Mass Effect 3

Azza · 25-03-2013 2:58pm

Kirby wrote:

Not really shocked. Many people got turned off by the ending. I know several people who played the living hell out of ME1 and 2 and yet only did one playthrough of 3. "None of my choices ultimately matter, so whats the point in replaying?" etc.

I know myself personally I played full playthrough's of ME1 five times and ME2 three times. Only did one playthrough of 3. More than a year later, I'm just now starting my second playthrough.

I would hazard a guess that the number of players of did insanity of ME2 is double that. 8%. Maybe even 10%.

I'm fairly sure the highest difficulty levels in ME 2 and 3 are available from the start, no unlocking required. So I don't think its anything to do with people not wanting to play the game a second time. I'd imagine the low uptake on the insanity difficulty is simply the preference of casuals gamers who make up up the majority of gamers.

Mal-Adjusted · 25-03-2013 3:25pm

Kirby wrote: »

The Wrex figure is sort of surprising but when you think about it, some killed him on Virmire in 1, some will have gotten him killed on the suicide mission in 2, and a few will have him turn on shepard if you refuse to cure the genophage in 3. That's alot of ways for him to die.

According to that poster, it was players who didn't even get to meet Wrex in 3, so

him turning on you for not curing the genophage doesn't count...and since i'm pretty sure you can't get him killed in 2, surely that figure all stems entirely from killing him on Virmire?

Varik · 25-03-2013 3:34pm

Mal-Adjusted wrote: »

According to that poster, it was players who didn't even get to meet Wrex in 3, so
him turning on you for not curing the genophage doesn't count...and since i'm pretty sure you can't get him killed in 2, surely that figure all stems entirely from killing him on Virmire?

The default is that he dies, if you didn't import a save into ME2 then he's dead and then you needed to import that ME2 play through(with the ME1 save) into ME3 he's dead.

Mass Effect 1 Default Choices

Characters Recruited: Garrus, Wrex
No DLC or sidequests are counted.
The Asari Shiala is killed by the Thorian.
The Rachni Queen is killed.
The colony on Feros is not saved.
Wrex is killed on Virmire.
Shepard does not enter into any romantic relationships.
The Council is killed, with the ship the Destiny Ascension, during the attack on the Citadel.
Udina is appointed Counselor.

Mass Effect 2 Default Choices

No DLC, sidequests or Loyalty Missions are counted toward Mass Effect 3. This includes two DLC exclusive characters, Zaeed and Kasumi, who count as never being recruited.
Tali is exiled from the Migrant Fleet.
Shepard does not enter into any romantic relationships. Again.
Grunt is not recruited.
Legion is not recruited, and no choice is made for the Geth.
Samara is never recruited. She is killed by Morinth trying to escape from Ilium.
Suicide Mission Survivors: Mordin, Jacob, Garrus, Tali and Miranda.
Suicide Mission Survivors (Normandy Crew): Joker and Chakwas. All other crew members are considered killed.
Suicide Mission Deaths: Jack, and Thane.
The Collector Base is destroyed.
Although the DLC is not considered completed by Shepard, the events still occured. The Batarian System is destroyed, and Liara is the Shadow Broker.

degrassinoel · 25-03-2013 3:51pm

wow, default is terrible!

Mal-Adjusted · 25-03-2013 3:53pm

ah, I get it now. I'd always imported my saves so never considered people not doing that (as it's madness!) I wonder what the sales figures for 3 are like compared to one and two. that might account for it.

Kirby · 25-03-2013 5:30pm

Azza wrote: »

I'm fairly sure the highest difficulty levels in ME 2 and 3 are available from the start, no unlocking required. So I don't think its anything to do with people not wanting to play the game a second time. I'd imagine the low uptake on the insanity difficulty is simply the preference of casuals gamers who make up up the majority of gamers.

