I finished Mass Effect 3 a few days ago, and it's taken me this long to make my thoughts coherent enough to put to paper. It's taken me some time, but I've finally completed the 5 stages of grieving - not really over the conclusion of this story, but the ending.

I'd like to start that 99% of the game is a BLAST! I really enjoyed ME2, and the combat in ME3 is similar but improved. I liked that, as a soldier, you can carry any and as many types of weapons as you wish, but with the power cooldown bonus there's encouragement to reduce your inventory. While it may seem weird that your previous friends and squadmates just happen to be where you have to go, I really liked how the story flowed. The story covered a lot of people, and I think BioWare did an excellent job with bringing together all the species' treads. There were even moments when I teared up. I had really high expectations going into this game, and for 99.9% of the time ME3 met or exceeded my expectations. Considering what the ending turned into, my expectations may have been unfair to the game. Also, I'm glad I was able to bang a different chick in each game - awesome.

Before I drop into the ending, I'd like to take a second and go over a couple things - ground rules, if you will.

1) I do NOT believe that BioWare sold out to EA or some other ridiculous shit.

2) I am NOT insisting on a new ending as DLC - it's BioWare's creation, they can do what they want to it. I can also have the opinion that that ending was not anywhere near what I was expecting.

3) I am NOT upset about the fact that Shepard dies (usually) - I was expecting that, no matter the choices I had made or how good/evil I was, Shepard was probably gonna die. I could live with that.

Now for the ending. I arrived at the end of the journey late on Wednesday night (yeah, I kinda poop-socked it - but that goes to show how the rest of the game was! I was sucked in all the way through the game!), and perhaps exhaustion or alcohol was twisting my opinions and feelings, but I think I felt... unfulfilled. I know when I went to bed that night I really didn't sleep well, and the ending bothered me for most of the next day. It took a while, but I think I've finally figured out what my problem is. It's the fact that, no matter what you do, one of the central tenants of the ME universe (the mass relays) WILL BE GONE. Usually, at the end of a story arc (trilogy, series, whatever) there is a definite endpoint for a character (death, defeat, victory, etc) but the setting remains the same - at least similar enough to create new story threads within the same universe. However, with this conclusion, BioWare has made it so that, WHEN (not if) a new game is made, they could reuse some of the characters but the setting will be so different that it could be unrecognizable.

Then again, even as I typed this out, my feelings continued to evolve - I think the ending is just taking a little time to sink in. Or I'm becoming indoctrinated.

I finished Mass Effect 3 a few days ago, and it's taken me this long to make my thoughts coherent enough to put to paper. It's taken me some time, but I've finally completed the 5 stages of grieving - not really over the conclusion of this story, but the ending.

I'd like to start that 99% of the game is a BLAST! I really enjoyed ME2, and the combat in ME3 is similar but improved. I liked that, as a soldier, you can carry any and as many types of weapons as you wish, but with the power cooldown bonus there's encouragement to reduce your inventory. While it may seem weird that your previous friends and squadmates just happen to be where you have to go, I really liked how the story flowed. The story covered a lot of people, and I think BioWare did an excellent job with bringing together all the species' treads. There were even moments when I teared up. I had really high expectations going into this game, and for 99.9% of the time ME3 met or exceeded my expectations. Considering what the ending turned into, my expectations may have been unfair to the game. Also, I'm glad I was able to bang a different chick in each game - awesome.

Before I drop into the ending, I'd like to take a second and go over a couple things - ground rules, if you will.

1) I do NOT believe that BioWare sold out to EA or some other ridiculous shit.

2) I am NOT insisting on a new ending as DLC - it's BioWare's creation, they can do what they want to it. I can also have the opinion that that ending was not anywhere near what I was expecting.

3) I am NOT upset about the fact that Shepard dies (usually) - I was expecting that, no matter the choices I had made or how good/evil I was, Shepard was probably gonna die. I could live with that.

