Mass Defect 3

[Ulti]

In tragedy, comes comedy.

[CaptainKchuckles]

I guess people are just fed up with the crap Bioware has been doing lately. I think people should be upset about a massively disappointing ending, however it'd be a bit odd if they were THIS upset over it alone.

[Piercing Light]

So it's pretty much the ending k coo.

Cause really, all the other stuff aren't as major flaws.... How come I never hear about all the great things in this game? Why do people love bitching about whatever they can and seem to hate talking about the things they like?

[Orion]

Because when you have a generally excellent developer like Bioware do something bad, it really shows. The game is, broadly speaking, of excellent quality, which is why the bad or lazy bits stand out and really colour people's experience. It's also why I think some people who might otherwise like the game less because of them get caught up in the good parts of it, as well as generally being more susceptible to liking a product in spite of its flaws when you're playing it, as opposed to a more 'external' perspective such as watching playthroughs.

[CaptainKchuckles]

If that's what you take from the statement then i guess that's what you take from it. When they've presented quality products and then don't deliver those same standards in another installment, it's sort of an insult to the fans. Even if you had everyone die in the suicide mission, you barely miss out on anything.

That being said, the ending isn't something to just brush off as a slight flaw in the game, and it definitely is something that is reasonable to be disappointed in.

[Johnny Stooge]

So I finally finished the game earlier this afternoon.

I have no issues with the ending other than that I would have liked to have seen a proper epilogue.

Would I have preferred to have my Shepard grow old with Liara and have a bunch of daughters and meet up with Garrus and Jacob for drinks on the Citadel? Sure. But I'm not outraged about it. I chose the right decision. I just would have liked to have seen how it paid off.

[Johnny Stooge]

A more appropriate phrasing would have been 'people who feel they got a shit game', since we've seen how negatively the ending can colour people's perspectives of it.

So then say that. You know better.

The combat you directly make use of is more intuitive and solid than in previous games, but the mechanics behind it - the customisation that many core fans loved about the earliest game - have been lost completely, in favour of mostly passive ability trees that don't provide any significant alteration to your playstyle outside of changing the recharge times, areas of effect, etc of abilities. To me, advancement systems in relation to existing abilities are only good and interesting if they introduce new mechanics within that ability, rather than only really tweaking it in small ways.

That's complete bullshit. There's MORE customisation in ME3 than there ever was in ME and ME2. You can choose from a variety of different weapons and loadouts, you can upgrade your weapons and modify them, you can acquire a variety of different armour pieces and put together a unique look to suit your playstyle. And explain to me how the talent trees are worse compared to the past two games? Again, they quite clearly have more customisation as from level four on you start developing each power in the way you specifically want to focus that power - something that was not even an option in the first game and only happened when you maxed out the entire tree in the second.

This is why I cannot take your criticisms seriously.

[Orion]

That's complete bullshit. There's MORE customisation in ME3 than there ever was in ME and ME2. You can choose from a variety of different weapons and loadouts

For each type of weapon, there were more in ME1 than in 2 or 3. The specialisation that was previously limited to classes, giving them a unique feel in terms of both ability and weaponry is gone in favour of the weight attribute.

you can upgrade your weapons and modify them,

Again perhaps I misspoke, my more direct focus was on the skill trees, but I'll nevertheless say that, at the very least, my idea of ideal costumisation is more than just passively tweaking how your weapon acts. Except when a new ability is unlocked when the prerequisites have been met, the skill trees in ME3 never strike you with a big and sudden 'wow' factor, making them a lot more interesting to use. It's all passive, and I think customisation that doesn't allow for at least some active or very distinct departures from what the ability was before is boring.

you can acquire a variety of different armour pieces and put together a unique look to suit your playstyle. And explain to me how the talent trees are worse compared to the past two games? Again, they quite clearly have more customisation as from level four on you start developing each power in the way you specifically want to focus that power - something that was not even an option in the first game and only happened when you maxed out the entire tree in the second.

http://i.imgur.com/2Jdbh.png - A customisation comparison. In terms of armour alone, ME3 appears to allow more customisation, though a smaller proportion of the armour offered is customisable. Constructing this table alone has shown me that the stat-checking and number crunching to compare total possible permutations (including weapons, their upgrades/modifications, armour, and various skill trees) in terms of overall customisation per game would take a few hours to complete, and I'm not that inclined.

Overall, Mass Effect 1 and 3 undoubtedly offer the greatest potential combinations and thus customisation - ME1 by virtue of its sheer number of items (and their levels/modifications) offered in addition to the twelve levels available for each talent, ME3 because of the fewer overall numbers, but in pieces rather than sets, thereby maximising possible combinations for the number of items, powers and attributes available. I might do a little more work on the numbers, but I'm more inclined to believe ME1 offers more customisation, going by the idea of maximum customisation being the same as maximum possible permutations.

For an example, let's say we equip a standard light armour in ME1. Then, we equip Damage Protection or Health Regeneration. When that armour gets to level 8 and above, it can equip both of them. With these three factors in place, there are a thousand (exactly) different ways that one piece of armour can be equipped. Let alone doing the same for the other forty six sets, and taking into account the other upgrades available. And then repeating the process for the maximum number of weapons a character can carry. And then the possibilities for all the ME1 talents, given they can all vary between twelve levels. The permutations possible in ME1 number in the hundreds of the thousands, possible even a million or two.

While Mass Effect 3 does provide more pieces to fiddle with 'in the foreground', both the weapons and armour pieces being less numerous than those in Mass Effect 1 (though per-weapon-type upgrades are improved in 3 over 1, with 15625 combinations possible overall) look to ultimately result in the maximum permutations being reduced for it over its first predecessor. You could put forth the argument that Mass Effect 3 is more customisable because, say, you get to control particularly how you go about your upgrading on a per-weapon/equipment basis. Except the same is basically done through different means - essentially the finding of others weapons in the same class. Mass Effect 1 has more possible combinations the player can control than in Mass Effect 3, and I see such a number being the measure of a game's customisability.

[Orion]

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

[quiteMAD]

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.

This is exactly what I was saying before. By blowing everything so out of proportion, it no longer comes of as criticism, just unadulterated hate.

But that aside, I'm pleased with how Bioware is handling the situation. I didn't hate my ending, but I agree with the masses that there's not enough variety. So I wouldn't mind if Bioware gave us some.

[Wehrmacht]

In tragedy, comes comedy.

vgcatz is a shitty webcomic

[Reagan Rayden]

Mass Effect 3: New Ending Incoming - PlayStation 3 News at IGN

The first comment sums it up.

[The Conquerer]

The endings were, well uneventful (wouldn't call them necessarily horrible, just, not what I would have expected), but I can't say anything negative about the gameplay or even the cutscenes/interaction with npcs. Fighting felt almost as smooth as say, a game like Uncharted does. Your guy is fluid and is not restricted to rudimentary outputs. ME3 felt good to play. ME2 wasn't bad, but, IDK, I'll probably find it hard going back to play ME2. If Bioware adds more substantial/expansive endings, can't say I wouldn't want to see them. ME3 can be built upon. But I'm having this eerie feeling that they were probably going to do that anyway and release the stuff as DLC. If it was free that would be joyful.

[Shamdeo]

lol

[Shamdeo]

Btw, while I'm here -- this revisionism is awful. I actually feel bad that they're being coerced to re-write the ending. Drowning out the actual legitimate problems about how this game is being handled.