BioWare Asks Fans About Showing Tali's Face in Mass Effect 3

[Dalek Caan]

Pretty simple answer, Tali ask you If you want to see her face and you reply yes or no. If you romanced her then you don't get the option.

 

[Paulie92]

What amazes me about the whole 'what do Quarians look like' situation, is that you'd fucking think there'd be photos lying around, since, you know, they do occassionally take their suits off.

We should know what Qurians look like in general, but what Tali looks like? I'm not sure...

Thing is, how many Quarians have you seen in Mass Effect? Tali and a few random ones on pilgrimage. They aren't very common. They're a very, very reclusive case for many reasons, having next to nothing as an immune system being one of then. It's already been said that they pretty much only take their suits off to like, mate, or take care of a newborn.

Unless some curious bugger murders one and takes their suit off I don't imagine there being many photos.

Surely there would be medical studies on the subject though? Diagrams, that sort of thing.

At one point Shepard can end up on a whole ship full of Quarians and another that was inhabited by Quarians, so there could be an opportunity there. Though honestly I'm all for keeping the masks on, let each person imagine their own version of her face, that's how you keep everyone happy.

 

[JediMB]

EDIT: I just want to add that I have no expectations as far as Tali's face goes, but I would very much like to see it. I'd be hard to disappoint unless BioWare actually made an effort to do so.

Besides, there's just no way of doing the reveal without it being a "I want to show you my face before I die" kind of scene, just like someone already said.

Tali already showed Shepard her face in Mass Effect 2, if romanced.

Now, granted, we dont know the full story and the arc that Tali will have in ME3, but i really cant think of a REASON to reveal her face other than the "but we want to know" mentality. In terms of the story and her character, its pointless (im assuming, unless something drastic happens in ME3, in which case Bioware should already know whether there is a point to reveal her face or not).

Err... the obvious scenario would be with the Reapers defeated and an alliance forged between the Geth and the Quarians, Tali finally gets to set foot on Rannoch (the Quarian homeworld her father fought to reclaim), so she takes the opportunity to breathe fresh air and look at the world around her without her suit's tinted visor.

It would be a pretty good conclusion to the Shepard/Tali romance arc if Shepard is there as well, and the camera pans around to show Tali's face.

 

[drosalion]

Besides, there's just no way of doing the reveal without it being a "I want to show you my face before I die" kind of scene, just like someone already said.

Tali already showed Shepard her face in Mass Effect 2, if romanced.

Now, granted, we dont know the full story and the arc that Tali will have in ME3, but i really cant think of a REASON to reveal her face other than the "but we want to know" mentality. In terms of the story and her character, its pointless (im assuming, unless something drastic happens in ME3, in which case Bioware should already know whether there is a point to reveal her face or not).

Err... the obvious scenario would be with the Reapers defeated and an alliance forged between the Geth and the Quarians, Tali finally gets to set foot on Rannoch (the Quarian homeworld her father fought to reclaim), so she takes the opportunity to breathe fresh air and look at the world around her without her suit's tinted visor.

It would be a pretty good conclusion to the Shepard/Tali romance arc if Shepard is there as well, and the camera pans around to show Tali's face.

Dont get me wrong, there are definitely scenarios that it would make sense for her character and the story for her face to be revealed (and i dont mean make sense in the "oh yeh, she might take her helmet off in this situation" but making sense in terms of it actually adding some depth and meaning to the story and there being an actual point to it, like with darth vader).

But my point was that if these things DO take place then bioware should already be aware of them, and they should know whether or not her face NEEDS to be revealed or not. At this point in time with them leaving it up to the fans it seems as if her face reveal is purely for the sake of a reveal, and thats the complete wrong way to do it and will only cause harm.

 

[ZehMadScientist]

I don't think they should show her face. Let's not forget that this is a subplot, the main focus is the Reapers and the like. If BioWare does show her face it would become a new hot topic for discussion whereas not showing her face might displease some people, but I think it will have much less discussion value.

