The just-released Mass Effect: Deception book has gone down like a lead balloon with Mass Effect fans. The novel is apparently riddled with canonical errors.
A shared Google doc titled "Errors in Mass Effect: Deception" attempts to list all the inaccuracies (via Kotaku)
Here are some snippets:
- During the three years since [the setting of novel Mass Effect: Ascension], both Nick [Donahue] and Gillian [Grayson] have aged six years. In addition, the attack on the Citadel is said to have taken place two years earlier, despite it actually taking place three years earlier.
- Anderson claims Omega has no public newscasts. Mass Effect 2 begs to differ.
- Quarians wear environmentally sealed suits to protect their weakened immune systems. They do not wear "a motley collection of clothing, held together by a variety of straps and leather fasteners".
- The novel states that thousands die on the Citadel every day, but given the approximate population of 13 million, this is beyond excessive.
One fan went as far as to burn Mass Effect: Deception and video it. I can't get over how similar he looks to the actual Commander Shepard.
One explanation for the book's shoddy standards is it's not written by Drew Karpyshyn, writer of the previous three Mass Effect novels as well as lead writer of Mass Effect 1 and co-lead writer of Mass Effect 2.
Mass Effect: Deception is written by William C. Dietz.
Maybe he should stick to weight-loss books.
In reality, Dietz has enjoyed a long and prosperous career writing science fiction stories. In addition to his own works, he's adapted stories for the Star Wars licence as well as for game properties Halo, Hitman and Resistance. He even co-wrote Vita game Resistance: Burning Skies.