238 replies to this topic

[Selena]

Come on, I know that at least a few of you are ritually going through the first two games again in preparation for the third one! I sorta have to, since I lost my original save data with the loss of my last XBox, but I'm sure I would have played through them again anyway. Gives me a chance to lock in some different choices this time around.

So... let's talk about revisiting the old games, and commence drooling over the third!

Relevant info:
- Playing as Femshep, naturally
- Playing as a Vanguard
- Romancing nobody because Bioware romances are awkward.
- Paragon
- Chose Ashley over Kaiden because he's pathetically heroic and she's a smartass with lots of guns.

Revisiting Mass Effect 1

Technically my third time playing through this one. I'm finding it surprisingly hard to go through it again. Maybe it simply comes from the fact that ME2 had a lot of spit and polish to clean up various aspects of gameplay, and going back to ME1 means everything suddenly feels primitive in comparison. That said, though, there are a lot of things ME1 did right that ME2 dropped, and I prefer various characters in the first game to the squadmates in the sequel. The main story is also much better. Probably because there is one.


Combat System
It's less refined, of course, but it does the job well enough. You're actually on the overpowered side in the first game. A maxed-out shotgun can kill almost any baddie in one hit. Very jarring when you try that in ME2, because you make the horrific realization that one-shot kills don't necessarily work anymore and now you're staring uncomfortably down the barrel of an enemy assault rifle. Biotics went through the opposite evolution - weak/simplistic in the first game, powerful and versatile in the second. So I guess it balances it out?

I think I preferred using medigel and armor mods to heal myself, though. Rather than the Gears of War-style health recharge in the second one. Which always feels like a way of of pussying things up for the people who don't approach battle sensibly. But that's a complaint about that gaming mechanic in general, not specifically its use in ME2.


Leveling/Inventory
I actually preferred ME1's leveling system, I think. More versatility. And you didn't have to put any skill points into using special ammunition like you did in ME2. Ammunition is a thing, not a skill. You slap it into the gun and shoot. So it was nice to have a divide between customizing weapons and leveling up actual skills - something I hear they brought back for the third game. As for the inventory system, yeah, it's obnoxious. But somewhat manageable if you keep only the essentials and clear out the junk as you go.

Exploration/Design
Looooot of big empty rooms in ME1. Lots of needless running around. Exploration planets are almost entirely barren save for a few stock mines/bases. Blatant "crates suspiciously sitting around totally not for gunfire cover" syndrome going on. I never had a problem with the Mako like some people did, but I can see why they cut out planetary exploration in the second game. Nothing down there. ME2 went a little too far in the other direction, though, with every visitation to another world feeling pre-scripted rather than exploratory.

Story
ME2 actually left a very sour taste in my mouth after the first playthrough, simply because it felt like NOTHING HAD HAPPENED other than Shepard playing counselor to a bunch of effed up squadmates. There's basically two or three big missions that have anything to do with the whole Reapers-invading-and-slaughtering-everything plot. The other 80% of the game is glorified sidequest. So ME1 shines in the story department. It's on the cliche side, but it has some great moments. Especially near the end. It properly felt like you were trying to save the galaxy from an imminent threat.


Characters
I desperately missed the original crew when I first picked up ME2 - so the first game did something right! They aren't bogged down in their own melodramatic problems. Some may have early versions of "loyalty quests," but they're optional bonuses. They are your brothers-in-arms and they will lay down their lives for you. You get the sense that they want to be there, as opposed to ME2, where half of them are on the team against their will until you win them over.

Unfortunately, for as nice as the characters are, they don't get the same attention devoted to them as the sequel's cast. Simply because of how the story is set up, I suppose. You get glimpses into their pasts and why they feel the way they do. Ashley's not a gun-toting space racist, she's just traumatized by her shameful family legacy and will happily learn to get over her issues if you talk her down. Wrex is not a typical krogan mercenary, he's the self-exiled son of a clan leader and would like to actually help his people, but is so fed up with their closed-mindedness that he can't bring himself to do so (yet). That sort of thing. But for the most part, they're on the flatter side of the characterization spectrum when compared to the other cast. They do well at showing off what they can, though.

There's a bonus in going back to this game and seeing characters like Garrus and Tali. You definitely get the sense that they bonded throughout the story. They're very close to you in ME2, but at the start of ME1, there's a strong "I just met you" vibe going on. They're friendly, yet distant and/or shy. It gradually fades and morphs into the relationships you see in the second game, even ignoring the problems below.

Dialogue
Annnnnnd here's where ME1 falls flat. This picture demonstrates the two extremes between Bioware's dialogue:




The dialogue and interactions in ME2 absolutely trumps the first game. Dialogue in ME1 feels stilted, matter-of-fact, and detached. It lacks life. Your teammates don't typically interact with each other unless they're in one of those damn elevators. Otherwise, if you bring specific squadmates to a mission, they just say variations of the same exact lines. The dynamic doesn't change up. There are only a few characters that make attempts to banter with you or be a well-adjustd smartass (Garrus and Ashley being leading examples). Otherwise, barring certain events, things feel distant. And Shepard's dialogue options aren't that great at all. You're extreme Paragon, extreme Renegade, or extreme Apathetic.

ME2? Everyone's cracking jokes, interacting with each other, and everything feels comfortable. There's a lot more friendly banter. Even amongst strangers who don't really want to be there. There are various members of the cast who outright hate each other and will fight. If you bring certain people to missions, the team dynamic feels like it changes and you get more unique lines.



ME1? Almost everyone feels like they have something shoved up their ass in comparison. And in a game like this, dialogue and team interaction is incredibly important.




Well, according to Joker, Garrus did. But then he learned to remove it and beat people to death with it.

[Chukchi Husky]

I started to play through the first Mass Effect again. What happened was I decided one day to download the demo of Mass Effect 2 for the PC, and I found it ran better on my PC then the first Mass Effect did on the Xbox 360. When the series was on sale on Steam, I ended up buying the first game again for £2.50 and then when the series went on sale again bought Mass Effect 2 for £5. I been going slowly through the first game. I'm playing a vanguard female Shepard, and at the moment I'm trying to do the side missions before going to Virmire. Apart from the demo I haven't touched Mass Effect 2, as I'm waiting until I have a completed save.

If you think BioWare romances are bad you should play The Witcher.

[TheAvengerLever]

I know one day I'm going to play Mass Effect. Right now I'm playing through KOTOR, so once I beat that, I'll move on.

[Veteran]

I dearly love ME1 and would love to play it again if I could fit it in. As for ME2 I remember I downloaded Lair of the Shadow Broker but never got round to playing it. That probably says it all.

[DarkJuno]

I still need to finish ME2 and buy The Arrival before March - I'm literally saved right at the Omega 4 and just need to get in there and get in there, with only my paranoia about having messed something up to keep anyone from dying, which I'm sure I haven't. Anyway, I can say something, I'm sure.

