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[Sylvius the Mad]

So I'm playing the game because I've heard good things about the story, and because I want to see for myself what the big deal about the ending is. For that reason, I am playing without the Extended Cut installed. And while I don't have an ME2 save handy, I did use the Genesis 2 DLC to set my world state (which neatly consumed the last of my BioWare points, so that's a plus).

I'll be describing my impression of the game in multiple posts.

First impressions:

The Character Creator is good, though I had some trouble recreating my Shepard. The noses just weren't long enough.

Despite people telling me that pause-to-aim didn't work properly in ME3, it seems to work fine. So no compliants there.

It is good to see Kaidan again, and so far the characterisation of Shepard has mostly suited my character (not entirely - see below).

I still dislike the ammo system (the game actually calls it ammo now, despite it not actually being ammo), but mostly I dislike the feeling that I'm just charging into combat without really understanding what resources are available to me, or whether I benefit from saving some.

Wow that's a lot of auto-dialogue. But worse, Shepard does so many things without my input (like trying to help that little kid at the beginning).

So, so far (I've played it for what feels like only a few minutes, but the game says 1.5 hrs), ME3 has done nothing to counter my pre-release impressions of the game that caused me not to buy it back then.

What's really struck me so far is how linear the level design is. Maybe that changes further into the game (I'm on Mars), but even areas that look like they have paths that lead somewhere else don't actually let you go there.

And as a general rule, I don’t like to be thrown straight into the action at the start of a game. ME3 certainly does that.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Day 2:

One of my biggest objections to the paraphrase system BioWare introduced when they first voiced a protagonist in ME1 was that I couldn't tell which options I wanted to avoid. I tend to select dialogue options negatively, ruling out character-breaking lines and picking whatever's left. Because I couldn't tell which lines would say things I didn't want the character to say, I was paralyzed.

ME3 appears to have fixed that problem, because the paraphrases usually make it clear that I don't want to choose that one.

Unfortunately, that routinely rules out all of the available options. Why can't Shepard be civil toward the Illusive Man? Early in the game, you're explicilty looking for allies, and he'd clearly be a powerful one. Ideally, I'd like Shepard to be able to agree with TIM's plan to control the Reapers (if only so Cerberus troops will stop fighting us), but even if Shepard can't do that, does she have to be openly antagonistic?

Finished Mars. Throughout, the game seems to expect me to move forward, all the time. Every door I'm not expected to go through is locked. It's a straight path that only goes one place. There's no opportunity to take the initiative or do anything creative. Shepard is expected to go where she's told without questioning it. Clearly, Shepard would be a terrible Soldier if she questioned orders from superiors, but anytime a plan of action is proposed by anyone on the squad, that proves to be the only available option.

There's plenty of ammo around, which is a nice change from ME2, though I dislike once again that there's never enough ammo to use the sniper rifle exclusively.

I repeatedly experienced Critical Mission Failure when I let Dr. Eva get too far ahead of me, even though there was time for me to catch up. This was another case where if I tried to do anything other than the simplest possible thing, I would lose. I couldn't tell why I was failing, and was extremely frustrated by the keymapping where sprint and take cover are the same button. How is this a good idea? I want to run, not hide, but if I'm running too close to an obstacle I'll hide behind it. This forced me to take a longer path in my pursuit. And then in the end, Shepard ultimately doesn't catch the Dr. anyway - Vega does - and he clearly must have been watching in order to be available to do that, so there was really no reason why Shepard needed to stay so close (especially since I did keep shooting her, so she had an incentive to keep running no matter how close I was).

This is a completely mindless game so far. I have yet to make a meaningful decision.

And then on the Citadel, they tell me I have time to go to the Hospital to check on Kaidan, so I do, but he's not there. The map says he is, but I can't find him.

I might hate this game.

Also, can I mention, the Reapers tore through Earth's defenses so fast it would make your head spin, and then they get to Earth, and then... we have days or weeks to gather support? Maybe this will make sense later.

[fraggle]

1. I couldn't tell why I was failing, and was extremely frustrated by the keymapping where sprint and take cover are the same button. How is this a good idea? I want to run, not hide, but if I'm running too close to an obstacle I'll hide behind it.

