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Another good thing post! And this one even involves closure! The genophage storyline was one of the big underlying plots in Mass Effect. It's the driving force behind the Krogans and their interaction with the rest of the galaxy. Wrex, arguably Shepard's staunchest ally in the entire series, is your main contact with the genophage story. In ME1 you find out the history of the Krogan and the genophage from Wrex, a krogan merc who you find is quite different from the stereotype you get in lore and other characters. As you interact with him you get to learn his motivation and his goals. If you do the right things you can help him towards this goal. On Virmire you have a showdown where Wrex, desperate to help his people, considers a deal with the devil to get Saren's genophage cure. If you've interacted with Wrex correctly you can show him that this is the wrong way to help his people and further cement your friendship with him. In ME2 you sadly don't get Wrex as a squadmate. But this is because while you were dead Wrex took the lessons he learned from Shepard and put them in motion on Tuchunka. He's gone home and taken leadership of his clan and set about showing the other clans a better way. You get to interact with the Krogan on their bombed out homeworld and see just what they've been going through since the Rebellions. And Wrex himself gives you the warmest greeting of any former teammate. (I'm willing to give Garrus a mulligan since he's dead tired and under seige on Omega.) With Grunt you interact with the Urdnot Shaman and learn more about krogan history, culture, and the fine art of krogan negotiation.  Now given that the genophage is a rather complex story made up of genocide, redemption, and consequences it would have been easy for Bioware to bungle it like they did the ending. But they didn't. You arrive on Tuchunka after rescuing the last fertile female Krogan from a Salarian base under attack by Cerberus. Here is where the krogans really start to strut their stuff. Their world is under attack, the cure to the genophage is within their grasp, and it's up to Wrex and Commander Shepard to bring it all home. And you do in spectacular fashion. Explosions, collapsing buildings, looking down the crosshairs of a Reaper laser, and the mother of all thresher maws! Finally Mordin goes out in the most heroic fashion to save the krogan and cap one of the biggest moral and strategic victories in the entire game. Now that is god damned space adventure you can get behind.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 18:20 |
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| # ? May 19, 2013 18:09 |
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Intruder posted:Playing Shadow Broker for the first time It really does, but I'll take it considering how drat good the DLC is it leads into. Anyway, there's absolutely no reason to think that, at that point in the story, Liara would have more contacts and power than TIM. By all rights, he should have a much easier time finding the Shadow Broker than she does. She's just a relatively new information broker on Ilium, after all. Trast posted:Another good thing post! And this one even involves closure! Yeah, Tuchanka really is amazing. I love how heroic and triumphant and even - bittersweet it is, with Mordin's sacrifice if you play it Paragon, but Tuchanka is amazing on all fronts because it actually involves player choice, and has a variety of different, really well fleshed out, results. And there are actually consequences for your choices here, as well as for choices you made in the previous games. It is an absolute shame the rest of the game was not up to this standard set here. After I played Tuchanka I was really hoping to see that level of care and attention to detail put into every race and sequence. But, nope. edit - Jimbot posted:I think it would have lent itself better had they just made it available only after the Collector Base and just be from Liara herself. You know, that's an interesting yet simple idea I've never actually seen suggested before. That would've been a nice way to do things.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 18:25 |
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Imagine if Return of the Jedi ended with the force disappearing forever, then everyone finds out that the force was actually the thing that powers star ships, and when the death star explodes everyone dies, except for Han solo who gets exiled on some planet in the star trek universe, with ewoks for some reason.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 18:29 |
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4000 Dollar Suit posted:Imagine if Return of the Jedi ended with the force disappearing forever, then everyone finds out that the force was actually the thing that powers star ships, and when the death star explodes everyone dies, except for Han solo who gets exiled on some planet in the star trek universe, with ewoks for some reason. I think if that had happened we wouldn't be talking about Star Wars still this many years later.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 18:32 |
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4000 Dollar Suit posted:Imagine if Return of the Jedi ended with the force disappearing forever, then everyone finds out that the force was actually the thing that powers star ships, and when the death star explodes everyone dies, except for Han solo who gets exiled on some planet in the star trek universe, with ewoks for some reason. What about if at the end of Terminator, all cars simultaneously had their fuel tanks explode because we really need to drive home the message that ~technology is currrssseeeddd!!!~ Now the human race, free from the shackles of its industrial past, can finally... all slowly die, as people both starve to death and endure terrible headaches due to the lack of their entire motor vehicle infrastructure being unable to bring them valuable imported goods such as Starbucks coffee beans from South America. That's right, I'm a loving artist. (Really I was just feeling the need to use  )
