ME3 Ending: What did you WANT it to be and WHY? (Expect Spoilers)

[paper_n00b]

I'm not particularly against the three options presented to us as being potential avenues, but there should have been a hell of a lot more variety. Up to this point, Shepard has successfully been able to talk his/her way out of ANY situation, no matter the odds. He's never accepted the dark path given to him, and yet with the Catalyst, no protest is offered whatsoever. We're basically given these three incredibly depressing options completely out of the blue, and Shepard just goes with it.

There should have been at least two more options, including:
1) The Reapers win. Nothing complex about it; you dun goofed and the Reapers successfully defeat your fleet and continue harvesting all advanced organic life.

2) Mass Effect's "Triumphant" ending. Where you shake the little bastard and say "I reject your bullshit choices. You tell me that organics and synthetics can't coexist? Look at the quarians and the geth, look at Joker and EDI. You're wrong and I know damn well that you can call off your troops and leave us to define our own future." The reapers are defeated, Shepard survives, and we get our typical "Hero" ending like the prior two games have offered.

Beyond that...closure is a definite with a series this large. We NEED to know what happened to our friends and squadmates. We NEED to know what happens to galactic society after the REaper threat is gone. And we sure as hell don't need any extra questions that were introduced 5 minutes before the credits roll. And we don't need Shepard's very character foundation destroyed for no evident reason.

Just a few thoughts.

Let us hope that someone mods this in if bioware dosn't patch it. After hearing about this ending I decided I probably wont play it until a "fix" happens

Edit: I also have a third possibility one where you sill defeat the reapers but it cost you your life in the process id also have the results go like this

80+ Readiness Full/Almost Full Paragon and fleet of 5500+ = 100% chance of Hero Ending

80+ Readiness Full/Almost Full Renegade and fleet of 5500+ = 60% chance of Hero Ending

60-79 Readiness Full/Almost Full Paragon and fleet of 3200-5499 = 50% chance of Hero Ending and 40% chance of death but still Hero and 10% of Fail

60-79 Readiness Full/Almost Full Renegade and fleet of 3200-5499 = 35% chance of Hero Ending and 40% chance of death but still Hero and 25% of Fail

<60 Readiness Full/Almost Full Paragon and fleet of <3200 = 20% chance of Hero Ending and 50% chance of death but still Hero and 30% of Fail

<60 Readiness Full/Almost Full Renegade and fleet of <3200 = 5% chance of Hero Ending and 35% chance of death but still Hero and 60% of Fail

Any Readiness Mixed Renegade Paragon and fleet of 4000+ = 33.33% chance of Hero Ending and 36.66% chance of death but still Hero and 30% of Fail

Any Readiness Mixed Renegade Paragon and fleet of <3999 = 30% chance of Hero Ending and 40% chance of death but still Hero and 30% of Fail

 

[Neonsilver]

It would have been great to know some details about what happens to the species.

Spoiler

With the endings all I know is that probably most living Krogans will never see a female Korgan again, it's probably great for them that the genophage is cured.

Most of the quarians are probably far away from Ranoch, isn't it great that now that they have their home planet back, most will never see it again.

If the quarian life ships that were in the final battle around earth survived, at least the Turians and Quarians won't have to starve to death later. If they are destroyed however, they can't eat any plants or animals that live on earth.

It's great that Shepard doesn't even question the catalyst when he says that the geth will be destroyed too. In ME 2 and ME 3 they show us that not all geth are dangerous, in 3 it's shown that the geth only defended themselves from the quarians. They never started a war against them.

Who knows how many refugees are trapped to far away from any planet where they could start a colonie.

Even if it's just a wall of text explaining what happens, would be more satisfying.
Happy Ending would have been nice, but not necessary. It was war, it would have been sad to see sheppard and/or your crew dying, but it wouldn't be a bad ending.
An explanation that whatever I did wasn't enough to destroy the reapers, the cycle will continue would have been better.

What we got were three mostly identical videos with some color changes, ME1 and 2 had at least some different dialogues in the end. In ME3 they just copied and pasted one ending.

