‘Mass Effect’ Making A Comeback? Listing Leak Suggests Franchise Return And Surprise Platform

BioWare’s beloved “Mass Effect” franchise has been firmly dormant since 2017’s “Mass Effect: Andromeda” left a bad taste in the mouths of most fans. Now, a retail listing may have just revealed the series’ return, and in a way that should excite longtime gamers.

In a since-deleted listing from Wednesday, the Portuguese retailer Gaming Replay appeared to reveal “Mass Effect Trilogy,” a collection of the first three games in the series, according to several outlets reports. The site listed the re-release for PS4, Xbox One, and unexpectedly, Nintendo Switch.

While not surprising from a technical perspective – as the Switch would be more than capable of handling these titles – it is unique to see the franchise return to Nintendo consoles, should the listing be true. The series only graced a Nintendo system once, when “Mass Effect 3” made its way to the Wii U in 2012.

The listing included prices of 59.99 Euros for PS4 and Xbox One and 49.99 for Switch (approximately $70-$59 USD). No release date was included, but the listings did seem to suggest an October launch.

As reported by GamesRadar, journalist and games industry veteran Jeff Grubb shared in August that publisher EA would be announcing such a re-release in early October for a release the same month. His only doubts were about whether the current economic situation might cause the release to be delayed.

“I think [EA] were planning to have this 'Mass Effect' trilogy be the other big thing for $60 this holiday, so that's why I'm still pretty confident it will make it out,” Grubb said on an Aug. 28 podcast of "GamesBeat Decides." “But with everything else falling apart, like across the board, I could see them also wanting to just delay. But that's not for sure - that's not a guarantee yet - like, that hasn't even been decided yet.”

EA has yet to confirm the validity of the leak and some fans are convinced the photo may not be legitimate. The speculation is due to the logo on the boxes being reused from an old trilogy boxset for Xbox 360. New and professional-looking marketing material typically lends veracity to leaks like these.