Mass Effect Question!

I'v just got in to the Mass Effect series not that long ago and I am currently playing through the first game with the second one ready to go on completion but since the releases of the third game It seems like the whole game has been panned and pretty much hated by the fans ( I'v avoided the spoilers so far so don't ruin it for me) so my question is should I continue with completing the first two games and then getting a copy of the third or should I just stop after the 2nd game?

Eh.... I don't know. Overall ME3 was a step backward, and I'm not just talking about the story; the dialogue options were reduced, combat is EXTREMELY repetitive, it has plot holes...

ME1 is good. ME2 is great. It wouldn't be bad to play ME3 for a sense of completion; whether you regret it or not... eh, you can always forget about it and just go back to ME2. I did.

I only played 1 and 2 and I'm perfectly fine. Unless you really want that sense of completion.. ME3 isn't that necessary.

You should continue and finish the trilogy.

The ending of the third game has mixed reactions because it lacks a certain level of closure and resolution based on the player's choices. However, this is literally the last 10-20 minutes of the game that could be considered disappointing. The game itself is still fantastic and fundamentally, from a gameplay perspective, is the peak of the series.

Also keep in mind that the most negative people in the world are all on the internet. They make it seem much worse than it is.

@JediXMan said:

Eh.... I don't know. Overall ME3 was a step backward, and I'm not just talking about the story; the dialogue options were reduced, combat is EXTREMELY repetitive, it has plot holes...

Not to mention a severely reduced and pointless roster, almost useless multiplayer addition, lack of proper squad-mate interaction, quest menu is a HUGE mess AND the worst part... The disappointing lack of customization for both your character/armour and weapons.

@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan said:

Eh.... I don't know. Overall ME3 was a step backward, and I'm not just talking about the story; the dialogue options were reduced, combat is EXTREMELY repetitive, it has plot holes...

Not to mention a severely reduced and pointless roster, almost useless multiplayer addition, lack of proper squad-mate interaction, quest menu is a HUGE mess AND the worst part... The disappointing lack of customization for both your character/armour and weapons.

Actually, the only thing I did like was the ability to customize my weapons.

But yeah, I hated the roster. I liked most of the characters (except pointless James), but I would have liked some of the guys from ME2 to return.

@JediXMan said:

@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan said:

Eh.... I don't know. Overall ME3 was a step backward, and I'm not just talking about the story; the dialogue options were reduced, combat is EXTREMELY repetitive, it has plot holes...

Not to mention a severely reduced and pointless roster, almost useless multiplayer addition, lack of proper squad-mate interaction, quest menu is a HUGE mess AND the worst part... The disappointing lack of customization for both your character/armour and weapons.

Actually, the only thing I did like was the ability to customize my weapons.

But yeah, I hated the roster. I liked most of the characters (except pointless James), but I would have liked some of the guys from ME2 to return.

I preferred the weapon customization in the first game, as in you could choose what ammo types, attachments you could throw on.

I hated EDI, Javik had no personality, James was all rough and tough, and Ashley... well she's Ashley. I missed not having Mordin, Wrex/Grunt, Legion in my squad. Hell, I even missed Jack and Samara. Although, I'm glad Garrus stuck around. Best Mass Effect character IMO.

@Deranged Midget:

I liked EDI. Yeah she sucked in a fight, but I like the character.

I didn't bother paying for Javik, so I can't comment. I liked Jack, Legion, Thane, Mordin, and Wrex.

@JediXMan: Balls! How could I forget Thane. He was a beast in the third game despite being... you know.

@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan: Balls! How could I forget Thane. He was a beast in the third game despite being... you know.

Thane is probably the most badass companion. He was awesome. Jack had her moments in the third game, too.

@JediXMan said:

@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan: Balls! How could I forget Thane. He was a beast in the third game despite being... you know.

Thane is probably the most badass companion. He was awesome. Jack had her moments in the third game, too.

Agreed. Garrus didn't display anything worthwhile as he did in ME2 but he's still a boss. Samara still managed to impress me with her Biotic strength.

@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan said:

@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan: Balls! How could I forget Thane. He was a beast in the third game despite being... you know.

Thane is probably the most badass companion. He was awesome. Jack had her moments in the third game, too.

Agreed. Garrus didn't display anything worthwhile as he did in ME2 but he's still a boss. Samara still managed to impress me with her Biotic strength.

The biotic stuff was cool. I just thought she was a boring character.

@JediXMan said:

@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan said:

@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan: Balls! How could I forget Thane. He was a beast in the third game despite being... you know.

Thane is probably the most badass companion. He was awesome. Jack had her moments in the third game, too.

Agreed. Garrus didn't display anything worthwhile as he did in ME2 but he's still a boss. Samara still managed to impress me with her Biotic strength.

The biotic stuff was cool. I just thought she was a boring character.

