BioWare: On the Mass Effect 3 endings. Yes, we are listening

BioWare community co-ordinator Chris Priestly writes: "We understand there is a lot of debate on the Mass Effect 3 ending and we will be more than happy to engage in healthy discussions once more people get to experience the game. We are listening to all of your feedback."

[LOGICWINS]

Annnnd here comes the $10 DLC for the REAL ending!

[RedDead]

Well played Bioware...well played

yeah Logic, i'm incredibly happy i'm pirating it. 50% atm. I'll buy the game when the uh...finish it.

[LOGICWINS]

U have to admit...what EA/Bioware did was brilliant. Wrong, but brilliant. They know how passionate their fanbase is, so they know they can be easily exploited.

It's going to be funny seeing people defend this.

@RedDeadDestroyer- I just got back from Gamechamp. Sold ME2 towards RE5 Gold. Been dying to play it since I got Move. As far as this is concerned, this is the way I see it.

From the Ashes was a test to see if gamers would tolerate a $10 expansion pack that was CLEARLY stripped from the main game and resold. ME3 shipped 3.5 million in its first week...hence gamers passed the test with flying colors, demonstrating once again that they enjoy being on all fours.

And guess what, now these same gamers will be fighting(creating petitions online) to have the opportunity to BUY DLC lmao.

[lelo2play]

I bought the game... they won't get any more money from me for the DLC. I'll pirate the DLC if it's available. If it's not available, i'll see the ending on youtube.

[TheBlackSmoke]

So your entitled to steal?, cool story bro.

[Jobesy]

Hmmm, don't know where you got the dlc part from, your imagination? The statement they gave is the same every politician says, it basically means "f*** you".

[joydestroy]

i won't be buying any ending DLC. perfectly okay with the ending they have. not getting From Ashes until it's at least half price. MP DLC is where my money will go.

[vickers500]

"From the Ashes was a test to see if gamers would tolerate a $10 expansion pack that was CLEARLY stripped from the main game and resold. ME3 shipped 3.5 million in its first week...hence gamers passed the test with flying colors, demonstrating once again that they enjoy being on all fours."

Yes, because buying a great game that has a ton of content (especially compared to most other games out there) means that gamers are getting completely screwed over.

It couldn't possibly be that people are having a blast playing Mass Effect 3 without the DLC (that isn't even essential to enjoy the hell out of the game), no, gamers must just be getting screwed over. /s

Seriously though, I'm not defending this bullsh*t DLC crap that's been going on, but you're an idiot if you think that gamers are taking it in the ass just because they bought Mass Effect 3 and didn't boycott the game. The From Ashes DLC being excluded doesn't ruin the game in the slightest, there's still an amazing game there without that (aside from the ending apparently, though I haven't seen the ending yet so I'll judge that myself when I see it).

And hey, I'd rather have a 35-40 hour game like Mass Effect which has a great single player and a great multiplayer over something like Uncharted 3, which has a great 8 hour (at most)single player with solid multiplayer. The quality of Mass Effect 3, even WITHOUT the dlc, far exceeds something like Uncharted 3, and the majority of other games out there, so in this case, I'm willing to overlook a few dirty tactics. And seeing as how I bought the collectors edition (without even knowing that the prothean dlc would be exclusive to that edition, I just bought it because I like the mass effect franchise), the DLC stuff doesn't really affect me.

[Deputydon]

Personally I think the DLC made the game far better story wise, to the point that I really have ask why it wasn't included. There is a very specific scene I had between Liara and Javik that involved Javik condoning the reaper attack on the Asari homeworld because they abused the beacon that they had there. It was a fairly emotional scene and a dramatic moment. But I still have to ask, even if it wasn't included in the original game, what about this DLC made it worth ten dollars? Five? Maybe, but ten? That is like the last ME2 DLC that was an hour long with zero dialog choices.

This was a 30 minute hike into a 'secret' Cerberus area were they were hiding a Prothean? I'm sorry, but if Cerberus really had a live Prothean, I highly doubt that Illusive man would have made it so easy to get to, and I doubt it would have taken a mere 20-30 minutes. I get that they need to pay the voice actor and what not, but still. It's a little ridiculous to charge ten dollars for what was essentially a 30 minute mission.

