23455 réponses à ce sujet

[pfellahX]

If the Indoctrination Theory is true (and the evidence is actually pretty compelling), that'd be 800 gold stars for the design and writing teams because they pulled off something intense yet subtle -- I got totally suckered and took the green ending. That'd mean they indoctrinated ME because my Shepard just sold out the galaxy through my actions. If that's actually what they did, I can respect the heck out of them for fooling me that way... some sneaky fourth-wall stuff.

But then the 800-lb gorilla in the room is that the red ending (at least) doesn't go to completion. And even the blue and green potentially have stories to tell back on Earth with a compromised Shepard -- maybe your team can still free you or something, maybe you have to fight your former allies. Does Garrus have to put Green Shepard down? Can your significant other (if you chose to have one) snap you out of it? Even if Shepard is just gone and playing for the other side, then there's still a potential battle and purging in the balance, and we deserve to know how that comes out.

[xFyre1]

Reply from the Mass Effect twitter to some random user:

"We suggest reading both Ray and Casey's statements. We will be creating additional content, not taking any away."

Interpret as you will.

Modifié par xFyre1, 21 mars 2012 - 07:02 .

[OHjakesHERE XD]

 As you can probably guess, my major concern is, of course, the ending. Undoubtibly, with over 350 pages of forum posts all relating to the ending, everything I want to say about it has most likely been said, so I'll be brief. I REALLY like the indoctrination theory, and the more I think and read about it, the more it makes sense to me. You guys should just take that and run away with it. 

I think that there should be some sort of final confrontation between Harbinger and Shepard. As the main antagonist of Mass Effect 2, we never actually saw him throughout the entire game, except for the very end, when he cut himself off from the Collector General. As I/Shepard was running towards the Citadel beam, and Harbinger landed and started blasting everyone into vapor, it just sort of felt right that he would be the last reaper you confront before detroying all of them. But then Shepard get's blasted and Harbinger just flies away. It felt anticlimatic considering the conflict between the two, where I'm sure Shepard has been one of the very few, if not only, organics to truly be a thorn in the reapers' side. Harbinger doesn't have to be the final boss or something like that, but I think Shepard's and his last confrontation could be a bit more climatic.

I honestly felt that The Illusive Man showdown in the Citadel was very good. It was a battle of wills and words, and it played out very well. Whether it was all a hallucination in Shepard's mind as he lay on Earth stunned by Harbinger's blast, or if it really happened, I felt it fit very well. I never expected to actually fight TIM, so I'm glad I didn't have to.

As for the Catalyst....I'm sure everything has been said about this new character. There's no mention of anything like it throughout the entire series, and then it was just thrown at us at the end, and worse, it explained it's purpose and the purpose of the Reapers with utter nonsense. I highly preferred Sovereign's answer of organics not being able to comprehend. It gives the Reapers a much higher purpose, rather than being a farce of stopping organics from creating synthetics that will destroy all organics, when they themselves are synthetics that will destroy organics. Whether the Catalyst is kept or not, all I ask is that a more logical reasoning is behind it's motives. And, of course, I would like more options at the end that are effected by how I've played the series. Picking blue, green, or red left a sick feeling in my mouth, and it felt like it didn't matter what I picked mattered, because I don't know what happens after I make my decision. All three were supposedly different choices, surely the effects for each must be different? It certainly didn't feel that way.

Those are my main concerns. I'd just like to point out that I absolutely love the series. They are by far the best games I've ever played. Throughout my entire playthrough of Mass Effect 3, everything felt so right. My favorite part, by far, was when Thane was dying, and the last thing he wanted to do was pray for Shepard's salvation. The last time I've teared up like that was when Ash let his Butterfree go. Mass Effect 3 is easily deserving of all of those perfect and very high scores it's recieved. But it still has the potential to get even better; just expand upon the ending so that not just fans, but everyone, can get a good closure on Commander Shepard and the crew of the Normandy.