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 18:37 |
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Jimbot posted:I think it would have lent itself better had they just made it available only after the Collector Base and just be from Liara herself. I think both Arrival and Lair of the Shadow Broker should have been forced end game DLCs. Lair of the Shadow Broker has the side story feel so I don't know if hunting for him while still hunting the Collector's makes any sense. If it was post Collector base, then it makes sense because it has that expansion pack post-game feel. Same with Arrival. Arrival was made to bridge Mass Effect 2 and 3 so there is no reason you should be able to do it during the game. Plus, it is strange that Hackett warns you that there is evidence of an imminent Reaper invasion. IMMINENT! Yet you can put it off for however long you want and when you get there the 2 day thing starts. It just makes it feel so disjointed. Aristobulus posted:I love how heroic and triumphant and even - bittersweet it is, with Mordin's sacrifice if you play it Paragon, but Tuchanka is amazing on all fronts because it actually involves player choice, and has a variety of different, really well fleshed out, results. And there are actually consequences for your choices here, as well as for choices you made in the previous games. Mordin going up the elevator, and singing his song while doing what he has to do is such a great moment.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 18:44 |
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Siets posted:What about if at the end of Terminator . . . 4000 Dollar Suit posted:Imagine if Return of the Jedi ended with . . . How about if at the end of Wall-E, the Axiom lands and scans the terrain for plant life. Once it finds the hill of clover just outside the city, it sends a shutdown code that spans the globe. WALL-E, EVE, MO and the rest of the Axiom systems/robots are shut down (because who needs robots now that the Earth has been de-funked?) EVE doesn't get to Wall-E's bunker in time to rebuild him, and instead shuts down 5 feet from the door. Last shot is of the Axiom crew looking out towards a setting sun, a sandstorm just cresting over the horizon. Roll credits. (If you stay past the end credits, you get a short clip: bright blue text reads "EMERGENCY POWER", EVE's HUD blinks on, corrupted and blocky. You see her scan WALL-E's frame, look towards his bunker, and utter a strained "W---wuh---wuhhhlllll*" image cuts out abruptly. Cue Disney Castle end title!) FilthyImp fucked around with this message at Apr 15, 2012 around 18:50 |
| # ? Apr 15, 2012 18:45 |
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Cellophane S posted:So this is apparently a real thing! Young Freud posted:Same here...
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 18:50 |
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Grey Fox V2 posted:I'm saving the poo poo out of this. Did you create it? Yeah. I'm still playing around with Manga Studio EX last night and was doing some rough sketches and had planned to do the Urdnot Walter pic earlier. Phylodox's rendition kinda made just go ahead and do it. I'll admit, I kinda gave up on the arm, since you rarely see the Krogan's bare arms. Also, Phylodox's lines are prettier. 
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:05 |
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FilthyImp posted:Roll credits. "Wall-E and EVE have become legends after discovering a small patch of clover growing on a hill. Now you can continue to build that legend through further gameplay and downloadable content." (A)OK "Where the gently caress is the A button on my Blu-ray remote? What the gently caress is this poo poo?"
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:08 |
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Regarding the ending colours. It makes some sense to me. The control ending represents order, not wiping out the Reapers, only taking control of them. The destroy ending represents "end justifies the means", destroying the enemy, but also all reaper technology. But, yeah, the cinematics with TIM and Anderson don't make alot of sense. One could argue that, TIM wants order in the universe, with him and humanity as leader and Anderson wants to destroy the Reapers at all cost. But Anderson wasn't potrayed as being ruthless.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:09 |
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If you could control the reapers, what would you do? I would carve "Shep rules" into the assari home world with a gigantic reaper laser then draw a huge boner below it.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:17 |
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If I could control the Reapers, I would tell all the reapers to shoot themselves in the head like I told Saren. Oh, destroy does that faster.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:24 |
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big duck equals goose posted:If you could control the reapers, what would you do? I would carve "Shep rules" into the assari home world with a gigantic reaper laser then draw a huge boner below it. Send a Destroyer to hump whatever building the Dalatrass lives in. 24/7. She's probably like 39 in the game, gotta make her last year as hellish as possible. EDIT: And the Destroyer projects a giant hologram of Krogans loving and occasionally announces "THIS HURTS YOU" a la Harby. Cthulu Carl fucked around with this message at Apr 15, 2012 around 19:29 |
| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:26 |
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If I was in control of the reapers, I would make Husks and other reaper troops wear overalls and help rebuild towns and cities. Also they'll settle into a land called Idaho and farm potaters to feed all the fleets in the skies. I actually like this speculation. 