First off, PS3 player, so obviously I never played the first. On one hand, the little comic at the beginning actually did a good job of bringing me up to speed and as a result I never felt lost even with all the callbacks to the first. On the other hand, I am entirely certain some cute/clever references to the first game have flown over my head, and the same will happend in the third. Heck, while I understood the magnitude of having to choose which squadmate you sacrificed, it was still an arbitrary choice for me since I never got to know either character - it was only after the fact that it became clear that, had I played the first game, I probably wouldn't have made the decision I did (Kaiden over Ashley). As it is, I'm still not entirely sure if my choice of killing the Rachni Queen will come back to bite me in the ass for the third game given the antagonists. Still, It did feel good to see Wrex alive and in charge despite not really knowing him prior, so there is that.

(Sidenote: Was it true that the other versions of ME2 had a checklist of some kind before starting a game just so you could make sure your choices all went through intact? Because I sure as hell would've liked that in Dragon Age II since it insists my chosen romance and a couple surviving characters did not occur and did not survive, respectively).

Anyway, yeah, the game is as great as everyone said, except I was rather puzzled by how structurally weak the story was laid out. I eventually came to find out, as explained above, how that it was not indicitive of the way it was set up in the first, so I have hope that the third will flow better. Honestly, I ended up getting annoyed whenever Martin Sheen decided to bother me and force me on a story mission since it otherwise threw me out there to fend on my own, and that's the worst way to remind players there's a plot. It's especially apparent after having played Morrowind and Oblivion (and now Skyrim) where you could basically tell the main storyline to take a hike and just do whatever you wanted, and the reminders there about the story are much more natural and appreciated. It's giving the player the freedom to explore on their own....except not. Whiel I can't comapre it to the first game, I can compare it to the first Dragon Age (ironically DAII has its own insanity in regards to story structure, but I'll digress).

Dragon Age Origins had a decent, strong, if cliched plot of gathering allies to fight the great evil threat coming. The overall story arc was good, and while the individual quests with the different races went off into tangents, they alls till funneled directly and tied into the main story - you were always remidned that the Blight was at your doorstep and all you were doing was ultimately related to that. Even the random sidequests - likening them to filler episodes in a tv series - worked since they came across as breathers between big giant events and helped to really flesh out the characters and their backstories without completely beating you voer the ehad with it unlkess you wanted them to. In the end, all of it, from the main questlines to the filler sidequests all joined and culminated in the big climatic and overly dramatic finale and everything paid off, from the plot to the personal character arcs.

ME2 is essentially a TV Series that has an alleged story arc presented in the opening multi-parter that then decides to just throw almost nothing but filler episodes at you, only occasionally remembering to bring up a storyline mission during sweeps period and suddenly coming up near the finale. Just riding along, doing an endless stream of filler episodes - sometimes really good ones, honestly - that have nothing to do with anything, then OH SHIT WE FOUND THE STORY BIBLE QUICKJAMITINTOTHELASTFIVEEPISODESNOW!!! The bit with your entire crew getting kidnapped was good, but it would have been much better and more impactful if they had consistantly and properly building up the antagonists throughout the game rather then just saying "They are bad guys and these are the bad things they are doing, rememeber that!" every now and then.

Still, hopefully they take the lead of the first game and DA:O for ME3 and not ME2 or DAII for the story. As for the gameplay, yeah, let's face it, as soon as you see a bunch of anything at chest height, you know you're in for a fight - even when it LOOKS like they're just messing with you, no, you have to turn around because the baddies snuck up behind you instead. Oy. Again, only going by the second game, this is not a pure RPG in the least bit. Maybe it was better implemented in the first game but this is clearly a third person shooter with RPG elements. In and of itself, the shooting isn't good enough to hang with other 3rd Person shooters (though it's more then competant), but as one that's a quasi-RPG it's one of the best. Leveling makes no sense since there aren't really stats, just armor and a health bar, and as pointed out above, I have no idea why you use skill points for ammo. At least FFXII had some in-game logic with requiring a license to use that weapon you just bought, but as far as I could tell there's no in-universe reason ever explicitly stated or even vaguely hinted at for this in ME2. Either go all the way for the RPG-ness in the new game, or just stop fooling yourself, design it as a shooter, and properly implement skill points and stats, don't go for this bizzare halfway that's not really halfway.

As for the characters I actually do really like all of them, to be honest, though one thing I think they can easily take from DA is aprty banter. Both games have the various party memebrs make their nice little unique contributions to conversations for missions, to be sure, but the extra thing DA has is the party banter. Admittedly, it's easier to implement in that game since you walk around everywhere, but it's a nice way of building up the character relationships with one another without having to stop what you're doing, and it adds some nice depth to what's already presented. One of them even completely changed my opinion of a character when I heard it since it made everything about the guy make sense. ME2 did a good job of having conversations between Shepherd and the party memebers, but I'd lvoe to see it also have the different members talk to one another beyond just the mission you find a person or an arbitrary cutscene. Yeah, it's clear Tali and Legion would have issues, but it would've been nice to really see that distrust spread out over the course of the game isntead of just a natural occurance or being told. In the case of Leliana and Morrigan from Origins, there's an entire arc from starting off funny and amusing to being actually pretty vicious. It makes the interactions later in the game all that more solid.

I guess that's all I have to say 'till I finish, though with Skyrim in possession and Final Fantasy XIII-2 in a few weeks that may take some time... <.<


Oh, and Paragon female Shepherd as a soldier who occasionally does something violent to people in cutscenes. Did a Liara romance because....I didn't like any of the in-game choices for romance so I just picked the random one from the past since knowing nothing about it felt better then the ones I knew about. Also can't explain why I'm Femshep (and Ladyhawke in DAII) other then prior to this I always played Good Guy First then Evil Girl for a second playthrough for any game and I guess I just decided to switch it up and do Good Girl and Evil Guy instead. Maybe I feel guilty for all those years of Evil Sith Lady Revan and her lemony apprentice ruling the galaxy and the like, who knows.

[Selena]

ME2 is essentially a TV Series that has an alleged story arc presented in the opening multi-parter that then decides to just throw almost nothing but filler episodes at you, only occasionally remembering to bring up a storyline mission during sweeps period and suddenly coming up near the finale. Just riding along, doing an endless stream of filler episodes - sometimes really good ones, honestly - that have nothing to do with anything, then OH SHIT WE FOUND THE STORY BIBLE QUICKJAMITINTOTHELASTFIVEEPISODESNOW!!! The bit with your entire crew getting kidnapped was good, but it would have been much better and more impactful if they had consistantly and properly building up the antagonists throughout the game rather then just saying "They are bad guys and these are the bad things they are doing, rememeber that!" every now and then.

That... pretty much sums up the plot of ME2.