On a side note, I thought I would just mention a couple things that caught my attention, but have not been addressed quite as much as the ending; On Sur'Kesh, towards the beginning of the mission, a yahg escapes. We've all seen what a single yahg can do (or those that have played Lair of the Shadow Broker have, anyways). I find it hard to believe that this yahg would simply let itself be caught again by the salarians, no matter how good they are. It's out there...somewhere, waiting to make it's move. Right?
And, lastly, Tali's photo. I'm not so upset as to it being a stock photo, and recognizably photoshopped. I don't really care about that part. It's just...it didn't seem like Tali, to me. The woman in the photo seems a bit older than a quarian that only had her pilgrimage a few years ago. But that's just me. And secondly, That's a lot of hair to try and shove in a helmet. Unless there's some secret compartments underneath their hoods, I'm guessing it's a lot more comfortable to wear a quarian environment suit with shorter (or no hair), which leads to all quarians having short hair. And can I just point out.... It's very cruel having Javik, an emperialistic Prothean, mention that even the Protheans found primitive quarians attractive and beautiful, and still refuse to show what quarians look like? That's just plain evil. 

[Smig-H]

Chris Priestly wrote...

In the meantime, let's give appreciation to Commander Shepard. Whether you loved the ME3 ending or didn't or you just have a lot of questions, he/she has given many of us some of the best adventures we have had while playing games. What was your favorite moment?

The kid dying in the beginning, mixed with that soundtrack, made for one of the most memorable moments in the series. Both sad and pretty amazing storytelling.

A Reaper fighting a Thresher Mow. Epic cutscene.

Seeing a Reaper up close, on foot and saying "Oh s..."

Letting Legion proceed with the upload then fold as Tali begged me not to do it, only to see Legion being killed (ahem, destroyed) asking if that unit has a soul and Tali saying yes. Made me cry.

The small chat Shepard has with Sovereign in Virmire. The writting was so good.

Mordin Solus all around. Such a rich and interesting character.

The destruction of the Normandy right off the bat in ME2 was a pretty spectacular way to start that story.

Bringing back both Saren and the Illusive Man from the indoctrination, just enough to shoot themselves produced a powerful moment each time.

Shepard punching Saren's face in Virmire.

Me, strugling not to cry, when I convinced Miranda Lawson to have a word with Oriana.

The standoff with Wrex. Epic. Also, the "hold the line" speech in the same place.

The understanding you get after the first chat with Legion made the Geth 100x more interesting. Also, Legion not being able to explain why he chose to keep that armor.

Meeting Thane Krios in what is probably the most beautiful visuals in the whole series with that sunset on the horizon. Such brethcating shots in that scene.

Miranda's tight outfit...

ME3's ending couldn't spoil all that for me. Thank you Bioware, for one of the greatest experiences playing a video game.

[Ottemis]

xFyre1 wrote...

Reply from the Mass Effect twitter to some random user:

"We suggest reading both Ray and Casey's statements. We will be creating additional content, not taking any away."

Interpret as you will.

Makes sense, not everyone is unhappy. Changing what is would just create another group of unhappy campers, instead of purely trying to appease the current one.

Modifié par Ottemis, 21 mars 2012 - 07:07 .

[Ilzairspar]

 I might have said this before, but I would like to make sure that (after your co-founders blog post) I am understood.
Yes I would like you to make the ending make more sense any give us more closure.  However that was not my biggest gripe.
It was the lack of choice.

So here is what I'd like to see.  Keep at least 3options where Shepard dies.  One paragon (self sacrifice),one Renegade (you pissed of too many people to live), and of course one where you didn't have enough forces to make it through.
Two options to live:  
One  paragon (the 4th option that you think of....sort of like quarian/Geth peace). Many of our Shepards have made it a business of doing he impossible.  make it really tough, but give us th chance to do it one more time.
One Rengade (the destroy option in the game works). 
Keep the relays intact.  You can have them not working, but don't destroy them.  After Arrival we know what happens if  they blow up.

Finally, give us one last goodbye post mission.  The epilogue everyone wants.

Sorry if this makes no sense, but I'm sending this from my phone.  Can't tell if it is typing out correctly.

