847 réponses à ce sujet

[Addictress]

Anyways, on top of that, it would probably be smart to take out what is essentially a reaper army before the reapers invade, to weaken their forces. The collectors were a huge asset to the reapers, hidden behind a suicidal relay. If they waited to take on the collectors, one of the richest organizations existing (Cerberus) would've not had the leisure to devote the resources they did to unlocking the relay and attacking the collector base. Then the reapers would've had an untouchable army at their disposal.

[Dean_the_Young]

The reapers are a small hand reaching for cookies. In ME1 Shepard goes *slap* no

In ME2 the hand reaches again.

*slap slap*

"You have failed. We will find another way!"

Makes sense to me.

 

What cookies were the Reapers trying to get in ME2?

 

Heck, what was the point of ME? The Reapers were already in transit, they weren't going to complete the Human Reaper without Earth which they couldn't do until they conquered it with actual Reapers, but once they conquered Earth they wouldn't need the colonies to build the human reapers. The invasion would come with the mega-big and efficient harvesters and enough additional Collectors to form a MP multiplayer faction, and the Collectors didn't need to do anything to really prepare for the war because the Reapers more or less curbstomp the galactic resistance in a matter of months.

 

The only reason the Reapers lose is because of lines of effort that the Collectors really weren't trying to stop in the first place. The Mars cache has existed for decades, and the Reapers didn't send Collectors or anyone else to nuke it from orbit.

[Addictress]

What cookies were the Reapers trying to get in ME2?

Heck, what was the point of ME? The Reapers were already in transit, they weren't going to complete the Human Reaper without Earth which they couldn't do until they conquered it with actual Reapers, but once they conquered Earth they wouldn't need the colonies to build the human reapers. The invasion would come with the mega-big and efficient harvesters and enough additional Collectors to form a MP multiplayer faction, and the Collectors didn't need to do anything to really prepare for the war because the Reapers more or less curbstomp the galactic resistance in a matter of months.

The only reason the Reapers lose is because of lines of effort that the Collectors really weren't trying to stop in the first place. The Mars cache has existed for decades, and the Reapers didn't send Collectors or anyone else to nuke it from orbit.

The cookies were people.

The reapers couldn't "speed up" to arrive at the galaxy. What, you want Shepard and TIM to just sit around and let the creepy humanoid insects gobble up humans and build a reaper until the main reapers arrive? And Cerberus and Shepard have no clue how important or unimportant they are. They have no clue about the harvesters that came later. You and I do - they didn't. It makes sense that the reapers would've been EVEN MORE successful at ROFLstomping earth, with even greater efficiency, had the collectors remained in full strength. And I'm not sure what the Mars cache has to do with it.

The multiplayer collector addition was kind of dumb, honestly, in many ways, but one thing I can say is that recruiting some stragglers in MP doesn't cancel out the fact 1. Their main base is gone and 2. Harbinger released them and they're no longer controlled by reapers.

[Natureguy85]

Shepard and everyone still had no clue where the reapers were or how they operate. The collectors at the time we're the main threat and they didn't have just one ship. Remember how they attacked the "collector base" and as they approached, a smaller ship emerged and undocked to tangle with them after going through the omega 4 relay. The ship was tiny in comparison to the base, like a bee embarking from a hive. There was another ship for the IFF. So clearly, they had many ships. We only met 2, plus the base. As they walked through a ship they noted that there were enough pods for all of humanity, not just fringe communities. In addition, the harvesting was getting worse and worse, spreading to more and more colonies. So it was a legitimate suspicion to Cerberus that this was a major strategy of the reapers. What other reaper activity was there?

The collectors facilitated the reapers' cause:
The reapers were building another reaper, for one
And even before they knew of the human reaper, they knew the reapers were bent on extinguishing life. The collectors were harvesting life...no one returned....and though the link wasn't proven, TIM explicitly said in conference he suspected they were linked. It seemed so: that's what reapers do. Shepard should stop them. And again, there was no other trail to follow at the time.

 

 

There is nothing immediate to suggest that the Collectors are connected to the Reapers initially. TIM just says so. The Collectors were not a threat at all. Nobody even knew what they were doing or that they were behind the disappearances until Freedom's Progress. And what about them kidnapping human colonists suggests Reapers?