In Mass effect 1, you couldn't play Insanity without beating it on the lower difficulty......Veteran or Hardcore I think it was called. It required atleast one playthrough. I think ME2 and 3 changed that but it just goes to show people played the first one many more times than 2 or 3 because you couldn't even try Insanity without beating the game first.

I can't shake the feeling the ending has something to do with that. The ending to the first game was great, two's ending had a terrible boss but a great build-up, and most were very disappointed with 3's.

Pushtrak · 25-03-2013 5:55pm

Kirby wrote: »

I can't shake the feeling the ending has something to do with that. The ending to the first game was great, two's ending had a terrible boss but a great build-up, and most were very disappointed with 3's.

Kind of a pity that so many see it that way. I guess I see it in a sort of the journey is more important than the destination, y'know? Like with this, things you do that carry over from the first two games make how the third plays out quite different in terms of the story.

It'd be impossible to say how many people didn't replay it for this reason, the ending to ME3 and other reasons. When I think other reasons, I'll give one example. Every forum I go to that has people talk about Mass Effect or RPGs in general, there is the perspective well represented of people who will only play the game once. A "how I'd do it" type thing.

I'm a big advocate of replaying games. The way I see it, we pay enough for them, so we should really get the most out of a game that we can. This is especially the case with RPGs where your choice comes in to it so much, but it isn't limited to that. It just means I have more of a motivation to replay a game more than I otherwise might, or replay sooner than I otherwise would have.

I've played ME3 twice now, but that is down to a limited amount of time for gaming than before, so for the sake of time, the time I spend gaming is not going to be replaying things. I still own the games I want to replay, and I'll find time to replay them again, so my only having played ME3 twice isn't a big deal to me.

It's great having a terrible memory, too, as so much of games that I'd forget about its like playing something for the first time. I wish I could understand the phenomenon of only playing it once. If it was time contraints, ok, but I don't think that is always the case. Another one I don't understand is people who replay but always the same type of character - same paragon/renegade, same class, et cetera.

Mal-Adjusted · 25-03-2013 7:38pm

i tend to agree. i was pure Paragon last time, whenever i get around to a replay, full on space Nazi, kill Ashley, Wrex and Council and generally be a dick. great craic

It'll be great to see how the ending plays out with such a radical departure from previous...oh wait

Monty - the one and only · 26-03-2013 4:38pm

21 different shepards all started in ME1 ... finished with 2, have gotten 7 others to the end of citadel and left them there, seems more fitting, if you ask me.

I still have to touch the shepard that killed everyone in me2 (except miranda -

one loyal character is required to survive the scuicide mission

..and wrex garrus and tali werent recruited in me1...burnt all bridges with the council and cerb, should be fun to go through...

Gbear · 26-03-2013 6:35pm

How do you feel about the renegade Shepards?
I dunno is it just me being incapable of sorting fact from fiction but I find it uncomfortable when my Shepard acts like a **** or someone dies on his team.

Pushtrak · 26-03-2013 7:06pm

Gbear wrote: »

How do you feel about the renegade Shepards?
I dunno is it just me being incapable of sorting fact from fiction but I find it uncomfortable when my Shepard acts like a **** or someone dies on his team.

I can feel the same way about choices that I make too. The only exception is when there is an act that is so ridiculous it just feels like parody. I'm trying to think of examples to illustrate that but nothing really comes to mind. Have you had things that are just so bad that you'd laugh and think "that's ridiculous"?