 

[Elamdri]

1. You failed to bring peace to the races of the galaxy. The Reapers defeat you and life is exterminated from the galaxy.
2. You failed to bring peace to the races of the galaxy. The Reapers defeat you and life is exterminated from the galaxy. However, you left some message for future generations of the next cycle to give them a chance.
3. You use the Crucibles magic McGuffin powers to Destroy the Reapers, but at heavy costs. It is a phyrric victory, society still crumbles, but the Reapers will never threaten an organic race again.
4. You use the Crucible's magic McGuffin powers to Destroy the Reapers, and the galaxy survives, but because you failed to truly bring peace to the races, without the threat of Reapers over there heads, soon the races of the galaxy seek to exploit each other in their weakened state
5. You or the Illusive Man used the Crucible's magic McGuffin powers combined with the Illusive Man's study of Reaper tech you saved on the Collector Base to take control of the Reapers and conquer the galaxy for humanity.
6. You unite all the races in the galaxy in a true alliance, Destroy the Reapers, bringing true and lasting peace to the galaxy, but at a high cost of life.
7. You unite all the races in the galaxy in a true alliance, Destroy the Reapers, bringing true and lasting peace to the galaxy, and Shepard survives the events.

This. These would be good enough choices. How long did it take you to come up with them? Did you just scribble them down?
Why couldn't Bioware have a variety of these?

Not terribly long, it's kinda always how I expected the game to end. I think there are a couple that were influenced by ideas in ME3, like I never thought of CONTROLLING the Reapers, until ME3, but yeah, most of that was stuff I was figuring on since ME1 or ME2.

I always figured on some stuff. I figured the Citadel would be destroyed, I figured Anderson would die, and I figured Shepard would probably die unless you had like the ultimate completion of the game.

I stand by what I said, they should have NEVER given the Reapers a purpose. The Reapers don't NEED a purpose. They're scarier when we don't know why they're killing us.

Also, I think ME3 needs to have a generally sad, but positive ending. I mean, it needs scenes like your love interest cradling Shepard's dead body in anguish and scenes with a monument to Shepard on some new alien center of government, and hell, they could even do like a Dragon Age epilogue where some of the exposition of the ending is handled through text.

 

[Incomer]

Honestly the Paragon Renegade scaling seemed so unimportant in ME3 it just annoyed me. Most of the game choices require you to have such a low rank that you can use any affiliation and you can still choose both sides with the exception of the very last dialogue with the Illusive Man (I always played by the feel and let the game screw me over though I ended up like 3/4 paragon 1/4 renegade the window all the way to the top and I could always choose both... except Mr. suicide Man).
Oh boy I almost wanted it to end with Reapers cleaning out the whole galaxy after the big last heroic stand. Imagine how great it would be if you collapsed in the Crucible not knowing what happened next, I for once would be fine with not knowing what Crucible rly does.
Or if it was just a simple BFG of doom.
Or if the 3 choices we were actually given felt different from each other.

 

[jehk]

I didn't like the God-Child part. It was unnecessary and just silly. The Crucible should have just destroyed all reaper tech. Yes, that includes Mass Relays. That was the ending I was expecting tbh.

It should have gone something like this:

Anderson dies.
Shepard uses her last ounce of strength to activate the Crucible.
The Crucible destroys the reapers and mass effect relays.
Fin.

 

[Zen Toombs]

I think then there could have been a plethora of endings

1. You failed to bring peace to the races of the galaxy. The Reapers defeat you and life is exterminated from the galaxy.
2. You failed to bring peace to the races of the galaxy. The Reapers defeat you and life is exterminated from the galaxy. However, you left some message for future generations of the next cycle to give them a chance.
3. You use the Crucibles magic McGuffin powers to Destroy the Reapers, but at heavy costs. It is a phyrric victory, society still crumbles, but the Reapers will never threaten an organic race again.
4. You use the Crucible's magic McGuffin powers to Destroy the Reapers, and the galaxy survives, but because you failed to truly bring peace to the races, without the threat of Reapers over there heads, soon the races of the galaxy seek to exploit each other in their weakened state
5. You or the Illusive Man used the Crucible's magic McGuffin powers combined with the Illusive Man's study of Reaper tech you saved on the Collector Base to take control of the Reapers and conquer the galaxy for humanity.
6. You unite all the races in the galaxy in a true alliance, Destroy the Reapers, bringing true and lasting peace to the galaxy, but at a high cost of life.
7. You unite all the races in the galaxy in a true alliance, Destroy the Reapers, bringing true and lasting peace to the galaxy, and Shepard survives the events.

Pretty much this. When Bioware said there was going to be have many diverse endings and a not-totally liniar storyline (which was specifically compared to the first two games) that would be affected by who you bring to the final mission, I was expecting the game to basically be a 30 hour long suicide mission.

I also expected to maybe be able to choose to do something other than "build the MacGuffin", like luring Reapers to certain systems and chucking asteroids at the Mass Relay for the system.

Also at least one ending where the Mass Relays didn't blow up and kill everyone.

Addendum: I was suprised that a Wild Mass Guess someone made about the series was that Shepard would become a Reaper totally became true.

Do not resist. I am the Sheperd of your Ascention.

