13 Best Mass Effect Moments

By Destin Legarie

*SPOILERS BELOW*
The Mass Effect trilogy is one of the greatest stories that has ever been told in the video games. The sheer amount of outcomes, conversations, and special moments you can experience is truly awesome and should not be missed. We love the series so much that we decided to put together 13 of our favorite moments from BioWare’s phenomenal trilogy.
*SPOILERS BELOW*

1. Saren Kills himself

Saren is immediately identified as the main villain that you hop across the galaxy trying to stop in Mass Effect 1. He seems completely evil throughout the game, but you know something isn’t quite right when he doubts himself from time to time. It isn’t until your final confrontation that him that he manages to escape from the Reaper’s control long enough to make one last choice; the choice to take his own life. The moment is not only shocking, but it goes a long way to show just how deep the Reaper’s influence runs.

2. Mordin’s Sacrifice

Another moment of redemption for a flawed character was seen when Mordin cured the Genophage, a biological weapon which made it nearly impossible for the Krogan race to reproduce. Mordin helped create this weapon, but gets the opportunity to make things right by sacrificing his own life. Watching a fan favorite die was difficult for many, and we’re willing to bet it brought a tear to an eye or two.

3. Garrus is revealed as Archangel

When you begin Mass Effect 2, your ship has been attacked and torn to hell. After coming back from the dead, you meet the mysterious Archangel at Omega. Everyone who talks about him makes him sound like the biggest badass in the galaxy, so imagine a gamer’s surprise when it’s revealed to be none other than Garrus, one of your original crew members. Now that he’s back he can help you out… you know… with those calibrations.

4. Killing Kai Leng

Kai Leng is a constant annoyance in the Mass Effect 3, and the writers do a lot to make you hate him. Especially if you romanced Thane in Mass Effect 2. Regardless of your romantic choice, the guy is constantly in your way and puts a blade through the terminally-ill Thane. At the end of your game, when you fight him and get to deal that final blow, Shepard has one last thought for the bionic legged enemy — “That was for Thane you son of a bitch.” That part felt good.

5. The Virmire Decision in Mass Effect 1

Choosing between Ashley or Kaiden during the Virmire mission is one of the hardest choices you’ll ever make in a game. You’ve been with these characters for the entirety of the first Mass Effect, and you know that one could be sent to their death when you make the decision. Not only that, but once they’re gone, they’re gone for the rest of the series. (Sorry Ashley, but it wasn’t really working out anyway.)

6. Meeting The Shadow Broker

The Shadow Broker DLC for Mass Effect 2 allowed us to see the elusive character, and get some one-on-one time with Liara, but the climactic boss battle with the Yahg trumps all of that. Not only do you get to see the mysterious character after hearing only rumors about him, but you also get to see just what kind of data he’d been keeping for himself. If you’ve never checked out the video surveillance in the background you’re, missing out.

7. Jack’s Evolution

When we meet Jack in Mass Effect 2, she’s a bit of a broken character. A rebel, yes, but she’s actually quite vulnerable despite her power. Seeing her become a teacher in Mass Effect 3 was a nice way to show that she’s but that old life behind her and stepped into a new life with purpose.

8. Mordin’s Singing

Not all of the best moments in the series are incredibly serious. Mordin may have had a hand in the Genophage, but he also had a background in theater. One of his best moments is a brief conversation with the Salarian that ends with a song and dance that had to make even a Renegade player smile. One more time Mordin.

9. Punching the Reporter

Speaking of funny moments, do you remember this person? Well if you played as a Renegade, one of the best moments is ending the interview early. The best part is that the reporter comes back in Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3 to confront you again and remembers the incidents from previous titles. By 3 she’s even taken a few self-defense classes…not that it matters if you time it right.

10. The Suicide Run

After you’ve traversed the galaxy in Mass Effect 2 and built your team, there’s one final thing that you need to take care of. The suicide run has you headed through the Omega 4 Relay and into uncertainty. Fortunately when we went through we had fully upgraded everything and had the opportunity to get revenge with our new Thanix Cannon. The entire sequence really makes you feel like all the probing finally paid off and it’s a huge reward for the player seeing your ship take the fight back to the collectors.

11. Becoming a Spectre

Back in Mass Effect 1 you start out as an ordinary human soldier. However, after you meet up with Garrus, grab Wrex, and then find Tali, you’re once again brought in front of the council who awards you the title of Spectre. It really makes the player feel empowered, and NPCs even act differently toward you, showing a tad more respect. Now that’s a great way to open a game.

12. The Party

If there’s one piece of fan service that BioWare went out of its way to make special, it’s the Citadel DLC. After completing all of the missions, the entire remaining crew of the Normandy gets together to throw a big party filled with fun moments and interactions between the entire crew. Tali gets drunk, Joker actually gets up and dances, Grunt works the door, and there’s a ton more great moments with your favorite characters. The party is one of those moments that’s hard to forget after you’ve experienced it and there’s even a picture taken at the end for you to remember the event.

13. The Finale

The moments leading up to the final assault are an emotional roller coaster. When you see the fleet come in to defend Earth you actually think there’s a chance you can pull this thing off. Getting to see an epic space battle at the end of the game including every race you managed to pull together is a sci-fi nerd’s dream come true. Later at The Citadel, there’s also an extremely emotional scene with Anderson and the Illusive man. It’s the first time that you feel like no one is safe, and that Shepard may not get out of this alive. Regardless of what you thought about the last decision, I think we can agree that these two scenes from the finale were some of the best.
Well, that’s our 13 Mass Effect moments, but we’re sure we missed some of your favorites. Did we? Let us know about it in the comments below. We hope you enjoyed going through our favorite parts of this fantastic series, and for more on Mass Effect you’re already in the right place.

Destin Legarie is an Editorial Producer for IGN. You can follow his adventures on twitter @DestinLegarie.