Brad Thinks He Knows the Ending to Mass Effect 3

@Dethfish said:

I liked the ending to Mass Effect 3 and think people are fucking insane for giving it as much shit as they do. It's certainly not perfect, but come on now. People act as if Bioware really did pull the old "it was a dream the whole time" trick.

A matter of suspension of disbelief. You have it from the audience, you can do no wrong. Once you lose it, regardless of what caused it or how well you were doing till that point, they will nitpick the shit out of your work. Glad it worked for you, but it only began to work for me once I could reject the end choice (ie extended ending). Not that I chose that, only that it needed to be an option. Choice or its illusion was what got me into that universe.

Frankly my dissatisfaction with ME started when I was railroaded on Horizon into making stupid arguments to ensure the Virmire survivor wouldn't be on my crew. I can deal with the Council never believing me, because even the ultimate badass can't just persuade everyone, but I'd think that person of ALL beings other than a love interest would believe Shep's word. Even a Frankenstein's monster version of Shep clearly brainwashed to work for the blatantly evil Cerberus. Heck for that very reason they'd join to either rescue me (either in the literal or double tap sense) or keep just to keep tabs.

@Toug said:

@vikingdeath1 said:

I'm trying to think what about the Thessia mission could have triggered this..... or maybe it had Nothing to do with his sudden realization..... what about brad showering could have triggered this.....

Everyone think about Brad showering and put it in an envelope.

I think we can all agree on the parallels between the ending of ME3 and wet, soapy, flaccid dong

I still don't think that the ending can be anywhere near as bad as Brad is expecting it to be. The way that people have treated it, you'd think that it kill everyone's puppy, took their first born, and then gave them cancer.

Is the ending good? Nope. Is it anywhere near as bad as people make it out to be? Hell no.

That said I'm curious to see what Brad thinks the ending is, should be pretty funny.

@kerse said:

@Colourful_Hippie said:

@smcn said:

@Colourful_Hippie said:

@Mystyr_E said:

QUESTION! Is he playing with the horrible POS abomination that is the original endings or the band-aid on a cut-off finger that is the Extended cut?

Original cuz he wants to know what the fuss is all about and experience it like how everyone else did when it came out.

He explicitly stated on the Bombcast that he is playing with EC.

Where'd he say that cuz he was talking about going vanilla shortly before starting the game?

In a more recent bombcast he said he was just gonna go with it instead, the bombcasts before that he was saying he wanted to see the original ending. But from what I know the ending is still the same, it just tries to explain it better. Haven't done the EC one myself yet.

Also I'm super curious to see how close/far he was lol.

Damn, I really wanted Brad to be hit with the full force of the original ending :<

@zombiesatemycereal said:

@smcn: 13 times? What the fuck? I liked it a decent amount but twice was enough for me.

I liked the combat a lot, so I played through with each class at least once. Of course that doesn't explain the other 7 times, or why I never skipped any dialogue or cutscenes...

The little crap like this that they do and post on the internet is awesome. Now I am super interested and can't wait until Brad finally finishes!

@smcn said:

@kerse: There is actually quite a bit added in the EC.

SPOILER WARNING: Click here to reveal hidden content.

- An added scene during the "run to the beam" that shows your squad mates leaving (a must to have your LI along for this part)

- After you enter the beam, a scene with Hackett receiving a report that Shepard and Anderson made it to the beam.

- A lot of extra dialogue with the Catalyst.

- An option to not use the Crucible.

- After making your choice, there is an additional scene aboard the Normandy with Hackett giving the order to retreat through the Charon relay. The Normandy still crashes on the nameless planet but isn't as badly damaged.

- Quite a long "epilogue" with a voiceover depending on what choice you made (and in the case of the Control ending, your alignment score) accompanied by a slideshow of the state of the galaxy and certain characters. After the epilogue, the Normandy takes off from the nameless planet, roll credits.

- Unfortunately, the Stargazer bit after the credits is still there -- the one problem I had with the ending.

I'd say it's worth playing through again to see, but then again I played through the entire game 13 times and it's my GOTY. YMMV.

Yeah I've been meaning to play it, but I was thinking of waiting for all the dlc and just playing through the whole thing a second time.

And 13 times damn, I don't think I've played my favorite games of all time through that many times besides FF7, but that games been out for like 15 years lol.

Why ISN'T Brad playing final hours of ME3 a livestream? Or even an after the fact video? If this doesn't happen then it will be a gravely missed opportunity.