The first game was very story dominant. It was divided up into multiple "major missions" on various alien planets. The first two were more investigative (thus non-pressing) and could be done in any order with free-roaming in between. The third mission is big and dramatic, but you can still start it at your own discretion. The fourth mission is a point of no return, since it leads directly to the final showdown, but you can still chose to do other stuff before starting it. And after the main quest is done, you can free-roam as you see fit, whether that involves playing DLC or finishing up lesser assignments.

Sidequests were almost always emergency rescue scenarios, prototype loyalty missions for a few party members, or funneled to/from the main quest (with discreet Cerberus buildup for ME2). They were fairly relevant bonuses that helped flesh things out. Character building tended to occur between main quests, when you talked to them while off-duty, rather than in character-centric plot arcs. So, for all its other lesser faults, the first game had a pretty solid plot.


Which is why, after finishing Mass Effect 2 for the first time, I sat there after watching the credits and went..... "That's it?!" And was actually a little miffed for a while. Because, as you said, it's glorified filler. 90% of ME2 is completely irrelevant to the strong plot they established in the first game. Like they got ADD and forgot what they were doing. It feels like, story-wise, ME2 only exists to set things up for the third one, as opposed to having its own decent plot arc. Because when you continue focusing on the main story, this is all that happens (major spoilers excluded):

- Shepard is attacked by new aliens and killed
- Shepard is reanimated by bad guy organization Cerberus
- A couple human colonies get mysteriously attacked and people are kidnapped
- You recruit a bunch of new characters and find the old cast in brand new roles.
- The heroes figure out how to get through the relay
- They go through the relay
- They destroy what's on the other side

The final boss isn't even an immediate or major threat - not compared with the stakes in Mass Effect 1 - and probably wouldn't have had much impact in Mass Effect 3 if it had been allowed to "live." You learn a little bit more about how Reapers work and get a sense of what the final outcome of the third game may be, given Cerberus' intentions, but that's about it. The entire game probably had as much relevant plot advancement as Mass Effect 1 had in a single mission.

The third game supposedly focuses on winning the loyalty of the other alien civilizations, rather than characters, and you can tell they were purposefully shoving some of your party members toward leadership roles. Wrex is a big one, and I'm sure it'll help to have him alive and well in the third game. Tali becomes a major, if controversial, player in the quarian community. Legion represents all of the geth at once. Liara's the new shadow broker.

It's a massive awkward, hollow transition. Especially given how all the new characters may not even show up again in the third, or at least won't play many important roles.

But hopefully Mass Effect 3 will marry the plot of the first game and the gameplay of the second, resulting in bliss.

[DarkJuno]

So...demo? Anyone?

First off, I did finally escape from Skyrim's grip and beat ME2 plus The Arrival. Yeah, that last boss was underwhelming to say the least, and the toughness of the Suicide Mission, even on normal seem to have been greatly exagerated. Honestly, the swarms of Husks at the Derelict Reaper gave me more trouble. The hybrid was a good idea, but it still falls back to the problem of how they didn't do a very good job of building up the story and the threat and as a result....eh. Anyway, happy ending taken, all DLC done, Level 30, so I'm ready, though I'll probably start a new file as a Renegade for the hell of it.

As for the ME3 demo, it's....Mass Effect. A couple changes here and there for combat, but it's basically the exact same thing, which I'm okay with. I wonder though, when you import yoru character in, do you have to go through the character creator all over again, or is s/he brought in solid and that's that? I know for Dragon Age Origins -> Awakenings ->All the DLC your Warden was brought in and that was that, but I don't know how it was done for ME. I only ask because of the way Shepard is brought back at the beginning of the second game seemed like a convenient excuse to not bother importing how s/he looked physically and just the story stuff, but I don't know from experience. Oh, and people keep talking about a spoiler from around the end of the demo, but I really didn't notice anything that would've bugged me learning about there instead of in the game. Oh, and hopefully the character interactions are a bit meatier with a proper import since the blank Shephard of the demo is really dull.

[Selena]

ME3 demo....

I had a jarring reaction to the graphics -- not so much the terrain and objects, which are still pretty, but to Shepard and people in general. Everything looks kind of simultaneously gritty and plastic-y now. If that's possible. The character creation screen threw me off big time. I tried to re-create "my" Shepard as best I could, but she still looked off. Even had to make her more tan, because pale Shepard now has freckles for some reason. ME2 seemed so smooth and had richer colors.

Yes, you can import your character straight in using your save game file, and maybe that will make things look smoother. But I expect to tinker with it to make her look good.

As for actual gameplay, I found a good rhythm on my second playthrough of the demo. The pacing has changed, though. The major difference for me is that biotic powers now take twice as long to recharge, even if you max them out. Not a big deal if you're a Soldier or something. Kind of a big deal if you're like me and play as a Vanguard.

A Vanguard's main tactic is to use Charge to close distance, stun the enemy, and insta-kill him with the shotgun. It recharged every 6 seconds, and it restored your shields once maxed out, so you could Charge in, go boom, then Charge again to take out someone else before you lost your shields. Very fast, very aggressive. If you were fighting a big enemy, you Charged and shot repeatedly until it was worn down. We also had the power Pull - recharged every 3 seconds - to rapidfire attack enemies at longer range and behind cover.

Now all the biotic powers take twice as long to recharge. The whole rhythm is off. You can't Charge anymore and hope to live long enough to Charge again - those 12 seconds are now agony. Seems like they're trying to incorporate that new super-melee attack as much as they can. I've found that it's a good way to insta-kill enemies if I've fired all three of my shotgun rounds and don't want to take time to reload.

Medigel and healing -- I never use it in ME2 because Shepard just auto-heals. Now she doesn't, so I actually get to use it now. Hurray? Seems like they're taking some things back from ME1 that got hacked out in the sequel. Which is good. Actually having to heal, more options for skills, more RPG elements involved rather than Gears of War with biotics this time around.

I'm hopeful, but I also know that I'm going to have to make some adjustments. We didn't have Charge at all in ME1, so I may have to revert to those older tactics a bit more. It's doable. ....Though I won't feel like a freight train anymore.

[SteveT]

A Vanguard's main tactic is to use Charge to close distance, stun the enemy, and insta-kill him with the shotgun. It recharged every 6 seconds, and it restored your shields once maxed out, so you could Charge in, go boom, then Charge again to take out someone else before you lost your shields. Very fast, very aggressive. If you were fighting a big enemy, you Charged and shot repeatedly until it was worn down. We also had the power Pull - recharged every 3 seconds - to rapidfire attack enemies at longer range and behind cover.

Now all the biotic powers take twice as long to recharge. The whole rhythm is off. You can't Charge anymore and hope to live long enough to Charge again - those 12 seconds are now agony. Seems like they're trying to incorporate that new super-melee attack as much as they can. I've found that it's a good way to insta-kill enemies if I've fired all three of my shotgun rounds and don't want to take time to reload.

