Mass Effect 3

[keg in kc]

I just got to Sur'Kesh, that being the 2nd half of the demo, and it's actually different from the demo, in some pretty cool ways.

[Saulbadguy]

Well, hell, I did the DLC and I didn't even realize it. I thought it was part of the regular storyline. IT WAS EPIC, though.

[keg in kc]

Yeah, I really liked the DLC. Totally worth it.

[Skyy God]

Have they fixed the import character bug yet? Only 1 of my 4 saves on the 360 would import.

[Frazod]

Finally picked this up tonight. Still playing Kingdom, but I'll be ready to roll when I'm done.

[keg in kc]

I'm about 20 hours in now. I'm guessing halfway through maybe, judging by the missions in my log (no idea really, though). It's crazy-good so far. Mordin died in the suicide mission in ME2 so I haven't seen him obviously, but virtually everybody else (from both games) has shown up in one form or another. A lot of great moments. A lot of unexpected references to ME1, like people I helped at Zhu's Hope or Feros, stuff that make me glad I'm playing a character that went through the original, and actually makes me want to play through all three of them again sometime. I was telling someone earlier it's basically like they took the best aspects of ME1 and the best aspects of ME2 and made just a hell of a game. So far.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

I'm about 20 hours in now. I'm guessing halfway through maybe, judging by the missions in my log (no idea really, though). It's crazy-good so far. Mordin died in the suicide mission in ME2 so I haven't seen him obviously, but virtually everybody else (from both games) has shown up in one form or another. A lot of great moments. A lot of unexpected references to ME1, like people I helped at Zhu's Hope or Feros, stuff that make me glad I'm playing a character that went through the original, and actually makes me want to play through all three of them again sometime. I was telling someone earlier it's basically like they took the best aspects of ME1 and the best aspects of ME2 and made just a hell of a game. So far.

Agreed 100 percent.

A hint, for your second playthrough... if you're having trouble getting Mordin through the suicide mission and want to ensure his survival (which, honestly, is worth it. His final scenes are incredible - some of the best of the series.), there's an easy way to do it.

When you're going through the suicide mission, you reach the point where you save some of the crew (though perky redhead Kelly Chambers always seems to disintegrate before my eyes). At that point, choose to send a member of your squad to escort the crew back to the Normandy, and send Mordin. For some reason, he randomly tends to die if left behind to "hold off the Collectors" while you travel to the core to take down the Terminator (I mean, human-form reaper).

I will admit to getting a little teary eyed with Mordin's end scene.

[keg in kc]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

Agreed 100 percent.

A hint, for your second playthrough... if you're having trouble getting Mordin through the suicide mission and want to ensure his survival (which, honestly, is worth it. His final scenes are incredible - some of the best of the series.), there's an easy way to do it.

Mordin was dead in that play because I'd neglected to upgrade the medical bay and didn't feel like going all the way back through the suicide mission. So I just decided that would be my "Shepard lost some friends" save, since half the Normandy's crew died as well, including Chambers.

Mordin's still around on my current ME3 play, my femshep infiltrator. She's my Insanity run, at least so far. Haven't gotten to him yet, but I can imagine that the scenes with the random Salarian doctor will be much more moving with Mordin.

[keg in kc]

Awesome trailer, but seriously it's full of spoilers in terms of returning characters. So don't watch it if you don't want things like that spoiled.

[Miles]

Really considering picking this up tomorrow but had one question. I didn't play though any of the DLC from ME2 other than the pack at launch with the boring merc guy. Am I missing something worthwhile by passing on the rest of the DLC from ME2 or should I just dive into the new game?

[keg in kc]

Kasumi will show up in ME3 albeit briefly. Characters from Overlord show up in ME3 and the DLC is referenced several times. It's also a very cool dlc, completely different from anything else they've done. Lair of the Shadow Broker and Arrival are both integral to the story in ME3. Shadow Broker, in particular, was one of the best parts of ME2, completely worth playing through even if it wasn't an important lead-in to ME3.

[Saulbadguy]

Book characters even show up.

