7052 réponses à ce sujet

[ZombieChad]

Seen as you've stated that all you're willing to do is additional cutscenes (which is what I figured). Cutscenes for all of our major active combat War Assets would be greatly appreciated.
EG:
Aralakh company: Saved Rachni Queen leads to Grunt's death as he has newer Krogan with him. Whereas if you abandon her he'll survive as he's got his team of double-hard veterans.
Important Named characters like Miranda etc. Upgrade the fighters with the N7mission and she lives, rush in without and she dies.

[StarcloudSWG]

Synthesis is impossible on a physics level.

In order for synthesis to work, the magic beam must be able to determine the velocity and position of every sub-atomic particle in the galaxy, decide whether that particle is part of an organic living being or an inorganic self-aware construct, alter its position according to some greater 'framework' that develops working circuitry, and do so inside of a fraction of time too small to be measureable.

Thus, the derogatory term of "Space magic" which is rightfully directed towards the Synthesis ending. And then there's the quote from the writing team: "We didn't want it to be magic in space." This is magic in space. It does NOT belong in Mass Effect.

Even within the reference set of Mass Effect, there is no excuse for this impossible feat. The Crucible uses dark energy to do whatever it does; dark energy has the clearly defined properties of manipulating mass and inertia, and as a secondary effect of that, gravity. In no way can it spontaneously cause anything to transform into a metal.

Synthesis, therefore, must be rejected as being a lie; its only purpose for existing is to let the Reaper AI give Shepard another way to commit suicide.

Note, I do not have a problem with the *idea* of Synthesis; if the effect had been limited to Shepard alone, by the addition of a synthetic neural net grown within Shepard's brain, and then networking/uploading copies of Shepard into all the Reapers, that could have worked just fine. Unfortunately, that would mean leaving Shepard alive and Casey Hudson seems to think that's a bad thing.

[lasrmountedmoai]

Just wanted to chime in with my .02 regarding the ending.
Not going to lie: I am a fan of the series and was swept up. Loved seeing off the characters I'd been along for the ride with and I think the Indoctrination Theory is a stretch. I'm surprised how upset people are at the reuse of assets in the ending despite how the various endings still result in far different results depending on their choices and their readiness. The whole series has had to take narrative shortcuts to account for the variety of choices. Look at how characters were replaced if they didn't survive the suicide mission.

With that said, I've sat with my ultra-paragon green ending for a couple days now and Synthesis just doesn't seem like what choice she would have made. My Shep defended the Geth and Edi, defended the Krogan, united the galaxy in a truly unprecedented way. She believed enough in the potential for both AI and Organic life to break the cycle that she put the entire galaxy on the line to win the right to see it through, yet the only choice she had to make sure they all survived was "Synthesis"?

I see the angle- the singularity, the inevitability, but I don't buy it. I would have loved a paragon conversation option or paragon interrupt where Shep argues against syntethesis but for the opportunity to attempt a new path for AI and Organics to live side by side. The Geth and the Quarians working together, EDI and Joker. Have Shep challenge the Star Child, even offer to show her by jumping into the stream and sharing herself with it- to show it the potential of a Galaxy that has finally learned how to move on. The friendships she'd gained over the years and the way she'd persevered.

She can still die her noble death. The Mass relays can still be destroyed in calling off the reapers. Joker can still inexplicably pilot the Normandy away from Earth, just give me the option of survival for all without Synthesis and without taking control of the reapers.

[Paladin1337]

Bioware needs to suck this all up and fix it. When MIT students pointed out to Larry Niven that the Ringworld was unstable and would eventually crash into the sun it was around (not orbited as they pointed out), he FIXED it by addressing that in the second book. Man up Bioware, man up.

[Agduk]

Oh, one more quick thing hit me:

You know, Bioware, you still have an out. You told us you "Wouldn't change the ending". Which could be perfectly fine -- I will just studiously point out that what we heard was not *the* ending, but just one ending told by the Stargazer to his child in the far future.

