why do people like bioware games so much?

[ELD3RGoD]

The reason Bioware is heralded as being so good is because they are. Their writing is terrific, they have (mostly) very well fleshed out characters (Samara being there just for sex appeal? I guess the OP just happily glided over the parts where her entire back story is told through conversation and her actions) and they're one of the few companies that are managing to build RPG/Adventure games for an extremely wide audience.

He meant Miranda.

Nope:

and hta characters aren't really that great, overlooking the fact that two of them (miranda and hte justicar) are shamelessly there for sex appeal

Although I'm not sure what a "hte justicar" is, but I'm guessing the OP means Samara in this case.

But even if he was just pointing out Miranda, my point still stands. Miranda has a great story behind her and her actions and character are fleshed out very well throughout the course of the game, going as far her admitting that she was engineered to look great - a fact that she's clearly not happy with.

He blatantly meant and said Miranda? *Edit* Oh, I see, the Justicar is Samara, I forgot, my bad.

Fair enough if that's what you felt, I thought the whole lot of 'em were impossible to feel anything for. That crazy ***** with the shaved head annoyed me more than anything.

 

[Wuggy]

see, i'm seeing alot of people claim interesting stories, but the mass effect games have rather flawed stories, since the entire of mass effect 2 is just being rail roaded, where you work with cerberus because you can't work with the alliance, you can't work with the alliance because you're working with cerberus.

Wait what? Are you seriously saying that that's the reason they give for Shepard working with Cerberus?

News flash: it wasn't.

The reason why Shepard is working with Cerberus is because Alliance is not willing to operate outside of Council space. The abductions happen outside Council space. Cerberus is willing to work outside Council space. And that's the reason. You seriously didn't get that?

and is filled with plot holes, the first is about 10 minutes into the game where a terrorist organization manages to make a better ship than the entire allience could.

That's not what is being said, it just has more technology in it than any Alliance ship. Alliance would be fully capable to do similar ships but they have to level their resources to, I don't know, maintaining the human race. Cerberus doesn't have that much responsibility so they can focus big chunks of resources to single projects.

Your view of a "plothole" is just plain wrong. This is all common sense, I recommend using it once in a while.

and hta characters aren't really that great, overlooking the fact that two of them (miranda and hte justicar) are shamelessly there for sex appeal, alot of them don't actually come in use in the big mission. why did you need 2 biotics experts if you only need one? why not bring more weapon experts?

I fail to see your lackluster point here. Sure, there's fan-service in the costumes and outlook of Miranda and Samara (well, assuming you mean Samara with "hte justicar"), but that's not the only reason why they're in the game. They both have personalities (although one's is a bit less bland than the others'), impact to the plot, their own storylines. It's not like they stood on the background bending over in the the whole game.

And so what if all of the characters don't come in handy? What does that have to do with "hta characters not being that great"? I see no back-up for this claim. I'm willing to admit that both Miranda and Jacob aren't really interesting, at least not compared to the rest of the crew, but you can't seem to come up with examples at all.

 

[Andaxay]

Stop lumping people into this "EVERYONE" category.

I'm not really a fan of Bioware games myself. Mass Effect and Dragon Age: Origins completely failed to capture me or my imagination, and I didn't feel much for the characters or stories. They don't make BAD games, though, and you can't argue with 30+ hours' gameplay compared with the standard 6-8 these days. The environments were rich and detailed and at least characters had back stories. I will agree that reading history through a menu is a bit bland, but that's not just a Bioware thing - Assassin's Creed does that too, and I'm a fan of the AC series.

In short, no, not EVERYONE likes Bioware games. I think you're more inclined to hate people who do like them rather than the games/company themselves, though.

 

[A Free Man]

Please people everywhere in the world stop making threads such as "why do people like/dislike ". There is no point to such threads really. Basically I will answer all of the above questions with one answer. Not everyone has the same taste as you. Some people may enjoy things for different reasons to you and therefore are able to like something you don't or dislike something you enjoy. So unless you are actually curious as to the negative or positive aspects to a certain entity, which in this case it doesn't appear that you are, the question itself is moot. There will always be some people who like certain games and some who don't.

