Thursday, March 15, 2012

Why Mass Effect 3's Ending Didn't Suck

Before I get started, I just want to say that I already know this post will be unpopular with a lot of you. I want you to know that I don't care, because I think you're all a bunch of babies. I should also say that these opinions are my own, and not necessarily KT or Amanda's (and certainly none of yours). Now that that's out of the way, I want to talk about why Mass Effect 3's ending didn't suck. Also, before you continue reading, please note that THERE ARE PROBABLY SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T BEATEN THE GAME. Of course, if you couldn't figure that out, I can't even...

These are what I have been hearing the most when people complain about ME3's ending:

  • The ending was too short!
  • There was really only one ending since no matter what you chose, the variations were so minute!
  • I didn't like the little boy!
  • I didn't feel like the ending was what MY Shepard would have done! Wah!
  • There wasn't an epilogue for any surviving races! I wanted an epilogue for the quarians and the humans and the turians and the krogan and the asari and the nyancats!
  • I wanted Shepard to live damn it!
  • I jumped on the bandwagon and read that the ending sucked before I finished the game so of course I thought it sucked because I follow what others tell me!
I might have gotten a little mean there, but I'm just being honest. Why don't we look at those one by one?

It was too short.
Really? Really? I loved the series too, from start to finish, but I didn't need to see a whole MOVIE at the end of the game. The whole ending fight was the ending. If you pretend that you didn't fight and that it was a cutscene, then the ending was very long. I remember in Metal Gear Solid 4, you all complained about how the whole thing was basically a movie and that the ending was so long. Now, it's not long enough, even though it was pretty lengthy. There's no pleasing you!

Only one ending.
Okay. Let's make this clear before I continue: yes, I am aware that there is basically one ending, and no, I am not disputing that. What I will dispute is that it's a valid complaint. Why should Bioware have to have a ton of different endings if it's the end of the series (not to mention the other Mass Effect games endings weren't that different from each other anyway)? It's not like it's the middle of a series where anything could happen. It's the conclusion, the final one, and they had a plan in their head for how they wanted it to end. Fans, you do not OWN the series just because you played all three games and have your own ideas of how you wanted it to end. This is Battlestar Galactica all over again, and it's sad. Just because the game didn't end how you thought it would or thought it should have doesn't mean that the ending is wrong. Also, everyone seems to forget that they're supposed to get ONE ending, not five. It's based on what you chose, and there didn't need to be 10 options for those. You have every right to be sad that it ended differently, but you really shouldn't be up in arms threatening to burn down Bioware's building or something. Seriously.

The little boy sucked.
I'm going to make this one short. You all are complaining that it was a little boy. I bet if it took on a different form or was just a voice, you wouldn't complain. All I have to say is that if you didn't realize the little boy was only "the little boy" because Shepard chose to see him that way due to prior events, then you're dumb. Moving on.

My Shepard wouldn't have chosen any of the end options.
Oh really? Your Shepard? Shepard isn't yours. Shepard is a character, created by Bioware, and they gave you the amazing ability to control him/her while still limiting your options to the story line, and they did no differently here. Then again, I feel like the only people complaining about this specifically are the people who created a Shepard so evil that they would have punched the little boy and let the reapers kill everyone. That, of course, makes no sense as a legitimate option since Shepard would have given up long ago if he/she wanted to let everyone die.

I wanted epilogues!
This is the only one I am remotely sympathetic towards, because everyone wants to see what happened afterwards. However, I still don't think this is an argument worth fighting for. Mass Effect is a very cinematic series, obviously. The ending itself was cinematic. It ended like a movie, people! It ended with the final, sad scene and then rolled credits with a surprise at the end (and you DID stay to see the end, didn't you?). Plus, the ending was already relatively long. You wanted epilogues with all the races? Really? Because that would take an hour. If your argument is that they could have shown the important races, well, who's to say what race is important? What if my favorite race is the krogan, but the endings were for the turians, asaris, and humans? I'd be more upset than if there were no epilogues, and you would be too. You'd be up in arms, just like you are now. So calm the fuck down.

Shepard died.
Yes, Shepard died. Deal with it. It's the end of a series, and it felt right for his/her story line to come to an end this way. If at the end everything was completely happy, we'd have complainers about how it wasn't realistic and how the series can't end with everyone happy and going about their lives. What was important about the ending is that Shepard had to choose between some VERY difficult decisions, and Bioware had every right to make this the ending if they felt it was the most appropriate option.

I hate it because everyone else does.
I swear at least half of you fall into this category. Let's face it, this is the internet, and the internet tends to cause bandwagoning. I bet if that same half didn't read anyone's comments before and instead just played the game and came to their own conclusions, most of them wouldn't hate it.

