There’s plenty of character development in the Mass Effect series.

The Illusive Man, who first appears in Mass Effect 2, was an instant hit with fans.

That’s not even mentioning his amazing celebrity portrayal.

Mass Effect 3 Liara TSoni

Who Is The Illusive Man?

He is mostly hands off,giving his operatives considerable freedom in how they achieve their goals.

Instead,the sound you hear when he smokes his cigarette is the voice actor sucking on a pen.

Dragon Age Vs Mass Effect Romance Featured Split Image Of Iron Bull and Garrus

Who Voices The Illusive Man?

The Illusive Man isvoiced to great effect by none other than actor Martin Sheen.

Martin Sheen has acted in over 200 projects, so he’s very prolific.

Tails and Knuckles in Sonic Chronicles, the illusive man smoking a cigarette in Mass Effect, and Meredith in Dragon Age 2, left to right.

Who Was He Before Cerberus?

The name for his organization, Cerberus, came from that very e-mail.

The e-mail said thathumanity needed a Cerberus to guard it from the aliens beyond the Charon Relay.

The Illusive Man seated in his lair in the Mass Effect Trilogy.

Charon is the ferryman of the dead in Greek mythology, while Cerberus guards the gates of Hades.

He arranged assassinations, and even disasters designed to make humans more likely to become biotics.

What Does The Illusive Man Do In Mass Effect 2?

Mass Effect Character Who Have Changed Featured Image containing screenshots of Jack, Liara, and Ashley.

The Illusive Man doesn’t make an appearance directly in the first game, although Cerberus does.

Unfortunately, it was cut during development, pushing his debut back to Mass Effect 2.

He invests an astronomical amount of money and resources over two years to have Shepard revived.

The Illusive Man holding a cigarette, backed by a muted sun while he examines high tech screens.

The Illusive Man is typically seen in Mass Effect 2 in low lighting, smoking a cigarette.

What Does The Illusive Man Do In Mass Effect 3?

He intends to use the Reaper’s technology to advance humanity, even jumpstart its evolution.

Split-image of Illusive Man from the Mass Effect games and actor Martin Sheen in The West Wing.

The truth ishe has undergone a process called indoctrination, where exposure to Reaper technologybrings you under their control.

Which of Bioware’s two biggest series has more romantic options?

This is supported by thedebunked but very popular fan theory that Commander Shepard is also indoctrinated without knowing it.

The Illusive Man as a young man wearing a series of metal plates on the side of his face.

What Happens To The Illusive Man In The End?

Originally,the Illusive Man was planned to transform into a Reaper monster for a boss fight.

There are two ways this scene can play out, although both ultimately end the same way.

The Illusive Man takes a drag from a cigar during a conversation in Mass Effect.

Either way,the Illusive Man dies while looking down at Earth.

Where Else Does The Illusive Man Appear?

They’re all worth checking out if you want more Mass Effect than even the games can offer up.

The Illusive Man with dark metal spreading up from his neck across his face.

Hefurther features in two other novels, Mass Effect: Retribution and Mass Effect: Deception.

These issues have beenofficially acknowledged by both Bioware and the publisher.

Sure, Bioware has made plenty of great RPGs, but have you played its mech game?

The final speech check with the Illusive Man, presenting the options to snap him out of Reaper control.

The Illusive Man wielding dual SMG’s, firing into a crowd of aliens in front of him.