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[RoboPlato]

Reading through this thread I swear I played a different game than most people did. I loved the game. The sidequests and combat were much improved from 2 and the character interactions were really well done. I was fine with the ending too. I was also pleasantly surprised by the multiplayer. The only thing is that bugged me is that I don't have the desire to jump back into the game like I did the first two. I can't pinpoint what it is. Maybe it's just the fact that I sunk 38 hours into it over a very short time frame when it came out.

It really sucks that this game has such a bad rep. I used to love discussing Mass Effect on GAF since it's one of my all time favorite franchises but now there's no way to talk about it in a positive light. It's a real shame.

 

[Tmdean]

Reading through this thread I swear I played a different game than most people did. I loved the game. The sidequests and combat were much improved from 2 and the character interactions were really well done. I was fine with the ending too. I was also pleasantly surprised by the multiplayer. The only thing is that bugged me is that I don't have the desire to jump back into the game like I did the first two. I can't pinpoint what it is. Maybe it's just the fact that I sunk 38 hours into it over a very short time frame when it came out.

The fact that so many people made it all the way to the ending despite allegedly hating the rest of the game so much kind of tells me that they didn't really hate it all that much. Otherwise they would have stopped playing.

I'm not afraid to admit that almost my entire issue with the game was with the ending.

 

[DanielJr82]

The game is great, except those last 10 minutes. They've since released an extended cut that clarified a lot of the questions I had, though. So it's all good now.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

The fact that so many people made it all the way to the ending despite allegedly hating the rest of the game so much kind of tells me that they didn't really hate it all that much. Otherwise they would have stopped playing.

I'm not afraid to admit that almost my entire issue with the game was with the ending.

This is never sound logic.

People can and will persevere through hardship when they are invested in something.

If someone had just paid $60+ for Mass Effect 3 after being a fan of the series for the past five years, it's only natural they would want to play through to the end even if they didn't much like what they were playing.

I managed to make my way through Dragon Age 2 because of how much I loved the original, but I think the game is absolutely awful.

 

[EmCeeGramr]

Reading through this thread I swear I played a different game than most people did. I loved the game. The sidequests and combat were much improved from 2 and the character interactions were really well done. I was fine with the ending too. I was also pleasantly surprised by the multiplayer. The only thing is that bugged me is that I don't have the desire to jump back into the game like I did the first two. I can't pinpoint what it is. Maybe it's just the fact that I sunk 38 hours into it over a very short time frame when it came out.

It really sucks that this game has such a bad rep. I used to love discussing Mass Effect on GAF since it's one of my all time favorite franchises but now there's no way to talk about it in a positive light. It's a real shame.

Which ones? The ones where Cerberus attacks a base/Reapers invade a planet and a ME2 character shows up for a cameo, the ones where you play a single-player game on a multiplayer map, or the ones where you fly around the galaxy aimlessly avoiding Reapers to find doo-dads to bring back to random people in the Citadel?

 

[DTKT]

Which ones? The ones where Cerberus attacks a base/Reapers invade a planet and a ME2 character shows up for a cameo, the ones where you play a single-player game on a multiplayer map, or the ones where you fly around the galaxy aimlessly avoiding Reapers to find doo-dads to bring back to random people in the Citadel?

I really like the one where you visit the Elcor homeworld. It's such a beautifuly realized place, it just shows they really cared about every little thing in the game.

Same with the Volus homeworld. Great stuff.

/dies

 

[televator]

The fact that so many people made it all the way to the ending despite allegedly hating the rest of the game so much kind of tells me that they didn't really hate it all that much. Otherwise they would have stopped playing.

I'm not afraid to admit that almost my entire issue with the game was with the ending.

Or...or, it's possible that investing countless hours in the previous games with character that you've come to genuinely like might make you capable of trudging through a bit of crap in the interest of seeing some closure. And oh boy...what closure that was...

 

[rac]

Off topic but I loved ME1, and I only played about 30 minutes of 2 before I lost all interest in it. Which is the reason I didn't bother playing 3(except for the multi-beta) and I'm really glad I didn't. I'd probably play another ME game if they turned it into a turn based strategy game.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Off topic but I loved ME1, and I only played about 30 minutes of 2 before I lost all interest in it. Which is the reason I didn't bother playing 3(except for the multi-beta) and I'm really glad I didn't. I'd probably play another ME game if they turned it into a turn based strategy game.

Turn based strategy, or any kind of strategy game, would work great in this universe. It would also clear up the ridiculousness that is inevitable in shooters where you and your team may as well be gods of the universe (unless it's a cutscene where the slightest bit of debris can be deadly).

 

[DTKT]

Turn based strategy, or any kind of strategy game, would work great in this universe. It would also clear up the ridiculousness that is inevitable in shooters where you and your team may as well be gods of the universe (unless it's a cutscene where the slightest bit of debris can be deadly).

