Mass Effect 3 Is a Good Game.

[RatRace123]

I too think it's a pretty good game, and in that respect I find it to be disappointing.

The first and second games were great, so having the third game be merely "pretty good" is a bit of a downer. It's still a very enjoyable game and more competent at being a game than a lot of other games, but I expected more from Mass Effect.

But yeah, apart from the terrible ending, the game is still pretty good.

 

[Sonic Doctor]

I suppose my real question is... how? What exactly makes the games unplayable now? I've seen the ending, I hate it...but the first thing I did was go back to mass effect 1 and start a brand new playthrough... I guess I just don't understand the reasoning here...

It's kinda like sex, it can be great, but if the climax gets fucked up, it ruins the whole experiance...

I don't think that analogy works for stories. Really, I've seen/heard only a small group of people that actually think the end is the most important part(which is a really screwed up way of thinking).

The end isn't the most important part. Have you ever heard the phrase: It's not the destination that matters it is the journey getting there.

That phrase fits perfectly with stories. That is why there are movie critics that still recommend movies, even though they say in their reviews that the end of the movie is crap. They recommend movies with crappy endings in saying that the rest of the movie is worth it.

Isn't the all the rest of the Mass Effect series worth going through if it has a bad ending for the last part? Yes, yes it is totally worth it, because 5 minutes of around 150 hours is rather small and unimportant because it obviously can't carry enough weight to tip the scales.

Mass Effect adds up because it is a very long journey to the end of ME3. It really is ludicrous to invalidate or say that the whole rest of the story is ruined because of the last 5 minutes at the end.

Yeah, I consider the ending to be mediocre, but it can't take away the awesome time I had with the rest of the story from ME1 to the end of 98% of ME3.

ME3 is a good game, the ending really can't hurt it, it just makes me go "meh" at the end and say, well at least everything that came before it was awesome.

 

[Izzy1320]

Snip

For the gameplay, I've played every game in the series on the PC, not consoles. While I think that the 'A' button's uses are largely delegated to the spacebar in the PC version, perhaps there is some difference between them? I find all my context sensitive actions performing what I intend...

For the story, the councilor Udina/Anderson issue actually was first retconned in ME2, when you were given the option to change your choice about five minutes into the game. That being said, we still aren't given much reason for the change if Anderson was chosen.

As for Cerberus, I've always felt that Shepard only fought with them out of necessity, given the things they did in ME1. At the same time, I've never been much of a proponent of renegade shep, so perhaps this is where my bias stems from.

I've been a huge fan of Mass Effect since the beginning, and the ending is the only real major blemish on the series for me. I even love the gameplay (of all of them...OK, except for the Mako).

I think what I forget that I'm weird when it comes to fictional stories. My brain can "overwrite" anything I don't like very easily (Midichlorians? What? Never heard of 'em). So in the case of Mass Effect 3, I just plan to quit right after (or right before) the big laser hits me. Then I'll just make up a better ending in my head, and it will feel more real to me than what actually happens at the end of the game.

This is actually what I find myself doing in most games. Hell, I've practically written an entire scenario for Half Life 2: Episode 3 or Half Life 3 or whatever they decide to make it into, if they decide to make it. That being said, this is one of the few times I've actually felt that my personal ending makes more sense that the one I've been given, and I plan to stick with it for each of my shepards.

Uhhhhhhhggggg... massive wall of text explaining why mass effect is a good game. Yes it is... ending sucked though. Moving on.

Uhhhhhhhggggg... massive wall of text explaining why mass effect is a good game. Yes it is... ending sucked though. Moving on.

You know... if you didn't want to read the 'massive wall of text', the conclusion was supposed to be a summary, and therefore placed there for people who didn't want to read the rest of the post.

 

[Neonsilver]

The ending didn't show it, but you did cure the genophage. Or you didn't.
You did save both the Quarians and the Geth, or you didn't.
You did save all your crew member in ME2, or you didn't.

You don't need an ending to give you satisfaction for saving the Krogan. Did you even listen to the female Krogan? Did you hear Wrex saying that she's already pregnant? That was enough for me. I knew my choice did matter. I knew I saved a whole race from destruction.

