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[SporkFu]

ME2 has another episode: "Normandy crew members infected with the scale itch? Find out how after these messages!"

That would be the follow-up special to the "baby's daddy revealed" episode. 

[Grieving Natashina]

That would be the follow-up special to the "baby's daddy revealed" episode. 

I always suspected Grunt, since I never got that dialogue until after Tuchunka.  Of course, there is this bit of fan art.

 

Spoiler

[Daemul]

You hit the nail on its head. 

 

As I said earlier. Shepard is not only a protagonist in the story, but the director of all events. He is not part of a greater thing, but the epicentre of all things happening in the trilogy. The best example for this is that it's him/her who decides whether the Council dies or lives. I mean come on. You are just one commander (of a special tactics and reconnaisance ship) while the human fleet's greatest and most decorated admiral is leading the charge... and yet it's still you who give the orders... wtf. Hackett is the real hero of the Battle of The Citadel and not Shepard. Yeah Shep might be some hero and as such respected and influential to a certain degree, but he should not be the guy at the helm when it comes to greater things. Shep could be a lot more interesting as a character if he had limits and faults and would not be the celebrity he is, but he behaves like some demi-god or puppet master instead and makes all the decisions.  

 

Just another example: you decide whether to save or not the Krogan (a whole race, a whole damn race hated by almost all). YOU...alone... you not only influence the things that happen, but its you who do it all and nobody has a say in that. The Salarians should have sent commandos to Tuchanka or they shoud have tipped off Cerberus or whatever. They hate the Krogan and they have a very good reason to do that. But you just do it anyway and the only thing you get as a backlash is that the Salarian politicians go butthurt and decide not help you anymore. And the trilogy is full of these type of events.

 

Agreed, Shepard being the one to give the orders to the galactic fleets at the beginning of Priority:Earth is one of the most non-sensical things I have ever seen in my life, I literally facepalmed when I saw it for the first time. The dude has zero experience in leading a fleet, but for some reason he's put in charge of one the largest combined fleets the galaxy has ever seen. I know Hackett was waiting at the other side of the relay, so he couldn't give the order, but you aren't telling me that he didn't have a second in command or the other races didn't have an experienced fleet commander who could have taken his place instead? Seriously, the whole thing makes no sense. 

 

Don't even get me started on Shepard being the only person to decide the fate of entire species, that's a whole another pile of bullcrap. 

[Farangbaa]

 Don't even get me started on Shepard being the only person to decide the fate of entire species, that's a whole another pile of bullcrap. 

 

And not just once, 4 times. FOUR TIMES. Rachni Queen, Rachni Queen revisited, Tuchanka, Rannoch

 

Though I suppose Rachni Queen revisited can be excused, as there wasn't really another option but to make the decision on the spot.

[Display Name Owner]

And not just once, 4 times. FOUR TIMES. Rachni Queen, Rachni Queen revisited, Tuchanka, Rannoch

 

Though I suppose Rachni Queen revisited can be excused, as there wasn't really another option but to make the decision on the spot.

 

I don't know, after the Rachni decision Kaidan says something like "Ideally I'd have rather left it up to the Council" and... why didn't we just do that? Could Shep and crew not have waited for the Council to send someone to take it off their hands? I know time is of the essence chasing Saren down, but they were talking about an entire species.

 

Anyway yeah, Shepard's role needed toning down imo. Him being the major decision maker doesn't make sense in several cases and moreover just makes the people whose job it's supposed to be to actually lead the galaxy seem inept. Legion giving the Heretic decision to Shepared was obviously just for the sake of gameplay, there's no reason on earth for Legion to just hand that decision to Shep. To be honest, TIM put it best - "Shepard, there are decisions coming that you're not qualified to make".

[FlyingSquirrel]

Agreed, Shepard being the one to give the orders to the galactic fleets at the beginning of Priority:Earth is one of the most non-sensical things I have ever seen in my life, I literally facepalmed when I saw it for the first time. The dude has zero experience in leading a fleet, but for some reason he's put in charge of one the largest combined fleets the galaxy has ever seen. I know Hackett was waiting at the other side of the relay, so he couldn't give the order, but you aren't telling me that he didn't have a second in command or the other races didn't have an experienced fleet commander who could have taken his place instead? Seriously, the whole thing makes no sense. 

 

Don't even get me started on Shepard being the only person to decide the fate of entire species, that's a whole another pile of bullcrap. 

 

I agree in theory, but this may simply be a shortcoming of single-player games that revolve around large-scale conflicts. Similar things could be said of the Courier in FO:NV - one person really shouldn't have that much influence over the outcome of the NCR / Caesar's Legion war - or Jason Brody, who single-handedly dismantles a criminal syndicate in Far Cry 3. Either the player-character is going to have an unrealistically important role, or critical points in the story are going to be reduced almost entirely to cutscenes with no influence over the action or the dialogue. And that "EMERGENCY FLASH TRAFFIC" message waiting for you on the Normandy does make it sound like the Alliance's chain of command is pretty much shot to hell anyway, so Hackett may well consider Shepard a sort of unofficial second-in-command.

