14 Years Later, This 25-Minute Opener Is Still the Best in Modern Sci-Fi Gaming

BioWare’s reported closure and the cancellation of the fifth Mass Effect game have made Mass Effect 3’s opening feel more poignant. The article argues that the 2012 game gave Commander Shepard’s story a satisfying conclusion, and that its prologue remains a standout sequence in modern science fiction gaming.

The roughly 25-minute opening begins with Shepard on Earth as the Reapers launch a sudden invasion. After meeting old allies and trying to escape, Shepard watches an evacuation ship carrying a frightened child get destroyed; the sequence ends with Earth overrun and the game’s title appearing. The article highlights how this tutorial introduces the scale of the threat while grounding it in a personal loss.