I always thought she was dull but I loved seeing impressive spectacles with the forc... I mean biotics :P

@spiderbat87: Ignore what the haters say. Mass Effect 3 was one of the most amazing games I have EVER played. Seriously, I started the series on Number 2, I never played 1, and I still could not believe how emotionally attached to my squad I was. When you port over your character and every decision you've ever made, it has the most surreal effect.

It would be in my top five games of all time, if it wasn't for that horrid, horrid ending.

I still enjoy the ME3 Multiplayer, even though many say it's boring. It's fun to me =)

Basically, the game isn't hated, the ending is. 95% of the game is still amazing, but the last 10 or so minutes completely ruin the mood and leave you asking "WTF?" and feeling empty inside. Other than that, he game is an improvement over ME2 in almost every way. If you can play it, by all means do. Just try not to mind the crapfest at the end.

@Aiden Cross said:

I still enjoy the ME3 Multiplayer, even though many say it's boring. It's fun to me =)

I think the multiplayer itself is fun (if it was really boring, so many people wouldn't play it), but the structure of it is damned awful. The way unlocks work and how much useless stuff there is to unlock keeps the most important thing of the multiplayer mode (the characters/classes) from being fully experienced without putting hours upon hours of grinding into the game. By the time I got the characters I wanted to play as, I was already tired of playing.

@spiderbat87 said:

I'v just got in to the Mass Effect series not that long ago and I am currently playing through the first game with the second one ready to go on completion but since the releases of the third game It seems like the whole game has been panned and pretty much hated by the fans ( I'v avoided the spoilers so far so don't ruin it for me) so my question is should I continue with completing the first two games and then getting a copy of the third or should I just stop after the 2nd game?

Complete it. I have beaten Mass Effect 1, seven times. Mass Effect 2, 4 times, and Mass Effect 3, twice. The third one had flaws in its story, but not until the end. The gameplay, I have no clue how people think its repetitive, it was a step forward from the superb gameplay of the second. Not to mention they are releasing DLC to fix the holes in the third, oh and the multiplayer if fun as heck. I'm a huge ME fan and I say finish, the people on the internet hating on it need to grow up. I'm not saying 3 doesn't have its problems, but stopping at two will drive you nuts.@Uncanny_Doom said:

You should continue and finish the trilogy.

The ending of the third game has mixed reactions because it lacks a certain level of closure and resolution based on the player's choices. However, this is literally the last 10-20 minutes of the game that could be considered disappointing. The game itself is still fantastic and fundamentally, from a gameplay perspective, is the peak of the series.

Also keep in mind that the most negative people in the world are all on the internet. They make it seem much worse than it is.

This is good statement to sum up the third game.@Deranged Midget said:

@JediXMan said:

Eh.... I don't know. Overall ME3 was a step backward, and I'm not just talking about the story; the dialogue options were reduced, combat is EXTREMELY repetitive, it has plot holes...

Not to mention a severely reduced and pointless roster, almost useless multiplayer addition, lack of proper squad-mate interaction, quest menu is a HUGE mess AND the worst part... The disappointing lack of customization for both your character/armour and weapons.

I can agree on the roster point, I wouldn't say it was useless, but it wasn't as fun asME2.

The quest menu a mess? What? It was extremely similar to all the others, not much difference, thats just ME.

Customization was more robust in this game than in 1 or 2. Two had almost none. 1 had nothing for the armor, and don't even say that it has weapon customization, because it didn't. You gave different ammo types which did little to change anything, while in 3 you could put scopes, lengthened barrels, etc, true customization. Yes, it wasn't to the degree of other RPG's, but ME has never been, its always been about the story. Unlike a lot of RPG's, especially JRPG's, being a jumbled mess of a story with nice customization.

And the multiplayer was a blast, great side distraction, to be able to use different races and have fun with friends, not to mention you didn't need to play it.

Oh, and this is not directed to you, just ME fans in general, I hate that Mass Effect fans call it a step backwards, I can understand a little bit about them saying it about the story, thanks to the controversial ending, but the gameplay, visuals, sound, etc all up to the ending, were nothing, but improvements. Nore was ME made linear, ME 1 was jumbled mess with its RPG mechanics, and 2 had none.

To be fair, it's not the gameplay that's repetitive. It's the missions/quests that are (especially the N7 missions, which felt more like an offline version of the multiplayer mode).

@Uno_Oscuro: It's not a significant step backwards but it is worse than ME2 in almost every aspect besides gameplay and obviously graphical improvements.

Like I mentioned, the addition of multiplayer was a distraction and they could've focused further onto the single player campaign, which was shorter than the other two. It was fine, with a great potential for enjoyment due to the varied races you could play as but the lack of objective variety made it dull quickly.

