I know there are threads about favorite Love Interests and squad-mates in the Mass Effect games, but I am curious to see how people went with their LIs across the trilogy. Did you stick with the one all the way through? Did you accidentally get into a relationship/cheat? Or did you keep your focus on saving the universe, with only a copy of Fornax (just for the articles, obviously)?

How things played out for my, male, Commander S:

Mass Effect 1: Hooked up with Liara - Playing the game a fair while after it's launch I knew of the Liara/Ashley option, and knew I would be going the blue route pretty early on. Eagerly sacrificing Ash on Virmire cemented my decision.

Mass Effect 2: Swapped to Miranda - Something about this character clicked with me early on, so I stayed paragon where given the option and before I knew it we were classilly making out in the middle of engineering...

Mass Effect 3: Moved on the Kaidan - When asked about how things were by both Liara and Miranda, at different stages in the game, I quickly told the first that we "should just be friends" and aimed to keep going with the ex-Cerberus broad. Then went down the Kaidan route when it turned out that he was a lot less cranky than he first seemed in ME2...

So there you go. A different option for each game doesn't seem quite as dirty when you think of the amount of time that is meant to have passed between each... or that's how I am justifying it...

I went with Liara at first because I was totally down with Ashley until she began to spew her space racist nonsense. Then I went to Tali and stayed with her in 3. If Tali was an original option then I would have picked her too. There hit a point in Mass Effect 1 that I only did a romance for the achievement.

So go Team Tali!

I don't remember anything from ME1 so I couldn't really say, but for ME2 and ME3 I was with Tali. It was a mixture of her personality and the mystery of what was in that helmet!!!!

Also, if Tali is your romantic partner and survives the suicide mission in ME2, she tells Shepard that she is running a fever and her sinuses are filled with something gross, but "it was totally worth it."

Liara all the way.

Liara, then Miranda, and then Liara again, I think.

Basically the same for me. Tali's my favorite character (Quarians are my favorite race, but god damnit listen to Shepard you idiots). Well, tied with Garrus and Wrex, but my Shepard's a dude so romance-wise it's Tali.

My main hooked up with Liara, but my heart is with Miranda. I like Jack a lot too, but she doesn't fit well with a paragon Shepard. And Ashley is just the worst.

Kept it true to Liara the whooooole time. Well, kind of. Went with... I think Miranda on my first ME2 play through. Once Shadow Broker reintroduced Liara as a love interest I chose that for my second play. Once ME3 came around I stuck with her.

Funny answer: All of them, plenty of Shepard to love.

Actual answer:

ME1: did not play, should someday.

ME2: Miranda.

ME3: Liara.

Yep. Although I was definitely tempted by the mystery of what's under Tali's mask.

Seems like Liara is a starter for most of us.

I would have liked to seen Kaidan as more of an option for a dude Shep from the get go. Hints of it at least, if not a full blown LI.

Quoted for truth.

Ashley in ME1 then Miranda in 2 and 3. I'd been watching a lot of Chuck when I played those 2 games, there was no way I wasnt going for Miranda lol

Nobody, Tali, Tali.

@happenstance: Haha, happened the other way for me. Played a lot of Mass Effect, then started watching Chuck.

Yvonne Strahovski and Miranda Lawson share a lot more in the looks department than Adam Baldwin and Kal'Reegar. :)

Across all my playthroughs I've chosen most of the options at least once.

My main Shepherd first did his thing with the Asari consort, then dug Ashley (some punnage intended) the first game, he moved on to Miranda in the second. In the third game, I guess the gravity of the situation made it easy to just put romance on the back burner.

I will say this as a side bar for my Shepherd he was always intrigued by what was under Tali's suit and grown fond Jack towards the end of the second game.

liara, then Miranda and finally back to liara.

Sad to say I went for Miranda only for the trophy.

Kaidan, Thane, Kaidan.

Ashley then Miranda and then Liara. My first playthrough of ME2 didn't have a love interest at all, I don't think.

I had a weird issue where I had romanced Liara in ME, and sent Kaiden to die because he was a tool. ME2 & 3 considered Ashleigh dead, and my romance in 1 to be Kaiden...

According to what I actually did:
ME1- Liara
ME2- Kelly Chambers
ME3- Kelly Chambers & Liara

What the games think I did:
ME1- Kaiden
ME2- Kelly Chambers
ME3- Kelly Chambers & Liara

Tali.... I was curious

Ashley then stuck with Miranda.

Ashley, no one, Ashley. Shepard is a one woman man.

Also Ashley is the best.

Stuck with Liara.

I have played each one about 3 times so I will go with my original choices:

- Mass Effect: Liara. This felt like the only option in one in my opinion. Kaidan was weak, Ashley was a b, and Liara was interesting.

- Mass Effect 2: Tali. Jack was never an option but she was a cool character. Miranda or Tali become my interests but I ultimately felt Tali was the sweetest and had the best story direction. I flirted with Kelly's character but nothing serious really happened.

- Mass Effect 2 - The Shadow Broke DLC: Romanced Liara. She broke Shephard's heart for a second time but I felt it was the closure my character needed.

- Mass Effect 3: Back to Liara, somewhat painfully. Whether it was an "I can't quit you moment" or he simply was "more in love with Liara" he went back to her. I can say that it nagged at me quite a bit during the campaign but then I saw her and Garrus (my favorite character in the series) together and I felt pretty good that she found someone in the story.

Even though the romances are pretty shallow and weak I still had a tough time with ME2 and ME3. I was pretty bummed when Liara turned my Shephard down in 2 so I started gravitating towards Tali and Miranda. I finally went with Tali and part of me even wishes that I stuck with Tali for 3. Liara and Tali were my favorite. Tali always felt like the sweetest person but Liara always felt like the "right" choice for my Shephard. I remember even thinking, before I found out that Miranda was sterile because of the experiments, that she might be the "best choice" because "what if they kill of shephard and let you play as his progeny?" Yeah, I know, dumb.