 

[mrF00bar]

I'm not going to say Boiware games are perfect but they are a damn sight better than most at the moment. That is the games of theirs I've played anyway.

 

[Torrasque]

Been playing through Dragon Age for about 20 hours, and like Mass Effect (which I still have to beat as well, lawl), I find that I actually care a little bit about side characters, about Ms. "My husband was killed by evil things" and the like.
Besides that, I think the gameplay is fun and refreshing (I loved the segment where you are shapeshifting in the Fade) and the story is engaging. Yes, it is frustrating at times, but all games are; even my beloved Metroid Primes.

I think people like Bioware games because they are legitimately good.
Also, whenever I think about it, I like Bioware just a little bit more, because like myself, they are Canadian.
Made in Canada, baby!

 

[Richardplex]

Incredible immersion, character development, story, Mass Effect being compared to Star Trek, the ethical and enriching-our-lives decisions I constantly make in Mass Effect?

Oh, and because people find them fun. That too.

 

[HazelrahFiver]

I've actually only truly liked one Bioware game, and that is Mass Effect 2 (I expect to enjoy the third installment as well.) All other Bioware games that I've tried have left a sour taste in my craw. The combat system in Dragon Age for example, give me an f'ing break, disgusting. Even the first Mass Effect, a series I will claim to love, was only good enough to play through once for story's sake, and then any other playing was done for achievements. ME2 is the only Bioware game that I have more than one playthrough with now, for the sake of having fun.

They just don't make good games in my opinion, and are probably the most overrated company out there.

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

see, i'm seeing alot of people claim interesting stories, but the mass effect games have rather flawed stories, since the entire of mass effect 2 is just being rail roaded, where you work with cerberus because you can't work with the alliance, you can't work with the alliance because you're working with cerberus. and is filled with plot holes, the first is about 10 minutes into the game where a terrorist organization manages to make a better ship than the entire allience could.

and hta characters aren't really that great, overlooking the fact that two of them (miranda and hte justicar) are shamelessly there for sex appeal, alot of them don't actually come in use in the big mission. why did you need 2 biotics experts if you only need one? why not bring more weapon experts?

I really don't see how the stories are flawed or where the plot holes are. You're working with Cerberus because they're doing something about the abductions. You aren't working with the Alliance because they're not. Also the Normandy SR-2 isn't really better. It just has more already available technology tacked onto the original design. Also the alliance has to worry about an entire species whereas cerberus are free to sink all their money into making one ship.

Not to get into a mammoth of a debate but ME2's main plot is the definition of a plothole riddled mess and lack much required exposition. To use the examples you touched upon, Shepard is forced to work with Cerberus disregarding their past atrocities and simply taking TIM's word at face value. Remember, we only discover after the Alliance and Council are inept we agree to sign up with TIM. This is particularly egregious for those who chose the Sole Survivor angle, wherein Cerberus was wholly responsible for the death of your squad and the horrific experimentation, yet Shepard never even brings it up. Other examples include but are not limited...

Spoiler

- Shepard's body being recoverable
- TIM's logic for reviving Shepard, or lack thereof
- Shepard being a brick
- Mordin pulling the plot device out of his ass
- Everything about Horizon, especially the horrendous VS exchange
- Most of the Collector Ship
- The derelict Reaper coming out of nowhere
- Everyone hilariously leaving the Normandy because the plot demanded it
- Basically the Suicide Mission amounting to "Lets bullrush it!" with no actual plan
- Baby Reaperminator, every little thing
- Destroying the Collector Base

All the above pertains to plotholes, inconsistencies, contradictions and/or lack of exposition in the narrative. Bluntly stated, no ME2's plot is not good. Where this game shines is in the recruitment and loyalty missions. Basically the secondary plots are why ME2 is an enjoyable experience from a narrative perspective. The main plot is damn well rubbish.