Traditionally, my first playthrough is Vanguard. I tried out Vanguard in the demo, and I agree that it felt kind of nerfed. Although, you can make the argument that they have be OP the past few games. I played ME as a Vanguard and as a Soldier, and ME2 as a Vanguard an Sentinel. I can't speak to the other classes, but my Vanguard always ended fights a lot faster.

I'm probably just weird, but I tended to use Charge in a more tactical role than a brutish one. I considered it my "Shepherd needs to be there button", for getting into a better position without breaking cover. The guy I stole a spot from always had a horrible shotgun-to-the-face death, of course, but for me the real point was instantly being in the right spot on the battlefield. The slower recharge is still very annoying, but I never used charge that often anyway. I expect I'll spend more time spamming Shockwaves.

Edited by SteveT, 20 February 2012 - 12:53 AM.

[DarkJuno]

Slight sidenote.

Yeah.

When they did this for Soul Calibur IV's instruction manual, it was cute. For Mass Effect? Still cute, but oh so very...odd.

[Selena]

I am.... afraid. o.o


On that note, beat Mass Effect 2 the other night! The actual story is still lackluster, but, as a game, I enjoy it more than the first one. Combat's addictive and I could fight all day long if they let me. Dialogue is better by leaps and bounds and, even if there's not much going on with the "real" plot, connecting to your crew is always good. Especially on a second or third playthrough, since by then they feel more familiar and less "YOU ARE NOT WREX OR ASHLEY OR LIARA" like I had on my first time through it.

But yeah, Steve, Vanguards are way overpowered. Which is admittedly fun. But I can understand why they increased power recharge times in the third one now. When I can defeat a heavy mech or geth colossus by charging/shotgunning repeatedly, sending them flying back a dozen or so meters after wearing down their shields, you can definitely say that maaaaybe the Vanguard is a little too much like a freight train.

Always sad when you run out of missions and have nothing left to do. I'm interested to see how ME3's new "Galaxy at War" feature plays out.

[Ninja]

My god. Mass Effect 3. My mind, blown. Brb, need to disappear for a few weeks to properly immerse myself in awesome.

[Selena]

*GIGGLE GIGGLE GIGGLE TEEHEE*

GOODBYE WORLD

[Veteran]

How is it how is it how is it how is it?

[DarkJuno]

Had to wait till after work.

DLC installing.....installing....installing.....

-eats dinner-

.....still installing....


DONE!

-disappears-

[Selena]

I would tell you how it is, but UPS is deciding to be especially slow delivering it. How long can you be out for delivery, stupid truck?

[SteveT]

I got my copy today.The Vanguard is still as awesome as ever--you just have to get the stupid assault rifle out of your loadout and your recharge rates go back to what they should be.

What's extra awesome is that if you import a character from ME2, you keep their level and get to reapply skill points. I was immediately a Level 30 Vanguard with maxed out class buff skills and a good deal of upgrades to Shockwave and Charge. They expanded each skill to 6 tiers, and it looks like the highest upgrade to Shockwave combines it with pull, so when you knock someone into the air, they STAY knocked into the air. I'm looking forward to that.

[Selena]

Yeah, I was surprised at the recharge rates when you drop extra weight. Charge every 2.3 seconds? Imma tear shit UP. I figured they'd nerf your abilities upon import like they did in ME2. Nope. Like Steve said, started off right at level 30 with all my abilities (except my bonus power Reave).

I've just gotten the freedom to go where I want to go. The two intro stages went pretty quick.

So far, it definitely feels like they've pulled closer to ME1 than ME2. It's basically what I was hoping for - a marriage between ME2's combat system and ME1's plot and general atmosphere. More roaming around the non-combat locations so far. You actually get access to more than one ward on the Citadel now! And your crew can be found wandering around on their own, so you can talk to them while they enjoy their own break. More conversation.

Your crew starts off pretty slim, but you can recruit old pals along the way - like Chakwas and the two bickering engineers from ME2. I panicked a little when they weren't there at the start, so glad to see them back. I'm looking forward to seeing who else is coming back, since the Normandy has a lot of currently empty spaces for people to hang out.

My single encounter with an ME2 crew member has been more of a run-in with conversation, but, given who it was and their health condition, that's all you can really expect from them.

The Normandy looks like shit with all its construction, but hopefully that clears away as the game progresses.

EDI! Wtf! I don't know if... what are you doing?


I like it so far, but still too soon to pass judgment on the whole thing. Combat flows pretty good, though there's some getting used to the new movement system, and dialogue is still good. Certain plot points seem a little too convenient though.

[Selena]

Double post, but.... worth it!


Having progressed through the Tuchanka missions, it's now clear that there aren't going to be easy choices. You are forced to choose between factions and people - with no paragon/renegade charm options to get the best of both worlds. If you choose to support one species, you might lose the support of another one. At least in this instance. Possible workaround to it, but only a bit.

Sometimes these choices pit one of your old squadmates up against another helpful faction. First crew death from the ME2 cast. And one that nobody want to see go. If nothing else, his death was noble and fitting.

For those who've gotten that far:

Spoiler

He just had to start signing while he was working at the end. Made it all the more bittersweet. I've studied species turian, asari, and batarian....

;-; Waaaaah.

Basically, we may be in for some uncomfortable choices this time.

[DarkJuno]

Didn't click because I've only just gotten to the point where the second ME2 squadmate asks you to met her on the Citadel, but I kinda like that. Hopefully they're not ALL "THIS OR THAT!!!!" choices, but it's nice to have some legitimtely hard choices akin to the Ashley/Kaiden one from the first...which I've never played, but still. I would like for at least a handful to have the third option choice where you have to really, really bust your ass in something that might not even be worth it to get an equally happy choice - can't think of an example from ME2, but in Dragon Age Origins, there was one specific quest where there IS a third option in a certain quest that's not difficult so much as annoying and mind numbingly aggravating, but it allows you to save everyone in that one particular quest - one of the very few, but it makes that one triumphant bright spot all the more fulfilling.

So far, I'm liking it a lot, gameplay wise it feels like ME2, and I can already sense the improved storytelling, at least early on. However, warning to anyone who has any sort of access to the artbook - DO NOT LOOK AT IT. I was fortunate enough to only flip to a page for a certain character whose...change happends early on, but that was enough of a hint to shut it and leave it be for now. <.<

Anyway! Pre-bedtime gametime!

[Ninja]

I was wondering if anyone wants to form a galaxy at war squad and kick those challenges in the butt on-line. My user name on origins is Delamern, so add me if you feel like upping your galactic readiness. It looks like the galactic readiness is an account wide buff on your war-room stuffs. Basically it makes it so the assets you acquire in game count for more towards your overall war score. Plus it gives you bonus war assets in game. You start at level 1 as a class of your choice, and they have random mission objectives that appear throughout the 10 waves of fighting. I started playing that last night out of curiousity, and got hooked on it worse than the plot of the game.

