Hi all, Ric here today with a Mass Effect video because I think now is the perfect time
for a video on an thirteen year old franchise. Honestly though, this is a video I’ve been
meaning to get around to for ages and that is the Corporations and companies present
in Mass Effect. First off, this is not a list of every fictional
company in the lore as there are countless from not only humanity, but the dozen or so
other main races of the Mass Effect universe. This list looks at the big ones that crop
up during the course of the game from Commander Shepard’s (the player’s) experiences as
a soldier and Citadel Spectre. Therefore many of these companies are tied to the production
of military equipment or associated areas, but not all and I won’t be looking into
the smaller businesses such as individual stores. No matter if they are my favourite
on the Citadel. So for the time beginning, let’s take a look at those created by Humanity’s
own. Hahne-Kedar is the first company you (as a
player) meet, as they are the manufacturers of much of the Human Systems Alliance military
gear. They provide the beginning loadout for Commander Shepard and the other Human members
of the team with a focus on reliability and sturdiness over any sort of technological
edge. The high-end gear is reserved for the Shadow Works subdivision. Despite the human-centric
organisation, they do create gear for the other species with the same utilitarian focus.
Kassa Fabrication is another company with strong ties to the military as they produce
numerous arms and armours of very high quality. Because of this, they sell to various organisations,
including the Human Systems Alliance although their non-combative devices are generally
considered sub-par. Aldrin labs, based on the Moon and named after
a dude who went there one time, manufacture basic armour, omni-tools and biotic amps.
They do in fact manufacture armour to Citadel Security standards and many of the Standard
Agent or Hydra armours seen are in fact produced by Aldrin Labs.
Ariake Technologies create electronic equipment including many of the game’s Omni-tools
as well as high tech armour designed to optimise gadgets and the like. On top of hardware,
they produce software packets for a variety of mundane purposes such as data management.
Their name suggests a Japanese origin and this is reflected in several of their purchasable
arms and armour. The Katana Shotgun, the Raikou Pistols and Naginata Snipers.
Rosenkov Materials is a Russian based armour manufacturer that is making good grounds in
the interstellar community. The one iconic weapon they make is the M97 Viper Sniper.
Conatix Industries was a Biotic implant specialist that worked closely with the Alliance’s
BAaT program to pioneer human manipulators of dark energy. The company folded shortly
after the termination of the Biotic Acclamation and Temperance training program and there
were rumours that they had been deliberately exposing human colonies to dangerous Element
Zero contamination for the slim chance to create more Biotic Candidates.
MarsGene is a genetics company with strong ties to the military. It’s this company,
based on Mars, whodathunk, that provides the genetic augmentation to human soldiers when
they enter the military. With Mars being the Roman god of war, it seems fitting that this
would be the location of such an organisation. The Sirta Foundation is a rather large and
human founded medical organisation that operates a non-profit model. Like several others already
mentioned, it includes branches for genetic research and although the do not produce any
weaponry, their Sirta Armoury has created medical modifications for armour such as automated
trauma kits and medi-gel dispensers. This company was attacked by biotic fanatics in
2183 and almost went bankrupt, however Asari intervention provided them a lifeline by supplying
them with spoils from a platinum mine which they were able to sell on, funding future
research, sharing the results with the galactic community.
The HOME group is a big player in Mass Effect Andromeda’s prequel book, Initiation and
a creator of cybernetics and similar technologies. They however engaged in corporate espionage
and theft, attempting to steal the SAM artificial intelligence prototype and they fund experimental
divisions of the System’s Alliance military. They are based on their own station, called
Home Away. These next two organisations are not specifically
Human-founded as they operate beyond the scope of Earth and associated worlds, but do have
strong ties to them. ExoGeni Corp is an interstellar company that
provides colonisation support and contracts. It manages resource rights and funds colonisations
attempts on such worlds as Feros, however it too was involved in some very shady business.
In 2183 a Thorian Creeper was discovered and its mental abilities explored as a potential
way to control people, using the ExoGeni funded colony of Zhu’s Hope as a test bed. ExoGeni
also undertakes terraforming endeavours such as hydrating the surface of Trebin and playing
cartographer to other potential colonisation sites.
Binary Helix is a genetic research company that has rather questionable connections,
see my video on Cerberus for more information as well as several other companies allied
with Cerberus. And can I just say, dumb logo choice for a company trying to maintain its
legitimate façade. Despite this it’s unknown if Binary Helix is a human founded institute
as it has investors from the Asari Matriarchy and its work didn’t focus on solely human
genetics. They had bases in labs all across the Human Systems Alliance from the moon Europa
to Peak 15, Noveria. It was here that their most infamous incident occurred with the discovery
of a Rachni Queen and an attempt to harness the insectoid race as soldiers. It backfired.
