7052 réponses à ce sujet

[BlackDragonBane]

 As I speak for a community of Theorists over on a theorycrafting board that was birthed from BSN, there's many people who believe that the Indoctrination angle is what the ending is. From Mass Effect 1, indoctrination is mentioned everywhere. Dragon's Teeth, Saren, the research on Vrimire. Mass Effect 2 did not emphasize this as much, but it was still there in the details. Harbinger had developed an obsession for possessing and control Shepard through-out the game and even into Arrival DLC

The ending of Mass Effect 3, as it stands, has a glaring amount of continuity errors from the Conduit run onwards. In game evidence analyzed as well as many symbolic themes we've come to discover suggest that indoctrination is the most likely and logical reasoning behind the ending's lack of continuity and impact, as well as similarities across the board for each. Many have dismissed us simply reading too much into things and grasping at straws, but when you have more than a hundred people arguing and analyzing a theory, there must be a glimmer of validity to it.

We know Bioware is known for writing deep and emotional story and many of us believe this was the intention all along. Even if it's not, Indoctrination stands pretty strong as a canon explanation in the Mass Effect universe.

The theory itself is too complex to explain without taking up so much room so I will simply link to the our theorycrafting haven where the collection of our discussion can be viewed and scrutinized by fellow fans.
w11.zetaboards.com/Theorycraftng_HUB/topic/7688087/1/

Modifié par BlackDragonBane, 17 mars 2012 - 03:38 .

[JesseLee202]

Dridengx wrote...

Change nothing. The game is perfect. Waste your resources and time on something else Bioware.

40k people disagree, and with good reason. We really want closure, no cliffhangers. A really bad case scenario (the reapers win).  and a good case, shep not seperated from his friends. 

[IronMadness]

At the end will change the ending? this was always planned? will give us some excuse for giving us an incomplete game? change the plot of the harvesters because they want to kill us?

Modifié par IronMadness, 17 mars 2012 - 03:39 .

[Rrated128]

This video pretty much sums it up along with the gamefront article. I would be happy with the Indoctrination/dream theory.

[JoeLaTurkeyII]

It would also be great to see a Return of the Jedi-esque montage of various planets/species and how they're coping, depending on Shepard's efforts of course.

[Swanmate]

This video lays out most of the problems people have with the endings.

And another repost of that video. Includes all major issues.

[Spectre Impersonator]

Jessica Merizan wrote...

This is not a constructive response guys. Be specific in your needs and I'll pass that to the team.

1. The ending should be fully explained, instead of being full of strange plot holes, such as Joker and crew inexplicably flying away from battle, the logic behind maker the Reapers to stop organics from making Reapers, and how Ashley got onto the Normandy when she was running to the beam with me a few minutes earlier. Also, why should we feel accomplished if the Citadel gets blown up (with all those innocents we helped) and all the races of the galaxy are stranded at earth to die slow, messy deaths in a struggle for resources and all the geth die after we united them with the Quarians?

2. The ending should NOT be a cliff-hanger. I was particularly insulted by the shot of Shepard's torso taking a breath because that's the kind of thing that sets up a sequel, not that closes out an epic, multi-hour trilogy.

3. There should be multiple endings of VARYING emotional tones. Many, including me, would like a happy ending, to see our hard work rewarded, to see Shepard get a deserved break (not that getting there shouldn't be a difficult/painful struggle). Every single one of the current endings feels equally miserable, confusing and lame to me.

4. The Reapers should be the bad guys. Why change the objective from the past three games in the last ten minutes? We've been trying to stop/kill the evil Reapers for five years and that's how I want to end it. Also Harbinger has been built up as the main Reaper villain, yet he made no impact on the game at all.

5. To me, the ending lacked in shots of all the characters and races contributing in the final battle. I wanted to see all the war assetts I collected doing their thing: Jack's biotics, Grunt and his squad of bad asses, some of the good Rachni, Major Kirrahe, Samara, Miranda, Jacob, Anderson, Wrex and my squadmates all contributing. Surely they aren't just sitting on the sidelines while Shepard and his team of two go fight the Reapers, right? Show us what they're doing, it will give us something to fight for, raise the stakes, possibly open up more opportunities to make decisions about the ongoing battle that could have consequences...

[HenchxNarf]

JesseLee202 wrote...

Dridengx wrote...

Change nothing. The game is perfect. Waste your resources and time on something else Bioware.

40k people disagree, and with good reason. We really want closure, no cliffhangers. A really bad case scenario (the reapers win).  and a good case, shep not seperated from his friends. 