[ImaginaryMatter]

I agree in theory, but this may simply be a shortcoming of single-player games that revolve around large-scale conflicts. Similar things could be said of the Courier in FO:NV - one person really shouldn't have that much influence over the outcome of the NCR / Caesar's Legion war - or Jason Brody, who single-handedly dismantles a criminal syndicate in Far Cry 3. Either the player-character is going to have an unrealistically important role, or critical points in the story are going to be reduced almost entirely to cutscenes with no influence over the action or the dialogue. And that "EMERGENCY FLASH TRAFFIC" message waiting for you on the Normandy does make it sound like the Alliance's chain of command is pretty much shot to hell anyway, so Hackett may well consider Shepard a sort of unofficial second-in-command.

 

Those are two sides of the spectrum though and you don't have to choose one or another. DA:O for the most part offers a sort of middle ground, which I think is generally favorable among players. The Warden has a fairly large effect on Ferelden but most of that influence comes from installing one character or another into power. The player affects the outcome of the story (and beyond) but that is done through a sort of middle man which takes out some of the more grievous contrivances.

 

As for the Alliance, there are still quite a few admirals, captains, and majors lurking around that are better qualified than Shepard who's expertise seems to be limited to hosing things with bullets on the ground.

[AlanC9]

And not just once, 4 times. FOUR TIMES. Rachni Queen, Rachni Queen revisited, Tuchanka, Rannoch
 
Though I suppose Rachni Queen revisited can be excused, as there wasn't really another option but to make the decision on the spot.

Isn't that kind of true for Tuchanka and Rannoch too? There isn't anybody else who could sabotage the cure or shoot Legion at the right time.

[DeinonSlayer]

And not just once, 4 times. FOUR TIMES. Rachni Queen, Rachni Queen revisited, Tuchanka, Rannoch

Though I suppose Rachni Queen revisited can be excused, as there wasn't really another option but to make the decision on the spot.

What really kills me is Kahje, the Hanar Homeworld, if Kasumi isn't there.

If you hit the (of course Renegade) interrupt, you knock out the guy strangling Jondam Bau and the virus is successfully uploaded.

Shepard: "You did everything you could."
Bau: "It wasn't enough. The Hanar will lose their homeworld today."
Shepard: "We have to pick our battles. The Hanar did this to themselves, and right now I need all the Spectres I can get on my side."

I... wut...

Bau, of course, immediately succumbs to The Shepard's above argument, seconds after pleading with you to leave him and instead stop the virus. You walk out of the room seconds after that and immediately hear the newscast saying that the Hanar homeworld was attacked by the Reapers, and there were "no survivors."

Again... wut...

*Thane voice* That may go down in history as the fastest extermination ever...

[Han Shot First]

That would be the follow-up special to the "baby's daddy revealed" episode. 

 

"Shepard, you are NOT the father!"

 

[DeinonSlayer]

"Shepard, you are NOT the father!"
 

"Morinth, you ARE the father!"

*gape*

[Jorji Costava]

I agree in theory, but this may simply be a shortcoming of single-player games that revolve around large-scale conflicts. Similar things could be said of the Courier in FO:NV - one person really shouldn't have that much influence over the outcome of the NCR / Caesar's Legion war - or Jason Brody, who single-handedly dismantles a criminal syndicate in Far Cry 3. Either the player-character is going to have an unrealistically important role, or critical points in the story are going to be reduced almost entirely to cutscenes with no influence over the action or the dialogue. And that "EMERGENCY FLASH TRAFFIC" message waiting for you on the Normandy does make it sound like the Alliance's chain of command is pretty much shot to hell anyway, so Hackett may well consider Shepard a sort of unofficial second-in-command.

 

The other possible solution is to have the story center around smaller scale conflicts that serve as microcosms of the larger ones. If a game centered largely around the protagonist making smaller but morally fraught decisions like the Balak decision from Bring Down the Sky, while leaving the outcome of large scale conflicts like the Genophage or the Geth/Quarian conflict largely out of the player's hands, you could have an interesting, morally complex game without the absurdity of having one exceptional person solve everything. These smaller decisions can serve as a way of arriving at the truth of those larger conflicts.

[ImaginaryMatter]

What really kills me is Kahje, the Hanar Homeworld, if Kasumi isn't there.

If you hit the (of course Renegade) interrupt, you knock out the guy strangling Jondam Bau and the virus is successfully uploaded.

