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[Iakus]

I find that a lot of players miss something crucial about the endings. My reasons are twofold:

 

 

ONE:

 

That very last part, where the Stargazer and their child are watching the stars, the Stargazer tells their child:
"​Many of the details have been lost to time."

And the child asks:
"Can you tell me another story about the Shepard?"​ (emphasis added)

What this tells us is that the ENTIRE trilogy, all the way from opening scene of ME1 to end of ME3, has been a story told by the Stargazer to their child.

Let me repeat that, with emphasis:

 

THE ENTIRE TRILOGY WAS TOLD AS A BEDTIME STORY TO A CHILD.

 

Oral tradition, by it's nature, is prone to details being lost, especially after so much time. Much like the telephone game, you start with a sentence "the cake is a lie" and by the time it reaches the end of the line, you get "Kevin's gotta fly" or "I should go".

That's just with a dozen people, now think of how it has been EONS since​ Shepard and co. were around; it's not hard at all to see that no one really knows whether Shepard chose Paragon or Renegade, or any of the other choices you make along the way.

 

Codex Entry: Commander Shepard "The First Human Spectre" is a fictional character and the subject of several interactive films published by Tethras Enterprises. These films were wildly popular due at least in part to the player being able to customize Shepard, from gender to appearance. Shepard could even have romances with several of the colorful cast of characters. The viewer was able to experience the adventures using Shepard as an avatar, making choices for Shepard and customizing the story to suit individual tastes

 

Over its five year run, numerous adventures where made available for Shepard's fans to experience. Though the central plot involved foiling the "Reapers" a mythological race of sentient AIs the films credited for the extinction of the Protheans.

 

Shepard's run ended with the so-called "Shepard Incident". The conclusion of the final film was considered so controversial that it caused an unprecedented uproar which even a rereleased ending could not quell.

 

Currently Tethras Enterprises has no plans to bring back Shepard for other stories. However, they are looking into the licensing Blasto for a new series.

[Eryri]

^ Varric greatly approves.

[GoldenGail3]

ME3's ending? No. And I was smart enough to not get the second or the third ME. I only watched it on YouTube.

[9TailsFox]

Look at Drakengard and have a rhythm battle.

 

 

(Drakengard 3 final boss pictured)

[Almostfaceman]

No, everyone was like rainbows and happy unicorns because well just because. 

 

 

[9TailsFox]

 

[Iakus]

ME3's ending? No. And I was smart enough to not get the second or the third ME. I only watched it on YouTube.

I envy you

[MrFob]

I envy you

 

Really? I don't. Sounds like s/he got all the disappointment without getting two really great games. I am very happy that I got to play the trilogy, flaws and all included.

[Iakus]

Really? I don't. Sounds like s/he got all the disappointment without getting two really great games. I am very happy that I got to play the trilogy, flaws and all included.

I'm actually replaying ME3 now (I agreed to test a new mod) I haven't even reached Menae yet and it's already painful watching the stroy unfold

 

 I'm skipping dialogue (something I never do).  Or getting up to fix a sandwich while the autodialogue drones on and on.  Laughing at Ash's new look, of course (sadly, I couldn't get that texture mod to work for me) .  Mechanically I guess it's all right.  But I'm no expert at shooter games.  But when it comes to dialogue, role-playing, and such.  The things I actually play Bioware games for, it's simply not there.  I don't know who's Shepard this is, but it's not mine.

[MrFob]

I'm actually replaying ME3 now (I agreed to test a new mod) I haven't even reached Menae yet and it's already painful watching the stroy unfold

 

 I'm skipping dialogue (something I never do).  Or getting up to fix a sandwich while the autodialogue drones on and on.  Laughing at Ash's new look, of course (sadly, I couldn't get that texture mod to work for me) .  Mechanically I guess it's all right.  But I'm no expert at shooter games.  But when it comes to dialogue, role-playing, and such.  The things I actually play Bioware games for, it's simply not there.  I don't know who's Shepard this is, but it's not mine.

 

Yea, so if you think the mechanics are the best part, how is watching it on youtube gonna be better than playing it?

 

Besides, the beginning and the end of ME3 are the worst parts. In between (from Menae to Thessia) I think it's actually quite good and some of the story arcs (like Tuchanka) where a lot of variables are woven into a pretty cool story to begin with are done with exceptional skill that I have barely ever seen anywhere else.

I agree that the games have serious flaws and we have discussed those in detail but I wouldn't want to miss it anyway and I do think that my overall gaming experience over the last decade would be much poorer without them.

[Iakus]

Yea, so if you think the mechanics are the best part, how is watching it on youtube gonna be better than playing it?

 

Besides, the beginning and the end of ME3 are the worst parts. In between (from Menae to Thessia) I think it's actually quite good and some of the story arcs (like Tuchanka) where a lot of variables are woven into a pretty cool story to begin with are done with exceptional skill that I have barely ever seen anywhere else.

