TCW Podcast Episode 204 - Exploring the Mass Effect

In part one of a two-part exploration of the original Mass Effect trilogy, the game emerges as a synthesis of diverse influences from literary books, video games, art styles, TV shows, and movies. Drawing heavily from Bablyon 5 and the TV series 24, the main framework of Mass Effect reflects a blend of narrative inspirations. The art style, inspired by luminaries such as architect Santiago Calatrava, futurist Syd Mead, and John Harris, contributes to the game's visually captivating universe. The initial year of development was dedicated to crafting a compelling hard sci-fi universe. A key goal was to imbue the game with cinematic qualities and broaden its audience appeal, challenging the conventions of RPGs at the time. The innovative use of a dialog wheel, featuring concise words to convey dialog choices, coupled with full voice acting for both player characters and the main protagonist, marked significant strides in the gaming landscape.

KOTR in 3 Minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTCSPo7ZuSE

SCTV YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFb0L4MQziTjEsJKTbFgm8Q

The Wild Life - Rick Moranis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mM9qvLYeI8

Rick Moranis - SNL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzeyvaj1FiM

"The Final Hours of Mass Effect 3": https://me3finalhours.com/#:~:text=Q%3A%20What%20is%20the%20Final,creative%20process%20behind%20the%20games.

The Complete Deus Ex Retrospective: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yD54ndTFVU

StarFlight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foX2Mn1TIzk

Hard VS Soft Sci-Fi - What do they mean?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsbm2YDhItM

The Physics of Space Battles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFOuxAx-dkc

The Truth About Space War: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Xs3mGhQGxM

Syd Mead - Visual Futurism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuMIrHlAf2Q

Mr Spock Attempts Mind Meld with V'ger: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qpO47Iskac

Santiago Calatrava: https://calatrava.com/

Santiago Calatrava: A selection of projects from all around the world: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEjJXEwicuA

Babylon 5 - Everything You Didn't Know: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50xmPWmLUko

John Harris - Beyond the Horizon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTuZlYJOw-Q

Book Notes Mass - The Art of John Harris: https://adamrowe.substack.com/p/book-notes-mass-the-art-of-john-harris

24's Jack Bauer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKKTkTMAJBw

Mass Effect 2006 E3 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCvCvqbn4qY

Mass Effect 1 - Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BT5HhrIQfrY

New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!

TCW Email: [email protected] 

Twitter: @tcwpodcast

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds

Alex's Video Game History Blog: http://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com

Alex's book, published Dec 2019, is available at CRC Press and at major on-line retailers: http://bit.ly/TCWBOOK1

Intro Music: Josh Woodward - Airplane Mode -  Music - "Airplane Mode" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/AirplaneMode 

Outro Music: RolemMusic - Bacterial Love: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rolemusic/Pop_Singles_Compilation_2014/01_rolemusic_-_bacterial_love 

Copyright: Attribution: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/