned alot, maybe even your mission will be to find him/her but they will not bring him/her back as a player character

[@TGBurgerGaming]

If you look behind Liara those big relic remnants are flying above them. They're in Andromeda and the armour thing is symbolism.

[@masterblaster3508]

@@TGBurgerGaming nope. We see Reapers Liara is walking next too.

[@TGBurgerGaming]

@@masterblaster3508 you realise this trailer is not a canon Cutscene right? It's a symbolic trailer designed to give hints at whats to come. You've just proven that Mea and Met are linked by pointing out the obvious merging of two worlds to tell one story.

[@masterblaster3508]

@@TGBurgerGaming That makes no sense. The trailer is setting up the atmosphere and telling us that the events of ME3 happened yet to which exactly is left open ended for now. The Reapers in the background at least give us a sense they are no longer an issue or left over Reaper corpses are still about. If they managed to unlock certain relays like the one in darkspace that is never brought up again. It is logical to think Andromeda could have a relay somewhere there or outside of the galaxy yet explored. However Andromeda brings nothing to the table even the Kett. The Yahg, Raloi, and various other species of the galaxy have a chance to rise up against the very weakened state of the galaxy. There is no telling what chocies if any would cross over to ME4 . Despite this Shepard will ALWAYS be better than any other protagonist they set up since three games, mutiple books/comics and a potential movie on the way is a asset they would not dare sideline again. Ryder is disliked for many reasons and whike a decent portion of problems were fixed in later patches the damage was done for that character, and no offense story wise Andromeda is a very poorly lore written story that deserves to be hated on. So Bioware going back too the roots of Shepard is the best option for them and the destroy ending is the way to go, OR the refuse ending and some races and squadmates survived and look for Shepard to prepare for their arrival again. So many ways to go yet Bioware knows Shepard is what the grey warden should have been for the face of Dragon Age for 7/10 times you hear the Warden rather than the inquisitior who was GIVEN special powers yet the warden had to EARN it. Hawk was already the best yet at least he struggled for it. The Inquisitior is not what bioware should do for mass effect. Rather if they want multi races a MMORPG is better, MP, or a game not involving anything 2000 years since ME3.

[@TGBurgerGaming]

@@masterblaster3508 so you open up with a paragraph agreeing with me and then keep writing. 👏👏👏👏

[@seanmcvaugh7474]

A couple points you missed. 1) If Destroy chosen Eve is dead along with the Geth. that was mentioned by the little boy and also in the end scene Eve isn't present with the crew. 2) In Andromeda the crew were in Cryostasis for their 600 year ride so Shepard easily could be on ice. 3) Due to the fact of Sheppard being on ice he wouldn't have aged hardly at all. It is possible that Shepard will be in Mass Effect 4. BTW good idea sofar from both of you.

[@ManWithCrowbar]

Imho, they should let Shepard rest. His story ended, a few call backs to tie up the loose ends would be enough for me.(e.g. that he indeed survived and lived happily ever after or whatever).

[@anglebars6084]

I agree, although I prefer to go with the “he died a hero” and remains a legend/myth in me4

[@matthewanthony4606]

The problem with that is they’ll have to make someone just as badass as Shepard for that to work, andromeda failed horribly mostly due to the fact how unlikable Ryder was, maybe ryders dad would have been a better choice for a protagonist. They’re going to really develop a character thoroughly with no room for mistakes if they plan on replacing Shepard.

[@jessesenpai6473]

Can't imagine a mass effect without tali

[@weenis3746]

Even worse you romanced tali only for her to end up with someone else’ cuz you where dead big sad then

[@Airsaber]

The best part is that Garrus actually jokes about this at some point in ME2: "If this war goes south, Shepard, maybe we could freeze you for 50 000 years. You could go from being merely famous to legendary". And speaking about Garrus, I'm not sure if I'd like to play as my Shep without her space boyfriend (not to mention her family, friends, and squad-/crewmates). I think it would be more interesting to play a person who'd explore Shepard's legacy, among other things. Though yeah, it would be cool to meet Liara or Grunt (IIRC, Wrex wasn't that young anymore). And the destroy ending definitely doesn't have to be the canon one for ME4 (assuming that we'll really play as our Shep). Doesn't Shep turn into some kind of an AI when choosing the control ending? I guess they could use a body, not necessarily an organic one, as an avatar - I mean, if EDI could... And the control ending doesn't mean that there's no dead Reapers to be found somewhere. Not to mention that at this point I'm not even sure that the fourth game absolutely *has* to take place many years after ME3.