I bet if they livestreamed him finishing the game Brad's reaction would just be "So this is what set the entire internet on fire?"

@KoolAid: That is EXACTLY what I think Brad wrote down.

@K9 said:

Why ISN'T Brad playing final hours of ME3 a livestream? Or even an after the fact video? If this doesn't happen then it will be a gravely missed opportunity.

This, a thousand times this. Please @patrickklepek make sure this happens.

One does not simply guess the ending to ME3.

The ending suck SOOOOO bad...but to be fair, I haven't seen the extended cut. From what I hear they changed, they didn't fix the main problems. I can't recall if this video also calls bullcrap on the Indoctrination Theory for being fans just reaching for something...anything better than the steaming pile of garbage we got.

@Brad I would suggest you watch this video after finishing it. It's the most well thought-out and tasteful of the videos I've seen and stays away from hyperbole.

Okay, I have an idea what Brad thinks the ending might be. I'm going to write it down and put it inside this envelope, to be opened when Brad's envelope is opened.

Anyone wants to make a prediction on what I wrote can do so, just make sure you have an envelope nearby.

Sheperd is future Desmond in the Animus.

Shepard wakes up in the Animus.

... What, that's what they put in the Extended Cut, right?

@Mento said:

Okay, I have an idea what Brad thinks the ending might be. I'm going to write it down and put it inside this envelope, to be opened when Brad's envelope is opened.

Anyone wants to make a prediction on what I wrote can do so, just make sure you have an envelope nearby.

So... If I want to make a prediction on your prediction, I just... write it down and put it in an envelope which is only to be opened when you open your envelope when Brad's envelope is opened?

I think I know the ending to Mass Effect 3, and I haven't even played it.

brad's got it, i can feel it.

Mass Effect 3 was a great game. And the ending wasn't as bad as everyone made it out to be, especially after the extended cut fixed most of my major gripes with it. Except for one.

The ending brings a finality to Shepard's story, which is fine, and to be expected. But it also brings an unnecessary and universe changing finality to the entire setting - which was one of my favorite sci-fi settings in quite a while.

I hope they can somehow keep going forward in any case, because going back to times before ME1 in the mass effect universe, while potentially worthwhile, doesn't interest me at all.

i still haven't played the extended cut even though ive finished it twice now

@Rabid619 said:

I still don't think that the ending can be anywhere near as bad as Brad is expecting it to be. The way that people have treated it, you'd think that it kill everyone's puppy, took their first born, and then gave them cancer.

Is the ending good? Nope. Is it anywhere near as bad as people make it out to be? Hell no.

That said I'm curious to see what Brad thinks the ending is, should be pretty funny.

I fully expect an, "It wasn't that bad.. but it wasn't great" type reaction from Brad.

@Kohlstream said:

They should livestream Brad experiencing the ending just to have his reaction on film.

Oh god, please do this!

He can't know can he? The whole reason I didn't like it was because it comes out of nowhere and introduces a bunch of nonsense to force you into a stupid choice.

No single sentence could sum up the paragraphs of different reasons why so many people hated the ending.

This site needs more sealed envelope antics.

It's like Brad's telling Vinny that he can't open his presents until Christmas.

@OneManX said:

@Rabid619 said:

I still don't think that the ending can be anywhere near as bad as Brad is expecting it to be. The way that people have treated it, you'd think that it kill everyone's puppy, took their first born, and then gave them cancer.

Is the ending good? Nope. Is it anywhere near as bad as people make it out to be? Hell no.

That said I'm curious to see what Brad thinks the ending is, should be pretty funny.

I fully expect an, "It wasn't that bad.. but it wasn't great" type reaction from Brad.

Yeah. People shit all over that ending. It was just kind of disappointing, it wasn't that bad.

Assassins Creed 3's ending is the one everyone should be attacking and shitting all over, but we hear nothing!

I almost don't want Brad to finish it, so he can forever live in a world where ME3 wasn't a breathtaking disappointment.

I still think the original ending to ME3 is just fine ha

Love VInny's background comment!

"What?! A week? I don't want to wait that long *sadface*"

I don't think there is a fucking chance.

Brad, it's not what you think it is. I don't really think anything in that game prepares you for the actual ending, because the ending kind of comes out of left field.

Brad's beard is incredible.

