Poll: Poll: Should Mass Effect end?

[BathorysGraveland2]

If there's going to be another, it'll either be a prequel or something that takes place at the same time as Shephard's trilogy. Otherwise, they'd be forced to make one of the endings canon and the rest not, and that would not only piss people off again, but it'd dampen the ending even further. However, a prequel is unlikely. I doubt we'd see a Mass Effect without humans in it (as cool as that would be), and since before the Shephard trilogy, humanity has only been in contact with the other species for what, 20-30 years? There isn't much room for activity there, you know? So to make one with humans in it, it would probably run parallel to Shephard's trilogy. See someone else's side of the Reaper war (as a human though, I'm sure).

 

[votemarvel]

How did they handicap themselves at the end of Mass Effect 3 exactly?

In two of the endings the Reapers survive and one they are destroyed. That is a pretty huge difference.

In one of the endings the Reapers have become a galactic police force under Shepard's control and in another they are a member of the new green glow galactic community.

These are huge differences in the galaxy and they can't just be hand-waved away.

 

[JamesStone]

First off, they handicapped themselves in terms of sequels with the ME3 ending business. They can't make a sequel without declaring one of the endings official or mashing them altogether. They're too different (funnily enough) to make a sequel that could fit all of them at once.

They could go the prequel route of course, but that encounters the inevitable problem of we already know how it ends. Plus anything they do now is going to seem like a step back from saving the entire frakking galaxy.

They could go for something small scale. A small personal story that has no bearing on momentous events and is therefor not already spoiled for anyone who knows the setting's history. But do Bioware ever do that? They have a formula and they stick to it like fucking glue. Recent attempts to diverge from that formula (eg DA2) earned them nothing but scorn and death threats. I wouldn't be surprised if they get all cautious and make their next few games as safe as humanly possible. But hey, perhaps I'm misjudging them. That remains to be seen.

Lastly, well, look... I love me some Mass Effect, especially the characters, and I like the setting well enough. Which is why a significant part of me would rather see it end on a... note rather than die a slow death by milking. I don't think it's going to ever come back from that ending. Maybe they'll surprise me, ad that would be nice, but I reeeeally bloody doubt it.

And as per usual, Zhukov takes his hat, speaks, puts his hat on and goes away, leaving us threadless. Kudos to you sir, for yet again taking the words out of my mouth.

Not much there to say really. For once, let Mass Effect die with a bang (more like an explosion of shit, but still a bang) instead of a slow, agonizing whimper.
Oh, who the fuck am I kidding, it's EA.

 

[Robot Number V]

Ugh...Every time someone brings up Mass Effect, I feel like the retired renegade cop who just wants to relax, but they keep pulling him back in for one last job. Look, here's a bullet point of why a lot of people think another game in the Mass Effect universe is a bad idea:

-The stakes CAN'T get any higher. The Mass Effect trilogy already explained pretty much everything that the series' entire fictional universe was about. We just CAN'T go beyond the Reapers. The story of the trilogy encompassed everything we will ever need to know about this fictional version of our galaxy. Unless you do a full on sequel, in which case:

-You have to deal with the endings. Which means that:
--You have to choose one of them to make it "cannon". Which is terrible, because
--They're all pretty bad. I personally don't want to play a game set in any of those futures, especially not the "best" ending, synthesis, which I consider to be the worst one. Although it probably be the one they'd pick. But I guess you can always do a prequel, right?

-Nope. See Bullet Point 1. Any information or plot we're given will pale in automatic comparison to that of the original trilogy. Which isn't a bad thing, because you SHOULD compare them. They're in the same universe, and thus, are all part of the same story, whether you like it or not. So it would be really hard to get invested in a problem that is NOT Reapers when you know there's still fucking Reapers out there somewhere. (Though I will admit, it certainly isn't impossible)

Frankly, I'd rather they pull a Bioshock Infinite. You know, make an indirect sequel with plot, setting, characters, and gameplay that is similar but distinct from the game it's based on. I'd love to see another sci-fi Bioware game. Hell, I'd love to see another great Mass Effect game. But the endings make that...improbable. Though again, not impossible.

 

[carnex]

Tjhey bloody better do it. Whole point of that endig is to mage it vague enough for story to continue endlessly.

As for where it can go, where it could not. Prequels? There are lots of interesting periods described in games. Rachni wars, Krogan rebelions, Batarian wars... Then you could have numerous side stories and lastly, who knows what can happen after the fall of Reapers. Mass Effect Drives are dead, you could have epic saga jus arround saving ,illions that inhabit Citadel as, every race independatly, tries to reach them before supplies run out. Closing this particular story actually opened the world for much greater exploration.

 

[Phrozenflame500]

The only way I could it *maybe* working is if they take the prequel route and focus on more of a personal story rather then go all "save the galaxy" on us again. Preferably with as little reference to the main plot of the original as possible.

And even then I don't want them to, I don't think Bioware has the finesse to pull it off.

