BioWare Finally Confirms and Details Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer

[HKFortyRevan]

This whole "Galactic readiness" thing sounds like a bad move. I really hope we aren't told how ready everything is during the whole game. One of the best parts of the Suicide Mission was not knowing how ready I really was until the very end. If I had a metre telling me I was going to be fine before going into the mission it would've killed all tension.

As for the multiplayer, I don't really know what to say. I love the idea of playing as a Salarian Engineer or a Krogan Vanguard and I like that it is an aside to single player rather than being an intruding bolt-on. But on the other hand, I wouldn't be surprised if this is Bioware's replacement of the various side missions in ME2 and it feels a bit like filler. It would've been cool if we had flashback missions or background operations, missions that were fun but also added to the story.

Overall, I feel disappointed, but I don't know if that's disappointment at the mode itself, or disappointment in not having something to be truly angry about.

 

[Korten12]

So......is Bioware telling me that I can't get a good/perfect ending in ME3 because I don't have friends to play ME with?

Not exactly but it will be easier to get the perfect ending. The co-op part of the game will also feature story elements so if you want the full experience you're going to have to play it.

Guess I better cancel my BF3 pre-order, because it too assumes I might have one friend in the entire world who shares a similar gaming interest as myself, and has included a side-story in a co-operative campaign.

How dare they make such assumptions about me!

They keep making that assumption about me, and its starting to get annoying as shit.

Thing is tho, is that they said: ALTERNATE. Not NEED, Alternate. you can get the best ending without ever playing co-op.

People wonder why they get angry responses in articles. It's a lot of times b/c they don't even read the whole article!

This is Bioware-EA we're talking about. The people who still think DA2 is god's gift to gaming.

It will be "alternate" in the sense that "You won't get 100% completion without it but can still finish the game and get a decent ending".

No, youre all wrong there. You DONT NEED TO PLAY CO-OP TO GET THE BEST ENDING POSSIBLE!

What do you not understand?

 

[Warlord211]

Exactly what I was worried about.

Hey Bioware, how about... instead of wasting that MP teams efforts on some tacked on shit like that to try and seduce RPG hating shooter fans, why not... I dont know... have their time effort and funds spent on the single player gameplay this cheap crap is encroaching on?

Its a disappointing thing to know that, before ME3 has even been released and had a chance to surpass ME1 in terms of epicness its been handicapped from the start with this garbage.

Still, it could always just be trying to surpass ME2 in terms of shittiness and disappointment.

"We didnt think you could do enough banal and repetative shooting through maps designed for this sole purpose in the main game, so we gave you a multiplayer component too!"

I remember a time when Mass Effect had the balls to say "heres a few hours to spend doing something that isnt just combat/TPS". Kind of like Deus Ex HR. Now I get the distinct feeling ME3 will follow ME2 in that the game shits itself if you arent involved in dumbass, repetative shootouts every 10 minutes.

It would be nice if this co-op element was a signal that the game did actually TRY and pace itself, and set aside time for lengthy roleplaying and storytelling and not just fucking GOW'shooting.

No chance of that though.

Please read the entire article before commenting.

It says that there are two studios working on the game. The regular single player team that created the past installments and a new studio that is handling the co-op. The co-op development is in no way making the single player shitier.

I seriously hate it when people jump to conclusions without having the whole picture.

OT: I'm actually kind of looking forward to this. I'm really hoping that it will be good.

 

[Frostbite3789]

Nothing I read alleviated my aggravation with this. Nothing. Its getting ridiculous how everyone feels there has to be a multiplayer with every.single.game. This game is all about my character, my decisions, and the world *I* created. There is no room in this particular world for anyone else, nor should it be.

Yeah, there shouldn't be (100% optional) multiplayer in RPGs! There's no room for that nonsense!

 

[SageRuffin]

While I don't mind the co-op multiplayer, I'm not liking how it's implemented. This implies that in order to guarantee said "perfect ending", you're more or less forced into doing the side missions (much like how you were railroaded in to doing each character's personal missions if you wanted everyone alive in ME2 - while they were of course optional, you probably weren't gonna like the results of going into the final mission if you skipped them).

I may have to skip this (the multiplayer), but we'll see what happens.

 

[carpathic]

"Priestly also made it clear that the development of the multiplayer had not had an adverse effect on the single player mode, "

I just know this is a dirty, dirty lie.

I cannot think of a game improved by multiplayer except Halo, and that is only better when playing with your friends in the same living room.

ME1 was the pinnacle of this series, here is hoping 3 is at least as good as 2.

