Did Mass Effect Steal It's Story Outright?!

[direkiller]

Hey, Halo took it's entire concept from Ringworld, it happens all the time man.

the flood are the beast from homeworld cataclysm
right down to referring to everything as food but the beast were cooler because they took over technology along when people

 

[Ian Caronia]

Agreed with the previous guys, and, as far as I remember, the best part of ME is the dialogue and the different situations the game puts you in - surely they can't be all lifted from somewhere.

Want to know the funny thing? One of the things critics bickered over (like and dislike) about "Revelation Space" is the heavy amounts of dialogue and characterization. That's spooky, but not evidence of further plagiarism. Bioware has always been about dialogue.

Hmmm... Well, I haven't exactly played much of ME and never heard of the novel, so I can't judge. But, basically, I trust the guys at Bioware because I do - if they lifted the main basic story from Revelation Space, I'm still quite sure they came up with the characters and the quests all by themselves.
Oh, and, might be a coincidence.
Because, if this novel is really "renoun", somebody would have already noticed.

Unless your work is famous kids literature (like Harry Potter was once marketed as) or romance literature (ala Twilight), it's hard to be noticed. It's renown in its genre, but "hard science fiction" has a niche crowd, and even then not many people really care for novels nowadays. An entire people coming up to smite the story-stealers just won't happen for novels that aren't kid or romance oriented.

Also, people HAVE noticed, but like I've said, it's not like millions of people have banded together to bring this into light. Some ignore it, others just argue and give up. As a writer I hate to see this kind of thing happen, which is why I simply want to spread the word. Love it or hate it, Mass Effect stole its plot. NOT the characters. Only the plot.

-As far as I can tell the species in ME are original (not taken from Revelation Space), but then again who would be stupid enough to rip off more than just the plot from another person's work? THAT'S when millions begin to take notice and point it out, mate.

 

[Swifteye]

Dude it's about exucution.
If you decided the simliarity of cars by looking at the parts one could say they are all knockoffs of each other with slight differences. But it's about how the parts are used. How well the parts are. And how they come together to actually create a unique vechile. While sure it will always bear a heavy resemblence to the ones it gots it's ideas for creation from there was more than enough work put into it to make it it's own well made work in it's own right. Mass effect is a good story and a good game and I am honestly bothered that you are so quick to pull the rug out from under it just because you notice something that was strikingly the same from something else. That's like stealing all the work that was put into the lion king because kimba the lion is also striklingly similar.

Not cool man not cool.

 

[PwnSt0nes]

Agreed with the previous guys, and, as far as I remember, the best part of ME is the dialogue and the different situations the game puts you in - surely they can't be all lifted from somewhere.

Want to know the funny thing? One of the things critics bickered over (like and dislike) about "Revelation Space" is the heavy amounts of dialogue and characterization. That's spooky, but not evidence of further plagiarism. Bioware has always been about dialogue.

Hmmm... Well, I haven't exactly played much of ME and never heard of the novel, so I can't judge. But, basically, I trust the guys at Bioware because I do - if they lifted the main basic story from Revelation Space, I'm still quite sure they came up with the characters and the quests all by themselves.
Oh, and, might be a coincidence.
Because, if this novel is really "renoun", somebody would have already noticed.

It doesn't make any sense how you can have such opinions, when u just said you know nothing about either subject... so wtf did u just base everything you said on??

 

[Brad Shepard]

Really, i could care less, it was a good story and i love the game, so yea.

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

snip

Well, than, there's basically no reason to complain.
The plot in ME isn't even that good.
If they came up with their own characters and side stories, that's already the main parts of the games' success right there.
Many plots are similar or lifted off from somewhere - I can always say that Heavy Rain is Seven-ish and MW2 steals from Red Dawn - it doesn't mean that you have to hold a grudge against the developers, if their main plot (which not a lot of people care about as much as all the other stuff) is similar to something else.
I hate to bring this example because I hate the fucking movie with all the fibres of my being but Avatar did this and James Cameron should get a free pass with this.

 

[Sejs Cube]

I find I have a hard time caring. At all.

