Mysterious Planets

A good science fiction universe should have plenty of interesting mysteries and lore in it, and Mass Effect certainly delivers. As I travel the galaxy and explore different star clusters, I enjoy reading the descriptions of the planets while searching for another Blue Suns base to storm, or maybe just looking to plant a probe on some of that sweet, sweet eezo.

Most of the time the descriptions are about the physical properties of the planet, along with whatever is going on there with the space-faring races. Huge technolgical cities, backwater farming colonies, slavers and pirates and miners.

But every once in a while, you find one with a more intriguing description that hints at deeper mysteries. Very ancient ruins. Strange artifacts. Sailing coffins and Bermuda Triangles.
And of course, evidence that the Reaping has been going on for a very long time. Some of it may be remnants of more "normal" wars between space-faring races, or possibly self-eradication...but I think it's the Reapers.

They've been doing their thing since at least as far back as the Middle Eocene, just when mammals were starting to get a foothold on earth after the eradication of the dinosaurs.

And how were the dinosaurs eradicated, by the way? A very large impact caused an extinction event, which seems to be a favored method of the Reapers in their post-reaping clean-up operations.

It does make you wonder.


Anyway. Below are ten of my favorite Mass Effect 2 "Mysterious Planets".