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Yes—but story continuity and save-file transfer are different things. In Mass Effect Legendary Edition, decisions can travel from Mass Effect to Mass Effect 2 and then to Mass Effect 3. The games still keep separate save files, however, and a completed game will not automatically appear on another console or computer.
For the fullest continuity, play the trilogy in order and import each completed game when the next game offers that option. Starting with Mass Effect 2 or 3 is supported through optional Genesis comics, while moving an existing playthrough between devices requires a separate save-access solution.
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What actually carries over between Mass Effect games?
Legendary Edition contains Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3 as separate games, but EA describes the collection as one continuing Shepard story: “Your choices seamlessly travel from one game to the next.” That continuity is created by importing earlier-game progress, not by sharing one universal save slot.
Imported decisions can influence broad parts of the later story, including relationships, which characters are available to fight beside Shepard and preparation for the final war. Those are supported categories of consequence, not a promise that every conversation choice produces a unique later scene. The number of downstream variations is not published as a verified percentage or branch count.
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EA says carrying progress from the first two games is the most reliable way to prepare for Mass Effect 3’s concluding conflict. The practical rule is simple: finish the earlier game, keep its completed save, and use the next game’s import feature when it is offered.
What is the best order for playing the trilogy?
Play Mass Effect → Mass Effect 2 → Mass Effect 3 if you want the deepest version of the continuing story. The order lets each game use the decisions and relationships established before it, rather than asking you to reconstruct them later.
- Complete Mass Effect. At the end, preserve a completed save instead of overwriting every earlier manual save.
- Launch Mass Effect 2. Choose its earlier-game import option if it appears for your platform and installation. The exact labels and screen order can change, so use the option that identifies a Mass Effect save rather than following an assumed menu path.
- Complete Mass Effect 2. Keep the resulting completed save available before beginning Mass Effect 3.
- Launch Mass Effect 3. Import the Mass Effect 2 completion when prompted. This gives the final game the accumulated history that EA identifies as the most dependable preparation for its war-ending decisions.
Importing does not guarantee one predetermined ending. It supplies the history your new game can recognize; the choices you make in the current game still matter.
Can I start with Mass Effect 2 or Mass Effect 3?
Yes. Legendary Edition provides optional Mass Effect: Genesis comics before the later games so a new player can make selections representing important earlier events. Genesis is useful when you want to begin with Mass Effect 2 or 3 without first completing the previous game.
EA documents Genesis as a way to make previous-game choices, but the cited guidance does not promise that it reproduces every detail of a full imported playthrough. If you care about the widest possible relationship history, character outcomes and accumulated preparation, playing the earlier game and importing its save is the safer route. Genesis is the shortcut for readers who prefer a later starting point, not a documented one-for-one replacement for every prior event.
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Are the saves shared between the three games?
No. Narrative choices can carry forward, while the save files remain unique to each game. A new Mass Effect 2 save does not replace your completed Mass Effect save, and a Mass Effect 3 save is not the same file as the Mass Effect 2 completion from which it was created.
Think of the process as a one-time handoff: the next game reads the earlier completion and builds a new save in its own format. Keep the original completed files until you are certain you no longer need them, especially if you plan to replay a different decision path.
How do I continue a playthrough on another device?
Do not assume that importing choices inside the trilogy also provides cloud or cross-platform saving. Those are separate systems. An imported story can work on the same installation while the underlying files remain unavailable on a second machine.
Moving between two PCs
EA community staff have said that Legendary Edition saves are stored locally and may be moved manually between PCs. The default Windows location they identified is:
Documents > BioWare > Mass Effect Legendary Edition > Save
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- Exit the game completely on the source PC so the latest save is closed.
- Copy the relevant save folder to a separate backup location before changing anything.
- Move or copy that folder to the same path on the destination PC.
- Start the game and check the load screen before deleting the backup.
Use a removable drive only as an optional way to carry a backup. A USB drive stores files; it does not make a PC save compatible with a console or create a cross-platform cloud service.
Moving from PC to Xbox or another console
A historical EA community-manager reply advised continuing Legendary Edition on the same platform when asked about a PC-to-Xbox move. That is staff guidance for that discussion, not a present-day guarantee covering every console generation, storefront or account combination. Do not follow a PC file-copy procedure for a console unless the platform holder and the game’s current support documentation explicitly provide one.
