BioWare Lead Writer Mac Walters revealed a cut plan where in Mass Effect 3, the Illusive Man was going to be something different.
In an interview with media outlet Eurogamer, Walters revealed that the team once had a plan for a boss fight that involved Commander Shepard versus a Reaper.
“Originally when you’re on the Citadel, there was supposed to be – remember the Reaper baby from ME2? Everyone remembers the infamous Reaper baby – a similar version of that, sort of manifesting itself on the Citadel,” Walters recalls. “So when you confronted the Illusive Man, you were really confronting the Reapers and their embodiment of something on the Citadel. We actually had rough prototypes but ultimately, the ending, as most people remember, is extensive, it goes on, and it goes on. The typical thing to do would be a big boss fight, but it didn’t feel right. It didn’t feel appropriate for where we were.”
This is where Walters revealed there was actually a plan to make the Illusive Man himself become a Reaper. He was Reaper-fied and became a boss that Shepard had to put down. It was like similar to Saren in a way, but that idea was abandoned quickly by the team.
Another concept was that the Illusive Man was controlling this giant mechanical “octo thing”, as he calls it. It was something similar to the Reaper baby.
In the end, the Illusive Man became a semi-husk and had powers that could control his enemies. Many fans were expecting a big fight, but the whole sequence was meaningful in a way.
Mass Effect Legendary Edition is now available on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Interview source: Eurogamer