It's also never going to happen because EA doesn't do strategy games. C&C will never come out or it's going to be a terrible F2P game.

 

[Jake Tower]

I'd probably play another ME game if they turned it into a turn based strategy game.

Something like X-Com Enemy Unknown?

That... could be awesome.

 

[rac]

Something like X-Com Enemy Unknown?

That... could be awesome.

Yeah but just as the poster above you said, I doubt EA would do a ME strategy game.

 

[Typographenia]

The fact that so many people made it all the way to the ending despite allegedly hating the rest of the game so much kind of tells me that they didn't really hate it all that much. Otherwise they would have stopped playing.

I played through all of Duke Nukem Forever, despite hating it within the first thirty minutes. I played through all of Flower, Sun, Rain despite having no idea what I was doing and spending about 95% of the game running around. I completed AMY because I thought I should get my money's worth out of it. I finished Bugs Bunny Crazy Castle 2 because I told myself I wouldn't let the game beat me. I finished Armorines...


I am more than willing to endure to see things through to the end. Why? I don't know.

 

[Jarmel]

Well, you do see him... for 2 minutes. And he doesn't even say a single word.

They really ruined him in ME3, and it's not like it's because the voice actor wasn't there. He didn't mind coming back for the multiplayer Collectors trailer, so...what happened?

The game was rushed. It's deadly apparent that was the case. I mean look at Leviathan and how that gives backstory to Harbinger.

I really like the one where you visit the Elcor homeworld. It's such a beautifuly realized place, it just shows they really cared about every little thing in the game.

Same with the Volus homeworld. Great stuff.

/dies

I was so excited when I got that mission. God damn it.

 

[luxarific]

I have a $10 off coupon on Origin for my birthday. Does the PC version of Mass Effect 3 still without controller support? If it is, I'll pick something else.

 

[hateradio]

I have a $10 off coupon on Origin for my birthday. Does the PC version of Mass Effect 3 still without controller support? If it is, I'll pick something else.

Why is a keyboard a detriment? It's easy to navigate with the KB, plus you can't get better precision than with a mouse, especially compared to a thumb stick.

But no, unless you use a key binder, it doesn't respond to controllers.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Something like X-Com Enemy Unknown?

That... could be awesome.

I was getting a strong X-Com vibe from the final missions on earth. I think an X-Com like strategy game in the Mass Effect universe could be incredible. Fly around space on a Normandy-like ship doing research and upgrades while you take on missions on various planets. Could be a ton of fun.

 

[I H8 Memes]

The entire game felt like a big step back from ME2. And weirdest of all the game felt cheap. It felt cheaply made, cheaply animated. It doesn't make any sense how that could happen, maybe they were too rushed, but the entire production felt cheap compared to ME2.

Also, the ending sucked.

 

[Gustav]

I hated the side quest structure where you would overhear people on the citadel. What terrible quest design.

 

[cackhyena]

The entire game felt like a big step back from ME2. And weirdest of all the game felt cheap. It felt cheaply made, cheaply animated. It doesn't make any sense how that could happen, maybe they were too rushed, but the entire production felt cheap compared to ME2.

Also, the ending sucked.

What are you talking about? Is this just a hunch or do you have some kind of proof? It looks the same as 2 at the very least. I haven't seen anything here that 2 did better...voice acting, cinematics, graphics, combat...nothing. Maybe we were spoiled by other games upping the ante with facial animation, but the game is still pretty damn gorgeous in spots, and low res in other spots. Great sky boxes and sparse environments. It's always been a mixed bag with the series.

I have the advantage of playing this with all the DLC ( the good stuff, anyway ) so maybe that's why I'm not as harsh on it, idk. I'm having as much of a good time with it as any game this year. Despite it never rising to anything beyond a second rate tps in the action department, or the fact that they've further streamlined the conversation shit. It's still a fun universe to stroll through.

 

[Oblivionmancer]

I hated the side quest structure where you would overhear people on the citadel. What terrible quest design.

Straight out of the Dragon Age 2 playbook! Blech.

 

[I H8 Memes]

What are you talking about? Is this just a hunch or do you have some kind of proof? It looks the same as 2 at the very least. I haven't seen anything here that 2 did better...voice acting, cinematics, graphics, combat...nothing. Maybe we were spoiled by other games upping the ante with facial animation, but the game is still pretty damn gorgeous in spots, and low res in other spots. Great sky boxes and sparse environments. It's always been a mixed bag with the series.

I have the advantage of playing this with all the DLC ( the good stuff, anyway ) so maybe that's why I'm not as harsh on it, idk. I'm having as much of a good time with it as any game this year. Despite it never rising to anything beyond a second rate tps in the action department, or the fact that they've further streamlined the conversation shit. It's still a fun universe to stroll through.

