23455 réponses à ce sujet

[Morrigan5182]

 Till now I've never posted anything on this side. But this time I'd like to say something:

Don't get me wrong: I love this game (as well as ME1 and ME2) and the ending... well... we all could imagine it would end like this. I'm not really angry about the ending and don't want to link me in to all this "We-hate-Bioware"-Speech. That would be not fair. I think they had their own motive for this ending. Unforgettable etc.

I don't know, if Bioware will rewrite the ending. Oder purchase a DLC to continue the story. (Shepard, if he/she is alive get's rescued by his squad; if only as a DLC etc.)

But I know one thing for sure: I ended the game last night at 01.00 o'clock. Sat there, watched the credits and couldn't believe it. Not that the ending is so bad, it is indeed unforgettable. But it felt like a hollow victory, even if it was for the greater good. The end of my day was lying awake in bed and thinking about it. Thinking about what went wrong, what other choices could be made, what happend to my love. The end left me confusing lie awake the whole night.

I've always loved Bioware's games. Got most of them. The storytelling is incredible, but this time ... I'm not sure, what to think.

Sure, I (and many others too) never forget that ending, but ... there is still hope. Hope to do something, the community can be living better with.

Please Bioware-Team: Give us hope!

Hope that there will be a happily-ever-after at all...

Hope dies last. 

[Scott Sion]

Cyrax0514 wrote...

I want to say that the game was 99% spot on! I loved just about everything about it. However, like pretty much everyone on the forum, I was not a fan of the ending(s). I tried each of the 3 "perfect" endings and felt robbed of choice. No matter which "solution" you choose, it is the same outcome. The Reapers are no longer a threat and the Normandy is escaping the Sol system for some unexplained reason rather than being in the fight.

You know if this is the ending that Bioware envisioned, then so be it. I can't say I'm totally fine with it but I respect it. That being said, the parts of the ending that I really find hard to swallow are these:

1. When you get hit by the blast making the run to the portal, I tried to look for my team mates. Never saw them, don't know what happened to them (never saw them in any cutscenes afterwards). That could be intentional. In war, people die and you never know their ultimate fate.

2. Why did Joker take the Normandy through the Mass Relay before it exploded? Joker isn't a coward and I don't see him as running away from the fight to save Earth. It seems like Bioware couldn't explain why he was "running", but they needed to seed humanity on a different planet. And to let you know that most of your crew was safe somewhere out there. This part was like they put the shark in the fridge and then nuked it!

3. Considering that this is the end of Shepard's story, it would've been nice to give each character their due. Show each character one last moment, whether they survived the war or died. We've spent so much time getting to know these characters and care about them, not knowing their fate afterwards seems cruel.

As far as my favorite parts of ME3:

1. Shepard and Garrus shooting bottles on the Citadel.
2. Mordin's ending was great!
3. Thane's ending.
4. Taking care of Kei Leng.
5. Tali and Garrus.
6. Shepard and Anderson sitting on the Citadel.
7. Shepard saying his last good-byes to his crew (would've liked to talk to Kirrahe too).

This. I also thought the scene with Liara in the Normandy was good. The scene with Anderson would have been better if they kept the original audio.

Original audio with Anderson and Shep

[Archonsg]

 (Version 1.01b Paragon Shepard Dies)
Been thinking about the ending a bit more and about that first one I came up with. And thought it was pretty weak. So here’s another attempt, though this time Shepard dies. 


*note : Most people Should get this ending. I do have a “Paragon Shepard Lives” ending scenario floating up in my noggin but that will be done another day, maybe.


Also my version of events scraps everything right after the combined Galactic fleet enters Earth space, assumes the player has completed all side quests and has at least 3300 EMS. Why only 3300. I feel that “forcing” players to play Multi-player just to get the “best” possible ending is rubbish. 

Higher EMS just skews a slightly different cut scene of your ground troops.
Higher EMS = more varied troops based on which races you have recruited to the cause.  
The trigger on what causes Shepard to  live or die however I’ll post later.

This ending also assumes you have saved every companion in ME2 (just mentally edit them out if you got yours killed) and Assumes that certain paths are followed in ME3. Again you can mentally edit those characters out of the cut scenes if yours are absent or dead. Liara assumed to be LI and Shepard to be male. (just switch him for her if your Shepard is female) Also this is an entire “re-write” of events in London. So no, I don’t follow the Shepard was indoctrinated” school of thought. Sorry shep-zombie fans. And no Star Child crap either. Sorry Bioware. 

Scenario: 
Cut Scene

Combined Galactic ground forces consisting of all the forces and assets Shepard has gathered. Krogan on Keiosaur mounts charging, Geth and Quarian engineers setting up hack proof auto turrets, mercs fighting dirty in hand to hand, pistol shot to the face combat, Turian and Human infantry and armor supported by Asari commandoes and Grissom Academy (Jack!) Biotics form a linked shield system and together they all carve a path and finally take down the Guardian at the Conduit.

Shepard and team go in, and it’s a race find the master control and open the Citadel Arms so that that Crucible can dock. 

Shepard and team fights way to Citadel central command room which EDI helps to pin point. Within the Citadel itself Shepard faces a combined force of indoctrinated Cerberus forces and reaper forces. 

Midpoint : Cut Scene. 
Harbinger’s holo appears and in the course of talking to it. Player learns that the Citadel is not only a huge mass relay, it is also the Reaper’s command and control centre from which the reapers direct their systematic “cycles” and that means it’s also one big galactic broadcasting device and that some ancient race finally figured this out and came up with the Crucible which is essentially one big “signal booster” . This old race figured out that you can send a kill switch from the Citadel but such a signal would only effects its local space for the kill switch to work, the signal needs to be sent simultaneously across the galaxy using the Mass Relays as piggy back signal towers. 

Shepard also learns that the Reapers were once AI meant to protect a race, created at a time when there was another war of organics and Synthetics. The AI’s primary directive was to Protect and dictate the race’s war efforts. In the course of time the AI decided that to win the war against Synthetics, organics had to become Synthetics themselves and thus the Reapers and Cycles came about.

Harbinger shows nothing but disdain for Shepard, for all organics. It demands that Shepard submit as it is the only way to salvation that it is the only logical outcome. 

Shepard tells it to go to hell. 

Harbinger then tells Shepard that Organic life in this Cycle had become too much of a problem, that order was disrupted when Sovereign was destroyed and later the planned entry point in Batarian space blocked. That it has decided that the best solution for the current situation is for the galaxy to reboot itself and life and the Cycle can start anew. 

Shepard is confused by what it meant till Admiral Hackett communicates that reports are coming in that EVERY Mass Relay is powering up, gathering Charge at a rate that would make each relay go critical and cause Ultra Super Novas in every system that holds a Mass Relay.  Everyone is shocked and horrified by the implications. Harbinger gloats that order will be restored and the Cycle can start anew again. 

Shepard Speech.Chooses final Squad members and assigns the rest to rear guard to cover his back and come up behind when they can.

Player fights to last checkpoint. 
Meets Illusive man who holds the final key to unlocking the Citadel. Illusive man tries takes control of Shepard’s implants. Makes Shepard shoots both squad members and they are out of combat (not dead …yet)

If Love interest is in squad however, Shepard finds strength to resist after he shoots the first squad member and the illusive man tries to make Shepard shoot his LI. (Love has to count for something ya?) 

Boss Fight. One on One 
Shepard vs Illusive man or two vs one if Shepard is with LI

Shepard wins, Illusive Man slumps to the ground. Seemingly lifeless.

Cut Scene.
Harbinger arrives too late at the Conduit but starts blasting at ground troops. (poor EMS = more die, not just nameless troops but Jack, Grunt, Wrex and any other non-squad companions from previous games at the scene, we will however assume high EMS for this cutscene) More Reaper Destroyers land with Harbinger and starts blasting as well. 