[Gandalph915]

Okay, I apologize in advance, I didn't read a single post of this monster thread but I just wanted to voice my opinion on the ME3 ending (and the rumored DLC).
I just finished ME3 this afternoon (and had my heart crushed), I couldn't believe how my favorite game ended. Then I saw this video (which I'm sure has been linked in this thread a hundred times already) which made me really hopeful -

I just want to say, Bioware, if you really plan on making this alternate ending DLC, please use this video/theory as a springboard. The last picture in the game with the N7 dog tag - the one where Shepard wakes up and breathes in, make it that he woke up in the place where she (or he) got hit by the reaper laser and just let me go into the Citadel with my squad and do a proper mission there, where I can end (the real) Illusive Man and start the Crucible and destroy the reapers. Then give me a proper cinematic with a closure depending on my relationships with my crew, this youtube comment summed it up pretty well - http://i.imgur.com/fg0a0.png

Thanks for reading..


oh, and if Tali or Liara die, i'm gonna end you, just sayin'

EDIT: just read the last post before mine
"
Finally, give us one last goodbye post mission.  The epilogue everyone wants. " 
-This is a brilliant idea, this whole trilogy deserves a epilogue mission with all the friends/romances you managed to make in the 3 games....

Modifié par Gandalph915, 21 mars 2012 - 07:17 .

[wolfeye7]

Ilzairspar wrote...

 I might have said this before, but I would like to make sure that (after your co-founders blog post) I am understood.
Yes I would like you to make the ending make more sense any give us more closure.  However that was not my biggest gripe.
It was the lack of choice.

So here is what I'd like to see.  Keep at least 3options where Shepard dies.  One paragon (self sacrifice),one Renegade (you pissed of too many people to live), and of course one where you didn't have enough forces to make it through.
Two options to live:  
One  paragon (the 4th option that you think of....sort of like quarian/Geth peace). Many of our Shepards have made it a business of doing he impossible.  make it really tough, but give us th chance to do it one more time.
One Rengade (the destroy option in the game works). 
Keep the relays intact.  You can have them not working, but don't destroy them.  After Arrival we know what happens if  they blow up.

Finally, give us one last goodbye post mission.  The epilogue everyone wants.

Sorry if this makes no sense, but I'm sending this from my phone.  Can't tell if it is typing out correctly.

This pretty much sums up my posted idea, but is just SOOOOO much clearer

[Hoz_Hun]

I rarely write on BSN. I just wanted to say, I am one of those whose don't like the ending. And it really just the last few minutes and the three outcome. I love the whole game.
I be honest, I expected a happy ending. Only one good ending of many endings (paragon Shepard lives (possibly with LI) and Relays are intact). I expected endings like Mass Effect 2.

[E_v_e_n]

Ilzairspar wrote...

 I might have said this before, but I would like to make sure that (after your co-founders blog post) I am understood.
Yes I would like you to make the ending make more sense any give us more closure.  However that was not my biggest gripe.
It was the lack of choice.

So here is what I'd like to see.  Keep at least 3options where Shepard dies.  One paragon (self sacrifice),one Renegade (you pissed of too many people to live), and of course one where you didn't have enough forces to make it through.
Two options to live:  
One  paragon (the 4th option that you think of....sort of like quarian/Geth peace). Many of our Shepards have made it a business of doing he impossible.  make it really tough, but give us th chance to do it one more time.
One Rengade (the destroy option in the game works). 
Keep the relays intact.  You can have them not working, but don't destroy them.  After Arrival we know what happens if  they blow up.

Finally, give us one last goodbye post mission.  The epilogue everyone wants.

Sorry if this makes no sense, but I'm sending this from my phone.  Can't tell if it is typing out correctly.

That would've been so awesome... If Bioware had done that, ME3 would truly have been the masterpiece it deserves to be.

[iChuckles]

Some of my favourite moments:

The entire gameplay chunk on Palaven -- that was just awesome.
Mordin's sacrifice
The Geth-Quarian dilemma
Tali's reflection
Ashley romance scene
That hella-epic sprint to the Citadel beam
Shepard's death and flashes of the people he love
Stargazer scene
Grunt limping to the evac shuttle

and more..

