[Jonathan Braz]

It disgusts me to say it....but deep down I hope you're right. I haven't got to the end yet but as I understand it, if you have a

Spoiler

Shep lives and takes a breath end, it could continue with her finding the crew?

Consider this:

Spoiler

The message said to continue adventures. The word continue emphasizes post story. How can we do that with mass relays destroyed? Alternate endings are the only justifiable way to continue post ending, otherwise there will be more plot-holes in this swiss-cheesed game.

-------------------------
Also I started my next playthrough that is going to be the character I carry to Mass Effect 3......and I'm doing it on insanity. Any tips for a soldier who chose Reave as his special talent? (PS, I didn't start from the NG+, I re-imported the character, so he started with the Level 60 "Rich" ME1 import bonuses, and has the service bonuses from completing ME2)

[Lizbeth Ruiz]

Consider this:

Spoiler

The message said to continue adventures. The word continue emphasizes post story. How can we do that with mass relays destroyed? Alternate endings are the only justifiable way to continue post ending, otherwise there will be more plot-holes in this swiss-cheesed game.

-------------------------
Also I started my next playthrough that is going to be the character I carry to Mass Effect 3......and I'm doing it on insanity. Any tips for a soldier who chose Reave as his special talent? (PS, I didn't start from the NG+, I re-imported the character, so he started with the Level 60 "Rich" ME1 import bonuses, and has the service bonuses from completing ME2)

I see lots of speculation about the endings. Some think they intentionally made them bad, so they can sell a Broken Steel type dlc.
Some people are looking at the endings in detail. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynYgr1rqEec
Reminds me of arrival.

[Jason King]

I see lots of speculation about the endings. Some think they intentionally made them bad, so they can sell a Broken Steel type dlc.
Some people are looking at the endings in detail. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynYgr1rqEec
Reminds me of arrival.

Spoiler

An interesting theory that if you chose destroy then the Reapers are still out there, opening the possibility of still finishing that via DLC....

[Kat Ives]

dig in harder and hold the line. /Mordin.

Captain Kirrahe is disappointed in you.

Also in regards to the Charity drive, I was lead to believe it was mostly aimed at turning the fan's rage towards something positive. So not a bad thing, really - better to organise them towards doing something good then to just leave them angry and with nothing to do but complain.

[Philip Rua]

I see lots of speculation about the endings. Some think they intentionally made them bad, so they can sell a Broken Steel type dlc.
Some people are looking at the endings in detail. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynYgr1rqEec
Reminds me of arrival.

OK- let's nip this in the bud and not turn this into the cesspit of angry fans on the bioware forums. They did not INTENTIONALLY make the ending bad. That kind of statement is insulting to game developers everywhere, not just the hardworking folks at Bioware. I'm sorry, but that's just flat out a wrong thing to say. Let's show gaming culture in a better light please, and keep a bit of sensible perspective.

I personally was disappointed with the ending I got from a logic perspective,and from a personal note. Do I think they could have made a tighter ending to the game that would at least have given me a better sense of closure for my character and the crew I actually mostly cared about? Sure. There were contradictions abounding and some loose threads that fall squarely on whoever was making the final story/writing decisions. Apparently the loss of Drew Kapyshyn (sp?) hurt them more than they realized, or else there was just not a single strong voice pulling the writing together at the end of the day. It happens. The ending wasn't what I had hoped in some respects, but it wasn't a huge shock either, given the sad/anxious tone of this last outing from the get go.

But stop with these kinds of accusations - seriously, it's insulting to hardworking people and it reflects poorly on serious gaming fans like so many of you here (including me.)

And to clarify - Bethesda developed FO3 with an ending. It had a definitive "Game over" after the main quest - something they were very clear about long before the game was released. They only did Broken Steel after the backlash, it was not planned that way from the get go. I for one was not particularly impressed that they caved over it, but I understand - their reasoning being that half the new fans brought into the game were also ES fans, and they were used to the ES style of open-ended games. And from their perspective, it does open up the game for easier insertion of any random DLC.

Consider this:

Spoiler

The message said to continue adventures. The word continue emphasizes post story. How can we do that with mass relays destroyed? Alternate endings are the only justifiable way to continue post ending, otherwise there will be more plot-holes in this swiss-cheesed game.