And people complain about MW $15 map packs... at least with those you get 4-5 new maps and, if you like the crap that is MW, you will be playing those maps for quite a long time. Far more than 30 minutes....

[da_2pacalypse]

and by listening, they mean looking for more ways to rip people off for more DLC.....

[AzaziL]

Say you bought a book and reading through it, you notice a couple chapters have been torn out and replaced with a page saying to pay another $10 for the chapters.

Who here would honestly go online and submit the $10 for a part of their book back when they could read it on someones blog for free (albeit illegally).

If it were for new chapters created in the months after publishing, then yes, you should pay for them but if they were chapters torn right out of the book and resold to captivate readers who want the whole story, that's just wrong.

[ziggurcat]

@ logicwins:

the ashes content wasn't stripped from the disc. nice try, though.

[SilentNegotiator]

@RedDead

Like I said in my blog (it's still on the top at the side of the main page, I believe), piracy isn't helping anyone.

You only became a statistic as a "potential customer" that they will create more oppressive DRM and passes to attempt to get, and more and more DLC to attempt to "make up" the "damages"

Can't you skip ONE game to make a stand?
If my FAVORITE game on the planet had all the baggage of ME3, I wouldn't touch it.

[SkyGamer]

I don't know if I am angry at Bioware for the "from ashes" dlc. It came with Collector's Edition so it would make sense to give them something extra for the price. The ending though is bs. Haven't even started playing the third one and now I really don't want to. I worked really hard and tried to squeeze finishing the second to get ready for the third. hell even bought the strat guide. I won't be giving Bioware anymore money. The trilogy is done and like the above poster says, "all hail pirates!"

I don't think Bioware is as bad. I bet they get a lot of pressure from ea as ea only has a couple good games now.

[badz149]

comparing ME3 to Uncharted 3 is just plain wrong and yeah...dumb! the former is a RPG, and the later is a straight out action game! how are they comparable again? and FYI, 30-40 hours for an RPG is SHORT and you can only finish UC3 in 8 hours if you play or normal or lower and ignore the treasures!

why not compare it with Skyrim? they are both RPGs! oh yeah...THAT will totally shows how much lacking ME3 in terms of contents for an RPG!

ME3 far exceeds the quality of UC3?! lol wake the fvck up dude! again, they are not comparable and even if you want to compare them, graphics, animations, and gameplay (TPS-wise), UC3 walks rounds over ME3!

[MaxXAttaxX]

I guess they've known about the ending all along. $10 for real ending is quite possible.

[crxss]

Listening isn't good enough. Action is demanded!

[ravinash]

I've got plenty of other games to play until the cost of ME3 comes down.
I'm just trying my best not to read anything about the ending (good or bad).

[Bobby Kotex]

Pretty much right? I finished the game. I'm not butthurt over it, but I simply have no desire to go back. After paying $70 to get the full game, I'm not paying another penny. Whatever Bioware does is pointless unless they're giving us free content.

[STONEY4]

Ending and this situation in a nutshell.

http://i.imgur.com/Xw9pq.jp...

http://i.imgur.com/kPxFy.pn...

[vortis]

It's insane because gamers are fighting just the opposite thing over in the Capcom camp.

I guess Capcom is the future version of what Bioware will inevitably become.

[TruthSeeker]

Do you guys realize that this wasnt supposed to even be the ending for ME3? Remember when the whole game script leaked onto the internet? Bioware changed it to this ending

[WitWolfy]

I never even knew about that.

[Nimblest-Assassin]

well their have been dlc leaks here

The one that follows up the ending called THE TRUTH is apparently free. It will follow the events after the Normandy crashes and it will follow Joker and the rest of the Normandy crew.

Other dlc that will cost money are called Aria and some other one that has not been confirmed yet.

http://img710.imageshack.us...

Aria will pretty much star Aria as she attempts to take back Omega from Cerberus

All this stuff was leaked by the same guy whom leaked the Shadow Broker DLC.

Im hoping this is true... I just finished Me3 not minutes ago, and I would like for the series to continue.

Sure the ending sucked, but man the journey up to it was sooooooooooooo good.

[aaronobst]

Is that pic legit?