Time to whip out the whole Varic-is-just-reframing-the-narrative toolkit, and have that old man give us the *Real* ending.

[kwilliams791]

 Hi Bioware! 

Firstly, congratulations! What an incredible job you guys have done with Mass Effect 3. Seriously, it had me fully on the edge of my seat and obsessed about the decisions I was making nearly for the whole 3 weeks it took me to get through it. The depth of the characters and the storyline is amazing- it's really clear that it was an awesome undertaking and I think you've really done the final chapter justice. The only things that I was mildly upset about were:

1. That I didn't get to see all of the war assets in the battle on Earth - would have loved to see the Rachni queen battling with the Elcor warriors against Reaper forces, and the rest of my squad who wasn't following me leading sections of the fight. Something akin to being able to see the upgrades on the Normandy in ME2 affecting the battle would be fantastic for the War Assets. 

2. Some storyline closure - Why was Joker running away with the rest of the crew? How did my squad get back to the Normandy? What is this new "little boy" character all about? It seems like a very dreamlike sequence at the end - if it's not "the indoctrination theory", could that be made clearer so we have a finite answer?

3. I was quite sad that I didn't get to see any sort of closure for the rest of my squad - or actually the rest of the galaxy's population. Who of my squad survived? Did the rest of the fleet actually manage to get away to their homeworlds even though the mass relays were destroyed? I was desperately hoping that Shepard would be able to at least see their love interest again.. loved that part of the story.

4. That in the end, I didn't feel like a lot of the decisions I'd agonised over really mattered. The outcome for all of the decisions is practically the same. And if Shepard is truly alive- some hope that he/she would be able to possibly find his/her friends would be what I need to feel content. 

All in all, a fantastic game guys. I understand that a perfect ending wasn't really a realistic ending for the epic story that we've all dedicated however many hours to. But at the same time, if that was the ending that gamers needed for full closure, couldn't there be an option? In any case, some extra cutscenes and dialog in which we were told some more of the facts about the end I think it would go a long way to satisfying some of the angry people out there  

Again, well done Bioware, what an amazing achievement for the gaming world. 
Katie 

[BlazingZephyr]

I will admit, I am a passenger of the ten billion mile wide bandwagon that is extremely diappointed with the ending. And, contrary to the beliefs of the people who came up with the Ext. Cut DLC, closure is not the main issue. Sure, I'd like a few questions answered here and a few things explained there, but I'd much rather finish an epic trilogy without asking about massive plot holes or why every nothing I did matters in the long-run. I don't believe a few more cutscenes and dialogue can put back together so much broken glass. However, Bioware has the option to build a mosaic from the scattered mess.

In my opinion, the Indoctrination Theory (I shouldn't need to explain it), regardless of whether BioWare planned it or not, poses the best solution to both the fans' and BW's problems.The entire ending of ME3 could take place as a struggle in Shepard's mind, allowing the developers to keep the sequences they've already made (opposed to throwing all of it out the window for a new ending) and simply adding more cinematics and a bit of gameplay.This wouldn't differ much from making the Ext. Cut, except for added gameplay.
_________________________________________________
However, disappointment with the ending, is not my only issue. The side-missions seemed very rushed, much like the ending.They require little to no interaction with the "questholder." for Shepard only needs to overhear a hypothetical conversation in order to embark on a voyage across the galaxy, spending thousands of credits in fuel, just to send a probe to find an object that earns him a thank you and just enough credits to make up for fuel costs.

Obtaining sidequests should include at least a short conversation with the questholder so Shepard doesn't come across as some stalkerish guy that just traversed the galaxy for some book or statue.Also, the missions need more relevance and variety. It gets somewhat tedious flying around scanning and probing planets for an object of little insignificance.

[ctanctan]

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 would be the simplist and most reliable change.. and to placate those that don't want the change just make this DLC completely separate from any other DLC and therefore entirely optional

[Argetfalcon]

An ending where shepard lives without having to destroy edi and the geth.

More closure especially about the characters

Longer sword and hammer battle cutscene that shows off most of our war assets, (especially the rachni).

