Is ME3 Ending trolling for DLC?

[Shinigami214]

Bit of a longish post, but please bear with me.

The more I read about the ME3 ending, especially this detailed run through of the ending sequence (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QT4IUepvrU1pfv_B95oQj0H84DlCTUmzQ_uQh1voTUs/preview?pli=1&sle=true), the more I become convinced that the ending sequence is not the 'real' ending.

To summarise briefly: the ending sequence is surreal, intentionally scripted to seem contrived, and crucially, Shepard's 'inability' to reject the choices before him right at end suggest that it is not, in fact happening (see the document in the link for more detail).

This suggests to me that:

The ending is not flawed.

Or to put it differently, the ending *is flawed* but by design - i.e. Bioware intended for this flawed, illogical, and non-conclusive'ending' to take place exactly the way it does - intentionally.

I can think of only one instance when narrators conclude a story on an intentionally false footing, making it semi-clear to its audiences that the ending is misleading: to foreshadow the continuation of the narrative.

Normally, this would be done through a sequel, but since ME3's, it was the highly-advertised end-of-the-franchise, this narrative continuation will most likely be through DLC content.

In summary: the ME3 ending is a 'cliff-hanger/dupe ending' intended to foreshadow the release of DLC content to carry on the actual narrative and conclude the ME storyline i.e. Bioware and EA want to keep milking the ME franchise as much as they can get away with.

 

[tippy2k2]

I disagree

I do think that Bioware either:

A. Really thought that ending was the best idea and DLC afterwards will expand upon it (something I think gamers would be OK with, something like "Shadow Broker" where it's cool to do but doesn't drastically change the story).

B. Bioware truly has a master plan and this is not the "true ending". However, if that is the case, I'd be shocked if they decided to release it as a paid DLC.

Now maybe EA is as short-sighted and money hungry as everyone thinks but you don't become a mega corporation by being stupid. They have to realize that if they release a "real ending!" that costs money that sets a dangerous precedent and more importantly, they might as well shut down Bioware right now.

Gamers are willing to take a lot of punishment for their medium but an action like this would have so many ramifications that there is no way in hell that gamers would be willing to take it. I also think that developers (the actual people in the industry that is) would do everything they can to get hired by someone else if EA demonstrated that it was willing to abuse their customer base in that way.

Are there going to be some who are OK with "paid for real ending"? Yes, of course there are but enough people would finally just say "enough is enough" and jump ship. Hell, I've been a big defender of Bioware and their ending and I would jump ship if they decided to do this.

On the plus side, you'll get to see if your theory is correct soon enough...*Cue ominous music, maybe a lightning bolt for effect*

 

[Rawne1980]

You can only do so much with DLC.

The way they left the ending leads me to believe it's opened the way for the next series of Mass Effect games.

They said before that Mass Effect would still go on. This was just the last we will see of Shep.

If, and this is a big IF, the "indoctrination" theory is the way BioWare is going then the Reaper war is still going on.

Either way far too many questions are left unanswered for it to get a nice little wrap up in DLC.

 

[Dandark]

No they just released a terrible ending but fans of the series cannot accept how bad it is so they have just started believing that it isn't the real ending. To these fans, the game ended earlier than it did for everyone else and they just got a message saying that the ending is coming soon.

 

[Shinigami214]

I disagree

I do think that Bioware either:

A. Really thought that ending was the best idea and DLC afterwards will expand upon it (something I think gamers would be OK with, something like "Shadow Broker" where it's cool to do but doesn't drastically change the story).

B. Bioware truly has a master plan and this is not the "true ending". However, if that is the case, I'd be shocked if they decided to release it as a paid DLC.

Now maybe EA is as short-sighted and money hungry as everyone thinks but you don't become a mega corporation by being stupid. They have to realize that if they release a "real ending!" that costs money that sets a dangerous precedent and more importantly, they might as well shut down Bioware right now.