[Nimblest-Assassin]

@aaronbst

Nothing is confirmed, but their is strong evidence that those will be the dlcs they release.

I hope they are the truth and the omega dlcs are the ones I want, and since the truth is supposed to be free, I hope that it is true.

And yes, that pic is legit.

[PooEgg]

That would be cool if it was true. Although playing with Aria as the star is not interesting to me, I'd rather it star one of my surviving team mates. However, I really wanted an Omega mission, so I might still be interested.

[Darth_Bane79]

I am just glad I cancelled my preorder and didn't buy the game at all. Maybe I will get it someday when I see it on a shelf for 10$.

[Nimblest-Assassin]

10 bucks? Dont hold your breath. A game like Mario Galaxy that came out 5 years ago is 49 bucks.

You will have to wait atleast 8-10 years before the price drops to that much.

Expect maybe 19 bucks at best

[Darth_Bane79]

That's why I said "maybe". So if it doesn't happen, the I just wont buy it. Are you going with Gamestop prices btw? I stopped buying games at that place a long time ago.

[Megaton]

I think they withheld the ending to avoid a 2nd leak. I imagine they were devastated when the ending was leaked last year. I think the one we have really is a placeholder. They didn't want any data of the actual ending on the disc or in the demos to avoid further data mining leaks. Of course if they charge for it, they'll have another sh*tstorm on their hands.

[grahf]

If they don't charge for it, there will be a shitstorm. What about people that bought the game, beat it already, and in a fit of rage already sold it back? That would be just like EA to take a shot at the 2nd hand market... "Don't sell your EA games because you NEVER KNOW when we'll change something important... like the end..."

[Megaton]

Yeah, impulsive angry people will be angrier, too. People without internet will also be getting the shaft. It's certainly a risky maneuver.

[Simon_Brezhnev]

what was the leaked ending?

[Megaton]

Well there were several things that leaked. The whole thing about dark energy and Shepard becoming a Reaper, and then I think another one similar to the one we have now also leaked, but with more detail and conclusion. If I remember correctly, there was something about Anderson and your LI pulling you out of the rubble if you survive.

The thinking now is that they rewrote the ending again since multiple versions had leaked.

And then there's this, which should be taken with a massive grain of salt: http://i.imgur.com/xjXdX.pn...

[SneeringImperialist]

"Of course if they charge for it, they'll have another sh*tstorm on their hands. " hahahaha I couldn't have put it better myself.

[snipes101]

I already got the shaft. My college doesnt allow xbox's and the like to connect to their internet, so I basically got screwed out of the "best" ending because my galactic readiness neutered my effect fighting force by cutting it in half. Bioware said there would be "more than enough" resources to get the best ending. I find that hard to believe when I played the game for 40 hours and still did not have sufficient resources to get the best ending. I only missed a few side quests.

As for the possibility of a new ending, Bioware really should give it away for free if they end up redoing it. A lot of people feel let down by the current offering, to say the least. They cant be held accountable for people who lacked the foresight to hold on to the game and see if Bioware maybe did introduce a new ending.

[dc1]

I hope your right.
Plus bub for intelligent thought on N4G... something that’s hard to come by.

[FCOLitsjustagame]

I'm not sure how this supposed "plot" is working out so well.

-The game is already dropping in price (which wouldnt happen yet if it was as good as it could be)

-Its getting terrible word of mouth (from the people who actually didn't like the ending and the people that just hate paying for product)

-If I get to the end and really hate it as much as some other people... I am not petitioning for more DLC, I am shoving it on the shelf and never looking at the franchise again. I guess maybe the really really hardcore fans wouldnt do this but I thought EA was trying to go after the bigger casual fan market.

So if this was a "plot" it was an bad one. More likely it was someone trying to be "artsy" and making a bad calculation and now they are scrambling for damage control.

[wallis]

I simply can not understand the decision. In fact I've been trying to get my head around it and the only reasonable one I've got is that the whole thing was an indoctrination and there's more to come. In a weird way I don't mind if they want us to pay for the aftermath in DLC so long as it continues the campaign and let's me actually play a significant chunk and get closure. Even if it is evil it's not like they've stiffed me on play time - it is a good 50+ hours long.

