So Shep's still stuck in the rubble from Harbinger's blast...meaning instead of having a plot-hole ridden ending, we don't actually have one. Reapers are still out there, killing everyone...Illusive Man is still being Illusive...and we get to wait for Bioware to actually release the ending?
[/QUOTE]
Stay tuned for Mass Effect: Brotherhood and Mass Effect: Revelations. We ended Shepards story, now import him as a war asset and finish the fight! Brothers to the end! (Yes, we will steal from anyone).
[quote name='gotdott']Yea pretty lackluster either way[/QUOTE]
You feel cheated either way. Either they cheated you out of a proper ending to begin with that can be fixed how you want, or they gave you the ending they wanted to, and you feel cheated because they refuse to alter what is now canon to appease the fans.
The best defense I've seen of this is it's not far enough along to be detected yet in Shepard. The Commander has been proven to be strong-willed, and indoctrination can take months or years. The Illusive Man has been slowly indoctrinated since the First Contact War. As for Kai Leng, he's much further along in the indoctrination process because he has Reaper tech intentionally implanted directly in him.
Protheans in their time were indoctrinated as well, but it wasn't detected until it was too late in most cases, according to Javik. It's possible that the VI can only detect indoctrination beyond a certain point.
[/QUOTE]
and people think BioWare's stuff is half-assed? These "explanations" are terrible
the galaxy starts to get back to normal. How the races stuck in the Sol system get back to their homeworlds, etc. That would actually be pretty damned cool.
Remember the only mass relays destroyed were the one that were active. several times they alluded to dormant relays that not in use. The could get around that problem by using them.
[quote name='6er']Well, at least he confirmed for a second time there will be another game[/QUOTE]
Not necessarily a question for me as Mass Effect is making a lot of money, selling 3.5 units the first week in-fact (although I guess a few of those are going back to Amazon lol), and is one of the gamer's most passionate series (I mean just look at what's happened recently/along side the Portal, Gears, Halo, Bioshock, Final Fantasy and Assassin's Creed series).
The news is somewhat good for me to continue to import ME2 saves into ME3 since we're supposed to have different endings depending on who our character is. Before I didn't really want to continue playing ME3's single player due to the same ending problem.
I thought I did the best ending but I didn't have Shepard live (picked synthesis maybe that was it), so what do you have to do to have Shepard breathing next to the rubble.
[quote name='usickenme']and people think BioWare's stuff is half-assed? These "explanations" are terrible[/QUOTE]
There's a lot of grasping at straws. Bioware's never given any indication that they're capable of writing at such a meta level, and in light of the difficulties they described in coming up with what we already have, as well as the notes they wrote down outlining it, it's pretty clear the I. Theory is just a result of plots holes and poor writing allowing a common fictional thread to run through them.
[quote name='Salamando3000']With the indoctrination theory...
What are we supposed to make of the scene where Shepard takes a breath amongst the rubble? Either Shep never made it to the citadel, and we still don't have a real ending because the reapers still aren't dealt with, or Shep managed to survive the Citadel exploding, re-entry into the atmosphere, cold/lack of oxygen, and the impact of earth.
[/QUOTE]
...The latter of which would then make our Shepard closer than Kratos than Master Chief.
I appreciate the explanations (seriously), but I honestly don't see any of us receiving a sensible ending to this mess that isn't riddled with more plot holes or requires a new game to explain. My biggest fear right now is that BioWare is going to continue stalling until the community fully fleshes this quirky theory out so they can play the victim when they follow it step by step, evolve it into a DLC, release it, people call them on it and complain once more in unison thereby giving the "angsty entitled fan" naysayers a sturdy "I told you so!" base of operations.
It's rather genius when you think about it. Really. BioWare comes out smelling like a rose while we're primarily responsible for sabotaging our own efforts by listening to the wrong people and not reading between the lines. Oh, and nothing changes but instead everything gets worse as future campaigns like Retake ME3 are classified as nerdy cults filled with spoiled teenagers that have no clue what they are talking about. Ugh...
