Review Mass Effect 3: A Narratological Review

[Menckenstein]

Most of that review's criticisms are true to some degree, but I'd not be so quick to say they ruin the experience completely. ME3 is hardly a perfect game, even aside from the ending it cannot reach the greatness of BG2 and ME2. But it is by no means not worth playing for an RPG fan.​

Still, something positive came out of the review. Lots of names in that rpgcodex list of "rpgcodex approved"-list of games and I intend to look through a few of them. Some, such as Torment, Fallout and Arcanum I've already played. But many are new to me.​

Of course, seeing Eye of the Beholder listed makes me question just what it takes to make the list - Diablo does the plot-void, no deeper-than-numbered-armour-class-character defining, real-time-with-cooldowns dungeon delving thing much better and is nowhere to be seen on the list after all ​

EDIT: Flavour for those of the rpgcodex who venture here! Since bioware does too much Only the Chosen One has the Ability to Defeat One True Evil plots, apparently, what about them Dragon Age 2? Pretty welcome variation, I'd agree. Hm, though this is merely for rpgcodex people, please don't make this a DA2 thread now X)​

EDIT2: For future reference, Menckenstein, you are the one who will have to PM me and not the other way around kkthx​

Sorry hotbabe but I don't have any Bioware titles , so we are trapped as star-crossed lovers, seperated by eternity (30 days).

I sincerely hope anyone reading the review or this thread gives some of the Codex approved games a spin, I think they'll have a fucking blast and if it changes their outlook or at least gives them a better appreciation for the classics I hope they join the ranks of the Codex and immerse (derp) themselves in the incline.

I have an account on BSN. But I never go there THAT PLACE SCARES ME!

I feel the same way about KMart.

 

[Ulminati]

Hello there Prosarian. It seems we are doomed to have our little tête-à-tête across our two respective boards, like moonstruck lovers in a paticularily campy romance novel (no homo!); as I can not be bothered to wait 30 days for a profile on your boards to be allowed to post.

Sorry hotbabe but I don't have any Bioware titles , so we are trapped as star-crossed lovers, seperated by eternity (30 days).

 

[Menckenstein]

Hello there Prosarian. It seems we are doomed to have our little tête-à-tête across our two respective boards, like moonstruck lovers in a paticularily campy romance novel (no homo!); as I can not be bothered to wait 30 days for a profile on your boards to be allowed to post.

Sorry hotbabe but I don't have any Bioware titles , so we are trapped as star-crossed lovers, seperated by eternity (30 days).

Forbidden love has bloomed on the battlefield, but romance doesn't scale to our level.

 

[Ulminati]

Wanna bet EA uses that line to market the reaper romance DLC?

 

[CrustyBot]

Dr. Menckenstein or: How I Learned to Stop Hating and Love the BSN.

 

[hoverdog]

Romances not level-scaling? PREPOSTEROUS!

 

[groke]

I waited until the end of the game to fuck tali and she was a fuckn frost giant!

 

[Menckenstein]

Wanna bet EA uses that line to market the reaper romance DLC?

Private Joker will leave EDDI for a reaper when it indoctrinates him and turns him against her... dun dun dun. Sins of the flesh high tensile polymer blend.

 

[Cowboy Moment]

All of this reminds me of that one thing that happened.

You see, I met a nigger at a swimming pool a few months ago. I know, I know, it might not seem like much to all you esteemed kwanzanian gentlemen, experienced in the art of dealing with these majestic jungle beasts, but here, in the quiet suburbs of Potatoland, it was a highly unusual and terrifying occurence. I emerged from the main pool after honing my well-chiseled body closer to that of the Greek ideal of Polykleitos and Myron, and headed towards the jacuzzi with the intent of enjoying some well-earned relaxation. Imagine my horror, when I found it occupied by a solitary negro, presiding over the area like one Ubu the King, somehow managing to channel lazy carelessness and ferocious bloodlust at the same time.

I was paralyzed. Afraid to move forward and enter the predator's domain, but even more terrified of the prospect of turning my back to the treacherous monster, I merely stood there, eyes locked with the negroid nightmare in front of me. But then, all these years of watching the Discovery Channel have not left me unprepared for a contingency of this sort. Recalling the methods brave, white explorers would utilize, when confronted with a mountain gorilla, I steeled my resolve, and, continuously looking into the bloodshot eyes of the beast, I walked forward, entered the pool, and situated myself opposite of the spearchucking menace.

The nigger appeared to be confounded by my actions, no doubt having expected me to attempt escape, which would give it the opportunity to pounce on my back like a black cheetah, giving it the immediate advantage. However, confronted with a white man not cowardly and apologetic, but courageous and proud of his wondrous heritage, the animal seemed to have lost its edge. Such is the nature of these melon munchers, that they can only win with treachery and ambush, and lose their bravado when confronted directly. But I digress. Cowed by my glowing superiority, the nigger got up, and ran away unseemingly, therefore realising its place in the world. And all was as it should be.

I am posting this for the benefit of our distant cousins on the BSN. If you understand the meaning of my story, you will know what needs to be done.

 

[CrustyBot]

Wanna bet EA uses that line to market the reaper romance DLC?

 

[Menckenstein]

Did they have to melt down tens of thousands of children to make those babies?

 

[DragoFireheart]

Did they have to melt down tens of thousands of children to make those babies?

Considering that it's EA, no. Babies would be too expensive. They used their workers in China instead.

 

[sgc_meltdown]

"In my defense, that caucasian gentleman was harboring a prominent erection."

 

[Sceptic]

Prosarian seems to be the exact type of BSNer that would be fun to get into a discussion actually. He'd fit right in with the more serious threads and most of the Playground, which are free of the constant swearing.