If Wrex survives the final battle, he is still trapped in the Sol system. If Eve survives (in my playthrough she didn't) she might be able to change the Krogans, but I'm sure the Krogans would have a better chance to change with Wrex.
The whole point about curing the genophage was the question if the Krogans would become a new threat to the rest of the galaxy since many Krogans would like to have revenge on the Turians and Salarians for the genophage. Without the relays it doesn't really matter anymore.

When the Geth Prime came to me and offered their assistance to the Quarians, that feeling... I felt happy, no. Happy is to weak to describe it... I knew I did something good. I knew my choice was a good one. I almost cried because of happiness.

You do realize that a big part of the Quarian fleet was fighting around earth. That means they are again forced to live in their ships. Nothing has changed for them.

 

[spartandude]

Yes, it's a very good game. But the ending is so abysmal it ripples backwards through time and tarnishes all the many many hours of fun one has beforehand.

i like this guy

 

[Asita]

I don't think that analogy works for stories. Really, I've seen/heard only a small group of people that actually think the end is the most important part(which is a really screwed up way of thinking).

Actually, that's pretty much storywriting 101. To illustrate, let's examine basic narrative structure: exposition-development-climax-denouement. As implied by the terminology, the middle of a story consists of build-up, or more specifically building-up to the climax (hence the other commonly used term: "Rising Action"). You can have the best build up in the world, but it will fall apart if the climax falls flat. This is one of the more basic elements of literary criticism and hardly a new concept.

 

[DJ_DEnM]

Good game? Yes, It's great. I mean, the multiplayer is surprisingly fun and the story is immersive.


...Now about that ending-

 

[Jaeke]

OP, You are mistaken in thinking that people hate the game. People don't hate the game, they hate the ending.

The other 99% of ME3 is one of, if not the, most emotionally gripping and demanding game of its generation.

Too bad the last 15 minutes were like watching a baby seal get clubbed to death with a rubber device similar to a popular weapon in Saints Row The Third.

 

[ex275w]

I actually thought Mass Effect 3 was the worst of the bunch. (Certainly not the game I imagined after I finished the first one back when it came out)

Gameplay:
Reduced options in roleplay. -
Less paragon/renegade interrupts or red/blue dialog options in comparison to the other games. -
Shepard automatically says things that my character wouldn't have done. -
Level/Mission design improved. +
Classes and powers were balanced. +
Weapon selection improved. +
Weapon and armor customization improved. +
Heavy Weapons, where are you? -
No vehicles section. +
Weapon weight system works, though it is abusable. +
The game was harder. +
Most of my deaths were cheap. -
Using the spacebar/A button for 4 different things. -
The sidequest system was badly implemented. -

Story:
More story missions. +
Your partners speak more. +
You should've had 9 partners. (I mean have less than Mass Effect 2 and more than Mass Effect 1) -
The final part on Earth dragged worse than Dragon Ball. -
The Crucible was introduced too early and without foreshadowing. -
The helping other species part was great. +
Some of the species were simplified or changed extensively in their culture/thinking. (The quarians becoming angry warmongers) -
The reapers were too invulnerable. -
Cerberus was overused, reminded me of Umbrella Corporation. -

The ending was even worse than Human Revolution, which just shows how rushed the games were in some aspects. So in general the story and roleplay was simplified, the metagame and gameplay was improved, even if the difficulty was cheapened.

The game should've come out in 2013 at least.

 

[Balmong7]

I don't think that analogy works for stories. Really, I've seen/heard only a small group of people that actually think the end is the most important part(which is a really screwed up way of thinking).

Actually, that's pretty much storywriting 101. To illustrate, let's examine basic narrative structure: exposition-development-climax-denouement. As implied by the terminology, the middle of a story consists of build-up, or more specifically building-up to the climax (hence the other commonly used term: "Rising Action"). You can have the best build up in the world, but it will fall apart if the climax falls flat. This is one of the more basic elements of literary criticism and hardly a new concept.