However what I won't be happy with is paying $10 for a cutscene. Or worse paying $10 for the cutscene I want and if I fancy the others then I've got to pay more for them too.

I just can't get my head around it. The whole idea of such a basic ending decision compared to the complexity of mass effect 2's ending just leaves aghast. It's in the complete opposing direction of the gameplay mechanic of decision making. Decision making IS the gameplay mechanic behind mass effect that's what makes no sense. Surely Bioware understood the game they were making? Surely they understood the whole reason I play the damn thing is to have my own ending and not theirs? Why else would they go through all the rigor of having 200 plot hooks from one game to another!?

[Mythicninja]

I haven't seen the ending yet, but consider this..... if the game completely ends, then how would they have post launch DLC- which they have had for both of the other mass effect games....and surely they would in this case as well. By the logic of money making alone.....we have not seen the real ending. I say this with the utmost confidence

[FCOLitsjustagame]

They could have DLC where you have to replay or load a previous save. Didn't Gears 3 have SP DLC and that definitly came to an end.

[Braid]

What the hell are you listening for?

I'll never buy a game from Bioware if they attempt to change the ending. If you had balls to do that kind of ending, which I thought was awesome, don't fall back. Seriously, you shouldn't give in to those COD players who think heroes always stand on the ashes of their enemies and watch the skies with the great victory they had. It's not all lavender and roses, besides that kind of an ending would be cheap written, unimaginative and completely meaningless.

Life is complicated, you don't always get what you want. Get over it and move on.

[FCOLitsjustagame]

Life stinks. Thats why I play games. If games start resembling life, or artsy movies where depression rules then I have no need/desire to play the games anymore.

You can have death in a game Halo Reach and even Dragon Age 1 (yes my character died and I was OK with it) or a movie "Gladiator". But it has to be done right.

[FCOLitsjustagame]

What is wrong with this site recently. Double post.

[NovusTerminus]

I hate CoD, and this ending was shit.

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

Why the hell did Joker and your ENTIRE team flee from the fight? And why was there no difference in ending regardless of the choice's you make? The ending sucked. Reapers goal is to kill us all, to save us from killing ourselves? WTF was that?

I love dark stories, and they don't have to have a happy ending. But a good ending is all I ask for, this was just stupid.

[Lord_Sloth]

Not everybody who disapproves of the ending likes CoD.

The ending was cheap and made all of your choices useless which was the main selling point of Mass Effect. Who do you save? Doesn't matter, they're all screwed anyway.

[grahf]

But Sandman is dead! DEAD!

[Braid]

Spoilers incoming!

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

This first sentence is to avoid eye contact. Yeah, get out now. In some of the endings, he doesn't die. I understand why you wanted to see a good ending after all the sh#t he had been through, and we played this game for 150 hours in total so we're deeply attached to our characters. Ending was depressing nevertheless, there was no happy ending but I don't think there needs to be one. You didn't even know what crucible was capable of untill the ending, and up to that point the player should think about the possibility that the damn thing could wipe out the entire galaxy. We were given a hopeless situation, and the hopelessness was all around us until the ending, so it's just a humane instinct that we want it to end well. However, if you look at it in a realistic perspective, you should have known that this war portrayed in the game was a straight hopeless, no win war. I gotta admit I felt kinda sad after Shepherd died in my ending, but he saved the entire galaxy and the cutscene in which a grandfather is telling the story of Shepherd to the grandson was so touchy that I felt like Shepherd didn't die in vain. He's a hero now, and a space age messiah of some sort, which makes me feel good about it. Nothing we did in the game was in vain, Shepherd was a true hero and that's all I need. Snake had the same kind of fate in MGS4 unfortunately, and I think this is how it's supposed to be. Depressing, yeah. But it feels good at the same time when you think about it.

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

[aliengmr]

except you don't save the galaxy. You isolate it. While some worlds will likely be ok, the Krogan are in for a rough time. Not to mention the giant fleet stuck in the Sol system. The largest part of that fleet is the Turians and Quarians, both of which are going to eventually starve since they don't eat the same food. The list goes on and on.

Point is, if you liked it great, I mean that. There are reasons fans want a change though. It has nothing to do with it be happy or sad, its that we were never given the choice to begin with. You get offered 3 choices by the Reapers and you are forced to accept it. Even though Geth/Quarian peace proves that the Reaper-god-kid is wrong.