It's co-op teams of four, and they don't have type to chat. The lack of type to chat is my only real complaint. It's a pain in the freaking ass to coordinate a team if everyone doesn't have mics as you're left guessing as to where the giant evil cerberus robot went, or you're stuck asking yourself, "Where did that one hit kill reaper assassin biotic thingy go? It was just... oh NOT IN THE FAAAAAACE...!"

As for gear, your character earns credits for every mission completed, that he/she can then spend on equipment chests. The chests tend to give at least two powerups, then some combination of guns and mods. You get on average 15-30 thousand a mission depending on the diff, so it's not too hard to pick up some good weapons early on.

Each class has it's own overall experience bar that unlocks extra character classes to play as well. I'm about half-way to being a Krogan with my soldier class, and am looking forward to those quads

[Selena]

warning: bigass post.

Okay, so, I just finished it after like 3 days of power gaming. Watched the credits roll about 20 minutes ago, so still in the process of "sinking in." I'll split up my review into non-spoiler and spoiler halves.

Fighting
Action is basically the same as Mass Effect 2, just with some extra stuff tacked on. The new cover/movement system can occasionally be awkward - there were a couple times when I accidentally bolted right into the crossfire - but, for the most part, it's well done. You know you're on an "action" level because the game now prevents you from holstering your weapon. And you can't draw any weapons when you're in "non-action' time. Straightforward, but this does prevent them from doing any Chora's Den-style surprise ambushes while you're walking around an otherwise "peaceful" area. You can unlock bonus skills by maxing out conversations with your crew.

I was pleased to see that Carnage has returned, bringing my Vanguard character around full circle to embrace her ME1 powerhouse skill and ME2's skill layout. Charge + Nova + Carnage = flying brick of destruction and pain. Power recharge time is dependent on weight carried, so by only carrying a shotgun and pistol, the recharge time on Pull was under a second and Charge could be used about every 2 seconds. My poor enemies.

Story/Atmosphere
We finally return to a story driven plot, hurray! And it works well. In fact, ME1 feels like a very very small story in comparison with the scope of this game. The "feel" of the game is very desperate and grim, but you do get a sense that they've pulled closer to ME1's approach to things. Things aren't close to ME1 at all, but it somehow feels like it is. Hard to explain. A little more RPG in the mix than just shooter, I suppose. Maybe it's just because we get a story again.

Story Progress
The game is basically divided into various war campaigns. You help bail out the turians. You'll resolve the genophage crisis. You'll settle the conflict between the geth and quarians. You'll briefly deal with the asari homeworld. All while fighting Cerberus and the Reapers. There are a couple points of no return for some things, so be sure to do your sidequests in a timely fashion.

Characters/Dialogue
The dialogue is still top notch - the same as in ME2 than the ghastly dialogue in ME1. This game isn't character driven, but you do get moments with each one as the story goes along. It's clear that they're all developed and lightyears away from the people they were in ME1. Matured. They have moments throughout the game where they show off their desire to hang onto life as much as they can before "the end." At least two characters get drunk on board the Normandy with hilarious results. There's also more banter and interaction between the characters without Shepard involved, which is nice. Can't spoil much more than that, but it was good. Lots of funny lines.

Expect tear-jerker moments with these guys. Some can die.

Only person that didn't really need to be there was Vega, though he's not a bad character. Just... odd to have a new guy on board in the finale. Didn't like the Prothean DLC - think it ruined some of the mysticism behind that race. But more on that in the spoiler section.

Exploration
Sidequests are fairly "big" events now, with lots of cinematics, and there's not really a whole lot of exploration. You scan planets for war resources. Seldom land. The only place to really explore and hang out is the Citadel. You can't explore planets that you've liberated - like Tuchanka or the quarian homeworld. Every mission area is specifically tailored to those missions - there's nothing to explore once you're done.

Music
Should have kept Jack Wall on board. The music isn't bad so much as it's barely noticeable. They re-use a lot of tracks from the last two games and their DLC soundtracks.

Romances
I didn't romance anyone, so can't really comment. Same-sex options still suck, but the men do get a choice in Kaidan this time. Don't know why they made him available for manshep, but not Ashley for femshep. My femshep banters well with her.

Endings
There are three different endings - all of them suck. More on that in the spoiler section. And you only get slightly less suck if you get 100% readiness and all war assets, but this requires multiplayer. Basically, the last ten minutes of the game are the worst and most nonsensical.

Overall
It's a great game. I'd say 8 or 9 out of 10. Better than ME2. Bigger in scope than ME1, but ME1 still has more substance. I have to wonder how much executive meddling EA has done with this series, and how things might have turned out with a slightly different approach. There's a great sense of finality, and everything is concluded. It's just soured by the poor ending choices. While I generally adored the game, much better than I enjoyed ME2 after the first playthough, it will take a little while for me to be okay with the ending.

The theme of the game ultimately becomes about synthetics vs. organics.

Spoiler time begins now:

Spoiler

Point Deduction 1: Reapers never fully explained, and what explanation you do get comes in the very last minutes. They were created to prevent the cycle of synthetics vs. organics by incorporating organic matter into a machine and eradicating civilizations before they can become advanced enough to destroy themselves. But they never tell us who the creators really are or why this was their best option. And you never interact with Harbinger at all - not even taunting.

Point Deduction 2: Shepard's resurrection/Lazarus project never fully explained. Shepard has a moment where (s)he questions whether or not she's just some elaborate AI made to replicate the real Shepard, but they don't make efforts to explain what the project really was. The Illusive Man just says "Miranda found a way." And even Miranda herself never fesses up to much information. You hear a little bit about the Lazarus project while they describe how EDI (originally the rogue VI you fought in ME1) was implanted with Reaper tech to become a full intelligence. And shortly thereafter, you see that the Illusive Man has also injecting himself with Reaper tech to become "more." Earlier, you also have the geth becoming fully intelligence via Reaper tech. But Shepard? They never explain.

I thought it would have been cool to have Shepard be a mixture of her own flesh and blood, but with a "Reaper" AI brain to make up for that whole brain-dead upon arrival thing. A perfect combination of man and machine. Would have suited the theme they had going.

Point Deduction 3:The quarians coming back to Rannoch could have been tons more emotional, and it would have been nice to properly see Tali's face. I had been hoping for, after the war was over, the quarians symbolically shedding their hardsuits entirely - if only for that single moment in the game. To feel the soil, breathe the air, all that good stuff. It was very subdued. I can understand why they didn't show Tali's face (except for that dumb photoshopped thing you get if she kills herself), but would have been awesome. Loss.