XP: Amen man. New classes, maps and weapons are all I need to coax me to stick around because I genuinely enjoy what I have now. Senseless nerfing as a means to transparently extend the mode's lifespan and wearing down consumers into spending more cash to increase the likelihood of decent weapons will undoubtedly alienate some of their most loyal and educated fans.
[quote name='JustYourAverageJoe']There's a lot of grasping at straws. Bioware's never given any indication that they're capable of writing at such a meta level, and in light of the difficulties they described in coming up with what we already have, as well as the notes they wrote down outlining it, it's pretty clear the I. Theory is just a result of plots holes and poor writing allowing a common fictional thread to run through them.[/QUOTE]
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.'] XP: Amen man. New classes, maps and weapons are all I need to coax me to stick around because I genuinely enjoy what I have now. Senseless nerfing as a means to transparently extend the mode's lifespan and wearing down consumers into spending more cash to increase the likelihood of decent weapons will undoubtedly alienate some of their most loyal and educated fans.[/QUOTE]
...and some variation to objectives as well where even if you fail, you don't fail the mission you just don't earn as many credits. like Gears objectives.
I actually do like the premium vet packs, while my chance for a rare is slimmer, i roll the dice twice and I get more equipment to use as well as fill in the blanks where I need them...once those are X'd, I'll save up and get the spectre packs. I think with what I have to work with not, I'm pretty content on just making the most of it with the changes.
[quote name='100xp']...and some variation to objectives as well where even if you fail, you don't fail the mission you just don't earn as many credits. like Gears objectives.
I actually do like the premium vet packs, while my chance for a rare is slimmer, i roll the dice twice and I get more equipment to use as well as fill in the blanks where I need them...once those are X'd, I'll save up and get the spectre packs. I think with what I have to work with not, I'm pretty content on just making the most of it with the changes.[/QUOTE]
I think they need to change the kill the vip objective in general since it doesn't really make sense. "Intel has confirmed that" there is one brute here who is more important than the other brutes..lul wut??? It's totally understandable when they target Marauder Shields though.
And in general I think people are just impatient with the packs. I've played maybe 3-4 hours a day since release and have pretty much X'ed all but four things.
[quote name='gotdott']I think they need to change the kill the vip objective in general since it doesn't really make sense. "Intel has confirmed that" there is one brute here who is more important than the other brutes..lul wut??? It's totally understandable when they target Marauder Shields though.
And in general I think people are just impatient with the packs. I've played maybe 3-4 hours a day since release and have pretty much X'ed all but four things.[/QUOTE]
your squad is spoiled, im stuck playing with randoms and sometimes they don't even speak the same language...or use equipment. if I played with a solid squad every night, I'd have everything X'd or near close to. like you guys_is nahmsayin?
yeah, there's nothing special about the vip...just you need to take them down before the timer runs out. they don't or even have better AI or stats.
New objectives that scale with the difficulty would be a well welcomed addition. Well... assuming they have the time to properly test them. I'd love the opportunity to earn more credits in Silver and Gold especially if I'm one of the few guys on the map participating. It would make carrying teams worthwhile for a change and speed up the process of teaching new players the ropes offering easier ones anyone could clear. One of the reasons I never understood WHY hacking rates were solely based on the number of bodies in close proximity. All too often when shit hits the fan you have everyone scrambling to let that last guy up clinging to the hope that they'll missle their way home free. Worse yet when you're stuck on the sidelines rooting for a guy who hasn't a ghost of a chance to clutch because of the time limit.
Congratulations Mason. Enjoy Decoy while it lasts. Great point about party vs. randoms btw XP. God knows if I had the privilege of only playing with X, 100, Ryu and Mason I'd be in a similar position because we get shit done. Sadly most posters here lead relatively hectic/demanding lifestyles, are rarely on at the same time and organizing anything on CAG isn't foolproof.