[arjman]

The ending has to be a dream or some kind of indoctrination attempt. I'll spare you the meat of the theory (just google 'me3 indoctrination theory') but the ending just doesn't add up. Surely all the mass relays blowing up would wipe out half the galaxy? Why does Harbinger appear only at the end? Why are the choices which save the reapers bathed in paragon blue, yet the destruction choice in bathed in renegade red?

INDOCTRINATION I TELLS YA!

[phantomexe]

The ending was bad hands down i hated it but DLC adding to the game......yes i'd buy it. I don't care what people think i love mass effect and i want more of it just like i want more assassin creed games. i'd like to see longer dlc for 10 bucks that adds to the story.

[VileAndVicious]

I hear ya. And Id do the same.

[brettyd]

If i were Bioware i wouldn't listen at all. People these days get everything they want if they bitch and whine enough, these complainers need to grow up and realize its not their game. Its really pretty pathetic to be honest, get a life people.

[FCOLitsjustagame]

Well, though its a nice sentiment in general the fact is to ignore your fanbase makes it hard to sell future games. They are in a competative industry where they depend on their customers to buy the product. You make a product people don't like and they wont want to buy stuff from you in the future. Flipping off the fanbase can only be done as long as your product is good enough to support the act.

[modesign]

bioware ignoring there fanbase and potential future software buyers of there title = no one buying your products, software = going out of business = giving blowjobs for food.

i can tell your not a business major.

[Ninjamonkey82]

Should not have to listen like a writer and a book, You dont like the book don't buy it. Biggest mistake ever in gaming was envolving the community to much.

Just my opinion the creativity tha the devoleper and there team has where is it now adays. Its no longer in there hands in in some spotty kids bedroom and a forum post.

[Hawkred63]

A book is not interactive, a book is the authers story, mass effect was hyped to be your story. Of course people would want to change the ending of their story if they were not satisfied with it.

[VileAndVicious]

Your right and I agree with you. Art stops becoming art once your vision is compromised (whatever that vision may be). Some people might disagree with me saying that games are akin to art, but anything creative (to me at least) is considered art.

I still dont like the ending. But to be honest guys this isnt the first game we've played that was a good game but had a horrible end. That being said perhaps Bioware will make it right somehow.

I think that in the future developers are going to become more and more outspoken about harassment from fans or some fans sense of entitlement for certain things. (not talking about ME specifically but everything from Hitman Absolution, Devil May Cry, Resident Evil, Dragon Age, ect.)

[Simon_Brezhnev]

The problem with the ending is they aint really different. I could careless if everybody dies in one ending but dont just pull people u fight with on the ground then all of a sudden they on some random planet.

[DARK WITNESS]

I agree with you about art and not compromising your vision as an artist.

My big problem is it's the Dev's who went on hyping about how we get involved with the universe blah blah blah....

it's one thing for me to paint a picture and say "do you like it?" it's another thing for me to give you a partially painted canvas and say "Hey I want to give you the chance to add to this picture"... then once you have finished adding and you got a great painting, I then go back and paint over the whole canvas in BLACK!

I think the dev's just need to be more careful about what they hype in their games.

No point hyping about all the choices you get to make in the game if they don't lead to anything.

[HellFeast]

I pirated from ashes dlc and im going to pirate this one to!

[WitWolfy]

...sigh... I hate when gamers have to steep so low to feel justified...

[ufo8mycat]

When developers (Bioware) steep so low. Remove content from the game and charge extra as DLC, false advertise by saying choices HAVE A HUGE IMPACT on the game/ending, yet they lied.

These sort of blatent lies and money grabbing justify piracy.

[WitWolfy]

Sad but true... but the thing people dont see in the long term is that it directly impacts the economy

[SephirothX21]

People are making too much of a fuss over the endings. Haven't people got better things to do than complain about the ongoings of fictional universes? I guess they haven't. Moreover, most games have unsatisfying endings. Just look at Fallout 3 where you had to buy DLC to play on after beating the game but not as many people complained about that. The DLC adds an extra character like ME2 dlc. It is not the be all and end all. The problem with the internet is that it gives a voice to idiots who have too much time on their hands. I think the dlc should be free personally but there is more than enough content in the game without it and plenty of replayability on top of that. If people are not happy, don't buy the game but I think many people just love to whine about other things rather than their pathetic self-being. Additionally, ME3 has gotten great reviews across the board but I suppose all the reviewers were just paid by the big greedy corporation that is EA. I sincerely apologise in advance to anyone who is offended by the sense featured in this rant.