@Graham_Nix said:

@kerse said:

@Colourful_Hippie said:

@smcn said:

@Colourful_Hippie said:

@Mystyr_E said:

QUESTION! Is he playing with the horrible POS abomination that is the original endings or the band-aid on a cut-off finger that is the Extended cut?

Original cuz he wants to know what the fuss is all about and experience it like how everyone else did when it came out.

He explicitly stated on the Bombcast that he is playing with EC.

Where'd he say that cuz he was talking about going vanilla shortly before starting the game?

In a more recent bombcast he said he was just gonna go with it instead, the bombcasts before that he was saying he wanted to see the original ending. But from what I know the ending is still the same, it just tries to explain it better. Haven't done the EC one myself yet.

Also I'm super curious to see how close/far he was lol.

Damn, I really wanted Brad to be hit with the full force of the original ending :<

Lame, yeah same here but at the same time it would be interesting to have another perspective from someone who experienced the EC completely fresh. I don't care about having Brad be more favorable towards the game because of it but just that it will be a different point of view.

Oh and if anyone is thinking that the only issue with that game is the ending then they are crazy. Mass Effect 2 was a better game in almost every way. (ME 3 only plays better than 2)

Love the Ezio statue, by the way. I'd totally get one of those. Are they available for sale?

@Pixeldemon said:

@Kohlstream said:

They should livestream Brad experiencing the ending just to have his reaction on film.

Oh god, please do this!

This is the best idea any comment has ever had.

This video is great

@Colourful_Hippie said:

@Graham_Nix said:

@kerse said:

@Colourful_Hippie said:

@smcn said:

@Colourful_Hippie said:

@Mystyr_E said:

QUESTION! Is he playing with the horrible POS abomination that is the original endings or the band-aid on a cut-off finger that is the Extended cut?

Original cuz he wants to know what the fuss is all about and experience it like how everyone else did when it came out.

He explicitly stated on the Bombcast that he is playing with EC.

Where'd he say that cuz he was talking about going vanilla shortly before starting the game?

In a more recent bombcast he said he was just gonna go with it instead, the bombcasts before that he was saying he wanted to see the original ending. But from what I know the ending is still the same, it just tries to explain it better. Haven't done the EC one myself yet.

Also I'm super curious to see how close/far he was lol.

Damn, I really wanted Brad to be hit with the full force of the original ending :<

Lame, yeah same here but at the same time it would be interesting to have another perspective from someone who experienced the EC completely fresh. I don't care about having Brad be more favorable towards the game because of it but just that it will be a different point of view.

Oh and if anyone is thinking that the only issue with that game is the ending then they are crazy. Mass Effect 2 was a better game in almost every way. (ME 3 only plays better than 2)

agree here, from sidequests to the weird cameos (Chobot's flat VA, James "i'm a meathead from Jersey Shore" Vega), Tali's photoshopped face...........bah I can't think of that game and not think of all the areas where they dropped the ball

@Kohlstream: This has to happen!!!!!!!

Man I gotta say this past year has made me love Brad even more. He has always played the vital "straight man"/audience member to Jeff and Ryan's antics but now that he's bringing more of himself into the site's content, I can't say I'm any less than thrilled.

I'm calling it right now, 2012's Brad Of The Year is Shoemaker (last year's winner being Muir).

@BaconGames said:

Man I gotta say this past year has made me love Brad even more. He has always played the vital "straight man"/audience member to Jeff and Ryan's antics but now that he's bringing more of himself into the site's content, I can't say I'm any less than thrilled.

I'm calling it right now, 2012's Brad Of The Year is Shoemaker (last year's winner being Muir).

I'm OG Brad, all you kids and your rap music and your Brad 2012 malarky... I tell ya.

@MrMazz said:

I still think the original ending to ME3 is just fine ha

I much prefer the original ending to the neutered horseshit that is the extended cut. Say what you will about the original ending, that shit was bold. The Extended Cut doesn't even have that going for it.

This is a great idea.

@Tennmuerti said:

No single sentence could sum up the paragraphs of different reasons why so many people hated the ending.

Well, it could be one hell of a run-on sentence.

@Kevin_Cogneto said:

@MrMazz said:

I still think the original ending to ME3 is just fine ha

I much prefer the original ending to the neutered horseshit that is the extended cut. Say what you will about the original ending, that shit was bold. The Extended Cut doesn't even have that going for it.

Oh yeah, reskinning the same cutscene 3 times sure was bold.

I bet he wrote "Brad dies" because that happens in every game.