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:28 |
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big duck equals goose posted:If you could control the reapers, what would you do? I would carve "Shep rules" into the assari home world with a gigantic reaper laser then draw a huge boner below it. Killing everyone that annoys me...and their entire species, while honking 24/7.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:28 |
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ZuljinRaynor posted:If I could control the Reapers, I would tell all the reapers to shoot themselves in the head like I told Saren. I'd use them to see what happens when you screw around by black holes.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:29 |
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FilthyImp posted:How about if at the end of Wall-E, the Axiom lands and scans the terrain for plant life. Once it finds the hill of clover just outside the city, it sends a shutdown code that spans the globe. WALL-E, EVE, MO and the rest of the Axiom systems/robots are shut down (because who needs robots now that the Earth has been de-funked?) EVE doesn't get to Wall-E's bunker in time to rebuild him, and instead shuts down 5 feet from the door. You see this would have gotten some serious outrage in the media due to it being a kids movie. No one would have been labeled a privileged gamer or heard complaints about "just wanting a happy ending." Also WALL-E is seriously  and I would be very sad to see this happen.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:30 |
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If I could control the Reapers, I'd make them dress in tuxedos and form the Galactic MachineGod Choir, touring the worlds and giving them the gift of song. HOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:30 |
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big duck equals goose posted:If you could control the reapers, what would you do? I would carve "Shep rules" into the assari home world with a gigantic reaper laser then draw a huge boner below it. Have a big FFA deathmatch, winner gets to be Shep's personal spaceship as they travel the galaxy having wacky mismatched adventures. "No, harby, when I said I wanted you to clean Orion, I didn't mean for you to blow it up. Oh you, immense-galaxy-killing silly, when will you learn?" *laugh track* *ending credits* quote:Players have complained bitterly about the ending of Mass Effect 3 – not because of the potential for homosexual love, but because they found the narrative underwhelming. The game has a variety of different endings, depending on your decisions: some have moaned that none of the possible endings are happy or satisfying enough. In fact, they've moaned so much, EA has hastily released an additional ending free-of-charge, so these players can experience "further closure". http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentis...game?CMP=twt_gu Jonathan Yeah! fucked around with this message at Apr 15, 2012 around 19:33 |
| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:30 |
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TyroneGoldstein posted:Maybe the next game could be set a couple thousand years in the future when the remnants of what was before have healed and progressed and setup another transit network. The New Earth Republic vs the Batarian Legion vs the enigmatic Prothean Cyborg in
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:30 |
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Speaking of the Control ending, how can you reconcile it with Sovereign's conversation? "My kind trancends your very understanding. We are each a nation. Independent, free of all weakness." Eternal, perfect, independent nations... How can you corrupt the incorruptible?
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:34 |
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Red Dragon posted:
So he was whining about homophobia in gaming, then decided, for no apparent reason, to provide an ignorant potshot at people who dislike the ending? Who is this guy? seravid posted:Speaking of the Control ending, how can you reconcile it with Sovereign's conversation? Synthetics vs Organics, moral complexity, "art"; take your pick on excuses. My pet theory is "bad writing".
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:35 |
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Geostomp posted:So he was whining about homophobia in gaming, then decided, for no apparent reason, to provide an ignorant potshot at people who dislike the ending? Who is this guy? Dunno, but he loves Nazis.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:38 |
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seravid posted:Speaking of the Control ending, how can you reconcile it with Sovereign's conversation? Bioware retconned that with Space Child. The Reapers have an authority that controls them. Which is super dump. But it may have let to a great ending where they do exactly the thing Space Child mentions "Rebelling against their creator" and stop reaping.(and killing Space Child..honk!)
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:41 |
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ZuljinRaynor posted:Same with Arrival. Arrival was made to bridge Mass Effect 2 and 3 so there is no reason you should be able to do it during the game. Plus, it is strange that Hackett warns you that there is evidence of an imminent Reaper invasion. IMMINENT! Yet you can put it off for however long you want and when you get there the 2 day thing starts. It just makes it feel so disjointed. Honestly, I think Arrival should've been the tutorial section for ME3. Might have to cut it down a bit but whatever. Arrival, then you do your trial. Then stuff happens. ME3's pacing is horrid because the first thing that happens is pretty much a mini-climax and you spend the rest of the game building even higher towards a second climax that wobbles due to all the weaknesses in the sequences.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:47 |
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Minister of Chance posted:Bioware retconned that with Space Child. The Reapers have an authority that controls them. Which is super dump. But it may have let to a great ending where they do exactly the thing Space Child mentions "Rebelling against their creator" and stop reaping.(and killing Space Child..honk!) So they went from "billions of organic minds, uploaded and conjoined within immortal machine bodies" (quoted from Legion in ME2) to giant Roombas? That is one lovely retcon.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:51 |
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seravid posted:So they went from "billions of organic minds, uploaded and conjoined within immortal machine bodies" (quoted from Legion in ME2) to giant Roombas? That is one lovely retcon. Roombas controlled by a six-year-old with poor reasoning skills.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:52 |
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The story of Wrex and the Krogan is really the best part of the Mass Effect Universe. The genophage itself is a really interesting and relatively unique plot element that adds a lot to the story. The evolution of Wrex as he goes from a stereotypical Krogan meathead to a diplomatic and ambitious leader who still has balls and is willing to back Sheperd is amazing. Garrus is great too, but his evolution isn't nearly as complete nor as moving. I'd honestly almost rather the series had focused on Wrex rather than Shepherd.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 19:59 |
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FilthyImp posted:If I could control the Reapers, I'd make them dress in tuxedos and form the Galactic MachineGod Choir, touring the worlds and giving them the gift of song. or put on the greatest production of West Side Story ever.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:00 |
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I liked how for the most part, many of the krogan you met in the series were actually intelligent, with the exception of maybe those two fish wanters on the Citadel, and Grunt (who's essentially a teenager).