Point Deduction 4: Made ME2's plot feel especially pointless, and you barely see that crew again - even if some of them (Jack) did end up in fitting roles.

Point Deduction 5: THE ENDINGS. What the fuck?

Problem #1: These are the same endings you had in Deus Ex (and all those kinda sucked to begin with, they were just written better in that game).
Problem #2: I sure hope Tali and Garrus are okay with starving to death on that new world, since they have different DNA.
Problem #3: The Normandy had no reason to be destroyed and crash land in the first place, making that whole ending a waste. No other friendly ships were taken out during the Crucible firing.
Problem #4: How did my crew get back on board the Normandy when they were all on the ground fighting? Especially my final battle team, since I'm pretty sure they were meant to have died in the last run to the beam.
Problem #5: The final battle was that? Really? Survival waves of the same Reaper mooks we fought all through the game? I think I had more fun fighting the giant Terminator. Maybe I charmed my way out of an Illusive man fight.
Problem #6: Shepard only lives - or at least is proven to have lived - if you do the multiplayer. Bite me, I hate multiplayer. And I think it's only available for the "destroy all synthetics option," so in order to live, you have to be willing to undo all your work with the geth (assuming you saved them) and kill off EDI.


There was no reason to have my crew crash land and be stranded on a planet they... you know what? What planet was that? Joker couldn't even get through a relay to get anywhere - they were all destroyed! He should be putting around Sol or just beyond. There's nothing there! And how exactly are you going to repopulate? You aren't. Maybe they'll get rescued, but...

I was okay with the relays getting destroyed - seemed fitting for civilizations to carve their own path now. Ships still have FTL - so people can still colonize and move around and maybe even build their own relays.

The Synthesis ending seems the best one for the theme of the game. Merging man and machine into a new lifeform, even if it required Shepard's sacrifice.

The Dominate ending is probably just suited for the renegades in the group. I wouldn't have considered it.

The Destroy-Reaper ending is tempting, if only because it's your only hope of getting Shepard to live through the game. However, rather than destroying Reapers, it destroys every synthetic lifeform in the game - including the reformed geth and EDI. Sort of undoes all your hard work if you brokered a peace treaty between them and the quarians. There's a chance that Shepard can hop on a ship and go rescue/reunite with the crew, and there's no real proof that AIs will ever run amok again, given Shepard's work, but.... at the cost of EDI and the geth?

There was no science or reasoning behind why Shepard had to die in order to control the Reapers/merge synthetic and organic life. Maybe if the Reaper-brain-and-human-body was true, it'd make sense to break her down and use her as a blueprint, but there was no canon evidence of that.

If you're going to kill off Shepard, it would have been nice to have some resolution with my crew, rather than dropping them on a planet and having them say nothing. Have them all on the Citadel, doing a memorial as the galaxy praises the heroic sacrifice. Not just ignore me and then go nowhere with a nonsensical abandonment of my crew. Show the galaxy rebuilding. Don't just drop it like that. I think that's the only real "bad" part of the ending - the crew getting stranded. I'd have been okay with any of Shepard's fates had they just given the crew a proper resolution.

...Basically, ending sucked. And will probably go down in history as one of the biggest letdowns in blockbuster gaming.

[DarkJuno]

All right, I think I'm a third of the way to halfway through, though if it's less then that I'll happily be wrong. Yeah, so far the story progression and plot have been much stronger and more involved then ME2 and definitely does a better job of reminding you about the greater overall arc even within the different missions. Nice to see that they did take the idea of wandering conversations from Dragon Age - a lot shorter and to the point since you're in a battlefield and an enemy can interrupt a really amusing jokey conversation at any minute, but nice all the same. Also love how characters do interact with one another and the writing is strong enough that they do hang lampshades and lean on the 4th wall about certain things the fandom likes without it being pandering and completely destroying the atmosphere - people noting Garrus always wanting to calibrate things and Shepard's terrible dancing being acknowledged in-universe for non-spoilery examples. I really, really wish that a lot of the planetary scans invovled actually going down to the planet rather then whatever's on there just mysteriously appearing in your cargo hold, but it's a small complaint. Romance seems to be the same as DAII, which is to say not good but not completely terrible -coughskyrimcough- so it doesn't bother me that much - I do like that they're a little better at keeping people's sexualities solid here, as opposed to the aforementioned game where a certain character would be straight if you were a girl....but gay if you were a guy, which just made everyone being an option for everyone kind of insulting and pandering. Keep everyone's orientation based on themselves and not who the crazy fanboy/girl wants to glomp and you have a better list of characters for it.

Combat-wise, I was initially annoyed at the weight restriction....except I play soldier so ultimately I didn't really care. I did suddenly realize that I used Adrenaline more then I thought, and since I never actually used shotguns and SMG's, dropping them put me back into a decent recharge rate - better after upgrades. I like being able to commando roll and move from cover toc over now, and no logner getting tired from rushing is nice too. I am, however, not fond of how you can't get the best ending without playing multiplayer. Unfortuantely for me, my other friends who own this do so on the 360, and while you can be a badass and do multiplayer matches as a one man army, it's....not preferable, having done it a couple times myself. You suddenly realize how helpful those squadmates of yours are when they're not there. Plus I'm pretty sure Bioware said it was entirely possible to get a max score without multiplayer, so either someone was lying or there's more DLC to come. Yay. <.<

Character stuff and specific questions here - spoiler warning.

Spoiler

I gotta say, despite kinda knowing it was coming from the dialogue in the last game about Salarians not living long, it was still pretty sad to see Mordin go, even if it was heroic and noble. If he didn't start singing I might've been able to keep that one tear from falling out. <.< I also have to admit, despite being bored out of my mind and finding him completely dull, I felt bad for Thane when you first find him and he alks about being in the final stages of Kepler's - then I REALLY felt sad for him when he passed, heroically or not. His final breath being a prayer for Shepard's soul is what got me, honestly, though no tears here, just sadness. I almost would've gotten teary when I was with Grunt, but he lived so all was well there. Kasumi and Jack's cameo(s) were nice, though Miranda's kinda sucked, and I'm hopeful the reference to Samara in the War Assets means she'll show up in the flesh - though I'm curious what Morinth players will get. Can't wait to see everyone else show up, though I have a knot in my stomach wondering what'll happend between Tali and Legion. Looking forward to seeing the Quarian Admirality Council made up of mostly Dragon Age voices though.

Um, where exactly IS Kelly Chambers supposed to be? I was told the refugee area, but I never saw her. Apparently the fact that she never danced for me messed something up since she did live in my last game?