Among these there is the corporate Watchdog known as “Balance” headed by Doctor Trent
Leeds which aimed to keep an eye on corporate deals and bring illicit activities or underhanded
play to light before various Citadel agencies. Aside from the earthlings, the other species
in the galaxy have been at the intergalactic commerce business for much longer and as such
have a number of their own organisations too. However, as the games have you play as a human,
generally these are encountered far less, but here are some of those corporations, beginning
with the Asari. Armali Council is a collection of Asari manufacturing
guilds that have a reputation for creating some of the highest quality fine bio-amps
and omni-tools but have a selective client list. The name suggests it is based on the
city of Armalli on Thessia, the Asari homeworld. The Serrice Council however are the creators
of the most powerful biotic amp on the market and like Armali, have a selective client list.
Purchasers of their equipment have to undergo Serrice Council overseen testing before they
can be vetted for permission to purchase. They are also not focused on profit and this
coupled with their selectivity makes their products very difficult to come by. They also
offer their testing and training facilities to their clientele through membership programs.
Baria Frontiers is an Asari survey, mapping and colonisation company. They make a lot
of their trade in the supply of Star Charts from their missions. This sort of area of
trade brings them into contact with many colonists and frontiersmen of numerous species so the
company has contracts with several worlds as well as information pertaining to the location
of many inhabitants of note. Asari colonisation itself is overseen by several
organisations such as the Pyrena Corporation. Armax Arsenal is the primary Turian supplier
of high end military gear. They equipment follows standard collapsible Citadel designs
and they also manufacture military vehicles. They also run the competitive Simulated Combat
Arena from where participants can take part in televised virtual skirmishes against a
variety of opponents. Haliat Armoury is another Turian weapons manufacturer,
as expected by such a militant species. They have permission from the Turian Hierarchy
to sell surplus on the galactic market. The Halegeuse Corporations are a collection
of Salarian clan-based businesses that set their minds to developing the specialised
technology needed to mine a Helium-3 rich gas giant.
Elkoss Combine is one of the bigger Volus manufacturers of Citadel standard arms and
gear. They are based out of the Terminus Systems and aim to produce more cost-effective varieties
of high end gear. They create armour for a variety of races, not just Volus and are producers
of the iconic M8 Avenger, a common favourite among most private security firms and mercenaries.
Dah’Tan manufacturing is a Batarian computer manufacturer based on Camala, but most of
the Batarian weaponry and gear comes from their State Arms. This is a nationalised,
military run company which has no qualms in creating chemical, biological and nuclear
weapons. Finally, I wanted to mention a couple of others
which are more vague in their origins but are either major players in missions or frequently
encountered. Synthetic Insights manufacture various developments
in software and are one of only four Council approved companies that can experiment with
Artificial Intelligence. Many of their products are various Virtual Intelligences and high-end
devices however the recent events of Mass Effect, such as the Geth attack have damaged
their reputation as the subject matter of A.I. and its consequences hits close to home.
Devlon Industries create armour and protective gear against extreme environments, very common
if you are in the habit of dropping on every other world you come across regardless of
habitability. For some reason I associated them with the Elcor, but I honestly have no
idea where I got that from. Maybe it’s the logo because I can’t remember any actual
connection. They are also the primary producers of some of the standardised citadel weaponry
such as the M-92 Mantis Sniper. I’ll give a brief mention to Elanus Risk
Control Services, as this Turian Company did produce its own arms and equipment including
the Predator M3 Pistol and the M15 Vindicator Rifle, however it was first and foremost,
a Turian private security firm. Then there are the Cerberus Skunkworks, which
create Cerberus’ own armoury and likewise you can obtain gear form the Geth Armoury
which are likely salvaged Geth equipment or replicas. But neither of these are official
“businesses” as it were. This list is far from complete as there are
numerous other businesses, corporations, security and holdings groups mentioned in ambient dialogue
to help construct a thriving, churning universe in which to build the games narrative. Not
to mention all the smaller storefronts that import and sell a variety of wares from clothing
to games. And of course there’s the numerous business that included journalism, cruises
and well… everything, from many different planets.
But these are the major players that you’ll encounter in the games which in turn are managed
by watchdog groups who report to various authorities. However, as a prior Cerberus video shows,
and many missions in game, subterfuge, sabotage and blackmail are not just relegated to the
political arena and many of these organisations have had shady dealings to get where they
are and stay there. Thanks for watching this video on some of
the corporations of Mass Effect, it’s been a while since I’ve talked on this topic
but waiting for a timely opportunity to talk about Mas Effect is like watching an Elcor
run a marathon. Thanks again for watching, I’ve been Ric and this is my favourite store
on-the-cita-…