Jack plays mother hen and orders Asari commandoes around to help bolster the linked shields so that ground forces can hold ground. She refuses to leave but realise her shields cannot withstand a direct hit from a Reaper canon. Reluctantly leaves when Miranda tells her, “Shepard will find a way, he always does.”

Meanwhile on the Citadel, Shepard with EDI’s help shuts down the Relay Nova sequence and finds the kill switch. Harbinger’s Avatar appears one last time, but this time it shows fear. It knows death is imminent and it doesn’t want to die. 

Harbinger admits that perhaps its assessment is wrong and gives Shepard a choice, instead of killing every reaper, Shackle them. Each Reaper would then be Humanity’s tool and weapon against anything or anyone, organic or synthetic. Through them, Humanity would achieve power unimaginable and through humanity’s control of the reapers, order be imposed on all organic life. (Renegade Choice of course)  

Shepard refuses. Takes the Paragon path and triggers the kill switch. 
THE CITADEL DOES NOT BLOW UP, BREAK APART OR GETS DESTROYED. 
The signal goes off and Every Reaper in Earth Space flatlines, including Harbinger.

Now that the Earth space is safe and cleared of Reapers, the Crucible goes through its docking sequence shedding its protective armor and docks.

(I ALWAYS hated that part in the original Ending. WHAT Military Genius decides to try and dock a “soft” target in the middle of a fire fight while your “air space” isn’t clear of bogies and hostiles? You still have REAPERS around the Citadel firing Reaper beams left and right and you want to advertise “hey guys  over here …SHOOT ME!!!”)

(Final moments)
Garrus : “So Shepard, do the honours?”

Shepard: “I thought you’d do it, I mean, isn’t that why you calibrate stuff so much?”

Garrus : “The guns. Are. On. The. Normandy Shepard.” ”But now that you mentioned it, why not? I could never resist pushing big red buttons. Uhhh There is a big red button right?” 

EDI. : “No Garrus. Just your standard VI overlay”  

Garrus : “Pity. Well Palaven isn’t free of Reapers yet while we stand here talking.” *reaches up and touches controls*

*Signal beam goes out to the Charon Relay, Relay pulses then shoots out beam to other Relays.”
RELAYS ARE NOT DESTROYED. 

Pretty colour signal rings Galactic map display depicting each relay receiving and sending the kill switch out.
Reapers across the Galaxy flatlines. Cheers from groundtroops in Palaven, Asari on Thessia, everywhere, troops emerge bloodied but not beaten. 

*Everyone in room cheers*
Ashley : “We did it! We finally did it! Its all because of you Shepard, I am sorry I ….”

*Rapid auto gun fire. Shepard’s Shields flare then in slow motion, HEAD SHOT*

Liara : “Goddess! Noooooooo…”

*everyone turns to see a shakily Illusive man standing with a modified machine pistol in hand .. Everyone unloads their weapons into Illusive man. All except Liara who is cradling Shepard and crying. 

*Fade to black.*
*scene opens 5 years later. We see a small Asari child playing in the grass on Thessia laughing and giggling with another Asari child. She turns when she hears someone approaches and it is Liara and Matriarch Aethyta. One of the girls run up to Liara.*

Child : “Mother, Aria here says that everyone is nice to me only because my father is famous. Why do you never talk of him?

Liara : “Oh Hannah, *breathes in deeply* your father was the most important man in the galaxy. He is why we still have Thessia, our home.”

Hannah : “Aria says he’s human. Aria’s mother says humans are at best centuary flings. I don’t understand….*looks up and sees Liara in tears* I am sorry mommy. I didn’t mean to make you cry. *stays silent for a few seconds* What was he like, my father?”

Liara : “He was …he was….*sobs*

Aethyta : “ He was  a man. Had a quad on him for sure but he had heart, he….."

*scene cuts to Garrus at SPECTRE Academy*

Garrus : “ … was not just a SPECTRE, he was THE SPECTRE. I was there when he took down Saren, when at the time we Turians still thought all humans were only good for was canon fodder."

Spectre trainee: “But sir, surely he was just a human.”

Garrus : "Son, on Rannoch he played Tag with a Reaper, on foot and won." *touches side of his face* You see this, got this from a Gunship’s rocket in Omega. Shepard took it down, with small arms and saved my life. No, I learned from the best and that was Shepard.  I learned that no matter how good you are, nothing is better than a true friend guarding your back and Shepard was …”

*scene cuts to Wrex and Grunt*
Wrex : “….an Honorary Krogan because I made him so! Arrhhahahh!”

Grunt : “Bah, I knew that before you. You were there, he fought beside me on my Rites of Passage and at the time he said he was “my krant” *does finger air quotes* …huh. When that Thresher Maw popped up and he didn’t flinch, just stared down that big ass rifle of his and shot, I knew then, that he’s no one’s Krant. That I was lucky to be in his.”

Krogan : “Clan Utnev says The Shepard is human and they spit on humans.”

Wrex and Grunt : “SHEPARD IS URDNOT! Shepard is why our women are whole again! We will stomp on Utnev bones and make them say SHEPARD IS …”

*scene cuts to Tali. ALL Qurians have their helmets off*

Tali : “ ….the most compassionate man I know.” 

Quarian girl : "What is it like travelling with the humans? With Shepard?

Tali: “Trying. Often you just want to shoot them. *she grins* sometimes I don’t get them but when I see Shepard I see the best humanity has to offer. Let me tell you of a story about a Quarian named Lia’Vael nar Ulnay a young quarian girl on her pilgrimage. She went to the citadel but before long, her money was stolen, she was beaten and people spat on her. All because she was Quarian. We met her while a Csec officer and a Volus had her held for questioning and NO ONE wanted to help. Shepard did. He cared. He didn’t see us as Quarians or aliens but as people. As someone of worth and Lia was someone worth helping. I asked him afterwards, why did he helped. He just said “Its what I do.”

Quarian girl : “Was he dreamy? *giggles*

Tali : “Uhhh what? …Shepard was …”

*scene cuts to Aethyta*

Aethyta : “…. Many things to many people. But most of all he was hope. He never stopped trying. They took away his ship, they took away his command they took everything that he was but they could not take away his spirit. Your mother loves him very much because of that spirit. Hell, if she had not  already claimed him, I would have been tempted to do so myself! Bet I can teach him a thing or two…” 

Liara : “Aethyta!”

*Hannah climbs into Liara’s lap*

Hannah : “He sounds wonderful. I wish he was here.”

Liara : *wraps arms around Hannah and hugs her tightly* “We all do, little dove, we all do.”

*FADE TO BLACK*

END CREDIT ROLL.

Modifié par Archonsg, 16 mars 2012 - 03:22 .

[Iciana]

Mass Effect 3 was overall great! There were too many favorite moments to discuss them all. I REALLY loved Kaidan's romance scene simply because my Shepard and Kaidan said "I love you" to each other. It was amazingly adorable to me. I also loved the talk with Kaidan before the end mission as well. The endings, however, puzzled me.

[Slashice]

Fame-KIllz wrote...

bwFex wrote...

I really have been trying to let myself get over this nightmare, but since you guys promise you're listening here, I'll try to just say it all, get it all out.

I have invested more of myself into this series than almost any other video game franchise in my life. I loved this game. I believed in it. For five years, it delivered. I must have played ME1 and ME2 a dozen times each.

I remember the end of Mass Effect 2. Never before, in any video game I had ever played, did I feel like my actions really mattered. Knowing that the decisions I made and the hard work I put into ME2 had a very real, clear, obvious impact on who lived and who died was one of the most astounding feelings in the world to me. I remember when that laser hit the Normandy and Joker made a comment about how he was happy we upgraded the shields. That was amazing. Cause and effect. Work and reward.

