The Halo TV show has a cheeky Mass Effect easter egg

I'm Commander Shepard, and this is my favourite thumbnail on PC Gamer.

(Image credit: Electronic Arts)

In 2007, two sci-fi games about space marines in cool armor with weirdly shaped assault rifles rocked the Xbox 360 (and one/13 years later, the PC.) Ever since, it's been hard to mentally and spiritually decouple Halo and Mass Effect, even as we've never seen an official connection between the two aside from the aesthetic similarities and console of origin.

Until today. The Halo TV show has finally realized the dream of 2007 with a single-line announcement in the background of an otherwise normal scene: "Commander Shepherd, you are requested at the Skillian Response Center." Thanks to GamesRadar for the sharp catch in episode one.

Lest you think this is just referencing the first man in space or an English name derived from a rural occupation, 343 Industries directly confirmed it as an intentional reference to Mass Effect, telling GamesRadar, "Everybody loves Mass Effect."

I could have told you that though: "Skillian" is clearly a reference to the Skyllian Verge, an underdeveloped frontier of humanity bordering the Terminus Systems and the primary section of the galaxy you explore in Mass Effect 1. The Skyllian Verge is also where a Commander Shepard with the "War Hero" background—wait, where are you going? I wasn't done.

Ted has been thinking about PC games and bothering anyone who would listen with his thoughts on them ever since he booted up his sister's copy of Neverwinter Nights on the family computer. He is obsessed with all things CRPG and CRPG-adjacent, but has also covered esports, modding, and rare game collecting. When he's not playing or writing about games, you can find Ted lifting weights on his back porch.