The next entry in the Mass Effect series will be the biggest Mass Effect yet, BioWare said during a developer roundtable live stream today.

The game will introduce new alien races with their own worlds and architecture. The Mako will return, as previously announced, and lends to the exploration of these planets, allowing players to choose their own path to explore the world. BioWare wants you to explore for “hours on end.”

Of course, new characters will join these races. And a new hero, as Shepard won’t be the main character. According to BioWare, the goal is to create a hero who is skilled and capable, but hasn’t reached the status that Commander Shepard was when the original Mass Effect trilogy began.

Finally, let’s look at some new concept art. First, you’ll see some Mako exploration and a new area in the Citadel.

The following two images are architecture created by one of the new alien races.

And these last two show on-foot exploration and a small ship approaching a giant base of some sort.

Development on the next Mass Effect is focused on current-gen consoles and PC.