The first time I went through, I lost Mordin, and it was gut-wrenching: watching him die because I made a bad decision was damning, heartbreaking. But it wasn't hopeless, because I knew I could go back, do better, and save him. I knew that I was in control, that my actions mattered. So that's exactly what I did. I reviewed my decisions, found my mistakes, and did everything right. I put together a plan, I worked hard to follow that plan, and I got the reward I had worked so hard for. And then, it was all for nothing.

When I started playing Mass Effect 3, I was blown away. It was perfect. Everything was perfect. It was incredible to see all of my decisions playing out in front of me, building up to new and outrageous outcomes. I was so sure that this was it, this was going to be the masterpiece that crowned an already near-perfect trilogy. With every war asset I gathered, and with every multiplayer game I won, I knew that my work would pay off, that I would be truly satisfied with the outcome of my hard work and smart decisions. Every time I acquired a new WA bonus, I couldn't wait to see how it would play out in the final battle. And then, it was all for nothing.

I wasn't expecting a perfect, happy ending with rainbows and butterflies. In fact, I think I may have been insulted if everyone made it through just fine. The Reapers are an enormous threat (although obviously not as invincible as they would like us to believe), and we should be right to anticipate heavy losses. But I never lost hope. I built alliances, I made the impossible happen to rally the galaxy together. I cured the genophage. I saved the Turians. I united the geth and the quarians. And then, it was all for nothing.

When Mordin died, it was heartwrenching, but I knew it was the right thing. His sacrifice was... perfect. It made sense. It was congruent with the dramatic themes that had been present since I very first met Wrex in ME1. It was not a cheap trick, a deus ex machina, an easy out. It was beautiful, meaningful, significant, relevant, and satisfying. It was an amazing way for an amazing character to sacrifice themself for an amazing thing. And then it was all for nothing.

When Thane died, it was tearjerking. I knew from the moment he explained his illness that one day, I'd have to deal with his death. I knew he was never going to survive the trilogy, and I knew it wouldn't be fun to watch him go. But when his son started reading the prayer, I lost it. His death was beautiful. It was significant. It was relevant. It was satisfying. It was meaningful. He died to protect Shepard, to protect the entire Citadel. He took a life he thought was unredeemable and used it to make the world a brighter place. And then it was all for nothing.

When Wrex and Eve thanked me for saving their species, I felt that I had truly accomplished something great. When Tali set foot on her homeworld, I felt that I had truly accomplished something great. When Javik gave his inspiring speech, I felt that I had inspired something truly great. When I activated the Citadel's arms, sat down to reminisce with Anderson one final time, I felt that I had truly accomplished something amazing. I felt that my sacrifice was meaningful. Significant. Relevant. And while still a completely unexplained deus ex machina, at least it was a little bit satisfying.

And then, just like everything else in this trilogy, it was all for nothing.

If we pretend like the indoctrination theory is false, and we're really supposed to take the ending at face value, this entire game is a lost cause. The krogans will never repopulate. The quarians will never rebuild their home world. The geth will never know what it means to be alive and independent. The salarians will never see how people can change for the better.

Instead, the quarians and turians will endure a quick, torturous extinction as they slowly starve to death, trapped in a system with no support for them. Everyone else will squabble over the scraps of Earth that haven't been completely obliterated, until the krogans drive them all to extinction and then die off without any women present. And this is all assuming that the relays didn't cause supernova-scaled extinction events simply by being destroyed, like we saw in Arrival.

And perhaps the worst part is that we don't even know. We don't know what happened to our squadmates. We didn't get any sort of catharsis, conclusion. We got five years of literary foreplay followed by a kick to the groin and a note telling us that in a couple months, we can pay Bioware $15 for them to do it to us all over again.

It's not just the abysmally depressing/sacrificial nature of the ending, either. As I've already made perfectly clear, I came into this game expecting sacrifice. When Mordin did it, it was beautiful. When Thane did it, it was beautiful. Even Verner. Stupid, misguided, idiotic Verner. Even his ridiculous sacrifice had meaning, relevance, coherence, and offered satisfaction.

No, it's not the sacrifice I have a problem with. It's the utter lack of coherence and respect for the five years of literary gold that have already been established in this franchise. We spent three games preparing to fight these reapers. I spent hours upon hours doing every side quest, picking up every war asset, maxing out my galactic readiness so that when the time came, the army I had built could make a stand, and show these Reapers that we won't go down without a fight.

In ME1, we did the impossible when we killed Sovereign. In ME2, we began to see that the Reapers aren't as immortal as they claim to be: that even they have basic needs, exploitable weaknesses. In ME3, we saw the Reapers die. We saw one get taken down by an overgrown worm. We saw one die with a few coordinated orbital bombardments. We saw several ripped apart by standard space combat. In ME1, it took three alliance fleets to kill the "invincible" Sovereign. By the end of ME3, I had assembled a galactic armada fifty times more powerful than that, and a thousand times more prepared. I never expected the fight to be easy, but I proved that we wouldn't go down without a fight, that there is always hope in unity. That's the theme we've been given for the past five years: there is hope and strength through unity. That if we work together, we can achieve the impossible.

And then we're supposed to believe that the fate of the galaxy comes down to some completely unexplained starchild asking Shepard what his favorite color is? That the army we built was all for nothing? That the squad whose loyalty we fought so hard for was all for nothing? That in the end, none of it mattered at all?

It's a poetic notion, but this isn't the place for poetry. It's one thing to rattle prose nihilistic over the course of a movie or ballad, where the audience is a passive observer, learning a lesson from the suffering and futility of a character, but that's not what Mass Effect is. Mass Effect has always been about making the player the true hero. If you really want us to all feel like we spent the past five years dumping time, energy, and emotional investment into this game just to tell us that nothing really matters, you have signed your own death certificate. Nobody pays hundreds of dollars and hours to be reminded how bleak, empty, and depressing the world can be, to be told that nothing we do matters, to be told that all of our greatest accomplishments, all of our faith, all of our work, all of our unity is for nothing.

No. It simply cannot be this bleak. I refuse to believe Bioware is really doing this. The ending of ME1 was perfect. We saw the struggle, we saw the cost, but we knew that we had worked hard, worked together, and won. The ending of ME2 was perfect. We saw the struggle, we saw the cost, but we knew that we had worked hard, worked together, and won.

Taken at face value, the end of ME3 throws every single thing we've done in the past five years into the wind, and makes the player watch from a distance as the entire galaxy is thrown into a technological dark age and a stellar extinction. Why would we care about a universe that no longer exists? We should we invest any more time or money into a world that will never be what we came to know and love?

Even if the ending is retconned, it doesn't make things better. Just knowing that the starchild was our real foe the entire time is so utterly mindless, contrived, and irrelevant to what we experienced in ME1 and ME2 that it cannot be forgiven. If that really is the truth, then Mass Effect simply isn't what we thought it was. And frankly, if this is what Mass Effect was supposed to be all along, I want no part of it. It's a useless, trite, overplayed cliche, so far beneath the praise I once gave this franchise that it hurts to think about.

No. There is no way to save this franchise without giving us the only explanation that makes sense. You know what it is. It was the plan all along. Too much evidence to not be true. Too many people reaching the same conclusions independently.

The indoctrination theory doesn't just save this franchise: it elevates it to one of the most powerful and compelling storytelling experiences I've ever had in my life. The fact that you managed to do more than indoctrinate Shepard - you managed to indoctrinate the players themselves - is astonishing. If that really was the end game, here, then you have won my gaming soul. But if that's true, then I'm still waiting for the rest of this story, the final chapter of Shepard's heroic journey. I paid to finish the fight, and if the indoctrination theory is true, it's not over yet.

And if it's not, then I just don't even care. I have been betrayed, and it's time for me to let go of the denial, the anger, the bargaining, and start working through the depression and emptiness until I can just move on. You can't keep teasing us like this. This must have seemed like a great plan at the time, but it has cost too much. These people believed in you. I believed in you.