[quote name='usickenme']so everything is just Bioware's fault? Even lamer[/QUOTE]
If the shoe fits.
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']I appreciate the explanations (seriously), but I honestly don't see any of us receiving a sensible ending to this mess that isn't riddled with more plot holes or requires a new game to explain. My biggest fear right now is that BioWare is going to continue stalling until the community fully fleshes this quirky theory out so they can play the victim when they follow it step by step, evolve it into a DLC, release it, people call them on it and complain once more in unison thereby giving the "angsty entitled fan" naysayers a sturdy "I told you so!" base of operations.[/QUOTE]
My biggest fear is that they're not really listening. They seem to keep coming back to the idea of whether or not the ending was happy enough, when that's not it at all. I'd figured Shepard would die for awhile, which is fine if it suits the resolution. Giving up his own life to flip the switch on the Crucible would have been fine, if trite. But then they have to go and introduce stupid bullshit for the sake of being different and unexpected.
I don't want a happy ending, just an ending that makes sense.
[quote name='JustYourAverageJoe']If the shoe fits.
[/QUOTE]
Nah, I'll take the opinion and story of people who've ACTUALLY made quite a few great games over bitter gamer nobodies who think their incoherent stories are good.
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']God knows if I had the privilege of only playing with X, 100, Ryu and Mason I'd be in a similar position because we get shit done.[/QUOTE]If you (or anyone, for that matter) would like to send a small weekly check my way or do my hw in return for me taking you to the MP promised land, I'll be more than willing to play 6+ hours a night, everynight
Hmm good read, although I believe you could pull this off while before the game ended.
Give the players a oh here's the ending and then later on go no no wait here you go you've been indoctrinated and you play up to the real ending. Yeah that sounds great, what doesn't sound great is to have that as DLC and not tell us lol.
Nah, but really...either way people are waiting for a new ending. If you believe the Indoctrination thing, then the story isn't complete yet and you don't even have an ending. If the ending we got is the ending that is, you're probably waiting for some type of closure about what the effect of some of your larger choices had on the universe.
But the plethora of positive professional reviews are less helpful by far than much of the ‘destructive’ commentary BioWare faces. Truth rarely lies in what we want to hear. Dozens of fawning reviewers tripping over one another to offer up their perfect scores hardly encourages BioWare to improve their product. “Look how exceptional our game is! We appreciate your concern and we are listening, but by the way did you notice all these perfect scores we just received? You’re delusional, but we care.”
[quote name='usickenme']Nah, I'll take the opinion and story of people who've ACTUALLY made quite a few great games over bitter gamer nobodies who think their incoherent stories are good.[/QUOTE]
Whatever helps.
alot of the changes are pretty beefy...both positive and negative. I'm not nearly getting as many 1 shot head shot kills in gold w/out a combo of powers and sniping...but sabotage isn't crap anymore just now where nearly as good vs geth or even atlases. the vulnerability upgrade is beast if someone maxes out a tech ability. +100% tech damage for 10 secs.
[quote name='Salamando3000']With the indoctrination theory...
What are we supposed to make of the scene where Shepard takes a breath amongst the rubble? Either Shep never made it to the citadel, and we still don't have a real ending because the reapers still aren't dealt with, or Shep managed to survive the Citadel exploding, re-entry into the atmosphere, cold/lack of oxygen, and the impact of earth.
[/QUOTE]
This video explains everything.. Everything from the flash of light running for the beam until the breath you see of Shepard's chest (if you made the choices, "correctly,") is an illusion by Harbinger as its last attempt at indoctrinating Shepard. The boy is a lie.
Javik says the plans for the Crucible were wrecked by sleeper Reaper agents in his fight so obviously the Prothean VI's aren't full proof in detecting indoctrinated people. At the end of the video, the author posts like 15 questions that have to be answered to disprove the indoctrination theory is his and a lot of our minds.
