When you think BioWare greats, you think quality companions, and Mass Effect delivers with some of the most recognizable faces in all of gaming. Yet, in a discussion that kicked off on Dec. 12, fans believe that the story might be better served if some of them were dead.
To be fair to the writers of the franchise, Mass Effect has never been afraid to rip friends made along the way away from players. In the very first entry, a decision must be made to save either Kaidan Alenko or Ashley Williams. No ifs, no buts, no miraculous third option. One of them is doomed to die. This commitment to baking unavoidable death into the narrative is part of what makes those legendary three games so memorable.
However, this isn’t to say that all of those who avoid this fate cannot die during the series. In fact, in the entire original trilogy, only Liara T’Soni is gifted with unbreakable plot armor. Mass Effect 2, in particular, is infamous for the possibility of everybody losing their lives (Commander Shepard included) on the appropriately named Suicide Mission at the game’s conclusion.
This is where the debate created by Reddit user RedGoblinShutUp comes in: Are there any non-compulsory companion deaths that make the story better? The top suggestion, as of writing, was presented by zerosix1ne. “Miranda dying on Sanctuary to save her sister and stop her father once and for all,” they said. “It’s both a very sad and touching scene.” It also completes a full redemption arc of sorts for the genetically engineered human.
Although on your side during the events of the second game, her dedication to the truly deplorable Cerberus left her with plenty to make up for. Miranda’s death in Mass Effect 3 comes late enough in the day that there isn’t even much time to sit on it, more akin to the final page of a whole book than a chapter.
Were you to lose Kasumi in the aforementioned Suicide Mission of ME2, then that’s a whole different scenario. As a DLC character, the master thief didn’t get as much screentime as others, although her quirky personality won over plenty of doubters. Pointed out by Pathryder, she plays a vital role in saving both the Hanar homeworld and a Salarian spectre in the final game. Without her, Shepard has to choose either/or.
What further adds to the drama is if you end up losing Kaidan/Ashley during the Citadel Coup plotline. Then, should you choose to let that Salarian spectre perish, every single spectre Shepard had met during the trilogy would have met their maker. Ominous.