The Collectors did have just one ship. The one that attacks the Normandy, the one they board, the one that kidnaps the crew, and the one destroyed at the base are all the same ship. This is mentioned when you board and at the base it's referred to as "an old friend."

 

You are right that the characters discuss the pods. And if we step outside of the story, which we generally want to avoid if possible, we can see that comment as "divine plot knowledge." It's true because the character mentioned it. However, within the story, it's a completely ridiculous statement to make. As we discussed, even if this is the Collector's plan, it will fail.

 

You're right that Shepard had no trail to follow at the time, except the one the game started with; Shepard was hunting Geth. They had a known connection to the Reapers. Remember, we're talking about the whole plot of ME2. There's no reason they couldn't have made a more solid connection to the Reapers come about.

 

 

 

I thought the scene in which they walk into the derelict reaper cathedral of countless pods was dramatic enough to indicate they were heading for earth

 

Not at all. A teammate will just say so and the idea is still preposterous.

 

 

Anyways, on top of that, it would probably be smart to take out what is essentially a reaper army before the reapers invade, to weaken their forces. The collectors were a huge asset to the reapers, hidden behind a suicidal relay. If they waited to take on the collectors, one of the richest organizations existing (Cerberus) would've not had the leisure to devote the resources they did to unlocking the relay and attacking the collector base. Then the reapers would've had an untouchable army at their disposal.

 

The Collectors are not an army. They rely on sneak attacks and seeker swarms because they are not equipped to fight any real, organized resistance. The only real asset the Collectors provide is making the new Reaper or using seeker swarms to incapacitate enemy resistance. They utterly failed at the former and they weren't used for the latter. If the Reapers wanted to do that, exposing the Collectors early is silly. Based on how quickly the Reapers arrive, there's no reason for the Collectors to be collecting so early.

 

 

The cookies were people.

The reapers couldn't "speed up" to arrive at the galaxy. What, you want Shepard and TIM to just sit around and let the creepy humanoid insects gobble up humans and build a reaper until the main reapers arrive? And Cerberus and Shepard have no clue how important or unimportant they are. They have no clue about the harvesters that came later. You and I do - they didn't. It makes sense that the reapers would've been EVEN MORE successful at ROFLstomping earth, with even greater efficiency, had the collectors remained in full strength. And I'm not sure what the Mars cache has to do with it.

The multiplayer collector addition was kind of dumb, honestly, in many ways, but one thing I can say is that recruiting some stragglers in MP doesn't cancel out the fact 1. Their main base is gone and 2. Harbinger released them and they're no longer controlled by reapers.

 

That is not a fair question because they didn't know the Collectors were building a Reaper. They didn't know the two were connected. TIM suspects it just because. Shepard has more important things to do than worry about some kidnapped colonists. There are giant, sentient machines coming to kill everyone. Weird bugmen are lower in the priority queue.

[Addictress]

There is nothing immediate to suggest that the Collectors are connected to the Reapers initially. TIM just says so. The Collectors were not a threat at all. Nobody even knew what they were doing or that they were behind the disappearances until Freedom's Progress. And what about them kidnapping human colonists suggests Reapers?

The Collectors did have just one ship. The one that attacks the Normandy, the one they board, the one that kidnaps the crew, and the one destroyed at the base are all the same ship. This is mentioned when you board and at the base it's referred to as "an old friend."

 

You are right that the characters discuss the pods. And if we step outside of the story, which we generally want to avoid if possible, we can see that comment as "divine plot knowledge." It's true because the character mentioned it. However, within the story, it's a completely ridiculous statement to make. As we discussed, even if this is the Collector's plan, it will fail.

 

You're right that Shepard had no trail to follow at the time, except the one the game started with; Shepard was hunting Geth. They had a known connection to the Reapers. Remember, we're talking about the whole plot of ME2. There's no reason they couldn't have made a more solid connection to the Reapers come about.

 

 

 

 

Not at all. A teammate will just say so and the idea is still preposterous.

 

 

 

The Collectors are not an army. They rely on sneak attacks and seeker swarms because they are not equipped to fight any real, organized resistance. The only real asset the Collectors provide is making the new Reaper or using seeker swarms to incapacitate enemy resistance. They utterly failed at the former and they weren't used for the latter. If the Reapers wanted to do that, exposing the Collectors early is silly. Based on how quickly the Reapers arrive, there's no reason for the Collectors to be collecting so early.