[@MisterPoulpeOne]

I think they will canonize destroy ending because it is the obvious « open ending », we know everything will go down real quick. Synthesis is just way to safe on the long term and without real drawback, so not a good one to start a new story (except if they explore something really different). Control has a wide array of scenario, could be interesting.

[@Mr.Foxstone]

If I remember correctly in ME1 it was mentioned something about the Citadel being a mass relay itself so that might "possibly" answer your question on how Shepard may have been teleported to another world. and if you remember in the ending of ME3 the Citadel shot out a beam that traveled through every mass relay in the galaxy. So "Maybe" Shepard got caught in that beam and was transported to another mass relay but was ejected in some unknown system, hitched a ride on a now dead reaper corpse and crash landed on an unknown ice planet with two moons. And that is all.

[@ibrahimleite6572]

Man, this amazing

[@trislorotaku4477]

love your editing progress Mr.Hulthen

[@UltimatesoldierX]

I have a belief that this is like 10 or 5 years later with commander being frozen to keep him alive and that liara the reason she look like a matriarch is because she didn’t have a lot of sex only person will be commander depending on if you romance her and the plant she on could be the place he frozen on

[@nicholaslietzan9721]

She dont even look old tho, just more detailed

[@UltimatesoldierX]

That what I’m saying it probably only 5 to 10 years crow feet can come from not a lot of sleep or stress out which would make sense if she been a matriarch

[@jasonward720]

Honestly bioware may throw an absolute curveball and the game could be played out from just after the reaper war to after the Andromeda game, just an opinion but it might have a 'prologue' style start where you over the course of 100s of years put the Galaxy back together, in keeping with the choices you make? Maybe Liara finding Sheps helmet piece is just there to get everyone excited? My opinion guys, keep up the great videos!

[@MrHulthen]

Just after the Reaper war is becoming more & more of a possibility as i see it. Thanks man!

[@ogitaliano3689]

My hope is that it’s right after 3, I still feel like shep should see the after effects of his/her decisions after 3 and that be the end of their story. But this is honestly a cool idea to me. It would be a dark take and we would see a side to him we haven’t seen yet

[@Cynder2251]

I really hope Shepard doesn’t come back as the protagonist, I just want to play as a species other than human in story mode

[@andrewwowk9385]

If I wake up 600 years in the future, and Liara is the first face I see, I'd just be like "please let me go back to sleep."

[@nicholaslietzan9721]

What a downer, I'm bet youre the life of the party

[@AnimeShinigami13]

also let's throw some water on your angaran ardor for a minute, that outline could just as easily be a quarian.

[@KenshiImmortalWolf]

To be fair, grunt could definitely still be alive by the time liara reaches the matriach stage, krogan outlive asari, and on that note, potentially wrex could stll be alive, he has no confirmed age, only above 700 but it's implied he was around during the genophage's first deployment which puts him around 1000? maybe if that number is more accurate he might be dead, but drax is a good 1400 and stll has some kick left in him so i'd estimate that krogan could live up to 1500-1800 years, maybe longer with proper medical attention

[@kulioskonstansusderxiii9395]

Maybe it's the planet of Mass Effect 3, in the end where Stargazer tells the child the stories of shepard

[@MrHulthen]

That is probably the closest possibility!