[Bill Casey]

I just finished ME3 this afternoon (and had my heart crushed), I couldn't believe how my favorite game ended. Then I saw this video (which I'm sure has been linked in this thread a hundred times already) which made me really hopeful -

So many new things struck me in that video...
www.youtube.com/watch

- Saren's words
- The Rachni Queen talking about "Oily Shadows" in ME1, which Shepard sees in his dreams
- Shepard bleeding from the place he shot Anderson
- The sudden appearance of shrubs and trees

[Ganjagorga]

My favourite moment was when the Illusive man mentioned that I'd kept the collector base instead of destroying it as I thought I might actually see the results of the most important decision in ME2...but I didn't! Sorry guys, great game play but the story just fell at the last hurdle and not enough decision repercussions from my 2 ME1 and 6 ME2 playthroughs.

[MaldororAzrael]

I guess at this stage very little can be said that hasn't been said before, but I just read Dr. Ray Muzyka's blog entry about community's reaction to the endings and feel like adding my thoughts to the discussion.

I agree with Dr. Muzyka's statement that games are an art form, however I believe that most of the games that strive to be considered "art" these days remain utilitarian form of art at best - which is not necessarily a bad thing. If we compare games to cinema, a medium that I think is the modern gaming's closest cousin, we have games like COD on one side of the spectrum - equivalent of entertaining but essentially "empty" summer blockbusters and games which are equivalent of arthouse cinema such as Tale Of Tales titles - The Path, The Graveyard etc. These games although interactive are not meant to be played to win and the experience is their entire focus, as opposed to final victory or fulfilling ending.

Bioware games are normally somewhere in between that line - fulfilling gaming experience with emotional story. Mass Effect was Bioware's first trilogy with a planned closure at the end of the of the third game. Bioware essentially had a choice between doing two things; A) giving us a Dragon Age:Origins style ending where the main character can either heroically die, survive and succeed while sacrificing something or someone important or succeed by doing something that is morally ambiguous; Do something completely different.

I think that option A, although not very original, would satisfy most players. Option B was a risk, and Bioware's choice of execution was - as we all know - received very badly by majority of the players.

While I applaud the fact that Bioware tried to do something different, I believe that the ending to a highly successful trilogy of games, which gave us so many beloved characters was the worst possible moment for an experiment. While this could work out nicely, I seriously don't understand how anyone involved in the project could hope that the current endings will be met with generally positive reception. The entire Godchild sequence felt disconnected from the setting, story decisions that players made and the outcome of the previous game. I wanted to learn the origin of the reapers, the consequences of my decisions throughout the game, wanted to decide how much my Shepard is ready to sacrifice to save the galaxy... I didn't want to repeat the ending of original Deus Ex in the Mass Effect setting.

[RiGoRmOrTiS_UK]

Every single PR statement from Bioware (including Rays) ignores why people are annoyed. Its the huge narrative plot-holes; absolutely no closure at all and the fact there is no choice at the end of the game...

He actually has the gall to say there is choice in his PR statement!)

"Mass Effect 3 concludes a trilogy with so much player control and ownership of the story that it was hard for us
to predict the range of emotions"

All 3 endings are exactly the same (minus a colour change) Just 2 months ago they said it wouldn't be an A, B or C ending.. but that’s exactly what we got and even then its a stretch saying there are 3 endings..

I'm really getting sick of repeating this over and over again... why can't Bioware understand these are the issues? why must they ignore them in every single PR release??

These vague statements are  annoying.. There wouldn't be such a huge sh*tstorm if it was simply an ending that people didn't like; Its the fact it makes absolutely no sense what-so-ever..

unless you believe the indoctrination theory..  Its a shame they didn't plan the indoctrination theory.....

Modifié par RiGoRmOrTiS_UK, 21 mars 2012 - 07:52 .

[SkullStrife]

Bioware RESPONDED OFFICIALLY! a letter by Bioware co-founder Dr. Ray Muzyka!

http://www.gameinfor...criticisms.aspx

it seems that in fact there is a DLC comming, even though indoctrination theory was not originally planned, even though I really love it... and I recommend as the user Bill Casey did, watching this new video

[cristov]

On Tweeter they say, that more information will be in April. I hope they don't think about 1st April.

