Comments on: The Walking Dead vs. Mass Effect 3: Consequences and Endings

By: Big I

Big I — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 02:57:00 +0000

I haven’t played Walking Dead, but my understanding is that the narative is unchanged by player input. That is not the case with ME3.

Here’s why people didn’t like the ME3 ending.

1) Shepard is presented as routinely being able to accomplish the impossible. ME2s suicide mission, getting the various alien species on side in ME3, whatever, Shepard gets it done however they want. That is reversed in the final scene.

2) The whole ME trilogy was sold as being about player agency. Most major quests and sidequests offered different options on how to resolve them, and those choices influence future content. Want to keep Mordin alive? Then you better kill Wrex in ME1 and destroy the genophage data in ME2. Having that atmosphere of player input swept away in the last ten minutes is jarring and off-putting.

3) Bioware (originally) opted for an ending heavy on symbolism and light on explanation, and the majority of people thought that was a bad call. They didn’t want poetic imagery that raised more questions, they wanted existing questions about plot and characters answered.

4) People identify with Shepard. When making decisions in game, they’re not asking themselves “what decision would a space marine from 2185 with an alien girlfriend make in this situation?”, they’re asking “what decision would I make here?”. Thus, when Shepard is denied a happy ending the player is denied a happy ending.

By: Pickle

Pickle — Sun, 30 Dec 2012 21:25:00 +0000

This doesn,t make any sense. The final choices of mass effect 3 had massive ramifications on the future of the galaxy. Yes the games are finished but that doesnt make the final choice meaningless. If that’s true then any game or film without a sequel is meaningless . of course it matters, the journey is if anything more important. The whole of Me3 was about concluding your choices from the first 2 games. Not just the last 10 mins.

By: Vince Chachai Mathieu

Vince Chachai Mathieu — Sun, 30 Dec 2012 07:15:00 +0000

http://www.writersdigest.com/whats-new/the-dos-and-donts-of-novel-endings

If you read this, you will know why Mass Effect 3 ending failed.

As for the Walking Dead ending with a cliffhanger, it’s all right because we know there is gonna be a sequel. Mass Effect 3 was the last game of a trilogy, so no cliffhanger.

By: Logan Snider

Logan Snider — Sun, 30 Dec 2012 04:05:00 +0000

This is a rarity. For once, I must agree with the narrative logic presented by a reviewer. You are correct that the underlying themes and stories presented by both games are in effect (result) the same. If I had to guess, and this IS just a guess, why Mass Effect 3’s ending was so poorly received by such a wide audience and this is in no offense to those who enjoyed the ending; I would have to say that it was a rejection of fate. Whether this was because of the rejection of the “epic hero must die” or because of the time investment needed to play all 3 Mass Effect games is up for debate as is other potential reasons for why people would reject the ME3 ending. Overall, it would seem as though the previous 2 games gave players the illusion that they could change things and save the universe while at the same time underscoring that point with a clear indication that the universe is soooo totally doomed. When it came down to the flash point where players were expecting that emotional payoff after receiving these two contradicting messages the results was a rejection of the former in favor of the previous. They rejected the fate of inevitability of ones eventual destruction in favor of, if I may quote Knights Tale, “A Person can really change their stars.”

By: you guys

you guys — Sat, 29 Dec 2012 23:08:00 +0000

The figures in the distance aren’t zombies. Most people assume it’s Christa and Omid, but their movement and ability to see her at range show that they’re definitively not zombies.