Now for the ending. I arrived at the end of the journey late on Wednesday night (yeah, I kinda poop-socked it - but that goes to show how the rest of the game was! I was sucked in all the way through the game!), and perhaps exhaustion or alcohol was twisting my opinions and feelings, but I think I felt... unfulfilled. I know when I went to bed that night I really didn't sleep well, and the ending bothered me for most of the next day. It took a while, but I think I've finally figured out what my problem is. It's the fact that, no matter what you do, one of the central tenants of the ME universe (the mass relays) WILL BE GONE. Usually, at the end of a story arc (trilogy, series, whatever) there is a definite endpoint for a character (death, defeat, victory, etc) but the setting remains the same - at least similar enough to create new story threads within the same universe. However, with this conclusion, BioWare has made it so that, WHEN (not if) a new game is made, they could reuse some of the characters but the setting will be so different that it could be unrecognizable.

Then again, even as I typed this out, my feelings continued to evolve - I think the ending is just taking a little time to sink in. Or I'm becoming indoctrinated.

I keep thinking to myself that Mass Effect 3 is the best game I've ever played. I enjoyed the combat and I teared up at a few parts. No game has made me have so much fun and be so emotionally invested at the same time. But mad did that ending suck up a lot of my goodwill towards it.

Amen, Captain. The anger and vitriol at the ending(s) has to be amplified by the fact that a lot of fans have been invested in this story for 5 years. So many different branches and scenarios, to have it all end up as a "pallet swap" is... heartbreaking. The things that are common amongst the endings are all things that I wish I could change - I don't want the mass relays destroyed, and I don't want my crew (probably) isolated on an uncharted world. I wanted to make my own sacrifice in order to preserve the known galaxy.

Be that as it may, I've definitely moved into the acceptance phase. I will be starting a NG+ sometime today. I was definitely off (physically and mentally) the day after playing through the ending, though.

First off, let me say that I was feeling very similar. 99% of this game is wonderful and to me easily the best of the series. The ending though, was not fulfilling at all.

This installment has a very unique atmosphere in the series. Everything is falling apart around us and the times are desperate, so in light of this the Normandy crew, now more than ever, has to stick together and bare through all the shit that happens to them and their friends. By the end of the game I've found myself not really caring about the purpose of the Reapers, where do they come from, what do they want. I just wanted to end them. The game perfectly sets up a very personal ending, one that focuses on Shepard and her crew. The banter aboard the Normandy has gotten better, everything seems livelier. I really liked some of the conversations between some of the crew members, such as when Garrus and James are comparing their achivements. There were some really emotional and moving moments: I loved when Shepard and Kolyat says goodbye to Thane, I loved Liara's little time capsule project, I loved how Garrus and Shepard just goes off to shoot at bottles. I could go on and on, the game was filled with these very awesome and personal moments. It also perfectly communicated that Shepard is getting worn down, as Joker mentions she is stressing out, she has nightmares and she outright says that she is getting tired.

After all this, the ending just does not deliver. We don't get closure about the crew and none of the last choices for Shepard are really fitting an end. When I saw Shepard and Anderson sitting side by side watching that awe inspiring view of Earth and the total war, my first thought was that this is it, this is the perfect moment for Shepard to die as a simple soldier who she always considered herself. She did her job, her duty, let her last glance be of the Reapers getting torn apart by the Crucible, before laying down to rest. After that I would've liked to see a little epilogue that summarizes what happens to everyone else, maybe show Liara with our little blue babies :)

I cared for none of the bullshit that really followed though, those choices I've been given would fit the Illusive Man much more than my paragon Shepard and I honestly wished they would've just kept the Reapers' purpose a mystery. It's not like we can even comprehend them and their motivation, Sovereign said just as much.

I loved the game, best story arch for a trilogy in games period. But the true ending seems just arbitrary and comes out of nowhere. For me all I wanted was for the Reapers to be destroyed and for the universe (mass relays, the turins, asari, humans, salarians, etc.) to still be there. If Shepard died, my crew died, hell even if everything in the vicinity of the battle was destroyed I would be okay. And I definitely did not like the post credits moment, it basically said everything you did in the 3 games was irrelevant.

@Jay_Ray said:

And I definitely did not like the post credits moment, it basically said everything you did in the 3 games was irrelevant.