AND a complete retcon of Tali's face, (or just remove the picture of her), because how that was handled was unjustifiable. (Also fire whoever thought that was a good idea)

[darkelightnx01]

I'm still a fan of the dark energy idea, as it's particularly pertinent part of cutting edge science, I think it would also make give the reapers better motivation for the culling of species who beginning to make extensive use of dark energy through biotics and the relay network. Thus reapers wiping out civilisations who are contributing to universal expansion through dark energy. If this could be substituted for the creating synthetics who will destroy you explanation I think the story would be more cohesive as a result. Also I didn't care for the synthesis ending, but I did think the control option was a great choice for a renegade character. As for shepard conversing with the catalyst I felt Shepard was far too accepting of the options before him. To me Shepard has always been capable of being adversarial even to his allies it would be good to see him object to the options more than he did. I would also like the mass relays to not be irretrievable as I would like to play other ME games in the future and feel that without the relays this would be impractical for other sequels. In closing dark energy replacing the synethetic motivation would be simpler and more cost effective options to satisfy your audience. My ideal choices at the end. 1. Refuse to help the catalyst and let the battle continue. 2. Destroy (but only the reapers) 3. Control (paragon leaves) 4. Control (renegade continues to attack earth and end the cycle)

[RevanSol]

So I don't know if they're still taking our feedback into account but I just have to comment. That said, I am one of the many fans who was disappointed by the ending. I don't mind a lot of the plot holes, but there is one really big one that really sticks for me. At the end of the Arrival dlc, Shepard destroys a Mass Relay to prevent the Reapers from coming in to start destroying the galaxy at that time. But destroying the Mass Relay doesn't just end with it being destroyed; the resulting explosion WIPES OUT the ENTIRE SYSTEM. So, if this ending is the true ending, wherein all the Mass Relays are destroyed...then wouldn't every system that contains a Mass Relay also be destroyed? And note that all the major systems - containing all the major planets such as: Earth, Thessia, Palaven, Tuchanka, etc. - have a Mass Relay. So then, it's only logical to conclude that pretty much the entirety of galactic civilization is destroyed along with the destruction of all the Mass Relays. So basically, no matter what choice you're making, you're essentially doing the Reapers' job for them in wiping out the whole galaxy. Oh sure, a few remote colonies might still manage to survive, where a relay doesn't inhabit the same system, but most of your people and tech will have been on those main worlds that've just been wiped off the face of the galactic map. So basically, it's a no-win situation. Reapers die, you die, the galaxy dies...

That said, and so far, out of everything I've seen from forum posts to youtube videos, I like the indoctrination theory best. Knowing that it was all in Shepard's head, while he's lying there, really still back on Earth. Whether all the plot holes were intentional or not, the indoctrination theory seems like it presents the best solution. Shepard still has the chance of getting back up and defeating the reapers and getting the ending and closure that the game deserves. If the current ending is maintained as the true ending...well, I don't see how tacking on a few cinematics in a dlc is really going to make the ending any less depressing, or give me the closure I'm seeking that would make the game, or series worthwhile to ever play again. I really want to see that golden ending that was promised, preferably one where the Shepard that I've spent countless hours playing and perfected could live..or at the very least, get the choice to actually save the galaxy (by not destroying all the mass relays and the systems that host them).

Also I have to agree that the whole Dark Energy tie-in would be nice. It makes more sense for that to be a reason for the Reapers to want to wipe out the galaxy for that reason, than for the whole, synthetics will always rebel against their masters bit. That just didn't make much sense, especially when Shepard just spent all that time and effort to broker a peace between the Quarians/Geth. Given that example, and the example of EDI cooperating with mankind, synthetics destroying organics isn't really a set in stone thing. Plus, there was so much foreshadowing of Dark Energy, I'd hate to see that bit go to waste.

Modifié par RevanSol, 11 avril 2012 - 07:32 .