Gamers are willing to take a lot of punishment for their medium but an action like this would have so many ramifications that there is no way in hell that gamers would be willing to take it. I also think that developers (the actual people in the industry that is) would do everything they can to get hired by someone else if EA demonstrated that it was willing to abuse their customer base in that way.

Are there going to be some who are OK with "paid for real ending"? Yes, of course there are but enough people would finally just say "enough is enough" and jump ship. Hell, I've been a big defender of Bioware and their ending and I would jump ship if they decided to do this.

On the plus side, you'll get to see if your theory is correct soon enough...*Cue ominous music, maybe a lightning bolt for effect*

I agree with your remark that it would be stupid if Bioware/EA planned to finish off ME3 on a 'misleading' note, and later issue DLC to reveal the true story.

But then again, bioware's co-founder has already come out saying that Bioware and EA were both shocked at the backlash the ending caused - which causes me to think that they seriously under-estimated the kind of closure that players expected.

Admittedly, ME3 is the biggest narrative of its kind as yet - its game that is trend setting in terms of the narrative it has created, the player commitment it has generated, and the 'status' it has reached.

Hence, this causes me to think that Bioware/EA felt comfortable in experimenting and pushing the limit with what they could get away with in terms of DLC.

Of course, what they didn't expect, in my view, was the public outcry. Which means that if we'll see some post-ending DLC, it'll probably be largely free - to attempt to assuage the fan-rage (rightly deserved in my view - and not because 'it was too dark' or 'not happy enough' - my issues with the ending was that it was nonsensical, random, entirely streamlined, and largely ignored any sort of player agency that the entire storyline was built upon).

Anywho, time will tell I suppose.

 

[isometry]

We knew they were going to do multiple DLCs, so I don't know why anyone expected the story to get wrapped up in the base game. if the ending was fully satisfying then anything else would be anticlimactic and there would be nothing interesting for the DLCs to be about, so most people would just sell the game back to gamestop and not bother with the DLC.

 

[Darkcerb]

I was shocked enough at the mess of an ending we got, the icing on the cake was a screen popping up urging me to buy dlc.

 

[dreadedcandiru99]

In summary: the ME3 ending is a 'cliff-hanger/dupe ending' intended to foreshadow the release of DLC content to carry on the actual narrative and conclude the ME storyline i.e. Bioware and EA want to keep milking the ME franchise as much as they can get away with.

As in the indoctrination theory, right? On the one hand, it kind of makes sense. On the other hand, it would mean that if the whole ending was some sort of dream, that means that the game, as it stands, does not have an ending. Which in turn means that they knowingly, deliberately charged full price for an incomplete game. Which, personally, I would really object to.

I don't know, the "Casey Hudson and Mac Walters decided to solo the ending to show the world how smart they are" theory seems a bit more plausible. And it would be easy to fix: Bioware can just fire them.

 

[Jadak]

I really don't know...

On the one hand, it would seem likely a reasonable possibility, but when you start considering the ridiculous fan rage over things like day one DLC, adding the actual conclusion to the game's main story as DLC seems out of the question. And even if offered free, it seems like a weird thing to do. But who knows, it's possible...

And for the most part, I'm generally of the opinion that the ending is indeed nothing more than a poor quality fuckup, and as good as some of the Indoctrination Theory stuff seems to fit, I consider it a coincidence. The one exception to that being the final bit of the "best" ending, where Shepard is under some rubble and still alive, something that only makes any sense if everything leading up to it wasn't real. But given the other plot holes, it wouldn't surprise me if that was just tossed in for the hell of it as well..

 

[Sarge034]

Bit of a longish post, but please bear with me.

The more I read about the ME3 ending, especially this detailed run through of the ending sequence (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QT4IUepvrU1pfv_B95oQj0H84DlCTUmzQ_uQh1voTUs/preview?pli=1&sle=true), the more I become convinced that the ending sequence is not the 'real' ending.