Just make it right. 

Oh my god. G.O.A.T post. This is the absolute truth.

Nuff said! I would add that we want to fight Harbinger and after defeated him (for this our war asset points would count, because we'd need the fleet against him, just like against Sovereign back in ME1) we'll be able to question him (just like the Destroyer on Rannoch) and finally get all the answers! Not some stupid starchild...

[wicked_being]

Are they really listening to us? I mean for me, them saying "yes we are listening" must mean "yeah we'll try to fix the things you don't like." Or are they just saying that to try to make us shut up...cos I don't think I can deal with any more lies..it's just...*cries*

[Mcfly616]

@MDT1
I feel this way as well....there should be multiple endings with all sorts of variables....and little blue babies.....especially if you stayed loyal to her throughout the series....I figure if I hook up with her in every game, she's got a good chance of getting knocked up right? Lol...or how about an ending where Shep dies, but one if the last images you see is Liara with child(pregnant)...showing that Shep may be gone but his legacy lives on. How would would that be for dramatic effect? Epic....I don't necessarily need to see a blue baby....just showing that there's one on the way would be enough to make me shed a tear or two....or just literally ball my eyes out.....and I'm a grown ass man

[Mcfly616]

Idk...Bioware just gets me like that....tugs at the heart strings

[MDT1]

wicked_being wrote...

Are they really listening to us? I mean for me, them saying "yes we are listening" must mean "yeah we'll try to fix the things you don't like." Or are they just saying that to try to make us shut up...cos I don't think I can deal with any more lies..it's just...*cries*

It wouldn't be a Bioware statement, if it couldn't mean both.

And to be clear, I don't say the game needs a happy ever after ending, I just think to have the option is a consequent continuation of what ME made great for me.

Modifié par MDT1, 16 mars 2012 - 03:24 .

[mothbanquet]

No doubt you've heard this countless times already but the ending was a major disappointment. I understand what you were trying to do but it completely missed the mark and I was horrified to learn my efforts to preserve some semblance of galactic stability after the Reaper war were completely moot.

It's a shame, because as you can guess by the majority of the above comments, the game leading up to the last five minutes was utterly spectacular. Favourite moments (or at least, most emotional) for me were:

-- Watching the Reapers land on Earth
-- Having to shoot Mordin to prevent him curing the genophage (and feeling suitably scarred by the act)
-- Being reunited with Tali, and all the mid-mission flirting that followed. Garrus was not impressed...
-- Shooting Udina. Never liked that ******
-- Helping the quarians reconquer their homeworld and having the amazing feeling that I helped achieve that aim with my actions in ME2
-- Tali giving her picture. I'm aware of the fuss surrounding the stock image and all but it was still an incredibly sweet moment
-- Tali drunk. So effing cute
-- Thanking Tali and Garrus before assaulting the Cerberus base, recognising that they've been there since the beginning
-- Garrus' farewell before the final battle. He honestly felt like one of the closest friends I've ever had and the whole scene was superbly written
-- Shooting the Illusive Man dead. It was the most satisfying thing I've ever done
-- The final chat with Anderson

Then the good times end. You folks at BioWare can be proud. You've crafted something that people will take with them in their hearts forever in the Mass Effect trilogy. It's just a pity that its legacy will be associated as much with the final five minutes as the previous hundred hours of gameplay; and not for the right reasons.

[Morrigan5182]

wicked_being wrote...

Are they really listening to us? I mean for me, them saying "yes we are listening" must mean "yeah we'll try to fix the things you don't like." Or are they just saying that to try to make us shut up...cos I don't think I can deal with any more lies..it's just...*cries*

You are right. It would be intresting, what Bioware has in charge or better what do they think about all this. Opening a thread was nice, but an "answer" would also be nice if not better. No offense, but only a "maybe" would be great.

LIke I said before: The thoughts about the end wouldn't let me sleep.

But I've still hope...

[Jamie9]

Honestly, I sort of expected that Paragon Shepard would die, whereas Renegade Shepard would live. This would make sense in terms of the choices those characters would make. I can't even think about this game without getting a bit of a headache from how awful the "choices" thing turned out.

[larusso_O]

f
Can't say it enough... CHOICE, CHOICE, CHOICE. Give us the chance to choose our ending from a significantly variable set of endings with different emotional tones. If you want a sad ending for one Shepard and a happy ending for another you should be able to achieve that. Also, you dont end an epic trilogy on an insulting cliff-hanger like Shepards body taking in a breath. Absolutely unacceptable.

You do if it's not a trilogy, but open-ended. What really kind of bugs me about the discussions here is the fact that everyone seems to think that the end is definitive and Shepard is no more. However bad it might have been presented, I can't help but think that the mechanism is similar to ME2, just more strict. Whereas in ME2 you had to perform really REALLY bad to get Shepard to die, in ME3 you have to perform really good in order for him/her to survive. The storyline of ME2 ended even if your Shepard was dead. You beat the game. Shepard was dead, but you completed it. I think the same thing goes for ME3. You can finish the game with Shepard dying which just means that the future events take place without him/her. But as I said, whereas in ME2 you had to screw up in every aspect for Shepard to die, you now have to perform perfect in every aspect in order to make it, which, in my opinion, is a completely valid mechanism for a story.

For my part I collected every single war asset there was, made sure I got everyhing I could (You still owe me those elcor with heavy weapons mounted to their backs, Dekuuna: Elcor Extraction was almos as dissappointing as the end! Just putting it out there...) but didn't care about the readiness, for which I paid with my death (even though I kind of saved the day). So now I'll go back and do better.

I honestly don't believe that this is the end of the story. There's just too much potential

[mhadzhiev]

I'm inevitably in the losing spectrum of opinions here but I'm going to speak my mind anyway.

I don't care if that was the intended ending or not. Either way, BioWare are probably going to change it just to make nice with all the whiners. This one, however, fits perfectly after the existential themes the game scratches. It shows how naive and immature it is to think that you can face something infinitely greater than any individual or its species, something as grand as the universe itself, and expect things to go according to plan and to be home in time for dinner. It reminds you that the world does not revolve around you, that questions without answers will always exist, and that closure is a romantic notion that does not belong in a universe governed by the laws of nature. For me, this ending delivers better than any cliche that could have been in its place and for that, BioWare, I thank you.

Moirai wrote...

We are not viewing a piece of artwork in a gallery. We're buying it. And once bought, it becomes a product like any other purchasable item.

Wrong. Bying the Mona Lisa doesn't turn it into a subway sandwich to which you get to choose the dressing. Just because you can throw money at content creators doesn't mean you get to steer the creative process. As was said in a recent GameSpot article, you don't own the game, BioWare does.

Modifié par mhadzhiev, 16 mars 2012 - 03:33 .

[Captain Arty]

Just want to point at one of the threads Bioware and EA might find particularly relevant.

http://social.biowar...9633/1#10060060

[letsgetbeardy]

so, feekback? right, here we go. Glad to help.

Legion's Sacrifice

Mordin's last Gilbert and Sullivan

Grunt kicking Ass (wanted him to kick more ass, though)

Kalros The Thresher Maw Eats a Reaper

Putting Down Kai Leng

Tali's "Emergency Induction Port"

Jack's more caring side at Grissom (liked that, really got the feeling she had moved on emotionally)

Garrus (If this all goes sideways and we both end up in heaven, meet me at the bar! plus sniping with your buddy)

EDI (huge leap forward, since she's no longer bound to little platforms on the ship and become a kickass Fem-mech plus makes Joker happiest pilot in the galaxy!)

Joker (want more jokes, but liked the dancing at purgatory)

Vengeance for Thane (kerstabbity)

Badassfully!