 

[burningdragoon]

I'm just going to paste my self indulgence from the big huge ending thread:


> Everything up to Shepard and Anderson looking out on Earth and Hackett saying the Crucible isn't working is the same.
> Shepard gets up and walks towards the console (and maybe falls down the same way as normal)
> Harbinger communicates to Shepard somehow, maybe through TIM.
> Harbinger explains the cycle thing, says that by destroying the Reapers he will doom the galaxy to destroy itself entirely through the organic vs synthetic inevitability concept
> Choice:
Option A: Don't destroy them: Reapers win, cycle continues.

Option B: Destroy them: Crucible fires, Citadel crumbles, Reapers die, mass relays are fine, Effective Military Strength (EMS) and other previous choices determines aftermath, Shepard definitely dies, 2 people in your party at the end definitely die. The player can decide for him/herself if the Reapers were right.

Option C: Requires special conditions, high EMS I guess. Same as Option B EXCEPT Shepard sends off one last message explaining the Reapers goal/purposes, survivors pick up pieces of their ravaged lives and eventually begin studying the mass relays (edit: to break free of the path the Reapers laid out)

Option C-a: Same as C except with some super perfect conditions, Shepard lives.


Not perfect, not the best, probably not even that good, but it's what I've thought about.

 

[tendaji]

1. You failed to bring peace to the races of the galaxy. The Reapers defeat you and life is exterminated from the galaxy.
2. You failed to bring peace to the races of the galaxy. The Reapers defeat you and life is exterminated from the galaxy. However, you left some message for future generations of the next cycle to give them a chance.
3. You use the Crucibles magic McGuffin powers to Destroy the Reapers, but at heavy costs. It is a phyrric victory, society still crumbles, but the Reapers will never threaten an organic race again.

I'm pretty sure these do happen if you lack the military strength going into the final battle, if it's under 1750 I believe it's basically an instant defeat. Not sure because I didn't let the strength be that low.

 

[Elamdri]

Also at least one ending where the Mass Relays didn't blow up and kill everyone.

They didn't kill everyone, they were used to spread the colored wave of magic of your choice. The Batarian Relay explosion killed everyone. These explosions were different because of the Crucible...somehow.

I'm not saying that it's a fantastic explanation, but the explosions in ME3 were in fact different than Arrival.

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

I'm not particularly against the three options presented to us as being potential avenues, but there should have been a hell of a lot more variety. Up to this point, Shepard has successfully been able to talk his/her way out of ANY situation, no matter the odds. He's never accepted the dark path given to him, and yet with the Catalyst, no protest is offered whatsoever. We're basically given these three incredibly depressing options completely out of the blue, and Shepard just goes with it.

There should have been at least two more options, including:
1) The Reapers win. Nothing complex about it; you dun goofed and the Reapers successfully defeat your fleet and continue harvesting all advanced organic life.
2) Mass Effect's "Triumphant" ending. Where you shake the little bastard and say "I reject your bullshit choices. You tell me that organics and synthetics can't coexist? Look at the quarians and the geth, look at Joker and EDI. You're wrong and I know damn well that you can call off your troops and leave us to define our own future." The reapers are defeated, Shepard survives, and we get our typical "Hero" ending like the prior two games have offered.

Beyond that...closure is a definite with a series this large. We NEED to know what happened to our friends and squadmates. We NEED to know what happens to galactic society after the REaper threat is gone. And we sure as hell don't need any extra questions that were introduced 5 minutes before the credits roll. And we don't need Shepard's very character foundation destroyed for no evident reason.

Just a few thoughts.

I had to plus one or pretty much this but pretty much this or a few of the options from Elamdri's post would be nice on top of the endings which are there. I expected endings like the kind we were given but I also assumed there be the true loss or win scenario.

 

[Elamdri]

1. You failed to bring peace to the races of the galaxy. The Reapers defeat you and life is exterminated from the galaxy.
2. You failed to bring peace to the races of the galaxy. The Reapers defeat you and life is exterminated from the galaxy. However, you left some message for future generations of the next cycle to give them a chance.
3. You use the Crucibles magic McGuffin powers to Destroy the Reapers, but at heavy costs. It is a phyrric victory, society still crumbles, but the Reapers will never threaten an organic race again.

I'm pretty sure these do happen if you lack the military strength going into the final battle, if it's under 1750 I believe it's basically an instant defeat. Not sure because I didn't let the strength be that low.

I'm sure, I wasn't trying to make a separate list, but rather a list of worst to best outcomes.

 

[synobal]

The endings were fine. I just wish more people could see them for what they were.