2. And then on the Citadel, they tell me I have time to go to the Hospital to check on Kaidan, so I do, but he's not there. The map says he is, but I can't find him.

 

1. You need to press the run button again before an obstacle, then you'll hop over it instead of going for cover

(and on a side note, Shepard calls for Vega after she started pursuing Dr. Eva, that's why he's there)

2. Wow, really? That would suck. He's supposed to be in the first room on the right after you go through the huge area you came from. Can you enter that room? (it's the one with the two doctors in front of it, talking about his condition)

[Sylvius the Mad]

1. You need to press the run button again before an obstacle, then you'll hop over it instead of going for cover
(and on a side note, Shepard calls for Vega after she started pursuing Dr. Eva, that's why he's there)

Good to know. Will the game rely on action-mechanics like this a lot?

I hate action mechanics. They're just not fun.

My bigger objection there was that it wasn't clear to me what the game expected me to do. I failed probably 5 times before I realized I was just supposed to chase her. Aside from me generally not liking being told what to do, I didn't appear to notice the game telling me to do it.

Also, why can't I just have the squadmates chase her? I was the sniper; it made more sense for me to provide cover.

ME3 seems to want me to play one way and one way only.

Anyway, my objective in this thread was not to start arguments. I just want to maintain a record of my playthrough and my impressions of it.

2. Wow, really? That would suck. He's supposed to be in the first room on the right after you go through the huge area you came from. Can you enter that room? (it's the one with the two doctors in front of it, talking about his condition)

I'll reload and look again. I can't tell whether I'm reading the map correctly.

Also, I'm really disappointed in the documentation. They've got what looks like a full manual in the game menu, but it doesn't explain how things work - even the UI isn't documented. I had to reload the beginning of Mars 3 times in order to figure out how to change my weapon loadout at that first opportunity. The UI wasn't intuitive (I insist that a UI cannot be intuitive), so it needed to be documented, and it wasn't.

Once I figured it out, I really like that weight mechanic, though.

[Pasquale1234]

Good to know. Will the game rely on action-mechanics like this a lot?

Depending on class and difficulty, there are places where you can try to camp behind cover and use powers - or let your squadmates do much of the work. I say try to camp, because some enemies will toss grenades at you, and you need to try to escape the aoe.

There are a couple more segments that require specific actions, similar to chasing Dr. Eva.

That Shepard "sticks" to cover made a lot of the action more difficult for me, too. You can leap over cover you are directly approaching as fraggleblabla points out, but if you get too close to cover you are trying to run past, you will stop and and take cover - as you've already discovered. That stickiness can also make it difficult to exit cover.

The multi-function keymapping makes everything context sensitive. I learned pretty early on that if I put Shepard next to a cover node and press the button, she stands there and gets shot unless the camera is pointing the correct direction to trigger the take cover context.

Also - it isn't always clear what will work for cover and what won't. Some things that look like cover nodes aren't, and vice versa.

[Elhanan]

Good to know. Will the game rely on action-mechanics like this a lot?

I hate action mechanics. They're just not fun.

My bigger objection there was that it wasn't clear to me what the game expected me to do. I failed probably 5 times before I realized I was just supposed to chase her. Aside from me generally not liking being told what to do, I didn't appear to notice the game telling me to do it.

Also, why can't I just have the squadmates chase her? I was the sniper; it made more sense for me to provide cover.

ME3 seems to want me to play one way and one way only.

Anyway, my objective in this thread was not to start arguments. I just want to maintain a record of my playthrough and my impressions of it.
I'll reload and look again. I can't tell whether I'm reading the map correctly.

Also, I'm really disappointed in the documentation. They've got what looks like a full manual in the game menu, but it doesn't explain how things work - even the UI isn't documented. I had to reload the beginning of Mars 3 times in order to figure out how to change my weapon loadout at that first opportunity. The UI wasn't intuitive (I insist that a UI cannot be intuitive), so it needed to be documented, and it wasn't.

Once I figured it out, I really like that weight mechanic, though.

Believe if one goes to the Codex, there are tutorials and general tips available for game mechanics. And once the Player leaves the Citadel after their first visit, then the game begins to become less linear.

As with other games, I recommend re-setting Control keys for whatever settings are comfortable. Because of frequent use of ME3 mechanics, the Spacebar is now my Pause function for other games like DAI.