Two things. One, why not just ask in game? Have the scene be set up by a dialogue option - "I want to see your face" or "You're beautiful to me no matter what". From there, have the scene unfold accordingly. Everyones happy.

There is no way you won't get to see her face in this case. Internet as it is today, it is almost inevitable that a random troll or a link or whatever WILL have a screenshot of her in- game face or whatever. (And Shepard has already seen her face in the romance option)

IMHO, showing her face do or not doesn't really bother me. If they decide to show it, so be it. They decide to not show it? So be it. So I think the best solution is to show a part of her face through a cracked mask or something like that.

 

[Loop Stricken]

I dont care as long as her and Garrus roles are not as important as Liara, Ashley/Kaidan and Wrex. I think after the blatant fanservice treatment they got in ME2, squadmate or no, the furry/anthro romance options can be afforded a place more on the back burner. I mean, besides Liaras DLC, the roles for the above characters in ME2 was a brief appearance saying to ME1 fans "remember me, Im busy, and cant join you".

We know Garrus is going to be a squadmate, and Ive heard Tali will be too, but I imagine its the same kind of role they occupied in ME2 where they really dont impact the main plot at all, they are just side characters (which pretty much 90% of the squad was). Well, I can imagine they might impact their respective races stories slightly, like Tali and the fleet, but its the kind where if shes dead a stand in character takes up the role ala Wreav.

Since both Tali and Garrus can die, maybe its pretty likely.

Personally though, if Tali is a squadmate and gets her face shown, I hope her fans keep their mouths shut if they dont like it. Theyve been pandered to enough in this series with their petitions of "I want to screw chicken feet girl/grasshopper boy".

Xenophobic much?
You do of course realise that Tali and Garrus are the most popular characters of the series?

 

[Sovvolf]

The difference with revealing Vader's face though was his characters arc called for it. It was symbolic of him finally being redeemed, and dying a frail old man instead of a faceless evil machine.

Not to knock this off-topic but I always read the scene as taking the mask off because he wanted to die as Anikan rather than Vader. Though yeah I agree, the taking off the mask made a great amount of sense within the context of the movie and the character. The mask was symbolic, the mask was Vader, taking off the mask showed that he was no longer Vader.

Here it would sort of seem like Tali is taking the mask off simply for the sake of it. Now that's not to say that she couldn't take the mask off and it make sense in context but I've got a feeling that it wont and I really doubt it would have the same kind of impact it had in the Star War series or any other series where that is the case.

 

[darth gditch]

On the one hand, if the show her face, I'd want it to be beautiful, on the other hand, I'm a big fan of keeping the mystery alive.

CONFLICT!

 

[Johnnyallstar]

No. No. No. No.

I don't want them to destroy the mystery.

Spoiler: oh, and this.

 

[Ddgafd]

I don't really care, I like the games, but I'm not that big of a nerd fan. As long as it doesn't look absolutely retarded I'm fine with anything.

 

[Canadish]

As its the end of the series, I think its finally appropriate to see her face. The mystery is great and all, but we're at the end now, and dragging it out will only get annoying, it won't stay fun like it is now. That feeling eventually just gets bitter. And then expectations can NEVER be met.
(Example: LOST)

I think this is the reason they showed the Shadow Broker, and why the very strange and unexpected reveal worked quite well. We had expectations, sure, but it was still great.

This is the final lap of the story now, and seeing her face should be at the emotional climax of her story arc. More-so if your one of the MANY people who romanced her, in which case, its important to both her and Sheperd.

Someone cited Darth Vader as an example in an earlier thread, and I think he's another perfectly good example of concluding the mystery, and giving the viewer the needed emotional climax with this character.
The audience's expectations were NOT met on purpose. The great and mighty Darth Vader....was actually a very sad, sickly looking old man under the mask. You might even say pathetic.

This completely gives the audience a new perspective of the character, an understanding and perhaps even sympathy/forgiveness. Truly one the the great moments of cinema.

Subverting expectation can work. The main difference I see is that unlike Lucas and his old team, Bioware does not have a clear idea themselves.