Another thing, if they're working on "new" content, wouldn't they be calling all the VO actors back into the studio? They couldn't pull a JRPG and just have panels with a narrator telling the story; people would want to hear the voices.
I think the greed of EA has turned what could have been the greatest ending in gaming history (if indoctrination is correct and then you played the "true" ending on the disk) into the biggest debacle in the history of the business of video games, worse than anything Kotick has ever done.
This video explains everything.. Everything from the flash of light running for the beam until the breath you see of Shepard's chest (if you made the choices, "correctly,") is an illusion by Harbinger as its last attempt at indoctrinating Shepard. The boy is a lie.
Javik says the plans for the Crucible were wrecked by sleeper Reaper agents in his fight so obviously the Prothean VI's aren't full proof in detecting indoctrinated people. At the end of the video, the author posts like 15 questions that have to be answered to disprove the indoctrination theory is his and a lot of our minds.[/QUOTE]
I've seen the video...
If everything after Harbinger's blast is in fact in Shep's head, then that means Shep never entered the citadel...never opened the citadel...and never sent out any kind of space magic that destroyed the reapers. If indoctrination is assumed to be the "true" ending, then Mass Effect 3 ends with the Reapers still running amok throughout the galaxy. That "ending" isn't much of an ending at all.
And for all we know, the Prothean VI we found was built after the Prothean-cycle crucible was destroyed. Or maybe just upgraded after the event happened. Makes sense to upgrade your indoctrination detection software after you lost your biggest project to indoctrinated agents.
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']If you (or anyone, for that matter) would like to send a small weekly check my way or do my hw in return for me taking you to the MP promised land, I'll be more than willing to play 6+ hours a night, everynight [/QUOTE]
man i wish i had that kind of time too lol. I got a wife, 12 hour shifts at work, 3 kids, and going to school as well.. good thing i only sleep 3-4 hours a day or i might have time contstraints lol.
The more I read about it, the more it does make some sense that indoctrination would be the case. It would make for an amazing ending to the game, one not really foreseen by many fans of the game. And if that was what Bioware was going for, they've found the reaction to the ending being a question of whether not only Shepard but you the player were indoctrinated so to speak has been disregarded or overlooked by many of the people as an initial reaction, that Bioware's attempt to throw in some greater question into their work has--until perhaps now--not even been picked up on by the consumers, who haven't taken the time to digest and interpret the ending but rather took everything as face value.
However, regarding the DLC that seems to be hinted by the Bioware post from yesterday, it's going to be VERY difficult to alter the ending for most people I believe. If indoctrination is the hidden-in-plain-sight ending Bioware was going for, how can they add to the story when I'm sure many people chose the endings that the theory says indicates subservience to the Reapers? By having one of your selected squadmates wake you up as if it was all a dream?
I'm torn on the DLC, because I can't determine what it might be. In one respect, it might very well be an addendum to the ending. The Collector's Edition art book talks about how Bioware wished to use the Illusive Man in an indoctrinated form as a final boss, ala Saren, but it was cut because they couldn't figure out how to fit it in. At the same time, the Prothean VI on Thessia drops hints of the Reapers being tools of the cycles, used by whomever actually was behind the creation of the cycles to implement the plan. So could it just be that any DLC will simply provide greater clues as to the reality behind the Catalyst?
aside from the ones that flesh out the ending story, that comes out let's you partake on the assault of Omega for Aria, helping her retake the station so you gain war assets. A little discovery of what's going on with the station and it being near the Omega 4 relay would also be neat (comic related (the one we got with the CE)). It'd also be super hot if she joined you as a squad member afterwards but that'll probably never happen since she'll never take your orders.
i like the idea of the indoctrination ending. but that does make me want to see what happens to the reapers. so that means we still haven't seen the real ending.
I know i am late to the party, but i finished ME3 yesterday and here are my thoughts.