 

[carnex]

The only way I could it *maybe* working is if they take the prequel route and focus on more of a personal story rather then go all "save the galaxy" on us again. Preferably with as little reference to the main plot of the original as possible.

And even then I don't want them to, I don't think Bioware has the finesse to pull it off.

This might be true, but Obsidian can?t make every RPG on the market

Joking aside, if we ignore last confrontation and ending debacle, Mass Effect actually had good story, unbelievable connection between games (unlike anything I saw before and I love RPGs) and most detailed and vast world ever committed to a game. Possibilities are endless and could be seriously fun even if handled by someone ham-fisted

 

[josemlopes]

snip

The thing is that when you make a game about World War 2 you do end where the war ended. Mass Effect is about Shepard and his crew versus the reapers, the world is just a backdrop.

They could do a spin off but it cant be the universe in the brink of destruction thing again since that is Shepards legacy and to have another one would just reduce the impact of the first one (kind of like in DragonBall Z where after killing the super-duper enemy destroyer of worlds another one shows up from nowhere that is even more powerfull).

With that spin off you will find that the interest in the series will fall drasticly the same way people lost interest in other spin offs that had to present a less dramatic story.

 

[Not Gabe Newell]

It should end.


Because for once. Just for ONCE in this generation, I want to see something come to a goddamn END. I want closure. I want to see a one-off, series, or trilogy just stop dead in its tracks.

No more sequels, prequels, reboots, remakes, or re-releases.

Make a good game. Make two. Hell, make it a trilogy and make three. But for the love of god just let it END at some point.

Because if you don't, you'll get another Assassin's Creed or Final Fantasy on your hands.

 

[Tomeran]

Im split on this.

While I would love to see some more mass effect titles because it was one if not the best game series I've ever played, im also not sure on how the hell they are going to effectivly continue it.

It would be quite the relief to see the series end, as odd as it may sound. If nothing else just for the fact that they have effectivly backed themselves into a corner and there is no real way(that I can see) that they can make a worthy and exciting sequel or prequel that can live up to the other three games.

IF they pull that off somehow, then I will be very surprised.

 

[AVATAR_RAGE]

If they explored earlier prequel events then sure.

If they do the same thing then no

 

[Koshok]

I want them to make a sequel. I really do. I love the universe Bioware created, and I would love to see it expanded. That said, I know the odds aren't high for anything else being any good. It's been said before, and it'll be said again: the ME3 ending just didn't allow much room for a sequel.

I'd also like it if Bioware played the "Indoctrination Theory" card, but even that I have my reservations about. I enjoyed reading about the theory, and I believe it carries a lot of water, but I can't help but think that it could only make a bad situation worse. I mean, it's a big "Psyche! The final hour of your beloved trilogy was all just a dream. Betcha didn't see that coming." I don't particularly like the "Gotcha" moments at the end of stories, and I wouldn't be happy to have to wait several years to hear about it.

A prequel might work, but it would feel like a spin-off at best. Not necessarily a bad thing, but not what a franchise would need to expand.

I'd like a new Mass Effect game. But should the franchise end? It probably should. It would be really hard to keep the franchise healthy.

 

[babinro]

No.
I'm of the belief that I'd rather have to much of something than not enough.

I've seen examples of this throughout gaming all the time.
Final Fantasy 1, 4, 6, 7, 12, and 13 were good if not great games in my eyes.
Had the series stopped with the NES, or SNES, or PS, we'd have missed out on some great experiences.

Even if every future attempt at a Mass Effect game utterly fails and shames the franchise.
I'd rather those attempts exist then not at all.

 

[Something Amyss]

I'm glad I saw this because I can answer this question right now: NO.

One of the biggest criticisms people gave DA2 was because it was a smaller story than what you were used to dealing with, what happens in it? You move from one area to another, you get involved in a get rich quick scheme, you defend a city from another race, and you help solve a conflict that had been building for a long time not due to anything you did (there's a lot more but those are the main points).

That's one of the reasons I liked the game so much, you weren't the chosen one, you were an influential civilian, there wasn't any world or country to save, and neither side in the endgame was completely in the right, yet people hated all of these points judging from the feedback they received in terms of its plot.

See, I didn't pay too much attention to criticism for DA2, because it already didn't interest me. Not because you weren't some messiah/walking plot device, but because the first game bored me. Wore me down.

I'm glad you brought that up, because I legitimately didn't know.

 

[Beffudled Sheep_v1legacy]

I don't know about other fans but I'd love a ME game where I was just some merc or other guy going about my business with some companions.
Don't have to be anything special, just good characters, good character development, interesting locations, more sexy Quarians and maybe some ME1 style uncharted planet exploration.
Story could be about Krogan blackmarket testicle deals and I'd be fine as long as it had the other stuff I mentioned.

Hey, don't knock Krogan testicles!

But seriously, All that would be nice. I expect them to instead try and up the stakes. Which gets ridiculous after you've saved the galaxy.

But I've been wrong before, and I certainly wouldn't mind being wrong here.

Hey, I got the transplant and my fertility didn't increase at all! Its Varren shit I say!

