Mass Effect: Deception is the latest fictional spin-off from the sci-fi role-playing series, a novel due for release very soon. Previous novels in the franchise have been written by Drew Karpyshyn. This one, though, is written by a newcomer, William C. Dietz, and with some copies are already out there, fans are finding the thing is full of errors.
While some might be typos, and others a little too open for interpretation to be labelled as errors, others are glaring mistakes in the universe's canon, which you'd think would have been looked over by someone at BioWare before the book went to print.
Ah well, too late now! Know that I point this out not because I somehow revel in people making writing mistakes. As someone who does that daily, my house is made of very thin glass!
I point it out because the way these Mass Effect fans find and then express the errors are brilliant, and well worth a read.
Below are some examples:
5. Kai Leng kills a krogan by slicing into the back of its neck and severing the spine - Krogan biology doesn't work that way - 1) there is a large hump that makes access to the rear of the neck difficult, 2) most blades (save for a molecular blade) can't penetrate the thick hide covering the rear of the neck, 3) even if the spine was severed, the krogan still wouldn't die; instead of a human-like nervous system, it has a 2nd circulatory system with an electrically conductive fluid. [Error: Lore]
27. Two volus are described as wearing masks that don't completely cover their faces - This would result in instant death for a volus, as they must wear completely sealed enviro-suits that provide both the ammonia atmosphere and high pressure they require to survive, and keep them isolated from the oxygen-nitrogen mixture breathed by other species, which is poisonous to them. [Error: Lore]
32. The Dark Star is described inaccurately - It is said to be on the 28th floor of a generic skyscraper, and to have an excellent view of the Presidium ring. In addition, it is said to be a quiet place filled with people in formal wear and gaming machines and not the sort of place to find a "working stiff". In actuality, it is on the 28th level of Zakera Ward, has no view of the Presidium (though Zakera Ward itself does), is a loud dance club with no gambling and a place where you can talk to blue-collar folk, like the Presidium groundkeeper. [Error: Lore]
You can read the whole thing below.
UPDATE - Wow, some fans are going so far as to burn their copies of the book.
Errors In Mass Effect: Deception [Google Docs, thanks Chad!]