[Akhara]

I still don't know why they don't just take the ending in a new direction and blow everyones minds. Hell, if they don't want to do indoctrination theory...do something about how starkid is actually a projection from Keepers. Let's say a small portion of the Keepers collective consciousness was still intact and they are using the starkid to manipulate Sheperd to their own desires in regards to the fate of the Reaper's (their supposed masters). I know this idea is full of plotholes....but cmon.....why doesnt Bioware hit us with something totally unexpected (like in jade empire) and just write the crap out of it to allow it to make sense and make it awesome.

Modifié par Akhara, 11 avril 2012 - 07:39 .

[Akhara]

Another possibility is setting up the starkid as a rogue AI that has convinced itself that endings ABC are the only possible outcome...even though they aren't. Pull a I-Robot where the AI calculates decisions based on logic...but are unfortunately morally wrong. Have Shepard duke it out with him and discuss how the events with EDI and the Geth have redefined what it means to be 'synthetic'.

[Akhara]

Heck, even has a possibility where Shepard enters into a battle of wits with the starkid to try and pull details of his origin and possibly exploit a weakness. I can see it now:

Shepard- "So how do you exist exactly?"

Starkid- "I exist via an internal powersupply contained within the Crucible itself."

Shepard-"So you're saying this circuit board over here is the powersource to your AI existence."

Starkid-"In simplified terms....yes."

Shepard-"You also mentioned you are the penultimate controller of the reapers....and they would go into chaos without your guidance."

Starkid-"Of course, it is how we maintained the cycle this long."

Shepard-"And once again that circuit board is the direct link to your powersource?"

Starkid-"Yes...why are you asking repeating....OH #$%#"

*Shepard destroys circuit board, shuts down starkid, and throws reapers into chaos.

Shepard-"Well I guess that....*puts on sunglasses*.....pulls the plug on the Reapers"

YYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[Moorningstaar]

Thanks to YumeKatsume I now have a good idea of what people are talking about when it comes to IT. Thanks for the link. And I have to admit that the video was an impresive bit of work. I can find no fault with most of their interpretations, but only as possible interpretations. Many of them are ambiguous. The child shepard meets talks while anderson is in another room with a huge battle going on. It doesn't surprise me he doesnt hear it. There is nothing definitive that it is an halucination. There are a few other spots that I believe are open for interpretation, but on the whole, impressive work.
However I would like to point out that the 'It was all a dream' plot line is so overused as to have become cliche in SF. So much so that SF publishers will not even look at it (I know). To be fair it is an incredibly cheap trick in a desperate attempt to make it seem like the author had some master plan that would tie the entire story together.
That being said, if they did it well I (and I'm a little ashamed to say this) would probably accept it. It is certainly the most expedient solution. But, remember what we learned from these games. The most expedient solution is the Renegade solution. Go Paragon Bioware!

Modifié par Moorningstaar, 11 avril 2012 - 08:27 .

[darkelightnx01]

I know the extended cut is on its way now, but please consider this; at present the catalyst has developed a race of synthetics to kill races before they can build synthetics that will kill them. I really have a hard swallowing that it just seems a little silly. However if you substituted the catalyst created the reapers to stop races adding to the dark energy effect on the galaxy by ending their civilisation it's a bit brutal but at least it's logical and only a minor change to what follows story wise .

[StElmo]

Make the hullucination theory true. I liked that theory and it makes it seem logical.

[StElmo]

Amazing!

[save00us]

What I expected in this game was that the war asset would be like "the battle of denerim" in Dragon Age: Origins. Where you see all the war asset/allied races join you into battle with ogres/darkspawn/arch-demon. DAO had a grim choice like ME3, which forces you to choose to save yourself or alistair as the saviour. I was hoping of a similar ending battle and somewhat a funeral for Shepard in the ending.