Javik's Wisecracking (They used to eat flies! in fact javik altogether was very well done, voice being the central accomplishing knot)

M-96 Mattock rifle. Good to have it back in action.

can see why Heavy weapons have more or less been taken out of the arsenal BUT i so would've loved the geth gatling gun to hand!

Ok, i didn't like the endings. i tried all three and they are the same, with the saddening edition of having your love interest  stranded far away (why?). I sincerely hope DLC is on the way. Bioware, you made a great game, just not the endings. Since the Internet presently is brimming with fan wrath, i'd just like to state that  I'm not a Bioware hater, i'm just  a massively disappointed fan who is hoping there will be DLC content to amend and/or change the ending.  Thank you for your time. Please, Casey, please Bioware, if you read this, please can we have the option of a happy ending? and an explanation of your fellow squadmate and friends and what happens to them, what they go on to do afterwards?  maybe big, old ridiciulously long interactive cutscenes with all the quirks and details that Mass Effect gamers have grown to love over the years? and a fitting end for that venerable Commander who's name all know?

Thankyou for your time

Modifié par letsgetbeardy, 16 mars 2012 - 03:50 .

[fhalliday03]

@masseffect so why the deppresive ending? can u comment on that?

@dior4m Well, we will be making more comments about it soon: http://ow.ly/9HqA4


Okay @masseffect
We already now that a new DLC is coming. Just tell us when, please. Calm down your fans.

@coutoplays Any announcements about the dates of DLC will be made as soon as we have information to share. Stay tuned to our feed.

It's cooooomiiiiiing...! I just wish people had been a wee bit more patient and less shouty.

Modifié par fhalliday03, 16 mars 2012 - 03:28 .

[TAK The Voyager]

For me, up until the we meet the Catalyst, the game was perfect.
The mission where we cure the Genophage with Wrex was awesome, I got Liara and Garrus to come, kinda like getting the whole gang together again. I felt like every time we fought a Reaper, we would win by pure luck alone. Javik is great because he provides a different insight into everything.

That's it for now, I could go on forever. Yeah the ending wasn't satisfactory, but this is still one of my favorite games now, or heck, one of my favorite trilogies to exist.

This series made me give a damn about all these characters, and I was sad to see a lot of them go (favorites of mine like Thane and Mordin, and LEGION! ). Its an accomplishment when a video game can make me and tons of other people become emotionally invested like this. I can tell that Bioware worked their behinds off in every aspect.

Modifié par TAK The Voyager, 16 mars 2012 - 03:28 .

[rfarmer7]

I really did enjoy my time playing ME3. I just felt very cheated by the ending. like it dropped off the end of a cliff. I want to see what happens to the characters AFTER all is said and done.

[wryterra]

fhalliday03 wrote...

@masseffect so why the deppresive ending? can u comment on that?

@dior4m Well, we will be making more comments about it soon: http://ow.ly/9HqA4

It's cooooomiiiiiing...! I just wish people had been a wee bit more patient and less shouty.

It's in their hands. They just need to give a date. That'll calm a lot of people right down. 

All we have at the moment is 'we're listening'. Listening is fundamentally a passive activity. It means they're not *doing* anything. 

[Lindum]

My favorite moments was creating peace between the Geth and the Quarians and shooting Udina. Been wanting to kill Udina since Mass Effect.

I enjoyed Mass Effect Three, until the ending. The ending(s) leave too many unanswered questions and have numerous plot holes. For example, how do your crew end up on the Normandy?

Bioware, I enjoy your games. You are for me, one of the top game developers. But, as much as I enjoyed Mass Effect Three. The ending(s) spoilt my overall experience and left me very disappointed.

You are capable of good endings in games such as Dragon Age Origins, which explained events after you had finished the game. So I am puzzled as to why you incorporated such poor and badly written endings into Mass Effect 3, that do not explain what happens to the galaxy, after one has completed the game.

Thus, you either need to explain your endings or create DLC which alters the lacklustre Mass Effect 3 endings. It would be very much appreciated if you (Bioware) created DLC that changes the end of Mass Effect 3 and answers the many questions people have.

Modifié par Lindum , 16 mars 2012 - 03:30 .

[Renegade]

bwFex wrote...

I really have been trying to let myself get over this nightmare, but since you guys promise you're listening here, I'll try to just say it all, get it all out.

I have invested more of myself into this series than almost any other video game franchise in my life. I loved this game. I believed in it. For five years, it delivered. I must have played ME1 and ME2 a dozen times each.

I remember the end of Mass Effect 2. Never before, in any video game I had ever played, did I feel like my actions really mattered. Knowing that the decisions I made and the hard work I put into ME2 had a very real, clear, obvious impact on who lived and who died was one of the most astounding feelings in the world to me. I remember when that laser hit the Normandy and Joker made a comment about how he was happy we upgraded the shields. That was amazing. Cause and effect. Work and reward.

The first time I went through, I lost Mordin, and it was gut-wrenching: watching him die because I made a bad decision was damning, heartbreaking. But it wasn't hopeless, because I knew I could go back, do better, and save him. I knew that I was in control, that my actions mattered. So that's exactly what I did. I reviewed my decisions, found my mistakes, and did everything right. I put together a plan, I worked hard to follow that plan, and I got the reward I had worked so hard for. And then, it was all for nothing.

When I started playing Mass Effect 3, I was blown away. It was perfect. Everything was perfect. It was incredible to see all of my decisions playing out in front of me, building up to new and outrageous outcomes. I was so sure that this was it, this was going to be the masterpiece that crowned an already near-perfect trilogy. With every war asset I gathered, and with every multiplayer game I won, I knew that my work would pay off, that I would be truly satisfied with the outcome of my hard work and smart decisions. Every time I acquired a new WA bonus, I couldn't wait to see how it would play out in the final battle. And then, it was all for nothing.

I wasn't expecting a perfect, happy ending with rainbows and butterflies. In fact, I think I may have been insulted if everyone made it through just fine. The Reapers are an enormous threat (although obviously not as invincible as they would like us to believe), and we should be right to anticipate heavy losses. But I never lost hope. I built alliances, I made the impossible happen to rally the galaxy together. I cured the genophage. I saved the Turians. I united the geth and the quarians. And then, it was all for nothing.

When Mordin died, it was heartwrenching, but I knew it was the right thing. His sacrifice was... perfect. It made sense. It was congruent with the dramatic themes that had been present since I very first met Wrex in ME1. It was not a cheap trick, a deus ex machina, an easy out. It was beautiful, meaningful, significant, relevant, and satisfying. It was an amazing way for an amazing character to sacrifice themself for an amazing thing. And then it was all for nothing.

When Thane died, it was tearjerking. I knew from the moment he explained his illness that one day, I'd have to deal with his death. I knew he was never going to survive the trilogy, and I knew it wouldn't be fun to watch him go. But when his son started reading the prayer, I lost it. His death was beautiful. It was significant. It was relevant. It was satisfying. It was meaningful. He died to protect Shepard, to protect the entire Citadel. He took a life he thought was unredeemable and used it to make the world a brighter place. And then it was all for nothing.

When Wrex and Eve thanked me for saving their species, I felt that I had truly accomplished something great. When Tali set foot on her homeworld, I felt that I had truly accomplished something great. When Javik gave his inspiring speech, I felt that I had inspired something truly great. When I activated the Citadel's arms, sat down to reminisce with Anderson one final time, I felt that I had truly accomplished something amazing. I felt that my sacrifice was meaningful. Significant. Relevant. And while still a completely unexplained deus ex machina, at least it was a little bit satisfying.

And then, just like everything else in this trilogy, it was all for nothing.

If we pretend like the indoctrination theory is false, and we're really supposed to take the ending at face value, this entire game is a lost cause. The krogans will never repopulate. The quarians will never rebuild their home world. The geth will never know what it means to be alive and independent. The salarians will never see how people can change for the better.

