'Mass Effect 3' Ending: New IPad App Reveals Scrapped First-Person Shooter, Screenshots Called 'Abandoned Art'

Mass Effect, the third person shooter sci-fi space saga, was supposed to launch a competitive first-person spin off game, reported Kotaku. The game was to be called Mass Effect Team Assault, but was scrapped as a separate project and incorporated into Mass Effect 3.

An iOS app called The Final Hours of Mass Effect 3 delves into the inner workings of the controversial concluding installment. Gaming journalist Geoff Keighley is behind the iPad feature, which revealed that the first-person style game evolved into the third-person multiplayer mode in Mass Effect 3.

The goal was simple, Keighley reports in the app according to Kotaku. To create a standalone multiplayer experience in the 'Mass Effect' universe that would mix the play styles of 'Unreal Tournament' and 'Battlefield 1943'--- and likely be released as a downloadable game.

After a four-month development process, the game was presented as a prototype in March 2010. BioWare found the premise appealing, since a first-person shooter would illustrate an alternate view of the ongoing warfare in the Mass Effect storyline.

This idea then morphed into a co-op mode for Mass Effect 3. However, as Kotaku reports, the game's main engine wouldn't support co-op mode on the campaign, but instead would allow players to partner up in a separate skirmish mode.

Gamers were quick to share the link on Twitter, spreading the news that a behind-the-scenes look at one of the biggest games in the industry has been revealed.

You should definitely check out @geoffkeighley's app The Final Hours of Mass Effect 3. Great inside look at the game, one fan posted.

However, another player tweeted that the preview screenshots in the app hint at spoilers.

It's not a spoiler if it's 'abandoned' art... Keighley replied.

The Final Hours of Mass Effect 3 is available for Apple devices through the iTunes Store for $2.99. Perhaps this could help disgruntled players understand the reasoning behind the controversial ending of Mass Effect 3.