Mass Effect 3 PC
User Score
4.7 out of 10

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 4366 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,811 out of 4366
  2. Mixed: 368 out of 4366
  3. Negative: 2,187 out of 4366

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  1. K1ller
    Mar 15, 2012
    4
    Excellent game till the end. Oh boy how can someone screw the 5 years long series of 3 parts in a five minutes is beyond me. Well, RIP Bioware, I am finished with you.
  2. Niroo
    Mar 15, 2012
    4
    Mass Effect 3 features a decent single player storyline that, despite the early introduction of a fanciful 'Secret Weapon of Awesomeness', is quite entertaining for about 20-25 hours. The gameplay works, even if it's rather repetitive and doesn't really expand on what ME2 had to offer. The much discossed ending of the trilogy is indeed a storytelling disaster, the only part of which that speaks in BioWare's favour being the fact that they had the audacity to make their deus ex machina an actual "god out of the machine". I wasn't too impressed by the multiplayer, which, with it's 11 waves of whack-a-mole, is only mildly more interesting than the bot-servers of earlier FPS games.… Expand
  3. Maximo
    Mar 30, 2012
    4
    Somehow, everything good about Mass Effect left with the writer that was responsible for the opening part of the trilogy. I cant think of any positive thing about ME3, none, only the terrible things remain. Suddenly, I realized how poor of a sci-fi ME is, things that didnt matter suddenly became game-breaking for me. For example, the animations, the "every species speaks english", the sci-fi clichés, the bisexuality, etc. All in all, the story is just plain boring, not to mention it has many plot holes. Dialogues were terrible and the ending was a colosal dissapointment, something for people to gloat about for decades to come.… Expand
  4. Kyrgsh
    Jul 17, 2012
    4
    Possibly the most disappointing release I've ever played. I will, in all honesty, never forgive the developer for taking narrative control away from a character I'd spent _years_ with and forcing her to engage in the least satisfying ending- and least in-character actions- imaginable. I haven't even logged into multiplayer in months. Regardless of how many new "cool" weapons and commendation packs they throw at me, the game is dead to me. I paid for it and have no interest in ever going back. And all those "critics" who gave the game a 10/10...I doubt I'll be trusting your opinions from here on out.… Expand
  5. domak
    Jan 16, 2013
    4
    Anyone who played the previous Mass Effect game and still thinks that this one is good in comparison is just a delusional liar, this sad excuse of a game isn't even HALF of what the previous one was and the conclusion of the story is just unbelievably bad I wonder how is it possible to utterly destroy such a promising franchise.
  6. Yasuchika
    Mar 6, 2012
    4
    I feel awfully betrayed that the series went from and expansive sci-fi space opera with consequential choices; to a fairly streamlined action adventure with RPG elements. Its attempts at emotional manipulation are slightly hamfisted, not ineffective but very clumsily implemented and unrelated to my character's background - which I imagine Bioware has forgotten about at this point. The writing and designs for some characters also seems out of place, Vega is expected to be a bulky man but not to the extent that he's a jersey Shore cast member, the addition of Jessica Chobot and redesign for Ashley also complement this lovely little tan-orange motif. My largest qualm is with the Day 1 DLC - which I strongly oppose - by all means create new characters that are not plot-integral. But when you create a squad member who is heaily tied to the universe's lore and mystique and then aim to charge an extra $10 for it on top of the game's already hefty pricetag you know you fit a stereotype.The romance system is fine, although I'd like to be able to talk to my companions without the intention of making out with them. I wonÃ… Expand
  7. DKN
    Mar 28, 2012
    4
    *Spoilers Ahead*
    99% of the game were very good, gameplay wise I think its the best game in trilogy, it also has a great main story. There were some concerns, about the game, for example some decisions from previous parts were not transferred to this game as well as i'd hoped, some side quests were boring, your quest log is a disaster, some bugs etc., but nothing game braking... up until l    ast 10 minutes.

    The ending was just awful. when i first seen it I thought i did something wrong, i was literally stunned. At the end you are given 3 choices DeusEx:HR style. The endings do not take in to consideration any of your decisions you made during your journey as Shepard. It gives you three choices, but in the end your choice comes down to the color of explosion that will probably destroy all civilizations as we know them, no matter what you do.

    The ending did not just didnt give you any choices or didn't provide closer, and it was completely out of place. It felt like in the last ten minutes developers decided to change the trilogy story and values.

    For me ending completely destroyed the experience from otherwise great game.    … Expand
  8. Turix
    Mar 9, 2012
    4
    I played through the game, and generally enjoyed the content - most of the game felt like a significant improvement over Mass Effect 2.... however, the game has several aspects that completely ruin immersion and just feel like a company grabbing for profit rather than wanting to build a good games or supporting their fan base - which is seriously upsetting. The main gripes are the graphical quality, which hasn't improved at all over ME2 on PC, the controls feel even more like a console port than before with your character going off and doing entire actions without you even asking. Parts of the game feel very rushed, specifically the beginning and end - the beginning just kind of drops you in without letting the game get going, or providing any setting. And the ending.... well I don't know where to start... all of the options are simply appalling, lazy cop outs - I was getting very involved in the story for a good part of the game and then the ending just ruins that completely. In the end I don't mind that I've spent money on the game, I can deal with that, but that I feel betrayed that Bioware doesn't seem to care about their IP beyond how much money it can make... its just plain sad.… Expand
  9. dakphillips
    Mar 13, 2012
    4
    While the gameplay has improved since the first game in terms of combat mechanics, ME3 marks a distinctly unsatisfying story. Fans of the first two games who import their characters will be dissapointed in the endings especially compared with the previous two installments. This extremely illogical ending to a great IP is only made worse by the inclusion of an important character to the lore of the Mass Effect universe as a paid DLC when it is clear that the character was originally meant to be included with the standard game package.… Expand
  10. Cell1e
    Jul 8, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Just finished this game. Mostly left feeling upset, frustrated and angry. I found the game to be dark, bleak and a struggle and to make it worth while I would expect a really exciting and fantastic ending which of course I was well aware I wasnt going to get but had hoped with the EC the endings would be at least a little bit uplifting. NOT ONE BIT!!! Two endings left my shep dead and one left her alive on a heap of rubble. No hugs, accolades or joy for us to see and experience.
    Why Bioware shafted us with these endings, why deny their loyal fan base the exciting and triumphant ends that most of us would expect and want after three whole games!

    Okay here are more negatives- The mulitplayer; we should NOT be FORCED to play multiplayer. Space Exploration- This has changed big time from ME1 and was for me nothing short of boring and annoying, especially running out of fuel ALL THE TIME and no signs as to which galaxies had fuel stations.I wasted a lot of time in the beginning looking for galaxies with fuel stations. Day One dlc- I bought it and to me it was so integral to the game, should not have been dlc. That was greediness on behalf of Bioware. Replay Value 0- For me there is abolutely no point in replaying this game, too much misery and no reward at the end. Cannot put myself through that again.

    What did I like? I loved the scenes between Shepherd and her friends, especially Liara, Kaiden and Garrus. The love scenes with Kaiden were very sweet and I loved them. However Bioware dropped the ball when Thane died and Thessia was ravaged and Shep was nearly killed Kaiden was nowhere to be seen. In a game such as this I would expect the love interest who declared his love for her to be beside her comforting her. He weasnt and he didnt. This killed immersion big time. Biware wanted to make a dark game with a lot of fighting and struggles but they should have given the player some hope, some reason to keep playing. They didnt. I loved ME1 but since that game Bioware have taken out every rpg aspect and turned ME into some type of shooter. So my score is going to reflect this and how I am feeling right now. Crappy!    … Expand
  11. Ghostrider
    Mar 14, 2012
    4
    10 for all of the game up until the ending. 1 for the ending. Bioware managed to destroy 100+ hours of great gameplay across all 3 parts of the trilogy with last 10 minutes of the game. Impressive achievement, but I don't like it.

    The game is awesome in every aspect up until the very end. Don't know why Bioware did this but they did.

    They killed DA franchise with DA2 and now this. No    t pre-ordering any Bioware game. Will wait until reviews come in.… Expand
  12. Maelphaedor
    Mar 14, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Right up to the end sequence, ME3 was on track to be the BEST GAME SERIES I've ever played from a story perspective. Then the final cutscene played and every single choice made in the game boiled down to 3 identical endings (other than explosion color). Seriously, they really, REALLY screwed the pooch on this one. Now as said, right up to the end sequence, this is the best game story EVER, which makes the FUBAR ending all the more painful.… Expand
  13. Jaitsu
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    The gameplay is great and all, and the story is as good and ever, but BioWare/EA made a huge mistake in essentially FORCING the player to play a ton of the multiplayer to get a halfway decent ending for the single-player. Bioware claims that the game can be beat without playing the multiplayer, but that's mostly lip service; you CAN beat the game without the MP, but you're going to get a terrible ending if you didn't go and do EVERYTHING possible in the SP, and even if you do, you can't get better than a subpar ending. That's a really, really bad design decision - especially considering how bad the MP is. It doesn't encourage teamwork, it encourages leaving your teammates to die so you can take all the kills and you don't have to fight for cover or deal with them drawing fire to your location when you're trying to be sneaky.… Expand
  14. wijse
    Mar 6, 2012
    4
    Mass Effect 1 is the best PC port in the trilogy. more customizable keyboard bindings , walking stance on/off, you can holster your gun, better writing, better fov. This game is lacks all of these, they don't even care about PC players anymore. I can not fathom why they do not want to take advantage of the power of the PC and release high resolution textures, like they did with DA II. The game also has fewer dialogue options and more auto dialogue, they really really want the Gears of War derpy console market.… Expand
  15. MusAddict
    Mar 7, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I'm rating this a steady 4. Aesthetics are amazing compared to the first 2 games, but that's pretty much where the pros end. Paragon/Renegade are useless now (they are joined together into "Reputation"), the spacebar for everything got me killed a few times, diplomacy between the Geth and Quarians is not possible, etc. I could handle misc team members from ME2 dying if you didn't help them in time, I could handle that you only have 6 squad members, but the thing that turned me off to the whole series is the lack of effort given in the final ultimatum... Such terrible, non-redeeming options. It makes me not want to replay the series because I know the end is not worth it.… Expand
  16. Kelemvor
    Mar 7, 2012
    4
    This game is not a surprise at all. The second installment was a real disappointment, but the direction for the third game was clear. Dialog is limited to 2 answers, one is nice, the other is more of the harsh kind. You have to play the boring MP to actually increase your odds collecting fleetstrength, a lot of the dialog is uninspired and boring, the animations are clumsy, the combat is repetetiv and forgettable, and the rest is just an interactive movie with game elements. Its not a good game and not a good sf-movie. It is something in between unable to satisfy even the lowest expectations. To be blunt: ME3 is a weak last installment. The shooter part is not up to par compared to a full fledged shooter, while the the weak rpg-elements are hardly worth mentioning. It's a dumbed down interactive movie with very little gameplay and an unsatisfactory story which ends with a huge letdown.… Expand
  17. hypertension
    May 27, 2012
    4
    While I enjoyed playing the first two Mass Effect games this one left me with a disappointing experience. It just wasn't fun anymore. The most this game has to offer is the voice acting but it feels like I've heard it all before. I believe that to get a slightly "richer" experience you'll need all Mass Effect games which I have but also all the downloadable content which is something i'm not willing to pay for.… Expand
  18. Yandaton
    Mar 20, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Being a huge Mass Effect fan, I can safely say I am disappointed at the "final" of the trilogy. The first game was practically a new genre, a new step in video games that gave a sense of awe, the second game followed this and near matched the sense of awe and continued the genre breaking gameplay but the third game almost takes a step back from the action-roleplay and becomes more 'Gears of War' by focusing on combat, with pretty much all new mechanics revolving around improving the combat system. A step backwards with an action-roleplaying game, the previous games were fantastic and this game broke the trend. The awe inspiring is still here in this game however, when the Victory fleet flew through the mass relay and the final space battle began I was in awe there is no doubt about it, when I talk to all the characters I have bonded with over the previous games, it brought tears to my eyes, it was almost poetic but then my emotions turn to confusion and anger at the finally of the game. We were promised vastly different endings, there would be no A, B, C options and that your choices mattered but in the end, you get 3 options to end the game with no matter of the choices you have made in the previous games, no matter how high your War Assets were (which was a silly mechanic). It really comes down to what is your favourite colour? Blue, Green or Red which is what the 3 endings are, the same ending in different colours, so in reality there is only 1 ending that has filters put over it and tweaked. Even at the end of this sillyness, there is no closure to all those relationships you have developed, you never know if Garrus retired some place tropical or if Tali built her house on Rannoch or if Liara had little blue children. I don't mind Shepard dying, a bittersweet ending can be good if executed properly, this was not executed properly and it fails for it. As we had learned before, the destruction of a mass relay causes a supernova like explosion and destroys a whole system so you have just destroyed practically all life in the galaxy which is worse than the reapers. Even putting that aside, the destruction of the mass relays means everyone is stranded where they where, including the Victory fleet which will now starve to death. Joker fleeing the battle for no reason, it just doesn't make sense.

