Mass Effect 3

[TheGodlessUtopian]

It was released yesterday. Use this thread to discuss all aspects of it: what is good, bad, ugly, what could have been done/improved, the story, gameplay mechanics and so on.

Will be picking mine up later today.I paid for it literally a year ago, I have had it on pre-order for a long time,but due to transportation circumstances I couldn't pick it up at launch.

Anyways, thought?

P.S: Defeat the imperialist Reaper invasion!

[TheGodlessUtopian]

Here it is-the first Mass Effect controversy courtesy of the anti-gay bigots!


We are behind on our gaming—woefully so, apparently: Queerty reader Samuel sent us this link to a clip from Mass Effect 3, BioWare’s red-hot RPG that rolled out today. As in previous iterations of Mass Effect, gameplay is determined by choices users make along the way.
One option is for characters Kaiden and Commander Shepard to hop in the sack together for a same-sex romp—to which we say “huzzah!” (You can also opt for a girl-girl encounter (http://www.computerandvideogames.com/338691/features/mass-effect-3-gay-shepard-shows-games-are-finally-growing-up/).)
Sadly, user scores for ME3 on Metacritic (http://www1.computerandvideogames.com/338759/mass-effect-3-user-reviews-plummet-to-25-gay-scene-ending-blamed/)have been pretty negative—currently it’s averaging a not-so-hot 4.7/10. Many players are *****ing (http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2012/03/02/mass-effects-gay-debate-shows-gamers-have-growing-up-to-do/) about the gay sex scene:

* “What the hell were they thinking? putting gay scenes into video games?,” posted one user. “If i wanted political messages, id watch the news. I do NOT want games becoming yet another medium for propaganda.”
* “The game is really bad, don’t believe in the paid reviews and Hamburger Helper’s lies. They are trying to force homosexuality, telling yourselves that being straight is the bad choice (if you choose to not have sex with men its marked as a renegade option).”
* “I puked that’s just wrong and disgusting”
We did mention the queer storyline is entirely optional, right? We’re going to assume these haters are the parents’-basement-dwelling virgins who give gaming a bad name, and not the super-cool, enlightened players we know and love.


Full story here: http://www.queerty.com/watch-mass-effect-3-gives-gamers-an-intergalactic-gay-tryst-20120306/#ixzz1oSmBo01y




Hahaha... made my day! Anyways, below is a link to Game Informer's review.

http://www.gameinformer.com/games/mass_effect_3/b/xbox360/archive/2012/03/06/emotion-runs-high-in-shepard-39-s-farewell.aspx

[Drosophila]

I refuse to support EA/Bioware

[TheGodlessUtopian]

I refuse to support EA/Bioware

Why?

[#FF0000]

Why?

They're basically the worst of the worst when it comes to video game companies. EA just sort of swallowed up a ton of smaller companies and as a result, fucked up a lot of series. My beloved Command and Conquer is one of them (though that one held on longer than most).

And Bioware is just all around awful, in my opinion. There was a time where they made fine games, but not so much anymore, and Mass Effect, imo is one of the most overrated games I've ever played.

[Drosophila]

Why?

Party because I dislike the way they direct their games - retcon old stuff while inserting odd romances and the like (and no I'm not referring to the homosexual ones, but rather the robot ones).

EA is just awful in my opinion because of what FF said above and because of their Origin software.

[TheGodlessUtopian]

They're basically the worst of the worst when it comes to video game companies. EA just sort of swallowed up a ton of smaller companies and as a result, fucked up a lot of series. My beloved Command and Conquer is one of them (though that one held on longer than most).

And Bioware is just all around awful, in my opinion. There was a time where they made fine games, but not so much anymore, and Mass Effect, imo is one of the most overrated games I've ever played.

I already knew about EA's corporate gobbling but seeing as how that comes with the territory of being a corporation I have lost interest.

Overrated?! :p ...I don't think we will ever agree on what constitutes a good game.

[Veovis]

No Shepard/Garrus? :thumbdown:

*grumble*

[#FF0000]

Overrated?! :p ...I don't think we will ever agree on what constitutes a good game.

I dunno. The first one was absolute garbage when it came to actual game mechanics. The combat was god-awful. The actual roleplaying elements were poorly implemented too imo, but that could've been overlooked if the story wasn't so middling.

It is, at least, interesting, I think, but I really hope we see a departure from this whole 'interactive movie' angle they were going with in their games. I think games can be a fine medium for story telling but before it can really come into its own they need to stop trying to make them movies, stop mistaking density of narrative with depth thereof, and start figuring out how to write well.

[TheGodlessUtopian]

I dunno. The first one was absolute garbage when it came to actual game mechanics. The combat was god-awful. The actual roleplaying elements were poorly implemented too imo, but that could've been overlooked if the story wasn't so middling.

