Mass Effect 3

[Kraus]

Launch Trailer

[Wyatt Earp]

I'm really starting to buy into the indoctrination theory. This is what sold me. http://uninhibitedandunrepentant.tum...mind-holy-****

[Dartgod]

I never finished ME2. Cool game, but it got repetitive for me.

[Wyatt Earp]

Also could there be anything to my game save being put back to attacking The Illusive Man's base after finishing the game?

[veist]

Originally Posted by Wyatt Earp

Also could there be anything to my game save being put back to attacking The Illusive Man's base after finishing the game?

Its the logical place to put it if you aren't going to do any post-game DLC because the ends make that kinda hard?

[Wyatt Earp]

Originally Posted by veist

Its the logical place to put it if you aren't going to do any post-game DLC because the ends make that kinda hard?

True. I wasn't even thinking about any DLC. Still hoping for something to justify that terrible ending.

[keg in kc]

There's no endgame save, so even if they do fix the ending, it's going to mean playing the last four hours over.

[duncan_idaho]

After reading some of the information out there about the

Spoiler!

indoctrination

theory, I think I'm a believer.

Completely changes things for me. If that's truly the way it ends, Bioware freaking blew my mind. And the writers are probably chuckling at all the people who didn't "get it" the first time.

They are famous for putting in things to reward the gamer who doesn't power-game through their games, for the person who takes time to love the experience. (IE, all the extras and their effect on the suicide mission in ME2). This theory would be the ultimate reward to the careful, observant gamer.

Of course, it's also a little uppity/snobby...

[Frazod]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

There's no endgame save, so even if they do fix the ending, it's going to mean playing the last four hours over.

I've hung it up right before hitting the Illusive Man's base. I'll wait to see if they do anything to change/improve the ending or add anything else before proceeding.

[keg in kc]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

After reading some of the information out there about the

Spoiler!

indoctrination

theory, I think I'm a believer.

Completely changes things for me. If that's truly the way it ends, Bioware freaking blew my mind. And the writers are probably chuckling at all the people who didn't "get it" the first time.

They are famous for putting in things to reward the gamer who doesn't power-game through their games, for the person who takes time to love the experience. (IE, all the extras and their effect on the suicide mission in ME2). This theory would be the ultimate reward to the careful, observant gamer.

Of course, it's also a little uppity/snobby...

The problem with that theory as you lay it out is that I'm a completionist. I finished the game with 7000+ war assets, but because I didn't do the multiplayer at the time, that left me with an effective strength of half that, still over 3500, yet I did not get the bonus clip. So for me there was no waking up. The game just ends, regardless of which choice I make after speaking to the catalyst. So I didn't (couldn't) even make the indoctrination connection until I read about it later. That little hint (if it really was a hint; I'm not convinced they planned any more of an ending than they gave) simply didn't exist in my game, despite the fact that I didn't skip anything in the singleplayer game, including playing all the way through 1 and 2 on the same character.

I assume when I finally get to that point on my second character, since I'll have 100% readiness thanks to the muliplayer, I'll get the 'full' ending including the clip in london. I might get it now if I replay from Cronus Station to the end with my original Paragon sentine.

If that's by design, then I'm a bit miffed that they made an extremely important event in the singleplayer game reliant on the tacked-on-later multiplayer component, which I originally never intended to ever play in the first place...

Either way, it's kind of sad that I couldn't get that clip on a ME2 export character even after 40+ hours of play in ME3.

I do think if the indoctrination theory was real, that we would have heard a definitive statement on it already. I think anything we get later is reactionary, and not planned. I think the ending is just a poor ending, but they left it vague enough that they might be able to fix it.

[keg in kc]

Originally Posted by frazod

I've hung it up right before hitting the Illusive Man's base. I'll wait to see if they do anything to change/improve the ending or add anything else before proceeding.

Yeah, that's the Legacy save point, so that's exactly where you'd want to stop.

[Wallcrawler]

This guy basicly NAILS my feelings on this shitpile of endings for Mass Effect 3.

You simply CANNOT end a saga in this manner. If there were more future games, then maybe its just a dick move but the fact that there were not going to be anymore Mass Effect games just makes this a legendary "**** you fans, we're done working on this game. Its good enough."