    Now apart from the endings, there is a lot of other discouraging things to be mentioned. A day 1 DLC that "was developed by a different team after the main game was finished" yet if you change 1 line of code on the game files, you can get the Prothean on your game without the DLC. A DLC that costs $10.00 for the most interesting character and one of the best guns in the game. The reveal of Tali's face, being a slightly edited stockphoto from google images. Reputation having no physical effect on the game apart from the terminator look, going so far of having to do renegade actions to save your own life? Wat. Even if Bioware was to release a new DLC for a different ending which I highly doubt, why do they need to release a new ending, it should have been on the disk, it should not have sucked so badly that it has distressed the whole of the mass effect community and destroyed the metacritic score for it. I'll be even more amazed if they make you pay for it. I however don't see why people are complaining there is multiplayer, it is a great thing to play with your friends every now and then and it adds more value to your money however integrating multiplayer into singleplayer and forcing you to play it so you can get the 'best' ending in the singleplayer is just pathetic and whoever organized that should lose their job.

    So yeah, the journey was still interesting and thrilling at times but the destination and cheap cashing in's just ruined everything that we had been working up to.    … Expand
  19. Logiwonk
    Apr 28, 2013
    4
    This game is a fistula. What is a fistula? In anatomic terms it's an abnormal hole connecting two things that should not be connected. One of the most problematic is obstetric fistula which connects the vagina (awesome) with the bowels (super not-awesome). This game connects amazing writing, good gameplay with a ending.

    You can't fix this game's ending but you can help women world-wide     suffering from obstetric fistula. Go to http://www.fistulafoundation.org/ and donate today!… Expand
  20. 2real4game
    Mar 9, 2012
    4
    That's not what I was expecting. First ME was a great game - action RPG. You could feel, that you're Shepard. ME2 - epic game but it lost a bit spirit. ME3 - it is still epic but I feel that it's only a game. Not a film nor RPG. It lost everything that was most important in ME.
  21. JoeCool
    Mar 11, 2012
    4
    Holy cow, a 92 average critic rating and then you've got this hyped game that has you wondering within a few hours why on earth you'd been anticipating this title for so long. I'm really struggling to even give it a 5, and on second thought I'll give it a 4. It really looks like BioWare has sold its soul to the, uhm, to EA. After the let down called The Old Republic, we get an even bigger let down. Maybe they sunk so much money into TOR that nothing good could come from ME3. If you haven't bought it already, do yourself a favor and don't fall for this trap. If you liked ME1 and ME2 then stick with those games and don't let ME3 ruin the whole experience.… Expand
  22. phantomlord91
    Mar 27, 2012
    4
    A series with great potential ruined by a terrible ending that makes you wonder how was it approved to be in a game. It truly baffles me why the writers gave us this ending which is full of plot holes and has no closure whatsoever. It also offers no choice other than choosing the colour of the big explosion in the end, even though the developers promised before the game's release that the game would offer many different and distinct endings. It's truly a shame to see a great company like bioware become nothing but liars and incompetent of creating a decent video game in years. Dragon Age 2, Star Wars The Old Republic and now Mass Effect 3. It's sad to say but the old good bioware is dead, gone forever.… Expand
  23. Sevorast
    Mar 15, 2012
    4
    One of the greatest stories of all time, ruined by an ending that invalidates everything the player has accomplished through the span of all 3 games.

    Does not matter one bit any choice or decision you made on your playthroughs leading up to the final chapter, your actions meant nothing because bad logic and space magic.
  24. musique
    Mar 11, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I remember the very first time I played through mass effect. It was an enthralling experience. Never before had a game allowed you to explore unknown worlds in your awesome tank and fly across the galaxy in a state of the art super-ship. The game had an excellent upgrades system with hundreds of different types of armor and customizations that could be implemented. The storyline was exciting and original. Something that would have made gene Roddenberry proud and the ending to the game was satisfying yet left you begging for more. Mass Effect 2 was a shell of the 1st game. Gutting the original of all its great customizations and removing the ability to drive across the vast terrains of uncharted planets. Instead the game allows you to 'scan' planets (an extremely irritating and dull task) for their minerals. No longer did you have the amount of customization that was present in Mass Effect 1. The game was now more of a 3rd person shooter, like gears of war. I enjoyed Mass Effect because I felt it was the anti-gears. Focusing on storyline and character interactions instead of violent battles and never ending waves of enemies. The combat in Mass Effect was elegant and sleek, and because of all the upgrades you could become very powerful with nearly unbreakable shields and weapons that should kill your foes in 1 shot. Mass Effect 2 does away with all those powerful upgrades and instead gives you **** in its place. The same goes for mass effect 3, but I'll get to that in a moment. Mass Effect 2 has a rather stupid storyline. When Mass Effect 2's first trailer came out it was for nothing more than shock value. Shepard 'dies' in the 1st few moments of the game only to brought back immediately and you are swept into working for Cerberus (so much for the free will we were given in Mass Effect). Overall the storyline in the second game felt like nothing more than filler material. Continuing on to Mass Effect 3, Bioware has completely cut ties with any similarities from Mass Effect 1. The game features combat along the same lines as Gears of War. It almost feels as though Bioware was trying to copy gears of wars combat. Another major complaint that I have about the game is the addition of politically correct homosexual relationships added into the story. Shepard was a very straight military man in the first two games. However now he now has the so called 'choice' to become a homosexual. The choice to become a homosexual is forced upon you. If you speak to the homosexual character and do not choose to use your paragon influence on him/her the game gives you renegade points instead. I decided not to talk to the homosexual character at all because every time I did he/she was trying to hit on me. There are also numerous homosexual references in the game and at one point if you are the male Shepard you will even hit on Vega (who is straight) when he comes up to your quarters for a chat. These politically correct homosexual references are just another way to force homosexuality on the masses and I personally disprove of Bio waresâ… Expand
  25. d0man
    Mar 6, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I just want to say this before I begin: I loved Mass Effect 1 and I loved Mass Effect 2, despite how streamlined it was. Characterization was excellent and I felt like I was accomplishing something everywhere I went. That just doesn't happen in Mass Effect 3.

    I'm about 15 hours into the game and I've been really, really trying to enjoy it, but none of the content really feels "right." You're fighting a war to defend the galaxy from total extinction but no one will help you until you clean their noses and make sure the dishes are tucked away nicely. It's ridiculous. Combat has been simplified even further, but instead of enemies dying in a few hits like they did in ME2 which allowed for good flow they are all bullet sponges. Eventually I just gave up on using my guns and punched everyone to death because it was faster and actually did damage.

    Animations are absolutely hideous. Running, walking, talking, everything is just freaking awful. When you run your arms flail around ridiculously and everything is stiff. Just go watch Anderson running in the demo to see how bad it is.

    Characterization has also taken a big hit. You get bulk mcbigguy who randomly switches between English and Spanish at will, bland Asari, etc. Mordin's voice actor was replaced with someone who lacks the same charm as the original and they even managed to butcher Garrus. That's not even mentioning how bad the dialog is. Here are some examples without spoilers:

    Shepard: How are things?
    Person: Bad [specific details].
    Shepard: That bad?
    Person: Yes.
    ----
    Shepard: How are you holding up?
    Person: It's tough, you know?
    Shepard (Paragon): There was this kid back on Earth, I watched him die before your eyes.
    Person: That sucks.
    ----

    I am truly disappointed. I didn't believe that Bioware could mess up this badly after Dragon Age 2, I thought they learned their lesson. I was wrong.    … Expand
  26. jd579
    Mar 6, 2012
    4
    well, i was totally dissapointed by this game. i loved me 1 and me 2 was even better, i had hoped that they would have fixed the problems in both in me3 and finished the story and it all sounded cool, the way that the game was laid out and how it would progress. i got it today and put it in and the first thing that i noticed was they changed everything about the old games. the graphics were realistic in 1 and got more realistic in 2, it looked like a movie. now it looks cartoonish or like an anime. this is probably the worst direction i could think of to go in for me. the first thing i noticed also was the alliance uniforms are different, those things on their shoulders are huge and the little chain thing, it all just screams anime or cartoon to me. i can't stand it. the next thing i noticed was the writing was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyy worse than the first two. this is mass effect, its supposed to have excellent writing, like some of the best that you'll find. and i found the intro to be really just, im not sure how to describe it. bad. not on par with mass effect 1 and 2. the dialogue with characters in the game is worse, less detailed, less believeable. the story is just, bad. i mean, it seems like something youd find in some other video games but not mass effect. its not believable. characters just do a 180 from who they were in me2 or 1. they changed a lot of the graphics and the way the game works on missions from me 1 and 2 that didn't need changing. i heard a lot of people left or got fired or something for this game, and, you can definately tell. i heard one of the main writers left or was fired also, and you can definately tell that. at some times you can tell little pieces of the old mass effect series that are good, but mostly its something new and different and just doesn't play well. playing on palavens moon was pretty cool, and the geth ship next to the main battery. overall they just made all of these changes to something that didnt need changing.… Expand
  27. Dodo22
    Mar 7, 2012
    4
    It is impossible to import your Shepard from the previous games as the new face creation mechanism will not identify the elements from the save file. Importing your save is what has made Mass Effect as prolific as it is. Unplayable until a patch for an issue that should have been resolved during the testing phase. They apparently had the time to make $10 day one DLC but not enough time to ensure that a critical component of the main game is functioning properly?

    Aside from this I have played through the first segment with the base Shepard, and it appears to have restored mass effect to initial appeal from the boring outing that was ME2.