Shepard: "You did everything you could."
Bau: "It wasn't enough. The Hanar will lose their homeworld today."
Shepard: "We have to pick our battles. The Hanar did this to themselves, and right now I need all the Spectres I can get on my side."

I... wut...

Bau, of course, immediately succumbs to The Shepard's above argument, seconds after pleading with you to leave him and instead stop the virus. You walk out of the room seconds after that and immediately hear the newscast saying that the Hanar homeworld was attacked by the Reapers, and there were "no survivors."

Again... wut...

*Thane voice* That may go down in history as the fastest extermination ever...

 

I'm never doing a playthrough without Kasumi just so I can avoid that scene. What I find worse than the forced choice, is how weak it makes the rest of the Spectres look. Couldn't Bau just Salarian jiu-jitsu that mook into oblivion?

[DeinonSlayer]

I'm never doing a playthrough without Kasumi just so I can avoid that scene. What I find worse than the forced choice, is how weak it makes the rest of the Spectres look. Couldn't Bau just Salarian jiu-jitsu that mook into oblivion?

I honestly think the writing sucks the least when Kasumi is alive and not loyal. No matter how you play it, it's pretty stilted.

[fhs33721]

Isn't that kind of true for Tuchanka and Rannoch too? There isn't anybody else who could sabotage the cure or shoot Legion at the right time.

Well Shepard could at least have called his superiors about the whole genophage thing instead of just going ahead and doing what s/he felt like.

On Rannoch Tali just stands there and lets Shepard decide the fate of her entire race. Legion was far better handeled on Rannoch, because he at least tries to stop Shepard from damming the geth to extinction if s/he sides with the quarians.

The Rachni situation in ME1 was downright nonsensical, even more because you already got what you wanted from Benezia and could easily leave and leave the decision to the council since the queen is savely confined anyways. Why exactly does Shepard get to decide wether or not to kill the Rachni?

[mybudgee]

I made a terrible, unforgivable mistake.

 

I pre-ordered ME3

 

[Seboist]

The big issue isn't so much consequences(or lack there of) but the fact that there isn't a lick of real gameplay difference for 95% of the choices(remaining 5% mostly being in ME1). No matter what you do or don't do, you're still going down the same linear corridors shooting the same enemies. That's ultimately what makes it about being space jesus vs space troll.

[ImaginaryMatter]

I made a terrible, unforgivable mistake.

 

I pre-ordered ME3

 

 

One good thing about the ending is that it knocked the price of the game down rather quickly for us later purchasers.

[Coyotebay]

I agree in theory, but this may simply be a shortcoming of single-player games that revolve around large-scale conflicts. Similar things could be said of the Courier in FO:NV - one person really shouldn't have that much influence over the outcome of the NCR / Caesar's Legion war - or Jason Brody, who single-handedly dismantles a criminal syndicate in Far Cry 3. Either the player-character is going to have an unrealistically important role, or critical points in the story are going to be reduced almost entirely to cutscenes with no influence over the action or the dialogue. And that "EMERGENCY FLASH TRAFFIC" message waiting for you on the Normandy does make it sound like the Alliance's chain of command is pretty much shot to hell anyway, so Hackett may well consider Shepard a sort of unofficial second-in-command.

Far Cry 3 was so ridiculous that I was fine with the unlikely hero approach.  It's not much different from GTA where your character almost single-handedly takes care of business.

[Reorte]

Isn't that kind of true for Tuchanka and Rannoch too? There isn't anybody else who could sabotage the cure or shoot Legion at the right time.

Tuchanka at least tries to sneak it through a middleman (Mordin).

[Quarian Master Race]

Isn't that kind of true for Tuchanka and Rannoch too? There isn't anybody else who could sabotage the cure or shoot Legion at the right time.

In the case of the former, granted.

In the latter, Tali/ Shala'Raan is standing right there and both will kill Legion/ VI when it tries to choke Shep if you disallow the Reaper code. Why they don't stab/ blow the Geth away all the same (or at least attempt to) when you condemn their people to death is the real question. It makes no sense why they choose to passively become An Hero instead. Shep's presence wasn't necessary.The whole situation would have been much less contrived if Shep had just stood around quietly like the second squadmate and the Quarians/Geth worked it out themselves(or not), but then everyone would complain about railroading.

At best, have the quarian and geth fight if you haven't met prerequisites for peace, with being given the choice to shoot one or the other as Shep's role, instead of jedi mind tricking the admirals with your space jesus persuasion powers.

[Reorte]

The whole situation would have been much less contrived if Shep had just stood around quietly like the second squadmate and the Quarians/Geth worked it out themselves(or not), but then everyone would complain about railroading.

Not necessarily, if the discussions and hence outcome were influenced by all the earlier choices in the same way. Even though that's still Shepard behind it all it would at least feel less excessive.

Less dramatic though and drama will always trump reason.