It’s not hard to tell when a fanbase is hungry for more information. After priming the pump with a brief teaser on November 7 (affectionately called “N7 Day”) BioWare is watching Mass Effect fans in a frenzy over the briefest of hints about the next title.
The latest comes via Reddit user Benelioto, who believes he has found the name of the next protagonist. at the 44-second mark of the N7 Day video, there is a small dog tag on the left side of the screen. When enlarged, it reads either “Ryder” or “Rider.”
Fans assume that this points to the name of the main character. Benelioto suspects that it directly connects to Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. Commander Shepard, hero of the first three Mass Effect games, was named for Alan Shepard, the first American in space.
You can check out the trailer from which this image is taken here.
[Source: Reddit]
Our Take
Whether this is actually the main character’s name or a developer lark that’s unconnected isn’t the story here. It’s that the Mass Effect fanbase is downright hungry for any and all information. It’s clear that Andromeda is already a hotly anticipated release, and that’s probably just fine by EA.