[Megathread] Mass Effect 3

[flarecde]

I'm waiting to see the verdict on the pacing. ME2 became entirely too predictable and... for lack of a better term "Biowareish." The combat was ok, but the whole game felt like a blah setup for the third one. I still haven't finished it, which I guess I should do.

[Raphtheone]

I recall them saying something along the lines that ME2 became too bland, and ME3 will be more of ME1 out of combat, and improved ME2 in combat (my words though, not theirs). Remember those thingies you augmented your weapons with in ME1? Tungsten rounds, increasing width of grenade explosion, +hp regen on armors etc? They're back in ME3. Much to my delight. ME3 is more RP than ME2, which was basically an ME1 stripped of RP and more action. And from what I gather of ME3 vids out there, the combat system seems to remind a lot of ME2, but improved upon. Melee plays a larger role (omnitool turns into a huge arm-sized blade in a power attack, pretty awesome), but the overall combat system seems to remain the same. Unless you play with Kinect.

But overall, it seems they really put the best stuff from ME1 and ME2 and put it in ME3. And put new content in, of course! Also, they've had plenty of practice with the GE, so I'm content it can't be worse than ME2, which thanks to the focus on action wasn't as good as ME1. Though the removal of the elevator bug was nice! Even today I still quicksave before taking an elevator in ME2. Stuff like that really burrow deep into you.

[Laurcus]

So I've been replaying ME2, since I never actually did the DLC for it, and I wanted a new playthrough that I'm 100% sure is perfect. I have all the DLC except Overlord, and I gotta say, Arrival, most badass DLC ever. If you've never played Arrival, freaking get it, right now. Stop reading this forum post and go do it. Just thinking about it gets me even more pumped for ME3.

[Harry Botter]

Im really excited for the game, especially after the way they say you can choose between RPG, shooter, ect types of gameplay. However im not looking forward to buying it on a console since i absolutely hate the EA origin with a passion. EA will never usurp Steam, i dont see why they dont release it on steam and still require an origin account or something, like DCUO and Everquest 2 require an outside steam log in to play as well.

[Quirin]

I can't wait for this game to come out.

I've played each game like 5 times, but for some odd reason I keep losing my saves for ME2! I replay it then I want to use that save on ME3 but I always end up reformatting my computer or something and forget to back it up. So I'll probably have to replay it again, which is fine. Cause I remember last play through I was a chick and full renegade (I'm use to Paragon). So this time, my final time. I'll play as a Paragon.

Engineer is also my favorite class. The little attack droids are amazing against people, distracts them long enough for me to kill them.

[Raphtheone]

Im really excited for the game, especially after the way they say you can choose between RPG, shooter, ect types of gameplay. However im not looking forward to buying it on a console since i absolutely hate the EA origin with a passion. EA will never usurp Steam, i dont see why they dont release it on steam and still require an origin account or something, like DCUO and Everquest 2 require an outside steam log in to play as well.

Anything anyone ever writes about EA and Origin is how much they hate it. I haven't used it enough to form a proper opinion (just did some BF3 open beta), but as they say, "one million internet users can't be wrong" (despite no one actually saying why they hate EA/Origin). Lets just pray for a cracked exe Origin workaround, that does all the Origin stuff without Origin. One thing I'm sure of, I don't like the idea of forcing third party software for a game.

However, this thread is about ME3, and not Origin. Though one can argue they're one and the same considering if you're using the former, you're forced to the latter.

So I've been replaying ME2, since I never actually did the DLC for it, and I wanted a new playthrough that I'm 100% sure is perfect. I have all the DLC except Overlord, and I gotta say, Arrival, most badass DLC ever. If you've never played Arrival, freaking get it, right now. Stop reading this forum post and go do it. Just thinking about it gets me even more pumped for ME3.

I don't think I've done Overlord. Though, LotSB was awesome. Definitely worth getting, even more so if you're a Liara fan.

[Raphtheone]

Concerning lore, do Geth keep a video recording of all their combat? If they do, and assuming Legion survives the suicide mission, wouldn't that have been sufficient evidence to prove the existence of the Reapers? You know, before they attack Earth.