I didnt love the ending, but i am okay with it. But i absolutely loved everything else about it. Its one of the few video games where i actually really got into the story. There were times when i actually stopped playing for a bit to try and figure out which option i wanted to go with.
The Genophage storyline in particular was incredible.
Now for Bioware changing the ending i am completely against it. This was THEIR story, not ours. If they wanted to end it that way that is their choice, hell if they wanted to end it with Shepard singing some bad current pop song (like Dreamwork animation movies) again it is THEIR choice!
If you want an official new ending...too bad!
I understand you not liking it, or it not being what you wanted it to be, I'm sorry that you didnt enjoy it. My advice to you is go read/write fanfiction....here is a link http://www.fanfiction.net/game/Mass_Effect/
Quick question: I just finished ME2, doing everything but the DLC. Do I need to play any of the DLC before starting 3, and if so, will the save files affect my ME3 game experience?
[quote name='Matt Young']Quick question: I just finished ME2, doing everything but the DLC. Do I need to play any of the DLC before starting 3, and if so, will the save files affect my ME3 game experience?[/QUOTE]
Def play Lair of the Shadow Broker Overlord and Arrival before you go into ME3. You don't really have to but it'll be a better experience if you do. Arrival is a key integration from ME2 and ME3 with Overlord being a big side quest. I don't have to say really why LotSB is a must play.
Lol I was playing yesterday with a group of friends and we were doing a silver, we started off gold buy quickly went back to silver lol, round against the Reapers when I decided, in between waves, to grab some grenades. I needed to go halfway across the map to pick up the extra grenade in the other non used ammo cache. I'm running through the level as my Krogan Sentinel and turn the corner when 4 Brutes and 2 Banshees spawn dead center in front me! I'm like oh F and then back pedal as fast as I can lol. You know that scene with the old Star Wars movies where Han Solo is running after the storm troopers with rifle in hand? When he turns the corner and then realizes he's way outnumbered and then screams back running away from the storm troopers?! Yeah that was me lol. We won that match too (3 Vanguards and 1 Sentinel haha). ^^
You should at least purchase and play all the DLC's prior to the Arrival. They have minor to significant roles of ME 3 & are really fun to play. If u don't play Shadow Broker you'll really be lost.
Arrival isn't as good game play wise but is integral to the story as ME 3 takes place right after that.
The worst part of this debate is the vileness coming from the "leave it alone" side. They love to use the term "entitled" and other demeaning snippy comments. Sure, there are some eye-rolling quotes out there like in the Fox News article where they "demand a happy ending". But generally I think the movement has been vocal and polite in not attacking the other side.
For those like Macontosh
The concept of "art" and how they want to end their game is their decision. Know also that this is a business. An interactive business. We buy, we play the games, our feedback molded ME2 and ME3. We aren't demanding the ending we want. We are voicing our displeasure that after MONTHS of articles about how "this is your game" and "your Shepard" and all of those other quotes about how different our experiences would be. In the end, they painted themselves into a corner and gave a blanket ending. It doesn't matter if I saved the Rachni Queen. Doesn't matter if half of my squadmates are dead. My choices, my time, were all magnificent in the story....and the story went out on a sour note.
My reasoning is such: it doesn't answer what happened. All three endings end with a beam of light, the Reapers attach ceasing and the Normandy crashing. They are for all intents and purposes, interchangeable. Bioware is a company known for rich story-telling and this ending didn't make sense. Please give me a reasonable explanation of what the point of the ending was....what happened among the galaxy. The most I've seen is "the reapers were defeated", "that made sense I guess" and "I was OK with it".