And the Rachni Queen - now, seeing as how I only played the second and the Genesis comic's interpretations of what I later found out to be a pretty impassioned plea to Shepard was a picture of a monster going "RAAAR!!!!" and Jennifer Hale matter of factly stating her choices without context, yeah, I killed her. So I'm going to assume that she would have been there rather then the reanimated stitched together corpses of the Frankenstein's monter like abomination of a queen the Reapers literally built and put back together. Also hoping that killing THIS one is the right choice - had it been ana ctual queen I would've been inclined to let it live, but the fact that it's an ungodly zombie and the "Let it live" option this time around was Renegade, hopefully that doesn't screw me later. Still, that's a rather interesting way to still have indoctrinated Rachni around, and only slightly eyebrow raising.

I had cheated and had heard (without spoilers about characters' fates) that tricking the Krogan into thinking the cure was real would end up not being worth it, so now I'm paranoid if any "clever" choices I make will actually work out or if they'll all bite me in the ass. Bioware always says there are hard choices to make, but most major stuff still ends up being "good" rather then "bad."

Oh well. Looking forward to pushing on and maybe getting it done before next weekend. Maybe.

[SL the Pyro]

There's a reason the endings are as they are, Lena: money. Yes, I've heard from numerous places that you have to buy other endings as DLC a la FFXIII-2. You can probably expect that to go over as well as it did with FFXIII-2, too.

I was actually considering getting the Mass Effect series now that all three games were out, but... I had to see what all the outrage on the Internet was about the series ending(s). And good God, they really were that bad. I might still get ME1 and ME2, but as far as I'm concerned ME3 can rot. I'm not bribing the game company for an ending that's actually well-written, if they even are - I doubt they'll be much different that what we already have.

Edited by SL the Pyro, 10 March 2012 - 08:55 PM.

[Selena]

SL: I was furious at the endings, but the game itself is still worth playing. The a lot of the fan reviews tend to border on outright trolling. In fact, the game is fantastic up until the last ten minutes. And the endings don't ruin the entire game. I started a second playthrough to do a couple things differently. I may stop before the final battle, though. But I made up a slightly different canon in my head to make certain things a little easier. The game itself was better than ME2 was. By a long shot.

I do like that they're a little better at keeping people's sexualities solid here, as opposed to the aforementioned game where a certain character would be straight if you were a girl....but gay if you were a guy, which just made everyone being an option for everyone kind of insulting and pandering.

Haven't played the game, but isn't that known as "bisexual?" It's a real thing! XP

Plus I'm pretty sure Bioware said it was entirely possible to get a max score without multiplayer, so either someone was lying or there's more DLC to come. Yay. <.<

They lied. You can only get max assets via multiplayer. Be sure to do all the sidequests to maximize what assets you'll have, but even then you're only at half strength. The green bar in the war room may be "complete," but it really isn't a way to measure it. Even with the bar full, you can still double your points by having max readiness via multiplayer. In single player, you'll maybe get 4000 at best. You need over 3000 to avoid a gutting sad moment before you finish things.

But the "best" multiplayer-induced endings are only a tiny bit different than the standard endings, so it's really nothing to worry about. Your single player came will be split between the "really bad" endings and the "fairly normal" endings.

Concerning the spoiler material:

Spoiler

- I saved the Rachni Queen at the expense of Grunt's unit. Don't know if the Rachni are worth more points than Grunt's team, but I should think they'd be about even. I was hoping that saving the Rachni Queen in ME1 would have a little more... sway in ME3. But eh.

- Having the krogan on your side gives you a ton of points. I fessed up to the salarian plot, and I wonder if that effected my relationship with them. I'll still cure the genophage in my next run, but I might not tell them about the salarian involvement and see how that effects points.

- You'll see Miranda again. A few times. Her plot gets involved with the main one.

- I didn't have Kelly either, so I think that's just if you romance her.

Can say that your ME2 crew's loyalty status will effect certain outcomes, though. Especially between Tali and Legion.

[DarkJuno]

Uh.....XIII-2's DLC are all either character outfits/weapons or other character's "stories" - none of them are endings whatsoever, they're all "While you were doing this, Lightning/Sazh/Jihl/X person was doing this" alternate paths. The game in and of itself already has alternate paradox endings sort of like Chrono Trigger/Cross, albeit in a more bizzare and confusing manner. While I'm avoiding the ending since I'm still not done with XIII proper, it sounds to me like SE went for a GAINAX Ending for the sequel - aka a total mindscrew. The company line is that it's there to point at the replayability and to show there are many time paradoxes to be found, but really, they're going for the shock ending that gets the fandom in a tizzy and in there anger end up discussing it a lot path, which while unfortunate isn't exactly a big surprise.

Plus the game is something like 50 hours long, it's plenty worth the price provided you're insane like me and actually like the characters and are interested in it. The hubbub over XIII-2's ending boils down to it not being a happy touchy feely warm and fuzzy FF ending - which in and of itself I'm liking the sound of - and it not being as well done as it should have. Add ina ll the ahters who are jumping on the bandwagona gainst FF lately despite not actually having a stake in it and this is what you get. Certainly the original game is a deeply, deeply flawed experience, but a lot of people still liked it enough to give the new one a try - that doesn't make them wrong, it just means -gasp!- they don't think the same as the majority, and it doesn't make them any lesser for it.

As for being back on topic, no, the ending for ME3 is exactly what it is. People are assuming that in order to get your galactic readiness ready to get the "perfect" ending, there's DLC coming for single player content to give you the extra push necessary to break the points threshold, but nothing's confirmed. The ending itself won't change, unless Bioware says something. Besides, while the From Ashes DLC was kind of disappoitnting and not worth $10.00 (making me happy I got the CE since I got a lot of nice feelies for that to make it worth it) typically the ME (and Dragon Age) DLC is actually pretty good if you really like the game - it's a far cry from the on-disc DLC costumes/music/paintings of a lot fo other games. Even then, all you have to do is play multiplayer, which comes with the game (unless you bought it used...) and it's actually really fun too, so it's not really a requirement. Ultiamtely, even if you don't, you apparently have enough in the base game to get all but the last "secret" scene at the end anyway, so...meh. There are plenty of palces to belly ache about the evils of DLC, but ME3 (and Arkham City...) isn't one of them.

Haven't played the game, but isn't that known as "bisexual?" It's a real thing! XP

Not when everyone in the world is! Zevran and Leiliana were both well done completely different examples of it in the first game, but in the second, it honestly came across like they tacked on their preference at the last minute. Anders in II literally was either/or with no sense at all of being Bi - he literally tells a LadyHawke stuff about "being a man" and being swayed by your wiles, while telling male Hawke he has no eyes for women. It was so obviously done just so that fangirl who self inserts doesn't get upset that hot guy only digs other dudes kind of muddles it.

...and I guess I'll be going the Rambo route in multiplayer unless I run into someone who's not a cursing 13 year old in the public matches I can play with. Yay. Ah well.

Edited by DarkJuno, 10 March 2012 - 09:30 PM.