 

[Acton Hank]

I'm not particularly against the three options presented to us as being potential avenues, but there should have been a hell of a lot more variety. Up to this point, Shepard has successfully been able to talk his/her way out of ANY situation, no matter the odds. He's never accepted the dark path given to him, and yet with the Catalyst, no protest is offered whatsoever. We're basic
ally given these three incredibly depressing options completely out of the blue, and Shepard just goes with it.

There should have been at least two more options, including:
1) The Reapers win. Nothing complex about it; you dun goofed and the Reapers successfully defeat your fleet and continue harvesting all advanced organic life.
2) Mass Effect's "Triumphant" ending. Where you shake the little bastard and say "I reject your bullshit choices. You tell me that organics and synthetics can't coexist? Look at the quarians and the geth, look at Joker and EDI. You're wrong and I know damn well that you can call off your troops and leave us to define our own future." The reapers are defeated, Shepard survives, and we get our typical "Hero" ending like the prior two games have offered.

Beyond that...closure is a definite with a series this large. We NEED to know what happened to our friends and squadmates. We NEED to know what happens to galactic society after the REaper threat is gone. And we sure as hell don't need any extra questions that were introduced 5 minutes before the credits roll. And we don't need Shepard's very character foundation destroyed for no evident reason.

Just a few thoughts.

For me the only solution that makes any sense is the destroy ending, if you destroy the Reapers that's it, it ends there.
The other options just raise questions. What happens if you control the reapers? What do you do with them, besides the obvious stop wiping out organics? Did you order them to go back to dark space? Are they now the tools of organics, besides the fact that even shepard says they're not ready for this tech? Does shepard direct them to the nearest black hole?
The synthesis option raises questions too. How exactly does an EMP like explosion alter the basic DNA of every organic in the galaxy? And why do the Reapers suddenly stop attacking when it's done?

Why does the crucible destroy the Mass Relays shouldn't something like this be listed in the blueprints, why does it wipe out synthetic life if you choose the destroy option?

 

[Acton Hank]

The endings were fine. I just wish more people could see them for what they were.

What the were is nonsensical, full of plot holes, explanations were pulled out of asses at the last second, question raising rather than question anwsering, and left the main cast in the middle of the fucking desert for no good reason.

 

[Incomer]

Also at least one ending where the Mass Relays didn't blow up and kill everyone.

They didn't kill everyone, they were used to spread the colored wave of magic of your choice. The Batarian Relay explosion killed everyone. These explosions were different because of the Crucible...somehow.

I'm not saying that it's a fantastic explanation, but the explosions in ME3 were in fact different than Arrival.

One has to think now why didn't the Reapers just blow up the Relays instead of the slow and annoying fighting with all those different civilizations

 

[omicron1]

Frodo gets to Mt. Doom, and is confronted with a delegation of Maia. They tell him Sauron was always meant to win, but that since he's a good little hobbit, they'll let him choose how it all ends:
1. Frodo hurls himself (and the ring) into Mt. Doom. Sauron is destroyed, but so are all the other rings. Plus, each one will create a mini-nuke when it goes off, and Rhun will be obliterated.
2. Frodo gives the ring to Sauron, thus preserving the Maiar plan.
3. Frodo keeps the ring, thus making himself the despotic overlord of middle earth.
What? Eagles? Teamwork? Betrayal? Gollum? Nope - it all comes down to the whims of the benevolent illuminati.

See where I'm going here? All I (and probably a lot of people) wanted from the ending was our "eagle" moment. To sit there and watch the fire in the sky with Anderson, while we wait to die, mission accomplished despite it all - and then Garrus shows up, having dragged himself through the portal after us, to carry us off to that magical planet and live happily ever after. Galactic civilization saved, you did it, the surviving council gives you all medals (even the wookiee - I mean, krogan), the end.

 

[Neonsilver]

The endings were fine. I just wish more people could see them for what they were.

The endings are lazy, it's just copy paste of one video. The AI tells us the consequences of the last choice, but we don't really see much of it

 

[unoleian]

I honestly didn't mind the ending. While it didn't answer everything under the sun, it was a satisfying conclusion that seemed to go for some rather fatalist, pre-deterministic concepts that kind of fly in the face of the idea of choice carrying any import whatsoever, and this becomes doubly reinforced as a consequence of it being broadcast through the videogame medium.

Things were always slated to turn out that way, all Shepard found the chance to do was alter the direction of life's inevitable conclusion, but could never fully affect it in any broad sense.

The simple fact that it all exists in the first place indicates that this is a path the universe has walked before, and will walk again.

 

[Vivace-Vivian]

Shepard narrowly surviving and having babies with Liara. It's what my Shep always wanted and I think she deserved it. Even if Shepard didn't live, I'd have liked to see the crew at the end.