Well Mass Effect 2 faired well when we looked at it a while back, so lets move onto the third entry in the series. That’s right, it’s time to take a look at Mass Effect 3, and just how everyone feels about the ending to BioWare’s space-faring trilogy.
Of course, the ending is the key bit isn’t it? Some aren’t all that happy about with it, in fact there seems to be an almost worrying level of fury about the game’s conclusion. BioWare have responded with the Extended Cut DLC, although we don’t know just what that will change or clarify when it arrives in the summer; perhaps it will just enrage fans of the series further and we’ll see an Extended Extended Cut at some point.
For now though we’ll have to content ourselves with looking at what’s in the game so far. I haven’t quite gotten around to it yet, in fact I’m only about five hours into the first Mass Effect right now, but, fortunately, Blair took a look at the game when it released.
He picked out the scale of the war the game centres around as particularly enjoyable, and found that the side missions which aid in your war effort are every bit as epic as those which form the game’s main story. Although he did enjoy the main plot, he found that at points the writing slipped a little and that a few areas in the game didn’t quite live up to its own high standards.
Overall though he was pleased with the game, rating it at a very good 9/10. In summing up the game he had this to say:
In some ways, Mass Effect 3 isn’t as fresh or as satisfying to play as its predecessor. In others though, it’s a much grander game with the true galactic scale being fully realised in this final instalment of the trilogy. Whilst there’s some issues with writing, some of the mechanics and various other glitches, the epic scale and relatively strong narrative push these aside, giving Mass Effect 3 its rightful place amongst the great, sci-fi epics of our time and acting as a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy.
Whilst Mass Effect doesn’t tower above its predecessors in terms of innovation, sheer entertainment or narrative, the scope of this Galatic War is unmatched in most games. Playing Mass Effect 3, you’ll truly feel as though you’re a Commander, saving not only the human race and Earth but many more planets and races from the brink of extinction.
So that’s our review out of the way, now it’s time to ask you what you thought of Sheppard’s third outing. Were you one of those who felt the ending let things down, or did you think it wrapped things up nicely? Did the stakes of the game’s core story appeal to you, or was it all a bit too much? Ultimately, we want to know whether you left feeling satisfied, let down, or somewhere in between.
If you feel like sharing your views all you need to do is drop a comment below by Sunday afternoon. Once you’ve done that you need to select a rating for the game from the Buy It, Bargain Bin It, Rent It or Avoid It scale. Simply pick which of those labels best represents your opinion of the game and add it to your comment. In Monday’s Verdict article I’ll take your ratings and work out what the community’s overall rating of the game is.
mrfodder
I thoroughly enjoyed the game all the way through. It is a good blend of rpg and shooter with a nice difficulty level. You always felt you were going forward. The ending was a tad weak and left too many questions, but overall it is an epic space adventure and a BUY IT.
hazelam
i’ve always wondered, what’s the difference between Affect and Effect?
bigbaldwolf
af·fect
verb (used with object)
1. to act on; produce an effect or change in: Cold weather affected the crops.
2. to impress the mind or move the feelings of: The music affected him deeply.
ef·fect
noun
1. something that is produced by an agency or cause; result; consequence: Exposure to the sun had the effect of toughening his skin.
2. power to produce results; efficacy; force; validity; influence: His protest had no effect.
You sir are welcome :p
hazelam
that would be miss, i don’t think i’m old enough for ma’am yet, and thanks.
it’s something that always had me a little confused, that makes it clearer.
Pakulak
Put shortly:
Affect-influence
Effect-result
Roynaldo
I would say something but the snippet of Blairs review is pretty much spot on. Not quite as fantastic but still has a high level of awesome to it.
BUY IT
psychobudgie
Thought it was excellent despite the slightly dodgy and rushed ending. To be fair, if the EA PR machine had kept it’s mouth shut and didn’t go around telling everyone that everything they had done in previous games mattered and there were 15, yes 15, completely unique endings. Well, most of us would have just gone ‘is that it?’ and left it at that.
I got it on the PC btw rather than the PS3 cause it was £10 cheaper. I’m Scottish and expected to be tight fisted.
JohnnyBoy
The ending is a bit of a let down, but not enough to stop me recommending you BUY IT.
A couple of minutes of disappointing cutscenes doesn’t detract from the hours and hours of amazing gameplay.
MayContainEvil
Buy the game, Avoid the whining.
That’s my vote :)
PA_Kid
Bargin Bin it. Definitely better than a rent but overhyped in my opinion. The end is blah but the journey leading up to it for the most part is really good. The strength of the story really lies in the individual character payoffs that carry through from ME2. That said, the mediocre multiplayer, overpriced DLC, poor galaxy at war mechanics, and poor scanning/side missions combine with the bad ending to pretty substanially mar a really good storyline.
charliec.95
Buy It. While the ending may not be to everyone’s taste (I personally didn’t mind it), the story and gameplay preceding it was brilliant in my opinion, and while I never tried the multiplayer, the strength of the single player alone does it for me. I would say that Mass Effect 2 is the better game however.
Deezoned
Every game has it’s flaws, ME3 included… I personally enjoyed the game all the way to the platinum, and even multiplayer is fun and a bit addictive :)
Looking forward to the coming DLC (and ending-elaboration), so you’d better be prepared: Buy it!
The Lone Steven
yay! \o/ Kris actually picked one of my suggestions.
Anyway, after the massive dump on a growing franchise that was DA2, i lose faith in Bioware so i wasn’t hoping for ME3 to be decent. Luckily i’m wrong.
Whilst i’ll enjoyed the gameplay it is a bit average. The story is good but has some parts that makes your choices seem like nothing. The ending is very weak and seems to be ripping off DX:HR. Whilst DX may have gotten away with it, ME3 didn’t. It’s more like a massive WTF!? then the worst ending in gaming history.
Soundtrack is good. But i wish that there were more interactions. Even more with the romanced crew member. You can’t do anything except for conversations that happen during the story. Such as no inviting Tali up to cuddle etc..
So it’s a BUY IT from me but don’t let the ending ruin the game for you as the entire game is the ending to the ME trilogy as it follows the tradition opening, middle and ending acts.