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Mass Effect 3 Review

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Few games can compare to the experience offered by the Mass Effect universe. When I played the original game back in 2007, I couldn’t help feeling blown away by the scope of the game. Never before had I played a game that had constructed a literal universe filled with hundreds of planets players could visit, filled with random enemies and encounters. The story it told was a science-fiction epic where players were able to shape the narrative by the choices they made. Not only that, as the story continued into the second game, players could continue to see the consequences of their choices as the story unfolded. Mass Effect 3 promised an end to this journey that would be shaped by the many choices players made had over the course of the series.

The Mass Effect franchise tells the story of Commander Shepard, a human hero tasked with saving the galaxy from the brink of oblivion. Every 50,000 years, the Reapers, an army of sentient starships returns to the galaxy to wipe out all advanced life. For two games, Shepard has been trying to warn the various races that inhabit the galaxy of this inevitable threat; and for two games, he has been more or less ignored. However, this all changes when the Reapers finally arrive and begin their relentless attack. Unfortunately, the galaxy is simply unprepared to fight against this superior adversary. This problem is only compounded by the fact that the various species refuse to cooperate and instead focus their attention on defending their own borders. Shepard is tasked with uniting these divided forces into a single army to stand together against the Reaper menace. As Shepard travels the galaxy aboard his ship, the Normandy, and attempts to unite the galaxy, he strives to solve the various problems plaguing the galaxy that keep the various races from cooperating. Numerous characters and conflicts from the previous games come together to tell the final chapter of Shepard’s story to save the galaxy.

The Mass Effect experience has been more than just progressing through a predetermined story. Rather, BioWare has constantly stressed how these games offer the opportunity for players to tell their own story. The games are ripe with decisions where players must decide between the paragon (good) or renegade (evil) response. One of the most shocking things about going from Mass Effect 1 to Mass Effect 2 (and then to Mass Effect 3) was that your choices carried over across these three games. That means that if you let a character live in the first game, they could come back to play a role in your final fight against the Reapers. And while the game certainly doesn’t offer the same level of freedom as games like Skyrim or Fallout, the specific decisions each player makes are crucial in shaping their individual narrative. Did Shepard manage to calm Wrex down on Virmire or was he killed? Who died to save the team, Ashley or Kaiden? Was Tali exiled from the fleet, or did Shepard convince the admirals of her loyalty? Did Shepard succeed in winning the loyalty of all his crew members over the course of his journey? Was the Human-Reaper destroyed in the end, or was it given to Cerberus to research? All these choices shape the universe that Shepard is trying to save in Mass Effect 3 and affect the eventual outcome of the war. Having played through the game twice (initially as a new game due to not being able to import my Shepard correctly and later with all my choices intact), I can confidently say that the game is a much better experience with the consequences of the previous game.

Now, before I continue, there’s one important element that needs to be addressed. The Mass Effect games have allowed players to make thousands of choices which have carried over through all three games. One of the biggest criticisms against Mass Effect 3 is that the majority of those choices were essentially translated into a math formula to determine how ready the galaxy is for the approaching conflict. While it is far from perfect, I would argue that this approach is a brutish but effective solution to a complicated problem. The galactic readiness showed how the various choices made throughout the franchise added up and contributed to the final battle. Is there a better way? Maybe, but not one that I can think of that would have easily translated to a video game. After all, would it have been better if the game didn’t provide some gauge as to how ready the galaxy was and players had to guess at the impact of their decisions?