[keg in kc]

Just finished. I thought the ending....fit. I can understand why some people wouldn't like it, but I did. My only complaint was a gameplay thing, and it's a minor one, more of an annoyance. Story-wise it worked. For me at least.

The game as a whole, amazing. I don't know how they could have done it any better than they did. I can't think of another game that had as many emotional moments, and the last quarter of it just did not let up. I hadn't planned on playing for 10 hours straight today, but I just couldn't stop.

[veist]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

Just finished. I thought the ending....fit. I can understand why some people wouldn't like it, but I did. My only complaint was a gameplay thing, and it's a minor one, more of an annoyance. Story-wise it worked. For me at least.

The game as a whole, amazing. I don't know how they could have done it any better than they did. I can't think of another game that had as many emotional moments, and the last quarter of it just did not let up. I hadn't planned on playing for 10 hours straight today, but I just couldn't stop.

I loved it right until that final scene, which was just like "wow, really? " Trying not to spoiler it and I mean I still loved 99% of the game, I put 40hrs into it and besides maybe one or two spots the game just barely lets you come up for air its so well done.

[keg in kc]

Originally Posted by veist

I loved it right until that final scene, which was just like "wow, really? " Trying not to spoiler it and I mean I still loved 99% of the game, I put 40hrs into it and besides maybe one or two spots the game just barely lets you come up for air its so well done.

There's a fascinating theory:

Spoiler!

...that the very end of the game isn't actually the game's end, that what we're playing through right now is Shepard fighting indoctrination.

Which sounds batshit crazy on first glance, but there are some things that don't make sense.

The gameplay is completely different after you're hit by harbinger's beam. It's almost exactly like the dream sequences during the game. You're moving in slow motion. If you turn around you see trees that look vaguely familiar. You have unlimited ammo.

When you get to the citadel it just doesn't look like the citadel. You can't shoot the keepers.

How is TIM able to control Anderson? I get how he can control you, but Anderson? How? And speaking of Anderson, how does he even get there? And why isn't he in as bad a shape as you are? You've had your armor completely destroyed and you're in the remnants of your uniform. He's in what looks like a clean uniform, seems to be completely okay until whatever happens to him happens at the platform.

Shooting TIM is a renegade choice. And unless you have really high reputation, there is no paragon choice that allows you to live. If you don't shoot him the game ends. If you use the paragon choice (I'm told, I didn't have high enough reputation) he shoots himself, in a scene eerily reminiscent of Saren. Which makes me wonder if all of this is built from Shepard's memories.

The choices the catalyst gives you don't make any sense. If you go by the colors laid out, red to the right, blue to the left, Destruction of the reapers, the goal you've been going for for three games is renegade. Now maybe that's because it requires the destruction of the geth and EDI, but it just doesn't make sense. Control is said to be the paragon choice, but again, that doesn't make sense. Everything about TIM and what he was doing was renegade. I personally believe the synthesis choice, which I believe builds upon the lessons learned from the quarians and geth is the true paragon, but still it seems odd the way they're laid out. Why is destruction red? Is the catalyst trying to trick you? He seems to be doing a sales job. If you think of it in terms of Harbinger trying to indoctrinate you, than synthesis or control would be the equivalent of giving in, and destruction would be fighting, which leads to the final point...

The most interesting point to me is this one: if you do the destruction ending and have high enough EMS (4000-5000, something in there, I didn't get that high), you get an additional scene after the Normandy crash. You see N7 armor, and then a breath. It looks like Shepard is alive, and it looks to be on the ground in London.


Now, personally, I think the ending is what it is. I don't think Bioware's going to come out with anything more (it would be pretty amazing if they did, though...) and I think people are trying really hard to rationalize an ending they either don't like or don't understand. But it is...interesting. There is definitely a part of me that wonders. Because it does seem...off somehow.


My personal pet theory is that you don't even wake up in london; you wake up on eden prime and nothing from any of the games actually happened. Which would be totally, wonderfully evil on Bioware's part.


But I think the end's the end and people are in denial.