Don't put down his opinion because you want yours to be heard. There are a large number who don't want anything changed.

[Xion66]

I'm not really a Tali fan, at least from a LI point of view but I know a lot of people are, and I can only imagine their heartbreak.

If you do decide to change/expand the endings, at least give them the chance to see a full 3D modelled Tali face, retcon the picture if you have too, I think that was a really meh thing to do and could totally been avoided.

I thought the Rannoch mission ending would have been a perfect time to show her face "I Want to see my homeworld with my eyes, and then just show the face".

I know it's a picky thing, but you'd make a LOT of people that i've seen enthralled by the character really happy.

[edrst10]

My main problems have to do with the ending of the game as most people have described. Some may be repetitive, but I want to make sure to confirm what others have said so that it is clear what is a personal preference and a shared recommendation.

I have to start by saying that everything up to the last conversation with Anderson was great. The game lost me as soon as Shepard started to ascend in the glowing elevator. Here are my main concerns:

1. Lore: The end is not consistent with the lore. The establishment of the mass relays laying waste to most of the solar system they are in is incompatible with Earth surviving and most of Galactic civilization.

2. Narrative Coherence: The last sequence is a departure from the overall narrative that had been established for the series through all three games. Shepard stops being himself when speaking to the starchild, he never questions the explanations he is given, dialogue options do not provide an avenue to have the Shepard we've being playing for 100+ hours be himself. In addition, the Star Child's explanations are circular and have no narrative or lore connection to the previous narrative or codex. It just doesn't make sense that the solution to preserve organic life from synthetics is to be killed and harvested by synthetics. The three choices given are random and seem to have little footing in established lore. The color code of the choices is not consistent with the narrative unless we resort to "indoctrination theory", which you can find on may threads here.

3. Deus Ex Machina: The use of the Starchild breaks immersion, and feels contrived, thereby breaking the experience the player has had for 100+ hours.

4. Plotholes: The Normandy escaping makes little sense. It is not compatible with Joker's character and it doesn't seem possible that he would be able to escape. Moreover, it doesn't make sense that the squadmates that were on Earth were in the Normandy with him. At the end of the game I should not be asking myself how that is possible as opposed to reflecting on the ending and the journey to the end. Similarly, Shepard surviving in one of the endings seems impossible and would need to be explained.

5. Closure: At the end I had no idea or hint as to why I was forced to pick three random decisions, why the Catalyst even existed, and what happenned to Galactic civilization and Shepard'a squadmates. This does not mean that everyone had to survive, but I feel like one should at least have an idea based on the choices one has made through out 3 games. In other words there needs to be more answers, even if there are a few questions left in the end to be pondered.

6. Action & Consequence: The actions and choices that one has made seem to have little bareing on the end of the game. In a sense, they are rendred meaningless. The ending needs more variety reflective of the choices one has made.

Possible Solutions:

1. The Indoctrination Theory which has been articulated so well in a couple of threads here provides a satisfactory avenue for "fixing" many of these issues. I for one wished it were true when I first saw it. It is consistent with the lore established of indoctrination that has been expanded since the first game in the plot and codex entries. Not only that but it permits to move towards an ending without jettisoning the ending we have up to this point.

2. At least some stills and text about what happenned after the endgame depending on your choices would be greatly apreciated.

Non-ending related stuff:

1. Tali deserves more than a photoshopped stock photo. The art of the Mass Effect universe contains some incredible designs and art work, and it is disappointing that the same care that has been used to design and present countless characters and races was not used in such a beloved character.

[Thornquist]

Do not change the endings you have. Ever.

Give us endings with more variables, let us see in a more direct manner what our choices meant in the end. Have endings with greater variety. Good endings, bad endings. Explain what happened to the people we love. Garrus, Tali, Liara, Wrex, etc.

Do not go with the indoctrination theory, that nullifies the endings you created - dont let angry forum ranters change the direction of this franchise. If Shepard dies, let me see people's reaction to it. Let me see Tali's face, in-game.

Dont make this the ending for the Universe, I do not want to play Mass Effect games that are prequels, I want to know how the Galactic society is going to progress after this ending. (this is something for Mass Effect 4, I suppose)

We understand that something must be left in the dark, but try to explain some of the confusions that came from these endings, did everyone die? What happened to Normandy? How did it get there? Is my Shepard truly alive (destroy option), did the star-childs three choices actually hold up?