No; action mechanics are not frequent, or at least with my Pause and Play style, are easily avoided. Even when playing a Vanguard, I am able to manage combat fairly well.

As for story, I recommend From the Ashes, Leviathan, and the Citadel DLC; especially the latter for humor. It is more difficult to play than the remainder of the game, but the laughter is well worth it (advise leaving it towards the end game, as well as Leviathan).

[Sylvius the Mad]

Depending on class and difficulty, there are places where you can try to camp behind cover and use powers - or let your squadmates do much of the work. I say try to camp, because some enemies will toss grenades at you, and you need to try to escape the aoe.

Yes, I'm certainly camping. I use powers to soften up the enemies, let my squadmates do as much work as they can (especially since they never seem to need ammo - how does that make sense?), and then hit the last few with a sniper rifle.

The combat so far isn't difficult at all. It's not fun, but it's not difficult.

That Shepard "sticks" to cover made a lot of the action more difficult for me, too. You can leap over cover you are directly approaching as fraggleblabla points out, but if you get too close to cover you are trying to run past, you will stop and and take cover - as you've already discovered. That stickiness can also make it difficult to exit cover.

The multi-function keymapping makes everything context sensitive. I learned pretty early on that if I put Shepard next to a cover node and press the button, she stands there and gets shot unless the camera is pointing the correct direction to trigger the take cover context.

I've noticed that camera direction thing. That is incredibly stupid. I was trying to roll from one piece of cover to the next, and the game wouldn't let me because I had to camera looking at that next cover. Apparently I'm not allowed to look where I want to go.

Context-sensitive controls are a terrible idea in all circumstances and should never exist.

[Sylvius the Mad]

As for story, I recommend From the Ashes, Leviathan, and the Citadel DLC; especially the latter for humor. It is more difficult to play than the remainder of the game, but the laughter is well worth it (advise leaving it towards the end game, as well as Leviathan).

I will not be buying any more DLC.

[Pasquale1234]

I've noticed that camera direction thing. That is incredibly stupid. I was trying to roll from one piece of cover to the next, and the game wouldn't let me because I had to camera looking at that next cover. Apparently I'm not allowed to look where I want to go.

Context-sensitive controls are a terrible idea in all circumstances and should never exist.

I can't count the number of times I've gotten Shepard killed while standing right next to cover, in perfect position to take cover, because the camera wasn't angled the way the context-sensitive programming wanted it. Once I figured out what the problem was, I did adapt through repetition - but still really dislike the control mapping.

[themikefest]

The combat so far isn't difficult at all. It's not fun, but it's not difficult.

What difficulty are you playing on?

[Sylvius the Mad]

What difficulty are you playing on?

Normal.

I don't want the combat to be difficult. I was worried it would be, but it really isn't.

[fraggle]

That Shepard "sticks" to cover made a lot of the action more difficult for me, too. You can leap over cover you are directly approaching as fraggleblabla points out, but if you get too close to cover you are trying to run past, you will stop and and take cover - as you've already discovered. That stickiness can also make it difficult to exit cover.

 

Hm, I never had trouble to leap over an obstacle, even if Shepard went into cover earlier. Just pressing forward and the run button again works for me

Or is that maybe a PC problem? I play on PS3 and have no complaints about the controls or camera there.

[Pasquale1234]

Hm, I never had trouble to leap over an obstacle, even if Shepard went into cover earlier. Just pressing forward and the run button again works for me
Or is that maybe a PC problem? I play on PS3 and have no complaints about the controls or camera there.

I also play on PS3.

Have you ever tried to sprint past a cover node? Unless you give it a pretty wide berth, you'll stop and take cover. Maybe you just automatically plan to leap over them instead of running around them... though you'd still have issues with the nodes along walls if you get too close to them.

It's also a pain to back / walk away from cover because of the stickiness. If you always leave cover by leaping forward over it, maybe that's why you've not had issues with it.

[aoibhealfae]

tbh, Mass Effect 2 was horrid with the cover mechanism and its seem geared for console playing. ME3 is more fluid and sensitive and it know when I want to run or cover or vault over something. Point to a direction, press the button as you sprint and you'll automatically run into cover. If you don't want auto-cover, just tap it several times to run->vault or move away from cover.

