The reveal for Mass Effect Andromeda was different in a number of ways, there was no Shepard, it's in a different galaxy, and the music was entirely different than previous Mass Effect games. Originally written by Stan Jones and covered by a number of artists, the Johnny Cash version of Ghost Riders In The Sky was picked by BioWare as the song to reveal Mass Effect Andromeda with.
BioWare's studio director Yanick Roy has responded to fans requests of replacing the Johnny Cash tune with music that was more fitting for the Mass Effect universe. Roy replied with a resounding 'no,' followed by an apology and a reason.
"No, sorry, because there are very good reasons for that choice of song for the trailer that should become clear later on."
What are the reasons behind the music? Roy didn't explain, but the meaning of the song might mean something…
As per Wikipedia:
The song tells a folk tale of a cowboy who has a vision of red-eyed, steel-hooved cattle thundering across the sky, being chased by the spirits of damned cowboys. One warns him that if he does not change his ways, he will be doomed to join them, forever "trying to catch the Devil's herd across these endless skies". Jones said that he had been told the story when he was 12 years old by an old cowboy friend.
That might not give away very much, but the songs lyrics might….
An old cowboy went ridin out one dark and windy day
Upon a ridge he rested as he went along his way
When all at once a mighty herd of red-eyed cows he saw
Plowin through the ragid skies and up a cloudy draw
Their horns were black and shiny and their hot breath he could feel
A bolt of fear went through him as they thundered through the sky
For he saw the riders comin hard and he heard their mournful cries
Yippie i aye ye ye
Ghost riders in the sky
Their shirts all soaked with sweat
He's ridin hard to catch that herd
But he aint caught em yet
Cause they got to ride forever in that range up in the sky
On horses snortin fire as they ride on hear their cries
'if you wanna save your soul from hell a-ridin on our range
Then cowboy change your ways today or with us you will ride
Tryin to catch the devil's herd across these endless skies
Yippie i ohhh oh oh
Yippie i aye ye ye
Their brands were still on fire and their hooves were made of steel
Yippie i ohhh ohh ohh
Their faces gaunt, their eyes were blurred
As the riders loped on by him he heard one call his name
Ghost riders in the sky (x3)
Ok, so it doesn't seem to be adding up to much. The trailer did have canyons and deserts, reminiscent of New Mexico — which does bring on the old western feel. The protagonist of Andromeda is out looking for planets for colonization – perhaps making him somewhat of a lone ranger. In the trailer he/she comes across enemies, mabe those are the Ghost Riders from the sky…
What if, while out on his/her mission our protagonist comes across these alien monsters that must be stopped before they destroy a part of the galaxy?
Honestly, I don't know.
As for then the game releases, you won't be playing the game with Johnny Cash strumming in the background. Roy promised that "The game's music itself will be much closer to what you would traditionally associate with "Mass Effect music.""