    Still I'll go no farther without my Shepard character. Product is in a condition that I reasonably should not have expected. Any other industrial sector and they'd be compelled by law to restore my money, however, software laws let them off the hook. Fix it.    … Expand
  28. Dreskar
    Mar 7, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game is good, very good and yet... that ending, oh yes I do mean one ending, they are all the same sadly. [Its a made up story from a man to his son/grandson.] Though you also get to chose one of three endings at the very end that completely invalidates the other two games within the series and is very insulting. It is in essence a Deus Ex Machina moment, and I kid you not it is literally a God Child that created the reapers that shows up at the end and gives you one of three choices, your galactic readiness, your war supplies, and weather you were paragon or renegade means nothing, absolutely nothing to the story. Though if your readiness and supplies are high people survive which is confusing since I thought it would have an impact on the actual fight but it doesn't at all. Ah if you want to play Mass Effect 3, by all means knock yourself out, just stop before you play the final mission if you want to have a great game experience, otherwise play Mass Effect 1 and 2 which are far superior games.… Expand
  29. EHuntington
    Mar 7, 2012
    4
    Mass Effect 3 is, at best, a disappointing game. At its worst, it's a cliched mess of nonsense dialogue and forced decisions. What's most disappointing for me, is the separated structure of the game. Dialogue happens, then gameplay, then dialogue, then gameplay. There's no fusion. Mass Effect 3 has lengthy fighting sequences and lengthy dialogue and story sequences, but the two never mix. There's no story in the fight, something happens then something else happens. It's depressing. This game has turned me off to Bioware. I won't be getting their next game.… Expand
  30. Dresden
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    I haven't been so let down with a game since Deus Ex: Invisible War. The problems with this game are numerous and I could go on and on. I really don't have a clue how websites can give this 9s and 10s and expect to be taken seriously.

    The graphics are worse than ME2. It's the same engine, how did that happen? The Illusive Man's skin is smudged and compressed now and in some places NPCs ar    e replaced with cheesy looking sprites when a bit further away. Lens flares are WAY overused, even for a Mass Effect game, often being way bigger than they even need to be. Animation is noticeably stiffer and models teleport around in cutscenes. Anderson's running animation in the intro is just laughably bad. I've seen far better work from modders.

    The story will be fine once in a while but ridiculous bits keep pulling me out. For instance, in the Protheans's flashback, ONLY he has a Jamacan accent (which sounds silly in its own right) but none of his other race has it. They also use human military ranks apparently. Tali's big unmasking has been reduced to a badly photoshopped stock image they pulled off of the internet. Joker dates EDI. I mean seriously? He dates a robot? What's next? A romance with option with Legion? Actually don't answer that. The endings are completely ripped off of Deus Ex. And there are so many holes in the plot, I don't know where to begin.

    From Ashes, the Day 1 DLC is $10 for...get ready...30 mins of content. If that. Great huh? Avoid buying it if your money is important to you.

    Just all around disappointed in this game and I've had enough from EA/Bioware.    … Expand
  31. MassEffectFShep
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I had to wait a few hours after finishing the game before writing a review because I wanted to take some time to look back on ME1/ME2 and be as fair and objective as possible when collecting my thoughts on ME3. This game is amazing in several ways: (1) dialogue between familiar (and to some extent unfamiliar) characters feels more real and natural, (2) combat is a lot more interesting and, in some scenes, more challenging than both ME1 and ME2, (3) the cinematic scenes depicting various key events in the story are visually engaging and easy to connect with emotionally, (4) the romance interactions between Shepard and his/her LI is a vast improvement from both ME1 and ME2, and (5) the overall visual element of the game (the Citadel, the new worlds that you visit--Rannoch and Thessia for example, and the characters themselves) made it really easy to immerse yourself in the game. Having been a huge fan of ME1 and ME2, I was happy to see that Bioware came through in these areas. I had moments where I laughed, moments where I felt giddy, and plenty of moments where I cried (e.g., Thane's death). That being said, I was incredibly surprised at how much the ending affected me. Up until the very last moments in the game (I would say up until the part where the destroyer reaper vaporizes people around you while you painfully drag yourself toward the beam), I would have given the game a 10/10 hands down. I would have bowed down to Bioware for telling the greatest story ever told. And then there was the ending: (1) The number of plot holes left is an insult to the bajillion hours that I invested in the first two games, (2) the Deus Ex-style ending completely chaffed my soul, and (3) I received next to NO closure on all of the relationships that I've been building up until the point. What happened to the people on the citadel (e.g., Bailey, the council, etc.) What happens to my team? What happens to the two squadmates that I took with me in the final battle scene? What happens to the races that I just spent hours trying to unite in hopes of a more relevant and fitting ending? I loved the Deus Ex ending in Deus Ex because it fit with what the story was about up until the end; Mass Effect was more than just a morally ambiguous thought exercise on organic vs. synthetic existence--it's SO much more than that--so why condense it all to that? I don't need Shepard to live in the end (and I certainly don't need a happily-ever-after ending where nobody dies and everyone is all smiles at the end of the reaper invasion), but I sure as hell was under the impression that I'd have the choice. I put so much thought into paragon vs. renegade, which is arguably the main driving force in the plot up until the very last scene, and it seems like no matter what you do you are boxed into an ending that's uncomfortable, unclear, and unnervingly disappointing. I was amazed at how emotionally connected I felt to the Mass Effect series, and spent what felt like an eternity looking forward to the final part of the trilogy. In terms of ME3, I felt completely satisfied with the exception of the ending, which seemed totally out of place and unnecessarily broke my enthusiasm and passion for the game. Do I hate the entire series now because of the way it ends? No. Will I deny that all 3 games are amazing in multiple ways and have allowed me to be a part of an epic story? No. Can I jump on the 10/10 bandwagon for ME3? Absolutely not, because the ending of such a huge story is critical, and in my opinion it was an epic fail in this game. If I could go back in time, I would probably have not played the game past Shepard's last speech to his/her team--at least at that point you were excited/terrified/scared, but you also had the hope that other characters instilled in you, and the hope that you spent so much time instilling into other characters. So in the end, I can't give this game a positive review, although it kills me to know that it would have been such an easy thing to do if the ending had (a) more variation and more of an actual decision-making component to it (such that all endings aren't essentially the same--I know there is room for argument here, but I maintain that it can all boil down the same basic ending), (b) incorporated more of the choices that you have been making for the past three games, (c) more relevance to the personal side of Shepard (e.g., how Shepard has evolved over time and who Shepard has become), and (d) more closure on all of the characters, relationships, and decisions that you just spent three games experiencing. You almost did it, Bioware. So close and yet so far.… Expand
  32. JongUn
    Mar 12, 2012
    4
    Mass Effect 3 does not live up to the hype, at all. First of all, almost no graphics options. I mean what the hell? Just porting from console is so frigging lazy it makes me sick. Look at Remedy, they did it right with Alan Wake. The textures on some stuff in this game is absolutely hideous. The animations are bad (males walk really weird in this game ++). Some of the explosions and gun effects are really low quality. Then there is the FOV in this game, it reminds me of Resident Evil 5. Why can't you adjust ANYTHING in this game? Oh yeah, I forgot... it's a really bad console port. Also you have to use the space bar for absolutely EVERYTHING. On the plus side it has some great voice acting, interesting characters and locations. Not enough to make it worth my money though. Sadly. The last Bioware game I bought was Dragon Age 2, and yeah, I was very disappointed then as well. I hoped they would redeem themselves with this game, but I was unfortunately wrong. This is the last game I will buy from Bioware, and I can't recommend buying this game to others. If you want to play it, rent it, or buy it used on console.… Expand
  33. kriosis
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    After playing Mass Effect 1 & 2 I had high hopes for ME3. Sadly this game did not live up to the hype. While there was improvement there is also far more problems that can't be overlooked. I'll cover the improvements first. Pros.
    1) Certain combat mechanics have been refined. Building your character works similar to the previous games but a lot more skills a far more useful this time aro    und. Allowing more customization to how we would prefer our abilities to work as we progress was a really great idea.

    2) Weapon Customization and the Weight system are in my opinion the best part of this game. Which is sad with all things considered. I prefer to carry few weapons. I used the heavy pistol and the sniper rifle. Because of this I was very light allowing for quick power cool downs. I maintained 200% cool down reduction due to the customization. Customization was various, you could increase weapon damage, accuracy, stability, penetration and a few other helpful additions. 3.) Reputation was a welcome change. I was getting tired of Paragon and Renegade responses only having an effect on anything. Here there is that grey choice/response and it actually contributes.

    4.) It was nice to see many of those that survived the previous two games, even if those reunions are unbelievably short, seeming almost rushed. We'll get to that last one in a bit.

    Cons.

    1.) I already said combat was somewhat refined. But it also has its issues. One of those biggest issues being the combat can be incredibly clunky. Space bar does almost everything. You sprint with it, you pick up things with it, you dive and evade with it, you get into and out of cover with it, it does far to much and doesn't always do what you want it to.

    2.)Missions and journal tracking are poorly executed here. Most missions are picked up by eavesdropping on random people aboard the Citadel. This becomes troublesome because you'll often find yourself sitting there listening to conversations while not entirely sure it'll have anything for you. There were a few times I ended up running past them because the area was so cluttered I couldn't make out where it was coming from, especially when there are multiple NPC's engaging in conversation around you. Most you can do is just stand there wait for something to be added to your journal. Secondly the journal is terrible. It's very vague and remains that way through out missions. A mission that reads "find Cerberus Documents" will always say "find Cerberus Documents" even after finding them, there is no reliable way to check your progress in it. It does however update with "New" beside missions, but this is easily over looked when scrolling through the missions tab or forgetting to mark it as viewed when you get the missions. 3.) The call of duty audience, Bioware really wants them, so much so that they're sacrificing choice in every game mode. I played through RPG mode, the traditional "mode" we're familiar with when it comes to BioWare titles. I was surprised when the conversation radial rarely appeared. It seemed most of Shepard's responses were automated. 4.) Lets talk about a lot of returning squad mates. While I was happy to see them, that feeling was short lived. After browsing through ME3 romances I noticed they were far more in depth. So if your LI (love interest) was exclusively in ME2 prepare to be disappointed. As an example I romanced Miranda, the LI scene was short and quick, you were in, you talked, fade to black, you're out of the room. No time to talk after, say good bye, nothing. The last time I seen her was near the end where she played a pretty major role in the plot. But even here, being reunited for the last time lacked any form of communication or closure. Maybe it's not this way with all of them, but I was pretty disappointed.