Monty - the one and only · 26-03-2013 7:44pm

i usually cant play them... and keep them renegade.. common sense can interfere with some of the decisions... the worst case scenario shepard was done just to see how bad a start to me3 i could have

SB2013 · 06-04-2013 3:01pm

Considering playing through this again. Possibly doing the trilogy if I cant find my save from ME2. Just wondering about the DLC. I have "From Ashes" but is there any others worth getting? Do they take part before, during or after the campaign?

degrassinoel · 06-04-2013 3:05pm

there are a bunch of free ones, the extended cut was free and all of the multiplayer dlc's are free.

iirc there is 'from ashes', 'leviathan' and 'citadel'

They all occur during the campaign. Also there will be no further DLC for me3 as was announced after citadel. The best of the three is definetly citadel imo. Leviathan has a decent amount of lore and explains some things that were ommited, from ashes is short but gives a team-mate and some lore.

if you're planning on playing through 3 again, have a look for a save here before you go all out on the trilogy - http://masseffectsaves.com/

Adyx · 06-04-2013 7:43pm

And Omega as well, but I wouldn't be too fussed about that unless you like standing in elevators.

degrassinoel · 06-04-2013 7:51pm

i'd completely forgotten about that one

SB2013 · 06-04-2013 9:52pm

Do they contribute much aside from story? Such as military readiness?

degrassinoel · 06-04-2013 10:13pm

it adds a little to GR rating for most of the dlc, it is worth doing though.

might also be worth noting that the GR rating can be easily done without any of the DLC and without playing multiplayer. There was a time (at release) when it was pretty difficult to get without mulitplayer. The overall rating required to have access to the various endings was dropped by about 1000 i think. So once you've got a GRR of 4000 or above you're good to go, but personally speaking if you have more to do after you reach that rating, do it anyway. Tis worth it

Agricola · 09-04-2013 10:30am

Just started into this. Completed ME2 (normal) a couple of years ago. I don't know whether its just me or what but the combat in the first 2/3 hours of ME3 seems really weak or something. Did anyone else find that? It doesnt seem to have the intensity or feedback of the shooting in the 2nd game. It's just like, hit cover, pop pop pop, cutscene. Even the mini bosses are a joke. Do I need to play this one on hard?

ancapailldorcha · 09-04-2013 5:55pm

Thought the combat in Mass Effect 3 was a solid improvement on ME2 myself. Most of the ME2 set pieces involve you making your way from one end of a corridor to another whereas areas are more open in ME3 and enemies will actually try and flank you.

Gbear · 09-04-2013 7:06pm

Agricola wrote: »

Just started into this. Completed ME2 (normal) a couple of years ago. I don't know whether its just me or what but the combat in the first 2/3 hours of ME3 seems really weak or something. Did anyone else find that? It doesnt seem to have the intensity or feedback of the shooting in the 2nd game. It's just like, hit cover, pop pop pop, cutscene. Even the mini bosses are a joke. Do I need to play this one on hard?

Insanity all the way.

No excuse not to if you're importing a characer - they already have lots of powers and stuff.

You generally die in 2 or 3 salvos on insanity or maybe more with the 3 beefier classes.

I found that the combat in ME1 was fundamentally flawed but was better implemented and consistent than 2.
Having replayed ME2 recently I found the combat to be pretty bad.
The cover mechanics still aren't perfect in 3 but they're vastly improved.

ancapailldorcha · 09-04-2013 8:27pm

How hard is insanity across the 3 games? I'm about halfway through Hardcore on ME2 with a Vanguard. Dying a lot but it's an improvement over the way I was able to completely massacre enemies on normal.

Gbear · 09-04-2013 10:20pm

ancapailldorcha wrote: »

How hard is insanity across the 3 games? I'm about halfway through Hardcore on ME2 with a Vanguard. Dying a lot but it's an improvement over the way I was able to completely massacre enemies on normal.

It's a bit complicated.

There's a few enemies in 1 that drive you utterly insane.

On hardcore, it took me about 20 tries to kill the Krogan Battlemaster on Therum where you rescue Liara. He's such a ****. I shudder to imagine how hard he is on insanity.
Apparently it helps to leave that mission till last and you have more powers, better weapons and so forth. It's probably not in the correct order from a story point of view though.
In my previous playthroughs I dropped the difficulty to the easiest to beat him. I nearly did a jig when I finally killed the ****er.