[Selena]

Yeah, I wasn't offended that From Ashes was DLC. I actually PREFER that it was DLC. If I had gone the standard copy of the game, I wouldn't have bothered with it. The story was better without it. The character you get sort of.... takes away from an ancient mystery vibe. Sort of like midichlorians in Star Wars. It does give you some more war assets, though.

[Ninja]

...and I guess I'll be going the Rambo route in multiplayer unless I run into someone who's not a cursing 13 year old in the public matches I can play with. Yay. Ah well.

Seriously. Friend me on origins. I've had only 2 matches where people actually used their mics in the game. I don't know if that is different on other platforms, but the PC matches tend to be these silent affairs where nobody speaks even when they have mics. It only took me about 4 matches to get the galactic readiness thingy up to 100%, and matches take about 20 minutes a piece, and that's if they go badly. I love their multiplayer. It's been giving me a chance to try out all the different skills and classes, so I can figure out what I'd like to try in the single player. Vanguard is by far the most overpowered that I've found, though Sentinal is a close second. So much fun to whoosh around and melee the heck out of everyone with that biotic charge :3

[Selena]

New theory spreading throughout the interbutts - based on in-game observations - that the ending(s) are actually one giant headfuck. It doesn't make the endings any better or remotely acceptable, but it does bring a lot of interesting stuff to the table.

Spoiler

The theory is that, all through the game, the Reapers are indoctrinating Shepard in the same way that they attempted to indoctrinate Saren -- by making Shepard think that a compromise must be made in order to ensure the survival of the galaxy's civilizations. And by slowly cutting away at Shepard's sense of hope against adversity. Everything after the run to the beam in the final level is an indoctrination-induced hallucination. Arguments and observations:

* Shepard's prolonged exposure to the Reapers throughout the game means that she's constantly within range of their indoctrination signals.

* And even when she's not around them, the Reapers technically uploaded a virus to the Normandy in ME2. EDI locked it down for the rest of the game, but there's also no proof that it was completely eradicated, and its full effects are not explained, meaning that the Normandy itself could be serving as a tool of indoctrination even when Shepard is away from the Reapers.

* Vega mentions there being a "hum" on the Normandy -- which was a trait of indoctrination tech.

* The child is meant to be a representation of all Shepard's guilt over not being able to save everyone, eating away at her confidence, sanity, and sense of hope. The child is merely a hallucination, right from the very beginning. Thus the unnatural, ominous, "you can't save me," line and the abrupt disappearance from the vent shaft, complete with no noise associated with the child running away in a vent.

* The dreams, therefore, are manifestations of the indoctrination. The final dream, showing Shepard being consumed with the child, has two possible meanings. The first meaning is that it's Shepard's final descent into lack of hope -- and she assumes that she'll join her dead crewmates in the afterlife even if she's victorious. The second meaning is that it's Shepard's subconscious rebelling against indoctrination, offering a warning that going with the child will result in doom.

* During the run to the Citadel beam, your squadmates do not run with you. They stay in place behind you, unmoving, regardless of what orders you give them.

This is where the game's real events stop. Shepard lies in the rubble unconscious in front of the beam and descends into an indoctrinated hallucination.

* If you have a low war asset score, your team is seen dead near the beam, far ahead of where you were. Shouldn't be there if they stayed back. The image of your dead team is a deliberately heavy-handed demoralizing scene -- pointing out the futility of trying to resist.

* Shepard has a totally different sidearm after being struck by Harbinger, and it has infinite ammunition. You also switch over to having ruined N7 armor, regardless of which armor you were actually wearing.

* Shepard goes through the beam, but Anderson - despite not even being in the immediate area - also goes through. BEFORE Shepard.

* Only human remains are piled up along the Citadel corridor and in an unnatural fashion. Anderson (Shepard's subconscious at this point) likens it to the Collector base.

* Anderson describes the Citadel walls as "moving, realigning, reshaping themselves." This is the same sentiment expressed by the indoctrinated workers who were on board the Derelict Reaper in ME2.

* The Illusive Man is inexplicably there already too. Anderson and the Illusive Man are manifestations of Shepard's mental war -- the devil and angel on her shoulders.

* The ensuing argument involves a lot of black lines warping over the screen -- and a robotic growl every time Shepard starts to gain clarity. Another symptom of indoctrination according to game lore. Reapers growl when they feel their subjects aren't listening to them.

* It's never made clear who is controlling Anderson and Shepard at the end - TIM or the Reapers. The Illusive Man is not subject to it, but he also makes no gestures of being the one pulling the puppet strings. The Illusive Man is what the Reapers want. They want someone to be stupid enough to try and control them, only to dominate/incinerate him at the end. Anderson only wants to blow them up, and so he must die/suffer for his resistance. And so will Shepard, if she doesn't know what's good for her.

* Upon ascending to the final chamber, Shepard is in EXPOSED SPACE with no helmet.

* The Catalyst takes the form of the child to continue manipulating Shepard. It insists that synthetics will always rebel, but the geth and quarians are now proof that they can get along. The Catalyst is an unreliable narrator trying to convince Shepard that the Control/Synthesis choices are the only way to resolve the conflict peacefully, and that Destroy will involve wiping out EDI and the geth. There's no proof of that, though, and why should you obey an AI associated with the Reapers? Unless you're indoctrinated and believe whatever it's telling you.

* Control not only kills Shepard, but there's no guarantee Shepard can actually control them once "assimilated." Synthesis makes everyone partly synthetic, which still leaves the Reapers at the top of the food chain, and it's easier for the Reapers to take control of synthetics (geth) than organics. In these two endings, the Reapers theoretically win because Shepard tried to compromise with the devil in the same way Saren did.

* The Destroy ending is the only ending the AI seems to warn against, and it's the only one where he really lays on the guilt. Meaning that's the one the Reaper AI doesn't want you to pick. Saying that again - it's the one that the Reaper. AI. doesn't. want. you. to. pick.

* The Destroy option is also painted in "renegade red," but shows that it's Anderson's choice. The Control option is "paragon blue," but it's the one that the Illusive Man wants. We've completely swapped roles at the drop of a hat -- deliberately misleading.

* The "full" ending exists only with the Destroy option. It shows Shepard -- still in armor -- waking up in rubble. Earth's rubble. Not the Citadel's. Indicating that Shepard either got beamed back down without explanation, or that Shepard had gotten knocked out by Harbinger's deathray and was just now waking back up after the hallucination.

* Shepard, then, effectively wakes up from indoctrination, whereas the other two endings promote Shepard giving up. It implies that Shepard will finish the mission, even if we don't get to see the "real" ending.

* The final "battle," then, is the player deciding whether to give into indoctrination and follow the AI blindly, or recognizing that stuff is royally messed up and something is wrong. And part of the battle is recognizing the signs of indoctrination that have been described throughout the series.

[Toan]

Perhaps /v/ should have gotten to write ME3: