Why do people completely ignore how great 98% of Mass Effect 3 was and just focus on the ending?

[Swyftstar]

I actually didn't mind the ending as much as others did. I did think the other 98% was poorly structured, badly paced, badly scripted and horribly illogical in parts. The combat was fun enough to push through it. As an overall 100% product, I thought it was pretty meh.

 

[Seventh Actuality]

Because it's the fucking ending, and that's how people view stories.

 

[SidheKnight]

Because a bad ending can ruin a great work.

(Not saying ME3 is any of those things since I haven't played it).

 

[crazyrabbits]

So you're saying that if they introduced the Crucible in ME2, ME3's plot wouldn't have suffered as much.

I don't see how.

ME1 and 2 already had a "Reaper-killer" weapon, in the form of the Klendagon weapon, which was hinted by several people in both games of possibly being a tool (a defunct one, but a tool nonetheless) to stop the invasion.

3 introduces the Crucible out of nowhere. It was never hinted at before, and was not referenced in any way, shape or form in the prior games. Depending on how you view it, it is either a Deus Ex Machina or a McGuffin. BW already had an established "superweapon" in the form of Klendagon, but decided to disregard it (or outright forgot about it) in favor of a device that comes from nowhere, is barely explained and has little to no relevance with the arc of the prior games. It's essentially an "I win" button, even if the characters have no idea how it works.

Also I don't see how you could get Information on how to stop an enemy that's not in the galaxy.

That would be like us going into deep space and getting information about an alien species that's about to attack us.

2 established this with the Cerberus probes that were sent through the Omega-4 Relay to investigate the Collectors. Some were destroyed, while others were simply damaged and recovered afterwards. That's how they discovered their initial intel on what was happening in the Terminus Systems. Had they connected that more to the overarching plot, 3's reliance on suddenly-introduced concepts might not have felt as out of place.

The plot of 2 should have been the investigation and discovery of the "Reaper superweapon", coupled with the Collectors, and 3 could have resolved this (with extra exposition for new players) via the successful or unsuccessful deployment of the weapon, with conventional victory being a backup option if you prepared enough.

 

[kortin]

Have you ever eaten cake and then, as you were almost done with it, you saw that right in the center, a family of cockroaches were eating it. No? Well imagine how you would react upon finding that out, and you have how many people felt with ME3.

 

[RatRace123]

I don't focus just on the ending, there's lots of stuff to be disappointed with Mass Effect 3 about:

-The cut story elements from the game, like the trial that was promised to happen at the beginning which would have set the story up.

-The decreased involvement of past party members, including some that were promised or strongly hinted at to be at least temporary; and some of them don't even have good excuses for not joining you.

-The overall story has a rushed pace to it. It seems like there's part of the game missing, like there should be something between the quarian campaign and the last part of the game; I want to say that it should involve the batarians especially since that entire race is relegated to an on-citadel sidequest that you might not even have in your particular playthrough.

-There are only a handful of decent sidequests, the N7 missions are basically singleplayer versions of the multiplayer maps, so they're not as fulfilling as the lengthier sidequests like Grissom Academy or the Ardat Yakshi temple.
And the rest of the missions are freaking fetch quests! Most of the side missions in the game are fetch quests and it's not fun or fulfilling; it's all busy work.

-The RPG elements were expanded from Mass Effect 2, but still not as deep as the ones present in the first one.

-The player's autonomy over Shepard has been greatly limited, the middle conversation tone has been removed and Shepard speaks a lot more on his/her own.

-They screwed up the journal. I don't understand how you can even do that, but they did.

-And to top it all off, the ending absolutely bombs.

So yeah, the ending is only one more disappointment out of the many that I have with the game. Don't get me wrong I still like it more than I hate it, but it never rises beyond the level of "good" for me which puts it well below the "great" of the first two.

 

[Casual Shinji]

There were plenty of problems besides the ending, some small (Diana Allers) and some big (ME2 adding nothing to the overall plot).

Of course ME2 didn't have anything to do with ME3.

ME1 stop Saren and Sovereign from bringing back the Reapers. End of Mass Effect 1 plot resolved.

ME2 stop Collectors from kidnapping human colonies. End of Mass Effect 2 plot resolved.

How exactly does Mass Effect 2 have to be connected to ME3?

The Reapers.

In ME1 we learn about their existence, that one is already here, and that more are coming. In ME2 we learn... nothing, except that the Reapers turned the Protheans into the Collectors - who all die at the end and are never mentioned again - and that they were building that stupid human Reaper that you destroy and which is also never mentioned again.

We learn absolutely nothing of any interest about the Reapers in ME2. No weakness or anything else that can be used to fight them.
As a result ME3 was left holding the ball and we were presented with the Dues ex Machina plot.

You know what would have happened if they brought the Reapers in ME2?
A cliffhanger like in God Of War 2 or Warrior Within.

There were problems with the narrative but considering the alternative, the right choice was made.

And wrong, In ME2 we learn that Reapers create more of themselves by using the liquified bodies of other species, therefore the Human Reaper which people think is so stupid.

Yes, and how is this knowledge applied to the plot of ME3?

If you disregard the teammates, ME2 might as well not even have happened. This includes your teaming up with Cerberus, since in ME3 they're the villains again whether you gave them the Collector base or not.

ME2 was all about the teammates, which was fun and interesting, but the overarching plot got shafted and ME3 suffered because of it.

You're not making sense, You need to act like the Collectors didn't exist, not disagreeing that plot took a back seat in ME2 but if you didn't stop the Collectors they would have kept kidnapping human colonies and then attacked Earth.

And saying that ME3's plot suffered because of ME2 while saying that ME2's plot was unrelated to ME3 doesn't make sense.

ME2 didn't advance the overarching plot (find information on stopping the Reapers) at all. That is why ME3 suffered.

So you're saying that if they introduced the Crucible in ME2, ME3's plot wouldn't have suffered as much.

I don't see how.

The reason the Crucible is in ME3 at all is because at the end of ME2 Bioware suddenly realized, "Oh right, we still have hunderds of Reapers headed toward the Galaxy, and Shepard hasn't discovered any information at all that could help to defeat them. Deus ex Machina, away!"

Had Bioware included some type of discovery - information on where exactly the Reapers are hiding out, an unlikely ally or unkown race that can match the Reapers in strength, something about the Citadel and/or Keepers that might grant them an edge - then the whole Crucible nonsense wouldn't have even been necessary.

In ME1 you strike a blow to the Reapers by destroying Sovereign and stopping him from taking over the Citadel. In ME2 you destroy the Collectors and destroy/take over their base, but the Reapers don't even seem to be that phased by this. Harbinger's words to the Collectors are, "You have failed us. We will find another way.". As if nothing had been lost, and the Collectors were just a disposable work force to the Reapers.

ME2 should've had an interesting and exciting set-up for the final battle that was to be ME3, and it just lacked that.

 

[Rayken15]

ME3 was NOT great. It was a huge letdown. Don't belive me? Ok then, here's a list:


-Tons of autodialogue

-No sidequests (replaced by Shepard creeping up on people and listening to their private conversations about ANCIENT ARTIFACTS and then retrieving said artifacts by scanning planets. Geez that's SO MUCH FUN)

-Not using characters to their full potential (seriously, Traynor does a better job at gathering intel than THE FREAKING SHADOW BROKER)

-Very linear (earth-mars-citadel-menae-sur'kesh-tuchanka-citadel-rannoch-thessia-horizon-chronos station-earth-citadel)

-Decisions don't matter (see: Rachni queen)

............................................

-That Horrible ending

 

[Acton Hank]

There were plenty of problems besides the ending, some small (Diana Allers) and some big (ME2 adding nothing to the overall plot).

Of course ME2 didn't have anything to do with ME3.

ME1 stop Saren and Sovereign from bringing back the Reapers. End of Mass Effect 1 plot resolved.

ME2 stop Collectors from kidnapping human colonies. End of Mass Effect 2 plot resolved.

How exactly does Mass Effect 2 have to be connected to ME3?

The Reapers.

In ME1 we learn about their existence, that one is already here, and that more are coming. In ME2 we learn... nothing, except that the Reapers turned the Protheans into the Collectors - who all die at the end and are never mentioned again - and that they were building that stupid human Reaper that you destroy and which is also never mentioned again.

We learn absolutely nothing of any interest about the Reapers in ME2. No weakness or anything else that can be used to fight them.
As a result ME3 was left holding the ball and we were presented with the Dues ex Machina plot.

You know what would have happened if they brought the Reapers in ME2?
A cliffhanger like in God Of War 2 or Warrior Within.

There were problems with the narrative but considering the alternative, the right choice was made.

And wrong, In ME2 we learn that Reapers create more of themselves by using the liquified bodies of other species, therefore the Human Reaper which people think is so stupid.

Yes, and how is this knowledge applied to the plot of ME3?

If you disregard the teammates, ME2 might as well not even have happened. This includes your teaming up with Cerberus, since in ME3 they're the villains again whether you gave them the Collector base or not.

ME2 was all about the teammates, which was fun and interesting, but the overarching plot got shafted and ME3 suffered because of it.

You're not making sense, You need to act like the Collectors didn't exist, not disagreeing that plot took a back seat in ME2 but if you didn't stop the Collectors they would have kept kidnapping human colonies and then attacked Earth.

And saying that ME3's plot suffered because of ME2 while saying that ME2's plot was unrelated to ME3 doesn't make sense.

ME2 didn't advance the overarching plot (find information on stopping the Reapers) at all. That is why ME3 suffered.

So you're saying that if they introduced the Crucible in ME2, ME3's plot wouldn't have suffered as much.

I don't see how.

The reason the Crucible is in ME3 at all is because at the end of ME2 Bioware suddenly realized, "Oh right, we still have hunderds of Reapers headed toward the Galaxy, and Shepard hasn't discovered any information at all that could help to defeat them. Deus ex Machina, away!"

Had Bioware included some type of discovery - information on where exactly the Reapers are hiding out, an unlikely ally or unkown race that can match the Reapers in strength, something about the Citadel and/or Keepers that might grant them an edge - then the whole Crucible nonsense wouldn't have even been necessary.

In ME1 you strike a blow to the Reapers by destroying Sovereign and stopping him from taking over the Citadel. In ME2 you destroy the Collectors and destroy/take over their base, but the Reapers don't even seem to be that phased by this. Harbinger's words to the Collectors are, "You have failed us. We will find another way.". As if nothing had been lost, and the Collectors were just a disposable work force to the Reapers.

ME2 should've had an interesting and exciting set-up for the final battle that was to be ME3, and it just lacked that.

Finding out any kind of information about the Reapers while they were still in dark space and adding any of the things you just listed would have been Deus Ex Machina in and of themselves.

While the Crucible was very much a Deus Ex Machina, it was handled about as well as it could have been given that construction required the collective effort and resources of numerous species. and activating it required the collective military force of almost every species in the galaxy.

"ME2 should've had an interesting and exciting set-up for the final battle that was to be ME3, and it just lacked that." This sentence screams cliffhanger to me.

Plus I don't see how the Crucible affects the story so much when I've seen other kind of stories that people that are known to be great that have this exact same development.

Return of the King anyone?

 

[Plumerou]

because no matter how delicious a meal is, if the last bite you have tastes literally like shit, then you will never call that meal a "good meal", i'll agree that i liked 98% of the game, but the ending just leaves a feeling of "so 3 games for that... GOING TO RANT ON THE INTERNET", basically what im trying to say is that the ending was shit, its not a small problem, and it manages to outweight much of the good in the game sadly.

 

[WanderingFool]

Yeah I was let down, and even hated, the original ending to Mass Effect 3, but does that mean Bioware is now the worst triple A developer in the world and I will never buy any product they make ever again? HECK NO! Am I going to ignore the rest of the GOTY-potential game that had points that literally made me laugh out loud and cry tears of sadness for the characters? Hell no! Developers sometimes trip and make mistakes, and just because you didn't like the ending to the game doesn't mean that Bioware will never make any decent product again.


That is just how I feel about the whole cluster-f. Just my opinion on the matter and I hope at least 2% of the raging escapist community agrees with me.

First you answer me why ME3 keeps being braught up after its been long since gone over.

Anyways, I cant give you an answer, as it doesnt really make sense to me either. Though I would say it might have something to do with the Co-op MP. While it works, whoever thought, "HEY! Lets make unlocking things in multiplayer a game of chance, and charge people for them!" needs a swift kick to the balls.

 

[Acton Hank]

You're not making sense, You need to act like the Collectors didn't exist, not disagreeing that plot took a back seat in ME2 but if you didn't stop the Collectors they would have kept kidnapping human colonies and then attacked Earth.

And saying that ME3's plot suffered because of ME2 while saying that ME2's plot was unrelated to ME3 doesn't make sense.

The Collectors feel like a DLC plot honestly, it doesn't progress the overarching trilogy in any way.

Squadmates come up with that, "they will attack Earth", but in reality you find out that they are not equipped to do that, all they can do is hit and runs on small unguarded colonies, Collectors are like the janitors of the Reaper empire.


And apparently if you didn't stop them, Vega would have done it.
Shepard could've spent the entire ME2 scratching his balls lol.

Sorry, when do we find out that the Collectors don't have the means to attack earth?
And if the Collectors are the "janitors" of the "Reaper empire" what exactly is Saren and Sovereign?

 

[Signa]

Having never played Mass Effect, this is the impression I've got:

Imagine me serving you tacos. Yum.
How about some bacon? delicious!
Top it off with a hot-fudge sunday!

Spoiler: time to thank the chef

It's a bum warming your food between his thighs

 

[Acton Hank]

Sorry, when do we find out that the Collectors don't have the means to attack earth?
And if the Collectors are the "janitors" of the "Reaper empire" what exactly is Saren and Sovereign?

First, they have to run or get killed by a single Guardian laser.
Second, you arrive at their home world and they have one ship.

Their entire race was conquered by one ship and a strike team, that doesn't spell to me that they can openly attack the home planet of a council race.
They could only do hit and runs, secrecy and the Omega-4 Relay were their only defenses, the day they openly expose themselves is the day they get shafted.

Sovereign was the Reaper with the most important mission of all, his failure slowed the Reaper plans considerably. As Sovereign himself would tell you he was their vanguard.

Saren was just Sovereign's head henchmen.

First, they probably examined the defenses and deduced that the Guardian laser was useless, and then Shepard and EDI fixed it,

Second, who's to say that when the Collectors attack earth they won't do it city by city?

Third, Sovereign's death didn't slow them down considerably, It delayed them for a few years, these things are millions or possibly hundreds of millions of years old, a few years is nothing to them.

 

[Littaly]

If anything I think it speaks to how important an ending is to a story. The fact that many gamers (myself not necessarily included) walked away from Mass Effect 3 keeping only the bad taste that the ending left them with in mind, as opposed to the juicy sweetness that made up the bulk of the game, doesn't have to mean just that gamers are focusing on the wrong thing, but also that Bioware screwed up on a point that carried a lot of weight. An ending may only be 2% in terms of length, but in terms of importance it's much more than that.

Also, and this is speaking more for myself, I think the somewhat messy ending casts a shadow over the story as a whole. The fact that the threads weren't tied together in a coherent manner doesn't just mean a failure in writing that one particular moment, it makes you question if there was ever any thought or purpose behind the "threads" to begin with. And that applies doubly in a story like Mass Effect's which relies a whole lot on mystery and revelation.

Like I said, I haven't been the most vocal about the Mass Effect 3 ending and I do think the reaction went a little bit overboard. But what I'm trying to get at here is that it's not unreasonable to get upset over a game (or book or movie) over the ending just because the rest of it was good or even phenomenal.

 

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

Is it unreasonable to get upset at an ending, and have your overall experience tainted? No, it's not. I felt the same way, and it put me off replaying through ME3 before the EC.

However, it gets ridiculous when the people who disliked the ending (and ME3 in general) basically say that anyone who did like ME3 is wrong. They don't just have a different opinion, they are flat-out wrong, and if they enjoyed ME3, then that is proof that they are less evolved intellectually.

Honestly, to anyone who says that Bioware has lost their touch in making good characters, I provide a challenge. Show me a romance more well-written than the romantic arc (including the second game) than Tali's and Garrus's. Because I have yet to see a game that manages to make a relationship feel that natural.

I could go on about how natural they felt, but I don't want to make too long of a post. But like saying the entire game was perfect (it wasn't, it had its problems), saying that there was nothing good about it, and that the entire game was average at best, and that the 9's and 10's it's been receiving are a conspiracy, man, is equally fallacious.

 

[gravitate]

i completely agree. no idea where the other commenters are pulling all this hate from.

 

[Acton Hank]

First, they probably examined the defenses and deduced that the Guardian laser was useless, and then Shepard and EDI fixed it,

Second, who's to say that when the Collectors attack earth they won't do it city by city?

Third, Sovereign's death didn't slow them down considerably, It delayed them for a few years, these things are millions or possibly hundreds of millions of years old, a few years is nothing to them.

Would you stop being ridiculous, seriously...

The Guardian laser was non-functional when they first arrived, so they proceded as usual, once it was operational they had to get the hell out or risk being blown up.

Second that's the most ridiculous plan i've ever heard, congratulations.
They would get intercepted by an armada while leaving the Solar system.

Well they had to change their plans from surprise attack to open warfare, they showed their existence to the galaxy... i would say that's a big problem.

First, Your argument is what exactly?

Second, Who'se to say they won't use tactics to adapt to that, they disabled the Normandy with a virus didn't they?

Third I'm pretty sure that once you launch a full scale invasion on all planets with space traveling races that those races will be aware of your existence; it doesn't matter if they changed from surprise attack to open warfare.

In Mass Effect 3 they still spread through the galaxy without much opposition; any less and they wouldn't have been the "inevitable end of everything and everyone"

 

[Crazy]

if you rode a roller-coaster and right as you got off you threw up all over the place and were sick to your stomach for the next several hours, would you ride the roller-coaster again? would you say you really liked roller-coasters? no. because it was a sickening experience.

The problem with that is you're sick from going all over the place in the roller-coaster, not how bad it was.

 

[YuheJi]

But I don't think it was 98% great. Even ignoring the ending, the game was a disappointment. The way the side quests got dumbed down to just scanning galaxies, and the fact that the N7 missions were just multiplayer maps but in single player were both let downs. The whole scanning thing just felt like it was supposed to be part of a larger system that wasn't there. It felt unfinished and a little too janky for a triple A game. And there was that run away from the Reapers minigame that felt like an additional waste of time. It had problems upon problems. It appeared rushed.