 

 

 

That is not a fair question because they didn't know the Collectors were building a Reaper. They didn't know the two were connected. TIM suspects it just because. Shepard has more important things to do than worry about some kidnapped colonists. There are giant, sentient machines coming to kill everyone. Weird bugmen are lower in the priority queue.

 

 

Why would there be no point in the collectors collecting so early? If they can, why not? They're within the Milky Way, the reapers are more removed. They arrive quickly but there is still enough time for Shepard to dismantle them. It fits. 

 

And yeah, as I said they weren't sure they were connected but they suspected. They had no other trail to follow. As you said, Shepard vowed to stop the reapers at the end of Mass Effect 1. They were pursuing all possible hints or trails which might indicate reaper activity. The collectors were certainly a legitimate trail to follow. What else was there? They didn't know exactly how the reapers would go about doing things. The only activity they saw - the collectors, abducting colonists (which seems to be in line with the reaper objective of mass genocide) - certainly seemed worthwhile investigating. And the more they investigated, the more reaper tech they found. Until at last, they discover they're a direct tool of the reapers. Why not dismantle them? The collectors were a direct agent of the reapers. In stopping the collectors, at the time, it was as good as stopping a vanguard move by the reapers - hindering the reapers directly. The reapers could've paralyzed millions with their seeker swarms. If left to their devices, they would've been an extremely helpful infiltration team for the reapers, a tool for the reapers to use when the time came. And yeah....they failed... because Shepard stopped them. Good.... that was the point of Mass Effect 2. Thank you Shepard.

Why is the idea of a billion empty pods indicating they want to fill them with humans preposterous? If you're saying the idea itself - of abducting and processing billions of humans to create a reaper is preposterous, that's criticizing the concept itself which is another thing. All I say here is that I think it wasn't a waste of time, nor was it an unnecessary diversion, to investigate and stop the collectors. I think that the collectors were a cool and logical intermediate enemy on the path to the finale in ME3 which made narrative sense and allowed enough space to build characters, explore other worlds like Tuchanka and Illium so that you feel more for them when they're under direct attack in Mass Effect 3, and adding depth and foreboding feels to the enemy because you see their ancient legacy via the enslaved protheans, etc.

[Natureguy85]

Why would there be no point in the collectors collecting so early? If they can, why not?

 

The answer is Mass Effect 2. They exposed themselves for no reason and were defeated.

 

 

And yeah, as I said they weren't sure they were connected but they suspected. They had no other trail to follow. As you said, Shepard vowed to stop the reapers at the end of Mass Effect 1. They were pursuing all possible hints or trails which might indicate reaper activity. The collectors were certainly a legitimate trail to follow. What else was there? They didn't know exactly how the reapers would go about doing things. The only activity they saw - the collectors, abducting colonists (which seems to be in line with the reaper objective of mass genocide) - certainly seemed worthwhile investigating. And the more they investigated, the more reaper tech they found. Until at last, they discover they're a direct tool of the reapers. Why not dismantle them? The collectors were a direct agent of the reapers. In stopping the collectors, at the time, it was as good as stopping a vanguard move by the reapers - hindering the reapers directly. The reapers could've paralyzed millions with their seeker swarms. If left to their devices, they would've been an extremely helpful infiltration team for the reapers, a tool for the reapers to use when the time came. And yeah....they failed... because Shepard stopped them. Good.... that was the point of Mass Effect 2. Thank you Shepard.

Why is the idea of a billion empty pods indicating they want to fill them with humans preposterous? If you're saying the idea itself - of abducting and processing billions of humans to create a reaper is preposterous, that's criticizing the concept itself which is another thing. All I say here is that I think it wasn't a waste of time, nor was it an unnecessary diversion, to investigate and stop the collectors. I think that the collectors were a cool and logical intermediate enemy on the path to the finale in ME3 which made narrative sense and allowed enough space to build characters, explore other worlds like Tuchanka and Illium so that you feel more for them when they're under direct attack in Mass Effect 3, and adding depth and foreboding feels to the enemy because you see their ancient legacy via the enslaved protheans, etc.

 

Again, upon what were these suspicions based? Shepard had no idea what else was there because he didn't even look. He just did whatever TIM wanted.