[PrinceofSpades]

Just make ME4, have it start after you wake up from the crazy dream.

[WulfByte]

BioWare, thank you for delivering three great games, and for offering us the opportunity to provide feedback.

Loved:

• Quick save satisfies my obsessive-compulsive streak without a break in the action.
• Heal nearby, downed teammates without medi-gel.
• More guns. With weapon mods! And easy gun-statistics comparison!! And the Spectre Shooting Range to try everything!!! (The latter two points are essential, and very welcome additions).
• Planet scanning in Mass Effect 3 can still be a chore, particularly when searching for similarly named systems/planets to which the story doesn't allow access yet, but it's an improvement over Mass Effect 2.
• Removal of Mass Effect 2's hacking and bypass. They aren't missed.
• "Replacement" of Mass Effect 2 heavy weapons with grenade powers.
• Significant impact of prior choices. An amazing breadth of characters and decision are reintroduced and revisited.
• Multiplayer seems like simple fun, but with reasonably deep customization.
• The "Leaving Earth" scene and music broke my heart. The "Mars" score is also great.
• Shepard's armor variants look cool. Ashley Williams and James Vega are especially badass too.

Disliked:

• The impact of Galactic Readiness/War Assets/Effective Military Strength isn't obvious enough. Mass Effect 2 gives the player blatant (if brutal) results for their action (or inaction). (I think this is part of the dissatisfaction some players have with the Mass Effect 3 ending...).

The ending(s):

What become apparent as (the original) Mass Effect progressed, and more of the Codex was revealed, was that Mass Effect was unlike most console games. It was deep, deliberate science-fiction. When Mass Effect 2 and 3 were progressively faster paced, action-filled romps, I think players forgot (or just weren't aware of) Mass Effect's "hard science fiction" roots.

Loss, sacrifice and dilemma are prominent themes of Mass Effect 3; it shouldn't be a complete shock to see them feature at the finish. I might be more disappointed if the finale was Michael-Bay-flag-waving-nonsense, but the visuals and the (great) music seem to focus more on the tragedy than the potentially hollow victory.

(SPOILERS!) All three endings seem to lean more toward Renegade than Paragon. Decide every sentient should be an organic-synthetic-hybrid to achieve peace-at-any-cost, based on the dubious word of the Citadel-AI that a critically wounded, confused Shepard just met? Renegade. Continue to centrally control all AI? Renegade. Destroy all AI, including EDI and the Geth, who seem to disprove the Citadel-AI's "endless cycle of chaos" predictions? Renegade. Destroy all Mass Relays no matter what the decision? Renegade.

(SPOILERS!) A trilogy ending that raises more questions than it answers is not a worthy payoff. How do your immediate teammates survive the massacre before Shepard beams to the Citadel? Where in the galaxy do the the Normandy crew crash land? What happens to all those left in the Sol system? I don't necessarily want the endings changed, but it would be nice to know that those questions will be answered at some point, even if it's in a future game.

The Buzz Aldrin-voiced epilogue is an admirable tribute attempt, but poorly delivered and overly preachy. The ham-fisted "You finished! Now buy more DLC!" message, is also ill conceived.

(SPOILERS!) My suspicion is that this Mass Effect trilogy is to the Mass Effect universe as the The Old Republic
is to the Star Wars universe. Trap the Mass Effect allied races in the desperate graveyard that the Sol system has become, so they must work together to solve interstellar travel without the destroyed Mass Relays (and I mean really work together, not just agree to point their guns at the same bad guys at the same time, or follow Ikea instructions in record time).


PS (SPOILERS!) I don't understand why so many players presume Mass Relay self-destruction would have the same results as destroying one by ramming an asteroid into it (as it did in "Arrival"). Google "controlled demolition".

Modifié par WulfByte, 21 mars 2012 - 08:03 .

[sagefic]

Ottemis wrote...

xFyre1 wrote...

Reply from the Mass Effect twitter to some random user:

"We suggest reading both Ray and Casey's statements. We will be creating additional content, not taking any away."

