• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Bioware responds to Mass Effect 3 ending controversy

WARP10CK

Banned
It´s Casey Hudson himself :

There’s been a lot of discussion and debate about the conclusion of Mass Effect 3, so I thought I’d share my perspective with you here. I’ll avoid outright spoilers, but I’d still recommend finishing the game and experiencing it for yourself before reading this.

For the last eight years, Mass Effect has been a labor of love for our team; love for the characters we’ve created, for the medium of video games, and for the fans that have supported us. For us and for you, Mass Effect 3 had to live up to a lot of expectations, not only for a great gaming experience, but for a resolution to the countless storylines and decisions you’ve made as a player since the journey began in 2007. So we designed Mass Effect 3 to be a series of endings to key plots and storylines, each culminating in scenes that show you the consequences of your actions. You then carry the knowledge of these consequences with you as you complete the final moments of your journey.

We always intended that the scale of the conflict and the underlying theme of sacrifice would lead to a bittersweet ending—to do otherwise would betray the agonizing decisions Shepard had to make along the way. Still, we wanted to give players the chance to experience an inspiring and uplifting ending; in a story where you face a hopeless struggle for basic survival, we see the final moments and imagery as offering victory and hope in the context of sacrifice and reflection.

We've had some incredibly positive reactions to Mass Effect 3, from the New York Times declaring it “a gripping, coherent triumph”, to Penny Arcade calling it “an amazing accomplishment”, to emails and tweets from players who have given us the most profound words of appreciation we've ever received.

But we also recognize that some of our most passionate fans needed more closure, more answers, and more time to say goodbye to their stories—and these comments are equally valid. Player feedback such as this has always been an essential ingredient in the development of the series.

I am extremely proud of what this team has accomplished, from the first art concepts for the Mass Effect universe to the final moments of Mass Effect 3. But we didn't do it on our own. Over the course of the series, Mass Effect has been a shared experience between the development team and our fans—not just a shared experience in playing the games, but in designing and developing them. An outpouring of love for Garrus and Tali led to their inclusion as love interests in Mass Effect 2. A request for deeper RPG systems led to key design changes in Mass Effect 3. Your feedback has always mattered. Mass Effect is a collaboration between developers and players, and we continue to listen.

So where do we go from here? Throughout the next year, we will support Mass Effect 3 by working on new content. And we’ll keep listening, because your insights and constructive feedback will help determine what that content should be. This is not the last you’ll hear of Commander Shepard.

We look forward to your continued support and involvement as we work together to shape the remaining experiences in the story of the Mass Effect trilogy.

Thanks for taking this journey with us.

Casey Hudson

http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/324/index/10089946
 

Derrick01

Banned
As I said in the spoiler thread (now bigger than the game's OT by the way), he wrote a lot to give a non-answer.

They're just going to keep saying we're listening to get everyone to shut up.
 
I wonder what the DLC will be considering that ending.

It was all a dream, 12-year old boy wakes up and goes to school. DLC chronicles middle-school life, with Paragon choices to stay in library to study, or Renegade options to smoke cigarettes in the boy's bathroom.
 

Atrus

Gold Member
It's still somewhat surprising that any group of people decided the current ending would be sufficient given the scope of a 3 game saga dependent on player choices.

Did someone not put their hand up at any point and say... we only really have one ending and it appears to be fairly bad at achieving any sort of closure.
 

DaBuddaDa

Member
"We liked making these games, I'm sorry you don't like the ending, buy our DLC this upcoming year to see more ending content."

Great. Thanks.
 

SRTtoZ

Member
Lol @ anyone who didnt think this was Bioware's plan all along. They knew that if they left all these things unanswered they could keep popping out DLC.
 

Foffy

Banned
Seems like typical Bioware PR responses. I love how he had to highlight the praise with specific examples. It's almost as if he's trying to be subtle in justifying the awful fucking ending.
 

Derrick01

Banned
It's still somewhat surprising that any group of people decided the current ending would be sufficient given the scope of a 3 game saga dependent on player choices.

Did someone not put their hand up at any point and say... we only really have one ending and it appears to be fairly bad at achieving any sort of closure.

Rumor has it several of the writers didn't like it at all but Mac Walters (lead writer) ran with it and got Casey to approve it anyway. It's one of the many things we've talked about in the spoiler/group therapy thread.

What we know did happen, thanks to that ME final hours app, is that Mac thought about doing an actual investigate-style conversation at the very very end but later thought "the players didn't need to know about the mass effect universe" and took it out.
 

bigace33

Member
He has already said the ending we have is the ending they had envisioned. He also said any dlc we get will be self contained and not necessary to the total ME3 experience. We are not getting any kind of closure to that lame brain ending, and if that truly be the case, I'm done and will not buy a stick of new content. They can go jump in a lake as far as I'm concerned.
 

WARP10CK

Banned
Rumor has it several of the writers didn't like it at all but Mac Walters (lead writer) ran with it and got Casey to approve it anyway. It's one of the many things we've talked about in the spoiler/group therapy thread.

What we know did happen, thanks to that ME final hours app, is that Mac thought about doing an actual investigate-style conversation at the very very end but later thought "the players didn't need to know about the mass effect universe" and took it out.

Yeah they did not account for the shitstorm this would bring unbelievable I am truly amazed how much controversy this company have been able to get themselves into these last few months.
 

Zakkath

Member
Well, you see, thats the thing. There is only 1 word for the ending : sabotage.