I agree that the games have serious flaws and we have discussed those in detail but I wouldn't want to miss it anyway and I do think that my overall gaming experience over the last decade would be much poorer without them.

I don't know that it would be better.  But it would hardly be worse.  A game, even with good mechanics, will quickly bore me if the storyline sucks.

 

Yeah, Tuchanka was good.  Probably the best single part of ME3.  But it's the exception more than the rule.  I mean, look at Thessia, the CItadel Coup, Shepard's Dead Little Boy dreams.  And, well, everything that takes place on Earth.

 

Edit:  Even Rannoch is something of a mixed bag

[Puddi III]

I think this would be a great ED to use for Andromeda.

 

[mopotter]

I'm not going to reply to the rest of your post, but funny little tidbit about 'true diversity.'

 

Ah, 'diversity.' The power of 'diversity.' We've heard that a few times, haven't we?

 

Funny thing, though. If you look at nearly any fiction that features a group of ragtag heroes or whatever, you'll see that almost always, as they develop as characters, as they become better people, they become less diverse. Their morals and such become more aligned.

 

BioWare games are a fine example. We start off, and Miranda and Jacob support Cerberus. Tali hates geth. Characters like Jack are distrustful and hostile. And by the end, when their character development is complete, that diversity has faded, hasn't it now? All of those morals are now aligned with a paragon Shepard.

 

Hmm. Now what does it say about 'diversity' when 'diversity' is diminished as characters become stronger, better people?

I am a fan of the ragtag heroes saving something or someone, especially if there is a little touch of humor involved. Terry Prachett - Nac Mac Feegles and a 9 year old girl;   David Eddings -The boy, his aunt, grandfather, the spy/rogue, the blacksmith.  Man, I need to pull this one out and read the series again.  Anyway...

 

What I liked about ME2 is that they didn't always align.  I admit that I usually played the Shepard who got everyone working together, because it's what I enjoy,  but I didn't have to and once in awhile I didn't have a team that agreed with me.  I could have Tali distrust the geth at the end; Jack and Miranda not working together, yes I could go talk to Miranda, but I didn't have to.  It was great.   I would truly enjoy some of this in the next game.  

[Pasquale1234]

I'm actually replaying ME3 now (I agreed to test a new mod) I haven't even reached Menae yet and it's already painful watching the stroy unfold
 
 I'm skipping dialogue (something I never do).  Or getting up to fix a sandwich while the autodialogue drones on and on.  Laughing at Ash's new look, of course (sadly, I couldn't get that texture mod to work for me) .  Mechanically I guess it's all right.  But I'm no expert at shooter games.  But when it comes to dialogue, role-playing, and such.  The things I actually play Bioware games for, it's simply not there.  I don't know who's Shepard this is, but it's not mine.

Funny you should mention that.

I've recently contemplated another playthrough, this time using 'action mode' with the assumption I wouldn't have to sit through the endless mountains of cutscenes - I could just leave the room for awhile and let the game play itself. That probably wouldn't work, though, since a lot of those segments have dream sequences stuck in the middle of them. Dream sequences that require user input - wtf?

But it would leave me with fetch quests and combat missions - neither of which interest me all that much - so, meh.

[The Twilight God]

It would be nice if they actually had a story fleshed out BEFORE production. It was painfully obvious that they had no clue where they were going with the series after the original game. The fact that the sequel's main plot was actually several character stories with the so-called "main plot" feeling like a subplot and the finale having been the most unimaginative pile of garbage in recent history demonstrates on no uncertain terms that fore planning is essential. They wasted ME2 as there was no plot development and then at the beginning of ME3 they just drop in a Deus ex Machina. Not to mention they declawed the Reapers so that any kind of resistance at all could take place, seeing as no real progress had been made and the galaxy was no better off in terms of defending against them than they were at the end of ME1 (i.e. ME2 no forwarding the Reaper plot at all).

 

The ME series was handled very sloppily. It was amateurish plot writing.

 

I will not be playing MEA until all the games are released and I know they did not screw it up.  I do not trust Bioware with my emotions anymore. 

[Il Divo]

I'm actually replaying ME3 now (I agreed to test a new mod) I haven't even reached Menae yet and it's already painful watching the stroy unfold

 

 I'm skipping dialogue (something I never do).  Or getting up to fix a sandwich while the autodialogue drones on and on.  Laughing at Ash's new look, of course (sadly, I couldn't get that texture mod to work for me) .  Mechanically I guess it's all right.  But I'm no expert at shooter games.  But when it comes to dialogue, role-playing, and such.  The things I actually play Bioware games for, it's simply not there.  I don't know who's Shepard this is, but it's not mine.

 

Eating while playing Mass Effect 3? I can't imagine what your stomach must be made of. It's a bold play.