[pwnmaster3000]

No we dont have anything better to do. Thanks for reminding us how much we suck at life... Imean all we want is a better ending. I havnt even played the game and probably wont until this dlc thing is cleared up.
I loved the mass effect series for its story and if they ruin it, then there is no point of buying.

[Pintheshadows]

Have you even played it?

"Just look at Fallout 3 where you had to buy DLC to play on after beating the game but not as many people complained about that."

Perhaps because whilst the ending was abrubt it at least fitted in with the story of the game. It made sense. Honestly, Mass Effect 3 ending isn't bad. Bad is too much of a kind term. It's possibly the worst ending to any book, film (yes including The Matrix), TV show or game ever.

Read Beahmscreams comment below. I felt the same way he did. I thought it was just whinging internet children but the complaints are warranted.

Should of just cut to black mid...

[snipes101]

I wouldnt say its about not having anything better to do, its about having a hobby you are passionate about. Everybody has them, everybody needs to have something they are passionate about or their being becomes unfulfilling.

In the case of Mass Effect, a franchise that has seen its narrative unfold over a five year period, it really shouldnt be a stretch of logic that people have become passionate about it. It is not your place to judge people for being passionate about a game. You clearly care enough about games to make a profile on a gaming news aggregation site, so I find your condescending sentiment ironic.

As for the endings, though they left plenty of room for interpretation, I can't shake the feeling that they just feel lazy. Im not at all mad that your decisions dont really affect the ending. I mean if you think about it, they do in a way. Your decisions decide who will come fight for you and contribute to your overall galactic readiness and all of your character's/teammate's stories come full circle before the finale. It's their fate after the story is finished that remains unclear, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

What does irritate me is that they are a little too far out of left field and create plot holes (SPOILER IN THESE PARENTHESES: da fuck did your squad teleport from earth to the normandy and wtf was Joker running from? Where was he going? What was he doing? Totally unexplained and devoid of logic). As many people said as well, they all feel a little too similar.

[Beahmscream]

I was another one who thought the whole thing was being blown out of proportion. After beating it, lets just say... I was wrong. Disappointed in Bioware.

[HellFeast]

At a restaurant
customer: my stake is medieum rare and i would like medieum
waitress: dont you have better things to do than to complain about a product that you bought with a your money?
customer: Okay then, can i have my money back?
waitress: Fuck you!

Restaurants name -------------- Bioware indoctrinate

[Pintheshadows]

I wish people would understand why the ending is bad.

It's not because it's sad and depressing. We're talking about a game that starts with millions being eradicated for crying out loud. I wasn't expectinb Unicorns and rainbows.

No. It's because it falls into all the pitfalls a bad ending has. It gives no closure, no explanation and opens frankly inadmissable plotholes. It also tries to crowbar in elements that have never been alluded to in the trilogy.

Not only that but the player choice which Mass Effect has prided itself on evaporates in those final minutes. This isn't like a book or film where the consumer has no input. Over three games this has felt like a very personal experience with your actions seemingly shaping events. To have that ripped away at the most important time is gutting. It goes against everything Mass Effect stands for. And that is the developers fault.

That is why people are annoyed. Not to mention that there will be no detailed flowcharts mapping out the final mission like in 2. That makes me sad. I like a good flowchart.

[TheOtherSide]

finished the game loved every inch of it and loved one of the endings.

Don`t see the reason for all this talking.

[Chuk5]

Honestly, what the f*** do people want Bioware to do?
If they did amend the ending, everyone will say they withheld it to make money of DLC (Even though Alan Wake and Fallout 3 did similar things)

If it remains the same, people complain Bioware didn't finish the ending.

Godammit, they're only people. They make mistakes, and you cannot just cynically dismiss them either way. It's simply not fair.