ME1: Ashley.

ME 2: Miranda

I'm currently playing through ME3, so we'll see. Although if Miranda is an option, it'll be her.

Liara > Liara > Liara

Male Shep

1. Ash
2. No One
3. Ash

Fem Shep

1. Liara
2. Thane/Kelly then back to Liara in the Shadow Broker DLC
3. Haven't got around to playing it again yet :(

ME1: As Femshep it was super easy to pick Kaiden, as ManShep it was a choice between a super naive child like Liara, or a religious space racist named after an Evil Dead character, admittedly the Evil Dead part gains her some points but the religious space racistry looses a whole bunch. If I feel the need to pick a romance for achievement, completion sake or further story/dialogue options I do tend to go with Liara but I wish I could have made my ManShep go for Kaiden.

ME2: As Femshep, Garrus, Thane and Jacob are pretty cool as well, but Garrus is Garrus! Plus he's pretty funny when you try to woo him at times and Kelly Chambers is a secondary/back up.
As ManShep, Miranda, Jack is a meany face and Tali comes off too much like a younger sister then a romance option to me, once again, Kelly is a flirty back up.

ME3: Haven't finished yet, who is to know?

Ashley by accident on my first ME1 playthrough, Liara on following ones and made sure to save Kaidan instead.

Tali in 2. 3 I don't feel like playing, my hype for the trilogy already fell flat after 2.

Liara, Tali, Cortez (and wow, what a huge disappointing mess the Cortez romance was). Though, in seriousness, Liara is probably the best love interest.

Mass Effect: Started romancing Kaiden, and then sacrificed him to make my Femshep harden the fuck up.

Mass Effect 2: Garrus

Mass Effect 3: Garrus

I remember playing these games a few times, just to see the options available. In the end, I chose:

Mass Effect 1: Liara. I was curious and wanted to see where things would go.

Mass Effect 2: Tali. Same reason as before and I like her character.

Mass Effect 3: Liara. This was a bit of a hard decision just because I like both of them, but I thought I should continue from before.

I haven't played as Female Shepard, but I'm curious to see how that goes.

Liara then Jack and I lost my save file so I need to play MS2 again to romance Jack in 3 even though Jack's dialogue is only 9 minutes in total in MS3. *sigh*

LIARA FOREVER

I dallied with Tali and Jack in the post-game in ME2, which led to my thing with Tali staying in my save in ME3. But Liara forever.

Ash, Miranda, Tali. In that order.

I was faithful to Liara all the way through, which was very rewarding I think. There was something special about them having callbacks to things and it felt like there was some history by the third game. The funny part of it all though was that I was initially going to go with Ashley, but the more I talked to her the less I thought of her. But the fact that it ended up with Liara was honestly by accident. One of those "I took the conversation too far" and suddenly Shepard was all up in that blue world. But I am glad he did, Ashley wasn't the type of woman Shepard had first thought. And he didn't swing the other way.

Mass Effect 1: Liara. Don't remember why, she just grabbed me the most in that game. Other than Garrus and Wrex

Mass Effect 2: Tali. Liara wasn't around and I needed to romance SOMEONE because video games. Also, I like Tali.

Mass Effect 3: Liara. I like Tali, but she felt more like my ladybro than a love interest.

I tried to chat up the space racist but she wasn't havin' it for some reason. I think maybe she's a lesbian. So I went ahead with my back up plan, a blue "not a lady, but totally a lady cuz she has boobs" alien lady. Actually I tapped a couple blue alien ladies, there was one in the Citadel who was just dying for it, so I had to give it to her. The other blue lady was a bit clingy, but whatever.

After I got killed other blue lady disappeared, and I picked up this new crew replete with fine females. I kept my options open, but ultimately chose this one who had Dat Ass.

Then blue lady shows up again, and she's all "I thought we had something special!" and I'm like "Hell naw! I just wanted to break me off some." Space racist shows up too, and again I try to hit it but nuh-uh. Confirmed lesbian. So this reporter shows up and I'm like "Oh I got something you can report on alright" but before I can seal the deal, Dat Ass shows up again, and I thought "what the hell?" so we go for another roll in the hay.

(I role played my first Shepard as a frat boy James Bond (Sean Connery era) and this is the result)

ashley, the poor girl got a very hard beating during dr eva chase...i visit her at hospital after every mission :>

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1st playthrough:

Second playthrough:

Mass Effect 1 - Ashley (she didn't last long)

Mass Effect 2/3 - Tali

Tali all the way.

ME: Liara (Ashley was a bigot and she died; she died a hero but also she can fuck off)
ME2: Miranda (I ain't gonna cry while jerking-off to a picture of Liara in the cabin while she's off doing Shadow Broker stuff)
ME3: Liara (I'm that scumbag boss that strictly sleeps with women who work underneath him on his ship)

ME 2: Miranda, found her the most interesting with the direct link to cerberus.

ME 3: Liara ... Just because :P

I like that everybody calls Ashley a space racist, but the reason she won't get with your ass in 2 is because you're basically in the Space KKK.

Liara for 2 and a half games...

...then Specialist Traynor needed to use my shower.

Liara, then Tali, then back to Liara. I d really regret going for Tali but the temptation to see what was under the mask was to great.

Liara for all 3 and im glad I did. The romances were not great overall, by staying loyal to liara I felt like I got the most reward out of it. It felt like the deepest possible romance you could have just because she plays a role in all 3 games and a major one in two games. Also she is the shadow broker and that beats the shit out of space marine or engineer.