Interpret as you will.

Makes sense, not everyone is unhappy. Changing what is would just create another group of unhappy campers, instead of purely trying to appease the current one.

Yes.

(Hi Ottemis - I know we totally chose different endings, but I also know we're totally happy with them.)

I love the StarChild scene. I really do. You just replaced a boss battle with a crafy argument - and the shooting is stopped cold in this moment of choice. I find it to be this incredible moment where Shepard is forced to chose what she/he is going to stand for in the final battle. I full-up buy the indoctrination theory, but even if you don't, it's a pretty awesome moment to make Shepard chose for the future of the galaxy in this crazy way. I veer right to red hardcore, and watching Shepard take a stand in that way just gave me the chills. I LOVE it.

HOWEVER.... That's not an end. That's the critical turning point of the story, the climax of the story. That's Frodo and Sam lying on the side of Mt. Doom with the ring's fate decided; that's Luke turning off the lightsaber and saying 'I will not kill my father.' That's the moment of truth: but it's not an ending, not really.

I mean, BioWare *could* end it there, but that leaves you with an epic that has no real conclusion. There's no playing out of the choices you made - even that critical choice with StarChild. There's no explanation for how the galaxy survives, what happens to your friends, what happens to Shepard, even. The brief cut-scenes at the end are so vague and error-laden (how is Kaidan magically teleported to the Normandy in his civvies when a moment ago he went down with the blast that hit Shepard?) that I find them no consolation. And to have the stargazer and grandson muse on Shepard's ending isn't really a conclusion either.

In short, I don't get this 'change' the endings. There IS no ending, not yet. There is a critical turning point that does not play out. There is a climax to the story that points to a few possible paths out of this mess. But there is not an ending, not really.

So as for endings, I just want to see them.

[Mikoya]

Opposing Views: Constructive Feedback on the Ending of Mass Effect 3

Let me begin by saying my family and I are a die-hard fans of the Mass Effect series. I’ve purchased all of the collector’s editions. I was there at the West Hollywood Launch of Mass Effect 3, happy to shake hands with the amazing Casey Hudson, Jennifer Hale, Ali Hillis and the rest of the cast and crew. It was a wonderful moment for me.

We all know there’s been a lot of outcry about Mass Effect 3’s ending. I believe something so hyped can never be everything to everyone. There were always going to be those who were disappointed and those who love it.
When people ask me about my thoughts, I make sure to say I adored the game until the very end. The combat was amazing. The music was inspiring. The writing was top notch. The voice acting was simply awesome. I loved it all, from Cortez and James arguing about the Mako and Hammerhead to the epic Godzilla-like battle between the Reaper and Kalros on Tuchanka.

But when they press me for the ending, I’ve managed to boil it down to a very specific statement. (I have only seen the “Synthesis” ending, so I am basing these thoughts off this ending and a full Paragon playthrough. I have intentionally remained ignorant of the other two endings so not to spoil it for myself.)
“As a science fiction and fantasy author, I like it. As someone who has been emotionally invested for five years, I was devastated.”

Author:
“Synthesis” gave us a brand new reality and a new future unlike anything we’ve ever seen. It ended the war between synthetic and organic life with a minimum of pain and suffering. It put some of our most beloved characters into a unique situation that has tremendous storytelling potential. “Synthesis” destroyed the mass relay system and (I presume) the Citadel.

Legion and Sovereign’s words are now ironically prophetic. The various galactic races developed because of the technology available to them. Energy follows the path of least resistance, as does technological development. This is the brave new world we have come to expect and cherish out of our science fiction masterpieces.

Devastation:
Part 1: Happily Ever After
I was in shock after watching the ending for two reasons. I want to address the fundamental core emotions first.

I was devastated. What I wanted more than anything in the world was for Shepard to get a happily ever after. I wanted Lisa-Anne Shepard be with Liara T’Soni, “getting married, growing old and having lots of little blue children.” I have comforted myself with the thought that Liara is indeed pregnant with Shepard’s child and that final kiss before the battle was an entire lifetime together (a la ST:TNG’s “The Inner Light”). But this is my interpretation and mine alone.