    5.)Tali's face is so original. Oh no, it's an image taken from google then photoshoped. I didn't romance Tali, if you did I really feel bad for you. I'd be pissed at the lack of effort put into her and her race as a whole. They're humans in space suits with no immunities. 5.) I'm running out of room. So lets get to the obvious. The ending, holy hell are they familiar. After doing some digging it seems they pretty much ripped the ending right away from Deus Ex Human Revolution. While it worked for that game. It does not work here. This is what we've been building up to? Technically 3 endings where the only difference is 3-4 seconds and changes in color? There was absolutely no closure here, nothing.was.solved. You're screwed no matter what you pick. This is not what the player wants to feel after so much time in this series. Like Tali's face, the ending background was stolen, from a Windows wallpaper. TL:DR Wait until it's in the bargain bin. Even then, you're better off imagining your own ending. Dream about it if you have to. Dream seems sum up the ending in more then one way.    … Expand
  34. zoozooboo
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    The only thing surprising about the negative reaction to this game is that took you all so long to realize these overpaid basement-dwellers have been making hackneyed, nerd-baiting snoozefests since the overrated Knights of the Old Republic (a game with one of the all-time stupidest twists in any medium). It speaks multitudes of Bioware's lack of creativity that the second they break free of their D&D and Star Wars licenses (disregarding Jade Empire, which I admittedly haven't played), they jump immediately into creating aesthetically bland space operas and high fantasy romps because the 'spergers can't have their pinned-on mittens ruffled by change or new ideas. Compare the openings of games like Bioshock or Skyrim - games that give you a sense of true mystery and dread, games that prelude to their greater themes and ideas in the first few minutes - to Bioware's uninspired openings: You're standing around as you're totally personal and unique and awesome character (let's just call him/her "M. Sue" for argument's sake) whose super-unique jawline just gives him LOADS of personality, I'm sure, then someone talks your ear off for twenty minutes about PURELY EXPOSITORY BUNK and then whatever they're talking about attacks you in your vanilla spaceship/Game of Thrones field. Sure, you can't judge a game entirely by its opening, but this really illustrates how little Bioware understands about storytelling, tone, or personal expression in art. Their obsession with being "cinematic" is laughable as well, because, 1.) D&D campaigning (the only sort of story structure Bioware seems able to create) is in no way "cinematic," 2.) gaming has reached a level of artistry that most people who take the medium seriously are past trying to just be film's little brother (a reason why the actual gameplay in this developer's titles is so often maligned), and 3.) if this unholy mix of Uncanny Valley Barbie dolls and outdated space opera chic somehow stumbled into the multiplexes, it would tank faster than you could say "The Spirits Within." I'm not one to say you can't make an engrossing game based on going around talking to people... hell, I love the LucasArts adventure games of yesterday. But the difference is those games had style in spades - from the whimsical noir of Grim Fandango to the truly creepy mystery of The Dig - whereas Bioware is simply content to milk easy characterizations and plots (if I ever have to help another space-slut track down her deadbeat space-dad because he owes her space-money or WHATEVER, may I be forced to have sex with a Krogan for the rest of my days), knowing they're working in a field where, until recently, the bar was low enough to get away with it. (It is also interesting to note Dragon Age II, despite its numerous gameplay flaws, was the only Bioware game that comes close to being more than the sum of hastily borrowed parts. And of course it was the start of the internet backlash; nerds don't like it when you slip some beef into their pink slime.) It genuinely makes me angry that the writers try to pass off their totally exploitative (and cringe-worthily awkward) sex scenes as promotions of sexual equality, because they didn't just include hot lesbian action to turn on the fanboys then realize they needed to include some male homosexuality as to not look entirely pandering. The company is skilled at creating an immersive experience, I will give them that, and not every moment spent in their universes is entirely unpleasant. But with schlock writing, unoriginal concepts, and often shoddy gameplay, why do they get a pass for creating a world that's cool to hang out in for a couple hours? That is the bare minimum you're expected to do when creating a piece of narrative entertainment! If you honestly think these games are the pinnacle of any sort of storytelling or characterization, by God, read more books, watch more films, play more games, live more life. Then, come back and see how your Shepard (OMG, does YOUR Shepard Renegade Interrupt people because MY Shepard totally does lololol) and all his dead-eyed and dull-voiced pals relate to things made by people who have seen sunlight in the last ten years. My theory is, they won't.… Expand
  35. Gunny_IIDTA
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    Got to say i am very disappointed with this game, i dont know if its just me but the graphics have got worse the game mechanics are still clunky and unwieldy (despite that i still love ME2) the character writing has gotten extremely chicle... What the hell happened to Kotor/Jade empire bio ware that's what i want to know. Also this game being clearly developed for consoles has not helped it in the slightest… Expand
  36. alexbr
    Mar 18, 2012
    4
    The game is technically and script/story wise incomplete. Many plot holes, inconsistencies with prequels, odd side missions and even "anime" style character. Playthrough comparing to prequels is different and boring. Day 1 DLC of very important character considering prequels and lore, otherwise not present in the game but found by players on disk and activated by them without any download so what kind of DLC is that good question. Graphics are medium, Mass Effect 2 has better graphics, porting from consoles almost 1 to 1 without use of PC technical superiority, not even keyboard. A lot of things binding to "space" and you cant change it. Controls taken away from player in terms of less movement/view possibilities such as holstering for example. Much less dialogue choices but much more cutscenes without any choices. Bug of importing characters from prequels and even if imported not look same, only remotely similar. Game have good combat mechanics and very good sound/voices. Positioned as RPG/Action in advertisement. Third person Shooter with few RPG style dialogues and a lot of cutscenes in reality. Replay value hangs on very low to none.… Expand
  37. ploomf
    Mar 9, 2012
    4
    I had to sign up just to review this game. This was such a huge disappointment. I love Mass Effect and have put countless hours into the first 2 games and I was so excited for Mass Effect 3. I had multiple Shepards ready to go but after the terrible ending I doubt I'll be importing them. I don't even want to replay the first two games anymore. The game was wonderful right up till the end, if it hadn't been for those horrible endings I would have given this game a much higher score. The combat was great, the story up till then was great, the relationship between Shepard and squadmates was great, it was a terrific game. Then the endings ruined it and made you feel like all the choices you made really didn't matter after all. They were bleak and depressing, didn't really even make sense, and left many more questions than answers. And everyone gets to choose from the same three terrible endings no matter what choices you made throughout the three games. It was just depressing. Shepards story deserved a much better ending than this.… Expand
  38. Mdhneo007
    Mar 9, 2012
    4
    SPOILERS!

    As an avid Mass Effect fan, I was really looking forward to this game. I even did the Origin predownload so I could start playing at midnight exactly. I loaded it up and at 12:03am started playing. 14.5hrs and like 20 rockstars later I sat facing my computer with tears running down my face. Hey maybe I am emotional, but when 71hrs of my life (ME1 +2 +3) goes down the drain, I     have a right to cry.

    Honestly, I didn't mind the ending I got, in as much as it was an "epic conclusion to an epic MOVIE". Yep, Bioware took a great video game series and converted it into a movie blockbuster where the hero sacrifices all to save the galaxy. Well guess what, a video game isn't supposed to play like a movie! The ending should work in accordance with the actions the players have taken to ensure the final outcome while providing an emotionally (for an RPG like this) enthralling story. Not move inescapably to an inevitably gut wrenching conclusion. Additionally, the game has reduced the replay value of the entire trilogy to virtually nill. Why should I replay ME1-ME3 when I know that regardless of my "numerous and poignant choices" the end is depressingly the same? Moreover, the addition of "gameplay types" (or whatever its called) is nothing but an excuse to cover an irritating reduction of player control over dialogue, another irritating movie-like feature of the game. Furthermore, Bioware's attempt to give players more 'sexual freedom of choice' is just downright disgusting! Introducing male homosexuality this late in the series as a casual (and awkward) fling is demeaning to the community, especially when lesbian romance has been a choice since ME1! If Bioware wished to make a statement about gender homosexual equality, put it in a news release or do it with some respect at least. Finally, when the face importing issues are included in the tally, I can only give this game a 4/10. If it had been a $9 movie ticket and not an $80 game, I would have given it a 12/10.

    Oh well, maybe I should have realized the tone that was set in the opening minutes when the child Bioware didn't allow me to rescue was killed by a machine Bioware made nearly invincible while I stood upon a retreating ship listening to an irritatinally opressive score would have been carried through to the end of the game. So its my own fault for playing the game hoping that what I KNEW was going to happen wouldn't. (As a side note, didn't a thresher maw take down one of them and I took down a thresher maw on Tuchanka, right? So if A beats B and I beat A, shouldn't I beat B?) P.S. The multiplayer aspect of the game is quite enjoyable has been the redeeming aspect of the game in my opinion.    … Expand
  39. IonicJohn
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is one of the biggest betrayals in the history of video games since Ultima 9. I loved the series. From start to finish. Well at least up to a couple of minutes before the finish.
    The story disappoints on the end. And without story Mass Effect is a sub-par action game and nothing more. I'll let the bugs, horrible animation and dumbed down gameplay go for the time being. The game is such a let down that it made a feel a little sick. First of all having lost my ME2 saves, there's a whole different world in ME3. A world which totally disregards almost everything that happened in ME2 and ME1. Up to the point of having characters which had a lot of history in ME2, meet like total strangers in ME3. But whatever I let that slide too, maybe I should have back-upped my saves.
    The endings are awful and whatever you choice you made over the last 2 games and this one become moot. It sort of feels like the story writers were either drunk or they had watched the last 2 Matrix movies or they had no time to finish a cohesive story and just rambled on about their pseudo-philosophy.
    The game's story becomes so pretentious that it renders anything you've build up over the years from playing these games into a joke. I'm a minority and I'll say that I enjoyed DA2 but the signs from Bioware's decline were evident there. Maybe I thought that they wouldn't throw the ME series under the bus just to get their cash. Maybe they would give a sh*t about their fanbase. Maybe they would try hard to properly finish a so far brilliant series. But no. Everything you knew and loved about the game goes down the drain in the last 10 minutes of the game. It's so horrific to watch and play through it.
    At first it looks like a joke, you thing "No, they couldn't possibly suggest..." but then reality kicks in and your start to fearfully realize that this is it. This is the end they are offering you. You can get your war assets to a point that you might get something positive but for that multiplayer is essential which is completely pointless and annoying for many players. Why punish people who either dislike the multiplayer aspect or just plain can't be bothered with something that's its not supposed to affect the single player part of the game?
    There is no redemption in ME3, this is just shockingly bad. You may defend the game, you might appreciate the "Shepard dies" ending(s) but the fact of the matter is that the game not only restricts your choices to strictly linear level but it also spits on your face by making every effort you've put into creating a better character, a unique character with his own choices and personality, completely pointless.
    Mass Effect 3 is a bad game even if you're not invested in the trilogy like many of the fans were. From a technical point of view, the game has graphic issues, the facial animations have been worsened since the last game (don't know how they managed to pull that off), the action is mediocre at best, always repetitive and sickeningly linear. The dialogue is poor at times and borderline b-movie-esque, there are many plots holes in the story, both in itself but also when comparing the last two games, and for the game time is relatively short, assuming you follow the main questline. With 100% completion of all side quests, no dialogue/cutscene skipping, observing ALL secondary dialogues/chats between NPCs where available, talking to ALL crew members all the time and exhausting all conservation option, the game time will not exceed 30 hours. That makes the game not a game but a visual novel. Which would be fine by me; Mass Effect 2 follows the exact same pattern, but the disappointment at the end of the game is just too much to forgive from all this pile of flaws. BioWare have made a terrible game and a terrible mistake by creating ME3 as they did. I feel sorry for all ME universe fans like me who highly anticipated the game and spends their money just to see one of their favorite worlds destroyed by shoddy writing. I would say to any fans of Mass Effect who might be deterred from buying the game to just wait till the price drops and then get it, so they can see for themselves. I felt insulted while playing the game and this has never happened to me before and I've played a lot of bad games over the last two decades. Shame to you BioWare. Even 20 DLCs won't make this right. And I'm sure you'll start releasing them soon enough but I don't think this fish is gonna bite.
    PS: You've got a lot of work to do in order to reclaim your fans when ME4 comes out. A lot of work...    … Expand
  40. Stylus
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    This game is not good and certainly doesn't deserve the praise it's been getting from the gaming press. A lot of the poor user reviews on this site are in protest of how awfully Bioware has been treating their fanbase of late although that doesn't mean that they don't have valid criticisms, and Bioware would be foolish to claim otherwise. If you've already played the first two games you may as well get this over and done with, but I would strongly advise against picking up the series here.… Expand
  41. NightLurker
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Truly the disappointment of the year! Bioware, what have you done? You took all that i cared for in the game, ripped everything valuable off and made tons of crappy drama endings. What for? You promised, that my decisions will be counted. This is what they counted for? Epic drama with killing everyone? I truly enjoyed the first two games, but the third one is a disgrace. Sincerely not your fan anymore.… Expand
  42. Nemo48rus
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    Almost disappointment of the century, but that's only because SW:TOR was even worse. Everything I loved in Mass Effect has been ripped away from this game. I enjoyed the first Mass Effect a lot. It was one of the best sci-fi rpgs, I have experience in a long time. I felt I knew each character and could understand them. The immersion was huge, but when every main character dies in a cliche or illogical fashion, you become truly sickened with the game and the company that made this abomination. Even the new characters had no life. They were just ripped from jersey shore and thrown into the game. However what truly made the game a steaming pile of **** was the Deus Ex endings. In Deus Ex the endings were amazing and original. Bioware saw this and decided to steal the ending from this game and give it explosions, a kid, and terrible writing. This game is an abomination even fro Mass Effect fans.
    XYNTA    … Expand
  43. Avathar
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A wonderful game, up until the ending (played through all of the possible endings, 6k+ EMS, max reputation, etc). I would have given this game a 10 up until about 90 percent of the way through when the overall feel switched from "We're going to defeat the Reapers and save the galaxy and live happily after" to "I'm a tragic figure and we probably won't be coming back from this". I knew they were trying to turn shepard into a tragic figure via all the foreshadowing, but did Bioware really think that after hundreds of hours playing a hero, we would be okay with having them suddenly switching paradigms on us? The whole Matrix thing about choice was just a sad, shameful ripoff and felt like some really lazy writing. I don't think Bioware realizes how invested their players are into Shepard at this point of the game - I'm now willing to just write him off. The last 2.8 games and hundreds of hours of playtime have been focused on saving the galaxy from the Reapers and suddenly at the end, it's not really about them anymore - the paradigm shift needed to occur way earlier than in the last 5 minutes. At the end of ME1 and ME2 I felt happy, like a hero - my character had saved the galaxy... at the end of this one I just feel... sad... Not how I wanted my Shepard's story to end.… Expand
  44. Rectifier
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    Finished the single player campaign last night and also played the multi-player for several hours.

