The handling of Geralt of Rivia’s involvement in the next iteration of the famous series,The Witcher, has been on nearly every fan’s checklist sinceThe Witcher 3’s conclusion. The assortment of endings featuring Geralt and Yennefer hinted at a possible retirement of one of the biggest staples in fantasy gaming and television, sparkingrumors of a 100-year time skip inThe Witcher 4. However, CD Projekt Red recently confirmed that the White Wolf will make another appearance in the upcoming title, albeit as an NPC, putting months of speculation to bed. Although it remains to be seen how this new dynamic for Geralt will pan out, other games in the same predicament, particularlyMass Effect 4, could employ a similar strategy to salute their past protagonists.
Like Geralt, Shepard is the face of the sci-fi giant franchise,Mass Effect. Hardly any tale or plotline in the BioWare brainchild has existed without direct links to the protagonist’s choices in the past. In such cases where the main character is intertwined with the overarching plot, in such a way that it’s nearly impossible to separate their identity from the franchise at large, trying to flip the script and expand on the lore through another character’s lens can prove to be a mammoth task. That’s presumably why CD Projekt Red aims to soften this blow inThe Witcher 4by confirming Geralt’s participation, and it’s one that BioWare wouldn’t be out of place to try inMass Effect 4.
Geralt’s NPC Solution Opens the Door for Shepard in Mass Effect 4
Some narrative problems can be spotted from a mile away, and the manner ofThe Witcher 3’s conclusion immediately told of an issue on the horizon for CD Projekt Red. There were36 unique finishing acts forWitcher 3, and more importantly, three epilogues for Geralt of Rivia, not counting the bad ending where he goes on a mission to retrieve Ciri’s medallion and is swarmed by enemies (although his eventual fate is unknown). Two epilogues depict the White Wolf’s retirement with Yennefer or Triss, while the last sees him wandering The Continent’s open lands alone.
Paying closer attention to the plotlines available to the protagonist, it became clear that there was no epic comeback on the cards, at least story-wise. It’s part of why rumors swirled for the longest time that Geralt wouldn’t be in the next title – because his character had exhausted the narrative provided by the developer. With the recent confirmation thatThe Witcher 4will feature him as an NPC, franchises in a similar pickle could well adopt the strategy and keep their poster character around for nostalgic purposes.
Shepard Could Take On an Advisory Role in Mass Effect 4
Mass Effectis one of the first series that comes to mind in this scenario, especially since Shepard’s heroics inMass Effect 3almost uncannily mirror those of Geralt inThe Witcher 3. The sci-fi storyline had several nodes for players to explore. However, there was a catch. The perfect ending was the only conclusion that saw Commander Shepard make it out alive fromthe showdown with the Reapers, and it was only attainable if players had a certain level of Total Military Strength. As such, it’s logical to conclude that the protagonist’s role in the franchise’s tale is at an end, similar to Geralt’s.
However, removingShepard, who is essentially the embodiment ofMass Effect’s story, is easier said than done, as CD Projekt Red has determined through its new stance. One way to take a page out ofThe Witcher 4’s playbook is to bring the commander back as a hologram, akin to Avina’s role as an information VI. Shepard could play a role in particularly high-stress situations where players must make a difficult choice, advising the best possible route. By design, the ex-protagonist would have to contain more personality than a simple VI interface, but it’s a solution worth looking into. With such an approach, BioWare could craft a natural handover to the next main character, instead of starting a new tale from scratch.
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