Mass Effect 3

My understanding is that mass effect is a very 'true-to-sci-fi-genre' game and so the end of the trilogy would have to be something unexpected and meta. So I think thats what they went for. They wanted an Iain M Banks, Peter F Hamilton, Alastair Reynolds, Steven Baxter sort of ending, not a yay goodies win ending.

unexpected and meta would have been ok.

the ending wasn't unexpected and meta though. it simply didn't make sense. the reapers are eldritch space horrors beyond our comprehension.

the entire ending was basically "what is this space magic doing in my hard sci fi?" the writers of mass effect were so good at making everything sound plausible. they just added one thing--element zero--and expanded upon it to make an awesome setting. why is it that at the end of the series they give up on all that and basically make magical and nonsensical things occur? why do they seem to give up on making the plot coherent? i wouldn't mind a sad ending where shepard died or where the universe couldn't be saved. my frustration (and that of many other fans) comes from the fact that the ending was poorly written and had too many holes. it felt like a shitty fanfiction rather than the conclusion to one of my favorite sci fi settings.

  On 3/19/2012 at 2:56 AM, Hoodie said:

why is it when you combine the two types it makes circuit board patterns appear on people?

This lol, most wtf moment of the game.

I think the only truly interesting thing about this backlash is that it puts creators in an almost submissive position with regards to their fans.

At the same time, your analogy, Hoodie, to returning a dessert course in fancy prix-fixe meal for being too stale is one that I'm trying to contest, and can't think of a good crack in the logic—maybe it's the fact that the scale of work differs so greatly between a dessert and a continuation of a video game.

I don't know. Anyway, in bringing up the point that EA/Bioware see this as a moneymaker rather than a creative outlet makes me kind of uninterested in the whole tension. lol

How they presented the Reapers in ME when talking to Soverign made them seem very sinister and simply as some cosmic force that is unstoppable. Probably one of the coolest dialogues in the whole series.

If we forget all about the ending for just a second. Can anyone actually say they didn't enjoy this game?

It has been one the best games I've ever played. I don't think BioWare gets the credit they deserve.

It's the best game I've ever played, I've already said that. Bioware got over 9000 excellent reviews.

  On 3/19/2012 at 5:52 PM, Npoess said:

If we forget all about the ending for just a second. Can anyone actually say they didn't enjoy this game?

 

It has been one the best games I've ever played. I don't think BioWare gets the credit they deserve.

I thought it was OK. I wish they would've implemented actual side-missions to recover resources instead of planet scanning. The Reaper mini-game was pointless as well. I feel like ME2 is a superior game in most respects, except for weapon selection and mineral scanning. It had way more side quests and planets to visit than ME3. It had the Citadel, Ilium, and Omega as hub worlds. It generally felt like bigger game. I think ME3 should've at least tried to match that size. If Shepard could've landed on at least half the planets where there are war assets and had a short 10 minute quest, that would've made a HUGE difference.

Combat is excellent and I love the addition of more powerful melee. I haven't played multiplayer, but I'm sure that's probably the best part of the game because combat is so damn fun.

It's not the best game I've ever played though. I think Fallout: New Vegas has that honor--ME2 is up there as well.

I think bioware breaking down and changing the ending now could be a bad thing. It means in the future when new games come out people can whine loud enough on the Internet and get "what they want" basically voiding all artistic integrity the designers had in mind. A better way to go about it may be what double fine is doing and have input from customers all the way though the process while still giving studios free reign on story, character development etc.

  On 3/22/2012 at 3:17 AM, MastaN8 said:

I think bioware breaking down and changing the ending now could be a bad thing. It means in the future when new games come out people can whine loud enough on the Internet and get "what they want" basically voiding all artistic integrity the designers had in mind. A better way to go about it may be what double fine is doing and have input from customers all the way though the process while still giving studios free reign on story, character development etc.

whoa whoa whoa. wait a second.

artistic integrity?

i think most game developers (including bioware!) gave up on artistic integrity when they started treating their games as a product and began implementing story and design changes because "people wouldn't understand the game if we didn't." most indie developers and a few mainstream teams have artistic integrity. the majority of the gaming industry is about delivering a product with minimal effort and maximum compensation. why do you think activision keeps pumping out cod games with essentially the same mechanics? because they like the storylines and think the games have cultural impact? no, because they make a shit ton of money from the formula they developed and they want to keep making money.