[rev1976]

hows this for a suggestion bioware?

release a free game editor

something like what valve did for the half life 2 series with the hammer editor.
that way you keep everyone happy - your original game keeps its "artistic integrity" (damn i cant even type that without laughing my ass off) and those who are dissatisfied can create the ending they want (or which should have been supplied depending on opinion)

bonus: this will keep interest high for the game for years to come as people download and play through different scenarios, and would be a good way for your company to trawl for new tallent.

a simple idea from the application of logic as opposed to whatever the hell your pr drones are dishing out.

[omikron199]

The EA assumed direct control of some indoctrinated leading personal in bioware and ordered them to cut ending so bw could make a new game and EA could milk more money from fanbase

[RABicle]

IMPORTANT NON ENDING RELATED CHANGE THAT NEEDS TO BE MADE!
After fighting the reaper on Rannoch, the Reaper again says that it's plans are beyond our understanding, on the left Sheperd has the option to say "help us understand" while on the right and the paragon nd renegade options. The left option is unique in the whole series in that it doesn't loop the conversation tree around so we can make our paragon/renegade statement, i continues down third conversation outcome and rewards no reputation points. This needs to be rectified, if only by moving the dialogue option over to the right.

[EthanDirtch]

Lots of good points (at least on this last page here, as I'm reluctant to read 255-ish pages of posts). I'll preface my part in this discussion the same way a lot of people have: the Mass Effect trilogy was a great one. It's a very believable universe with a lot of depth that you could easily lose yourself in. It's not perfect, but it definitely hit a lot of those classic cinematic high notes in each of the three games, and as a trilogy. In addition, while I'm not really a fan of *forcing* a writer, artist, or creative team to change their vision or narrative after it has already been produced, I will still partake in this discussion and treat it as, "What I would have done if I were in your shoes".

In no particular order of importance, but I will try to keep it within specific categories as much as possible:

Ending Sequence:

-Cinematic Normandy scene: I'd love to think I have a pretty firm grasp on logic and rationale when it comes to a lot of things. And it did disturb me a little about how the fate of the Normandy played out after Shepard made his choice. I realize the team wanted to go with a dramatic crisis point for the crew and squad, but I feel it was a little over the top. The Normandy is the lone ship running away from the giant ball of energy? And why try to out run it in that manner? Then there's the inexplicable fact that at least some of the squad was back on the Normandy, oh, and the fact that Joker--a man with so-called 'brittle-bone disease'--manages to exit the crashed starship under his own power, Synthesis or no.

My Changes: I don't mind seeing the Normandy try to out run the shockwave that cascades directly from the Citadel/Crucible. That would make sense. Have the Normandy crash on Earth, or on Luna, while it was in the middle of battle. I would then have Joker be assisted out of the ship by one of the crew members, someone like Traynor, or Adams, or Chakwas, would be logical options. And, rather than having any of the squad exit the ship, it should be all of those named characters that are already on board: the three I mentioned, plus Daniels and Donnelly. It makes no logical sense for any of the squad to be on the Normandy when *ALL* of them were on Earth, as evidenced by all the conversations Shepard has with them before the Thanix Missile mission, and driven home by his speech to the whole squad. I can't imagine why he would send any of them back up to the Normandy; if his intention was always to send most of them back anyway, why not just leave them there? If that were the case, you could just take the two squad members you wanted and talk to the rest via that fortunately-placed communications officer who had instant contact with a bunch of other characters that never made it onto the squad.

In short: Normandy hit by shockwave, not signal beam; Joker injured; crew members, not squad members in scene; if squad members, remove second 'choose squad' option in final mission and talk to rest of squad via communications officer. Ethan's preference is to just use crew members in Normandy cutscene.

-Cinematic: Fleet movement, and ground troops: This one is short and sweet: I see Turians, I see Asari, I see Krogan, I see Salarians, and I see Quarians on the ground. Where are the Geth? By achieving true AI consciousness, aren't their susceptability to Reaper control now on par with organic indoctrination? EDI has no problem fighting Reaper forces. I can maybe understand why Rachni aren't there (they no longer have the troops, they're more easily controlled), but I thought Geth should've been down there. Same in the fleet scene. Again, I understand why Rachni wouldn't be there (we've never seen Rachni ships, and I doubt they had many to begin with), but Geth easily had the second or third largest extant fleet in the Galaxy next to the Quarians. Even the Batarians are missing. And can we please see Elcor with weapons mounted on their back on the field? And the FOB needed more diversity, I think. It's clear all known species are in on this fight now, we needed to see more of them in FOB, and more of them in the final ground war scenes.

-The Catalyst: I think this could have been handled differently. Much differently. But it would involve change significant portions of the game. My biggest problem with this is the whole 'deus ex machina' aspect of the Catalyst 'child', the mention of 'someone controlling the reapers' with Vendetta, and etc. It just makes the Reapers as a force feel...weaker, feel less imposing. That they're not the real masters of their own fate, but are instead the simply foot soldiers--or even puppets--of some 'other' is a little disappointing. It wasn't awful, and it's not something I'd throw my controller at the TV for (note: I'd never do that, controllers and TVs are too expensive). It's just a little...off. And then there's the fact that the 'child' exists as this missing piece that either destroys or 'fixes' everything in one fell swoop. I always knew that the end involved a massive weapon pointed at the Mass Relays that will alter the dynamic of the war in one way or another, it was the logical end, possibly the only end, but the way it went down could have been better. And the fact that the 'child's argument to stopping syntethics was to use synthetics to destroy organics to avoid synthetics going out of control and destroying organics is...a little backwards for somebody supposedly 'beyond' mortals.

My Changes: If it were totally up to me, I'd cut the 'child' away from the ending altogether. I think we could have come to the same (albeit more organic) solutions without the need of a godlike figure dispensing the sort of dialogue we received. If necessary, the role the 'child' played could have been given to Anderson and the Illusive Man. I realize the 'child' harkens back to that Volus billionaire on that obscure planet talking about beings of light that protect us from synthetics. If the 'child' was needed to appear at all, I think I would have made 'his' prescence felt more clearly from the beginning of the game. Have the 'child' constantly try to talk to Shepard, or appear where and when no one else sees 'him'. This could add another layer of questioning Shepard's sanity: is he indoctrinated, is he cracking under the pressure, can we really trust him to do this? And then having Shepard overcome that doubt and rally the troops still could add more drama. Another change on top of that--if the 'child' was necessary--is to have 'him' be a remnant from a much older civilization that existed prior to, or right at the same time as, the first reapers. Have 'him' explain that he opposes the Reapers for they--'his' species' creation--destroyed 'his' civilization and that 'his' plan to use the Crucible to destroy the Reapers, but in so doing ends all organic life in this galaxy, etc and etc. In

In short: remove 'child' section of ending sequence; if 'child' must remain, should have had him be more prominent in Shepard's journery (i.e. be something clearly not human, or not be a simple nightmare), rather than being 'thrown in' at last minute, and have 'child' be a race opposed to Reapers instead of as its master. Ethan's preference is to have no 'child' at all in ending

-The Choices: Let me preface this part by saying, I don't think this trilogy could have ended with anything but the death of Shepard. I mean, part of me wants to say otherwise, that his/her story would continue, that we would have another game to spend $60-$80+ and a couple hundred hours on with our favorite Commander in Citadel controlled space, and part of me is hopeful that BioWare does continue to do more with even without Shepard as there are still possibilities and potential that might not even need mega-galactic threats (I'd love to have a game focused on Garrus or one of the other squad members, or even on a new Spectre, going off in a new journey fighting threats much less Galactic and more personal). But, in the end, it probably really was the only ending possible to close this trilogy off. With all that said, the endings--two of which were clearly obvious (control/destroy)--were missing a better 'third' option. I agree with the sentiment of others in that 'Synthesis'--while a great theory/idea if that was one you were pushing from the get-go--could have been supplanted easily by the paragon choice of 'we want to make our own future'. It's the Geth answer. 'Synthesis' forces change or evolution on everyone, everywhere, at the same time. It's the Illusive Man motivation: force evolution, jump start humanity by controlling Reapers. Granted, no one was turned into Husks when the big green beam hit the Relays, but you--as Shepard--was forced to chooce to essentially 'infect', or 'transform', everyone on a genetic level. As a truly paragon Shepard, is that really the choice he/she would have made? While Shepard was always a hard person, that he/she needs to get things done sometimes at great cost (re: Arrival), is this really the only 'optimal' choice we had? 