Nah, it was just there so the upcoming DLCs would be set up as those are usually 'just another tales of the Shepard'.

@nilcalion: If it was just for DLC it was not necessary. A message stating we took you back to before the Cerberus base mission, DLC will be available from here would have been enough. I took it as an easy excuse to use Shepard again in a future game that does not contain any of the current Mass Effect fiction (the story and characters of this trilogy) but lets them use the basic universe (ie mass effect relays, alien species) in future games.

I guess I wanted a Halo 3 style ending where the current universe still exists and the conflict is resolved.

What is 'poop-socking'?

I think I'd rather not know actually.

My biggest problem with the ending(s) is that they render the supposedly important decisions and sacrifices you had to make to get there in the first place pointless. You put spoiler in the thread title, so I'm going to speak freely about story elements.

Take the Quarian/Geth conflict for example. You can side with either the Geth, side with the Quarians, or broker peace between them if you meet certain requirements. The "best" ending (the one in which the Reapers are destroyed and Shepard survies), however, makes two of those three choices a complete waste. Why bother siding with the Geth if you choose the destroy ending which wipes them out anyway? Why bother negotiating peace if you're going to eliminate them in the end? You might have well have just sided with the Quarians the entire time. And I know some people will point out that at the time you're unaware of what the consequences of the final decision will be, but BioWare wasn't. They knew full well what the endgame options were and what the ramifications would be.

What's the point in deciding to cure the genophage if the Mass Relays are destroyed? With no way to expand their civilization and with the ability to breed at their old levels the Krogans will in all likelihood succumb to overpopulation and the worldwide wars that destroyed their planet in the first place. Nice going, you just set them back several thousand years.

I'm not even going to get into the full-retard logic of "We created synthetics to kill organics so that organics don't create synthetics that will kill organics". They should have stuck with the dark energy stuff they hinted at in ME2.

@familyphotoshoot said:

I'm not even going to get into the full-retard logic of "We created synthetics to kill organics so that organics don't create synthetics that will kill organics". They should have stuck with the dark energy stuff they hinted at in ME2.

Especially considering how EDI and the geth are 2 huge counter examples to that logic. Yeah man it sucks especially considering that up until that point the game was fucking amazing.

@familyphotoshoot: Everything I've read so far about the Dark Energy ending is bullshit as well. I mean look back to what Sovereign said on Virmire. He didn't sound like his time was limited and that they are trying to solve some problems about the universe/galaxy. He states that they are eternal and that their purpose is incomprehensible to us organics. He was fully confidential that they are going to keep reaping organic races a billion years from now on. It just doesn't fit.

They also mention that in the 'original ending' the usage of the Mass Relays cause Dark Energy emission which in turn causes the stars to age faster than they are supposed to (Haestrom's sun in ME2). But in this case why the hell keep the Mass Relays intact for the last who knows how many million years?

@nilcalion said:

@familyphotoshoot: Everything I've read so far about the Dark Energy ending is bullshit as well. I mean look back to what Sovereign said on Virmire. He didn't sound like his time was limited and that they are trying to solve some problems about the universe/galaxy. He states that they are eternal and that their purpose is incomprehensible to us organics.

Exactly! The motives of the Reapers should have never been explained because it "was" completely incomprehensible. It should have been left that way.

I agree with the OP. I loved pretty much every part of the game. Bioware went all out on just about everything: huge and impressive cutscenes (really, really impressed by them), great quests, great dialogue and a great story. I expected Shepard to die, but was still a bit disappointed by it. I would've loved to see him settling down with Tali. Also, at times I got tired of killing enemies. I know it's an all out war, but killing wave after wave of the same enemies got tiring after a while. That ending though, it really ruined all of that. The fact that it doesn't really make sense is one of my major gripes with it, but that it was so unfulfilling was even worse. I wanted... I don't know, more. Closure of some kind. I've been with Joker, Tali, Garrus and Liara since the beginning, and seeing them walk out of the Normandy (well, 3 of them) and then rolling the credits just wasn't enough.

@rebgav: Not just mentioned, but it actually happens in the Arrival DLC. Shepad effectively destroys a whole Batarian system.