 

The Collectors collecting isn't in line with mass genocide at all. That's just kidnapping. That isn't in line with genocide and it's certainly not in line with Sovereign's dialogue from the first game.Shepard and Co. don't find out the people are being killed until the end. They don't find out the Collectors are connected to the Reapers until Horizon, when they encounter Husks.

 

It really wasn't as good as stopping a Vanguard move by the Reapers. We don't know what their goal was. From how quickly ME3 starts, the Human Reaper wouldn't have been finished by the time the Reapers showed up.

 

Yeah, Seeker swarms would have been useful for the Harvest. So it makes that much less sense for them to be active early. Shepard stopped them because of magical resurrection technology, massive contrivances, and their own stupidity.

 

The pods indicating the Collector intent isn't what's preposterous. What's preposterous is the idea that this is a concern as something the Collectors could do. They are not capable of attacking Earth.

 

I disagree that the Collectors were cool, but that's subjective. However, they most certainly were not a logical anything. A good and proper plot could still have left room for all that side stuff, which was the strength of the game. The transformation of the Protheans is just another reason Reapers are bad. We didn't need that. We needed an idea of how to stop them.

[Addictress]

Well Natureguy, by your logic, every villain in every videogame ever is dumb for having been defeated by our mighty protagonists. Every videogame villain ever 'underestimates' our mighty protagonists and get defeated. That's how videogames go!

[Dark_Caduceus]

It will focus on the AWESOME BUTTON.

 

WHEN YOU PRESS A BUTTON SOMETHING AWESOME HAS TO HAPPEN.

 

WHEN YOU PRESS A BUTTON SOMETHING AWESOME HAS TO HAPPEN.

 

WHEN YOU PRESS A BUTTON SOMETHING AWESOME HAS TO HAPPEN.

 

WHEN YOU PRESS A BUTTON SOMETHING AWESOME HAS TO HAPPEN.

 

WHEN YOU PRESS A BUTTON SOMETHING AWESOME HAS TO HAPPEN.

[Addictress]

dafuq

[Dark_Caduceus]

WHEN.

 

YOU.

 

PRESS.

 

A.

 

BUTTON.

 

SOMETHING.

 

AWESOME.

 

HAS.

 

TO.

 

HAPPEN.

 

BUTTON. AWESOME. CONNECTED NOW IN MASS EFFECT: ANDROMEDA

[Mdizzletr0n]

Are we? I don't think so. Everything's too expensive now.. so there are fewer RPGs with big publisher backing. I don't know how much DAI cost, but Witcher 3 cost 80 million. I'm pretty sure DA was more. Who the hell wants to risk that? Hardly anyone.

But at the same time, I like that indies and smaller devs are making RPGs...even if they're not AAA. In that sense, we're better off.

Console wise, we definitely aren't better in terms of rpgs. Outside of the 3DS anyways. I still like that better than the current gen in terms of overall games on anything else (excluding PC. I can't speak for that area) so far.

[correctamundo]

@Natureguy: My Shep has as much agency in ME1 as in ME3. It's not like you can tell the council "screw you I'm not going to Therum, Feros or Noveria". I.e. unless you want a critical mission failure.

[Seraphim24]

People say that, and certainly it had high production values and a way better combat system (and a lot of better game mechanics), but ultimately I think TW2 was superior. A richer world, and on a personal level some incredibly gripping quests, but I think ultimately not as brilliant as TW2. 

 

Well personally all 3 witchers struck a chord for various reasons.

 

I think one thing about TW3 though was the scale was so unbelievably beyond the other games, it makes it more likely to stick in people's memories. If you were riding across the countryside and suddenly came across a town with high walls and lights in the rain and stuff it was just kind of a big experience.

 

Honestly, the tendency to have a kind of compact experience that has striking experiences, and then the big splash experience coming later is pretty common, but invariably it's the "Big thing" that has the biggest impact.

[Shechinah]

@Natureguy: My Shep has as much agency in ME1 as in ME3. It's not like you can tell the council "screw you I'm not going to Therum, Feros or Noveria". I.e. unless you want a critical mission failure.

