Both Mass Effect and Dragon Age are major BioWare titles. After the their success with Star Wars and Baldur’s Gate, the studio decided to venture into the world of original creations. They managed to do that with a level of success that surpassed what fans expected.
Both Dragon Age and Mass Effect were critically acclaimed. They gave gamers tons of hours to enjoy and explore fantasy worlds with different races, impossible locations, and lives to save. Players can spend hours in side quests learning about the universe. It is clear that both franchises influenced each other, and it only improved them both.
5 Admiral Xen’s And Admiral Han’Gerrel’s Voices
It is not unusual to have different franchises from the same studio hiring the same voice actors. In this case, it is a bit more special since these characters are placed really near each other. This facilitates the correlation between the two, possibly reminding players that they might have heard them together before. In this specific case, both voice actors worked together in another huge BioWare game. They were the voices for some of the main characters of Dragon Age Origins, BioWare’s other acclaimed original RPG.
Claudia Black is the voice of Admiral Xen, who aims to return the geth to the quarian. Her plan to retrieve the quarian homeworld would not destroy the geth. She wanted their assimilation. Xen believed quarians should have never abandoned synthetics. Admiral Xen frequently argued that since the geth are synthetics, they could be merely reprogrammed. A little further, players can find Admiral Han’Gerrel voiced by another fan favorite, Simon Templeman. He is also the voice of Loghain Mac Tir from Dragon Age Origins.
4 The Ogre In Kasumi’s Loyalty Mission
Dragon Age introduced their own version of an ogre, which is very different from those that are usually portraited in most Medieval Fantasy settings. They are hulking, horned brutes of the darkspawn horde. Ogres are walls of muscle that are twice as tall as a human. Although they are rare on the surface, the creatures show up in enough numbers to threaten the races of Thedas. Like other darkspawn, ogres are born from broodmothers. The ones who were once female qunari give birth to these monstrosities. A single ogre is able to kill many human warriors without much effort, which is why they are so feared.
The Master Thief from Mass Effect 2, Kasumi Goto, has a loyalty mission just like all the other crew members in Mass Effect 2. It seems that a dangerous arms dealer, Donovan Hock, killed her partner. Kasumi planned a heist in order to recover her partner’s graybox, and Shepard went along to help. Once in Donovan’s Hock Vault, players have some time to admire what the arms dealer has stored in his private collection. Among the items, players can find Michelangelo’s David, quarian stone tablets, an Egyptian statue, and the statue of a creature. This creature is an ogre from Dragon Age. This section of the loyalty mission might be implying that the ogre statue is as valuable as Michelangelo’s David, but it can also be just a fun reference.
3 Blood Dragon Armor
The Blood Dragon Armor was originally provided as a bonus to those who had also purchased Dragon Age Origins. The armor is an obvious reference to Dragon Age and is one of the best outfits in Mass Effect. It has a medieval-inspired look, and the dragon age logo can be seen on the armor’s chest. Although it was designed as a nod to the other franchise, BioWare was careful enough to add some lore of its own to the armor. It does have an explanation as to why it exists in the universe of Mass Effect.
Earth has an Urban Combat Championship league. For some reason, this league has access to state-of-the-art technology such as the Blood Dragon Armor. In the game, the logo is associated with a team called Edmonton Blood Dragons. It has a microframe computer that adapts to any high-quality biotic amps, omni-tools, and kinetic barriers. In the Legendary Edition, players need to buy the armor, but it wasn’t the case before. In the first version of Mass Effect 2, the armor was a gift from the Illusive Man.
2 Thank The Maker
In Dragon Age, the Wellspring of All is the god that the Chantry worships in Dragon Age. Also known as the Maker, it is said he is married to his prophetess, Andraste. According to the Chantry, the Maker is an all-powerful being that has turned away from his creations. First, the Maker created the Fade, and his first creations were made in his image. The deity was dissatisfied with the soulless beings of the Fade, which led him to walk away from them. Later, the Maker created Thedas and its inhabitants.
During the very first mission of the first Mass Effect, players can find a desperate Dr. Warren. Once Shepard finds her, Dr. Warren thanks the Maker for seeing humans instead husks, Saren, or a murderous geth. Although the reference to the other game is there, it does not connect the two franchises. In fact, it might have been an unintentional reference since. After all, Mass Effect was released before Dragon Age Origins.
1 Klendagon Is The Moon Of Thedas
There are players who believe that both games happen in the same universe. Although it is hardly the case, this all started due to Klendagon and Thedas’s natural satellite looking alike. Although there are many fan theories about it, the explanation is much simpler.
Klendagon is a real-life depiction of Mars. Chances are, the team used the same image as a reference to Mass Effect. However, it might also have been the case that using the same artwork was not intentional. After all, the same image is used as Chohe’s moon as well.
NEXT: Mass Effect: Things About Commander Shepard That Everyone Forgets About