    Problems I had with the game:
    The time skip is confusing, even to people who played ME1 & 2. Seems like a lot of plot development off-screen that is never explained, like why does everyone hate Shepard at the beginning of the game? Has no real impact in the ME3 story arc but alienates and     confuses players who, like me, played ME1 and 2, or just picked up ME3 to start with. For example, I wasn't aware there *was* a time skip until I was told by a character and that Shepard had "done stuff" to warrant his status on Earth at the beginning of the game. Even when you are told that its been 3 years you're like, "Okay...3 years from what?" I basically had to do research to even know that this was a time skip and not something entirely different. When your audience has to do external research to understand a major plot point, its a problem.

    Some of the decisions you make in the game have real consequences, such as letting a villain go or deciding to donate resources. One kind of these decisions are actions in conversations which are indicated by mouse clicks. This adds depth to the interactive story, but some of the choices are poorly worded, such as being nice to a specific character or a stern tone to another, and suddenly your character enters a romantic relationship... Or you just killed a side character and the verbal clue was a vague and minor disagreement... Other times these decisions require split second reactions. This is fine, but since the last time you made a decision without deciphering its intent for 5 minutes killed a person, these "gut reactions" actually take away from the story more often than not. Basically you're afraid to react quickly because of consequences in other conversations and can't use the system as intended. However I place blame on vague writing and lack of context for your character's decisions.

    The combat is decent, it has enough depth to satisfy most people and allows for wacky builds like a "powers only" character. Multi-player is okay but the only available mode is co-op survival, I was surprised that player versus player modes don't exist considering that the Gears of War franchise has shown 3rd person shooters can do so successfully for years. A little disappointing.

    Most of the talk has been about the endings for the game. I tend to agree with what appears to be the consensus that the endings are disappointing and frustrating. Considering that an RPG, even an action RPG, is defined by its story, Mass Effect 3's ending does not deliver.

    The game boils down to three main endings and two extra endings. The extra endings are one where everyone loses and one where Shepard chose to kill the Reapers but possibly survived. The main endings are one where Shepard kills the Reapers and dies, one where Shepard controls the Reapers but dies, and one where Shepard sacrifices himself to make everybody half-organic half-machine.

    He is told these choices by a hologram, who, very poorly, explains why the Reapers have been committing genocides. In fact, the hologram seems ignorant of multiple events WITHIN THE GAME that contradict his logic and states assertions on the future without any justification. The worst part is that Shepard ACCEPTS THIS. In a game about INTERACTING with the story and causing MEANINGFUL changes to the plot because of it, the player cannot argue with the childish logic spouting from the hologram and has to make one of the holograms choices. All of the choices are deus ex machina, not to mention the plot hook itself to begin with, and the fact that the hologram is the Reaper's God... The ending almost appears to be the same quality as most fan-fiction, unintelligible, self-serving, and amateurish at best. I find it hard to believe that the same studio that released Planescape: Torment or the Baldur's Gate series could fudge an ending so badly, but then again I have heard unflattering remarks about the Dragon Age sequel from last year.

    Conclusion: If you enjoy third person shooters with rpg elements but no story, its great. Otherwise, Mass Effect 3 suffers from a story that is an insult to intellectual thought. The main offenders are the plot holes, vague choices, caricatured personalities, and the awful ending.

    In any other genre I would still rate this a 6/10, but since storytelling and character development is what defines every role playing game, then I cannot give that score. Since the gameplay deserves a score of 6 and the story deserves a 0, Mass Effect 3 earns a dismal 3/10.    … Expand
  45. saywhatIfeel
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Do not play this game if you've not played the other 2. The PR BS stating that ME3 was fine to start on was said to ship a few more units and is an insult.

    I've never been one to post reviews before, but the conclusion of what had become one of my favorite new IPs ever has completely ruined my opinion and feelings about this franchise.

    From a technical standpoint, I enjoyed ME3. While retaining much of the same mechanics and gameplay style of the previous two games, there was not much adjustment needed coming to it. There are some stunning graphical moments and all in all despite a few minor bugs/glitches, nothing took me out of the atmosphere. The game's music should be lauded and is absolutely perfect. Along with Jesper Kyd's Assassin's Creed soundtracks, Mass Effect 3 has easily my favorite music in any game this generation.

    What annoys me most is what is annoying other fans of this series, the ending. Never in my wildest dreams did I think BioWare would take this way out. My guess is that EA forced this ending onto the franchise in an effort to leave the door open for continuation. I'd be fine with that if they had allowed the player to tie up Shepherd's story in a meaningful way. They don't. No matter what ending you are faced with, there's nothing uplifting or positive. It's just....gray. The only way they can really go with this story now is prequels considering the outcome of ME3. I don't care about the past other than how it effects the now. I cared about Shepherd and his friends.

    This is extremely unfair to the players that have been with this series since day one. I've never been much of an RPG fan. This game changed that for me. I took the choices I had to make in this series seriously, as I believed the developers when they said that every choice the player made has an effect on the ultimate conclusion. The ending shatters this notion completely as no matter how you play your Shepherd, whether a pious 100% Paragon good guy, or a 100% Renegade butthole, the same endings occur. There is no meaningful epilogue explaining what happens to the galaxy or the multitude of races you encounter. Just a few random screens and the Normandy door about to open on some tropical looking place. And then an old guy...and a kid.

    From a personal standpoint, from the moment of the first dream sequence where you're chasing a child you witness the death of early in the game, I knew that something was afoot. In any form of story, any time a child is put in this sort of role, it is a cop-out tool to garner emotion. This is fine, but its an easy way when the story is already in place to generate that emotion. If your Shepherd is a 100% renegade, why the heck would he even care about a kid? From my perspective, nothing can be done to save this franchise now. Shepherd's story and the 2 prior games were ruined by this terrible conclusion. I will not purchase any DLC nor will I revisit this franchise again. It received a 4 based on technical merit alone. Not since Darth Vader screamed, "Noooooooooooooo" at the end of Episode 3 have I felt this let down by a story and this trumps the Star Wars prequels for hokey. What's sad about this is that Mass Effect 3 is a good game. It plays well. It had the suspense needed to portray such a massive undertaking. The game does tie up many of the secondary plot points in the game and you have to make some hard decisions that supposedly influence the conclusion. The conclusion is an absolute cop-out and no matter how your Shepherd has progressed is very similar across the board.. We played these games to see what would happen to our character that the developers allowed us to develop and in the end we're force-fed (I blame EA almost entirely for this conclusion) a non-sensical conclusion. Multiplayer was needlessly tacked on and making it a mechanic in the single player story was a huge slap in the face. I play sports games or shooters multi, not RPGs. One of the positive aspects of the negatives of this game is how it shines a light on video game "journalism". The fact is the majority of reaction to this game's ending has been almost universally panned by players. Yet, it's received universal acclaim from the so-called "experts".    … Expand
  46. Suncaster
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Don't waste your money on this, wait a few weeks, it'll be in the stores used for $9.99. Some people are saying that the ending was great because in real life you have tough choices. I say bull. They need to realize this is a game. It's fantasy, that's why we play it. If I want real life, I'll go ride my Harley, go sailing or argue with my wife. That's not what I want in a game. i'm trying to get away from real life for a while and pretend life is perfect. Bioware (or should I say EA) should have spent more time on multiple endings. that way everyone could have had what they wanted. I wanted the perfect ending after all the time i put in Mass 1 and 2. I was also unhappy about how easy it was to start losing everyone you had went through the first 2 games with. Halfway through i had already lost Mordin, Asley and Tali. no matter how many times I went back, i couldn't save them. they say it has sonething to do with the first 2 games, although I always saved everyone and had a relasionship with Tali.Of course that was over now, as she was now a pile of broken bones and flesh..I won't say much about the ending, as it has been covered pretty good already here. I really liked Dragon age Origins. Probably my favorite game of all time.(that was before EA got into the picture) Did dragons really exist in real life?, NO, Do happy endings exist in real life all the time, NO. But since this is a game and it's a fantasy world. I want my dragons and my happy ending. What were you thinking EA, Oh that's right, you weren't. I really feel the people giving this a 10 are either working for EA or are just so in love with EA, they have to give a great rating. Also, why are people so mad about the little gay scene. It's not like your being forced into any gay relationship. If ths bothers you, I would have to think your not sure about your sexuality. Me. I know i'm straight, so it doesn't bother me at all. Just say no. I like having relationships in the game, mine is with liara now, since Tali is smashed. why not let gays have their fun. I guess you just live in a world where everyone has to live to your standards or not at all.… Expand
  47. JaimeRaz
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    I was so eagerly waiting for this game to come out since I finished ME2 . I was literally counting the days to get it, and play it with all my 5 different Shepards. I was counting on to experience all my different choices, coming to life with different variations and stories. I definitely thought that this game was going to have a big re-playability value, based on what Bioware sold us that their games give the players the possibility to make those stories yours. So I couldn't wait to play this game over and over, and explore all the different ramifications that it had to offer, but after finding out how the endings were and that we weren't really capable of modifying those things it became a very frustrating experience. This was supposed to be like " The greatest game of the century" and Oh boy had I known what was coming with ME3. First off the game is too linear, the story is set upon a path from where you can't diverge, and it doesn't feel like any of my actions from the previous games mattered at all. You get some benefits that don't really make that much of a difference when it comes to the endings haunted with a fleet of plot holes and bad writing. The game had some good moments I won't deny that , but what really killed it was the fact that it's fallen so low as to what it could have been. Characters' development in this last chapter of the trilogy was bad, it felt like Bioware didn't care anymore about making a good game. The romances thing were really dull and uninspiring. Also the terrible endings were a big screw you, for all of us people who loved the series and were following every detail when it was under development. I just don't know what happened, but this game as mentioned before has been dumbed down and made into a POP game to appeal the masses of people that don't even care about it, and in the process it lost its soul. So what's left is just a carcass of what could have been " The ultimate game of the century " Today I mourn the dead of ME series, and I won't be buying any other EAware titles after this " Screw you " title. Thanks EAware.… Expand
  48. Bronston
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Hey Shep, can you grab that medigel please. Shep!? No, what are you doing, planning on competing in the Olympics? If you're done somersaulting around go ahead and come back over here and grab that medigel. Hey Shep, you bored? It's just that you're speaking with Admiral Hackett and staring off into space with a goofy look on your face, probably ought to pay attention, wait maybe I accidentally fired up Garry's Mod. Shep, did you see that? I think it was Tyler Durden, or am I just seeing random flashes of people for no reason again. Hey Shep I like Joker and Edi too but you really need to get back to work, seriously you can't just stand here forever, Shep, HEY SHEP JUST MOVE WHAT"S WRONG WITH YOU.