The quest menu wasn't a mess? The most baffling thing they introduced in ME3 was the way you picked up random side quests. So I can't speak to random people on the Citadel but I just oddly enough creep their conversations and take on their requests. Due to this, the quest menu was absolutely un-ordered and you spent half the time scrolling through dozens of pointless quests which didn't even tell you what you needed to do nor where to search.

@spiderbat87: play the hell out of mass effect 2. me3 just stop when you feel the ending is about to come (you'll know). me3 may be a little repetitive but it really does justice to it charaters. there are some really 'damn that was awesome' moments that stick with you, even if you dont like that particular character. play on

You can also add the fact that heavy weapons cannot be carried in your arsenal anymore in Mass Effect 3. The M-920 Cain was only available at the end of the game.

@Static Shock said:

You can also add the fact that heavy weapons cannot be carried in your arsenal anymore in Mass Effect 3. The M-920 Cain was only available at the end of the game.

M-920 Cain for the win. I know I used that bad boy for nearly every "boss" fight.

@Deranged Midget said:

M-920 Cain for the win. I know I used that bad boy for nearly every "boss" fight.

So, did I, or at least again every mech that I went up against in ME2.

@Static Shock said:

@Deranged Midget said:

M-920 Cain for the win. I know I used that bad boy for nearly every "boss" fight.

So, did I, or at least again every mech that I went up against in ME2.

I personally used it against every Geth Colossus I encountered, but I caught your drift.

@Static Shock: @Deranged Midget: I used that Reaper Laser weapon a lot too. Can't remember the name..

@Deranged Midget said:

@Static Shock said:

@Deranged Midget said:

M-920 Cain for the win. I know I used that bad boy for nearly every "boss" fight.

So, did I, or at least again every mech that I went up against in ME2.

I personally used it against every Geth Colossus I encountered, but I caught your drift.

And the hover ships.

I liked ME1 more than ME2, which I didn't manage to complete.

I know Octopus is going to hate on me for this, but that's the way it is.

@Static Shock said:

To be fair, it's not the gameplay that's repetitive. It's the missions/quests that are (especially the N7 missions, which felt more like an offline version of the multiplayer mode).

This I can agree with the N7 missions were lacking, but so were almost all the side quest in ME1, and Mass Effect 2 it was more of the same. NOTE:I'm not including the optional recruitment missions, and loyalty missions as a side in ME2, I've always considered them main because I always do them.

@Deranged Midget said:

@Uno_Oscuro: It's not a significant step backwards but it is worse than ME2 in almost every aspect besides gameplay and obviously graphical improvements.

Like I mentioned, the addition of multiplayer was a distraction and they could've focused further onto the single player campaign, which was shorter than the other two. It was fine, with a great potential for enjoyment due to the varied races you could play as but the lack of objective variety made it dull quickly.

The quest menu wasn't a mess? The most baffling thing they introduced in ME3 was the way you picked up random side quests. So I can't speak to random people on the Citadel but I just oddly enough creep their conversations and take on their requests. Due to this, the quest menu was absolutely un-ordered and you spent half the time scrolling through dozens of pointless quests which didn't even tell you what you needed to do nor where to search.

I don't think its step back at all, it was a step forward in gameplay, sound, design, graphics, etc. Story is the only place where it hit, and I consider the time thing to be apart of the story problem.

On the multiplayer its just going to be one of those agree to disagree things.

I didn't say it wasn't a mess, I said that it was just ME, meaning every Mass Effect game has had a cluttered menu system.

@ReVamp said:

I liked ME1 more than ME2, which I didn't manage to complete.

ME1's story was superior, but the improvements made to gameplay and loyalty missions edge out my favour for ME2.

@Uno_Oscuro said:

I don't think its step back at all, it was a step forward in gameplay, sound, design, graphics, etc. Story is the only place where it hit, and I consider the time thing to be apart of the story problem.

On the multiplayer its just going to be one of those agree to disagree things.

I didn't say it wasn't a mess, I said that it was just ME, meaning every Mass Effect game has had a cluttered menu system.

Fair enough, but wouldn't you say the story and the game's absolutely stunning Universe is a major point of what drew you in? The lack of a story up to par with the last two is slightly disappointing.

@Deranged Midget said:

@ReVamp said:

I liked ME1 more than ME2, which I didn't manage to complete.

ME1's story was superior, but the improvements made to gameplay and loyalty missions edge out my favour for ME2.

@Uno_Oscuro said:

I don't think its step back at all, it was a step forward in gameplay, sound, design, graphics, etc. Story is the only place where it hit, and I consider the time thing to be apart of the story problem.

On the multiplayer its just going to be one of those agree to disagree things.

I didn't say it wasn't a mess, I said that it was just ME, meaning every Mass Effect game has had a cluttered menu system.

Fair enough, but wouldn't you say the story and the game's absolutely stunning Universe is a major point of what drew you in? The lack of a story up to par with the last two is slightly disappointing.