I think that the idea behind that post was that the game fell flat on the "falling action" rather than the "Climax". i.e. It didn't exist.

 

[johnnnny guitar]

ehhhh it was an a 7 out of 10 for me I liked some parts of it but it was to dumbed down with core things from the previous games ripped out. With less dialog (and the dialog that is there 75% of the time is chosen for you), horrible side quests, shitty game mechanics that are implemented and the ending.

The story and gameplay are now taking place in separate rooms basically what the hell happened remember the first two games where when you went to a new world you would explore and talk to people to find out what to do thats completely left out in ME3 no doubt because of this new action mode. The story and gameplay should be together not ripped apart and sectioned off.

Also nit-picky things like the removal of holstering and film grain also the fucking laziness that was the whole tali reveal thing seriously you couldnt just take some fan made photo?s seriously that?s just lazy you have a whole art team just get one guy to draw it.
Bioware dumbed it down to much it's easily the worst in the series and I kinda new that it would be before it came out I just brought it to see how the trilogy would end and well that didn't go so well but at least I still have ME1 and I guess ME2.

 

[SycoMantis91]

It's obviously an amazing game. I haven't seen one person that's not trolling Amazon reviews who thinks the contrary. I don't think people saying "I don't know if I'll ever play a Mass Effect" is directed at hatred toward Bioware. The point of the games is to make you feel like everything you do matters. To make your choices change the story as a whole. Pretty much all of us here has a (or many) Mass Effect story that differs from everyone else's. The fact that no matter what we do, how we do it, how hard we work for war assets, keeping everyone alive in the 2nd game, building alliances, gaining crew trust, everything you do, in the very end, it all leads to the exact same conclusion. One in which out choices mean nothing, and the whole prologue to the end plays out without an ounce of input from you. You can't be like "no, you're stupid, look outside". It's the same no matter what. Nothing you do ultimately matters one bit. And that's why I felt after than ending like I may not play the games again. I've gotten over it, but it's easily understandable.

 

[Asita]

I don't think that analogy works for stories. Really, I've seen/heard only a small group of people that actually think the end is the most important part(which is a really screwed up way of thinking).

Actually, that's pretty much storywriting 101. To illustrate, let's examine basic narrative structure: exposition-development-climax-denouement. As implied by the terminology, the middle of a story consists of build-up, or more specifically building-up to the climax (hence the other commonly used term: "Rising Action"). You can have the best build up in the world, but it will fall apart if the climax falls flat. This is one of the more basic elements of literary criticism and hardly a new concept.

I think that the idea behind that post was that the game fell flat on the "falling action" rather than the "Climax". i.e. It didn't exist.

I invite you to read the post (#102 in this thread) if you think that was Sonic's gist. He goes on for some length about how "it's not the destination that matters it is the journey getting there".

 

[ralfy]

If ME3 is a space opera adventure with RPG elements, then the most important aspect of the game would be the story and how C&Cs throughout the game leads to the conclusion. Other elements, from the combat system to graphics, should contribute to that, but aren't as important.

 

[Balmong7]

I don't think that analogy works for stories. Really, I've seen/heard only a small group of people that actually think the end is the most important part(which is a really screwed up way of thinking).

Actually, that's pretty much storywriting 101. To illustrate, let's examine basic narrative structure: exposition-development-climax-denouement. As implied by the terminology, the middle of a story consists of build-up, or more specifically building-up to the climax (hence the other commonly used term: "Rising Action"). You can have the best build up in the world, but it will fall apart if the climax falls flat. This is one of the more basic elements of literary criticism and hardly a new concept.

I think that the idea behind that post was that the game fell flat on the "falling action" rather than the "Climax". i.e. It didn't exist.

I invite you to read the post (#102 in this thread) if you think that was Sonic's gist. He goes on for some length about how "it's not the destination that matters it is the journey getting there".

I had read the post before I commented. What I meant was that he does not consider the climax to be the end of a story. He considers the end to be falling action. Which does not have to be wonderful in order for it to be fun.