 

[Mr Goostoff]

Like so many others, I was highly sceptical of the supposed Mass Effect 3 multiplayer, but this sounds completely and utterly awesome.
The Goos' Abides.

 

[Zhukov]

Exactly what I was worried about.

Hey Bioware, how about... instead of wasting that MP teams efforts on some tacked on shit like that to try and seduce RPG hating shooter fans, why not... I dont know... have their time effort and funds spent on the single player gameplay this cheap crap is encroaching on?

Its a disappointing thing to know that, before ME3 has even been released and had a chance to surpass ME1 in terms of epicness its been handicapped from the start with this garbage.

Yeah, it's a bloody stupid decision. The addition of multiplayer is going to completely cripple the single player game.

You know, just like in Baldur's Gate. That game was such a disappointing pile of shit and all because of the multiplayer. Completely ruined the main campaign, especially in regard to story and characters.

Oh wait.

 

[NKRevan]

Co-Op Multiplayer RPG SHooter? Well I'll be damned, Mass Effect just got even better.

I know this is too much to hope for but...it would be awesome if we could get a mission/world editor like we got in the good old Neverwinter Nights. That would make Mass Effect a truly lasting legend. You know...finish the campaign, then create your own with new characters, new settings, new worlds, built by YOU!

Ah, that would be too much to ask I guess.

STill...looking forward to this.

 

[Agayek]

They mentioned that it's just another way, co-op is completely unnecessary for getting the 100% golden ending...or any ending, it's just another path.

So long as they stick to that, I'm happy then. I just don't want to see the co-op being required at any point. If it's not, then I see no reason not to include multiplayer. It strikes me as a bit of a superfluous addition, but there's nothing really wrong with it.

I'll reserve my judgment until I actually see the final product, as I honestly don't have a lot of faith in Bioware anymore after the utter clusterfuck that was ME2 and DA2. Until then, I'm interested, but prepared for disappointment.

 

[The Great JT]

I'm getting set for co-op now. Quarian with tech powers, an assault rifle and a Phalanx pistol.

 

[deshorty]

Wait. So I have to shell out $60 for the game, then extra for an xbox gold membership just so I can get the good ending? Seriously? What the hell Bioware?

 

[Frostbite3789]

Wait. So I have to shell out $60 for the game, then extra for an xbox gold membership just so I can get the good ending? Seriously? What the hell Bioware?

Apparently the word 'optional' isn't in some people's vocabulary.

 

[Zhukov]

Wait. So I have to shell out $60 for the game, then extra for an xbox gold membership just so I can get the good ending? Seriously? What the hell Bioware?

Apparently the word 'optional' isn't in some people's vocabulary.

Indeed.

Ever feel like you're trying to run misinformation control in a cattery?

 

[Zeraki]

Wait. So I have to shell out $60 for the game, then extra for an xbox gold membership just so I can get the good ending? Seriously? What the hell Bioware?

That is not what the article said. The co-op is 100% optional, and you can still get all the endings through single player. The co-op is just an alternative way to go about it.

 

[CleverCover]

All I know is, my brother will have to just deal with my awful aiming for a while. I'm going to have to bribe him with a mountain of pie and cookies though....damn.

Damn, Bioware, I'd be okay with the extra MP bit, just as long as I could stay the hell away from it.

Really? Really? Et tu, Bioware?

 

[Smooth Operator]

"Rest assured that no compromises were made to either of these modes in the development of Mass Effect 3," he added.

Every developer makes compromises, ergo hes puling some PR bullshit out of his arse.

But what the end product will actually look like remains to be seen.

 

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

At first, I facepalmed. Then I read the article. Ah, Bioware...you always seem to know the right way to do things. Except for DA2. But with Mass Effect, you understand how to give the fans what they want in the best possible way.

Well, I think so, anyways. I'm not going to say my opinion is right. But I had ME2 hyped up out of control before launch, and it is still the only game I've pre-ordered. And it was totally worth it, and matched even my high hopes. I have faith in Bioware to do the right thing.

Also, while EA is still technically the owners of Bioware, they've seemed surprisingly hands-off when it comes to interfering with the games. Everyone hating on EA because of DA2 needs to realize that DA1 was also a Bioware/EA game. As was the highly praised PC version of Mass Effect, and the incredibly popular Mass Effect 2. Just because you didn't like one, maybe two games by them (though I'm wondering why there seems to be so much more hate for ME2 now than there was this time last year) doesn't mean that Bioware is incapable of making good games, just because someone else writes the checks.