Oh no, Mass Effect has a similar plot to this book series I've never so much as heard of prior to this, er, "scandal". ME was fun. The book does not effect me in any particular way.

404: Give A Fuck Not Found.

 

[Tallim]

If this gets more people to read Alastair Reynolds it will be a good thing. He is one of the most creative SciFi writers out there.

That being said the Conjoiners in Revelation Space are a faction dealing with information and mental augmentation and it's a led by a Matriarch.

There are many similarities, and I think there are some nods to Ian M Banks novels too.

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

Agreed with the previous guys, and, as far as I remember, the best part of ME is the dialogue and the different situations the game puts you in - surely they can't be all lifted from somewhere.

Want to know the funny thing? One of the things critics bickered over (like and dislike) about "Revelation Space" is the heavy amounts of dialogue and characterization. That's spooky, but not evidence of further plagiarism. Bioware has always been about dialogue.

Hmmm... Well, I haven't exactly played much of ME and never heard of the novel, so I can't judge. But, basically, I trust the guys at Bioware because I do - if they lifted the main basic story from Revelation Space, I'm still quite sure they came up with the characters and the quests all by themselves.
Oh, and, might be a coincidence.
Because, if this novel is really "renoun", somebody would have already noticed.

It doesn't make any sense how you can have such opinions, when u just said you know nothing about either subject... so wtf did u just base everything you said on??

About trusting Bioware - I've played KoToR and the beginning of ME, the characters of both were really well-developed.
About being "quite sure they came up with the characters themselves" - I'm just assuming here, that's why I'm quite sure, not 100% sure.
Everything else said by me is just logic and rationale.
So, yeah.
I don't have an opinion but I make assumptions - pay a little more attention next time, mate.

 

[Ian Caronia]

Well, everything's been done already, pretty much.

Still, you are from UK and you still don't know the difference between "it's" and "its"? Or "renoun" and "renown", since only one of them is a word?

Yes, I am nit-picking, but so are you. Now, if that book had aliens that are all female-looking, government organization of Spectres, alien councils that hate humans and technology allowing mass reduction to nothing or mass increase to almost infinite levels... Then sure. Why not.

Except the book isn't half as popular as you say it is, or there would be people acting up all over the world that a book was ripped off by a video game.

Like I said: niche crowd. It is popular, but only among its kind. Watchmen was a fantastic work, but nobody who wasn't into underground comics (from this generation anyway) knew it even existed until the movie came out.
Like I also said: If Bioware's writers had actually lifted EVERYTHING from the novel, no matter how popular it is, Mass Effect never would've seen daylight. Nobody's stupid enough to plagiarize an entire work (excluding grade school students).

-By-the-by, this isn't nit-picking. This is a talk about one work lifting its entire premise and plot from another work. Also, "Renoun" isn't a word. Maybe I misspelled "renown" at some point. Additionally, "it's" is short for "it is", while "its" refers to "that game has its good moments" or "The dress bore its various colors proudly". Look it up.

 

[automatron]

Should Kevin Costner sue James Cameron for ripping off Dances with Wolves when he made Avatar? No. People also say that Mass Effect is a rip off of Star Control 2. Some stories are as old as time, they just get retold over and over again.
-Star Wars. Star Wars' story is older than recorded history. Should George Lucas be sued? The answer is no.

Well actually George Lucas should be, but not for that

 

[PwnSt0nes]

Agreed with the previous guys, and, as far as I remember, the best part of ME is the dialogue and the different situations the game puts you in - surely they can't be all lifted from somewhere.

Want to know the funny thing? One of the things critics bickered over (like and dislike) about "Revelation Space" is the heavy amounts of dialogue and characterization. That's spooky, but not evidence of further plagiarism. Bioware has always been about dialogue.

Hmmm... Well, I haven't exactly played much of ME and never heard of the novel, so I can't judge. But, basically, I trust the guys at Bioware because I do - if they lifted the main basic story from Revelation Space, I'm still quite sure they came up with the characters and the quests all by themselves.
Oh, and, might be a coincidence.
Because, if this novel is really "renoun", somebody would have already noticed.