[@Chiefpuddingfoot]

I loved andromeda I’m just sad that everyone just bashed it so badly we won’t get a fleshed out story and given the fact that the game mostly took part in just a small chunk of a whole galaxy against an unknown enemy called kett and that remnants and angarian were created by a different race blew my mind and wanted more

[@MultiNiceGood]

Exactly what i'm thinking and feeling.... I'm playing Andromeda right now and every now and then i just keep thinking about how i wont be saving the Quarian Ark, and not doing what ever other dlc BioWare was gonna make.. so sad... I mean the list is long.. but also im sad that we wont get to see if Mom Ryder gets saved, and more sibling Ryder interactions.. Our colonies growing.. more remnant ( im still mind blown by their friggin' giant vaults and tech)... the consequences of our actions.. etc. etc. etc... like you said, a fleshed out story that BioWare started on .. Too bad there wasn't enough of us to successfully counter all the extreme bashing :/

[@lazaglider]

Mr Hulthen, You've made great videos, you've asked our opinion in polls, you're clearly a guy who is receptive to his audience. So a question. With no limitations in regard to ME3 canon ending, on the assumption that the arks did leave for Andromeda, if you were the lead writer for the next ME game, what would your plot be? If you want to make a video rather than replying here, that would be excellent. Thanks and all the best.

[@PR-xm5zc]

I believe it will have something to do with the remant, remember they had the tech to literally create life...maybe they have the power to resurrect Shepard as well

[@scavysaimon2637]

If so I would be all for it, I would even welcome Shepard on a wheelchair with assault rifle in one and and omni-blade on the other...It worked for BJ Blazkowicz.

[@adrianleong8537]

Shepard was on the citadel and if the "red" path is chosen, he takes a breath at the end, he's not iced in some planet... Citadel is also hovering near earth. Having said that I dont mind any theory(even dumb ones) that allows me to play Shepard again.

[@thechrastastrophe]

When you talk about the red path, I assume you mean the renegade? But that’s not how you get the perfect ending. It’s based on how much war assets you have. 7800.

[@adrianleong8537]

@@thechrastastrophe yup referring to the destroy ending, always had over 8k war assets.

[@coops206]

Another possibility for Shepards return was something touched on in the ME3 Citadel DLC. Remember the clone we fought and who sacrificed itself if we tried to save it? It was mentioned that the clone was built as 'spare parts' in the event of major injury of Shepard 'prime'. All that data needed would be archived somewhere. We all know that Liara is the new Shadow Broker from the events of the Shadow Broker DLC. Would she not have used her contacts to gain that information?

[@Rain593]

Maybe the connection to Andromeda is just throwaway dialouge here and there. Like Liara saying: "The people that left will never know how we won." I dunno.

[@zufalllx]

It could always be Shepard's clone from the Citadel DLC...

[@stevegood4664]

To be honest the best way to bring back sheaperd would be to have him play a role similar to Anderson so a new character could have a mentor or sheaperd could take the role of human counselor this is all if he survived

[@MisterPoulpeOne]

I think this is a pretty terrible idea. Let us play shep or dont bring him back, but dont disrespect him by doing a side character of him.

[@TGBurgerGaming]

Bringing Shepard or OG characters back would ruin those characters. You'd wind up with the PC, offense free, non binary, post Andromeda staff, Shepard. That version of Grunt would be sad. Those are remnant flying in the sky in the background behind Liara the big ones. I think they'll go back to MEa and the trailer is just a trailer symbolising symbols that BioWare find symbolic.

[@gamesadergaming1321]

I believe it was you MrHulthen that said in a previous video that the next protagonist could start on the Citadel. When I got to the Crucible battle over Earth in ME3 the cinematic kept cutting to a fighter pilot and he/she was wearing a helmet masking their identity. (Possible Protagonist, also opens male/female option.) This made me think what an epic start that would be to ME4 if you played that pilot, participated in the space battle to get things going, then crash land on the citadel and continue on foot to find Shepard. The citadel opens and your character is shot down, you crash some where on the citadel presumably close to where Shepard is and Anderson are. Since there is no clear passage of time in ME3 between when the energy blast goes off and when the Normandy escapes, it could be possible that your character locates Shepard in the rubble, secures a ship and flies to the Normandy where Shepard is now in the medical bay, which would explain why our love interest smiles when holding Shepard's plaque. I just watched a video of the ending to be sure I wasn't talking out of my ass, it shows the energy building up, it also shows Joker being told to go, then it cuts away. This scene could be expanded to show at that moment they get a call over the coms, it's the new protagonist and he/she has Shepard on board, they get them on board the Normandy and then you see them flying away.