[keg in kc]

There are almost certainly going to be more Mass Effect games. They won't involve Shepard, but they're going to milk that universe for all they can.

[Wallcrawler]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

There are almost certainly going to be more Mass Effect games. They won't involve Shepard, but they're going to milk that universe for all they can.

Must be prequels or some crap. No Mass Relays after the end of 3 pretty much eliminates that whole space exploration thing.

[keg in kc]

Pretty nice blog commentary by Dr. Ray regarding Mass Effect 3 and the fan reaction:

To Mass Effect 3 players, from Dr. Ray Muzyka, co-founder of BioWare

Posted on March 21, 2012 by darklarke

To Mass Effect 3 players, from Dr. Ray Muzyka, co-founder of BioWare

As co-founder and GM of BioWare, I’m very proud of the ME3 team; I personally believe Mass Effect 3 is the best work we’ve yet created. So, it’s incredibly painful to receive feedback from our core fans that the game’s endings were not up to their expectations. Our first instinct is to defend our work and point to the high ratings offered by critics – but out of respect to our fans, we need to accept the criticism and feedback with humility.

I believe passionately that games are an art form, and that the power of our medium flows from our audience, who are deeply involved in how the story unfolds, and who have the uncontested right to provide constructive criticism. At the same time, I also believe in and support the artistic choices made by the development team. The team and I have been thinking hard about how to best address the comments on ME3’s endings from players, while still maintaining the artistic integrity of the game.

Mass Effect 3 concludes a trilogy with so much player control and ownership of the story that it was hard for us to predict the range of emotions players would feel when they finished playing through it. The journey you undertake in Mass Effect provokes an intense range of highly personal emotions in the player; even so, the passionate reaction of some of our most loyal players to the current endings in Mass Effect 3 is something that has genuinely surprised us. This is an issue we care about deeply, and we will respond to it in a fair and timely way. We’re already working hard to do that.

To that end, since the game launched, the team has been poring over everything they can find about reactions to the game – industry press, forums, Facebook, and Twitter, just to name a few. The Mass Effect team, like other teams across the BioWare Label within EA, consists of passionate people who work hard for the love of creating experiences that excite and delight our fans. I’m honored to work with them because they have the courage and strength to respond to constructive feedback.

Building on their research, Exec Producer Casey Hudson and the team are hard at work on a number of game content initiatives that will help answer the questions, providing more clarity for those seeking further closure to their journey. You’ll hear more on this in April. We’re working hard to maintain the right balance between the artistic integrity of the original story while addressing the fan feedback we’ve received. This is in addition to our existing plan to continue providing new Mass Effect content and new full games, so rest assured that your journey in the Mass Effect universe can, and will, continue.

The reaction to the release of Mass Effect 3 has been unprecedented. On one hand, some of our loyal fans are passionately expressing their displeasure about how their game concluded; we care about this feedback, and we’re planning to directly address it. However, most folks appear to agree that the game as a whole is exceptional, with more than 75 critics giving it a perfect review score and a review average in the mid-90s. Net, I’m proud of the team, but we can and must always strive to do better.

Some of the criticism that has been delivered in the heat of passion by our most ardent fans, even if founded on valid principles, such as seeking more clarity to questions or looking for more closure, for example – has unfortunately become destructive rather than constructive. We listen and will respond to constructive criticism, but much as we will not tolerate individual attacks on our team members, we will not support or respond to destructive commentary.

If you are a Mass Effect fan and have input for the team – we respect your opinion and want to hear it. We’re committed to address your constructive feedback as best we can. In return, I’d ask that you help us do that by supporting what I truly believe is the best game BioWare has yet crafted. I urge you to do your own research: play the game, finish it and tell us what you think. Tell your friends if you feel it’s a good game as a whole. Trust that we are doing our damndest, as always, to address your feedback. As artists, we care about our fans deeply and we appreciate your support.

Thank you for your feedback – we are listening.

Ray

[veist]

Originally Posted by Wallcrawler

Must be prequels or some crap. No Mass Relays after the end of 3 pretty much eliminates that whole space exploration thing.

Nothing really but time stopping you from building more, the Protheans built the Conduit relays (one on the Citadel and the one on Ilos). And you've already got the biggest crack team of scientists and whatnot assembled for building the Crucible.