My Changes: Replace synthesis with a better paragon option of convincing the 'child' to simply leave us alone and let us see what the future brings. Shepard dies from his/her injuries just as the Reapers leave and other arrive to the Citadel (i.e. love interest, classic dramatic 'hero dies in lover's arms', and/or 'lover cries over hero's body' scene). This 'Synthesis' ending problem wouldn't be much of a problem if we removed the 'child' section, and allowed the Crucible to just target Reapers specifically, rather than target all synthetics.

In Short: replace 'Synthesis' with convincing child to simply leave, or otherwise allow us to use the Crucible to destroy Reapers only. Ethan's preference? RE: The Catalyst section of this wall of text, and use Crucible to simply destroy or render intert the Reapers.

(I can even accept that destroying the Reapers still caused significant damage; destroying the Relays effectively ends the galactic community as it was before the game anyway).

-Organic Ending: Short, sweet: I'm not a fan of arbitary 'ending' choices. I realize what happened in ME3 (a choice in the end) was in line with the previous two games (RE: saving or not saving the Council, RE: saving or destroying Collector Base), but the first two games had the benefit of having another game to look forward to. The consequences of those choices weren't felt immediately until the next game (or, in ME1's case, two games). By the third game, by its ending, I think the choices we've made to that point could've been more organically presented, if we were to have had a choice in the matter at all. I already discussed the problems I've had with how the ending was presented, and made suggestions of how I would have done things differently. Would Shepard really have chosen to destroy all synthetics if he had already given them true AI Consciousness and actualization? Would he have really forced genetic change on everyone when he had spent years in a campaign fighting against an enemy forcing genetic change (i.e. husks, being processed to become a Reaper)? Am I reading into this way too much?

-Viewing all endings in one playthrough: Only change: don't allow this? I mean, if the whole point was to replay the game to see how all your choices pan out (which harkens back to my previous paragraph just now about 'Organic Endings'), why allow us the exploitative opportunity to replay from a previous autosave, or quick save, or save-save, and be able to view ALL the endings? It does defeat the effect of replay value.

I apologize for the huge wall of text, but those are my major gripes. Here are some minor story gripes I'd love to see resolved, or if I was in the creative team, would have done differently:

-Better use of ME2-only squad members (i.e. Miranda, Jacob, etc.): Mordin got a good send off, and Thane and Jack and Legion played significant roles in their own rights, but I honestly would have loved to have had the option to recruit one or two of them. Maybe even have missions where they become temporary squad members (re: Anderson, and Liara in 'The Lair of the Shadow Broker'). I would have loved to have had more closure in regards to them, more missions if money and time provided for them, and just more conversations. Everyone seems to have a QEC anyway in ME3, why can't I just the vid room to just chit chat with them between missions, to see where everyone is at, what's going on, if they got leads on assets, etc? Also, I don't get a Krogan on the team? Really!? At the very least, have the option to bring back ME2-only love interests into the Squad.

-Closure: I know the free DLC is out soon, but I do hope it involves *everyone*, if indeed this is the last of the ME games involving these characters. Everyone still alive from ME2, everyone still alive by the end of ME3, even funeral services for Mordin, Thane, Anderson, Shepard (depending on which ending you choose). I would also like closure on the Udina thing. Was he indoctrinated? What happened? What happened to Bailey and the Council in the Citadel? Are they all dead? Did they get off the ship somehow? I doubt you'll have a cutscene for everyone (though it'd be cool if you did), but I'm not sure if it will be enough for a lot of people if we only get codex entries, lol. Also, an explanation of why these solar systems did not blow up after the Relays blew up.