[@Dunleap]

Not all, Grunt can live up 1000 years too. I would love to meet some of the Wrex children in the next Mass Effect. Especially the one named Mordin. Shepard made so many allies and connections that even if he wakes up in a different century, there will be plenty of people connected to him and his legacy.

[@joselucastavares3258]

Sheppard will come back like your grandfather, depending on with character you decided to romance before

[@BILLYRAYBOB9789]

Shepherd was altered by prothean technology and was chosen as the leviathan champion

[@something-somethingdarksid9498]

A thought I had for what mass effect 4 might be. From my perspective the dev team have a problem and it is the endings. Sure they could pick a canonical ending but that could alienate the players that feel one of the other endings should be canon. If they pick the destroy ending as canon they might receive blow back from people feeling the time they put into the games as pointless. I don't see the dev team wanting to take this path as bioware already has a lot of bad press from sub-par games. So how could they preserve that player choice without over complicating the game? The thought I had was what if the start of the game is Liara in her Matron stage of life telling the story of Shepard -- one specific story. What took place between Mass Effect 1 and 2 -- specifically how she recovered Shepard's body. Then the ending does not matter so much because they could add some lines to talk away the choice of ending before getting into the meat of the game. You could then have your character creation where you can create a new character as 'one of the team' that helped Liara recover the body. It would make for an interesting story and what Liara tells you of it can leave enough for interpretation. Was it only her and Feron or was there a small team involved? This is not, in my opinion, the best story to tell and I hope Bioware avoids it but it is one way they could side step the ending choice and still tell a newish story.

[@dodokodokodok1118]

My theory is simple. Shepard's body was found, preserved in javik's coffin (since javik is still alive by the end of me3 he can do it), and by the time they rebuild their technology shepard's body resurrected

[@erictheblackdragon]

Dies again... Shepherd: Just a flesh wound👀😭😂🤣👍

[@BlackOmegaEnt]

I do think the Popsicle Shepard Theory is somewhat plausible as, like both you and Charlie said, the energy from the crucible could have teleported Shepard 600+ years into the future. Shepard would then crash land and be frozen in ice similarly to Cap due to the massive amount of cybernetics and cellular regeneration in their body. (In ME2 Shep was dead for TWO YEARS and Cerberus was able to bring them back almost like nothing ever happened. That wouldn't work without the serums they injecting them with that caused massive amounts of cellular regeneration).

[@MrHulthen]

Good point!

[@gusvonstupen1897]

Shepard meets Ryder? Shepherd "Whats wrong with your eyes?" "I should go."

[@leonielson7138]

The Super Soldier Serum used in 'The Incredible Hulk' was an attempt to duplicate the serum used in 'Captain America: The First Avenger', as stated in 'The Avengers' when Fury briefs Steve Rogers, explaining that Banner thought gamma radiation was the key to reproducing the process.

[@Persequimur_Umbras]

04:39 ~ *The Lazarus Projekt* used the dead body of *Commander Shepard* to create a new *Biosynthetic Fusion.* The _audio logs_ Shepard finds explain this in ME2’s beginning sequence. Also in ME2, Shepard can survive an Afterlife bartender trying to poison him. The guy who wakes him up says that poison has killed all previous victims of that murderous Batarian. That illustrates Shepard’s new body as having an advanced heealing factor. If Shepard can survive that poison, then he should be able to survive being frozen, think do I..

[@MrHulthen]

Oh cool! Welp, there we have it :D

[@Persequimur_Umbras]

Another coincidence is *Biosynthetic Fusion* is *Reaper Tech.* It is used to describe their ‘flesh’, for lack of a better word. So in essence *Cerberus* ended up doing to _Shepard’s_ body exactly what the *Collectors* wanted, resurrect _Shepard_ into the body of a _Reaper,_ think do I. *Liara T’Soni* comments that she fought with the _Collectors_ & *The Shadow Broker* for _Shepard’s_ corpse, think do I. The hypothesis that they wanted to transfer his soul into the *Human Reaper* we fight at the end of *M. E. 2,* is an idea of mine.