It is, at least, interesting, I think, but I really hope we see a departure from this whole 'interactive movie' angle they were going with in their games. I think games can be a fine medium for story telling but before it can really come into its own they need to stop trying to make them movies, stop mistaking density of narrative with depth thereof, and start figuring out how to write well.

The games have improved since the first one (which had some problems but I still thought it had a nice narrative). You may not like the interactive angle but I sure do; with what they have done with the third one I could not imagine it being the same game as it is now. So far Bioware has outdone itself with the 3rd.

[Grenzer]

I hate EA because of the ridiculous level of DRM, and the general lack of effort put into their games. The golden age of 3D gaming was like ~2001. Now huge corporations have snapped it all up. All we have are huge corporations churning out derivative games or tiny ass indy studios making interesting, but usually not serious or deep games.

I miss the days of Red Alert 2, Black & White, Classic Deus Ex, and Might & Magic.

[#FF0000]

I hate EA because of the ridiculous level of DRM, and the general lack of effort put into their games. The golden age of 3D gaming was like ~2001. Now huge corporations have snapped it all up. All we have are huge corporations churning out derivative games or tiny ass indy studios making interesting, but usually not serious or deep games.

I miss the days of Red Alert 2, Black & White, Classic Deus Ex, and Might & Magic.

Funny enough I find indie games to be the worst thing 9 times out of 10. Every so often you'll get a gem like Gratuitous Space Battles or Dwarf Fortress but other than that it's just as much shovelware like Minecraft and the millions of flash games people try to actually get money for.

But this is drifting off-topic.

How has the combat changed since the first Mass Effect? I never really bothered with the rest of them after being so massively disappointed with the first.

[TheGodlessUtopian]

How has the combat changed since the first Mass Effect? I never really bothered with the rest of them after being so massively disappointed with the first.

Fundamentally it is the same though now your allies are actually smart. You now use ammo for your weapons and health regeneration takes on the form of previous series where you regenerate up to a certain bar but need a health kit to restore all the way. The covering system has also been improved to where you can actually change cover with ease.

If you stopped after the first than you severely missed out. Each ending has only gotten more epic and somehow more awesome. In the third they found to the time to add in emotion! (Yes, it is not just blasting apart bad guys, there is time for the occasional guilt trip about not being able to save everyone.lol)

[Per Levy]

not gonna get it, maybe when a good pirate version is out then yeah but i dont want spyware(origion) on my com + ea sucks and im not really into mass effect right now.
also i do think that the end will let me disapointed. i mean the buildup for the reapers was awsome, but now they probally will be blasted out of the sky as it was nothing. its not like reapers doing stuff like this for millions of years and should be prepared and everything. and one thing that always bugs me about mass effect is that renegades are always wrong, and paragons always right, its annoying.


How has the combat changed since the first Mass Effect? I never really bothered with the rest of them after being so massively disappointed with the first.

well a lot of people compare it with battlefield team shooters style stuff, cant tell i dont play battlefield and stuff.

[#FF0000]

also i do think that the end will let me disapointed

Man.

You have no idea.

[GPDP]

Man, I wish I could talk about Tali's face reveal without delving into spoilers.

All I can say is, LOL BIOWARE. Just... LOL.

[Collectorgeneral]

EA is like the america of video gaming, imperialist and greedy.

[Leonid Brozhnev]

Never played a Mass Effect game, but I've watched a few playthroughs. To be honest, it's not a game I'd buy or even pirate... alright story imo, but shallow characters and crap combat. I used ME1 and ME2 playthroughs for background noise when I was too busy to play anything myself, and I'm doing the same with ME3.

[TheGodlessUtopian]

None of you people have any taste, I swear! :glare: / :laugh:

[Per Levy]

Man.

You have no idea.

oh is that bad?


Man, I wish I could talk about Tali's face reveal without delving into spoilers.

All I can say is, LOL BIOWARE. Just... LOL.

regardless of how tali looks, i wish they would have kept her face hidden would've been more mysterious and cooler.


None of you people have any taste, I swear!

i like mass effect actually. i mean the idea is pretty cool, play your character through 3 games, all the choices you make will change the game/story and stuff. also i love the epicness that mass effect can bring. i mean climbing the council tower in the last level to get to saren was amazing and so good.

on the other hand, mass effect can be quite annoying, the dumbing down thing from me1 to me2 was pretty bad and all the romance options that are also kinda akward from time to time. and there are a lot of other things, but i have played me1 and 2 so im just waiting for a good pirate release and that lets finish the story and see how it ends(probally in a reaper genocide :[ )

[GPDP]

It's less about how she looks and more about where the look itself comes from. Let's just say Bioware seems to have prefered using google and photoshop rather than a dedicated artist to make it happen.