Instead, the quarians and turians will endure a quick, torturous extinction as they slowly starve to death, trapped in a system with no support for them. Everyone else will squabble over the scraps of Earth that haven't been completely obliterated, until the krogans drive them all to extinction and then die off without any women present. And this is all assuming that the relays didn't cause supernova-scaled extinction events simply by being destroyed, like we saw in Arrival.

And perhaps the worst part is that we don't even know. We don't know what happened to our squadmates. We didn't get any sort of catharsis, conclusion. We got five years of literary foreplay followed by a kick to the groin and a note telling us that in a couple months, we can pay Bioware $15 for them to do it to us all over again.

It's not just the abysmally depressing/sacrificial nature of the ending, either. As I've already made perfectly clear, I came into this game expecting sacrifice. When Mordin did it, it was beautiful. When Thane did it, it was beautiful. Even Verner. Stupid, misguided, idiotic Verner. Even his ridiculous sacrifice had meaning, relevance, coherence, and offered satisfaction.

No, it's not the sacrifice I have a problem with. It's the utter lack of coherence and respect for the five years of literary gold that have already been established in this franchise. We spent three games preparing to fight these reapers. I spent hours upon hours doing every side quest, picking up every war asset, maxing out my galactic readiness so that when the time came, the army I had built could make a stand, and show these Reapers that we won't go down without a fight.

In ME1, we did the impossible when we killed Sovereign. In ME2, we began to see that the Reapers aren't as immortal as they claim to be: that even they have basic needs, exploitable weaknesses. In ME3, we saw the Reapers die. We saw one get taken down by an overgrown worm. We saw one die with a few coordinated orbital bombardments. We saw several ripped apart by standard space combat. In ME1, it took three alliance fleets to kill the "invincible" Sovereign. By the end of ME3, I had assembled a galactic armada fifty times more powerful than that, and a thousand times more prepared. I never expected the fight to be easy, but I proved that we wouldn't go down without a fight, that there is always hope in unity. That's the theme we've been given for the past five years: there is hope and strength through unity. That if we work together, we can achieve the impossible.

And then we're supposed to believe that the fate of the galaxy comes down to some completely unexplained starchild asking Shepard what his favorite color is? That the army we built was all for nothing? That the squad whose loyalty we fought so hard for was all for nothing? That in the end, none of it mattered at all?

It's a poetic notion, but this isn't the place for poetry. It's one thing to rattle prose nihilistic over the course of a movie or ballad, where the audience is a passive observer, learning a lesson from the suffering and futility of a character, but that's not what Mass Effect is. Mass Effect has always been about making the player the true hero. If you really want us to all feel like we spent the past five years dumping time, energy, and emotional investment into this game just to tell us that nothing really matters, you have signed your own death certificate. Nobody pays hundreds of dollars and hours to be reminded how bleak, empty, and depressing the world can be, to be told that nothing we do matters, to be told that all of our greatest accomplishments, all of our faith, all of our work, all of our unity is for nothing.

No. It simply cannot be this bleak. I refuse to believe Bioware is really doing this. The ending of ME1 was perfect. We saw the struggle, we saw the cost, but we knew that we had worked hard, worked together, and won. The ending of ME2 was perfect. We saw the struggle, we saw the cost, but we knew that we had worked hard, worked together, and won.

Taken at face value, the end of ME3 throws every single thing we've done in the past five years into the wind, and makes the player watch from a distance as the entire galaxy is thrown into a technological dark age and a stellar extinction. Why would we care about a universe that no longer exists? We should we invest any more time or money into a world that will never be what we came to know and love?

Even if the ending is retconned, it doesn't make things better. Just knowing that the starchild was our real foe the entire time is so utterly mindless, contrived, and irrelevant to what we experienced in ME1 and ME2 that it cannot be forgiven. If that really is the truth, then Mass Effect simply isn't what we thought it was. And frankly, if this is what Mass Effect was supposed to be all along, I want no part of it. It's a useless, trite, overplayed cliche, so far beneath the praise I once gave this franchise that it hurts to think about.

No. There is no way to save this franchise without giving us the only explanation that makes sense. You know what it is. It was the plan all along. Too much evidence to not be true. Too many people reaching the same conclusions independently.

The indoctrination theory doesn't just save this franchise: it elevates it to one of the most powerful and compelling storytelling experiences I've ever had in my life. The fact that you managed to do more than indoctrinate Shepard - you managed to indoctrinate the players themselves - is astonishing. If that really was the end game, here, then you have won my gaming soul. But if that's true, then I'm still waiting for the rest of this story, the final chapter of Shepard's heroic journey. I paid to finish the fight, and if the indoctrination theory is true, it's not over yet.

And if it's not, then I just don't even care. I have been betrayed, and it's time for me to let go of the denial, the anger, the bargaining, and start working through the depression and emptiness until I can just move on. You can't keep teasing us like this. This must have seemed like a great plan at the time, but it has cost too much. These people believed in you. I believed in you.

Just make it right. 

Best post I've ever read on here. This 100%.

[Riddledim]

I refuse to abandon BioWare over this the dispute of the ending of Mass Effect 3. The company has delivered to me some of my best gaming-experiences since I was a kid in my big brothers basement where I was introduced to Baldurs Gate through The Shadows of Amn.

The Kotor games and especially the first one had a huge influence on my take on the entire Star Wars universe. I've played the games countless times on Xbox and PC.

Mass Effect was a "new thing" when it came out originally, and I remember thinking: "Have to try it out, it looks exactly like my kind of game."
I liked the presentation of being a space-detective having to investigate and talk to people to figure out some huge mystery.

I delved into that universe, that adventure head first with full force and fell in love again, and again and again.
BioWare always delivered, every single time they gave me exactly what I expected and surprised me by fulfilling expectations I didn't even know I had.

Having to choose between Ashley and Kaidan was hard (but proved that BioWare was serious about storytelling), and therefore I made it my goal to achieve full survival in ME2 when I realized this was possible.

In Mass Effect 3 this culminates into the most epic sci-fi game I've ever laid eyes upon. Again BioWare delivered everything. 100%.

I fought so hard, for three games, and I approve of the endings. Yes I indeed approve of applying Shepard to Martyrdom. But I still feel that all my fights and victories amount into less of a BANG than I had imagined.

I want the cutscenes, I want to see my allies rally and fight. I want Shepards death to have more of an impact on people (INGAME) than shrugging it off and telling fairytales.

But most of all I don't want to be so tied and connected to a Protagonist, and his allies only to have to bull**** them and abandon them. (By promising my return and then dying).

BioWare have since day 1 applied effort to allow the player customise his game experience and gameplay. To be left at the end with a bull**** choice on Reaper premises is a loss.

I felt all my effort amounted to a tired sigh from the writers staff instead of an echoing boom of resistance, defy and free will.

That's why I want the possibility to rally the fleet and hit the Reapers head-on and exterminate them through something that will stand as an example in moral and ethics by modern civil and military standards. Teamwork and Cooperation.

I do not mind if Shepard needs to die in the process, but it feels wrong, false and even more so like a lie. I feel like I lied to all those team-members through three entire games, and I feel like I abandoned them. Yes, I've grown so tied to the characters that I feel personally responsible. In fact, I AM COMMANDER SHEPARD, I make his decisions. I make the calls.

To think that no matter what I choose, the galactic cooperation is doomed rings horrifying. I was indeed mortified when I was forced to destroy the Mass Relays and condemn the galactic alliance to the prison that became the Sol System, or change them all forever.

The Quarians reclaimed their home world for nothing, by the time they return the "young" (the next cycle) would be spreading across the galaxy, laying down their claim to the galaxy.
The Krogan would be without their leader, remaining a broken people in a very long healing-process. The Geth would die in the fight for the survival and ascension of their race.