[@matthewanthony4606]

Project*

[@huanhoundofthevailinor2374]

Shepard if he is there you wont be playing as him he probably will be an admiral or in position of power and sending you on missions id like to see him there but don't be surprised if he not in game but only mentioned as the hero that saved everyone

[@Masso-gy9yu]

why does everyone think that this takes place hundreds of years after Mass Effect 3??? Do you really think that after hundreds of years there would still be dead Reapers laying around? I give it at most two years in the time skip if it doesn't happen immediately.

[@bearmankasinger316]

If Shep survives the Destroy ending, they could always patch him up, throw him in a stasis pod, and ship him to Andromeda. But I truly hope they don't. I want Shep to return, but only as a broken, PTSD riddled shell of his former self that serves as an Admiral Anderson character to the next player character who is tasked in helping to rebuild the galaxy. However, let's not overlook why dead Reapers would be in the Andromeda galaxy. If the trailer does indeed show that ME4 will take place in Andromeda, and Liara is walking on a dead one....the implications are interesting that maybe the cycle was NOT just a Milky Way problem, and that the Reapers didn't just go wait in dark space, but indeed harvested other galaxies during the 50k year cycles. This would make sense in a way, because if they truly viewed themselves as the ONLY solution to chaos, I don't see why they wouldn't go solve the problems EVERYWHERE, instead of the Milky Way. Which could lead to other relays being in other galaxies. Then, it wouldn't matter if the story took place hundreds of years later, as it would ONLY be 600 years later in Andromeda NOT the Milky Way, and thus Shep and gang could go fight them everywhere. That would allow Bioware the leeway to explain away, basically, the events of ME:A, and not try to fix anything, and also avoid too many issues with the original trilogy.

[@marthblood9991]

(writing before I watched video so I'm not sure if he brings this up) I think commander shepard will be returning for at least 1 more game. At the end of 3 you hear an older man and a boy talking and the boy says "can you tell me another story about the shepard" and the older man says "ok... one more" not only CONFIRMING shepard is alive but (what I believe) is confirmation we will play him in at least one more game maybe even a whole trilogy. Edit: I REALLY don't want it connected to andromeda except the combat I will criticize andromeda for A LOT because it deserves it but I find no fault in the combat, SUPER fun. I really want just as you said for the game to take place immediately after the reaper war I want my squadmates back.

[@rippedtidegames]

I think another way to bring Shepard 600 years in the future to crossover with the Andromeda crew (if BioWare really is set on that) is the “Javik route”. Lets say destroy is cannon, Shepard survives and is settling down with his love interest (Male Shepard and Liara in this example.) The remaining core of Cerberus attacks, kidnapping Shepard and leaving Liara badly injured. They take Shepard to the planet Liara find the piece of his helmet and put him in to stasis to be awoken by the Illusive Man’s (Jack Harper) daughter Cora! Setting up Cora as a sort of double agent with Liara and the Andromeda crew trying to rescue Shepard… the big twist will be Shepard working with Cerberus 2.0 and giving the player the choice to go full paragon or full darkside renegade…. Just a thought I came up with on this rainy day while finishing ME 3 legendary edition for the 3rd or 4th time.

[@kilianlindlbauer8277]

If mass effect 4 is playing right after the reaper invasion, I'd be happy to play again as shepard, but i'm not sure about a captain shepard kind of plot. Two quotes from me3 that i find fitting to this video: Let old ghosts rest A person can only take so much death,...

[@liamclarke91]

I think an easy way to work around the issues with time travel is for there to be some kind of wormhole that links the 2819 Andromeda galaxy to the 2186 Milky Way. There's no interfering with established events since the arks left before the Reapers invaded, so there's no concern about anyone changing history. Just a way to bridge the two worlds together, rather than just having a handful of trilogy characters left. Alternately they could just do what the Protheans did and have major trilogy characters recreated as VIs.