With ME2, I have to smash the button half a dozen times just to switch from run --> cover --> vault. Most of the time when I ran and found a cover, Shepard would stand still for a couple of second and the enemy have clear view before I could make Shepard crouch. The shield would always shaved off before I could do anything. Then when someone lob a flash grenade or missile, a staggered Shepard would stand still for several seconds in front of enemy fire. Its stupid when you kept dying because of this. 

[fraggle]

I also play on PS3.

Have you ever tried to sprint past a cover node? Unless you give it a pretty wide berth, you'll stop and take cover. Maybe you just automatically plan to leap over them instead of running around them... though you'd still have issues with the nodes along walls if you get too close to them.

It's also a pain to back / walk away from cover because of the stickiness. If you always leave cover by leaping forward over it, maybe that's why you've not had issues with it.

 

What are these nodes? (Sorry, not a native speaker, so I have no clue what it could be and the dictionary doesn't help much in this case ) Do you mean the point when a cover is meeting a wall?

It might be just that, I think I never bother to run around cover, I often just leap over it. But walking away from a cover is also fine for me somehow.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Day 3:

The level designs seem entirely linear, as if the developers wanted to make sure from exactly which direction I would encounter any given enemy.

I continue to be pleasantly surprised by the quality of the paraphrases. I'm rarely surprised at what Shepard says.

But I'm still not making any decisions. When I finish one quest, I'm given another (I've now collected the Primarch). When I'm on planet somewhere, there's nowhere for me to go aside from following the path. There really is just one story and it's unfolding no matter what I do.

I don’t love the story. It doesn't make a ton of sense. Why does Shepard not only prioritize Earth over other planets, but also expect other races to do the same? And why does everyone keep seeing Cerberus as an enemy?

The combat remains easy. The only difficulty I had was in a side-mission where I couldn't tell where I was expected to go, and I got lost and repeatedly surrounded (because I hate real-time decision-making). But most of the encounters allow me to trade space for time, retreating while my targets line up neatly in pursuit so I can shoot them.

Scanning planets is vastly better than in ME2, but those Reapers I need to avoid are irritating. I like the mechanic; I just wish I had more tools to avoid them (or somehow make them no longer be patrolling those systems after I've triggered them).

[caradoc2000]

But I'm still not making any decisions. When I finish one quest, I'm given another (I've now collected the Primarch).

The entire main quest works this way. When you finish Priority:Whatever, you will get the next one.

[fraggle]

I don’t love the story. It doesn't make a ton of sense. Why does Shepard not only prioritize Earth over other planets, but also expect other races to do the same? And why does everyone keep seeing Cerberus as an enemy?

Scanning planets is vastly better than in ME2, but those Reapers I need to avoid are irritating. I like the mechanic; I just wish I had more tools to avoid them (or somehow make them no longer be patrolling those systems after I've triggered them).

 

Because Earth is the Reaper's main goal and where they hit hard (you have played ME2 and know of the Reapers' plans to make a human Reaper?), and because there's no conventional way to beat the Reapers, they need to rally all support they can get.

And Cerberus keeps continuing to try and set Shepard and Co. back, for reasons you'll soon see

 

Once you have the Reapers alerted you can go do a side mission (you'll get some more soon enough), after that they are gone and you can continue. I really liked the scanning system in ME3, escaping the Reapers is always a fun, thrilling game for me

[aoibhealfae]

ME3 is never about decisions. Its about the culmination of your decisions from ME1 and ME2. Get everyone killed and watch how the game respond to that.

 

Cerberus have always been the enemy even in ME2. They tried to get you killed several times, they spied on you, they used you, they lied to you. TIM trashed you out the moment you're useless to him. 

[Sylvius the Mad]

The entire main quest works this way. When you finish Priority:Whatever, you will get the next one.

I suppose it's nice to see BioWare deviate from their typical formula, but I'd say this is a step in the wrong direction.

If this is what a tightly woven narrative looks like, I never want one.