[krazykombatant]

won't be considered withheld if they make it a free DLC.

[Chuk5]

It's not even witheld. How do you even know if they have dlc planned for the ending (though you can see where it could fit). People bring up the broken steel defence, but didn't betshda charge gamers as well? Why should bioware have to do it for free? It's clear they were going for something with the ending, and it didn't pan out great, but how could you actually expect it to be free in this day and age. Be realistic?

[PooEgg]

I was thinking about Alan Wake as I read this, but I think the difference is that Alan Wake is still an ongoing series, while ME3 represented the final part of a trilogy. And although fans do expect more ME games in the future, most of us went in with the expectation that Shepard's story would end here, which it did, but it ended with one of the worst endings in video game history.

BioWare looks bad if the ending was unintentional and simply a result of bad writing, but it will look so much worse if it turns out the bad ending was all part of a DLC plan.

[Kaneda]

Why is this game getting high rating when everyone is complaining about the ending? :)

[Chuk5]

Because it is literally, only 10 minutes of a 30+ hour game. Other than the ending, which is up for debate, it's actually the best in the series on a lot of fronts.

Also, Uncharted 3s shooting wasn't that great, but why did it get rated so high? Because the game is more than just shooting.

[Kaneda]

You play the game to get to that 10 mins.. end up feeling disappointed.. isn't that bad?

[snipes101]

@Kaneda...
Ever hear of the old saying "its the journey, not the destination?" Food for thought. Im still mulling over the endings and am a little torn on their quality, but that won't ruin the entirety of a 40 hour game for me.

[dreamoner]

from that gametrailer's guy's BTS look at Bioware HQ show;

Casey on after Mass Effect 3
"Whatever we do would likely happen before or during the events of Mass Effect 3, not after"

---

so there wont be any change or dlc for the ending. They are just giving hope in forums, via @twitter just to sustain the fans so game should continue to sell at high rates...

and they said that -they only wanted the ending to become a speculation-.. nice going..

[Nelson M]

Ending was Brilliant
I Loved it

[Cajun Chicken]

The ending was wonderful.

[soundslike]

I liked the ending.

[EditorAtGNG]

Ending sucked and that won't change if they add a DLC to revamp it. Some things just can't be amended.

[orange-skittle]

Ending DLC will be a free download. I told everyone that Bioware was listening and reading. They know people are disappointed and they will make sure the fans get what they want. Thats a drop in the bucket for what they have acquired from fans. If they make a DLC ending free, the fan support will increase and opens up more support for pay DLC

[debian_zac]

I hated the endings, they are all the same choice, no matter what the mass relays get destroyed, and the Normandy crashes on some random planet. However the synthesis ending shouldn't have caused any damage to the Normandy since it was providing peace between organics ans synthetics.

[kent80082007]

They haven't even announced whether there will be a paid ending dlc yet and some people here are already acting all clever like 'oh yeah nice move, ripping us off further', what a bunch of jerk ass morons

[orange-skittle]

I am sure its going to be free. I have no doubt about it.

[YourFriendQuinn]

I may be the only person, but I thought the endings were pretty good. Did every decision I made in the past 3 games culminate in one moment? No, but those decisions are what got me there and were echoed throughout the entire last title. Yeah, they did something different with the ending, but this whole franchise was based on doing something different. I mean I understand why people are angry. There certainly could have been more of an "epilogue" and a few things could have been explained better, but for the absolute crazy amount of hate I read before finishing the game I expected some crazy "It was all a dream!" ending or something. I was severely underwhelmed (in a good way) with my very minor disappointment.

That being said, a few other thoughts:

I've seen a lot of people complain about how the people after the credits could have not known about aliens when alien bodies should be littered everywhere after the invasion. I feel like the answer to this is fairly obvious. First of all, it's clearly not Earth. Probably a human colony that may not have even known about the reapers (like the Asari exile colony).

People wander why the super advanced being/AI/whatever looked like a human child. That's a good question, I'm not sure. The species that created the reapers, citadel, and everything is clearly astronomically advanced, having been around for numerous 50,000 cycles, so I see no problem believing they simply appear in a form that the viewer is comfortable with to more easily connect. Clearly that kid is all over Shepard's mind, and therefore probably one of the first subconscious thoughts that would come to the front.