[@zakhaevshub4735]

Captain Shepard be like: Kept cha waiting huh ? The rest of the Galaxy: where the hell have you been Shep ?

[@Drukasss]

Theory videos are the best. Get me hyped every time hahaha.

[@zaxxon4]

There are tons of ways to bring Shepard back. We know he'd been cloned, so his body can be new. We know that Cerberus had contingency plans for him not being revivable. In all likelihood that meant attempts to back up his mind. Heck Edi could have been interfacing with his implants for a nightly backup. The Geth had him hooked up when helping Legion, so they may have made a copy as well. The Leviathan had access to him, and their tech is supposed to be off the charts.

[@gensericbear1155]

What if by Shepard being the catalyst Shepard was the medium in which the energy was distributed from relay to relay bouncing from system to system. Perhaps the two mooned planet was in the final system to get the energy from the catalyst Shepard and much like in ME2 he happen to fall to the nearest ice planet where Liara finds him after tracking the path of the energy through the Galaxy. She IS a very good Shadow Broker.

[@LinkedUno]

What if the N7 insignia is actually Alec Ryder's? That could be the way Bioware throws us for a loop. The game is still 700 years after me3, but shep and co travel to Andromeda via cryosleep to find and reconnect with the andromeda initiative and warn them that it's safe to go back. They get to andromeda, they find the Remnant and maybe they find out about the dark energy plotline and try to fix it in andromeda. Also, in real life the Andromeda galaxy and the Milky Way will eventually merge together into the Milkdromeda galaxy. That will happen millions of years in the future, but in a SciFi setting could actually be a major plot point

[@gamesadergaming1321]

Building their own Mass relays makes a lot of sense. The Omega 4 relay in ME2 was said to use a friend/foe system. These newly built mass relays could use the same type of system. This means that the alliance or council races would get an early warning that someone or something is using their relay or trying to at least with no success. The Mass relay would only activate if you have a registered friend/foe code.

[@LordBloodraven]

I assumed the announcement teaser was showing Liara recovering Shepard's armor while looking for his body before delivering it to Cerberus.

[@matthewanthony4606]

Then how do you explain the destroyed mass relay in the background?

[@mannyrodriguez3933]

Well we have the Lazarus Project remember. That project literally dissected him and put him back together, there are a lot of ways that his body could be much more durable than any normal human that we don’t know about yet. The details on that project are pretty vague if I remember, you never get any information on its long term effects on his body. So that could easily open a door to a Captain America-Like comeback. Idk just something to ponder on I guess.

[@lauragarcia4037]

If Shepard isn't the main player,..I hope he's a part of the game. Shepard is why M.E caught alot of attention,.in my opinion,..one of the reasons. He's a symbol indeed,...bring him back. xo

[@commandershepard5450]

Bring him back!

[@andrewouellette1954]

I think it would be really interesting to have a frozen shep rather than one in hiding. I would love to see the story of Shepard waking up to a galaxy that is so different and really only has one friend left (or maybe two if EDI survived). And they have to come to grips with a galaxy that has moved on without him not just 2 years worth like me2 or 70 years like Captain America but hundreds of years. This way we can get a whole new adventure with occasional the descendent cameo instead of what could (for me at least) turn into a me2 rehash where you fly around the galaxy find and recruiting familiar faces. The legendary edition could be a great celebration of the old games and send-off for those characters while me 4/5 serves as our introduction into a whole new cast of fun charters, new enemies, and a new look for the galaxy.

[@Taodio98]

This theory is almost like the one I have except for the fact that instead of Shepard being frozen in ice on a planet for 100s of years, after the end of ME3 the Alliance recovered Sheps body and after the Citadel was repaired, which we know was in orbit over Earth, the council had Sheps body cryogenically frozen, along with his squad, and placed in the vault from the Citadel DLC from ME3, the one the clone tried locking Shep in. The council did this so that in case of dire need, Shep would always be available in case all else fails. What better need would there be then the Kett threatening the galaxy?