It doesn't make any sense how you can have such opinions, when u just said you know nothing about either subject... so wtf did u just base everything you said on??

About trusting Bioware - I've played KoToR and the beginning of ME, the characters of both were really well-developed.
About being "quite sure they came up with the characters themselves" - I'm just assuming here, that's why I'm quite sure, not 100% sure.
Everything else said by me is just logic and rationale.
So, yeah.
I don't have an opinion but I make assumptions - pay a little more attention next time, mate.

LAWL! thats worse. making assumptions will make an ass out of u and me

 

[UberNoodle]

The story of Mass Effect and that novel are not unique because it is exactly what scientists predict will happen. Look up what they have to say about levels of civilisation. 2001 and the Odyssey series is exploring the same thing as well. It is a concept not invented by one person but a theory formulated by scientists and futurists the world over.

SF as a genre is most often predictive and shaped by scientific, social, cultural and philosophical understanding of our present and most importantly our future. Mass Effect didn't STEAL anything from this novel. Both are manifestations of the same furturist concepts. And besides, powerful races seeking in inhibit the success and growth of burgeoning races is not knew. It happens constantly in our world.

Plus, the idea of owning art is a corporate invention. In the past, creativity was poured into a common pool and from it came all of our art movements, genres, legends, folklore and mythic tales. We as consumers decry the lack of originality in our world, but it is this corporate that claims to bind ideas to single instances, that is causing it.

Would we have Beowulf if such concepts of idea theft were prevalent back then? No. And we wouldn't have any genres, styles, tropes and favourites, in anything.

 

[Pegghead]

Oh well, I didn't like Mass Effect anyway.

 

[DamonHix]

Either way, the game is freaking awesome.

 

[Tallim]

The story of Mass Effect and that novel are not unique because it is exactly what scientists predict will happen. Look up what they have to say about levels of civilisation. 2001 and the Odyssey series is about the exact same thing as well. It is a concept not invented by one person but a theory formulated by scientists and futurists the world over.

SF as a genre is most often predictive and shaped by scientific, social, cultural and philosophical understanding of our present and most importantly our future. Mass Effect didn't STEAL anything from this novel. Both are manifestations of the same furturist concepts.

Hang on, scientists predict the whole ancient alien race extermination and sentient machine race attacking our civilization? Scientists do more drugs than I was previously aware of.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Should Kevin Costner sue James Cameron for ripping off Dances with Wolves when he made Avatar? No. People also say that Mass Effect is a rip off of Star Control 2. Some stories are as old as time, they just get retold over and over again.
-Star Wars. Star Wars' story is older than recorded history. Should George Lucas be sued? The answer is no.

1st Star Wars's story is a genre. The young man is taught by an older, wiser man, then teams up with odd fellows to become an unlikely hero. That's a genre. It's like the "white knight saving the damsel in distress" thing.

2nd Avatar has been critically panned for its "Dances with Wolves" story. Even without a court case the thing has pretty much been widely accepted as a rip off. The only question is if people care or not.

-When it comes to Mass Effect, everyone thinks it has a pretty original story. Either that, or that its plot is a hodgepodge of human vs robot storylines. No one seems to know (I sure as hell didn't) that this game's whole premise and plot (2&3 included obviously) is WAY too fucking close to a novel written 7 YEARS before it's release. I liked ME. I love Wrex, Tali, and Garrus to death! I let the similar names and themes slide even up to the whole "ancient advanced race wiped out in a single blow" thing BECAUSE of my skepticism and love for the ME characters. But this...this is too much.

Plus Avatar is basically Deathworld without the hippies. So I'm going to say that not plagiarising in SF is very difficult let's just conclude this argument with two words.

SPACE SHIPS.

Yeah that pretty much sums it up.

 

[UberNoodle]

The story of Mass Effect and that novel are not unique because it is exactly what scientists predict will happen. Look up what they have to say about levels of civilisation. 2001 and the Odyssey series is about the exact same thing as well. It is a concept not invented by one person but a theory formulated by scientists and futurists the world over.