[Dogs On Acid]

Mass Effect's story and lore conquered me like no other game but command and conquer (tiberium series).

Sure, ME1's combat was meh, and it had a very slow pace, but the story? The galactic races? THE MUSIC!? It's on the same level as Star Wars.

[Raúl Duke]

I like Mass Effect.... I even enjoyed it a lot while stoned, since the convos were sometimes a little absurd/unintentionally funny. (I recall the 1st game where Shepard and one of the party members were talking about the reapers after Shepard's vision and the conversation had this ridiculous tone of "Hey, the council should believe me! I saw the reapers in my vision that's reasonable evidence!" I only notice the silliness when I'm stoned) Too bad I can't play the last one (for now) since I don't have an Xbox, etc.

[Agathor]

They're basically the worst of the worst when it comes to video game companies. EA just sort of swallowed up a ton of smaller companies and as a result, fucked up a lot of series. My beloved Command and Conquer is one of them (though that one held on longer than most).

And Bioware is just all around awful, in my opinion. There was a time where they made fine games, but not so much anymore, and Mass Effect, imo is one of the most overrated games I've ever played.

No, Activision is the worst games publisher around.

It's hard to avoid big corporations in videogames. Independent studios do not survive for long. They don't have much capital, so if a game that they worked on for five years flops, they either go bankrupt or get bought by a big company. This happens to the best: Bethesda, Free Radical.

Bioware take more care over plot or characterization than any other games company, which matters in an RPG.

[#FF0000]

No, Activision is the worst games publisher around.

EA and Activision are both awful but yeah, Activision is probably worse.


Bioware take more care over plot or characterization than any other games company, which matters in an RPG.

I think you might actually be right about this.

Bioware does care a whole lot about their plot and characters but they just plain aren't good enough these days to do much of anything with either, I feel.

[GPDP]

Bioware take more care over plot or characterization than any other games company, which matters in an RPG.

They may have at one point, but nowadays they are yet another failed cog in the EA machine. And in any case, that's false IMO. Obsidian are much better in that department.

[Drosophila]

This happens to the best: Bethesda, .....

I would say Morrowind was a pretty great game...

[#FF0000]

They may have at one point, but nowadays they are yet another failed cog in the EA machine. And in any case, that's false IMO. Obsidian are much better in that department.

and CDProjekt

[Dogs On Acid]

"In the year 2148, explorers on Mars discovered the remains of an ancient spacefaring civilization. In the decades that followed, these mysterious artifacts revealed startling new technologies, enabling travel to the furthest stars. The basis for this incredible technology was a force that controlled the very fabric of space and time.
They called it the greatest discovery in human history.

The civilizations of the galaxy call it... MASS EFFECT."

[Agathor]

They may have at one point, but nowadays they are yet another failed cog in the EA machine. And in any case, that's false IMO. Obsidian are much better in that department.

Obsidian suck in every department. They screwed up New Vegas perfectly.

"Let's set a post apocalyptic game in an area that wasn't affected by the apocalypse!"

[Dunk]

Spoiler Alert. Do not read if you haven't completed the game and ever plan to.


The ending was bad. The lead up to the ending was a bit lackluster.

In my opinion, the Sanctuary/Ceberus base should have been it's own enclosed arc, like the Quarian/Geth war and the Genophage cure were. Maybe with another mission in there to help make the final storming of the base easier.

After that, Earth should have been a multiple step thing. Maybe first making a forward base on the moon, giving a chance to go with EDI to the training base from ME. After that, you actually land on Earth and back up Anderson, with the number of fleets and soldiers you've acquired actually making a difference in cutscenes. Instead of Hammer being pretty fucked regardless, it should just be scattered if you've got a high enough score.

Then for the Conduit charge. All of your squadmates from each game that's made it this far should be there for it. The higher your score is, the more regular soldiers that e that make it to the beam. If it's too low (as in barely above the minimum) you lose not only the regular forces, but also your current squadmates in the final blast, as well as every other squadmate as you charge in. If it's high enough, you knock your current squadmates (or LI, maybe) out of the line of fire of the last blast and get as fucked up as you do in the ending now.

Your squadmates then stick around to help you up, you limp into the beam but still get separated from everyone. The Anderson/Illusive man scene plays out, but if you have squad left, they show up just in time to shoot him if you don't make the final renegade interrupt, so you can't die there (which was stupid anyway, interrupts were never meant to be PRESS X TO NOT DIE. Press X to stop other people dying maybe, but not Shepard). If you take him out yourself, or Paragon him, you have that Anderson talk, then your squadmates show up and tell you they're sorry for you loss.

