To whom it may concern at Bioware
The Mass Effect universe has been a joy for many gamers, as well as fans of science fiction in general. This universe is arguably the most promising science fiction setting since Star Wars. As the creators of this Universe, it is your right to shape it as you see fit. However, as fans of Mass Effect, both the video games and the supplementary novels and comic books, we are very upset with Mass Effect: Deception, the most recent entry in the Mass Effect novel series.
Mass Effect: Deception has many problems. While we as fans could spend time criticizing Dietz writing style, or perhaps nitpick the overarching plot (both of which are subjective items), we are instead upset at the "artistic freedoms" taken by Mr. Dietz in this novel which directly violate the lore of the Mass Effect Universe. A list of inaccuracies has been compiled online at this link:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/...CBHfWKU0sXh0ntukv-_cmo/preview?pli=1&sle=true
Admittedly, many of these errors can be nitpicky (such as number 4: Citadel surrounded by stars). However, many of these points are out and out against the lore of both the video games and the previous novels and comics (such as, under characters, Gillian Grayson's autism never being mentioned). While obviously these works are certain to contradict each other in places, the sheer volume and frequency of these errors is completely overwhelming. Even worse are errors where simple editting should have caught (such as Nick aging 3 years in the course of 6 months between this story and Retribution).
Obviously, we as fans are greatly upset to see the Universe that we have come to love being given such a poor treatment. While we understand that the Universe belongs to you to shape, we as fans cannot stand silently by, allowing quality this poor to pass as canon. We understand that contracting out this book, publication, etc. is a vastly expensive process. However, when such effort and finance is spent, it should be done carefully, not haphazardly. To allow works such as this to pass for Mass Effect canon belittles not only the novel series, but the entire Mass Effect universe.
Thus, we as fans ask two things. First, we would ask that Mr. Deitz not be given another chance at writing a Mass Effect novel. The sheer volume of errors and inaccuracies show he doesn't have the same desire to build the Mass Effect universe as his predecessor, Mr. Karpyshyn. He clearly is not invested in the world Bioware worked so hard to create. We would ask that future novels only be undertaken by writers of the Mass Effect video games, or at least writers who are as big of fans of Mass Effect as we are.
Second, we ask that Mass Effect: Deception be disavowed as non-canon. While this may seem meaningless, and would likely hurt sales, we believe Mass Effect deserves better than this. This largely symbolic gesture would show Bioware is rededicating itself to quality control, and will show that Mass Effect isn't just a revenue stream, but a truely inspired and well-crafted creation. By allowing another writer to fix the glaring errors presented, we can hopefully get Mass Effect back on track, and see the Universe continue to grow, even after the completion of the video game trilogy, when Mass Effect 3 releases this March.
We understand there is a lot being asked in this letter. We also understand some of our complaints may seem small. However, we as fans need to be just as responsible to ensure that Mass Effect remains as imaginative as ever going forward. By voicing our complaints, we hope to at minium encourage Bioware and EA to reevaluate just what Mass Effect can offer.
Thank you for your time in this matter.