 

[AlternatePFG]

I'm not the biggest BioWare fan (I prefer Obsidian myself) and I do think they are somewhat overrated but BioWare's writing is far above the horrible, horrible standard of most other developers. I don't find myself usually liking the main plot of a BioWare game but usually the characters make up for it. (ME2's main plot was a giant plot hole but the recruitment/loyalty missions more than made up for it) While I don't agree with some of the things they've done with their games since they joined EA. (ME2 losing almost all RPG elements. Honestly, I much prefer to look at it as a shooter with basic RPG elements, it's still a really enjoyable game)

Helping Cerberus in ME2 is just stupid though I agree. I'm currently on a playthrough of the first game, and I'm questioning why the hell would a paragon Shepard even want to help them. They are completely evil in the first game, and Shepard buys this crap about "rogue cells"?

 

[Dogstile]

Because not everyone agrees with you? Hows that so hard to understand?

if not everyone aggreed with me, i'd be fine. my point is that EVERYONE loves them and just ignores the plot holes and bland gameplay.

Erm, not everyone loves them. Their are bioware hate groups out there. That's like me saying "WHY DOES EVERYONE LIKE FOOTBALL".

Erm, no, clearly people don't.

Plot holes? Maybe a few, stories aren't exactly easy to craft without them. Also to one of your other points, paragon Shep would work with Cerberus because they rebuilt him and the ship.

Bland gameplay? What? I can use Biotics to lift people up and throw them around in ME. I can throw fireballs at grease and make walls of fire in DA:O. What's bland about that?

 

[Roofstone]

The bottom line; People like having fun. And bioware brings fun. So people like Bioware games. =)

 

[Quazimofo]

Likeable characters. Challenge and passable or better gameplay. Interesting stories. Interactive and makes you think.

indeed. these are my thoughts exactly. also, mass effect remains to this day the only game that made me care enough to actually read the background stuff (yes, i read the entire frigging codex). i did a little for dragon age. but not the whole codex. was more interested in the current goings on of the game itself. the little i did read though was quite interesting

 

[thespianicism]

I find BioWare game incredibly engaging. At the beginning of Mass Effect, when Shepard is looking through the window out into space, I was hit by how huge this universe was going to be and the fact that I was going to have a place in it. When I played Mass Effect, I thought I would hate it because of the space setting (I was big into fantasy at the time). I knew nothing about the game, aside what the box told me (space marines and aliens). And yet, when I began the game, I instantly committed to the world.
This goes for all the BioWare games I've played, even including Dragon Age II. Sure, once I got further into DA2, things got wonky (although I still enjoyed it), but the other games have been superb experiences throughout, with deep, flawed characters with whom I can connect, a story that I care about, and gameplay that I very much enjoy.

So that's why I like BioWare games so much. I can't speak for anyone else.

 

[Xaio30]

We've had a good experience with their older games and have developed a certain trust towards Bioware.

 

[TheEndlessSleep]

You just have different perceptions of what is good in a game.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you probably like a few games that everyone else seems to hate...?

 

[DarkhoIlow]

I enjoy Bioware games mainly due to the storyline and well developed characters(some of them anyway).

 

[Smooth Operator]

They make a good story and good characters, game mechanics however are going down casual hill and noone spotted the breaks.

 

[Joaquim Guerreiro]

Baldur's Gate is enough to put Bioware up as one of the greatest and most influential developer studios ever.
MDK2 is hilarious. Dragon Age - Origins is a revival of the genre.

They also got a lot of rep from spin offs from their work, Like Planescape Torment wich uses their game engine, or KotORII, a sequel from their KotOR game. Much better than any Bioware game, but still derivative.

 

[Eduku]

Please people everywhere in the world stop making threads such as "why do people like/dislike ". There is no point to such threads really. Basically I will answer all of the above questions with one answer. Not everyone has the same taste as you. Some people may enjoy things for different reasons to you and therefore are able to like something you don't or dislike something you enjoy. So unless you are actually curious as to the negative or positive aspects to a certain entity, which in this case it doesn't appear that you are, the question itself is moot. There will always be some people who like certain games and some who don't.

This is pretty much exactly what I was going to say. It's not that hard to understand that people have different opinions, is it?