Every single victory of Commander Shepard amounts into nothing more than petty survival. Survival is beautiful, but it is petty, broken and less than what they fought for.

I guess it proves that war is inevitably destructive and reducing. But more so it proves that a fight for survival may as well be futile. The galaxy is left crippled and broken. A husk of its former self. Unworthy.

As I mentioned, I don't mind that Shepard is Martyred (with capitalization) but it feels wrong.

I accepted that ending for The Master Chief of the Halo Saga. But they refused to offer it, they kept him alive. I can accept it for Shepard if it amounts into something but I feel it didn't. And I know Shepard can survive as well but that too amounts into nothing if his Love Interest (with capitalization) ends up somewhere else.

But.

My final point.

Someone else, offered something more than you could, BioWare.

The user name Arkis from DeviantArt should ring familiar by now. In a flourish of morning-inspiration this astonishing individual wrote a mashup that reflected BioWares original endings. Only he added the expected parts. The legendary cutscenes. Where we the players see our years of effort and gaming amount into a unified galactic BOOM! where the galactic alliance fights the reapers in the final moments before Shepards Martyrdom (again with the capitalization).
AND more so Arkis from DeviantArt added the fourth option. The Refusal Ending, where Shepard rallies the united force to fight the Reapers in a strategic and galactic gamble.
This ending would prove that every choice made and every alliance built since Nihlus's death on Eden Prime amounts into something. That if you have enough strength you will survive with most of every fleet. And if not you'd be taught a lesson that self-sacrifice might be crucial and necessary sometimes. Might, not will, probably not inevitably.
You would be setting an example in moral and ethics by modern civil and military standards. Teamwork and Cooperation.

We would learn that unification, alliance and cooperation would amount into overcoming ANY obstacle.
Because storytelling is an art, it is poetic. And people reflect upon it, it is what makes us. Yes I'll leave that full stop (.) there. Art and poetry is what makes us. Because we reflect intellectually upon it. The next generations growing up will have your examples in their fundamental way of thinking. You successfully change people by putting them in situations where their choices amount to something. Especially when they are emotionally tied to the situation and outcome.
You know this, I know you do.
So instead of ending the game (however poetic it was) with the boom and the crash and the storytelling elder and child. Give us the effort of the fight in all its detail, show us in those cutscenes how crucial every decision have been. Show us the worth of friendship, allies and cooperation. Allow us to make a choice between martyrdom and successful survival WITH THE RELAYS INTACT.
And, if you would be so kind as to commend a fan, and praise the rest of your fans. Listen to Arkis. Add his fourth choice. Grant us the Refusal ending, a happy ending if we are strong enough to deserve it or a bad one if we're too weak.
Someone once said, and I think it might have been Terry Goodkind in the Sword of Truth novel series. That the most beautiful gift you can give someone is the opportunity to choose.
Shepard said it himself, what defines organic life is their capability to chose for themselves and make decisions based upon more than mere calculations.
Link to Arkis's take on the end of a saga:
http://arkis.deviantart.com/#/d4sllwt


I plead, please hear me. I am Armada, for I am the voice of many.

[MysticFred]

Archonsg wrote...

 (Version 1.01b Paragon Shepard Dies)
Been thinking about the ending a bit more and about that first one I came up with. And thought it was pretty weak. So here’s another attempt, though this time Shepard dies. 


*note : Most people Should get this ending. I do have a “Paragon Shepard Lives” ending scenario floating up in my noggin but that will be done another day, maybe.


Also my version of events scraps everything right after the combined Galactic fleet enters Earth space, assumes the player has completed all side quests and has at least 3300 EMS. Why only 3300. I feel that “forcing” players to play Multi-player just to get the “best” possible ending is rubbish. 

Higher EMS just skews a slightly different cut scene of your ground troops.
Higher EMS = more varied troops based on which races you have recruited to the cause.  
The trigger on what causes Shepard to  live or die however I’ll post later.

This ending also assumes you have saved every companion in ME2 (just mentally edit them out if you got yours killed) and Assumes that certain paths are followed in ME3. Again you can mentally edit those characters out of the cut scenes if yours are absent or dead. Liara assumed to be LI and Shepard to be male. (just switch him for her if your Shepard is female) Also this is an entire “re-write” of events in London. So no, I don’t follow the Shepard was indoctrinated” school of thought. Sorry shep-zombie fans. And no Star Child crap either. Sorry Bioware. 

Scenario: 
Cut Scene

Combined Galactic ground forces consisting of all the forces and assets Shepard has gathered. Krogan on Keiosaur mounts charging, Geth and Quarian engineers setting up hack proof auto turrets, mercs fighting dirty in hand to hand, pistol shot to the face combat, Turian and Human infantry and armor supported by Asari commandoes and Grissom Academy (Jack!) Biotics form a linked shield system and together they all carve a path and finally take down the Guardian at the Conduit.

Shepard and team go in, and it’s a race find the master control and open the Citadel Arms so that that Crucible can dock. 

Shepard and team fights way to Citadel central command room which EDI helps to pin point. Within the Citadel itself Shepard faces a combined force of indoctrinated Cerberus forces and reaper forces. 

Midpoint : Cut Scene. 
Harbinger’s holo appears and in the course of talking to it. Player learns that the Citadel is not only a huge mass relay, it is also the Reaper’s command and control centre from which the reapers direct their systematic “cycles” and that means it’s also one big galactic broadcasting device and that some ancient race finally figured this out and came up with the Crucible which is essentially one big “signal booster” . This old race figured out that you can send a kill switch from the Citadel but such a signal would only effects its local space for the kill switch to work, the signal needs to be sent simultaneously across the galaxy using the Mass Relays as piggy back signal towers. 

Shepard also learns that the Reapers were once AI meant to protect a race, created at a time when there was another war of organics and Synthetics. The AI’s primary directive was to Protect and dictate the race’s war efforts. In the course of time the AI decided that to win the war against Synthetics, organics had to become Synthetics themselves and thus the Reapers and Cycles came about.

Harbinger shows nothing but disdain for Shepard, for all organics. It demands that Shepard submit as it is the only way to salvation that it is the only logical outcome. 

Shepard tells it to go to hell. 

Harbinger then tells Shepard that Organic life in this Cycle had become too much of a problem, that order was disrupted when Sovereign was destroyed and later the planned entry point in Batarian space blocked. That it has decided that the best solution for the current situation is for the galaxy to reboot itself and life and the Cycle can start anew. 

Shepard is confused by what it meant till Admiral Hackett communicates that reports are coming in that EVERY Mass Relay is powering up, gathering Charge at a rate that would make each relay go critical and cause Ultra Super Novas in every system that holds a Mass Relay.  Everyone is shocked and horrified by the implications. Harbinger gloats that order will be restored and the Cycle can start anew again. 

Shepard Speech.Chooses final Squad members and assigns the rest to rear guard to cover his back and come up behind when they can.

Player fights to last checkpoint. 
Meets Illusive man who holds the final key to unlocking the Citadel. Illusive man tries takes control of Shepard’s implants. Makes Shepard shoots both squad members and they are out of combat (not dead …yet)

If Love interest is in squad however, Shepard finds strength to resist after he shoots the first squad member and the illusive man tries to make Shepard shoot his LI. (Love has to count for something ya?) 

Boss Fight. One on One 
Shepard vs Illusive man or two vs one if Shepard is with LI

Shepard wins, Illusive Man slumps to the ground. Seemingly lifeless.

Cut Scene.
Harbinger arrives too late at the Conduit but starts blasting at ground troops. (poor EMS = more die, not just nameless troops but Jack, Grunt, Wrex and any other non-squad companions from previous games at the scene, we will however assume high EMS for this cutscene) More Reaper Destroyers land with Harbinger and starts blasting as well. 

