BioWare: Mass Effect 3 Story Has More Than a Thousand Variables

[Undead Dragon King]

Even today, I still think about whether the choices I made in Mass Effect 2 will come back to haunt me in Mass Effect 3 from time to time.

Spoiler: What haunts me the most...

The Geth Heretics. I chose to blow them up, despite Legion being against it 50.1 to 49.9. I know that the Geth will figure heavily in fighting the Reapers, but I can't help but think that they won't help because I destroyed the Heretics.

I only hope that Mass Effect 3 doesn't pull The Witcher on us and make our choices come back and bite us in the ass in arbitrary ways that we couldn't in a thousand years have forseen. I'm looking at you, Sigfried...

And a little bird named Wikipedia told me that Mass Effect 3 is tenatively set for fall-winter of 2011...

 

[Jared]

Tis true there could be alot, and I mean...ALOT of variables...owever, how many will actually matter?

 

[Thorvan]

I'm hoping that your romances will have an actual (mass) effect on the game this time; It doesn't need to be a huge, end changing, stupid love conquers all kinda thing, but perhaps a side mission or two, and maybe getting a related party member a few missions earlier.

 

[Flying-Emu]

God dammit, so I have to play ME3 over a THOUSAND TIMES?

FUUUUUUU

 

[Cowabungaa]

It is to be expected as this game wraps pretty much everything up.

I think that's why some people felt like your choices didn't have much effect in ME2. Technically you were just playing the mid-section of 1 big adventure, you'll only see how much effect every action had at the very end.

And that end is yet to come, with ME3.

God dammit, so I have to play ME3 over a THOUSAND TIMES?

FUUUUUUU

Not just ME3, but 1 and 2 too. Because if you take a look at the complete trilogy you can see them as one gigantic game. All thanks to the option to take your character to the next game.

Good luck buddy!

 

[dochmbi]

The problem with this is that by the time I get to play ME3, I will have forgotten most of my interactions with the characters in ME1 and ME2 and so all those little changes will go unnoticed.

 

[manythings]

I applaud Bioware for their ambition. Most companies would look at something like this and say "Fuck that!" and kill off the main character and everyone he knew or something like that so they could only have 4 major variables to deal with. Bioware gave you the option of doing that or letting their hard work shine. On the downside it is probably going to take a while for ME3 to ship.

I'm on the same page as you. I have 6 shepards to port over in ME3.

The thing I find so bizarre is so often people seem to look at things like this ambitious idea and scoff but you give the master chief or marcus fenix a new hat and they lose their fucking minds.

 

[Caligulove]

Good to hear- but I'm wondering what proportion of those will actually be meaningful changes and not just "X says Z" instead of "Y says Z" a bunch of early tests of variable dialogue that was left in for the sack of padding the numbers.

 

[HeySeansOnline]

Interesting...but how many of these variables actually matter?

Probably 25% you'll care about...75% one line references.

That said, that's still a lot of variables.

So you're saying that me finding Fist on Omega In Afterlife will have no importance on stopping the reaper invasion?

 

[Discord]

Well im glad I have at lease 7 different Shepards from everything to a 100% Paragon Male to a 100% Renagade Female, I can't wait to see what happens with all my choices.

This is like one of those "choose your own adventure" books where what choces you made effect you in the future.

 

[Shockolate]

*sigh* I still have to do a third replay through ME2.

Gotta make everything how I want it for ME3.

 

[RebelRising]

Not to be a party-pooper, as I am a Mass effect fanboy, but about 950 of those will probably be e-mails again. Just wait.

 

[Irridium]

It is to be expected as this game wraps pretty much everything up.

I think that's why some people felt like your choices didn't have much effect in ME2. Technically you were just playing the mid-section of 1 big adventure, you'll only see how much effect every action had at the very end.

And that end is yet to come, with ME3.

God dammit, so I have to play ME3 over a THOUSAND TIMES?

FUUUUUUU

Not just ME3, but 1 and 2 too. Because if you take a look at the complete trilogy you can see them as one gigantic game. All thanks to the option to take your character to the next game.

Good luck buddy!

Thank god for that site that hosts Mass Effect 1 + 2 saves. Well if your on the PC that is. If your on a console, well, better get playing!

 

[duchaked]

still making my way through ME1...but hopefully I'll finish ME2 by the time 3 comes out haha

but hey, the variables do add a nice tough. be nice to notice them tho

 

[shintakie10]

So I'm gonna get another hundred or so emails based off of my decisions in the last game with nearly every single choice "big" choice havin absolutely no impact on gameplay in any sort of meaninful way.

Wrex dead or not dead and you still do the same stuff with different dialogue. Save the queen? One very brief talk to a npc you never see again. None of it had any meanin in any way shape or form. If you play a game from an imported save the actual story never changes. There isnt added variables or outcomes, theres the same outcome every time with the same variables every time. The only difference is you see a new npc that you cant actually interact with in any way other than a click.

Hopefully I'm wrong though. Im really hopin choices in Mass Effect 1 and 2 can come back and really bite you in the butt. It'd finally make the statement of your choices havin actual consequences some actual meanin instead of the obnoxious ways they are now.

Heck, the only actual meaninful choice that anyone ever made in either Mass Effect game was in Mass Effect 2 and whether you did the loyalty missions and who you sent through each part of the suicide mission.

 

[Taddy]

If they're just more e-mails again can some of them at least be bomb e-mails?