If changing hardware is central to your purchase decision, verify the exact platform pair and current account or cloud-save support before starting a long playthrough. The trilogy’s in-game import feature should not be treated as evidence that a save can cross from PC to console.
Can original Mass Effect saves be imported into Legendary Edition?
The documented continuity described here applies to the games within Legendary Edition. The cited official material does not establish that saves from the separately released original versions can be copied directly into Legendary Edition, nor does it provide a verified file-conversion recipe.
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Keep original-release and Legendary Edition procedures separate. If you are moving from an older edition, check current platform-specific support rather than assuming that a file with the same character name or extension will be recognized.
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Does Shepard’s appearance transfer with the story?
Appearance and narrative history are different systems. EA says a character-creator code can be used across the three games and that Shepard’s appearance may be changed at the start of each one. Reusing a face code can help you reproduce the look, but it does not reconstruct romances, deaths, political decisions or other story variables.
For continuity, import the completed save. Use the character code separately if you want Shepard to look the same.
What changed about Mass Effect 3’s Galactic Readiness?
In Legendary Edition, Galactic Readiness is not determined by the outside multiplayer mode or the old companion app. Earlier-game progress still contributes useful history for the final war, but you should not install obsolete guides that require those external features to make the trilogy’s ending system work.
This change is another reason to distinguish modern Legendary Edition instructions from advice written for the original releases.
Which approach should you choose?
| Situation | Best approach | What you gain | Important limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| You want the fullest character and world continuity | Play all three games in order and import each completion | The largest documented history of relationships, allies and war preparation | Requires completing the earlier games |
| You want to begin with Mass Effect 2 | Use the optional Genesis setup before the game | A way to establish selected earlier choices without a Mass Effect playthrough | EA does not promise that Genesis recreates every prior detail |
| You want to begin with Mass Effect 3 | Use its available Genesis choice-setting before starting | A faster entry into the concluding game | It is not documented as an exhaustive replacement for imported history |
| You are moving between two PCs | Back up and manually copy the local save folder | Possible continuation of the same PC save | Local-file transfer is not the same as cross-platform support |
| You are moving from PC to console | Check current platform support before buying or beginning | A verified plan for the exact device pair | Historical staff guidance does not establish universal PC-to-console transfer |
What can go wrong during an import?
- The next game cannot see the completion: confirm that you finished the earlier game, saved after the ending, and placed the file in the expected game-specific location.
- You overwrote the only earlier save: restore the backup you made before moving files. Separate games do not provide a shared recovery slot.
- The character looks different: import the story save, then enter the character-creator code again if you want to reproduce Shepard’s appearance.
- A console does not recognize a PC file: stop copying files and verify official support for that platform pair; a removable drive cannot solve an unsupported format.
- You are following an old Galactic Readiness guide: check that it applies to Legendary Edition rather than an original release with multiplayer or companion-app requirements.
When in doubt, preserve every completed save and manual backup before experimenting. It is easier to create a new import than to recover a deleted one.
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Why playing in order remains the cleanest recommendation
Legendary Edition is designed around accumulated consequences, so the in-order route gives you the most control over the history that reaches Mass Effect 3. Genesis makes a later start practical, but it is a choice-setting shortcut rather than proof that every earlier event has been recreated. Likewise, importing a save into the next game carries story data forward, while changing hardware may still require separate local-file or platform support.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will changing Shepard’s face code restore my previous romances and decisions?
No. A face code only describes character appearance. Story variables come from the imported game save or from choices made through Genesis, so changing the visual code cannot recreate narrative history.
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Does Genesis let me select every decision from the first Mass Effect?
EA’s description establishes Genesis as an optional way to make previous-game choices, but it does not document an exhaustive list covering every event. Use a completed imported save when you need the most detailed continuity.
Can a USB flash drive make a Legendary Edition save work on Xbox?
No. A drive can hold a backup or help move files between compatible PCs, but it does not convert a PC save into a console save. Compatibility depends on official support for the specific platforms.
Should I delete my Mass Effect 1 save after importing it into Mass Effect 2?
Keep it until your new playthrough is safely loaded and backed up. The import creates a new game’s save data; retaining the original lets you retry the handoff or begin another Mass Effect 2 run with different history.
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