v0rt3x22 wrote...Mass Effect has always been about Shepard's story - and many of us love Shepard - and some people even argue that Mass Effect wouldn't be the same without him.
While I certainly see Shepard's importance as the player's avatar into the Mass Effect universe, I by no means think she's the most interesting character in the game. In fact, I think one of ME3's bigger flaws in it's story department was making the game so Shepard oriented that it pushed a lot of other interesting characters down.
The thing you've got to remember about Shepard is that she is a character who is committed from the very beginning of the first game, and nothing about her ever really changes even to the end of ME3. There's no real character development or growth outside of her interactions with the other crew mates. Heck, ME2 was pretty much all about the side characters and how they fit in with the universe.
When BioWare decided to give Shepard more focus in ME3's storyline, they introduced a couple of problems.
1. Too many new elements unique only to ME3. Regardless of Shepard's standing with the Citadel or with other alien races, she will always put Earth high on her priority list for no discernable reason. It's made worse when Anderson has to remind her that they'll need help in fighting a war against the Reapers who are out to KILL THEM ALL.
2. These story elements take away the importance of the other characters. That kid from the opening is now the most important character to Shepard because she is always haunted by him. No matter what Shepard does, no matter what Shepard gains, she always thinks back to this one pathos inducing kid. There's no emphasis on Shepard's concern for her love interest, her crew or anything else that's mattered over the past three games because the game wants you to believe this kid is what should be the focus. There's just no coherent story telling when you go from alien lesbian sex scene and than immediately to Shepard chasing a child alone in the woods. You would think that when the story is getting close to being finished that these dreams would focus on more imporant elements, LIKE YOUR CLOSEST FRIENDS AND LOVED ONES!
3. Comes off as a "Shepard only" game. Regardless of whether your team mates live or die on the Harbinger charge, the fact remains that Shepard is left to complete the story all on her own. In the previous Mass Effect games, your team mates were always there with you in fighting the good fight. When an important decision needed to be made, they were there to offer input. This was important because the last two Mass Effect games were good at emphasising how everyone has a role to play in this universe, not just Shepard. Makes sense considering it is your team mates that actually grow and developed the most as characters during the trilogy. If the game says in the end that your team mates have no say in the end, what good were they to begin with? Compare that with the final climactic fight with the Arch Demon in Dragon Age.
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