Love this game & franchise, will continue to support Bioware. I have never seen a team this engaged in the fans' feedback. You guys are great! :-)

[DS Monkfish]

Definitely, definitely, being allowed to defy the Starchild's broken logic. If we managed to reunite the Geth and the Quarians, for example, we should be allowed to stand by that and refuse to accept that all synthetics are an unacceptable threat. This is all about breaking an endlessly-repeating cycle of mass-extermination and forging a better galaxy, so let Shep have the option of doing that on his/her terms, not those imposed by a (sorry, but it's true) lame character introduced out of the blue in the last few minutes.

From the start, we've wanted to kick the Reapers' butts, so we should be able to, even if it's difficult - we can still join them, go for synthesis or wipe out all synthetics, but please, if we want to, let us overcome the Reapers without HAVING to choose one of three confused, overly-similar and ultimately depressing options. We love this galaxy you've created, and we don't necessarily want to break it in order to save it. Bittersweet should be an option, not something imposed in every case regardless of what we did.

And I'd really rather my apparently dead squadmates from the London battle did not inexplicably end up on the Normandy, which is inexplicably fleeing from the fight. Kill 'em, sure, if you like - it's my fault if I took people I wanted to survive into the middle of a battle, just don't make us go "what the hell? Why... what.. What?" when we should be cheering or sobbing.

Ultimately, whatever you decide, one thing is crucial - the final act of a trilogy like this one, with all its choices and tough decisions, should leave us feeling that what we did mattered, that it counted, and that the ending was consistent with our actions throughout the game.

Sorry if this is rambling - it's 3.42 am in the UK and my head is swimming with ME3 ending stuff.  Still, this thread is greatly appreciated, thank you for listening, and for the otherwise fantastic game.

Modifié par dmath2, 17 mars 2012 - 03:44 .

[NR-Wesker]

Keep Tali's face the same. Don't change it, just give it a 3D model! And an epilogue of sorts if Shepard survived to reunite with his LI.

[N7racer]

Ok my main problems evolve the ending. The red, blue, and green endings are unsatisfying to say the least and offer the player no sense of complition or more importantly "choice". I did not like that fact that Joker is fleeing the largest battle in human history and how when they crash on an unknown planet your teammates on Earth are suddenly with him. Made no sense at all. The Catalyst being the little boy made no sense and Shepard just going along with his nonsense made it worse. Completely out of character for him.

I would like to see an ending option where Shepard puts his "faith" in humanity and all the races he brought together in order to defeat the Reapers. Also the ability to settle down with your main LI since it has been made clear that even if another ME game is made Shepard's journey is over. Our characters deserve "closure" and to be at rest. I would just like to say that I did enjoy the vast majority of ME3 but as soon as Shep steps onto the Citadel things took a bad turn. Thank you for listening to us and please give us a reason to believe you are still the company we all looked to for the best story/choice based rpg games.

[FoxShadowblade]

Reign Tsumiraki wrote...

 Ah, perfect! I already wrote up what I think would solve the problem...

*copypasta*

1.  Only change the ending starting from the last scene with Anderson/Shepard/TIM. Everything about the ending before that stays the same, with a few changes. 

2. Completely ignore the God-child-spirit. It conflicts and contradicts the "Protheans fooled the citadel" basis in ME1. This was important. Cut it out entirely.

3. Make several choices based off of war readiness, and how many assets went into the Crucible. Such as:

Very low: Launch a giant EMP burst that destroys all Reapers, AI, Citadel, Relays, most technology, ect, as well as sacrificing earth. Shepard dies. Normandy crashes, and everyone aboard dies.

Low: Same, but without damage to earth. Shepard dies. Normandy Crashes. Crew dies.

Medium-low: Burst that only destroys all AI. Shepard dies. Normandy Crashes, Crew dies.

Medium: Burst that destroys all AI in the Sol system, and the Reapers. This allows the Geth to live, but EDI dies. Saves the Relays, but not the citadel. Shepard dies. Normandy crashes, crew survives.

High-Medium: Releases a burst that disables the Reaper Shields across the galaxy, allowing the fleet to easily kill the rest(Reapers are weak without their shields, as ME1 shows. A single torpedo from the Normandy killed Sovereign without it's shields) Shepard lives. Normandy damaged, but does not crash, and the player is treated to a small cutscene of the Normandy and the fleet blowing up a few reapers. 

High: Sends out a burst attuned to the Reaper core (The Geth provide the information. They studied reapers, remember. If they are not available, the Quarians provide it, having researched the Reaper corpse on their planet) causing the Reapers' reactors to overload and die. However, the Reaper core just happens to be identical to the Core of the Citadel as well. The Citadel overloads and blows up. Shepard lives. Relays stay intact. Player is treated to a cutscene of the Reapers blowing up, troops on the ground rejoicing, as well as the Normandy picking him and Anderson's body up before Citadel explodes.


Very-high: Sends out a pulse that kills only Reapers. All tech stays intact. Shepard lives. Relays intact. Citadel intact. Player is treated to the cutscene above, minus the citadel explosion. 

In addition, the endings shown in the "original" game would be available. These would be available on the left side of the dialogue wheel, while the ones I have proposed would be on the right. Synthesis would be unlocked at the Very-High level, and Control would be unlocked at the High-Medium level. Destroy would be available no matter what.

To complete the Synthesis, Destroy, or Control ending, the player takes the elevator up to where the Original ending takes place. This way, they do not have to design an entirely new environment. The animations and flashbacks for these endings would stay the same. The only difference in the cutscene after this would be no Normandy crash.

The options of the three highest unlocked options would show up on the right of the wheel on the right side. For instance, someone who had Medium assets would get the option of killing all AI everywhere, all AI in the Sol system, or all technology everywhere without damage to earth.

The dialogue wheel would look like this, if someone had 100% of all assets.
                                Synthesis              Take down Sheilds
                                                __________/ 
                                               (                       )
                 Destroy    --------(                          ) ---Kill reapers, Destroy Citadel
                                               (                       )
                                                -----------------
                                               /                      
                                      Control                Kill all Reapers
4. Include a small, text and scene ending. Small clips of certain occations from the various decisions made will show. This will vary by ending.

EXAMPLE: Geth and Quarians rebuilding, all species rebuilding the invaded home planets, ect.

5. A small scene with Anderson and Shepard before Anderson dies, about what Shepard will do if the Crucible works. Shepard can then respond in a variety of ways depending on what options he is presented with because of the war assets claimed. Anderson then says the whole "I'm proud of you" spiel, wishes you luck, then dies.

EXAMPLE: 

Retiring and living in peace, finally, with LI(or alone, if that is the case).

Saying “This device will probably destroy the citadel and kill us, so it does not matter.”

Continue to pursue peace and justice as a Spectre.

Become a diplomat/politician and guide humanity

Ect.

6. Any teammates that were with you at the time you got shot by the reaper will run towards the teleport-beam and make it to the Citadel ahead of you, thinking that you died, and that they need to finish what you started. Upon arriving there, you meet up with them and get to the console. They also get manipulated by TIM, but only you are able to "break free" by shooting or talking down TIM. 



Anyway, that's my whole view on it. 


THIS WAY:  
Players can get the endings they want, the player can still sacrifice themselves to get the endings they want, the Devs can have the endings they want, and originally intended. The only thing this really cuts is the stupid spectral Ghost-child-God thing, which was ridiculous in the first place. 

How does this sound? I tried to address every concern and viewpoint, and combine them into one good ending that I think would please everyone. 

[Asepsis]

YAY FOR THIS THREAD!

Anyway, I did LOOOVEEEE<3 the game (except the endings).

My suggestions would be:

1.) Vary the endings AND more explanation (they didn't make sense OR give much closure besides seeing the Normandy crew surivive. That was about all the closure I got though.):

• The three we have now are basically the same, except for the color difference. I think these should be used as versions of indoctrination, not actual endings.

• An ending of total failure (for people who did not prepare at all). Earth harvested, reapers win, everyone dies (like the ME2 total failure ending)

• Endings for middle pathways, for example the mass relays could be destroyed but we kill the reapers, or we manage to kill the reapers but Shepard and crew die, etc. A bittersweet ending basically.

• An ending of complete victory (very hard to achieve), with destroying reapers, keeping the mass relays intact (this is a must), Shepard and crew surviving (with LI for those who wanted it) and allowing the geth/EDI to survive (it never made sense why they'd be destroyed along with reapers for me). Just allowing the mass relays to remain helps end so many problems on its own.

• INCLUDE THE INDOCTRINATION THEORY to explain why ME3 ended the way it already did. There are so many plot holes, things that just do not fit or makes sense, stories left unexplained, so much effort thrown in the garbage (I.E. Quarians getting their homeworld back, but then getting stuck in the Sol system because of no mass relays, etc.) The current endings seem more like a bad nightmare. Shepard wouldn't suddenly start listening to that ghost kid without question, it's not normal or logical to think that. I know if I had been fighting reapers that whole time, and then all of a sudden the God of all reapers tells me I HAVE to choose between three pre-set options....I'd laugh hysterically at the idea that it would even THINK I'd listen to it. It could be lying/trying to indoctrinate me.