[AlanC9]

The fact that the sequel's main plot was actually several character stories with the so-called "main plot" feeling like a subplot

I never thought this was a very sensible criticism. This approach works fine in television. It's not substantially different from BG2. Even if you think that the ME2 plot structure doesn't work for CRPGs, is it reasonable to expect Bio to have known that in advance?

[Iakus]

I never thought this was a very sensible criticism. This approach works fine in television. It's not substantially different from BG2. Even if you think that the ME2 plot structure doesn't work for CRPGs, is it reasonable to expect Bio to have known that in advance?

Pssst....ME2 isn't television!  But don't worry, the Mass Effect team has made that mistake more than once as well.

 

Any way it is different from BG2 in several ways:

 

Companion stories, while enjoyable, as still very much side content in BG2.  As for the other side missions in the game:  Your character is, for at least the first half of the game, essentially a mercenary.  You are trying to earn a large amount of money as the plot coupon to advance the story.  As such it makes sense to take on a number of side missions.  To make money.  Heck DA2 had a similar process in its first act.  Shepard in ME3 was literally spinning his/her wheels.  There was nothing better to do than take care of various daddy issues while The Illusive Man handled all the important work. 

[Seboist]

ME2 was essentially a writers' playground with no regard for the overarching story. Not only that, but it's nonsensical trash even as a standalone entry; it makes zero sense to even be recruiting all these people to begin with when we have no clue what's on the other side of the O4 relay. 

[straykat]

ME2 was essentially a writers' playground with no regard for the overarching story. Not only that, but it's nonsensical trash even as a standalone entry; it makes zero sense to even be recruiting all these people to begin with when we have no clue what's on the other side of the O4 relay. 

 

It's the Blues Brothers story in space. Just roll with it.

 

[Il Divo]

^Sounds pretty accurate. For me, it came down to the cast being so enjoyable so I was able to ignore the virtually non-sensical plot. It's always been funny because I consider ME1's cast to be Bioware's worst by far, excluding BG1, but ME2 probably has their best. I was not expecting that.

[Ahglock]

^Sounds pretty accurate. For me, it came down to the cast being so enjoyable so I was able to ignore the virtually non-sensical plot. It's always been funny because I consider ME1's cast to be Bioware's worst by far, excluding BG1, but ME2 probably has their best. I was not expecting that.

 

I prefer ME1s cast by far.  I actually like every member in ME1, ME2 I'm meh to half of the, dislike a bunch and like a couple from the new ones.  I obviously like the original cast in ME2.

 

ME2 was a 7 samurai style game. Have a enemy, showcase the arrival of your team of bad asses who come to work together to defeat bad guy. I thought they did it poorly in some senses, it was like 7 samurai done by Michael Bay.(disclaimer this isn't a big insult as I love a lot of his movies, but I recognize its not quite art)  But it was entertaining, and I actually had no problems with the plot on its own.  My only issue with the plot is actually with ME3s plot, in that if ME2 had been more about leveling up the galaxy ME3 might not have been about finding the magic ray gun.  If ME3 was just another delay story this time feeling like it was the last one I'd have had no issues with ME2s plot as well.

[goishen]

 

Shepard's Dead Little Boy dreams. 

 

 

Meh.  These actually happen.  Look at Michonne from the Walking Dead.  Look at her dreams about her lost child.  I don't know if you've been watching American Sniper one too many times, or what.  But, this actually does happen.

 

EDIT :  I mean, hell dude.   I had one of these about a dog.  A DOG.

[AlanC9]

Well, yeah, but truth isn't necessarily a defense. (Best advice my old creative writing prof ever gave me.)

There are two problems with the dream sequences. First, they ascribe values to Shepard -- or perhaps, to Shepard's subconscious -- that may not match how the player conceives of the character. Bio's free to restrict RP like this, but it's a cost. One that I'm not convinced was worth paying in this instance.

Second, as cinema the sequences are awfully ham-handed. I haven't seen much stuff like this in US films after the silent era. There's nothing inherently wrong with that, but it's a style mismatch with the rest of ME.

[9TailsFox]

Well, yeah, but truth isn't necessarily a defense. (Best advice my old creative writing prof ever gave me.)

There are two problems with the dream sequences. First, they ascribe values to Shepard -- or perhaps, to Shepard's subconscious -- that may not match how the player conceives of the character. Bio's free to restrict RP like this, but it's a cost. One that I'm not convinced was worth paying in this instance.

Second, as cinema the sequences are awfully ham-handed. I haven't seen much stuff like this in US films after the silent era. There's nothing inherently wrong with that, but it's a style mismatch with the rest of ME.

I have bigger problem ME3 forced my spacer Shepard to care for the Earth. I don't care about this rock more than thousands other rocks with life I want to save. And dream I didn't like kid, but it's disconnecting for me, not because I don't care for this kid, but because I don't dream at all or don't remember any of my dreams.