"Continue" does not emphasize post-story. I hit okay, and it sets you back to the save just after you finish Cronos. So presumably you can continue trying to find more war assets and whatnot. With DLC added, it would just probably add to available places you could go for this mission or that one before heading back to earth for the final run should you choose to continue with an existing save game.

[CSar L]

I'm strongly considering stopping before the last mission, so that I don't get the permanent bad taste in my mouth from the endings. Still can't believe they're going to be bad, Rannoch besides the final QTE type event was incredible. Disk swapping for the 360 isn't as big of a deal as people made it out to seem. Once you get past Sur-Kesh everything is on Disk 2, similar to ME2. If you do sidequests before finishing Sur-Kesh then yeah you'll need to swap. I only did that around 3-4 times and it's been 17 hours of gameplay time since I've changed disks.

Gotta love Bioware, they keep spinning that they listen to fan feedback. If they listened to Fan Feedback the endings wouldn't be bad, the game would still have a lot of the elements that made ME1 and ME2 great, no multiplayer, etc. They keep beating a dead horse with a stick but that horse is going to remain dead until they truly listen to their fans. The Charity move is a smart move, Bioware would be in a tough position if they ignore the fans campaign, especially if they were to raise a lot of money. I don't think it's going to matter though as the damage has been done.

[Jade Barnes-Mackey]

Spoiler

I take it recruiting the doctor is a timed mission? Chakwas tried to join the crew but I told her to stay at the labs. According to the guide another doctor should have appeared at the Citadel that I could recruit but I haven't seen anyone and am at the Thessia mission. Take it I missed my chance?

[pinar]

Spoiler

I take it recruiting the doctor is a timed mission? Chakwas tried to join the crew but I told her to stay at the labs. According to the guide another doctor should have appeared at the Citadel that I could recruit but I haven't seen anyone and am at the Thessia mission. Take it I missed my chance?

Check the French doctor. If you do get another option, it should be Dr. Michel. She's the only one that interacts with you much on the Citadel.

[Lew.p]

Check the French doctor. If you do get another option, it should be Dr. Michel. She's the only one that interacts with you much on the Citadel.

Thanks - there are just no dialouge options for anyone in the hospital now.

[Vera Maslar]

Thanks - there are just no dialouge options for anyone in the hospital now.

You might have missed it. Dr. Michel is the alternative choice, and she stops appearing in Huerta Memorial hospital once a certain patient leaves.

[El Khatiri]

Aaah in that case I've definitely missed it. Bugger.

[Eddie Howe]

A Penny Arcade article about the endings. I have to agree with him, especially with the conclusion.

http://penny-arcade.com/report/editorial-article/why-the-ending-of-mass-effect-3-was-satifying-and-worthy-of-the-series-mass

Though i disagree with "The game becomes a Choose Your Own Adventure book at that point", that's what it always was.

...And another opinion http://www.cad-comic.com/cad/

[Dj Matty P]

Are there any bonuses you get for completeing Mass Effect 3, like you got in Mass Effect 2.

[CxvIII]

Finally got my Collectors Edition! It is an interesting package, but I think one of the perks should have been that I wouldn't need Origin to play it

Damn I hate that thing.
I'm still in total oblivion about what's going to happen in the game besides the obvious.
I'm getting more spoilers from the artbook than I've got from other sources.

[Erika Ellsworth]

"Continue" does not emphasize post-story. I hit okay, and it sets you back to the save just after you finish Cronos. So presumably you can continue trying to find more war assets and whatnot. With DLC added, it would just probably add to available places you could go for this mission or that one before heading back to earth for the final run should you choose to continue with an existing save game.

Yeah, the whole

Spoiler

"Tell me another story of the Shepard!" thing, the way I saw it, was just a cute way of letting you go back and play later DLC releases, without negating The End. Since an old man telling stories doesn't have to be linear - he can always pull out a story of The Shepard's earlier life/etc.

[jessica breen]

http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/bioware-responds-to-mass-effect-3-ending-controversy/

Well Casey Hudson people certainly won't be forgetting about it in a hurry if that was the aim.

[Felix Walde]

http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/bioware-responds-to-mass-effect-3-ending-controversy/

Well Casey Hudson people certainly won't be forgetting about it in a hurry if that was the aim.