Oh, and the Paragon/Renegade distinction once again makes no sense to me. How is it that letting Vega call his superior officer "Lola" is the Paragon choice? That's not by-the-book. That should be the Renegade option.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Because Earth is the Reaper's main goal and where they hit hard (you have played ME2 and know of the Reapers' plans to make a human Reaper?), and because there's no conventional way to beat the Reapers, they need to rally all support they can get.

That would be fine, but that's not the case Shepard makes to the council or the Turians. She's just asking for help to save Earth, which isn't a particularly compelling reason.

Building the Prothean Device makes sense as a motive. Saving Earth doesn't. If I were the aliens, I wouldn't listen to Shepard either.

And Cerberus keeps continuing to try and set Shepard and Co. back, for reasons you'll soon see

What I don't see is why Shepard couldn't agree to TIM's plan when he first suggested it. It sounded like a great idea. But no. Cerberus bad.

Once you have the Reapers alerted you can go do a side mission (you'll get some more soon enough), after that they are gone and you can continue. I really liked the scanning system in ME3, escaping the Reapers is always a fun, thrilling game for me

It's my favourite part of the game so far.

[Sylvius the Mad]

ME3 is never about decisions. Its about the culmination of your decisions from ME1 and ME2.

I didn't import a save, so I'm not seeing that in any great detail. I did build a world state using Genesis 2, but I wasn't able to reproduce the results I remember.

I didn't like ME2; I remember very little of it.

Get everyone killed and watch how the game respond to that.

What? ME3 is always basically the same unless you play with a different world state? So as a standalone game, the player serves virtually no purpose?

Cerberus have always been the enemy even in ME2. They tried to get you killed several times, they spied on you, they used you, they lied to you. TIM trashed you out the moment you're useless to him.

Cerberus saved my life, gave me resources to accomplish goals, and made generally good decisions. They were just generic terrorists in ME1 (when Shepard was a soldier getting in their way), but in ME2 I thought we worked well together. I bear them no ill will. Our previous conflicts were just business.

Shepard's inability to agree with Cerberus (or even be polite to TIM) reminds me of DA2, where Hawke was forced to hate slavers, even when all of his dealings with then had been entirely fair.

So far, TIM is the person with the best plan for how to deal with the Reapers. Why we're summarily dismissing his ideas I do not know.

[fraggle]

Oh, and the Paragon/Renegade distinction once again makes no sense to me. How is it that letting Vega call his superior officer "Lola" is the Paragon choice? That's not by-the-book. That should be the Renegade option.

 

Shepard becoming friendly with the crew, I'd consider it Paragon as well.

 

That would be fine, but that's not the case Shepard makes to the council or the Turians. She's just asking for help to save Earth, which isn't a particularly compelling reason.

Building the Prothean Device makes sense as a motive. Saving Earth doesn't. If I were the aliens, I wouldn't listen to Shepard either.
What I don't see is why Shepard couldn't agree to TIM's plan when he first suggested it. It sounded like a great idea. But no. Cerberus bad.

 

She asks this with presenting the device plans, makes her case by saying they need to work together.

The longer they can fight back the Reapers back, the better their chances are.

Cerberus is bad. I never trusted them. And if TIM would be the person with the best plan, why would he steal the data on Mars? They could've worked together, but TIM has different goals in mind. Why are Cerberus troops killing all Archives personnel? He is bad. He has goons everywhere that do sick stuff for him. Remember what they do to their own soldiers, the one that the Virmire Survivor and Shepard found before using the tram looks like a husk. They still do their sickening experiments.

I think you need to come to terms already that a lot of the story is still Bioware's story. You can react to it to a certain extent, but not really change it. You might hate a lot on that game otherwise

[aoibhealfae]

I didn't import a save, so I'm not seeing that in any great detail. I did build a world state using Genesis 2, but I wasn't able to reproduce the results I remember.

I didn't like ME2; I remember very little of it.

I guess I really can't help you there. The game reacts very differently between import, default state and genesis. If you're using pre-made imports, you're really playing it gimped. 

[themikefest]

Scanning planets is vastly better than in ME2, but those Reapers I need to avoid are irritating. I like the mechanic; I just wish I had more tools to avoid them (or somehow make them no longer be patrolling those systems after I've triggered them).

Here's a list of assets that can be gathered. I printed a version of it for myself when playing ME3 which makes it easier to avoid the reapers chasing me in a system