Multiplayer headed to Mass Effect 3?

It may already hold the position of being part of one of the premier single-player franchises on the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC, but it seems that Bioware may now be priming Mass Effect 3 to become a heavy-hitting multiplayer title.

Following snippets of info that Bioware were on the hunt for multiplayer devs, potentially for DLC for an undisclosed title, Xbox World magazine have now promised to unveil a “killer new feature” for the sequel.

Now that could be anything from driving sections to a new beard-design simulator, truth be told, but further info revealed over the weekend adds fuel to the multiplayer fire.

A South Aftrican advert for the Mass Effect 3 collector’s edition reveals an “online multiplayer pass” will be in the box.

As an EA published title, it could very well be reffering to a code with which to access multiplayer features, as will be found in the upcoming Battlefield 3. Mass Effect 2 came with a code to access the Cerberus Network, an in-game store that gave exclusive content to gamers who purchased the game first-hand, but that made no explicit reference to multiplayer content.

It may not need it, but it looks as if versus or co-op gunplay could be headed to Mass Effect 3.