 

[Vault101]

Having just finished it I will say this

I thourght it was amazing..everything..from the big and small moments, it was everything I had hoped for

everything is fine right up to that part in the end (where you make your "choices")

 

[Tsun Tzu]

I have a few small gripes about the game:


Greatly diminished inter-character dialogue and dialogue options. (They went with a blend of the ME2 Zaeed/Kasumi and ME2 rest-of-squadmates route with all the characters this time around that doesn't feel at all right to me.)

Loss of exploration. No other hub worlds/locations aside from the citadel and the normandy...it kind of sucks.

No vehicles at all.

And the ending. Christ. The ending.

But, overall, I still think it's a good game. It's just a good game that got it's knees blown out from 300 yards by a well entrenched sniper just before crossing the threshold into greatness. It then curled into the fetal position and wept.

Sort of sad, really.

 

[Tono Makt]

I suppose my real question is... how? What exactly makes the games unplayable now? I've seen the ending, I hate it...but the first thing I did was go back to mass effect 1 and start a brand new playthrough... I guess I just don't understand the reasoning here...

To shamelessly quote myself:

Here's my 2 cents:

What bothers me about all the rage concerning Mass Effect 3's ending, is that people seem to ignore everything leading up to the ending because the ending is bad.

The Mass Effect series is like going on a series of dates with a pretty girl. The first date, things go well. She's cute, she's into some of the things you're into (but not all), she's smart and she doesn't want to go see a chick flick. It's a pretty fun night, and she says she'd like to see you again, and gives you a chaste kiss on the cheek.

The second date, you go to dinner. Fantastically, you find that the food she wants the most turns out to be the most inexpensive on the menu, so you can spring for wine. The conversation is great better than the first night. And while you find she's got some opinions that don't mesh with your own (and you've argued passionately against those sorts of opinions from people you don't like), the entire package tones that down. Then you go off to a concert and have a blast - more because she's having fun dancing than because you like the music. It's just a fun time, and the little annoying things aren't nearly as annoying as they normally would be. At the end of the night, she gives you a full on kiss... and doesn't move away when you accidentally brush up against her breasts.

Then the third date comes and it's full on awesome time. She's dressed in a slinky black dress, you're in a shirt and tie (a tie! a TIE!!) and you've made reservations for a 4 star restaurant. You've been saving up for this for a while, and you've got the entire evening planned out. The conversation is fantastic; you actually voice your disagreement with some of her opinions, and she answers you with intelligent reasons why she holds them. While this doesn't make you agree with her, at least you see where she's coming from and can respect it. The waiter is perfect, and partway through dinner he brings a beautiful red rose for her, hinting that it was actually your idea and it thrills her. The meal is beautifully done, and comes with a dessert that you didn't expect because you didn't read through the full menu as carefully as you should. (you make a mental note in the future to do so, but secretly you are ecstatic because it makes you look even better in her eyes) At the end of the meal, the bill comes and it's actually less than you expected, so you can give the waiter a larger tip than you normally would, showing how generous you are.

Instead of going out to a show, she asks you to take her back to your place, and you do. Back at your place (which isn't as neat and clean as you had hoped, since you didn't expect to bring her home tonight) the two of you start making out. And my god but she is hitting everything perfectly. Every fantasy you had about this moment is coming true as if she truly is what you think she is. While she's not perfect, she's putting herself out there to make you feel as good as she can. (sure, a few missteps. long nails, bit of pulling of body hair, awkward bumping of heads, too much teeth, little things that are easily forgotten a moment later) The least you can do is return the favour, and so you slowly pull down her panties and...


SSSSSSPPPRRRRROOOOOIIIIINNNNGGGGG!!!!

Penis.

 

[Ziggy]

And of course, no holster function. Which kills the immersion completely for me. I'm running around a secure area pointing my gun at everything. It's kind of a big deal if both previous games allowed you to holster your weapon. Sounds like a minor thing, but it isn't. So don't pretend it is.

Off topic
This made me think back to something i heard about Bungie, giving the option to lower your weapon in one of the Halo games, because it would help Rooster Teeth when they made Red vs Blue