Me and my wallet won't be forgetting about this catastrophe for a LONG time, I can assure you of THAT.

I will not buy DLC or a BioWare game until they fix the ending.

[Star Dunkels Macmillan]

Consider this:

Spoiler

The message said to continue adventures. The word continue emphasizes post story. How can we do that with mass relays destroyed? Alternate endings are the only justifiable way to continue post ending, otherwise there will be more plot-holes in this swiss-cheesed game.

-------------------------
Also I started my next playthrough that is going to be the character I carry to Mass Effect 3......and I'm doing it on insanity. Any tips for a soldier who chose Reave as his special talent? (PS, I didn't start from the NG+, I re-imported the character, so he started with the Level 60 "Rich" ME1 import bonuses, and has the service bonuses from completing ME2)

Spoiler

It's too bad that you can't get a golden Control ending where instead of making the Reapers simply leave, you force them to rebuild the mass relay network. Then maybe be able to further control what they do next.

[Kira! :)))]

http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/bioware-responds-to-mass-effect-3-ending-controversy/

Well Casey Hudson people certainly won't be forgetting about it in a hurry if that was the aim.

We will not accept their cheap attempts to deflect the issue, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXLVFnl3WcE

[Robyn Lena]

Hey guys,I was wondering which class is best for me, I use the abilities moderately, I don't over use it. I mainly run and gun. Any Recommendations?, I'm starting over since I only finished one mission and my one achievement is gone! lol!

[Isabel Ruiz]

http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/bioware-responds-to-mass-effect-3-ending-controversy/

Well Casey Hudson people certainly won't be forgetting about it in a hurry if that was the aim.

I can't help feeling that there were probably better ways of keeping people talking, but maybe that's just me...

[Captian Caveman]

http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/bioware-responds-to-mass-effect-3-ending-controversy/

Well Casey Hudson people certainly won't be forgetting about it in a hurry if that was the aim.

That's how they respond? They should of just said what they wanted to and told us to [censored] off. I would of respected that a bit more than trying to evade the question and give us some piss poor answer.

The user responses and EGM's take on it are complete trash as well.Simply telling people to stop [censored]ing doesn't help. Maybe just maybe if Bioware responded to gamer complaints with an ounce of respect for it's customers people wouldn't be in such an up roar.

[James Shaw]

"Continue" does not emphasize post-story. I hit okay, and it sets you back to the save just after you finish Cronos. So presumably you can continue trying to find more war assets and whatnot. With DLC added, it would just probably add to available places you could go for this mission or that one before heading back to earth for the final run should you choose to continue with an existing save game.

Yeah, the whole

Spoiler

"Tell me another story of the Shepard!" thing, the way I saw it, was just a cute way of letting you go back and play later DLC releases, without negating The End. Since an old man telling stories doesn't have to be linear - he can always pull out a story of The Shepard's earlier life/etc.

Here's my confrontation of that view:

Spoiler

I came across http://www.gamefront.com/mass-effect-3-ending-hatred-5-reasons-the-fans-are-right/. Although you may or may not agree with it, I believe that it brings up many valid points. (Note - contains spoilers, although I doubt that this will be an issue for most people since you are reading about this debate in the 1st place)

[Claudia Cook]

We will not accept their cheap attempts to deflect the issue, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXLVFnl3WcE

Bioware marketing and their pep talks... what a bunch of cloacas.

[natalie mccormick]

Here's my confrontation of that view:

Spoiler

I came across http://www.gamefront.com/mass-effect-3-ending-hatred-5-reasons-the-fans-are-right/. Although you may or may not agree with it, I believe that it brings up many valid points. (Note - contains spoilers, although I doubt that this will be an issue for most people since you are reading about this debate in the 1st place)

Oh, I don't disagree with all the various critiques of the ending. And I certainly wish it were different (not that I expect all this "OMG, give us a Better Ending DLC/patch!" fulminating to succeed. Nor do I think it should. It would set a bad precedent for game design, among other things.)

But that doesn't change what I think the purpose of the

Spoiler

"tell me another story" thing is. It really does just seem like a handwave to allow people to "keep playing" while still having a Final End.... it's effectively the same as my continuing with my first Fallout 3 character by going back to a save just before the Last Mission. But with a bit of story to justify it.