I almost forgot that I had this blog.
If you’ve been following me on Twitter, you’d know by now that I’m not incredibly pleased with the way that Mass Effect 3 ended. To be frank, I’m downright pissed off. I don’t really understand exactly why Bioware decided to end it the way that it did, but every single ending to the game is awful. Just downright awful.
I already have a video planned for the near future (and it will be on my Youtube channel for those interested) but I need to discuss the ending and the decision of artistic expression conflicting with fan interest.
To be quite frank, were Mass Effect 3 any other video game out there, I think that the ending would be acceptable. Say Mass Effect 3 wasn’t Mass Effect 3, but rather was a side-story to the series, or featured an entirely new cast of characters, but took place in the same universe. To be frank, the ending wouldn’t have been that big of a deal. Granted, it still wouldn’t be the ideal ending to the conflict, but ultimately would be easier to swallow from an artistic standpoint.
This is the big problem though. Video game trilogies, especially those that are RPG’s, have a certain pressure that come with them. This is magnified by a series like Mass Effect, which features the same characters and universe throughout over sixty to one hundred hours of gameplay. There are expectations that have to be met, now that the artist has decided on a series that is going to have to bend to fan request now and again.
You see, I’m not the type of person who is going to say that an artist is required to bend to the will of their fanbase. Lord knows there are plenty of developers who don’t, such as Valve. At the same time, Bioware has admitted that they want to do the fans right, and thus far have not only made concessions but made them work within the context of the game universe. People asked for the ability to romance Tali and Garrus, and they got it. Not only did they get it, but those particular romances were the best written within the second game.
It’s obvious that Bioware cares about the Mass Effect fanbase, which is why the ending of the third game is such a slap in the face. Anyone on earth can tell you that it’s rushed, and ultimately ends the trilogy in such a way that leaves you with a sour taste in your mouth. I hope that Bioware takes their time with games in the future, because people deserve to get the best out of their money. I must have put in over two hundred dollars into Mass Effect from the first game until the third, taking into account that I bought every game on release day, and also paid full price for all the DLC that I bought.
When consumers go to hotels, restaurants, movies, etc. we don’t want to have anything wreck the experience for us, especially when many of us work hard for the entertainment and pleasures that we can afford. Bioware has their artistic rights, but they willingly submitted themselves to the fanbase with Mass Effect. Thus, they needed to listen. They didn’t.
