Playing Through Grief in Mass Effect 3

BioWare have always been at the top of the food chain when it comes to crafting videogame worlds and creating stellar RPG experiences, but their magnum opus has to be the original Mass Effect trilogy. By taking on the role of Commander Shepard – whose backstory, gender and physical appearance are all chosen by the player – it is up to you to prevent the return of the galaxy-wide threat of the Reapers, alien machines that periodically appear in the Milky Way to exterminate all advanced life every fifty thousand years.

The story and world are plenty compelling on their own, but where Mass Effect really leaves a lasting impression is with its companions, and its NPCs. BioWare has a very intimate ideology when it comes to the player’s relationship with the other characters in their games. But that intimacy comes with the potential for pain and grief, concepts Mass Effect also executes tragically well. Each companion is a completely fleshed out character with their own backstories, agendas, and motivations that will only be uncovered if an effort is made to get to know them.

Garrus Vakarian, the Turian Citadel Security officer-turned-vigilante, is practically the poster boy for the lineup of companions throughout the series. He is remembered fondly, and rightfully so. Beginning his journey as a young and reckless hothead, Garrus is very vocal about how much he learns from Shepard during the first game, and by the time he reappears in the second he is much more mature and capable. It is almost impossible for Shepard to live through the first two games without growing close to Garrus, and the two are clearly best friends. Another standout is Tali’Zorah, a quarian mechanic who begins life as a naïve and impressionable person on her pilgrimage but grows into a leader and a warrior, due in no small part to the experience of fighting alongside Commander Shepard and learning from them during their time travelling together.

Each game presents a new impending disaster of galactic proportions. The people Shepard picks up along the way are the only source of comfort and reprieve from the violence that they get, and these reprieves are well-needed by both Shepard and players alike. This is why it is so heartbreaking when these characters begin to die. Mass Effect 3 is tonally the darkest and most serious entry in the series. With the Milky Way finally in the midst of a full-blown invasion by the Reapers, the entire experience depicts a brutal war that almost looks hopeless to win. Several of Shepard’s previous companions make a triumphant return to the Commander’s side, including the two above, as well as the fan-favourite Liara T’Soni.

As is the nature of war, several difficult decisions must be made. Tali’Zorah meets her end on her home planet if Shepard decides to side with the Geth to secure more firepower for the war, and she does so by willingly falling off a cliff to go out on her terms, unable to live with the fact that her people have all been slaughtered. Urdnot Wrex meets his end after confronting Shepard about the genophage cure being sabotaged, a choice Shepard can make to solidify an alliance with the intelligent and tactical Salarians.

And Garrus, the one who stands by Shepard no matter how much they dirty their hands in the name of victory, will fall on the field of battle on Earth if all the alliances the Commander has fostered prove to be insufficient. This is a fraction of the loss the player can experience during Mass Effect 3’s war with the Reapers. Shepard feels every death, every sacrifice, and the game shoves this fact in the player’s face with several of Shepard’s own nightmares about a young boy they watched die back on Earth. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the Commander’s own mood and optimism worsen as time goes on, and their allies will frequently urge them to get some rest and take care of themselves.

Grief is a strange thing, one that is an ever-present aspect of real life. We live through grief every day; friendships lost, partners who move on, loved ones passing away. Mass Effect 3 does something remarkable by affording those of us with the most grief to experience it alongside Commander Shepard. We feel what Shepard feels, we suffer alongside them and process our grief to the best of our ability. It’s a strange kind of catharsis to channel one of life’s cruelest aspects into a darker, crueler world where our own pain pales in comparison to the destruction caused by the Reapers. But for those of us who stumble as we try and try again to reach the light at the end of the tunnel, it is very well-needed.

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Richard is a freelance writer and content creator based in Ireland. When not drinking whiskey and making a fool of himself, he can be found replaying Mass Effect 2. You can find him on Twitter and on his personal blog.