 

I'm not so sure Shepard should have been able to say or do what they did to the Council without repercussions. Hanging up on them is a fun running gag but they really shouldn't have allowed that kind of disrespect to fly. Spectres are suppose to be answerable to the Council and considering the authority the Spectres are allowed, they should be reminded of that if they seem to think themselves answerable only to themselves or begin to seem dismissive towards the Council's authority over them.  

 

I should emphasis that I am not saying there should not be that kind of options, I am merely saying I think there should be logical repercussions to selecting said options.
 

[KirkyX]

Now, I'm still fairly optimistic about the game, but when it comes to DA: I-style 'dead, storyless content'... Well, some of the stuff in that 'Everything to Know about Mass Effect: Andromeda' thread on the Reddit has me worried:

Spoiler

 

Search solar systems for rare habitable planets to establish a settlement that could serve as a base for humankind’s new home in the Helius Cluster. As you build permanent settlements, you will make strategic choices on where to focus your new base’s resources. For example: Recon Settlements will clear fog of war from the space map and give the player more strike team missions to choose from, while Mining Settlements will periodically supplement the player’s supply of crafting materials.

 

 As you explore planets throughout the Helius Cluster, you will encounter Khet Outposts. These outposts are optional combat experiences where you enter the outpost and fight off waves of enemies. Destroy Khet outposts to earn XP, rewards and thwart their growing power in the region. Your allies will reward you with praise and increased narrative options as you fight to remove the Khet presence from the region.

 

Whether you are looking for a place to set up a colony, searching for a Remnant vault or attacking a Khet Outpost, you will enjoy getting there in your Mako. 

 

As you develop more colonies, resource bases and settlements, you have to be able to keep them safe. Spend resources to recruit mercenaries and develop an AI controlled Strike Team that you can deploy to take on randomly generated, time-sensitive missions. Strike Team missions take many forms, including settlement defense and Remnant artifact recovery, which will take real-time to complete. Send your Strike Team out on a mission while you continue playing the main game and they will return, 20-30 minutes later, having gained rewards such as XP, currency and equipment based on the success of their mission. Spend money and resources to train your Strike Team and acquire better gear for them, which will increase their success rate and allow them to take on more difficult missions for greater rewards.

 

Find and activate Remnant Monoliths to unlock their vaults. Explore abandoned Remnant ruins to find and locate a powerful artifact, but once you remove it you will trigger the vault defenses that will arm traps, activate defense robots and even change the architecture of the vault itself to stop you from escaping. Fight your way out of the vault and you will be rewarded with valuable loot, including powerful gear, crafting resources and Star Keys. Elite Remnant Vaults are scattered around the Helius Cluster, located in massive orbital facilities that are unlocked by Star Keys. Elite vaults ratchet up the difficulty of the encounter with increasingly powerful defense robots and traps, as well as roaming outlaws and deadly Khet patrols that are also in search of the elite artifacts. Elite Remnant vaults will test the limits of your combat and puzzle solving acumen, but with greater difficulty comes greater rewards. Gain rare loot, narrative acclaim and huge rewards for completing these daunting challenges.

 

 

I dunno, a lot of it sounds like busywork to me. Like, instead of proper sidequests - the sort of thing we used to get in older BioWare games and, say, The Witcher 3 - we'll end up with a DA: I-esque set of repeatable activities to do, with occasional minor variations. There'll probably be a good amount of decent content, too - the main quest/companion stuff in DA: I was fine, after all - but, if this is the lion's share of what we'll be finding when we go exploring, I can't help but worry that the open world will end up feeling kinda shallow, like DA: I's.

[Natureguy85]

Well Natureguy, by your logic, every villain in every videogame ever is dumb for having been defeated by our mighty protagonists. Every videogame villain ever 'underestimates' our mighty protagonists and get defeated. That's how videogames go!

 

That's not true. They weren't dumb because they were defeated; they were defeated because they were dumb. While plenty of villains are dumb, some just make mistakes. Sometimes they lose a gamble or are arrogant.The problem is that the Collectors simply can't win. I don't know if there are enough humans in the Terminus Systems for them to complete the Reaper, particularly if some start moving back into Council Space because of the pattern of disappearances or if the Alliance gets serious about defending them.

 

Added: Letting Shepard on the ship to data mine and then letting him off was a particularly bad example.