2 doesn't handle it great. Because they add a layer of armour (shields or barriers usually) to all enemies, most of your powers stop working. Singularity becomes almost useless, for example. To counter that I tended to bring Miranda on every mission because she has warp for barriers and overload for shields. Then I'd bring Garrus for shield heavy missions or Thane for barrier heavy missions.

I wanted to finish quickly so I picked soldier for my latest play through.
There's one or 2 tricky moments but it's far easier than 1.
With a soldier and the Widow sniper rifle with Thane and Legion (also with the Widow) I strolled through the last mission with no hassle. I could 1-shot nearly any infantry and those I couldn't I still could if I warped their barriers first with Thane.

If you get enough DLC you get 200% ammo for the cain which allows to fire 2 shots once it charges and that takes off about 2/3 of the Reaper Larva's health.

I'm playing ME3 on insanity at the moment. It's mostly easy except when I played DLC like From Ashes and Leviathan there were enemies that hadn't appeared in the main storyline yet.

ancapailldorcha · 09-04-2013 11:09pm

I've noticed you do have to be a bit more strategic with the higher difficulty. I tend to bring either Miranda or Garrus along for Overload/Warp as you said. I can imagine adepts will have a tough time with ME2 as everything has shields and adepts have a poor weapon selection. I might try an Infiltrator run on Insanity. I went soldier the first time on normal which might have made it too easy. The Revenant is awesome though.
I had a ton of bother with that Krogan on Therum as well. Used a guide that advised using lift which stopped him reviving. Fortunately, I'd brought Kaidan so I got through it eventually.

OrgasmicBaz · 15-04-2013 1:43pm

Can someone tell me where abouts the planet Benning is?

Gbear · 15-04-2013 1:48pm

OrgasmicBaz wrote: »

Can someone tell me where abouts the planet Benning is?

Over on the bottom right hand side.
It's in the Mass Relay System.
You get a mission there to evacuate civilians.

If you're looking for the information to give to the Ambassador in the Embassy level of the Citadel you can buy it at the Spectre Terminal.
But possibly only after you complete the mission.

OrgasmicBaz · 15-04-2013 4:35pm

Gbear wrote: »

Over on the bottom right hand side.
It's in the Mass Relay System.
You get a mission there to evacuate civilians.

If you're looking for the information to give to the Ambassador in the Embassy level of the Citadel you can buy it at the Spectre Terminal.
But possibly only after you complete the mission.

Thanks man

Monty - the one and only · 16-04-2013 1:48pm

Gbear wrote: »

Over on the bottom right hand side.
It's in the Mass Relay System.
You get a mission there to evacuate civilians.

If you're looking for the information to give to the Ambassador in the Embassy level of the Citadel you can buy it at the Spectre Terminal.
But possibly only after you complete the mission.

actually you can find the tags on the mission... opposite side from where you first find the 2 civillans, back right area if comming from spawn, mission only becomes available after krogan missions start, but it needs to be handed in before krogan section ends.

Gbear · 16-04-2013 1:51pm

Monty - the one and only wrote: »

actually you can find the tags on the mission... opposite side from where you first find the 2 civillans, back right area if comming from spawn, mission only becomes available after krogan missions start, but it needs to be handed in before krogan section ends.

Yeah I remembered getting them before but I think all missed quest-related data can be got later at the spectre terminal.

Similarly, I missed the Raptor sr and the Carnifrex pistol but can now buy them on the citadel.

I'm not sure how I feel about that mechanic. Given the overabundance of money in the game you're not really punished for not looking around and checking every nook and cranny.

Kiith · 17-04-2013 12:24am

Gbear wrote: »

I'm not sure how I feel about that mechanic. Given the overabundance of money in the game you're not really punished for not looking around and checking every nook and cranny.

Nothing worse then having a quest in your quest log that you can't complete though. Drives me mental in rpg's.

Mass Effect 3

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