I'm still in shock. It may take me a few days to complete another playthrough.
I was almost ready to accept an ending like this if you made a bad choice, in fact, I expected it.
I was ready to accept a good, bad, and 'middle of the road' option depending on your alignment, conversation choices, class, and LI all contributing to the ending you get, with a chance of a happily ever after and Shepard basically retiring. "Screw this, save your own galaxy next time." Or something.
But nothing of the sort. All three of the ending choices I saw are essentially the same- the one ray of hope is when stargazer claims there is 'one more story' which I PRAY means there is more to it- another DLC that fixes the horrid taste in my mouth that this ending just gave me.
As I stated in another thread- this felt to me like getting the opportunity to woo your dream girl (or guy, however you roll, not the point), have the most amazing physical and emotional experience of your LIFE with them, only for them to get up the moment it's all over, slap you, and walk off with their spouse- who just so happens to be someone you really hate. To top it off, your 'choice' to use protection and buy them the expensive dinner? Doesn't matter. Still turns out the same.
Do not get me wrong. I am not nerd raging against the game- over the course of this trilogy, it has been one of the BEST rides in my gaming career. I will not rant, curse, or demand anything, as in the end, I am but an end user, and not a developer.
What I also am, however, is a customer. A loyal fan, and an old timer who does not think it is too much to ask to have the 'warm fuzzy' ending that 40+ hours of game time per game in the trilogy should bring... That being said, I would, as many of the others here also have, *request* That some other DLC come down the pipe, and even if there cannot be a truly 'happy' ending, alter the three choices enough to where they do not seem like sad carbon copies of one another and all the choices you have made up to this point are largely irrelevant.
I would also be in favor of any other game in the ME universe, or new graphic novels (comix!) with the possible exception of MMO gaming. Who am I kidding, I would probably give that a try too.
Also- I would have liked to have gotten the chance to off TIM myself, not have him go all Saren on me and off himself when he finally 'sees the light' AKA Saren... right after running for the Conduit. I could have sworn I was on Ilos and not in London for that 3 or so minutes it took to make that run.
At any rate, as I cool off and hope that Buzz Aldrin Foreshadowing that the story may not yet be over is true, I will step off the soapbox and attempt to digest the extreme disappointment that I cannot help my Tali build her house on Rannoch, Can't go get drunk with Garrus, and Can't watch Joker and EDI... get very unnatural, and that Mordin, Legion, and Anderson aren't around to shake my hand and congratulate me on a job well done.