Jack plays mother hen and orders Asari commandoes around to help bolster the linked shields so that ground forces can hold ground. She refuses to leave but realise her shields cannot withstand a direct hit from a Reaper canon. Reluctantly leaves when Miranda tells her, “Shepard will find a way, he always does.”

Meanwhile on the Citadel, Shepard with EDI’s help shuts down the Relay Nova sequence and finds the kill switch. Harbinger’s Avatar appears one last time, but this time it shows fear. It knows death is imminent and it doesn’t want to die. 

Harbinger admits that perhaps its assessment is wrong and gives Shepard a choice, instead of killing every reaper, Shackle them. Each Reaper would then be Humanity’s tool and weapon against anything or anyone, organic or synthetic. Through them, Humanity would achieve power unimaginable and through humanity’s control of the reapers, order be imposed on all organic life. (Renegade Choice of course)  

Shepard refuses. Takes the Paragon path and triggers the kill switch. 
THE CITADEL DOES NOT BLOW UP, BREAK APART OR GETS DESTROYED. 
The signal goes off and Every Reaper in Earth Space flatlines, including Harbinger.

Now that the Earth space is safe and cleared of Reapers, the Crucible goes through its docking sequence shedding its protective armor and docks.

(I ALWAYS hated that part in the original Ending. WHAT Military Genius decides to try and dock a “soft” target in the middle of a fire fight while your “air space” isn’t clear of bogies and hostiles? You still have REAPERS around the Citadel firing Reaper beams left and right and you want to advertise “hey guys  over here …SHOOT ME!!!”)

(Final moments)
Garrus : “So Shepard, do the honours?”

Shepard: “I thought you’d do it, I mean, isn’t that why you calibrate stuff so much?”

Garrus : “The guns. Are. On. The. Normandy Shepard.” ”But now that you mentioned it, why not? I could never resist pushing big red buttons. Uhhh There is a big red button right?” 

EDI. : “No Garrus. Just your standard VI overlay”  

Garrus : “Pity. Well Palaven isn’t free of Reapers yet while we stand here talking.” *reaches up and touches controls*

*Signal beam goes out to the Charon Relay, Relay pulses then shoots out beam to other Relays.”
RELAYS ARE NOT DESTROYED. 

Pretty colour signal rings Galactic map display depicting each relay receiving and sending the kill switch out.
Reapers across the Galaxy flatlines. Cheers from groundtroops in Palaven, Asari on Thessia, everywhere, troops emerge bloodied but not beaten. 

*Everyone in room cheers*
Ashley : “We did it! We finally did it! Its all because of you Shepard, I am sorry I ….”

*Rapid auto gun fire. Shepard’s Shields flare then in slow motion, HEAD SHOT*

Liara : “Goddess! Noooooooo…”

*everyone turns to see a shakily Illusive man standing with a modified machine pistol in hand .. Everyone unloads their weapons into Illusive man. All except Liara who is cradling Shepard and crying. 

*Fade to black.*
*scene opens 5 years later. We see a small Asari child playing in the grass on Thessia laughing and giggling with another Asari child. She turns when she hears someone approaches and it is Liara and Matriarch Aethyta. One of the girls run up to Liara.*

Child : “Mother, Aria here says that everyone is nice to me only because my father is famous. Why do you never talk of him?

Liara : “Oh Hannah, *breathes in deeply* your father was the most important man in the galaxy. He is why we still have Thessia, our home.”

Hannah : “Aria says he’s human. Aria’s mother says humans are at best centuary flings. I don’t understand….*looks up and sees Liara in tears* I am sorry mommy. I didn’t mean to make you cry. *stays silent for a few seconds* What was he like, my father?”

Liara : “He was …he was….*sobs*

Aethyta : “ He was  a man. Had a quad on him for sure but he had heart, he….."

*scene cuts to Garrus at SPECTRE Academy*

Garrus : “ … was not just a SPECTRE, he was THE SPECTRE. I was there when he took down Saren, when at the time we Turians still thought all humans were only good for was canon fodder."

Spectre trainee: “But sir, surely he was just a human.”

Garrus : "Son, on Rannoch he played Tag with a Reaper, on foot and won." *touches side of his face* You see this, got this from a Gunship’s rocket in Omega. Shepard took it down, with small arms and saved my life. No, I learned from the best and that was Shepard.  I learned that no matter how good you are, nothing is better than a true friend guarding your back and Shepard was …”

*scene cuts to Wrex and Grunt*
Wrex : “….an Honorary Krogan because I made him so! Arrhhahahh!”

Grunt : “Bah, I knew that before you. You were there, he fought beside me on my Rites of Passage and at the time he said he was “my krant” *does finger air quotes* …huh. When that Thresher Maw popped up and he didn’t flinch, just stared down that big ass rifle of his and shot, I knew then, that he’s no one’s Krant. That I was lucky to be in his.”

Krogan : “Clan Utnev says The Shepard is human and they spit on humans.”

Wrex and Grunt : “SHEPARD IS URDNOT! Shepard is why our women are whole again! We will stomp on Utnev bones and make them say SHEPARD IS …”

*scene cuts to Tali. ALL Qurians have their helmets off*

Tali : “ ….the most compassionate man I know.” 

Quarian girl : "What is it like travelling with the humans? With Shepard?

Tali: “Trying. Often you just want to shoot them. *she grins* sometimes I don’t get them but when I see Shepard I see the best humanity has to offer. Let me tell you of a story about a Quarian named Lia’Vael nar Ulnay a young quarian girl on her pilgrimage. She went to the citadel but before long, her money was stolen, she was beaten and people spat on her. All because she was Quarian. We met her while a Csec officer and a Volus had her held for questioning and NO ONE wanted to help. Shepard did. He cared. He didn’t see us as Quarians or aliens but as people. As someone of worth and Lia was someone worth helping. I asked him afterwards, why did he helped. He just said “Its what I do.”

Quarian girl : “Was he dreamy? *giggles*

Tali : “Uhhh what? …Shepard was …”

*scene cuts to Aethyta*

Aethyta : “…. Many things to many people. But most of all he was hope. He never stopped trying. They took away his ship, they took away his command they took everything that he was but they could not take away his spirit. Your mother loves him very much because of that spirit. Hell, if she had not  already claimed him, I would have been tempted to do so myself! Bet I can teach him a thing or two…” 

Liara : “Aethyta!”

*Hannah climbs into Liara’s lap*

Hannah : “He sounds wonderful. I wish he was here.”

Liara : *wraps arms around Hannah and hugs her tightly* “We all do, little dove, we all do.”

*FADE TO BLACK*

END CREDIT ROLL.

Good stuff, I shed a man tear.


Keep it up.

[Gahec85]

This has to be the stupidest thing ive ever seen from BioWare. Mass Effect epic story all came crashing down at the final minutes with three same endings that the player has no control over it. Shurly there is no way any of the BioWare team had no sudgestion at all against this endind. Furthermore there is no objection to implay that the player's final decision actually kill more races than the reapers, but lets not get into details. The fact that we have been playing this amazing story for 5 years means the players love it, and the game is indeed very good. If we help develop the sotory, as BioWare claims otherwise then why is the ending completly against all the fans? But well the best pocible solution BioWare came up with was to give the player a little message saying thanks for playing the game and stay tuned for more DLC. I have no idiea how to explain my facial expression when I saw this, it is simply stupid. I and im sure thousands of fans as well played this game since 2007 and painstakingly chosing the right decissions and even playing the hours of contest all over again just to be Perfect (personal oppinion) at the final ending. But all this dont matter, 5 years dont matter because no matter we did, decided, changed or bought changes anything. At the end the outcome is the same: shepard dies, the mass relays explode, and somehow Joker lands on some strange planet that happens to be with oxigen. Really ? What can i say other than its stupid, and that it makes no sence.