SF as a genre is most often predictive and shaped by scientific, social, cultural and philosophical understanding of our present and most importantly our future. Mass Effect didn't STEAL anything from this novel. Both are manifestations of the same furturist concepts.

Hang on, scientists predict the whole ancient alien race extermination and sentient machine race attacking our civilization? Scientists do more drugs than I was previously aware of.

No, but some do. Scientists predict that we may come into contact with an advanced 'lord of the universe' type race, who will attempt to lead or nurture us. Others admit the risk of interacting with alien civilisation. As I said, look up the different levels of civilisation. We humans aren't even on the scale yet. The monolith in 2001 was made by a race at the highest level.

 

[Ian Caronia]

snip

Well, than, there's basically no reason to complain.
The plot in ME isn't even that good.
If they came up with their own characters and side stories, that's already the main parts of the games' success right there.
Many plots are similar or lifted off from somewhere - I can always say that Heavy Rain is Seven-ish and MW2 steals from Red Dawn - it doesn't mean that you have to hold a grudge against the developers, if their main plot (which not a lot of people care about as much as all the other stuff) is similar to something else.
I hate to bring this example because I hate the fucking movie with all the fibres of my being but Avatar did this and James Cameron should get a free pass with this.

Some are saying the Asari are ripped off, too, but I'll look into that for myself.

Anyway, I'm complaining that the whole fucking point to the story is taken from another story. If the game was just about characters, then why didn't Bioware just make a Star Trek-esque game with us flying about in the ME universe, completely devoid of this "Reapers" bullshit. True, the premise was never implemented all that well for me either, but ME isn't a character piece. Bioware's writers all pride themselves on the "coming threat of the Reapers", "The Reapers are a unique enemy", etc. I'm angry they didn't try to fucking come up with a different plot, or if anything that they didn't hint or say that this other author "inspired" them. One word during a single interview would've changed everything. But no. The Reapers are the Bioware writers' own menace, not anybody else's.

Who said Cameron had a free pass? People either ignore it's rip-off plot, or they hate the movie because of it. Everyone already knows about Avatar. No one knows about Mass Effect.

Look, mate. I understand you don't really care, but try to look at it from a writer's point of view. For those who write stories, be they short or long, novels or ballads, their work is like their child. They create it, raise it, and then let it out into the world to become something of itself. When someone steals even the main idea of an author's work, they're kidnapping that child and claiming it as they're own. Dramatic, I know, but that's the truth behind a writer's devotion to their stories.

And yeah, I know there's nothing about the author bitching about his work being stolen. I just want to spread the word about something that shocked the shit out of me, not make a revolution against Bioware.

 

[magnuslion]

So I was reading up on the "JRPG's aren't RPGs" bullshit when I came across a Kotaku member that mentioned how Mass Effect was a work of outright plagiarism. They name-dropped a novel called "Revelation Space", and I just had to see if this was true. No way was the game I held in such high regard a work of plagiarism.

It is.

At first glance, there's only a few similarities between the two. Archeologists studying a 900,000 year old dead race that left behind tons of tech and was killed by a single cataclysm, tech-enhanced humans fucking with colonies, grotesque deformed monsters born from mutated tech-enchanced human (slightly resembles husks the way they describe it in the summary)...

But then I happened across the crux of the novel, the whole point laid bare, and I shat a brick...

"As Sylveste [Main character & archeologist] and the crew of the Nostalgia for Infinity [tech-enhanced humans] approach Cerberus [a planet, not the organization], Sylveste realizes the massive celestial body isn't a planet at all -- but rather, a massive technological beacon, aimed at alerting machine sentience to the appearance of new star-faring cultures. It is this beacon, Sylveste belatedly realizes, that alerted a machine intelligence known as the Inhibitors to the presence of the Amarantin [the protheans in this case], and ultimately caused the demise of that race."

Fuck me, mate. This novel's pretty renoun in the UK, listed as a collectible being a first in a series of Revelation Space novels. Surely I don't have to point out the copy-paste plot here, right? Oh, and the novel was published in 2000.

Link to Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revelation_Space

the basic concept has been done over and over. it was the basic story behind the last series of star wars novels.