 

 

@Natureguy: My Shep has as much agency in ME1 as in ME3. It's not like you can tell the council "screw you I'm not going to Therum, Feros or Noveria". I.e. unless you want a critical mission failure.

 

No, not at all. Like I said, the illusion of choice matters. Those places were all suggestions from Udina and Anderson, with Virmire coming from the Council. Ultimately it is Shepard who decides to go, even if you the player are not given a choice. You're also told why you're going there, unlike ME2 where, other than Mordin, you have no idea why you're getting these people.

[sjsharp2011]

I'm not so sure Shepard should have been able to say or do what they did to the Council without repercussions. Hanging up on them is a fun running gag but they really shouldn't have allowed that kind of disrespect to fly. Spectres are suppose to be answerable to the Council and considering the authority the Spectres are allowed, they should be reminded of that if they seem to think themselves answerable only to themselves or begin to seem dismissive towards the Council's authority over them.  

 

I should emphasis that I am not saying there should not be that kind of options, I am merely saying I think there should be logical repercussions to selecting said options.
 

Indeed that's one of the main reasons in my opinion why Shep was given Spectre status and the authority to chase down Saren in the first place

[RoboticWater]

Now, I'm still fairly optimistic about the game, but when it comes to DA: I-style 'dead, storyless content'... Well, some of the stuff in that 'Everything to Know about Mass Effect: Andromeda' thread on the Reddit has me worried:
 
 
I dunno, a lot of it sounds like busywork to me. Like, instead of proper sidequests - the sort of thing we used to get in older BioWare games and, say, The Witcher 3 - we'll end up with a DA: I-esque set of repeatable activities to do, with occasional minor variations. There'll probably be a good amount of decent content, too - the main quest/companion stuff in DA: I was fine, after all - but, if this is the lion's share of what we'll be finding when we go exploring, I can't help but worry that the open world will end up feeling kinda shallow, like DA: I's.

 

[color=#ffffff]

Why would you do this?

[sjsharp2011]

Well Natureguy, by your logic, every villain in every videogame ever is dumb for having been defeated by our mighty protagonists. Every videogame villain ever 'underestimates' our mighty protagonists and get defeated. That's how videogames go!

was thinking that myself

[sjsharp2011]

Why would there be no point in the collectors collecting so early? If they can, why not? They're within the Milky Way, the reapers are more removed. They arrive quickly but there is still enough time for Shepard to dismantle them. It fits. 

 

And yeah, as I said they weren't sure they were connected but they suspected. They had no other trail to follow. As you said, Shepard vowed to stop the reapers at the end of Mass Effect 1. They were pursuing all possible hints or trails which might indicate reaper activity. The collectors were certainly a legitimate trail to follow. What else was there? They didn't know exactly how the reapers would go about doing things. The only activity they saw - the collectors, abducting colonists (which seems to be in line with the reaper objective of mass genocide) - certainly seemed worthwhile investigating. And the more they investigated, the more reaper tech they found. Until at last, they discover they're a direct tool of the reapers. Why not dismantle them? The collectors were a direct agent of the reapers. In stopping the collectors, at the time, it was as good as stopping a vanguard move by the reapers - hindering the reapers directly. The reapers could've paralyzed millions with their seeker swarms. If left to their devices, they would've been an extremely helpful infiltration team for the reapers, a tool for the reapers to use when the time came. And yeah....they failed... because Shepard stopped them. Good.... that was the point of Mass Effect 2. Thank you Shepard.

Why is the idea of a billion empty pods indicating they want to fill them with humans preposterous? If you're saying the idea itself - of abducting and processing billions of humans to create a reaper is preposterous, that's criticizing the concept itself which is another thing. All I say here is that I think it wasn't a waste of time, nor was it an unnecessary diversion, to investigate and stop the collectors. I think that the collectors were a cool and logical intermediate enemy on the path to the finale in ME3 which made narrative sense and allowed enough space to build characters, explore other worlds like Tuchanka and Illium so that you feel more for them when they're under direct attack in Mass Effect 3, and adding depth and foreboding feels to the enemy because you see their ancient legacy via the enslaved protheans, etc.

Exactly the way I see it too.

[KirkyX]

Why would you do this?

Do what? All I see is: 

 

[color=#ffffff]

 

(I just edited in the spoiler tag, 'cause the comment was kinda massive. And changed the font colour, since copying a bunch of stuff from Reddit somehow messed that up.)

