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

[Caradinist]

Not bad, considering Mass Effect's reputation of being a rape simulator. I mean come on guys, one thousand variables?!

 

[Atmos Duality]

Baldur's Gate 2 (with Throne of Baal) had over 1000 variables and events.
Sorry if I don't seem terribly impressed.

 

[Thick]

I'm going to have to go with Yahtzee on this one. Bioware doesn't get points for writing and story anymore. Every game they make is touted as being filled with story relevant choices, and invariably most of those choices, if they make any change at all, changes things in a way you don't even notice.

Yes, fine, it's nice to see a game developer taking a more serious look at stories, but if I don't have fun between those talky scenes then you're doing it wrong.

 

[ecoho]

i just wana see ashly and meranda get in a cat fight over me oh and maybe see jack talk with the ambasiter from the first game

 

[rembrandtqeinstein]

Would be nice if our dialog choices affected whether or not we went into combat. And if combat just didn't take place in predetermined chest-high wall filled arenas. Like what if I want to start a real fight Afterlife? I'm level 12 and packing a particle beam, let me do it! Also whats this crap about finding keys or unlocking stuff all the time, I carry a nuke on my back, let me blow up the door.

Deus Ex will still be superior because of things like this.

 

[Programmed_For_Damage]

While it made no impact on the story in any way I loved it in ME2 how you'd occasionally run into characters who you may have forgotten about and they're like "remember me; I saw you on X doing Y and I was Z". It gave me really hammered home the feeling you were part of a wider universe in which your actions rippled through.
It also added to the idea that Shepard was a quasi-superstar now and that people took notice of what you did and revered you.

 

[shadow741]

That would suck as an achievement.

 

[MercenaryCanary]

Is it me, or was I expecting something entirely different from Mass Effect 2 when I heard that every decision would matter?

Loaded up multiple playthroughs from ME1 where I did many things, and... nothing really changed much besides some dialog and different characters. It all progressed in the same direction with the same things happening.
D:

I still love the game though.
Here's hoping Mass Effect 3 is even more epic.

 

[Huzegun]

Why does the game "Fable" come to mind with it's promises of something along the lines of this?

 

[Programmed_For_Damage]

Why does the game "Fable" come to mind with it's promises of something along the lines of this?

Except Bioware can actually back it up.

I still get suckered in by Molyneux though.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

I wonder if Shepard will be called out on hollowing out so many of the planets.

 

[Sixties Spidey]

Joyes! Hopeuflly it'll be more than emails and seeing people in bars, but those did have a nice carryover feeling. Also hoping that galactic exploration has a bigger feel instead of the tedious feel of ME2.

Revive the Mako!

NO! NO MAKO! Those missions were the single most frustrating thing in that series. It handled like a shopping trolley on a cloud and brought down the immersion in that game. If anything, I'd like to see the ability to actually DRIVE the Normandy instead of just throwing a dart at a location and waiting for a loading screen.

 

[JoshGod]

the only good thing that got carried over to 2 was wrex and conrad. the rest was worthless. lets hope things pick up.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

Why?

I don't want to play a game 20 times to see every single option.

I want a story that takes me on an epic journey without my own values tampering with the experience so directly. I want to have my ability tested in a controlled area. Sure, there can be sidequests but why have a branching main story?

wait what..?

do you not realize that is what bioware is mostly all about?


im assuming you like very linear games for you then... as that is what you are describing mostly.

which besides bioware i can't really recommend too many wrpg's for that, besides fable and lost odyssey..

Theres a reason that choose your own adventure books suck.

I enjoyed the first Mass Effect and haven't played the second. However that game had a main storyline which I barely effected. What games are you talking about that Bioware has made which aren't linear? Baldurs Gate was exactly the type of game that I was describing and that's the most "Biowarey" game I've ever played.

So what the heck are you talking about?

because its a book?

i kid i kid.

but yes bioware games are disguisingly linear, but they give multiple options for replayability, and i'll quote you on this part

I want a story that takes me on an epic journey without my own values tampering with the experience so directly. I want to have my ability tested in a controlled area.

is that not what bioware does? their games are not open world really, your mainly 90% of the time driving the main plot of the game in whatever you are doing, and if you go full paragon/renegade, it hardly effects the final outcome, they let you do all the little choices and stuff, but the main events tend to be the same, which i have no problem with but thats what you described as what you were looking for?

 

[Vaer]

Theres a reason that choose your own adventure books suck.

I enjoyed the first Mass Effect and haven't played the second. However that game had a main storyline which I barely effected. What games are you talking about that Bioware has made which aren't linear? Baldurs Gate was exactly the type of game that I was describing and that's the most "Biowarey" game I've ever played.

So what the heck are you talking about?

I like how you state your opinion as fact, also NO Bioware game has ever been linear .. do you even know what you're talking about ?

Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic - lot's of choices, 2 different endings, sure the level design was a bit linear but you could go to any planet when you wanted and do things at your own pace.

Jade Empire - fairly linear but still a large degree of choice and 2 different endings

Mass Effect - lot of choices go to what planets you like, different endings, choices cary out to the next game.

Mass Effect 2 - same as the first

Neverwinter Nights - decent amount of choice, you can go after objectives as you like and preatty much a lot of freedom

Bauldur's Gate 1&2 - I don't think I even need to say more..

Dragon Age - a lot of freedom, choices, etc. .. don't care enough to write anymore, besides I think I made my point


Or what ? you think Oblivion, Fallout 3 or Morrowind are less linear .. hah, yes you can go anyware and have a lot to explore but most of it is empty, there's little story and even less choice and once you've finished one game you've finished all of them.

 

[Vaer]

Your lack of comprehension exacerbate me.

You've (I think wittingly) misinterpreted everything I said.

First of all. My original post was stating what I enjoy and what I would like to see. So yes. Those are facts. My second post was trying to explain to someone how WRPGs don't have to have thousands of variables to be good.

I'm not actually sure what to say to you here: I never stated I wanted linearity. I want a linear main story with optional sidequests. I don't want to write my own story, I want to have a story presented to me and have my own interpretation of it. If a story has more than one arc than the writer has had to cut out/water down his intended message.

You quite clearly do not understand this however. As all the games you showed have linear main storylines (Not sure about Mass Effect 2, haven't played.).

Perhaps you could benefit from a bit of modesty yourself.

And what might you say is a non-linear story .. because I don't think there is a game that has 2 or more completely different story branches as you seem to think there is .. there's choice and having different endings, different sections of game even but never 2 completely different story branches, and I especially don't get were you see this happening in Mass Effect 3.