Mac Walters, the former main writer of Mass Effect, has said that the goal of his new business, Worlds Untold, is to create unrestricted new worlds and people.
A near-future action-adventure game set “in a breathtaking world filled with mystery and exploration” will be its debut project.
The newly revealed Worlds Untold is a Vancouver-based, entirely remote business that has received financial backing from the massive Chinese video gaming company NetEase.
After more than 19 years with BioWare, the studio that makes Mass Effect, Walters announced his resignation in January. Before acting as primary writer on Mass Effect 2 and 3, he worked on Jade Empire and the first Mass Effect during that period.
Now that Walters is no longer involved, BioWare is picking up the pieces from its Reaper conflict and returning to the Milky Way to continue the Mass Effect franchise.
Walters said that universes Untold was “founded on the idea of creating incredible IPs; worlds that have endless possibilities for storytelling” in an interview with Eurogamer about the opening of his new firm.
“Having previously been at the center of expanding new intellectual property, I am aware of the difficulties as well as the possibilities involved in establishing whole universes. To put it briefly, we put a lot of time and effort into creating the setting, then we focus on the characters, and lastly the gameplay and plot.
“By being intentional in preserving the tenets of the IP, we make sure to create future opportunity for discovery, but also avoid painting ourselves into a corner that could lock us in a certain direction.”
Even though there aren’t many large franchises in the video game industry—in fact, BioWare’s next projects are the continuations of its two largest series—Walters said that there is still a lot of interest in fresh intellectual property.
“Ultimately, if the past few years of streaming television are any indication, people love new IP; especially when it’s exceptionally well crafted and a diverse set of characters wrapped up in a brilliant story.”
At Worlds Untold, Walters is joined by concept artist Ramil Sunga as head of art and Dragon Age veteran Elizabeth Lehtonen as head of production.
“One of the core principles of Worlds Untold is bringing together a team with diverse backgrounds and unique experiences,” Walters said. Therefore, even if there are a few [BioWare] alumni, we really want folks from other studios or even entire sectors to work with us to create something genuinely special.
And that is definitely done with the goal of including worldbuilding and storytelling. My personal enjoyment of picturing locations we would want to visit and live in serves as the inspiration for the studio’s mission, “Creating Worlds we Dream of Discovering.”
Building franchises “with depth and possibility that can’t be contained in a single game, or even a single medium” was NetEase’s stated goal at the studio’s creation.
“We want to craft worlds so memorable that you see them in your dreams when you close your eyes at night,” Walters said. “I believe the greatest way to make such worlds genuine, accessible, and significant is to surround them with believable individuals who are engrossed in intriguing, mystery-filled stories. Naturally, placing the player in the main role in that narrative.”
I had a conversation with Mac Walters back in 2021, during which we discussed the development of Mass Effect 3 and the studio’s efforts to complete the original trilogy of the franchise.
This year, prior to Worlds Untold’s launch, Mac Walters spoke with our Bertie about his contributions to the Mass Effect story and handing over the torch.