[@stgdeathstar176]

Maybe Liara is the playable character we all get to play 🤷

[@PR-xm5zc]

I feel like the best way to bring Shepard back is to find out, that you were just another clone in ME2&3 and the real Shepard was still being revived

[@jackcassidy9963]

There was only one clone who was made from back up materials the Shepard in ME2 and 3

[@matthewanthony4606]

No..that’s basically metal gear solids whole lore

[@janeshepard9549]

This theory is only possible with the Synthesis ending if the Crucible's beam slingshotted Shepard across the galaxy across multiple mass relays into some remote frozen planet.

[@LightStreak567]

Shepard dies in the Control and Synthesis ending, because Shepard sacrifices his/her energy to the Crucible. If you use the Crucible to destroy the Reapers while having the Human-Reaper's heart in your war assets (which can only be obtained if you choose to destroy the Collector base in Mass Effect 2), Shepard will live.

[@dudeguy4309]

Shepard got vaporized doe

[@janeshepard9549]

@@dudeguy4309 Not necessarily, Shepard's fate is left unclear with Destroy & Synthesis for a reason. But Shepard surely dies in Control.

[@abctato5355]

The only scenario I can think of where Shepard is still the main character or even a secondary one 600 years after the Reaper War is something like this: 1- Shepard's body is indeed frozen, whether intentionally or found already frozen and taken somewhere (think of Lenin's body that's embalmed). 2- 600 years later, there's yet again a galaxy-wide crisis (maybe involving Andromeda; Kett Empire involded?) 3- It's decided that the only being capable of addressing said crisis is Shepard, thus he's revived a second time. Far fetched indeed but that's one of the only things I can come up with. PS1: embalmed =/= frozen but you get the point PS2: English is not my language forgive me for any mistake haha

[@zaguar3153]

How about this: Shepard wakes up from the Harbinger induced vision that was the "Starboy" sequence of ME3's ending, reaches for the actual control panel and pushes the button that engages the crucible/catalyst (shooting a large conduit with a pistol never made a lick of sense as the means of activating the crucible). The pulse kills the reapers and does indeed damage the Citadel & relay network, but not nearly to the extend shown in Shepard's nightmare vision. The vast majority of Citadel inhabitants who are still alive when the pulse is initiated survive, and Shepard & Anderson are found in Citadel Control by Baily and rushed to the hospital & saved by Dr Michel (Mr. Illusive is DOA). The Liara scene from the trailer is Liara surveying a dead reaper on an ice planet where Alliance N7 marines took down a reaper before the pulse, with heavy casualties.

[@jimboomafoo]

There’s a small chance that the Kett from Andromeda could have sent another ship to the Milky Way some hundreds of years before the events of Mass Effect 3, but it’s not likely. What would be more likely from a writing standpoint is using the Jardaan (creators of the Remnant and Angara from Andromeda) as an antagonist, since little is known about them, and they likely have the technology to travel to the Milky Way in a relatively short period of time. Also, the reasoning behind the creation of the Angara and the remnant is unknown. Perhaps they were to be used as slaves for extra-galactic exploration or conquest. Maybe that is how they appear in Mass Effect 4. The idea of a liberated Angaran as a squad mate is a solid idea. Lot of ideas to pivot from with the Jardaan as the next big bad.

[@ricijs2000]

well i mean shepard died once and that only made him angry second time would just be mild inconvinience

[@leonielson7138]

I think it more likely that Shepard will be taking a back seat in the next Mass Effect game, serving more of a mentor capacity, like Captain/Admiral David Anderson or Admiral Steven Hackett. New main character, new 'Normandy', but they find Commander Shepard on life support, threatened by the new menace, and damage to the power system causes Shepard to come out of stasis, but he's only got so long to live. Shepard might even join the new squad, as whatever class he was in the playthrough you link to.

[@kevinpazos9846]

I dunno why alot of game journalists believe that piece of n7 armor is shepards. It literally could've been any other piece of n7 armor. Maybe it was legions n7 armor piece.