There is a lot of confusion over why the normandy is flying through space with your crew members when it was just in the middle of the Earth struggle. I could be wrong, but I don't believe we know how much time passes between Shepard getting knocked out, and when he beams up. It could have been hours, in which time Earth could have come close to falling and troops started retreating. That's the only justification I can think of anyways. That really should have been explained more.

Anyway, sorry for the novel. Again, I know I'm in the minority here, but I just wanted to vent.

[Captain Qwark 9]

i didnt see this before typing my repsonse lol but its virtually the same. i thought the ending was great and you and i both seem to have noticed many of the same things. excellent conclusion imo.

what would have disappointed me if it was a typical ending, you finsh the reapers, everyone starts to rebuild, they show you the fate of each characters, etc.. that would have been a lame way to go for such an excellent series but seems to be what people want.....i dont get it. this was creative and unexpected. a few holes no doubt but w/e. also i like that it leaves a lot of the future as a mystery while concluding just enough to be satisfied.

[Legionaire2005]

They should of kept the original Dark Energy ending for Mass Effect 3. It would of made sense. Having the choice to save earth or let it die, would of been more emotional and better. They should give us the option of making Shepard(Spoiler Alert) committing suicide like Tali did if you let the Geth go free to kill the Qurians off. If they make a alternating ending they should put the original ending in, but with tying more loose ends like showing all the Alien races fight in a big war against the reapers.

[TransientDreamer]

Am I the only one that noticed that forum posts aren't considered news?

[kagon01]

They planned in advance and they succeeded for more $$$...

[Captain Qwark 9]

just finished it and i loved the ending. everyone can disagree all they want but i thought it was great.

some negatives..( spoilers )
-prothy wzlked out of the normandy but he was killed since he was in my squad, i assume bug
-the little kid thing was lame, should have just been another machine
-/+choices didnt matter too much? i only seen one ending but i heard they all end up the same? a bad thing to some but i feel its good to have aunified ending to shepards story

what i liked?
+you essentially sent the planets back to the stone age by destorying all the tech, it could be hundreds of years before the species meeet again
+you won but the cost was so high its like you lost
+you can assume that many species crashed on new planets and since the reapers are gone many new and old species can thrive creating a potentially larger war
+after the credits roll you realize it was a man telling his kid shepards story ( this explains the lack of explanation of the crew mates fates since only shepards interactions with them would be detailed in the story )
+the kid also ask for another story about shepard and the man replies with "maybe one more", this potentially hints that shepard didnt die otherwise there would be no more stories ( i suppose you could tell an earlier story but why would you tell a story about somebody who died first then tell the earlier ones after)
+shepard was remembered as a legend for all he did since he is now clearly part of history

overall an excellent ending for the most part. i dont didnt really need more on the crew anyway becuase chances are they just started to rebuild their lives the best they could after that, no need to make a cutscene for it. cover all the minor details after in codex entries in the next game

[tweet75]

sorry but a story and gameplay as great as mass effect series to have a shitty ending ( one of the worst in gaming history) is a slap in the face

[sly-Famous]

I just whatched a segment on why ME3 or at least the ending is a dream, I have to say, gamers are thinking way too much about this, its just game people. Where are the good old NES days, the princess gets kidnapped and you save the princess, end of story.

[Tzuno]

Of course they listen prepare your money to see another ending hahaahhahh so easy to manipulate poor minds.

[Redcrimson101]

Enough of this mass effect e ding crap! Jesus Christ !

[Mad_Mack]

Oh fuck you Bioware. How about that?

We have seen your comments about making an ending that would get gamers talking. You know what that is? That is a marketing strategy right there. People talking will keep it in the public memory, even if it is in a negative light. So you can capitalise on that infamy down the line when you release some free DLC with the better endings just a week before you release some paid DLC. Get the hype from the new ending, get the sales from other, unrelated content.

Seriously, fuck those guys. Gamers are being played like arsehole shaped trombones. I will never play another Bioware game, and I could not give two shits about additional endings, even if they are free, because that would mean playing that shitpile some more.

[modesign]

ill bet 50 bucks this game gets GOTY, for some reaon, GOTY has been downgraded to just hype.