Wasn't meaning to attack you, lol. I just get defensive about ME, especially with all the whining going on lately.

@Uno_Oscuro said:

@Deranged Midget said:

@ReVamp said:

I liked ME1 more than ME2, which I didn't manage to complete.

ME1's story was superior, but the improvements made to gameplay and loyalty missions edge out my favour for ME2.

@Uno_Oscuro said:

I don't think its step back at all, it was a step forward in gameplay, sound, design, graphics, etc. Story is the only place where it hit, and I consider the time thing to be apart of the story problem.

On the multiplayer its just going to be one of those agree to disagree things.

I didn't say it wasn't a mess, I said that it was just ME, meaning every Mass Effect game has had a cluttered menu system.

Fair enough, but wouldn't you say the story and the game's absolutely stunning Universe is a major point of what drew you in? The lack of a story up to par with the last two is slightly disappointing.

Wasn't meaning to attack you, lol. I just get defensive about ME, especially with all the whining going on lately.

No harm done and don't get me wrong, Mass Effect is by far my favourite IP of this current generation, but I just imagined BioWare going out with a bigger bang with the final game rather than fizzling out with the story.

@Deranged Midget said:

@Uno_Oscuro said:

@Deranged Midget said:

@ReVamp said:

I liked ME1 more than ME2, which I didn't manage to complete.

ME1's story was superior, but the improvements made to gameplay and loyalty missions edge out my favour for ME2.

@Uno_Oscuro said:

I don't think its step back at all, it was a step forward in gameplay, sound, design, graphics, etc. Story is the only place where it hit, and I consider the time thing to be apart of the story problem.

On the multiplayer its just going to be one of those agree to disagree things.

I didn't say it wasn't a mess, I said that it was just ME, meaning every Mass Effect game has had a cluttered menu system.

Fair enough, but wouldn't you say the story and the game's absolutely stunning Universe is a major point of what drew you in? The lack of a story up to par with the last two is slightly disappointing.

Wasn't meaning to attack you, lol. I just get defensive about ME, especially with all the whining going on lately.

No harm done and don't get me wrong, Mass Effect is by far my favourite IP of this current generation, but I just imagined BioWare going out with a bigger bang with the final game rather than fizzling out with the story.

Yeah, I have my issues with Mass Effect 3, no doubt. Hopefully this DLC coming out, will fill in all the holes it seemingly left open, but not change the ending to the point where its absurd.

@Uno_Oscuro: Honestly, a DLC expansion can only change so much. I just thought the way they decided to deal with the Reapers was absolutely ridiculous.

@Deranged Midget: See, I'm okay with how it came together in the end in that respect. I'm okay with the ABC decision. I completely get why most aren't and I would rather what you said, but it doesn't bother me. The thing that bothers me is all the holes it left, the feeling of having way more questions than answers, even though throughout the whole series I really didn't have any questions, but then all of a sudden, in the final 15 minutes, I have like thirty. It was a convoluted mess for sure.

@Uno_Oscuro: I partially agree with you on that. I hated how they abruptly ended everything and nothing else was explained. What happened to the rest of my squad? How do the partnerships and unions of other species play out after everything that happened?

@Deranged Midget said:

@Uno_Oscuro: I partially agree with you on that. I hated how they abruptly ended everything and nothing else was explained. What happened to the rest of my squad? How do the partnerships and unions of other species play out after everything that happened?

Don't even get me started, lol.

@Uno_Oscuro: See that's exactly what I'm talking about. There was absolutely no closure given, no indication of what happens to the Galaxy afterwards and all the amazing people and races you've encountered and the worlds you've visited. Goddamn it BioWare!

@Deranged Midget said:

@Uno_Oscuro: See that's exactly what I'm talking about. There was absolutely no closure given, no indication of what happens to the Galaxy afterwards and all the amazing people and races you've encountered and the worlds you've visited. Goddamn it BioWare!

I know what you are saying. To me it is one of the greatest scifi stories of all time, and that ending really took away from it. I'm okay with the somber ending, thats actually really cool, but like you said, all the questions left unanswered, I mean, wtf. As I said in a previous post, Mass Effect didn't raise many questions over the course of the series, a few, but not that many. But that was only due to an extremely tight, and superb narrative. And the few questions that were asked were expertly crafted. But that poop pile at the end was a setback to say the least. Thats why I'm happy about the DLC, because DLC can fill in the plot holes, and answer those questions, there are certain things it can't change, like a specific individual be introduced in the last five minutes. But I'm okay with that, but answer those questions that are burning in my brain. Not too mention fix the, everyone's stranded crap, because they said they were going to do more ME's just not with Shepard, but the way they ended it, left no room for more games, or story DLC for that matter.

@Uno_Oscuro: Indeed, I'm hoping the DLC changes something worthwhile and I'm glad they decided to make it free or fans would've flipped out.