• Include an option to tell that starchild thing to stuff it and allow us to destroy them (the cursing it out bit is optional but really something I'd enjoy).

I think the major thing though is to VARY THE ENDINGS! I worked so hard to recruit all the races and groups I could and the ending only shows me some Asari, Turians and Krogans for a brief moment. I want to see some Salarian ships, the terminus guys, some Batarian soldiers, etc. The ending could be so epic depending on how well (or not) we prepare.

I'll think of some more stuff, but this is a good start I think! I'm excited about this thread! THANKS!

[JulietHotel13]

you know right now im watching the last episode of Season 8 of Scrubs...thats how i want the ending to feel...awesome

[turian_rage]

camcon2100 wrote...

Go with the indoctrination theory. Make it so we face off with Harbinger for real this time. And make the crucible a realistic construct some sort of blast that weakens the Reapers. This allows us to use our EMS to determine how the rest plays out. This would be perfect

This this this, and oh, this.

[petipas4141]

NR-Wesker wrote...

Keep Tali's face the same. Don't change it, just give it a 3D model! And an epilogue of sorts if Shepard survived to reunite with his LI.

I'm all for this.

[ph0enix66]

My biggest problem with ending is the lack of resolve. I understand and want Cmdr. Shepard to die a hero's death, but that death has to mean something. The ending is jarring because it destroys a beloved universe. Relay's destruction and a lack of explaining how would the galactic community rebuilt is the biggest problem. I don't need an epilogue, I just need to know that Cmdr. Shepard's sacrifice is worth something. As the ending stands, it seems that Shepard's death achieved nothing.

Personally, I'd be extremely satisfied if the conversation with the Catalyst is completely removed, and the ending only shows Shepard and Anderson dieing side by side. The last cinematic could just show Reaper's defeat, and that would be fine, because this ending would show Galaxy has a hope of rebuilt. A DA:O or Halo 3 style eulogy would be the icing on the cake, but it isn't required for me.

Now, even though I would be fine with Shepard making the ultimate sacrifice, but it wouldn't hurt if an ending of Shepard barely surviving is included as ONE of the outcome. Again, there's no need for an epilogue. Simply in the style of Halo 3's legendary ending would be more than fine. Perhaps we see Shepard's LI digging him out of rumble, and another voice cries out something like "quick! he still has pulse..." would be extremely satisfying.

Apart from the ending, I really dislike the current Journal system. I never felt the old Journal system had any flaw, and the change made is addressing an non-existing problem. Also, a shooting range on board Normandy would help too. I'd say ME3 is 99.9% job well done, but the 0.1% blemish is on par with "midichlorian", which needs to be addressed promptly.

P.S. by the way, someone should seriously address Tali's face. The current stock image solution really comes across as lazy and shows lack of heart. Tali is too important to be treated this way. Please show me some originality.

Modifié par ph0enix66, 17 mars 2012 - 03:53 .

[BiowareHeart]

I would add to this thread, but it's all already here. Basically, whether you go with the indoctrination theory you as game designers leave SO much room to make it right. Let us refuse, let us fight! Also, as far as a final boss fight? You gave us the human reaper in ME2 and THAT left me screaming so loud I woke up 2 dogs in my neighborhood. Epic. Thrilling. Called my brother at 2am I was so stoked. Throw in a surprise or two. Go to town, but each ending as it stands has us go against one person we've sacrificed. Don't make us have them die in vain. That is UNLESS we screwed up having enough war assets to be able to truly fight the reapers. Also- let that kid transform into harbinger and let us fight him. Cause I really REALLY wanted to kill that guy.

[Kloborgg711]

HenchxNarf wrote...

JesseLee202 wrote...

Dridengx wrote...

Change nothing. The game is perfect. Waste your resources and time on something else Bioware.

40k people disagree, and with good reason. We really want closure, no cliffhangers. A really bad case scenario (the reapers win).  and a good case, shep not seperated from his friends. 

Don't put down his opinion because you want yours to be heard. There are a large number who don't want anything changed.

I hope not all of them are trolls like you and Dridengx, who literally go to these threads just to call us idiots and immature children.

You cannot tell me someone saying "the game is perfect" isn't trolling.

Please Bioware, conclusive ending with option for happiness based on EMS. Please. You'd make so many people (myself and many of my friends included) incredibly happy.