-updating codex: the mission codex entries needs to update a bit better, I think. It's tough to follow what just happened story-wise some times when I need to remind myself what just happened, and the codex mission entries don't always update.

-sexy-fying Ashley: I'm all for a change of appearance, but I felt Ashley is...too sexy now? I mean, I found her more endearing with her hair up and being a soldier's soldier while still being a woman. What happened to her never being the kind of girl that wears a tin-foil skirt from the first game? I think that was her line...ya know, that bit where she and Kaidan were talking about the Citadel and Shepard comes in talking about stuff and the skirt topic came up? Anyway, if it was up to me, I'd have given her short hair. Short hair could be functional and still be sexy if done right. If she needed long hair, I'd have left it either up, or in a pony tail, and then only let it 'down' for the 'intimate' scene near the end if you romanced her.

Anyway, that's it for story-related stuff. I know it's a really long post, but I needed to get it off my chest. Again, I'm not really one for 'forcing' creative teams to change their art and narrative after it has already been mass produced. And a lot of what I suggested isn't exactly feasible anyway. But I do hope that BioWare continues to listen to us and use this feedback to be a bit more cautious and more certain with their products in the future, ME, DA, or otherwise. I hope I didn't come off as too biting with some of my comments (I apologize if I did, as that was not my intention), and that my...essay, I guess...comes off as constructive, and makes sense to a degree in spite of its rambling nature. Thanks for the journey to the end; the journey itself was still grand, regardless of the ending. Great job, BioWare! Looking forward to whatever big project you guys have in store for us

Modifié par EthanDirtch, 11 avril 2012 - 07:37 .

[happy_diplomat]

All I want is an ending that finalizes the trilogy, the open ended garbage with the final buy DLC message at end was a gut punch, and knife in the back I expect from other developers, though not so much from EA as they did Deus Ex.........Shivers......Though I do believe in second chances, waiting for the DLC in the summer is a third chance, and seriously..........Open ended is not, and will never make a good ending for any game or "artistic medium" other than horror or one shot wonder genres with no views of franchising or making a solid base to support future work. Maybe cult fans, but not die hard will buy next game fans.

[BrowncoatN7]

The ending feels incomplete, best case scenario is (someone I assume is) Shepard taking a breath, and then it cuts to the credits. It is as if Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows would have ended after "He was lying face down on the ground again." (page 580, start of The Flaw in the Plan). After everything Shepard's been through, don't you think (s)he deserves the option for a happy ending, and a reunion with her/his love interest? Mass Effect 3 is a game, give us a chance to win.

With the destruction of the mass relays, we also destroyed galactic civilization as we know it. Even if the relays doesn't react like the Alpha Relay, travelling between clusters will become very difficult. Will the quarians in the Sol system ever see Rannoch again? What about all the other races? Please let the mass relays stay, and not just in the Control ending.

The Starchild's logic doesn't make any sense, it creates synthetics to kill us with, before we create synthetics that will kill us? The quarians and the geth are finally getting along, and (unfortunately) so are EDI and Joker (he's mine, EDI). Also, why is Shepard just listening to it? It created the reapers, it's the enemy, and Shepard just agrees with what it is saying, and does what it tells her/him. There should be an option to say no to it, a winning option. I hope the indoctrination theory is correct, in that case the right choice is Destroy. I just hope I didn't kill the geth and EDI.

And what happened to Joker? After Thessia he confessed that he feels guilty about Shepard's death, why would he just abandon her/him in the end after kidnapping my squadmates? And them being stranded on some random planet without hope of ever getting away isn't a happy ending. Give us an ending that makes us want to play through the trilogy again, not an ending that just makes us think "What's the point?".

I also have a suggestion not related to the ending; there are two love interests for a straight female Shepard in ME3; Garrus and Kaidan, while there are six for a straight male: Miranda, Tali, Jack, Ashley, Liara and Diana Allers. I suggest that you add Joker and possibly James as love interests in order to even out the numbers a little bit.

On a side note, happy Shepard's -142nd birthday, everybody!