Mass Effect boss may have dropped a hint about the next game: 'Make sure you play Lair of the Shadow Broker'

GamesRPGMass EffectMass Effect boss may have dropped a hint about the next game: ‘Make sure you play Lair of the Shadow Broker’When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Bioware)

liara mass effect

We don’t know much about thenext Mass Effect gameyet, except that it’s happening and Liara T’Soni will be in it. That’s left fans of the series eager for whatever scraps of information they can get their hands on, and BioWare’s Michael Gamble, who’s heading up work on Mass Effect 4, might have just thrown them a bone.

“So many new Mass Effect fans popping up in my mentions,” Gamble wrote recently on X (viaGame Rant). “Maybe because it’s like 5 bucks or something. Awesome to see. There’s like an extra game worth of DLC content in there but make sure you play Lair of the Shadow Broker. Thx.”

(Image credit: Michael Gamble (Twitter))

So many new Mass Effect fans popping up in my mentions. Maybe because it’s like 5 bucks or something. Awesome to see. There’s like an extra game worth of DLC content in there but make sure you play Lair of the Shadow Broker. Thx.

First things first, Mass Effect Legendary Edition is indeedon sale for less than a fiverin the Steam Autumn Sale, which is an absolutely bonkers price for literally hundreds of hours of outstanding sci-fi RPG action. It’s a great game (the original ending was fine) and more than worth your time if you haven’t played it yet—trust me, you will not get more out of five bucks than you will here.

What’s more interesting, though, is Gamble’s seeming insistence that if you’re new to the whole Mass Effect thing, you should really play the Shadow Broker DLC. For those not in the know,Lair of the Shadow Brokeris a Mass Effect 2 expansion that sees Liara beefing with the mysterious—one might sayshadowy—knower-of-things who first appeared, more as a plot device than a character, in the original Mass Effect. I didn’t care for the DLC all that much: It was fine but served mainly as a way to bring Liara back into the action (she isn’t a playable character in Mass Effect 2), and since I didn’t particularly care for Liara, I found the expansion largely forgettable.

(I have nothing against Liara, for the record, I just preferred to roll with Zaeed and the krogan. As Teddy Roosevelt said, be a Paragon, but always bring a couple heavy hitters along for the ride.)

Liara’s involvement in Mass Effect 4 has been effectivelyconfirmedalready, but Gamble’s message could be construed as a hint about the broader basis of the game, especially since Liara returned as a playable squaddie for Mass Effect 3. If it was simply a matter of being aware of the character, that (along with ME1) would be sufficient. The specificity of “make sure you play Lair of the Shadow Broker” suggests to me that there might be something more to it.

And now is the time for these sorts of oblique hints to drop. Dragon Age: The Veilguard is out the door and doing quite well, and withno DLC for that game planned, the focus has shifted to Mass Effect. And Gamble has been something of a hint-dropper in the past: In 2023, for instance, heteased N7 Day “packets"in a little online game that eventually led to the release of a new Mass Effect promo image.

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

TOPICSBiowareElectronic Arts

TOPICS

More about rpg

A Path of Exile 2 sorceress casting flaming skulls in a hellish landscape

Path of Exile 2 numberlord spends 16 straight days killing rare monsters to prove that a stat that makes loot better makes better loot

Double headed wizard man holding arms up looking sad

LatestThe Last of Us season 2 trailer is a brief look at a story you should probably just play yourself in AprilSee more latest►

Latest

The Last of Us season 2 trailer is a brief look at a story you should probably just play yourself in April

the last of us season 2 trailer

The Last of Us season 2 trailer is a brief look at a story you should probably just play yourself in April

See more latest►

Most PopularMarvel Rivals’ latest update quietly killed the game’s burgeoning mod sceneSorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our faultTeam Fortress 2 just had the single biggest trade in its history, with ‘the absolute best hat you can get’ going for around $40KIs the new RTX 5070 really as fast as Nvidia’s previous flagship RTX 4090 GPU? Turns out the answer is yes. Kinda.Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anythingIf you’re a content creator and gamer looking for a CPU upgrade, this Ryzen 9 9900X deal will get you $90 offAMD is now reportedly making all-American Ryzen 9000 CPU dies at TSMC’s Arizona fabI tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at bayFinal Fantasy 14 communities panic as it turns out change to blacklisting, meant to help reduce stalking, also lets players use mods to track their altsTikTok’s time in the US may be ticking to a close as it makes a last stand in the Supreme Court, though Trump now says he ‘opposes banning’ itMSI intros cheaper ‘back connect’ Project Zero Intel motherboards for super-clean PC builds you might actually be able to afford

Most PopularMarvel Rivals' latest update quietly killed the game’s burgeoning mod sceneSorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our faultTeam Fortress 2 just had the single biggest trade in its history, with ‘the absolute best hat you can get’ going for around $40KIs the new RTX 5070 really as fast as Nvidia’s previous flagship RTX 4090 GPU? Turns out the answer is yes. Kinda.Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anythingIf you’re a content creator and gamer looking for a CPU upgrade, this Ryzen 9 9900X deal will get you $90 offAMD is now reportedly making all-American Ryzen 9000 CPU dies at TSMC’s Arizona fabI tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at bayFinal Fantasy 14 communities panic as it turns out change to blacklisting, meant to help reduce stalking, also lets players use mods to track their altsTikTok’s time in the US may be ticking to a close as it makes a last stand in the Supreme Court, though Trump now says he ‘opposes banning’ itMSI intros cheaper ‘back connect’ Project Zero Intel motherboards for super-clean PC builds you might actually be able to afford

Most Popular

Marvel Rivals' latest update quietly killed the game’s burgeoning mod scene

Sorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our fault

Team Fortress 2 just had the single biggest trade in its history, with ‘the absolute best hat you can get’ going for around $40K

Is the new RTX 5070 really as fast as Nvidia’s previous flagship RTX 4090 GPU? Turns out the answer is yes. Kinda.

Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anything

If you’re a content creator and gamer looking for a CPU upgrade, this Ryzen 9 9900X deal will get you $90 off

AMD is now reportedly making all-American Ryzen 9000 CPU dies at TSMC’s Arizona fab

I tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at bay

Final Fantasy 14 communities panic as it turns out change to blacklisting, meant to help reduce stalking, also lets players use mods to track their alts

TikTok’s time in the US may be ticking to a close as it makes a last stand in the Supreme Court, though Trump now says he ‘opposes banning’ it

MSI intros cheaper ‘back connect’ Project Zero Intel motherboards for super-clean PC builds you might actually be able to afford

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals