@ survivor_686

Yeah, it's a shame really. She's open and direct, she's not perfect but who is? Her distrust, her doubts and (religious) believes, they make her all very human. It's one of the reasons I was instantly attracted to her. She not the perfect companion that will agree with whatever Shepard says or does, but the series have shown she is open to new ideas and willing to adept and learn. Yet at the same time, despite all that has happened, she still has her doubts about Shepard and the world, that makes her very human as well.

Cerberus is one of the most awful organisations in the galaxy, so no hard feelings about the Horizon encounter in ME2. That's just bad story telling. They should have given Shepard more options to explain and redeem himself. I guess they didn't want any Ashley or Kaidan in ME2.

She's a hard nut to crack, but worth it.

One of the most interesting and real characters in the series, that got shafted in ME2, and to some extent in ME3.

I do agree on Tali, she matured a lot in ME2. Maybe I should try to romance her, but I'm a bit done with the series now. And I know that if I ever replay it again, Ash is too tempting.

I know nothing about her romance.  I don't romance aliens

Haha, I actually never romanced any of the aliens either. Mostly because of Ashley, but I found Liara very forced upon the player by Bioware (hey, have an alien, because this is a sci-fi game), she's to clingy for my taste, and Tali is just a little sister. 

Lately I've been on Twitch a lot, it's a website where people stream their games. There's a Mass Effect section, and it just amazes me how much hate there is for Ash. It's very rare to find someone that uses her.

Oh well. I almost feel like streaming a playthrough with her, but I've done enough playthroughs. What mostly still bewilders me is how people can't see how she's one of the most interesting characters in the trilogy.

Well, this derailed quite quickly, still curious though, do people still play MP? I'm trying to join a game right now, but can't get any.

Nice, glad I could help. That video showed a great night club btw. If they can get that in a game, awesome. Would take a lot of proceessing power though.

This one perhaps ' Mass Effect 3 Club Movie'

I didn't bother reading the OP, and English not being your native language is no excuse for not hitting the spacebar once in a while.

Glad you liked it. The ending is horrible though.

Amazing how this thread is still going after all those years, a testament to the greatness of the games. By the way, I don't think there's that many differences in looks between Ash from ME1 and ME3. Mostly lighting, and she wears more make up. And she didn't get a boob job, that's her uniform.

Well,ok,I've also written why I think it's amazing.If you wanna discuss it's fine,if you don't it's fine as well.Thanks for sharing,anyway.

 

And I'm liking it exactly because of the big picture!I like how it goes in a completely unexpected(in a way) direction and offers a twist that changes everything in a non-domestic level.Maybe you expected more domestic(grounded) type of ending?

Not to start another discussion, but mostly to give you an idea of my perception on the endings, here's a link to what I said in another topic on the endings:

http://forum.bioware...ith-me3/page-30

You'll have to scroll down a bit for my post.

Rereading that now I didn't mention the horrible deus ex machina part in that post, did mention that in another post I think.

According to you.According to me the endings are amazing!

Well, on some level they may be, but if you look at the big picture, the endings are atrocious. If people like the endings, like you do, more power to them. I think they're horrible, and I've elaborated on why I think they are several times, not going there anymore.

Even if you're not a native speaker, I'm not either by the way, use paragraphs. I didn't read it all, it was too much of a wall of text.

Anyway, great you enjoyed the endings. They are a big mess though, on many levels.

Nice to see this thread still going. I haven't played the games in over a year, but I stumbled upon this video again, which I have linked here before. It's just so awesome, and it reminds me of why I love the games, and Ash. Still goosebumps.

Ash will always be my favorite squadmate in the trilogy, she's beautiful inside and out. Yes, she has her quirks and her strong believes, her shortcomings, and her passion, but all those traits made her real. She isn't always politically correct in her opinions or actions, but they are understandable considering her background and the context. Perhaps that's something people don't want to come to terms with, or is too confronting. She's just a person like you and me, except she's in a very turbulent and hostile universe trying to get by.

It's amazing how people can get focussed on a couple of conversations/actions and basing their total opinion on those. It's human nature I guess, where one negative aspect outshines a dozen positive ones. 

In other games where I meet people that have played Mass Effect and I mention Ashley, the first reaction is always 'that racist b*tch'.

Oh well, it is what it is, and enough has been said on this subject.

Well, I remember browsing these forums ages ago, before registering, and I noticed a topic back then on the subject of Shepard returning. There were a lot of replies back then in favor of a return. But perhaps those people moved on or changed their minds. Because later on I made a similar topic and most replies were against the idea. I have no idea how the majority feels about a return of Shepard, but at the moment I still would love to see it happen. 

The story of Shepard and the crew (and the relationship with Ash) made me fall in love with the franchise. And I feel there is more story left to tell.

This subject may be beating the dead horse so to speak but one can dream. Then again, Andromeda may be so good that I'll forget all about it.

I think I made a similar post on this subject not too long ago, hmm, am I obsessing? I'll give it a rest.

It's just weird never seeing Ash again, or any of the old crew for that matter. I'm gonna cling onto the idea of them pulling a Halo/Master Chief on the franchise for now.

I don't mind the current level of nudity in Mass Effect, nor would I mind it if they'd increase it, as long as it serves a purpose and is done in good taste. 

That purpose could be showing the importance of the relationship and how it's experienced. Sex and nudity are part of any healthy romantic relationship and if those are used as a way to increase player immersion and attachment to the character and story, I'm all for it.

What I mostly miss though in the games right now is interaction on any level after a certain point in the crew member story/relationship. When you've exhausted all interacton it basically turns into a static world where all the interaction you get it is, 'yes, Shepard' when clicking on a crew member. At least for the love interests it would be nice to have more interaction, sexual or not, and make it repeatable to some extent. For example, use almost the same cutscene with slight alterations (in dialogue perhaps) depending on the situation.

Yes, I think they will revisit Shepard at some point in time. I posted about that before. Probably after Andromeda or perhaps a game after that.

To me Shepard is to Mass Effect what Master Chief is to Halo. Having said that, I'll see what Andromeda brings, it might be so awesome I'll totally forget about Shepard and the crew.

Ashley isn't that deep and it doesn't take any more intelligence to understand or like her than it does any other character.

 

The above is also true of every other squadmate. 

 

The person who came up with that list just has a difference opinion. He is wrong though about Ashley being a racist.

I disagree. The mere fact that there is so much unfounded hate for Ashley proves a lot of people don't understand her character. They see one remark 'I sometimes can't tell the aliens from the animals' , they see her attacking Wrex on Virmire, her religious believes, her distrust towards aliens, or her questioning of Shepard on several occassions.

What they don't see is her backstory, how she became the woman you meet for the first time on Virmire, the context in which certain comments were made, the fact that she goes through a transition, one Shepard can greatly influence. To me, what makes Ashley interesting is that she's arguably the most real person of all the squadmembers. She has her flaws and made her mistakes but she has also shown that she has learned from them and can grow as a person. She's a very caring person but it takes her time to let her guard down, and that is something you also see her go through over the course of the games.

“Gaming. . .has changed.

It's no longer about fun, unique gameplay, or quality plots. Gaming--and it's consumption of money--has become a well-oiled business.

Gaming has changed.

Self-Entitled Gamers play DRM-filled games, while developers use graphics as a selling point for 'good' games. Sales inside their software distribution programs enhance and regulate their spending.

Graphical complaints, character complaints, plot complaints, gameplay complaints…everything is complained about and kept under control.

Gaming…has changed.

The age of fun has become the age of entitlement, all in the name of appeasing and averting criticism from rabid fans, and he who complains to the system, controls the future.

Gaming…has changed.

When the medium suffers under total complaints, gamers become volatile.”

You're replying to someone that started his/her post with 'why are so many...'. He/she has no basis for that claim, it's pure speculation, and I disagree with your points. Gaming hasn't changed that much for people that believe in a franchise. People that feel entitled or dissatisfied will always be more vocal than people that are satisfied. This is a solid franchise, the mere fact that multiplayer is still going strong, while not being officially supported anymore for years should tell you enough. There are many other good franchises (GTA series, Fallout, Halo, list is endless)

I'm assuming they mostly go by supply and demand here, so to speak, meaning that the games are mostly targeted at a straight male audience (as with most games).

Not saying that's a good or bad thing (although I think it's a bad thing), just assuming that's the reasoning behind the choices they made.

I also assume that whenever a game is being made they'll think about their biggest target audience first and weigh in the costs of including other target audiences (time vs reward).

I do support more diversity though in the romances, hopefully they'll get around to doing it in the next game. Whether they will remains to be seen, if my assumptions have any basis in reality, I don't think they will though.

What I found interesting was that quite a lot of hetero guys (small sample size still, I know) played a Femshep because they liked the voice actress more or wanted to try something different.

Long story short, the demand (or cost vs reward) might not be big enough for Bioware to expand more on diversifying relationship options.

Romances add a great deal of immersion. It's one of the reasons I enjoyed the series. It made Shepard more human, someone that not only cares for his or her squad but could care deeply for a certain person in particular. Some of the best scenes are scenes with your romance.

The scene in Shep's cabin before priority Earth for instance, is awesome and endearing. So romance is here to stay as far as I'm concerned.

Not really following the latest developments, but what are you mostly disappointed by?

I agree with the general sentiment of the OP's message, but I think ME3's ending was atrocious. Despite not liking the ending, I did have a great time playing the trilogy, it's my favorite game series ever.

So thank you for that Bioware, nothing is perfect but you came very close.

Really nice to see they're still working on the Mehem mod, for me it revived the series, it allowed me to enjoy ME3 and its ending again.

The fact they're still working on it is just an awesome sign of how the games continue to live on, and rightfully so.

I've always wanted Shepard in ME4, as I felt the story wasn't done, and while he/she probably won't be in it (at most there will be a reference), I'm sure there will be more in ME5. ME 5 'the Return of Shepard', I can see it happening. And Ash should be there, and this time, they better give her a proper story (in contrast to ME2).

How people would consider Kaidan more realistic than Ashley is beyond me. Ashley is probably the most realistic companion in the game. She doubts Shepard on more than one occasion and shows concerns about the world around her that are valid given the circumstances. She's politically engaged, strong in her believes but also shown to be open to other views and adapting to those as she goes. Her history, and that of her father, play a big role in her development, and it's very well done. From distrusting every alien she encounters basically to embracing some of them as her ally or friend.

In ME3 they could have done better with her, although the part where she comforts her sister and the hospital scenes were nice. Romance wise they screwed up in ME2, but overall, she's the most interesting romance in the series.

The biggest thing that I would've changed would have been to remove Shepard's ability to completely alter the fabric of the setting. I am not talking about the endings; although those are systemic of the main problem, which is epic bloat.

 

 

Shepard's actions over the course of the trilogy showed a steady increase of trying to top previous accolades.

 

 

• ME 1 Shepard is able to determine the survival (or not) of the Rachni, as well as the ruling body of galactic government; characters that have had limited involvement with him/her over the course of the campaign. The game culminates in Shepard dealing with the avatar of a Reaper with his/her squad.

 

• ME 2 Shepard is able to determine the survival (or not) of his/her team of specialists; characters that have been with Shepard throughout the game and have (in some cases) developed emotional attachments to the player. The game culminates in Shepard dealing with a (proto)Reaper on foot with his/her squad.

 

• ME 3 Shepard is able to the determine the survival (or not) of not just his/her squad mates, but of entire species. Shepard repeatedly engages in on foot activities against Reapers alone. The game culminates in Shepard dealing with the collective consciousness of the Reapers alone, and is able to completely rewrite the face of the galaxy and all species present within depending on his/her ending choice.

 

 

 

This epic bloat is what really hurt the franchise (IMO). Shepard started out as a capable soldier, but ended up as a bonafide Space Jesus. It might seem counter intuitive to limit the epic-ness of the protagonist, but if Shepard had remained more grounded as a hero, then we might have seen a more consistent narrative. At the very least it would have made import states a heck of a lot easier to deal with, especially if it didn't have to account for whether this companion was dead, or if this species was alive.

Shepard being able to do more as the series progressed really just makes sense. He/she starts as a spectre and beats a Reaper in 1, in 2 it's mostly a matter of planning and still beating a being of around the same power as a Reaper. And in 3 I don't recall Shepard facing a reaper alone. There was always back up in some sort of way.

The series has been about Shepard rising to the occasion, against all odds, but in a believable way, I don't really get how you'd call it ability/story bloat, whatever you wanna call it.

On topic: give the new squad mates from ME2 more story weight in ME3 and mostly give Ashley more than silly dialogue on the ship after the hospital scenes.