[Iakus]

That's not true. They weren't dumb because they were defeated; they were defeated because they were dumb. While plenty of villains are dumb, some just make mistakes. Sometimes they lose a gamble or are arrogant.The problem is that the Collectors simply can't win. I don't know if there are enough humans in the Terminus Systems for them to complete the Reaper, particularly if some start moving back into Council Space because of the pattern of disappearances or if the Alliance gets serious about defending them.

 

"They're going to hit Earth!"

 

Right.  They're going to fight their way past Arcturus Station and then invade the Sol system and all it's defenses and ships with one cruiser.

 

When a single GARDIAN can chase it off a colony world .

 

Talk about dumb  

 

 

No, not at all. Like I said, the illusion of choice matters. Those places were all suggestions from Udina and Anderson, with Virmire coming from the Council. Ultimately it is Shepard who decides to go, even if you the player are not given a choice. You're also told why you're going there, unlike ME2 where, other than Mordin, you have no idea why you're getting these people.

Okeer made sense too.  He'd had dealings with the Collectors and might have had some insight into them.  But he was killed and we got Grunt as a consolation prize.

 

One could argue Tali was appropriate too, as she was someone clued in to the Reapers and could be trusted.

 

But yeah, everyone else was just a random bad@ss

[Natureguy85]

I'm not so sure Shepard should have been able to say or do what they did to the Council without repercussions. Hanging up on them is a fun running gag but they really shouldn't have allowed that kind of disrespect to fly. Spectres are suppose to be answerable to the Council and considering the authority the Spectres are allowed, they should be reminded of that if they seem to think themselves answerable only to themselves or begin to seem dismissive towards the Council's authority over them.  

 

I should emphasis that I am not saying there should not be that kind of options, I am merely saying I think there should be logical repercussions to selecting said options.
 

 

Well, what would those be? They have him on an important mission. The only thing would be to pull his status. I can see that happening but I figure they see his mission as too important. I'm sure they have other jerks as Specters, though it's probably more annoying since it's the new guy.

[Shechinah]

Well, what would those be? They have him on an important mission. The only thing would be to pull his status. I can see that happening but I figure they see his mission as too important. I'm sure they have other jerks as Specters, though it's probably more annoying since it's the new guy.

 

Now I may be wrong since it has been a while since I played Mass Effect due to time constraints but could Shepard not have been removed and replaced by another Spectre?

 

Like you said, it is an important mission especially since Shepard is hunting down a rogue Spectre but for those same reasons would it not be sensible to put a different and more experienced Spectre on the case if they felt Shepard was too liable to disregard their orders?

 

I know the meta reasons why that would not happen but in-universe, was there or could there be reasons seen as to why Shepard was not replaceable for the mission?

[Prince Enigmatic]

 

 

Okeer made sense too.  He'd had dealings with the Collectors and might have had some insight into them.  But he was killed and we got Grunt as a consolation prize.

 

One could argue Tali was appropriate too, as she was someone clued in to the Reapers and could be trusted.

 

But yeah, everyone else was just a random bad@ss

 

Which is why I hope that in ME:A there is a solid reason for each and every squadmate being there as a squadmate in the first place, a solid rationale for why they would follow our protagonist as party members/squadmates what have you, other than reasons like they are a super cool looking witty dry quippy badass that comes along for the lols

 

I felt Ashley shouldn't have been on the Normandy as a squadmate after Eden Prime in ME1. I feel her presence was there solely for being a love interest, and for the Virmire Decision. 

 

And like you said most of the squad in ME2 had no real reason for being there. Miranda and Jacob yes (really Miranda and Jacob could've been one person, you really didn't both IMO) Garrus and Tali aren't completely solid, but because there old squadmates and loyal to Shepard it helps Shepard by having some friendly faces. And obviously Mordin. I guess one biotic expert, so either Samara and Jack, but do we need both? And the others... 

Don't get me wrong I loved ME2's cast (well, except for Zaeed and Jack) and they made the game even better, but when you think about it, there place on the squad sometimes didn't make a lot of sense, and kind of shows the weakness in ME2's plotting and overall story (or lack thereof).

 

So yeah, basically in ME:A I hope that there are real, legitimate and realistic reasons for the squadmates being in the squad.