I'll have to answer this question again, since now I know a decent answer.

http://blog.bioware.com/2012/02/03/alliancenewsnet1/

It would seem the Alliance acknowledge the possibility of the existence of Reapers prior to the invasion (read: ME3 launch). I'm not a lore freak but I was pleasantly surprised reading it. I still want all the pieces of the puzzle to fit together, in a manner of speaking.

Edit:
3 days to the demo. X-box has had the demo since the 10th though. Good news is, here's a youtube clip of what to expect in it (char creation is very thorough): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PosuBSSjJeU

[Laurcus]

I'll have to answer this question again, since now I know a decent answer.

http://blog.bioware.com/2012/02/03/alliancenewsnet1/

It would seem the Alliance acknowledge the possibility of the existence of Reapers prior to the invasion (read: ME3 launch). I'm not a lore freak but I was pleasantly surprised reading it. I still want all the pieces of the puzzle to fit together, in a manner of speaking.

Edit:
3 days to the demo. X-box has had the demo since the 10th though. Good news is, here's a youtube clip of what to expect in it (char creation is very thorough): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PosuBSSjJeU

Wut? Where do I get this demo? I has xbox, and I don't see it listed anywhere... Edit: Apparently it's some stupid facebook app.

Edit again: Facebook don't got shit on me! Downloading demo now, I'll post my thoughts on it when I get around to it.

[Zotan]

The Reaper invasion is only part of why this game will be awesome. Yes there's going to be an epic war, but we also get to see bunch of other events play out, like the Quarians attempting to reclaim their homeworld (perhaps we might actually get to see what they look like also), the Turian and Asari homeworlds (possibly), the new shadow broker and of course, just what in hades the Illusive Man's game is.

Oh and scanning planets.

Everyone wants more planets to scan.

[Raphtheone]

There's a great thread on the ME3 boards, named something along the lines of "10 things a ME gamer needs to know". It contains lore explained outside the game, such as characters, backgrounds, etc etc. TIM is covered there. But huge warning on spoilers.

Also, I vaguely remember seeing that the Asari homeworld is one of the new location you'll visit, as well as the salarian one. Not too sure about Turian, but I think it's one of the new places as well, but don't quote me on it.

I think they removed the mineral planet scanning mini-game. Or changed it somehow. Too much information, my head is about to explode. I've also searched for the new mini-games in ME3 (ME1 had those arrows you circle around and try to get to the middle, remember?), but in vain.

Regarding the XBOX demo, as I recall it was a facebook app code handout to players in EU and the US. No idea how it works more exactly though.

[Laurcus]

Okay, just finished the demo, played it as a paragon soldier, and these are my thoughts.

Very first thing I noticed was the vastly improved movement controls. Running around feels less like ME1 and 2, and more like Gears of War, which isn't a bad thing. Being able to roll and sprint freely is nice. The start of the game was about what I expected, but it was fun and fast paced. The interesting section was after that though. You get thrown into a later section of the game, and you get the chance to upgrade your abilities, as well as the abilities of Liara and Garrus. You're all level 12 for that section.

All the abilities are a lot different than they were in ME2. Each ability can be upgraded 6 times, and for the final 3 tiers of upgrades you get a branching path. If you pick an upgrade on one tier, you can't get the upgrade from the other path on the same tier, but for the next tier you can select the upgrade on either path. Hope that doesn't sound too confusing.

Each power has several different kinds of upgrades that can be selected. For example, Liara's warp, some upgrades would increase damage, some would reduce CD, some increase the armor reduction debuff, one of the upgrades gives it AoE, and another one increases the duration of the armor debuff. The very next thing I noticed after examining how the tiers work, is that powers have a HUGE CD. The soldier's adrenaline rush has about a 20 second CD. To compensate for this, the frag grenade power has no CD and can be used while your other powers are on CD. Frags have their own separate ammo, and are refilled whenever you pick up ammo. Adrenaline rush has sadly, received quite a bit of a nerf. The time dilation is only 30% base, and 45% when heightened. The duration is a bit longer though with upgrades, so that's nice. Concussive shot has a similar CD. Tech and biotic characters can get significantly lower CDs via their class upgrades, and with individual powers. I got Liara's warp to like an 11 second CD, and I didn't get all the CD reduction stuff.