To summarise briefly: the ending sequence is surreal, intentionally scripted to seem contrived, and crucially, Shepard's 'inability' to reject the choices before him right at end suggest that it is not, in fact happening (see the document in the link for more detail).

This suggests to me that:

The ending is not flawed.

Or to put it differently, the ending *is flawed* but by design - i.e. Bioware intended for this flawed, illogical, and non-conclusive'ending' to take place exactly the way it does - intentionally.

I can think of only one instance when narrators conclude a story on an intentionally false footing, making it semi-clear to its audiences that the ending is misleading: to foreshadow the continuation of the narrative.

Normally, this would be done through a sequel, but since ME3's, it was the highly-advertised end-of-the-franchise, this narrative continuation will most likely be through DLC content.

In summary: the ME3 ending is a 'cliff-hanger/dupe ending' intended to foreshadow the release of DLC content to carry on the actual narrative and conclude the ME storyline i.e. Bioware and EA want to keep milking the ME franchise as much as they can get away with.

Well seeing as this pops up when you beat the game I think we all knew in our guts that this was going to happen. : ?(

 

[The Pinray]

Yeah, probably just milking the game. I mean, it's way easier to believe that instead of believing that the people that have been making Mass Effect all these years suddenly forgot how to make Mass Effect.

 

[Fr]anc[is]

I agree with you except on one subtlety. I don't think it was the original plan, I think it was a last minute order from EA to rip off the ending. It would explain why only two guys made it in secret. The ending we got is a last minute band aid.

 

[Crazy Zaul]

No, the ending happened because of this:
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/9.356409-Mass-Effect-3-Casey-Hudsons-Largest-FUBAR

Ninja'd but anyway.

There was a better story planned for the ending and they changed it, possible because of the feedback to the leaks, or maybe it even happened as far back as ME2, because of the rumor that indoctrination theory was planned as far back the end of ME1 then cut.

Also, as they said in Extra credits about this, the more time passes the less likely people are to buy DLC because they put the game down or trade it in, so it would be a rather dumb idea for EA.

 

[blind_dead_mcjones]

my two cents

if this was a case of them dropping the ball and doing DLC to try and fix the mess they created, then fine, i can forgive that

however if it was intentionally planned to give us an ending that makes no sense in order to get people to buy DLC just to get some closure then that is blatant exploitation

 

[alik44]

Wait Wait Wait Mass effect was built up as a trilogy where is all this next game stuff coming from

 

[Shinigami214]

No, the ending happened because of this:
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/9.356409-Mass-Effect-3-Casey-Hudsons-Largest-FUBAR

Ninja'd but anyway.

There was a better story planned for the ending and they changed it, possible because of the feedback to the leaks, or maybe it even happened as far back as ME2, because of the rumor that indoctrination theory was planned as far back the end of ME1 then cut.

Also, as they said in Extra credits about this, the more time passes the less likely people are to buy DLC because they put the game down or trade it in, so it would be a rather dumb idea for EA.

I would be willing to accept that top level management derailed the planned ending, but in my experience, that sort of thing happens not because of some personal 'crusade' or 'point of pride' but because the management would have some objective that they believe would not be reached if the rest of the team was brought on board.

Or to put it in another way - I highly doubt that the ending was derailed by Hudson and the other guy simply because they felt they were smarter than anyone else.

I am quite convinced that it was because Bioware/EA top-tier management's objective was to sell DLC, and not bring the story to a close with ME3.

My guess is that there would have been a lot of internal conflict with this decision had they allowed the rest of the team to be part of the ending - for obvious reasons. Hence, the rest of the team was kept out.

But not because of some 'god-trip' - but simply because it was felt that Bioware/EA's objective for ME3 would have been compromised by the rest of the development team who might have been more committed to the narrative or the players' interests.

 

[Whitbane]

We all know there's going to be some First Person Shooter where you play John Averageson as a marine defending Earth during the Reaper invasion while Shepard gathers the fleets. If there isn't a game like that in the next few years, I have hope.