I think the ME universe would suit an RTS/TBS pretty well. Something kind of like Star Wars Empire at War.
You have the major races set in the ME Galaxy with lots of planets and good space combat. Some ground combat too. Each race has its unique traits and units. Like the Turians get a bonus to their Dreadnought construction speed and their soldiers have a higher defense rating than the other races. But to offset this they have a trait like "Can Never Retreat" or something. Once they get into an engagement they stay to fight until they are destroyed, destroy the enemy or the enemy retreats.
Humans get Carriers and increased carrier and fighter construction and a major boost to the amount of fighters they're able to field while ground forces suffer from lower amounts of infantry units, but they're backed up by considerable drone/tech support and are good for, say, cutting off the ability for the enemy to send in ground reinforcements (or just slowing their deployment down).
There could be race specific planet bonuses too. Like for example the Turians could have the overall defense rating of one of their planets go up after they've held it for a certain number of turns and an Alliance planet would take longer to completely conquer as there would be constant resistance movements.

And certain planets like Tuchanka can have their own general benefits. The Krogan have no navy to speak of but they have considerable amounts of heavily armed infantry and land vehicles, plus Krogan are just tough as nails made of even stronger nails. Taking Tuchanka would be difficult (as would holding it due to the other clans and disparate Krogans combating you even after general conquering) but whoever holds it gets an arsenal of deadly WMDs which makes the conquering of other worlds much easier.

Or maybe I'm just really tired and have no idea what I'm blabbing about

 

[mad825]

They can't make a sequel without declaring one of the endings official or mashing them altogether. They're too different (funnily enough) to make a sequel that could fit all of them at once.

Hate to break it to you but it has been done before. DXIW managed to tie all 3 endings into one...It wasn't great if I were to jump-off DX but it was fine on it's own. Ignoring/altering the cannon to their whim seems to be Bioware's forte anyway so fuck it.

 

[Tilted_Logic]

I absolutely love the Mass Effect universe they've created, probably more than any other game universe I've been privy too. It would be a complete shame for them not to further explore the depth of the galaxy in other games, but they've shot themselves in the foot with that ending. Granted, any variety of endings - whether loved by the masses or not - probably would have had similar effect: Is your Shep a bastard who lets certain races die? Do the surviving races get along? Did you flat out fail and the galaxy as they knew it is gone?
Any variety at all in the ending means that every person is going to set themselves up with a different universe. Bioware can't possibly cater to the outcome of every choice, regardless of how dreadful the present endings were.

I think (seems to be a wide consensus) at this point their options are quite limited to something set prior to the events of the trilogy, or something of a lesser magnitude, but perhaps set at the same time. Their next game doesn't have to be galaxy-spanning in scope. They still have some great writers on board, so I'd have no qualms playing a game set on some back water planet, or something based around the struggle of a few great characters, rather than an over-arching save-the-world story. But please... No more space magic.

 

[rpgguy01]

They can't make a sequel without declaring one of the endings official or mashing them altogether. They're too different (funnily enough) to make a sequel that could fit all of them at once.

Hate to break it to you but it has been done before. DXIW managed to tie all 3 endings into one...It wasn't great if I were to jump-off DX but it was fine on it's own. Ignoring/altering the cannon to their whim seems to be Bioware's forte anyway so fuck it.

You're saying it yourself. They tied all 3 endings together, but it wasn't a great game experience if you played the game that came before..... So you must admit that yes they could Frankenstein the endings together, but the game would suffer for it storywise and (seeing as Bioware games are very much storydriven) would probably ruin much af the atmosfere of the game.

Also from what I remember of my last playthrough of DXIW (many many years ago so sorry if I get this wrong) the ingame cannon does not really touch much upon the endings with a "what exactly happened has been lost during the collapse of so and so". This would make it very hard for Bioware to pull this off, because the endings either destroy synthetics (no reapers no geth), control (all synthetics there, but more as adroids controlled by an AI ) or the synthesis (all synthetics present, but they are now all citizens). The dynamics of the game would need to change dramatically everytime or the story would not be believable.

So in conclusion: Yes they could really tie everything together and release a new game, but who would want them to do that in that fashion?

 

[Atmos Duality]

Wait, you mean it didn't end???
If it didn't end, why did I have to endure over a year of stupid threads bitching about the ME3 ending? Last I heard (and I heard a LOT) those endings were absolute in their conclusion; no room for sequels.

Definitely not without invalidating the other endings.

Well, so much for closure.

 

[Agayek]

It should end, full stop. The trilogy is done and over with, and any continued milking of the franchise will just cheapen it. EA and Bioware both need to take a step back and have some goddamn respect for themselves and their own creation and let it die with the small handfuls of its own dignity it managed to salvage from everything they've done to it already.

The only, and I do mean only, other game I can see in the franchise is an MMO type game set during the Krogan Rebellions, where the Krogan, Batarians, and Vorcha are facing off against the Salarians, Turians, and Asari in an all out war. That's the only way I can see the franchise continuing and not becoming a complete mockery of itself.