Then the endgame. You try to activate the crucible, the lift initiates instead. But instead of that stupid child AI thing, you find a Keeper, or at least something that looks like one. He takes a couple of sentences to start being coherent, then explains that the Keepers created the original Reapers, as well as the Relays, the Citadel AND the first Crucible plans. Or rather, they became the original Reapers. There was some sort of civil war which broke out after dark energy destroyed a huge number of systems about 60 million years ago, damaging many others and showering most of the Galaxy with debris (as in, around the time the dinosaurs died out). Some Keepers wanted to augment themselves so that they could try to be powerful enough and live long enough to work out how to fix the dark energy problem. Others thought that doing so would hinder their evolution and progress, stopping them from ever solving the problem and therefore dooming the galaxy. The war broke out, lasted a long time. But when the first Reapers were made, it was clear who was going to win. The Keeper in the citadel was in stasis, waiting for a cycle to finish the crucible and prove that it had the ability to adapt and the resolve to save itself. The other keepers at this point are just indoctrinated slaves, like the collectors. The point of the cycle was simply to add to the Reaper forces, as well as harvest technology, with the hopes that having more of them would lead the to solving the dark energy situation faster.

As for the endings. You get two, Control and Destroy. Control is safer and "easier" if you have a lower asset score. You essentially go into stasis, pretty much killing yourself off, but stopping the Reapers and taking control of the deadliest force in the galaxy.

Destroy however, is harder to get a good version of. The lower your asset score, the less accurate the destruction is due to how well made the Crucible is. At the highest level, only the Reapers are destroyed, leaving anything with Reaper tech (like the upgraded Geth) alone. Lower than that destroys the Citadel, then further down destroys the Geth, then the Mass Relays, then Earth and finally the entire fleet taking part in the battle.

However, even at the highest level, the feedback will still kill anything organic on the citadel, so you need toe evacuate before it activates. The Normandy attempts to get to you, but if your Fleet isn't strong enough, Joker gets hit attempting to disengage and can't reach you in time. You get enough time to say your goodbyes, then warn everyone about the Dark energy threat, but then everyone on the Citadel dies.

If you manage to get the 'perfect' ending, the Shepard lives and everything's sort of fine, apart from the dark energy thing and the massive amount of destruction caused by the Reapers.

Oh, and a load of people close to Shepard are dead too. But close enough to a happily ever after, I guess.Some Anonymous poster in a video game forum wrote that. I like his/her idea.

I don't necessarily think the ending was a disaster. I don't necessarily think the ending was so bad it ruined the game, either. I don't really get that excited over these things.

I do think that the ending of ME3 contradicts the philosophical themes of all three games, that theme chiefly being the agency/free will of Shepard v. the absolute determinism of the Reapers.

Each choice at the ending renders the decisions and actions of Shepard inconsequential.

Maybe I should find some kind of thoughtful kernel from it. Everything Shep fights for is destroyed. Everything Shep fights for is preserved. Both are kind of true.

Also, anyone care to share what their Shepard was like? My imported character from ME1 was default maleShep, love interest was Liara, all three games. I've never been able to finish a playthrough as a Renegade (though Renegade dialogue is funny as hell), and only one playthrough as femShep, love interest was Liara again.

[#FF0000]

Obsidian suck in every department. They screwed up New Vegas perfectly.

"Let's set a post apocalyptic game in an area that wasn't affected by the apocalypse!"

Man I don't think they could have fucked it up any worse than Bethesda fucked up 3, where every faction had literally no reason to be at each other throats and every reason to just sit back and let the other one reach the purifier.

But to be clear both New Vegas and Fallout 3 were awful.

[o well this is ok I guess]

Mass effect 2 and 3 were full of references to jokes that were much funnier when they were actually done in mass effect 1. And that's bullshit and unfunny.

[human strike]

Mass Effect 3 is counter-revolutionary.

[Agathor]

Man I don't think they could have fucked it up any worse than Bethesda fucked up 3, where every faction had literally no reason to be at each other throats and every reason to just sit back and let the other one reach the purifier.

But to be clear both New Vegas and Fallout 3 were awful.

The Enclave wanted to use the purifier to poison the wasteland's water supplies so that it would kill all mutants and most humans, and the Brotherhood wanted to clean the water of it's radiation and thereby make it consumable. I thought it was pretty straightforward.

Anyway, Bethesda suck at the literary side of game development: characters, plots etc. Nobody defends them. But they're so good at creating an immersive atmosphere that we look past it.

[Sperm-Doll Setsuna]

EA and Activision are both awful but yeah, Activision is probably worse.




Don't forget Ubisoft!