Those of us voicing our opinions are telling Bioware we are unhappy. You used our voice to shape the game and decided to use the most open-ended answer at the end in order to try and cover everyone in one shot. If you'd like to continue using our feedback and want us to buy your product, own up to the fact that your loyal fanbase is not pleased. This is an age where a vast number of companies of all industries use social media to listen to feedback. PR people especially love this, it's like free focus groups. Anybody selling a product wants there to be brand loyalty. If I have a limited budget and choice between the next Bioware game or the next Bethesda game....right now I'd choose Bethesda. I chose ME3 over Skyrim going into this. They've "lost" one customer. I'm sure someone will make a snippy comment about that. But if enough "single" customers leave, then you have a swing. 10,000 lost sales means 10,000 more copies of something else sold. That's a 20K swing. More copies get traded into used game stores (which game makers HATE). And what will any company ask? "What could we do better?" There it is. We are telling them, we love your game....but this ending dissatisfied us.
[quote name='macontosh2000']I know i am late to the party, but i finished ME3 yesterday and here are my thoughts.
I didnt love the ending, but i am okay with it. But i absolutely loved everything else about it. Its one of the few video games where i actually really got into the story. There were times when i actually stopped playing for a bit to try and figure out which option i wanted to go with.
The Genophage storyline in particular was incredible.
Now for Bioware changing the ending i am completely against it. This was THEIR story, not ours. If they wanted to end it that way that is their choice, hell if they wanted to end it with Shepard singing some bad current pop song (like Dreamwork animation movies) again it is THEIR choice!
If you want an official new ending...too bad!
I understand you not liking it, or it not being what you wanted it to be, I'm sorry that you didnt enjoy it. My advice to you is go read/write fanfiction....here is a link http://www.fanfiction.net/game/Mass_Effect/[/QUOTE]
To a point I'm the same way. My issues again are not really with the ending. I see it as their story but I expected more of the decisions made in the past games. I remember reading that the decision to give the fan an autograph in the first game would play out in the last game. Was not expecting much but I would have liked something. Same with the woman that you helped out when the Alliance forces wanted to keep her husbands body to study. I looked at ME3 as the ending to the series not just the end of ME3 as the ending.
If this is ending is what BioWare wanted then fine but if they plan on giving another ending just to milk the cash cow more then to hell with them. Give me the real ending to start. Don't make me buy it and feel that it was only done because people were mad with the ending you made.
I still stand by that outside of the ending this game did not live up to my expectations of a Mass Effect game and I wonder where things would have went if BioWare was not owned by EA.
[quote name='IanKazimer']GG last night, guys. Finally got some gold notches in my belt!
Shoot me an invite whenever you guys see me on. I'll definitely join up whenever I can.[/QUOTE]
What did you think, not that bad right? The first game was a fluke though, if I didn't get stabbed in the first 10 seconds we would have made it or at least gotten paid..only failure of the night haha.
[quote name='gotdott']What did you think, not that bad right? The first game was a fluke though, if I didn't get stabbed in the first 10 seconds we would have made it or at least gotten paid..only failure of the night haha.[/QUOTE]
Not bad at all, man. That team felt rock solid to me. The odd Phantom executions were really the only things that caught me off guard; I just wasn't prepared to see like twelve of the bastards on screen at the same time.
Love dat biotic explosion synergy. That shit chews through everything.
I'ma have a hard time going back to silver after seeing how many credits we raked in. I'm spoiled now.
[quote name='gotdott']What did you think, not that bad right? The first game was a fluke though, if I didn't get stabbed in the first 10 seconds we would have made it or at least gotten paid..only failure of the night haha.[/QUOTE]
the 3 phantoms t-bagging our lifeless bodies with the turret on the ramp was especially special. there is not enough medigel in the universe that could get you outta of that one.
we gotta try the adept/vanguard run on reapers and see if we can pull that off.
Dude, the random game I did before I joined up with you guys was against the Reapers. 3 Adepts and a Turian Sentinel. We made it to wave 10 with relative ease, but ended up losing it (thankfully after getting PAID.)
Biotic explosions make Brutes and Ravagers look like tissue paper. Banshees are as much of a bitch as they usually are though.