[@Agherosh]

Because there's literally no reason at all for Liara to look dor anyone's else N7 armor, even less Legion's, who died on Rannoch.

[@kevinpazos9846]

@@Agherosh she could've been reminded about her time with Shepard when she saw the n7 logo. Who knows.

[@Marshal_Dunnik]

This seems like a sensible plot that is going places. Space Jesus Shepard resurrected, six centuries later, all his/her friends are gone, except one (surely they'll bake in a did you romance Liara yes/no). People Shep interacts with know him/her, if they do at all, as some distant legend. A future timeline clears the decks narratively speaking, giving them more freedom. They could also introduce the descendants of some of the original companions. Setting up some point-to-point relay between Andromeda and the MW also makes sense (that's almost certainly what that concept art relay is), as it will satisfy ME:A fans, and creates more room to explore plot lines, etc. Also sets up some drama/character building as Shep, a man/woman out of time, suddenly has to come to grips with the fact that everyone he knew (bar one) is gone.

[@josepantoja5173]

Don't forget the Andromeda Galaxy is approaching the Milky Way at about 110 kilometres per second (68 mi/s).

[@meteora4478]

Being somewhat connected to andromeda doesn’t necessarily mean it has to take place after the events of MEA. Also it could be possible that the quarian ark leaves after the reaper war and is accompanied by the Normandy. I’m not sure when the scourge shows up, but as I understand it, it’s shortly after the arks began their journey. Since MEA mentions that the Milky Way has a “real-time” time-lag free view into Andromeda thanks to geth technology in dark space, they’d see that the arks are headed into trouble, which would explain why they’d send the Normandy as support. This could mean that the start of the game even takes place in Andromeda, hence the angara but still include Shepard and his crew as they’d all have been in cryo aboard the quarian ark (Maybe with some exceptions, Wrex probably would want to stay on Tuchanka with Eve). Perhaps they then build a mass relay in andromeda and return to the milky way.

[@cathalhughes5996]

There could be a plot where shepard needs to be frozen to heal his wounds but the ship he's own is lost for hundreds of years until its found maybe by liara tracking him down again or by the new protag who can then have shepard be a squad member

[@thatssoderek2188]

just on joining up Andromeda and the Milky Way, the only way it would work is for the Quarian Ark to have found some old Remnant tech that works like the mass relays. The only issue with that is that it would need a lot of setup. You would have to start the game in Andromeda and basically continue it on from there. Ryder goes to find the Quarian Ark and they get transported to the Milky Way. The main problem would be all the stuff they leave behind in Andromeda like the whole Kett storyline. Unless of course in ME5 they find a way to go back to Andromeda to deal with Kett with the help of the Alliance and the Citadel. For a larger overarching plot it works, but still has lots of complications. I personally would like to be able to import Ryder, even if just as an NPC in this setting. But likewise, Shepard's story feels finished at the end of ME3. I do hope we have a new player character in ME4.

[@nachoyoutube2732]

Shepard: I've fought in countless wars and battles, saved the galaxy from an Apocalypse and LITERALLY DIED for two years, can't I rest? Fandom: no lol

[@lilangel2256]

The starchild did indicate that it would not be any trouble to rebuild everything quickly. So it doesn't necessarily mean that it's hundreds of years in the future, it could be just a couple decades. In the 'perfect ending' Shepard does take a breath, so what if Shepard has been in a coma this whole time? And one of those images looks like a Drell... Could Kolyat Krios be along for the ride? And the shape you are talking about at the mudskipper, it could be James , he looks bulky enough like that from the back, plus it looks like a mohawk on his head. And the Salarian.. his head thingies looks similar to Capt Kirrahe, who lived in my game.

[@jameslidster9579]

If Liara was the canon love interest of Shepard, I think the could somewhat bring Shepard back, not as a character, but as the Father/Mother of Liara's child who would be an Asari and therefore easily still alive up to a thousand years later. It would be a nice way to connect to the original trilogy and even make them able to reference Shepard more than a few times without actually having to have him/her actually in the game, except maybe as photos or videos or a letter or something.