E3 2011

E3 2011 Live Schedule

Trending E3 2011 Stories

E3 2011: Mass Effect 3 in effect March 6

By Tor Thorsen

BioWare dates delayed third installment in its sci-fi RPG series, which will support Kinect voice commands.

The first day of the 2011 Electronic Entertainment Expo kicked off with Microsoft's press conference. On hand at the event was BioWare head and cofounder Dr. Ray Muzyka, who showed off the Kinect functionalities of Mass Effect 3. The Xbox 360 version of the sci-fi role-playing game will let players give voice commands in combat via the camera-based motion sensor, as well speak lines of dialogue during character interaction sessions.

Mass Effect 3 is due on March 6, 2012.

Mass Effect 3 is due on March 6, 2012.

Later, at Electronic Arts' E3 press briefing, Mass Effect 3 got a release date after suffering a delay last year. The game will now arrive on the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 on March 6, 2012. Previously, it had been scheduled for a holiday 2011 release.

The third installment in BioWare's epic sci-fi role-playing game series, Mass Effect 3 sees planet Earth under siege. The attackers are the Reapers, a race of heavily armed sentient spacecraft that were central to the plot of the first Mass Effect. The Reapers' return to the series was concretely revealed in Arrival, the tepidly reviewed last installment of downloadable content for Mass Effect 2.

In Mass Effect 3, players will once again take on the role of Commander Shepard, a hardened space marine who is now on the run from his former employer, the shadowy pro-human organization Cerberus. To save Earth, he must travel the galaxy trying to rally support from alien civilizations with varying degrees of sympathy (or lack thereof).

By Tor Thorsen

61 Comments

  • Wensea10

    Posted Jul 28, 2011 2:11 pm GMT

    this gamre could be better than rage

  • Naicco

    Posted Jul 17, 2011 5:33 am GMT

    Mass Effect 3 is going to rock!

  • KakashiMorph

    Posted Jun 30, 2011 4:06 am GMT

    I can't wait for ME3, and March can't come soon enough.. I also hope there will be a way to cure Thane. You hear me, Bioware?

  • MOwens9512

    Posted Jun 7, 2011 3:27 pm GMT

    Was upset they delayed this game. I so hope the reason isn't because they're scared of Modern Warfare 3 though. I'm sorry, I know shooters are uber popular, but a franchise like this carries a lot more weight than they do in my opinion. There are too many non-shooter fans out there and a hell of a lot of shooter fans who could wait a while to play more of the same.

    At the risk of being unpopular or labelled as an XBox hater here, I have to say this: implementing the use of Kinect in this game makes no sense. Nothing against Kinect, but I feel the way they are implementing it's use in the game is a waste. I am glad they didn't try to go the gimmicky route like Ubisoft are with Ghost Recon (an obvious plot to re-establish the fist explosion thing as the cool thing to do again), but at the same time for what they're using it for they could have implemented with a regular headset. If you already have a Kinect then it's probably cool to have the option, but in no way should this encourage anyone to get the Kinect.

  • DITHRICH

    Posted Jun 7, 2011 11:27 am GMT

    why do i have to w8 till 2012.....
    im going to get me some hostages and demand it being released early!!!
    if you see me in the news remmber that im doing it for you!

  • VaanXPenelo

    Posted Jun 7, 2011 10:44 am GMT

    Love love love Mass Effect. Getting it on release date no question!

  • dark_k

    Posted Jun 7, 2011 7:55 am GMT

    @RadPro I would love to agree with you but I can imagine how the release of ME3 next to MW3 would hinder its sales.

  • thelegendlives5

    Posted Jun 7, 2011 6:25 am GMT

    I hope they don't turn it into a third person shooter and forget Mass Effect is so awesome because of choice and story consequences. Mass Effect 2 sacrificed some RPG elements for better action but it was a great balance you get the best of both worlds. Hopefully they won't tip the balance even further with Mass Effect 3 and ruin the whole thing. I am looking forward to Mass Effect 3 more than any other game.

  • chyng85

    Posted Jun 7, 2011 3:41 am GMT

    I wanna try it~!

  • Domnu_x

    Posted Jun 7, 2011 1:23 am GMT

    @vambran: They delayed it to make it perfect. They don't give a **** about mw3.

  • RadPro

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 9:59 pm GMT

    @Vambran Lol, give me a break. Mass Effect has their large fanbase aching for the next installement, EA/Bioware aren't afraid of going against anyone when it comes to a release.

  • Ismaelkf

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 9:44 pm GMT

    Also on ps3?!! YEEAAASSSSS!!!!!

  • Vambran

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 9:00 pm GMT

    EA prob delayed the game cause they don't want to compete with MW3.

  • punkpunker

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 7:46 pm GMT

    a good gift for my birthday!

  • mc_snap

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 7:43 pm GMT

    woohoo me3 ... ya! can't wait ... can someone recap the video b/c it was lagging so much i could not determine what was going on.

  • oskuuu

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 7:17 pm GMT

    umm... Tom Clancy's EndWar had voice command that worked perfectly with headsets; so i don't see why do u need kinect for this?

  • dkdk999

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 7:08 pm GMT

    @Kabals lol give it a rest. you can not read or watch a damn thing about mass effect without hearing that.

  • SlowMotionKarma

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 7:03 pm GMT

    A delay from BioWare (even though I really want to play this game) can only be a good thing in my eyes. I've been a loyal BioWare-ite since Baldur's Gate, and their last few offerings have been very underwhelming to me as a whole. I really think EA is slowly pressuring the studio to produce, instead of letting them create, and polish, their games.
    This delay, hopefully, means someone, somewhere "gets" that rushing a game because it's popular is never a good idea, and I'm fingers crossed for Mass Effect 3 to incorporate the vastness and scope of the first, with the action-RPG mechanics and diverse level/art design of the second.
    PLEASE, EA, let BioWare do it right. And BioWare, I'm waiting for you to make me a believer again.

  • wolf0

    Posted Jun 6, 2011 6:54 pm GMT

    God I WANT this game this year oh well might be the last good one for me any how if they try to turn mass effect to a MMO with the next one