I would have loved that the decisions I made and the efforts I put in gathering allies actually mattered or were at least reflected at all in the ending.
I could have settled for a sad ending.
I could have accepted a fatalistic defeat ending.
I just can't be satisfied with a sabotage of this series.
 

bluehat9

Member
So, "Buy the DLC and maybe, just maybe you'll get what you want eventually (but probably not then either). See ya, lol"?
 
Seems like typical Bioware PR responses. I love how he had to highlight the praise with specific examples. It's almost as if he's trying to be subtle in justifying the awful fucking ending.

Yea seriously, seems like he's complacent with the ending and it's suppose to be that way. Then what the hell were all the Bioware employee's hinting at on Twitter? Trolling hard. They really made it sound like, the ending wasn't what it seems and they just needed extra time to finish the real ending. Guess not...
 

Sentenza

Member
Seems like typical Bioware PR responses. I love how he had to highlight the praise with specific examples. It's almost as if he's trying to be subtle in justifying the awful fucking ending.
I was going to post pretty much the same thing then I decided to avoid an eventual flame war.
I agree with you, anyway.
 

Big-E

Member
I was thinking of checking this out regardless of my reservations of it once I finished Skyrim but now I am not so sure. Might just check the spoiler thread and save myself some money and time.
 

Zakkath

Member
I was thinking of checking this out regardless of my reservations of it once I finished Skyrim but now I am not so sure. Might just check the spoiler thread and save myself some money and time.

The game is awesome, just don't finish it.
 

Moaradin

Member
I was thinking of checking this out regardless of my reservations of it once I finished Skyrim but now I am not so sure. Might just check the spoiler thread and save myself some money and time.

It's still the best in the series. Last 10 minutes suck but the first 40 hours are probably some of the most enjoyable experiences I've got a chance to play.
 

Darkkn

Member
Brilliant. Make a crappy ending to the game and then 'listen to the fans' and make them pay a tenner for better closure :trollface:
 

EatChildren

Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
Believing there's some crafty manipulation of consumers to sell DLC and that this response is nothing other than PR dodging gives BioWare too much credit (in all the wrong ways). I prefer the simple answers: their shitty, undeveloped fucked up the ending, and Hudson (like no doubt Walters) still genuinely believes they did a good job regardless of the outcry.
 

MrDaravon

Member
Whole lotta nothing in that post. Only remarkable thing about it is that they felt the need to throw in quotes from NYT and PA, which just absolutely reeks of desperate justification and is sad.
 

Salvadora

Member
Believing there's some crafty manipulation of consumers to sell DLC and that this response is nothing other than PR dodging gives BioWare too much credit (in all the wrong ways). I prefer the simple answers: their shitty, undeveloped fucked up the ending, and Hudson (like no doubt Walters) still genuinely believes they did a good job regardless of the outcry.

Even they couldn't have thought the ending was acceptable. I mean come on.
 

Derrick01

Banned
I was thinking of checking this out regardless of my reservations of it once I finished Skyrim but now I am not so sure. Might just check the spoiler thread and save myself some money and time.

Honestly it's a good game but I have no clue how it would have affected my enjoyment had I known about the ending beforehand. Not necessarily what happens, just vague yet important things like certain things don't matter. The game was really building up to something that just didn't happen in the last 10 minutes.
 

EatChildren

Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
Even they couldn't have thought the ending was acceptable. I mean come on.

They keep producing comics with awful writing, and have made no effort to admit to past writing fuck-ups or even attempt to fix them with DLC.

I mean maybe they'll latch on to the outrage and use it as a platform to exploit players with DLC, but I don't believe that was their intentions from the start. Instead I believe they wrote a game, thought it was amazing, and sent it off to their fans, completely unprepared and likely baffled at the response of "this is fucking stupid".
 
I haven't played ME2 (own the game) backlogged - and will get to 3 but Jeff Gershmann on twitter said that there was no ending so I'm guessing this is that. Felt okay to come in here; because at least I know that.

seriously what a joke.
 
Lots of PR nonsense and more proof that they'll release DLC to fix their awful writing. I'll bet infinite dollars they'll be a FO3-style retcon.

The one part that stuck out to me was the Penny Arcade bit. I feel like they've really destroyed their reputation with the defending of the ending and the mocking of people's reactions to it (see today's comic and Gabe on Twitter). In the past they've absolutely lambasted companies that drag their canon through the mud, only they completely turn a blind eye to BioWare every single time, including ME3 and DA2

You know, the company that they have deep financial relationships with, including creating pr-launch hype comics and exclusive in-game items.

how fucking transparent.
 

Arkaerial

Unconfirmed Member
Yeah they did not account for the shitstorm this would bring unbelievable I am truly amazed how much controversy this company have been able to get themselves into these last few months.

What is surprising is the shit they've taken for DA2, and thought they could get away with it on this game which is much higher profile.

I'd just like to say I didn't hate the ending, I was just really let down. It was like the series turned into Scooby Doo. Sovereign would haven't gotten away with it, if it wasn't for that meddling Shepard and the kids in the Mystery Machine.
 

Karishin

Banned
DallasLogo.jpg


Shepard is really Patrick Duffy
 

Ammish

Banned
I'm still in the middle of playing Mass Effect 2 and don't own ME3. And there's a chance of DLC ending to sort out those mediocre endings?

Wow. I'll take my time really slow at ME2 until ME3 get a fixed ending. Might go through my backlog this time around just to make sure.
 
Top Bottom