and i don't see how changing the ending to a story violates artistic integrity. art can be a collaborative process in many ways. if the end result is a refined game that makes narrative sense, how has artistic integrity been violated? i think a lack of criticism would be an even bigger slap to the face for bioware by their fans. it would mean that their fans don't take them seriously. all this criticism and "whining," as you put it, comes from honest-to-god concern that a great series could end with, not a whimper, but a burp with a little vomit at the end.

and maybe, just maybe, this will teach studios that story is just as important in a game as combat mechanics and cool multiplayer and dlc. probably not, but we can hope.

studios don't always know what's best for their games. they're only human and they're prone to tunnel vision just as much as anyone else.

I don't think there's much artistic integrity at BioWare anymore. We've seen leading guys like Brent Knowles (game design) and Drew Karpyshyn (writing) leave over the past years and the failures have been stacking up ever since. When a studio can't keep its talent, they're doomed to fail. I think they've lost all sense of direction under EA's reign.

I may be biased though, I don't like Mass Effect at all. I think it's an average third person cover shooter with way too shallow RPG elements. I liked some of the lore and dialog, but as a game I always thought it was boring and had too much filler. Their last good game was DA:O and their last great game was KOTOR. IMO

That may be true. But like I said, I think gamers should have input throughout the developmental process while still leaving creative control over plot/storylines to the people who have to put their names in the credits. If I worked for bioware (in the past I think they've done a great job, and definitely brought a fresh new distinct style of gaming to the community) I'd feel upset that people were unhappy with the end of a game which up to this point has been stellar franchise. Some have said that regardless of any ending people would still be unhappy. I don't know how it ends but from what I gather it leaves it open to the gamers imagination. Which I believe would be the smartest way to do it. Sometimes it's what you don't see that's more powerful. That's just my opinion though....

I beat the game last night. I thought it was fantastic. The final battle was nothing short of epic. I'm very happy with the ending I chose.

Awesome game.

Avoiding this thread because I've only just bought these games. Getting into ME1; was a little bit addicted last night, but WTF the autosave is atrocious! On at least three occasions I've played through intense and thrilling battles (so intense you forget about saving) and made a crucial decision (kill the Rachni or not) and then died and had to do it all again. Absolutely unforgivable.

From what I've heard the autosave was fixed in 2 and 3 and the mechanics get better overall. I'm loving the game, sometimes feel a bit overwhelmed by all the stuff I should try to complete before I move on to ME2, but some shit needs to get fixed and I want to move onto the games that don't pull me out of the experience.

This Game Informer Show podcast episode says pretty much all I ever wanted to say about the ending (no spoilers). It's really worth a listen.

GI Show 104: Mass Effect Controversy, Review Round-Up

Glad they decided not to make this. What where they thinking. Like the world isn't over flooded with fps's already.

good video in the style of plinkett

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MlatxLP-xs

Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut free DLC to expand ending this summer

aww, too bad it's free. i'd love to see the internets react to pay-for-actually good ending-dlc.

So all the loud-mouthed babies won.... great.

So I'm onto Mass Effect 2. Currently recruiting my last two squad-members and gaining their loyalty. I've done as much as possible in terms of sidemissions this time because thankfully they fixed everything that incensed me about ME1. There are no errors as far as I'm concerned and the storyline, although not as immediately exciting, is still rich and varied.

It's fucking perfect. ME2 is staggeringly huge. I can't fathom how they've fit so much content onto two discs, really. But it ticks all the boxes of what I would want to be the perfect sci-fi game.

Also, I've currently had sex with Ashley, Jack and maybe that personal assistant bird (it's hard to tell because she just goes up to your quarters), but now I'm working my magic on Tali. I really want to get into Tali, but I don't want to ruin my chances with that annoying Australian bird (although I think she alluded to 'relations' in the next game) or miss out on getting with an Asari.

Essentially, it's a close as I'll ever get to being James T. Kirk.

Wait which is Australian?

  On 4/5/2012 at 5:12 PM, Adam Beker said:

Wait which is Australian?

Uh, the "perfect" cyborg girl. Cerberus woman.

Her character is overly sexualised in every way, which annoys me, but my Shepard will still fuck it.

Edit: Miranda.