Anyway I'd like to point out not all of us throw insults all the time. I think I rarely throw out fucks and the like, and I'm fairly moderate with the slurs, closest thing I get to is faggot aimed at Jaesun, but considering he's in the top 10 BROlist it's more an affectionate slur than anything else. And the fact he's a mod here and one of the more monocled contributors says more about this prestigious magazine's views on gays than our throwing the word shitfaggot around.

Regarding the MP, it is indeed the best thing to come out of Mass Effect (entire franchise). Didn't know there was a Codex ME3 MP team, is there a thread where they're congregating?

 

[Ulminati]

Regarding the MP, it is indeed the best thing to come out of Mass Effect (entire franchise). Didn't know there was a Codex ME3 MP team, is there a thread where they're congregating?

They're all on steam in the Codex Diversity Squad group. I guess they figure of you're gonna take it up the ass form EA you may as well from steam too.

 

[Bruticis]

Regarding the MP, it is indeed the best thing to come out of Mass Effect (entire franchise). Didn't know there was a Codex ME3 MP team, is there a thread where they're congregating?

They're all on steam in the Codex Diversity Squad group. I guess they figure of you're gonna take it up the ass form EA you may as well from steam too.

We've moved on from ME3 MP, at the time it was the best thing since sliced bread. We've found a new style of bread this week, Sacred 2.

 

[sgc_meltdown]

Sacred 2.

I bet everyone loves the ingame concert

 

[Bruticis]

Germans can not into metal. Lyrics now stuck in my head, thank you very much....
We shall stand together
One by one
This world is sacred..............

 

[Jaesun]

Anyway I'd like to point out not all of us throw insults all the time. I think I rarely throw out fucks and the like, and I'm fairly moderate with the slurs, closest thing I get to is faggot aimed at Jaesun, but considering he's in the top 10 BROlist it's more an affectionate slur than anything else. And the fact he's a mod here and one of the more monocled contributors says more about this prestigious magazine's views on gays than our throwing the word shitfaggot around.

ALL of my friends call me faggot. I insist on it.

 

[Ulminati]

Regarding the MP, it is indeed the best thing to come out of Mass Effect (entire franchise). Didn't know there was a Codex ME3 MP team, is there a thread where they're congregating?

They're all on steam in the Codex Diversity Squad group. I guess they figure of you're gonna take it up the ass form EA you may as well from steam too.

We've moved on from ME3 MP, at the time it was the best thing since sliced bread. We've found a new style of bread this week, Sacred 2.

how long before bioware begins sending you emails like they did with TOR?
"Your waifus miss you. Resubscribe and get a crate!"

 

[Oriebam]

Anyway I'd like to point out not all of us throw insults all the time. I think I rarely throw out fucks and the like, and I'm fairly moderate with the slurs, closest thing I get to is faggot aimed at Jaesun, but considering he's in the top 10 BROlist it's more an affectionate slur than anything else. And the fact he's a mod here and one of the more monocled contributors says more about this prestigious magazine's views on gays than our throwing the word shitfaggot around.

ALL of my friends call me faggot. I insist on it.

what kinds of slurs do you find offensive?

 

[hiver]

Hows the battle of dimwits going? Whos winning?

 

[MasterMire]

Excellent review. I agree that the stuff around the genophage and quarians vs. geth remains the most compelling parts of the whole trilogy. I agree that ME3 actually reached for some real reactivity among all the usual short cuts, and that's great. I'd love to see more ambition in that direction from BioWare. And all that said, I think that ME3 was definitely rushed. The stripped dialogue options, basing most of your in-game actions on raising a number that had nothing to do with how the game ended at all, the sudden thematic shift to "synthetics and organics cannot live in peace" even though you arguably already fixed that problem already, the ending in general, etc, etc. I had a fun time with it, and I wouldn't say the series was a waste. But I seriously wasn't expecting anything more than a fun, reasonably engaging playthrough where I could happily ignore the holes. The ending was like hitting a brick wall transplanted from another game.

 

[SCO]

just ignore whoever you hate

 

[Ulminati]

I gathered that it was sarcasm from them, it was more your post I was confused about, in my half-asleep state. Thanks for the clarification.

I guess I just have to disagree that their assessment is unfair. Sure, only Walters called it 'hard sci fi', but he was the lead writer, and it's not like anyone in the Bio camp said "uh... no, no it isn't". That sort of thing coming from the lead writer is a claim from the developers. Short of every Bioware employee calling it hard sci fi, I don't really see what more you could ask for before someone's allowed to call them out on it.

When looking for a post-04 game, once you read the words 'Gold Boxes', you can skip reading the individual names. KotC is on the 3rd row. Anyway, a site devoted to cRPGs, which are few and far between as it is, especially in their classic form, is obviously going to have a lot of old games on its list of favourites, so I don't see what the relevance of pre vs post 04 games is. Not to mention the fact that the list was compiled by one individual, and most people on the site seem to have their own likes and dislikes. Also, as I pointed out, 70.5% of people there seem to highly approve of a game that came out last year. I doubt it's the only one.

Looks like a pretty good RPG forum to me, just less heavily censored than most, with all the pros and cons that entails. It also seems more focused on the classic style of RPG, which I consider a massive plus. I've always considered ME to be more 'choose your own adventure with guns' than RPG anyway. The Playground subforums in particular seem very entertaining, and I'll probably end up registering there, if only to lurk.

I notice some of the users that joined us today/yesterday seem very similar to people who posted in the bioboards thread. If they're all willing to behave this rationally (and don't get butthurt when we call them fags. 'Cause everyone gets called fag around here ), I for one welcome our new BioBROs.

The bioboard thread also has me eagerly awaiting the inevitable Phaedon/Volourn slashfic one of the local deviants will cook up.