    Ok, seriously I just finished this game, Man I am not in a real great mood now. Let me start by saying Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2 were some of the best examples of video games of all time. This game made me want to smash things so many times as I played it I probably shaved a couple years off my life from the rage. If it had been any other game I would have stopped playing and uninstalled it, unfortunately this was supposed to be Mass Effect so I did not give up cause that's what you do in Mass Effect. From a technical stand point I am unimpressed. I've read that it is a visual improvement over 2, I think I missed that part of the game, maybe it was on Jack's mission cause I missed that one. The controls are terrible. Why does shift do so many things? I have a keyboard in front of me, it has a ton of keys can I use them please? So many times I tried to pick something up just to go flying through the air, other times I was in a hurry cause, you know, impending galactic destruction, and I'd slam straight into a door while mashing the E key, didn't work. At one point I decided it was a stupid irritation to have to find the M key in the dark with my not that side of the keyboard hand so I said hey tab doesn't do anything so I went to the options menu and looked, hmm can't change the Map key huh? That's pretty much idiotic. Of course there's the whole thing where in combat I'd be in cover and try to move to different cover and instead jump over the cover straight into the line of fire, or I'd be shooting things and all that and then just stand up and get my head blown off. All that really increased the overall experience for me. Then there's the screwy behavior during conversations. People teleporting from place to place, or being just plain invisible. Then there's the constant flashes of characters during conversation where they just randomly appear for a split second. Now none of these dialogue are game breakers, just things that completely break your disbelief suspension. No the game breaker is how, as many people have already said, this is not my Shep, this guy says random crap that I don't understand and often doesn't even mean the same thing as what I picked, of course usually that's not much of a problem because I'm usually not given any options.

    I did think most of the voice acting was good, except that reporter chick, I'm sure they'll get it in editing. Oh yeah and that whole DLC thing, that's pretty ridiculous, gluttons.
    Now, on to the real problems. Mostly of course revolving around the ending. My God, you people don't deserve a nickle you made as a result of your initial fan base. I can see uninvested new comers being alright with this, with me however, that was my Shepard you destroyed, and was my hours upon hours of work you disregarded in that two minute waste of space ending cut scene. This was without a doubt the best part of the whole experience for me. So I get there, I talk to the stupid kid that tells me that absolutely moronic story I assume he made up on the spot and attempt to figure out which options the directions represent, so I walk up to the power conduit, first option I looked at and bam the **** bug apparently works here to, my feet are nailed to the floor I guess, so even though this is not the option I want I'm forced to shoot the conduit cause I can't walk around anymore, maybe there's a limit to the number of steps you can take throughout the game. Fortunetly turns out all three endings are the same thing anyway so who cares, I'm not playing it again was a waste 90+ hours anyway, 90 cause the ending negates all three games.

    So here's the short and sweet, this got a four because I suspended my bias and the crushing blow this game was to a former fanboy, I wanted to put a zero. If you're a fan of this series, pirate this one, they don't deserve any money for it. Hope Bioware goes down in flames.

    Verdict
    Piece of Crap

    P.S. Not revising this, it's way too long to read.    … Expand
  49. OverwatchUK
    Mar 11, 2012
    4
    Mass Effect 3 overall is a fantastic game that I thoroughly enjoyed. Putting the past 4/5 years of effort into multiple play-throughs of both previous games I had high expectations of ME3 which were (mostly) fully met and realised. That is; until the last 15 minutes of the game. The finale takes absolutely no notice of any choices you have made in the previous games and boils down to "Press Red, Green or Blue to finish the game".

    As a new-comer to Mass Effect this won't matter and will overall be a great game - But to those players who have invested time and effort into the franchise, the ending scenes will feel like a crushing blow.
    As a huge Mass Effect fan, I felt dirty upon finishing it - Like I'd been sucker-punched and then spat on. Wrapping up 3 games, Over 80+ hours of gameplay with a Red, Blue or Green decision... Gutted. Disappointed. Pissed off.    … Expand
  50. schwegs
    Mar 11, 2012
    4
    ME3 has the worst ending to to any game I've ever played. I cannot express how disappointed I am and what a super let-down feeling I have after playing this to completion. The game is literally ruined by the fact that there is NO possible "happy ending" where you save earth and are re-united with your friends -- you know, kinda what you were fighting for the entire series. If they had written an ending as good as the rest of the game/series, this game would be great -- I'd even overlook the plotholes/failures to explain things (which are pretty bad in spots). As it stands, however, it will be difficult to look past this sickening ending to one of my favorite series and characters of all time.… Expand
  51. Kussie
    Mar 11, 2012
    4
    It was a great game right up until the final 15 minutes. But those last 15 minutes were enough to sink the entire game and the entire series for me. Truly truly disappointed. Bioware has seriously lost it's touch after Dragon Age 2, SWTOR and now Mass Effect 3.
  52. AcacianLeaves
    Mar 12, 2012
    4
    How do you review a great game with a terrible ending? Ultimately, I think you review it the same way you would review a great movie with a terrible ending. The climax shapes the experience, and in this case the climax shapes how you experience and remember the previous hundred or so hours you may have invested in this series. I will not spoil anything, but after finishing Mass Effect 3 I have no desire to play it a second time. I have no desire to play any DLC. I don't even want to go back and play Mass Effect 1 or Mass Effect 2 again. The ending (there's really only one!) is just that bad. It has soured how I experience what was previously my favorite series of games in the last 10 years. In a little under 10 minutes, EA BioWare has taken all the joy out of the Mass Effect setting. I did not think that would be possible.

    I don't think we "deserve" a better ending. Even if we get one, the damage is done. This is the story they shipped. This is what they felt was a good end to the series. They have failed as writers, developers, and storytellers and their review score should reflect that. I can't, in good conscience, give this a 0/10 or a 1/10 - because there are moments in the game that I will remember fondly. But I will still always think of this as a "below average" game due to the ending.    … Expand
  53. Barxalot
    Mar 11, 2012
    4
    Mass Effect 3 - Player Review ... 1) Story ... 2) Acting ... 3) Production ... 4) Multimedia (graphics,sound) ... 5) Gameplay 1) Story (2 - rating) ... too many endings lowered impact/quality (expected) ... starts slow, picks up, depresses me, falls flat, no multiple endings as promised 2) Acting (8 - rating) ... I liked the performances of main cast ... some supporting roles sounded rushed / nonprofessional ... in a "choose your own path" game I expect flatter performances ... still, I was hoping BioWare had learned some new tricks after their work on SW:TOR 3) Production (2 - rating) ... where do I begin? ... bad editing ... ... story pacing (awful) ... ... audio pacing (awful) ... ... jump edits (tolerable) ... schizophrenic eyelines ... poor lipsync 4) Multimedia (graphics/sound) (6 - rating) ... sound/score was beautiful ... visuals on the other hand ... ... dreadful ... ... I think they actually took several steps backwards from ME2 5) Gameplay (4 - rating) ... uh, I liked the old minigames (I don't rate down for this) ... one button does all in combat made some levels a nightmare ... ... GOAL: escape level ... ... ACTUAL: mistakingly duck into cover over and over and over ... ... RESULT: needless reloads due to death ... endless sections with no save option ... ... followed by even more nightmarish sections where you could save unrestricted ??? ... ... I don't understand this, but it left me just wanting those sections to end already! ... constant collision detection errors ... ... may be system specific: I got stuck every time I spoke to EDI on the bridge unless I stood in one specific spot ... ... spent more than one level stuck to a squadmate as they ran to a new location (controls reported "BLOCKED") ... squadmate proximity mine ... ... still drops where player is standing instead of where squadmate is standing (I don't rate down for this) ... multiplayer addition (pointless - this was a singleplayer game series) ... fake difficulty (Kai Leng) ... ... this ripped me whole from story telling immersion ... character import flawed (graphics/data) Enough ... let's do the math (2+8+2+6+4=22/50 == 4.4 rating) Personal note: ... I avoided blood by playing in grayscale (what? the endings were color coded?) ... I avoided gore by avoiding certain weapons/classes ... I avoided nudity (mostly) by saying no to relationship offers ... This title had less cursing than ME2 (in my playthrough)… Expand
  54. Dieuos
    Mar 11, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I have never written a review about a game before, but I felt very compelled to do this to vent my frustrations.