The animations look cheap, most of the areas are smaller and not as well thought out (compare Elysium or Omega in ME2 with the citadel in ME3), look at the crowds running away on Earth during the beginning of the game. Those crowds might be the most pathetically cheap looking thing from any game this generation.

Anybody have a gif of that we can post in here. it was just terrible. It really wasn't even PS2 quality production.

 

[cackhyena]

I'd love to see a big old compilation of 2 versus 3 shit. Someone nerd this thread up, please.

 

[EmCeeGramr]

There's also that one balcony on the Citadel where people walk around less than 20 feet away below you, and instead of walking they just glide around. It's not like a far away 2D sprite or a low-poly LOD model, it's normal models just gliding around.

 

[Sissel]

I think it's a 7/10 game. The story isn't great, the presentation is mediocre and honestly the combat/player movement falls below games like uncharted/vanquish/gears.

 

[Lakitu]

I still can't believe someone gave the go ahead to Shepard's running animation.

 

[I H8 Memes]

I'd love to see a big old compilation of 2 versus 3 shit. Someone nerd this thread up, please.

We dont need comparison shots. Compare Purgatory in 2 to the school in 3. One feels like a real place and the other feels like a cardboard cutout design. The club in Omega to the club on the citadel. The migrant fleet and derelict reaper in 2 compared to Palaven and Thessia. In ME2 the locations manage to feel like real places whereas in ME3 they feel like a movie set. ME3 does have it's moments, even within these levels, but they are very few and far between

 

[Beren]

I just finished a marathon playing ME1,2 and 3 so i have it fresh:

-Graphics are way better than ME1 and 2 finally not a jaggie fest , the game looks awesome, fantastic graphic design (not level design).
-Enemies stay in cover forever it gets annoying, they also have extrasensory perception and parkinson, so they know where and when you are aiming at them, this gets worse near the end when there are a lot of enemies.
-Bugs, sometimes Shepard just won't take cover and the only result is a game over screen, sometimes Shepard gets stuck on the wall/floor like in ME1. Sometimes the game will unequip your weapons between missions.
-Playing ME3 without a ME1 and ME2 import gets you arsehole NPCS , and everything goes wrong. If you don't have a ME1 and 2 savegame you should not play this game. Playing it with ME1 and ME2 savegames is very rewarding.
-You need LIVE for to get the best endings.
-Story, there are awesome moments on this game but sadly there are also lots of rushed elements.
-Character graphic design is one of the best i have seen in videogames.
-Animations are meh sometimes, and there are lots of very low res textures.
-Side quests are nonsense walk on the citadel and quests pop up, scan planets and stuff pop up go back to the citadel and press a on A npc, quest done pop up lol.
- Loading screens for everything , they are faster than ME1 and ME2 but omg is annoying.
-The ending WTF they mixed MGS4 with The Matrix and everything you did on ME1, ME2 and ME3 is worthless. I wish to know what happened here

 

[Heysoos]

I know this doesn't sound logical, but I loved the every single bit of the game until the ending. The ending soured my experience so much, that I now HATE the game. Yep.

 

[Dion Blaster]

I know this doesn't sound logical, but I loved the every single bit of the game until the ending. The ending soured my experience so much, that I now HATE the game. Yep.

Well it's a story driven series that gives you the idea that all your choices from this and previous games matter and will influence the ending. Instead you just choose your ending from pre-determined choices. And apparently it sucks. After all that time and money invested I don't think you could be blamed for hating the entire series.

 

[GeorgioCostanzaX]

GOTY edition with Leviathan and From Ashes included would make it deserve that distinction...

 

[Tzeentch]

I know this doesn't sound logical, but I loved the every single bit of the game until the ending. The ending soured my experience so much, that I now HATE the game. Yep.

I still play the multiplayer on weekends, but pretty much this. I had two characters carried all the way from Mass Effect 1 and have played through the first two titles multiple times (amusingly, I keep missing some packets on the ME2 hovertank level). After the end of ME3 I saved my game and stored my copies since I'll never play them again. Got every bit of DLC I could for the previous games, but Bioware will never see a red cent from me for the Mass Effect line or, possibly, any game in the future. It's such a trainwreck compared to actual emotional story arcs like the Geth/Quarian choice and Mordin's fate that I almost cannot comprehend the same group made it. Invalidated everything my character did, even the stuff from ME3 itself.

 

[angelkimne]

No, it's not just the ending. Lots of people (including me) consider both ME2 and (to an even greater extent) ME3 ridiculously inferior sequels to ME1, a game that's still remarkable for its atmosphere and world. ME2 and ME3 had far inferior music, far less exploration, and far worse story -- they forgot all that made ME1 worth playing.

Strangely, some people seem to disagree. I wouldn't care -- but the warm reception and success of ME2/3 means the series' will probably never return to greatness. And that saddens me.