That being said, I do understand the sacrifice Shepard needed to make. We were prepared for it in Mordin’s sacrifice and Legion’s sacrifice. Casey Hudson even attested to this with his recent post on the forums, saying that sacrifice was a consistent theme within the Mass Effect storyline.

In the end, I knew Lisa-Anne could not warrant the destruction of all synthetic life. She had worked so hard to make the geth and the quarians work together. She couldn’t destroy the geth after all they had become. And she refused to dominate the Reapers, knowing full well what it might cost her. In the end, there was only one decision she could make.

I was devastated, but on an emotional level. This I recognize as something I want, not something I need.

Part 2: Closure
My greatest frustration was the lack of closure for the people I care about. While “Synthesis” gave us the fate of Joker, EDI and Liara (for a brief moment), I know nothing of what happened to the rest of my team. There are simply too many unanswered questions to satisfy me. Did Tali ever make it back to Rannoch? What happened to Palaven? Did James die in the final assault? What of Hackett? Wrex? Ashley/Kaiden? Javik?

I am not expecting full closure on all of these characters. I don’t need to know if Tali and Garrus ever made it work between them. I don’t need to know all the details of if the Krogan were able to join the galactic society as equals. These are loose ends that should be left unanswered or used to create new and interesting stories.

My best analogy to this would be the finale of Harry Potter 7: The Deathly Hallows. If Hallows had ended a few minutes after Harry had defeated Voldemort, it would have made an ending. It may have even been an okay ending. However, it is not nearly as powerful as the “19 Years Later” Epilogue. That was the perfect ending for the series. Mass Effect 3 effectively ended when Harry defeated Voldemort and gave only a brief moment afterwards. There’s not enough time to deal with the fate of those we love. While the Stargazer scene was nice, but it didn’t give us the answers we needed.

BioWare did a masterful job of making us care about these characters. I cried when Mordin sacrificed himself for the Krogan while singing “Scientist Salarian.” His death with the perfect conclusion to his character. Legion’s sacrifice was just as noble. I care for the fate of Liara deeply. It’s a bit sad, but she’s quite real to me emotionally. It’s a testament to Ali Hillis’s voice acting ability and the writers for the Mass Effect series.
I care about these characters. I need to know what happened to them.

What does it all mean?
Allow me to summarize. While I appreciate the value of the ending we received in Mass Effect 3, I believe we need more. We need more closure on the characters we’ve come to know and love. I want to see more of this brave new world that Lisa-Anne Shepard sacrificed herself to achieve.

My true desire is to allow Lisa-Anne to have that happily ever after. I’m devastated she wasn’t able to get that life with Liara. I was in tears. I wanted that more than anything.

But in the end, I believe the best solution is to give more closure than what was given. Not as a paid DLC, but as the true “Epilogue” to the Mass Effect 3 series. Allow us to see the fates of Tali, Garrus, Hackett, Traynor, Adams, Gabby, Ken, Javik, Kaiden/Ashley, Conrad Verner, Wrex, James, Cortez, Space Hamster and all the other characters we love.

Thank
Thank you BioWare for Mass Effect. Thank you for crafting a story where I could determine my journey through the galaxy. Where the decisions I made actually mattered. Where I was the true hero of the galaxy.

Thank you to Dr. Ray Muzyka for his kind words. His response to the public outcry (whether it’s deserved or not) showed for everyone that BioWare is one of the true giants of the video game industry. Not only is he receptive, but he also stands behind Casey Hudson and his team. As he should.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. No matter what decision BioWare makes about the ending of Mass Effect 3, I am still a fan of the series. I still wear my N7 Hoodie with pride. After all, it’s still been a great ride.

Thank you, Bioware. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

((This post is designed simply as my own thoughts. I am positing it in a separate thread as well because I feel there are often too many people who want to vent negativity and destructive feedback on the internet. I ask that if you do have a direct response to this, don't say anything you wouldn't say to someone in person.))

[Lyryn22]

This truly was an amazing, vibrant gaming trilogy. I loved it.. until catalyst sucked the heart out of me & NOTHING made sense. Tried a second playthro' but it proved such a sad, half-hearted effort I stopped.Don't think I can face any DLC. What's the point if actions & choices don't affect final outcome?
This being said, BW gave us a wonderful ME ride. I just wish the destination was consistant with the journey.

[Haphaz77]

Good for BioWare. It was always going to take some time to come to terms with what's happened in regards of the adverse feedback (justifiable in my view; although bad manners are not on). I can understand their shock and the need to protect their artistic vision, but this is hopefully the first step back to completing their masterpiece - almost all the rest of the game was brilliant, which made the end jar so much.

In regards to the 'providing closure and clarity', I'd also like them to address the clear contradictions in the plot (notably the Normandy sequence) - although its more difficult to admit you made a mistake than just omitting detail.

All the best and thanks.

Modifié par Haphaz77, 21 mars 2012 - 07:56 .

[Koveras Alvane]

I also agree with Ilzairspar: there was too little choice in the ending. Also, all but a few of the previous choices (which have been so carefully developed upon throughout the rest of the game) are all but ignored by the ending sequence. It is especially jarring, for instance, to hear the talks about synthetics and organics being unable to coexist after achieving peace between quarians and geth and encouraging EDI and Joker into a relationship. Maybe the Catalyst is right, but it just doesn't fit with the tone of the game.

The most basic constructive suggestion I can think of is to expand upon the whole Hammer/Shield/Sword division of the War Assets during the ending. In the released version, the only thing that matters is the total number of War Assets. However, wouldn't it be nice to actually see the consequences of whom we recruited in the game? Like, the total sum of ground-based War Assets would improve the survival rate of the Hammer force and, for instance, determine how many squadmates survive the ground battle. The size of the Sword force could determine whether Shepard is evacuated from the Citadel before s/he bleeds out. And Shield, I dunno, maybe, determine how much damage the Crucible takes and, consequentially, how much of the remaining forces are saved? That would give a lot of ending variations and all of them would be logical consequences of your past decisions.

[Omnike]

sagequeen wrote...

Ottemis wrote...

xFyre1 wrote...

Reply from the Mass Effect twitter to some random user:

"We suggest reading both Ray and Casey's statements. We will be creating additional content, not taking any away."

Interpret as you will.

Makes sense, not everyone is unhappy. Changing what is would just create another group of unhappy campers, instead of purely trying to appease the current one.

Yes.

(Hi Ottemis - I know we totally chose different endings, but I also know we're totally happy with them.)

I love the StarChild scene. I really do. You just replaced a boss battle with a crafy argument - and the shooting is stopped cold in this moment of choice. I find it to be this incredible moment where Shepard is forced to chose what she/he is going to stand for in the final battle. I full-up buy the indoctrination theory, but even if you don't, it's a pretty awesome moment to make Shepard chose for the future of the galaxy in this crazy way. I veer right to red hardcore, and watching Shepard take a stand in that way just gave me the chills. I LOVE it.

HOWEVER.... That's not an end. That's the critical turning point of the story, the climax of the story. That's Frodo and Sam lying on the side of Mt. Doom with the ring's fate decided; that's Luke turning off the lightsaber and saying 'I will not kill my father.' That's the moment of truth: but it's not an ending, not really.

I mean, BioWare *could* end it there, but that leaves you with an epic that has no real conclusion. There's no playing out of the choices you made - even that critical choice with StarChild. There's no explanation for how the galaxy survives, what happens to your friends, what happens to Shepard, even. The brief cut-scenes at the end are so vague and error-laden (how is Kaidan magically teleported to the Normandy in his civvies when a moment ago he went down with the blast that hit Shepard?) that I find them no consolation. And to have the stargazer and grandson muse on Shepard's ending isn't really a conclusion either.

In short, I don't get this 'change' the endings. There IS no ending, not yet. There is a critical turning point that does not play out. There is a climax to the story that points to a few possible paths out of this mess. But there is not an ending, not really.

So as for endings, I just want to see them.

What argument? And what final battle? I also haven't got an explanation for the plot holes..