Overall, the combat feels more polished than ever. It's fast and smooth, and I instantly fell in love with my new assault rifle. I don't want to say too much about what else happened in the demo, but I'm impressed. And I only encountered one bug! A dude I was killing fell through the floor. Other than that, the demo went smooth.

I think I'll play through the demo at least 2 more times. All the difficulties and conversation styles are available, so I'll probably play the demo on insanity, and try out the no-conversations style just to see what conversation options the game chooses.

[Ishu]

Ugh, from the look of that post it's yet another fast paced shooter. Don't we have enough of those already?

[Flextt]

ME 2 = Gears of War with the intention of calling itself action adventure... please...

[Laurcus]

Ugh, from the look of that post it's yet another fast paced shooter. Don't we have enough of those already?

ME3 is about 10-15% faster paced than ME2 on most difficulties. It does have a significantly slower mode of play though called narrative difficulty.

[Arrowstorm]

Is it any important to play ME before ME2?

[Tauror]

Is it any important to play ME before ME2?

If you want to play your own story through all 3 games.

[Arrowstorm]

If you want to play your own story through all 3 games.

Are they "To Be Continued" games?

[nektar]

Are they "To Be Continued" games?

The decisions you make in ME affect the story of ME2 and ME3. There are also some perks of choosing a carried over character over a premade one, such as more money and higher lvl at the beginning of the game.

[Laurcus]

Are they "To Be Continued" games?

http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Sav..._Mass_Effect_3 Gives most of the technical information about it.

To summarize though, I think it's very important to play ME 1 and 2 first. Not only is the plot much more meaningful, but anything you've done from the other two games is carried over. Everything from side quests you've done, to main story decisions. If you're straight up starting a new game, it gives some presets to choose from, (same with ME2) but none of it's as detailed as importing a real playthrough. All side quests are considered to be not completed for example, so there's plenty of tie-in side quests that just won't be in your game. There will still be a metric-fuckton of side quests, but it's just not the same to me.

[Daverid]

http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Sav..._Mass_Effect_3 Gives most of the technical information about it.

To summarize though, I think it's very important to play ME 1 and 2 first. Not only is the plot much more meaningful, but anything you've done from the other two games is carried over. Everything from side quests you've done, to main story decisions. If you're straight up starting a new game, it gives some presets to choose from, (same with ME2) but none of it's as detailed as importing a real playthrough. All side quests are considered to be not completed for example, so there's plenty of tie-in side quests that just won't be in your game. There will still be a metric-fuckton of side quests, but it's just not the same to me.

This is spot on ..

Back 6months or go or more I picked up ME2 as I had heard from a friend the series was awesome ... I thought ME2 was incredible and played it at least 3times through after 2-3months ... I never felt compelled to get ME1 as I assumed everything you needed to know was represented in ME2 and ME1 was unimportant ... And whilst this is true if you *Really* don't feel like going back and playing ME1, you can pretty much understand everything without having played ME1 ... It's just such a better experience ... I just finished ME1 for the first time Recently and it was amazing, combat felt a bit clunky coming from ME2 but the story, WOW. And now I'm back in ME2 getting a Save ready for ME3 (With all the Paragon Choices from ME1 and 2) ... And there's just so much more .. People crop up and come out at random times in the story by using the ME1 save ... People you would never have expected and you really realise that this is such a massive ongoing and real story with an incredible world. It just gets me SO excited for 3 and I'm currently Counting down the days!!!!!

Oh and one thing that I just ran into on ME2 after transferring the ME1 save and it's gotten me super excited is this : *Slight ME1 Spoiler Involving Rachni*I saved the Rachni Queen in ME1 and just got the message on Illum about the Rachni rebuilding and 'singing my praises' in ME2 ... REALLY looking forward to the Rachni coming out and aiding Shephard in ME3 ... Will be fucking awesome, if they don't, I'll be a sadpanda