Honestly, I feel that as the end of the series proper is now, they should show it, before the mystery spoils. They just need to go with what is appropriate and not worry about the audience reaction. Just make it appropriate in the moment, and trust your audience.

 

[TheLittlestAirship]

IF it wasn't for the visible eyes and relative composite of that nose of hers, I'd totally be down with Quarians resembling the Geth. Something about making them in their own image, although not many bots in the Mass Effect universe have that going for them.

Tali pulls off her mask, and a single huge eye and some wiggling mouth appendages greet you.

 

[Wandering Squid]

I'm actually somewhat concerned Bioware is asking about this one. They've proved that they can improve upon gameplay aspects through listening to fan's complaints (slow loading textures, jammed inventories etc.), but one area they haven't needed help in is the story department. This will only lead to a split in the community that has readily formed around this incredible game series; because by asking someone's going to end up disappointed.

Personally, Tali was one of the most interesting characters in the universe (unfortunately only becoming prominent in the second game) and she remains my favorite romantic option. That being said I was sort of on the edge of my seat when the mask came off in ME2; so I'll be disappointed if seeing her face isn't an option if you've loyally pursued a relationship with her.

Regardless of Quarian face or not, Mass Effect 3 will be fantastic.

 

[Rancid0ffspring]

*tali takes of her mask*
*pan to Shepard* ....Wrex?

This made me laugh so much my face hurts!

Awesome! Just awesome!

EDIT: This would make perfect sense if you never used them together in numero uno...

It would raise all sorts of questions if you did though. XD

 

[JediMB]

But my point was that if these things DO take place then bioware should already be aware of them, and they should know whether or not her face NEEDS to be revealed or not. At this point in time with them leaving it up to the fans it seems as if her face reveal is purely for the sake of a reveal, and thats the complete wrong way to do it and will only cause harm.

Oh, the question they asked on Twitter/Facebook isn't actually going to affect the game content. I think it's just them trying to interact a bit with the community.

Quoting Casey Hudson [http://twitter.com/#!/CaseyDHudson/status/88475874738970625] here:

"Will we show Tali's face in #ME3? We locked down our approach long ago, but you'll have to wait until March to find out what it is."

 

[Spitfire]

snip

The difference with revealing Vader's face though was his characters arc called for it. It was symbolic of him finally being redeemed, and dying a frail old man instead of a faceless evil machine.

Now, granted, we dont know the full story and the arc that Tali will have in ME3, but i really cant think of a REASON to reveal her face other than the "but we want to know" mentality.

ME3 is supposed to conclude the quarians' struggle to take back their homeworld, and whether we'll see old pictures or monuments depicting quarians before they wore masks, or actual quarians taking off their masks, we're bound to see what they look like, and possibly Tali as well.

Edit: Damn, ninjas.

After reading your reply to JediMB, I see your point. This poll is more or less trivial, and it's probably just Bioware's attempt to keep people talking about the game. ME3 is pretty far in development, so I doubt the results will matter much, as long as the feedback is not overly negative.

 

[-Dragmire-]

For everyone worried about the lore and impact of taking off the helmet, she doesn't have to.

Just drop the damn tint on the mask.

 

[Z of the Na'vi]

[HEADING=1]No.[/HEADING]

Keep Tali's face a mystery. If they reveal what Tali actually looks like under her mask, it will absolutely destroy the mystique she carries throughout the first two games. I thought even her romance scene in Mass Effect 2 was kind of pushing it. Seriously, keep her face a secret.

It always has been. Why fix what isn't broken?

 

[sabercrusader]

I think it should only happen if you romance her in ME3, and even then, you should get to choose if you want to see her face or not, that way, people who want to see her face are happy, and people who don't want to see her face are also happy, if they complain about it, then they are just being selfish, it should be a choice. I will probably end up seeing her face (if they allow it) in my first playthrough, because Tali is my favorite squadmate in the game.


EDIT: OR at least let us see some other Quarians unmasked, so we can get a rough idea of what Tali looks like.