[afflictionwisp]

I'll repost here what I said in the dead thread: I don't want to tell Bioware how to end their game, I just want the narrative to stay as cohesive during the final moments as it was throughout the rest of the game. The first post of this thread covers specifics better than I can.

I will make only two suggestions about actual content, neither of which I concider all that important overall, but if people are listening, well, I might as well.
1 - Please remove the comments from the Catalyst that explain the reaper's purpose. The Reapers have always felt, to me, like a direct homage to H.P. Lovecraft's style of horror, and, like any Lovecraftian deity, if you try to explain its nature, origin, or motivation, it loses its mystique unless handled with absolute perfection. Those lines from the Catalyst were treading on thin ice, and it didn't work.
2 - On a much more humble and personal note, Harbinger had such great buildup during ME2 that it seems a shame to pull him/it out of the direct story so much. I'd love to see him have some interaction with Shepard, a speaking role, if time can be found for it without ruining the pacing.

Modifié par afflictionwisp, 17 mars 2012 - 03:45 .

[LenabotSE]

I understand that it's difficult to please everyone. That may have been part of the reason why the endings were left up to interpretation -- it allowed people to "finish" the story with their own ending. However, this has... obviously not gone over well. It's not that the endings were bleak. It's not that they involved some form of sacrifice. A lot of us went into the game assuming that there was a strong chance Shepard would die.

The problems stem more from the plot holes and lack of closure. As some have rightly put it, we did not pay $60-$100 (or more, for Europeans/Aussies) to use nothing but our imagination to determine how the galaxy and our crew survives. Especially after all the promises of "We won't end this like Lost," and "We'll answer the big questions." Which remain unfulfilled. It doesn't help that the endings aren't exactly... original. Mass Effect draws in sci-fi fans. You have to expect that some, if not most, of us are very genre-savvy and can recognize reused material. Falling back on a trope isn't inherently bad, but you have to put your own distinct spin on it.

And, then, the plot holes.


* Harbinger breaking off when Shepard is clearly getting back up, allowing him/her to practically just waltz into a lightly defended beam. The Reapers are supposed to be smart.

* For that matter, Harbinger! Sure, might have been annoying in ME2 with all those comments, but that at least earned us a right to figuratively punch him across his squiddy face. He wanted to direct those battle personally, after all, so it's now a personal matter.

* It makes no sense for Anderson to be ahead of you inside an unguarded Citadel. Especially after supposedly getting in there after you. Given narration, he can't be so far ahead that we can't see him.

* The entire Normandy situation. The "good" version of the Crucible firing only effects the Reapers. There's no reason for Joker to be fleeing the blast in these versions. Nor would he or any of the crew abandon Shepard if there's even a slight chance of him/her being alive. Not even if ordered. Defies his earlier dialogue of "not leaving you again."

* There's no real need for Shepard to "die" during the Control or Synthesis options. That was forced drama. Even JC Denton got to live. Same with being told that "Destroy" would also take out the geth and EDI.

Which just points out a few of the big ones. I think the only real chance here is to jump on board the Indoctrination Theory and make it official. Have Shepard - regardless of Crucible chocie - wake up in the rubble with Harbinger in the full swing of trying to seize Shepard. Put that "Shepard possessed by indoctrination" bit back in -- even if just a cutscene. Then move on to a sensible ending.

Fans will likely not be okay with DLC unless it's related to the endings at this point. Too many ready to say goodbye to the series as a whole. Which was brilliant until it took this turn. The crew - effectively Shepard's family - was one of the most important parts of the entire series. You do not abandon family during the end of the world.

Shepard doesn't absolutely need to live. But a big happy ending would not go amiss as a reward for those who, if not doing the best in ME3, played through all three games. I can picture a renegade Shepard ruling as a supreme councilor with the Reapers as his personal armada. I can picture a paragon Shepard, backed by the unified species of the galaxy, destroying them. I can see options where Shepard blows them up but carries on as a freelancer with the ol' misfit crew, getting into trouble out in the Terminus systems. I can see heroic sacrifice.

Imagination is nice and gives us unlimited options, but the thing about there being lots of endings is that there should be at least some big ones that appeal to the biggest fantasies. ME2's final mission was so complex. This one was.... quite simple. And since it's the finale, and the biggest showdown in ME's history, that ain't right.

[Cheese of Borg]

 The CONCEPT of the ending was fine, but the way it was played out was flawed.  Shepard just flat out acepts that there is only three options. ("what" "oh ok" "third option?" "right").