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:01 |
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TLG James posted:You guys are all forgetting one thing.... I'd be down with some DUNE EFFECT gholas.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:04 |
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Argas posted:Honestly, I think Arrival should've been the tutorial section for ME3. Might have to cut it down a bit but whatever. Arrival, then you do your trial. Then stuff happens. Maybe even start off like ME2 where you're on the Normandy. Then you get a call from Hackett and things to go poo poo, trial, set up ME3's story, etc.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:07 |
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CrushedB posted:I liked how for the most part, many of the krogan you met in the series were actually intelligent, with the exception of maybe those two fish wanters on the Citadel, and Grunt (who's essentially a teenager). Bioware's trying to make a statement about racial stereotypes, clearly.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:08 |
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seravid posted:So they went from "billions of organic minds, uploaded and conjoined within immortal machine bodies" (quoted from Legion in ME2) to giant Roombas? That is one lovely retcon. No, they're still the former, they're just used as the latter.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:09 |
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colonelslime posted:Roombas controlled by a six-year-old with poor reasoning skills. Spacekid would have been far less terrible if the creator of the Reapers just said he made them to test sentient civilizations; with it being the equivalent of a videogame for him.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:09 |
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The fact that they just skipped Shepard's trial is ridiculous. They depended on Star Wars levels of secondary literature to move the plot along that I never read. At the time it didn't bother me, but I did find it jarring that all of a sudden everyone is just cool with Shepard on Earth. And he's just just walking around helping everybody out but is conveniently not allowed to leave Earth. And they're still not at all prepared for the Reapers.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:12 |
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That DICK! posted:The fact that they just skipped Shepard's trial is ridiculous. They depended on Star Wars levels of secondary literature to move the plot along that I never read. At the time it didn't bother me, but I did find it jarring that all of a sudden everyone is just cool with Shepard on Earth. And he's just just walking around helping everybody out but is conveniently not allowed to leave Earth. And they're still not at all prepared for the Reapers. For some reason, they've become so very proud of their secondary material that they feel fine leaving vital details out of the narrative, expecting us to paw through the (lousy) expanded universe to get the main story. It was acceptable for things like Liara handing Shepard's body to Cerberus or Jacob's stuff in Galaxy, but that was because both were explained in-game and were secondary details at best. For things like who Vega is and why Shepard isn't actually in jail or gotten any real audience with the Alliance brass, this kind of thing is terrible writing. You don't get points for what's not in the game's story because it's not in the game's story.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:17 |
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I liked how Mass Effect 1's new game screen was you logging into Alliance Databases to confirm your ID. In Mass Effect 3, it could have been similar except you are some Alliance person filling in Shepard's info about the trial or something. At the end if could say "Pardoned but grounded" or whatever they want to say. This would of course skip the trial, but at least it would be mentioned in a larger capacity that in was currently.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:19 |
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| # ? May 19, 2013 18:09 |
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That DICK! posted:The fact that they just skipped Shepard's trial is ridiculous. They depended on Star Wars levels of secondary literature to move the plot along that I never read. I can't think of a single Star Wars game that actually depended on you knowing a whole bunch of secondary literature to make sense like Mass Effect does (note: I haven't played many of the prequel games). At most you had a quick recap in KoTOR about the plot events of the war 30 years previous to the game. Mysteries of the Sith had you playing as a character introduced in the first Star Wars book series made since the 1970s (Mara Jade); Tie Fighter introduced Thrawn from the same series. Even Rogue Squadron, which draws heavily from the X-Wing book series as well as several comics, doesn't really have enough plot to begin with to need much reference. None of those games had you going "Hey, remember that guy who Liara randomly cares about for no reason instead of jetting off to help you? No? Should have read the comic." like Mass Effect does.
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| # ? Apr 15, 2012 20:22 |
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