    Throughout my time playing Mass Effect 3, I was hooked. I enjoyed every minute I played, and I felt that it was the best in the series. The combat system was impressive, and the story seemed to fit the perfect role that it needed to be for the conclusion of the Mass Effect series. However, as I kept playing, I kept noticing more and more that the choices I made previously didn't really matter at all. For example, I worked to keep all of my squadmates alive in Mass Effect 2, but in Mass Effect 3, they were reduced to minor characters who mattered little more than a few points of War Assets and some whimsical reminiscence. However I pushed through, because I believed that this was the culmination of my choices, and if I just kept playing, I would eventually see what impact my Shepard had on the galaxy. I was wrong. Instead of seeing the ramifications of ALL of the choices I had made, I got a cookie cutter "Choose which ending that has nothing to do with the rest of the plot" ending. Maybe I'll max out my galactic readiness score to try and attain this "best ending possible" ending, but for now, destroying/controlling/combining with the reapers all seem effectively the same.
    TLDR:
    Mass Effect 3 was supposed to be the epic conclusion to an epic story, that many gamers had been waiting 5 years for. While this game did conclude the story of Commander Shepard, it did not give closure to those people who had invested playthrough after playthrough, meticulously choosing options that they believed would make a difference in the end. Instead, gamers were treated to a sloppy, cop-out of an ending that effectively negates any choice made previously.    … Expand
  55. mat193
    Mar 12, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. COME ON, please stop posting reviews before you finished the game! If I were to review mass effect before I got to the ending i would probably at least give it a 9 however that is not the case. The ending simply kills everything there is to the game making everything completely pointless. I have absolutely no problem with Shepard dying in the end I actually think its a quite fitting end for the series to go. However the lack of aftermath to the universe is just sad. You spend hours upon hours crafting the universe for the way you want it to be after all this is done only to get Shepard's death and a light show. All I was asking for is to show us what we did in the game mattered show us how even though he sacrificed himself in the end that what he did mattered and changed the universe besides the destruction/control/synthesis with the reapers. What happened with the geth/quarians, the krogan, asari, turians, salarians, your crew who you developed a relationship along the 3 games and your love interest. The choices you made in all 3 games mean absolutely nothing in the end you basically just choose the color you want the explosion to be in. The war assets which is basically the main drive of the game have little impact in the final battle besides unlocking the final 3 endings which frankly why would you care if you only get a different explosion and a greenish EDI as an extra in the end.… Expand
  56. moonjo
    Mar 12, 2012
    4
    Despite its shortcomings, I did enjoy ME3 and wished it didn't end. The biggest issue for everyone is the conclusion of this great series. It feels like Bioware just gave up trying to make the ending mean something.
    They improved combat mechanics but the battles/missions are still same old, kill all, survive, get to point A, etc.. In the final mission I expected to utilize all of my squad,     since they build up this huge battle with entire galaxy joining forces. No, you pick 2 of your squad members and that's it. Although I hate DLCs, I wouldn't give it a 2nd thought of buying if Bioware released a TRUE ending DLC.… Expand
  57. Hoplomachii
    Mar 12, 2012
    4
    Thanks Bioware , for providing me a great gaming experience through these 5 years only to screw up the last 5 - 10 minutes of Mass Effect 3.

    Now I know how it feels like to live in denial. =(
  58. peniswrangler
    Mar 12, 2012
    4
    10/10 before the last fifteen minutes, but for me the last fifteen minutes ruined it for me. Don't buy this, instead make up your own story it will be better than the **** that bioware wrote for you to digest. 4/10. Its a game it should be a happy ending because its a goddamn video game and people play it to have fun not to be preached at **** bioware you suck go dieeeeeeee.
  59. steveo9286
    Mar 12, 2012
    4
    First off I would just like to say that I am a HUGE man of the Mass Effect series, played the first 2 numerous times, and even read the first three books (I would have read the 4th, but since it was a different writer, and had overwhelmingly negative reviews due to glaring inconsistencies with the established history I seemed like it would be a waste)

    Now for Mass Effect 3 - I will try t    o keep this as spoiler free as possible, but some will probably make it in. You have been warned.

    The story continues about 6-8 months after the last DLC of Mass Effect 2 "Arrival" when the reapers invade Earth, as well as other planets throughout the galaxy. You escape the initial events in order to try and rally the other races of the galaxy to mobilize a massive counterattack to take back Earth, and ultimately the galaxy as a whole. Along the way you meet up with familiar faces from the first two games. Some only last little while, others will stick with you until the end, and you have the option to continue your romance with whomever you were going after (assuming they survived the first and/or second game). To me the character connections and development was the best in the series, and to my memory the best in any video game series to date. From having a friendly shooting competition with Garrus to Tali getting drunk using an "Emergency induction port" It just serves to bring a closeness with companion characters that no game has ever done before. It's not just sunshine, rainbows, and puppies though. Numerous characters end up making sacrifices so that you can succeed at your mission, which ultimately leads to my low review score but more on that later.

    Game play wise this game plays really similar to Mass Effect 2, combat is a bit more challenging and smooth. Weapons are now allow for much more customization through the use of extended barrels for damage increases, scopes for better accuracy, and ammo that allows to shoot people through cover, albeit with reduced damage. The cover system has also been improved quite a bit and plays more like Gears of War, though not quite as responsive while moving in cover, but it's still an improvement over ME2. Combat wise you see a decent variety with enemies, and in some cases it's better to target a specific enemy first as they can "buff" other enemies with armor, shields ect, but as mentioned earlier it's near identical to ME2. One last thing is that you now have a weight system that determines how often you can use your powers. For soldiers it's not as big of a deal since you have all 5 weapon slots used, and with the use of Ammo powers (ammo powers don't have cooldowns and weight does not effect them) it's not as big of a deal. For Classes with numerous Biotic/Tech powers It's more of a concern since you rely on weapon damage much less than the soldier, so it makes you think about what weapons (and how many) you want to load up with. The only notable thing missing are boss battles. Yes you do have certain enemies that you have to burn through multiple layers of defenses, but there is nothing like there was with Saren at the end of ME1 or the human reaper at the end of ME2. Now as many people across many sites have been saying the first 99% of the game is fantastic, it's the last 1%, or 10 minutes that completely ruin the game, and for some people the series. Without getting into specific spoilers it boils down to two main gripes I have with the ending. 1) Is that the plot device used to end the game came out of left field, there was no foreshadowing, evidence or anything else to prepare us for the emergence of this "Deus Ex Machina" and 2) The player loses any semblance of control or choice that they have had throughout the entire series, when it matters the most. The player is simply given options, that quite frankly feel disjointed from the overarching themes of the Mass Effect universe, and you have no way to argue or protest, it simply "is what it is." Add on top of that the "different choices" lead to what is ultimately a near identical result since you see ABSOLUTELY NO consequences of your decision. Heck you don't even know if most of your companions live or die! Ultimately all the choices and relationships you made, all the sacrifices you, your companions, and even the galaxy at large made end up seeming meaningless were unworthy of the ending they received. Graphics 9/10
    Gameplay 10/10
    Sound 10/10
    Story 1/10 (I was nice and rounded up to 1 since there was at least SOMETHING there) first 99% 10/10 last 1% -10/10
    Replay value 1/10    … Expand
  60. Gigerstreak
    Mar 12, 2012
    4
    Would have given a 9 or 10 if not for the final 5 min. The shockingly nonsensical ending really did make the whole experience a negative. The promises made about this game and it's endings, as well as the precedent that the Mass Effect 2 set in terms of choice in the ending, were not executed with the quality one would expect (or at all).
  61. iN7
    Mar 13, 2012
    4
    Epic..astonishing..breath-taking..classic - these could`ve been words describing Mass Effect 3. Yet different words come to mind after you see the final scene and start to read credits. Below you will learn why.
    1. Plot Weak at some points, strong in others, total failure by the end. It`s worst parts are these: the starting mission on Earth - Shepard`s totally confused by people running ar    ound and has no clue of what`s going on, yet seconds later is asked by the Commettee about "what`s going on" and "how do we stop them". Shepard`s been locked in his room, had limited contacts, but just one short look on an iPad - and he`s got the answer. Guess it was just written on the Pad`s screen - " The Rippers are here (tragic voice)". Second worst part of the plot - it`s ending. But let`s make it clear: bad ending when Shepard dies is Ok. It fits the situation. But three bad endings is just too much. Shepard deserves good ending too, he deserves to live. His adventures, his decisions, his relations with different persons - it wasn`t always about death and violence. It was also about love, passion, friendship and honor - things that so many people lack these days. And Bioware seems to ignore their value as well, there`s no reward for being good by the end of the game. 2. Graphics
    It`s worse that in ME2. Just install ME2 and you`ll notice the difference at once. ME3 uses the same engine, yet textures are low-res on most objects, except faces. Shadows are totally messed up, they look terrible and tend to disappear from time to time. There`s no "film-grain" effect which was the game`s feature before. Plus the animation..my eyes get red in pain every time I see Shepard charging, it`s the worst running animation I`ve seen in years. Face mimic became weaker too. But again, things were Ok in ME2, so God knows why Bioware ruined the animation part. Got bored with perfection ? 3. Sound/Music
    Sounds are there and are well-made, no doubt about it. Ambient sounds fit locations rather well. Music is on an average level, you will hardly remember most tracks, yet the one named "An end once and for all" is touching. This part of the game is mostly fine.

    4. Multiplayer
    One word - boring. It`s hardly a Mass Effect experience, just a tribute to modern tradition adding multiplayer wherever possible.Here it`s just a silly feature, which is supposed to give you certain benefits in the single-player part of the game. And it`s not interesting. Conclusion:
    The worst part of the trilogy both technically and story-wise. And it`s really hard for me as a fan to write such words. Mass Effect is the universe with GREAT potential. It may become "Star Wars" of the 21st century. Yet it may not.. Bioware must re-think its attitude to this franchise. And stop destroying its own great creation by bad scripts, bad visuals and predator marketing. Bioware must remember, that games are made for players and players have their voice. Some game journalists while protecting the quality of ME3 say, that " this is Bioware`s game, don`t tell them what and how to do". It may be their game, yet they want US to play it and pay OUR money. So we,as customers and fans, deserve quality product as a sign of respect and good will. Don`t we, Bioware?    … Expand
  62. sacredcowkiller
    Mar 14, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Mass Effect 3 undoes every decision made throughout the entire series in the last 15 minutes. The 3 endings are too similar and create plot holes larger than the Milky way. The only choice you have at the end is what color explosion do you want to send throughout the galaxy. The game engine hasn't made any significant improvements but I don't really mind that so much. The biggest problem is the ending. This is perhaps the largest letdown in gaming history.… Expand
  63. ceppi
    Mar 14, 2012
    4
    After DA2 and SWTOR, I was really scared that Mass Effect 3 would be really bad, and oh boy, was I right... First of all, you are forced to play multiplayer or most probably you get the bad ending. This is a problem now, but in 3-4 months, when people stop playing multiplayer, its going to be an even worse situation. Second of all, the goddamn first day DLC, when its already present of the disc I goddamn buyed few days ago, and Bioware lying about it just makes things worse. Overall I am just disappointed, I will most likely will not check the next Bioware game even tho it was one my favorite gaming companies... RIP Bioware that delivered us Baldurs Gate, Neverwinter Nights, KOTOR...… Expand
  64. Bandicool
    Mar 14, 2012
    4
    I really don't know what went wrong but those endings and their consequences must be the biggest letdown i've ever experienced in gaming history. The game (without the 10 mins in the ending) deserves a 9/10 but the ending is so horribly full of plot-holes and unansweread questions that I am left speechless.
    In a game where the story and it's characters are the main reason for buying it, ho    w can you end it like this?… Expand
  65. CoyoteLovely
    Mar 14, 2012
    4
    Like everyone else, I loved the game - and hated the ending. I would say that the unfortunate thing is that five minutes of ending have made me question keeping the games. I think fondly back on months of talking with my friends about what the ending would be - only to really have it make no difference. Its stunning really, how quickly the game turns south too... it goes from being a game of loss, and battle, and trudging through the war, praying that the answers get easier at the next turn.... And then, the last five minutes, where nothing makes sense, and all the endings are (for all intents and purposes) exactly the same. Buy it, don't buy it. Be aware that the game itself is magnificent - but there's this underlying feeling that some pencil pusher asked the dev team where they were with the game, and the Dev Team said "We've got everything done but the last hour of the game. We're at this weird place in the Citadel right before the final battle." And the pencil pusher said "You've got two days, wrap it up, and ship it - whatever it is. We'll fix it with DLC." My further impression of this is how very short the game was. As a comparison - I picked up Mass Effect 2 about a week before Mass Effect 3 was released, and I only got about a third of the way through the game in that week (this is with knowing EXACTLY where everything was, and exactly how to complete all the missions - there was no fumbling or wasting time). I'm done with Mass Effect 3, finished it on Monday, having put in a very similar block of time - and that would mark day 6 of my ownership of the game. Ultimately, I'm part of the outraged many. I had problems with EA's Origin system, and getting a preorder from them - but I didn't let that deter me. I just ordered it from Best Buy instead... I was a defender of Bioware when the DLC scandal came up. But the ending? I feel like an abused girlfriend at this point.