Now, why I liked the ending.
Look guys, I liked the end of Mass Effect 3. I really did. I felt like everything was appropriate and everything was explained to a satisfactory level. I was sad and emotional during the entire ending. It was with great heartbreak that I made the decision that I did as Shepard, and I liked that the game ended there. It felt right, as I was controlling her throughout the entire series. Her life ended, and so my experience should also end. I also liked the ending because although this is the last game in the actual series, the way it ended leaves it open for more games to occur in the same universe. Maybe we can have a new set of problems with a new hero! Maybe you'll get to be whatever race you want! Maybe it'll be set 3000 years in the future with a new race! The beauty of it ending the way that it did is that it leaves the door open for so many more things. 

I'm (sort of) sorry for being rude, but I am so sick and tired of people getting up in arms about things not ending the way they felt it should end. Maybe you should write a game series and set events how you want them to. But, you didn't write this one. So, as Chris Crocker said about Britney, leave Bioware alone!

-Katey

6 comments:

  1. After doing a search with google for "ME3 ending didn't suck" I found your blog. It's nice to know someone else applauds Bioware's decision to have an ending that was artistically viable, and not just vapid fan-service. I hope the ME writing staff aren't disheartened by the backlash, and continue to put good story telling first.

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    1. Thanks for reading! =D
      Bioware knows they're a bunch of bad asses, I'm sure they can handle the whiny hoards.

      Especially since I hope they realize everyone's upset that Shepard dies because they're actually attached to him/her, which wouldn't happen if the writing wasn't good.

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    2. i'm glad there's one person out there who read this and didn't hate me! haha. thanks for reading, glad you enjoyed it.

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  2. Quite a few of your arguments can be boiled down to "BioWare can do what they want," which is true, but it doesn't mean it's a good ending. You can use the same argument if the ending came halfway through the game, involved Shephard waving goodbye to the camera, and hanging himself from a sign that says "LOL THANKS FOR THE MONEY," followed by the game wiping your hard drive.

    "Fans, you do not OWN the series just because you played all three games," yes, but you did give BioWare $180 dollars for all three games (assuming you got each at launch), and it's BioWare's responsibility to keep the fans happy for their money. If they crap out a bad ending no one likes at the end just because they don't have to worry about Mass Effect 4 sales, it doesn't mean the fans don't have a legitimate reason to be angry. You also use several strawmen in your arguments, which you attack and mock: "Really? Really?," "There's no pleasing you!," "Oh really? Your Shepard?," "You'd be up in arms, just like you are now. So calm the fuck down." If you want better, more convincing arguments, use actual quotes from real people, and don't just mock and attack people you made up.

    Anyway, to address the individual points:

    Too short:
    For a game series that will have half-an-hour worth of cutscenes and dialogue for the most plot irrelevant sidequest, it seems underdeveloped (or at least disappointing) to have a final cutscene that's less than 10 minutes. It's mostly a matter of opinion, however, and I won't try to prove it "right" or "wrong."

    Only one ending:
    For a game series that's been famous for it's diversive gameplay options, it's also surprising to only have one ending. "Why should Bioware have to have a ton of different endings if it's the end of the series (not to mention the other Mass Effect games endings weren't that different from each other anyway)?" Why not? Plenty of great video games can have completely different endings based on gameplay, like for example, Mass Effect 1 and 2. I don't see any good reason that an ending shouldn't change, but the middles can– it's just your personal opinion.

    Little boy:
    You're calling the strawman "dumb" again. I personally snorted with laughter when I saw the hologram boy, but, it's still just my opinion.

    Shephard dies:
    Why not have a different ending (maybe a paragon ending?) where he lives? Fans can then pick the one they like more. Different people like different endings. You like the self-sacrifice ending, a mass majority of ME3 players don't, yippee.

    Open ending:
    It's not open, it's terse. BioWare isn't making anymore Mass Effect games. It was a trilogy from the start. This is mostly why the fans got so livid about their disappointments with the ending...

    The ending of Mass Effect 3 is clearly up to players' personal taste, but it doesn't mean anyone's "right" or "wrong" in their opinions (on either side).

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    1. Thank you so much for your reply!
      I love debate! >:D

      I'm very happy you wrote a legitimate argument to this article instead of just saying 'this article sucks cause you're wrong' like some people I've heard from :C

      ^^ I'm not the author for this particular article, but I will be pestering her to reply to you, because I appreciate you coming here and taking time to put some thought into your response.

      Personally, I'm between the two of you. I'm happy enough with the ending, but I have my complaints. Some of the plot points seemed forced and slapped together to me, but I won't go into it too much :) Long story short, I think they could have done better, but I don't think it deserves the truckloads of livid complaints that its gotten.

      Anyway Unknown, I hope you continue to read our materials despite your disagreement, and argue with us every step of the way. ^^ People who have legitimate points and aren't the 'angry' spammers are just as good in my book as people giving compliments.

      Thanks again for reading!

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    2. Actually, I totally agree that no one is right or wrong, which is why it's great that you commented with your own personal, rational opinion. I just wanted to get something out there that was from an avid fan who disagreed with the masses (and I was sick of hearing everyone complain.)

      Thanks for the read and thanks for responding!

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