Recently, Jason Schreier, a senior gaming journalist at Bloomberg, confirmed that the online leak of the Mass Effect 5 (now canceled) trailer is genuine and not a fan-made fake.
The video was initially made public by a Reddit user, and its authenticity was once called into question. Schreier stated that it belonged to Mass Effect 5, which had been in development at BioWare until the studio shut down the project. Before the video leaked, there were already reports that BioWare had prepared a trailer for Mass Effect 5.
The existing assets are closer to target renders, primarily used to demonstrate the visual style and creative direction envisioned by the team. They should not be taken as actual in-game footage, nor do they prove that the content reached a playable state. The specific gameplay of the project has never been officially disclosed.
Reports indicate that around 50 people were involved in the development of Mass Effect 5 when it was canceled. Former BioWare employees said the project originally aimed to offer unprecedented freedom and choice, with the team drawing inspiration from the achievements of Larian Studios and CD Projekt Red. What can be confirmed is that the leaked trailer corresponds to a real project that once existed; its visuals and direction do not represent the final product.