Recently, former Bethesda developer Bruce Nesmith spoke with Press Box PR. One of the questions concerned the BioWare franchise:
What are your expectations for the next game in the Mass Effect series?
Bruce noted that "one of the shortcomings" of Mass Effect (in his opinion) is that the games in this franchise have always felt "a generation behind":
Yes, they had really great characters and excellent stories, but the gameplay itself felt outdated. It just did not measure up [to modern standards]. If they manage to bring what they genuinely did very well into a more modern format, I think they could make an amazing game.
In Bruce's opinion, while working on the new Mass Effect, BioWare could make use of the experience of the Baldur's Gate 3 developers, and also look at Bethesda's games:
[...] Honestly, I think they should try making the game more in the Bethesda style. I think Mass Effect fans dream of a science-fiction open-world game made in that spirit. A big, content-rich open-world game — I believe Mass Effect fans would simply go crazy with excitement over it. Although I am a former Bethesda employee, so perhaps I am inclined to say that about many things.