Mass Effect 3 (like its predecessors) is a cross between a third-person shooter and an RPG. However, Mass Effect 3 resembles its shooter parentage more closely than its RPG roots. Similar to Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2, the action of Mass Effect 3 takes the form of a cover-based shooter. As players complete objectives, solve citizens’ problems, and explore the galaxy, they are rewarded with experience which can be used to unlock abilities for Shepard and his crew. The game offers far greater options and more choices in how to customize these abilities than Mass Effect 2, but definitely fewer than Mass Effect 1. Thankfully, Mass Effect 3 throws thermal clips (the Mass Effect universe’s version of ammo) at Shepard in far greater quantities than Mass Effect 2. As someone who relied heavily on sniper rifles, I can confidently say that I rarely had to worry about running out of ammo and switching weapons. At the same time, the sheer number of enemies and durability of some enemies puts pressure on players to make every shot count. Another improvement over Mass Effect 2 is the variability of weapon choices. Shepard is able to equip all five types of weapons and players can choose from five to six of each type. These weapons can then be customized with two add-ons with varying perks. The armor customization of Mass Effect 2 is also expanded upon. Players are able to choose the various pieces of Shepard’s armor, each one offering different benefits for different play-styles. All these options and flexibility definitely come in handy as the action feels faster and more challenging than the previous games. It becomes very easy to become overrun by enemies relying on powers and numbers. Like the previous games, players can interrupt battles to change weapons, use powers, and direct their squad-mates -- all of which become more of a requisite as the Reapers throw more advanced enemies at Shepard.

Mass Effect 3 also introduces a new multiplayer feature to the franchise. Players are able to choose from the various races encountered throughout the story and engage in online cooperative matches against waves of enemies to bolster the forces of the universe. The different races and character classes all come with different abilities and weapon choices. The ability to freeze the action to select weapons or powers is removed and replaced by mapping everything to different buttons. During the matches, players must work together to fight off waves of enemies and occasionally to complete specific objectives like hacking terminals. Players are rewarded based on their performance with experience and money which can be used to unlock new characters, weapons, and abilities. Winning matches increases the readiness of the various sectors of the galaxy which increases the likelihood of winning the final battle against the Reapers. Admittedly, this multiplayer does not have a lot of depth. Since players are essentially repeatedly fighting against waves of AI, there aren’t a lot of new tactics or strategies that players need to consider going into the matches. Still, it adds an element to the game that makes players feel that even more connected to the universe and the struggle to save it.

Now, a number of people have complained that the end of the game did not do enough to carry the weight of all those choices. While it’s true that the conclusion doesn’t lay out the fate of every character you’ve saved or every decision you’ve made, I would argue that the journey to the conclusion does. While I was disappointed when I first realized that many of the characters who traveled with Shepard throughout his journey would not be joining him, almost all those characters were given a sense of closure as they rallied around Shepard as he prepared for the final battle against the Reapers. Would I have liked if the squad had included more than a half-dozen characters -- of course. But, as I progressed through the game I was able to get the feeling that all those characters that couldn’t join Shepard on the Normandy were taking the lessons they had learned there, and carrying them throughout the galaxy to help Shepard’s fight. Seeing Jack teaching biotic children, Wrex leading the Krogan species, Jacob protecting refugees, and all the other characters helped show the ripple caused by Shepard’s journeys.

Those of you who follow this blog have noticed that I have occasionally taken jabs at the Mass Effect universe. That’s not to say I’m not a fan. Personally, I consider the Mass Effect franchise as one of the most impressive and detailed out there. Do I recommend Mass Effect 3? Well, that depends on whether you have played the previous two games (or Mass Effect 2 and the interactive comic if you’re playing on the PS3). More so than other games, I can’t imagine stepping into the Mass Effect franchise at the end and having anywhere near the same experience as someone who has played all three games. On the Normandy, there is a memorial board full of the names of crew members who have died in the previous games. When I initially played the game, seeing the memorial board full of names that I had saved made me feel like it wasn’t my Shepard, my universe, or my adventure. My second time through, I definitely felt more attached to the characters, the story, and the consequences of my decisions. I will admit that this is partially due to the fact that I knew there was another alternative out there, but honestly, I believe everyone’s experience in Mass Effect 3 will be far more complete after playing the previous two games. Does the game have its flaws? Of course it does. But, those flaws do not take away from the amazing story that BioWare has told over three fantastic games. And if you’re one of those people who must know what happened to every character, just wait till the DLC epilogue is released sometime this summer.

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“Go out there and give them hell. You were born to do this, Shepard”

All images owned by BioWare.

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