    Seriously, play the game - but at the moment where you're about to beam up to the Citadel, turn off your console, put down your controller, and go write fan fiction of what your ending should be. It will be more satisfying.    … Expand
  66. shepard73
    Mar 15, 2012
    4
    low score for the ending, shame bioware, shame
  67. Upiorzyca
    Mar 15, 2012
    4
    The beginning was mediocre, little choice of where I go but it gradually turned into a really enjoyable game though it pains I would lose a lot of content if didn't pay for additional content. The characters were not obnoxious and pacing of the story was good, writing of characters passable. I enjoyed some of them. Developing relationships between crew, not only romances and friendships but also growing animosity. All well and good. Some missions repetitive and boring (rushed much?) but still kinda strong 7, 6 if you count out DLC.

    Up until the ending...I have hard time believing that people who wrote Mass Effect universe suddenly had a writing stroke and spawned this horrifying abomination of an ending. Screw the limited choices but the sheer story telling behind is stripped of all logic. It resembles incoherent symbolism of Lynch meeting Van Trier with pseudo metaphysical babbling. I didn't want artistic cinema with dubious, implying ending full of symbols and mystical wisdom. It's a fricken space opera. A pulp genre. I wanted a straight up epic finish to the series, happy â    … Expand
  68. New_Order
    Mar 17, 2012
    4
    the game exciting, interesting and amazing, exactly to the last mission! The ending is just disgusting! No epic battles, the last mission is ugly boring, the ending totally illogical and senseless. What happened to the rest of the team is unknown. I was very disappointed BioWare, which I did not expect from them.
  69. zennyrpg
    Mar 17, 2012
    4
    The game was 10/10 until the end. The game itself had some flaws, particularly the new characters were not as fleshed out/ interesting as they could have been. But it also had some of the most satisfying, unbelievable triumphs I've ever witnessed. The Rannoch mission and its multiple conclusions convinced me that "this is the greatest game I've ever seen." Sadly, the ending killed it- but its still "bearable" as long as you can accept that you get the same crappy ending regardless of your choices in the previous or current games. Hopefully DLC will include more options/ more epicness for the ending.… Expand
  70. mythandoryx
    Mar 18, 2012
    4
    Don't get me wrong, ME3 is an AMAZING GAME! It's just the ending that pisses me off. I've spent five years on this franchise working hard making all the right choices in order to have a closure that suits my expectations! However, the ending made me feel as if none of that mattered! I've lost interest in continuing the game or even replay it anywhere in the near future. I was also frustrated by BW's Day-One DLC policy! It made me feel cheep! As if I'm nothing but money-milking machine for the Big Gaming Kahunas. THE ENDING MUST BE CORRECTED! BW is a great company that makes great RPG's. I'm confident that they won't disappoint their fans for long. Maybe!… Expand
  71. MiniSween
    Mar 18, 2012
    4
    A very pretty game that kept me engaged with the action, but that's the least I expect for the money these days. But that extra something that made mass effect 1 & 2 (in my opinion) so good? It's just not there in ME3. Many reasons to say this but I suppose one of the most striking is the Deus Ex Machina (i.e. the reapers cannot be defeated... oh wait we've got this thing that can defeat them). Whilst that is arguably only one small issue, to me it sums up the entire point of the story line. Obviously I like so many am not happy with the ending but only because it's full of plot holes, and even if we are to consider the unlikely "DLC ending" scenario then it feels like a cheap shot from Bioware. In summary not a bad game at all but certainly a disheartening one to any of us who played ME1&2... oh and EA are the devil… Expand
  72. Magniir
    Mar 18, 2012
    4
    My rating's slightly higher than the average and that's simply because I played the game knowing the ending was horrible but went in with an open-mind anyway.

    Frankly, Day 1 DLC doesn't bother me. It's going to come out anyway, I don't think it really matters when it comes out. Sure, it being on the disc might suck, but nobody has actually proven that every piece of data included in the D    LC is on the disc as well.

    As for the game itself? Some of the best 20+ hours I've spent in a game. No really, it is. That 28 hours I spent on my first run-through wasn't bad, much of it felt really good. The environments were a bit repetitive from the second game but the character writing was absolutely fantastic, and much of the plot was fine until the last 10 minutes of the game.

    That's honestly the deal breaker for me. I give the game a 4 because the gameplay and character design were sold extremely well for me, but everything else was just plain crud. From the whole gimmicky "War Readiness" metagame to the absolute horrible ending. Those last 10-15 minutes are some of the worst minutes I've ever spent on any video game.

    It's not that it's bad that's the problem, it's that the ending doesn't really change that drastically from each option. Not only that, but your actions leading up to that point might as well not have happened, because doing the side-missions in the game doesn't really do much more than alter your "War Readiness" level, which doesn't change the endings as much as you'd expect. Other than these points, many of the ending scene is just absolutely confusing, non-sensical and it leaves you with much more questions than answers.

    That last one's really important. If I finish a story and I've got more questions than answers, and there is no sequel planned, then I really hate that story. Essentially it ends the story on a sort of cliff-hanger that you know you'll probably never get to see the bottom of, and that's just disappointing and somewhat cruel.    … Expand
  73. Lannie_0327
    Mar 18, 2012
    4
    An amazing game just like its predecessors, but the incredibly disappointing ending ruins the game. A recent review / article stated that fans should not be allowed the power to change a game's ending, since its tantamount to having da Vinci change Mona Lisa or Rembrandt's his Night Watch. I can see his/ her (whoever wrote it) point, but.. BUT you don't compare a Masterpiece, a Magnum Opus, to a modern abstract art of the lowest quality. And mass effect's ending was exactly that.… Expand
  74. nightbringer
    Mar 31, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Don't get me wrong. Mass Effect 3 is great, I love the music, gameplay, characters, multiplayer.... 99 % of this game is amazing... The ending just bugs me. It is terrible. It is stupid and illogical. It feels rushed. There are too many inconsistencies. It introduces spirit-ghost-child as new antagonist? in the LAST minute of the game. It gives some lame, stupid reason for reapers existence. I REALLY didn't care about that... Seriously if you tell your audience for 2 games and most part of the third that the reason for reapers reaping things is inexplicable and incomprehensible (I remember Sovereign and Harbinger mentioning something about it), you can't just explain it in three sentences, especially when the reason is stupid.... oh wait Bioware did that.

    Is it enough to give this game such low review?
    In my opinion it is, because it is that crucial to the story and mass effect was always about the story...    … Expand
  75. Spoons
    Mar 19, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. From a purely game mechanics perspective I felt that this is the best of the Mass Effect games. Sure the journal and quest tracking system for minor quests was unusable, but the increased variety of weapons and modifications available adding something that was lost in the transition from 1 to 2.

    The main plot was extremely strong for the most part. It was a bit more linear then in 2 but it had to be given what we were trying to do this time. However now to address the elephant in the room. The final 10 minutes of game. Now I was fine with the game until right after I went up the beamto the citadel. Sure it was odd that the Citadel had been taken over entirely off screen but I can't get everything. Heck I even was ok with the assumption that my squad mates at the time, EDI and Liara, had died in the Reaper blast. The Anderson/Illusive man stuff was strong if incredibly full of plot holes. The star child crap though was ridiculous. I already suspended my disbelief enough to allow the use of a McGuffin as the driver of the main plot, but now you use a literal deus ex Machina that's spouts offcrap that we directly refute during the course of the game (EDI, and saving the Geth/Quarians). Then what happens is the worst game of "Let's Make A Deal" I've ever seen since the same dam thing is behind every door. Then the weird ending where my whole squad turned tail and ran inexplicably with at least one of the people who were fighting with me on earth.

    Also without mass effect drives I realized A)Quarian fleet likely to starve B)Krogans likely to die out due to loss of Wrex and it is now impossible to import food C)my apparently cowardly crew is likely going to die of starvation and or exposure at some point on some deserted planet in the middle of nowhere.

    Somehow Bioware you snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. You basically ruined all replay value for this game and its predecessors. Awesome job.

    P.S. I have a terrible sinking feeling this was done on purpose so you could at a later date sell us a less bad ending and epilouges. You probably weren't expecting sush a viceral reaction from the vast majority of fans so nice job.    … Expand
  76. sizuka2
    Mar 19, 2012
    4
    Mass Effect 3 is the culmination of one of the largest attempts at fusing gameplay and narrative to date. From the beginning, the bargain has been this: Bioware is telling a story about Shepherd vs. the Reapers; the players are choosing how Shepherd goes about this.

    For most of the game, Bioware tells a magnificent story, while providing changes and consequences to support the choices of     individual players. This produces a remarkable degree of player investment. Unfortunately, the very end of the storyline deliberately averts any catharsis.

    People remember the peak and end of an experience. Bioware ensured that the peak experience of the trilogy was this ending, and that the ending caused revulsion and rage.

    Do not play unless you can ignore the story entirely - in which case, why not play a game less focused on story?

    Not recommended.    … Expand
  77. fuzio
    Mar 20, 2012
    4
    more then 200 hours of playing just to get this stupid ending, and no, i don't care for closure or happy one, but this one slap in the face. Beside that game was fun, not ME2 fun bu still playable, too combat heavy and not as good as two other parts. In the end frustration and anger forced me to make account on MC just to warn - if u play - stop playing before ending - more fun then watching the real one :/… Expand
  78. Nudz
    Mar 20, 2012
    4
    The reason for such a low score is not for lack of a good game, quite the opposite the game itself is absolutely brilliant and worthy of it's prequels.
    The ending however was probably the biggest let down of any game I have ever played, leaving the previous experiences with the entire trilogy feeling very hollow and quite without meaning.
  79. asbo604
    Mar 20, 2012
    4
    OK, ill try to write this as an impartial gamer who loved the ME series and view this as a stand alone game.

    ****SPOLIERS****

    The game is good. Its not amazing but its damn good. I liked the improved customisation with weapons I liked the increase in typed of weapons etc. I liked the story (excluding the end) some of the characters who I had grown to care for and love had some amazin    g, emotional endings. I can live with the sacrifice theme running through the game and it suits the story.
    I dont really care about graphics if the story and gameplay is good so Im not gonna bother here. Problems I had with the game are I missed having 1 or 2 of the previous characters from ME2 on my team. But they featured in the game so I can live with that. I didnt really like JAMES or what ever he was called. Didnt get the character, and looking at all the great characters we already had, I think it was a waist to have him take up a slot. Just seemed pointless.

    I was dissapointed with the whole building up your fleets etc and thought it would be something like DA. Origins where you could choose to deploy them some how or even see them in different combat movies depending on what resources you collected. So this was again a bit of a waist.

    Finally, the ending. Its all been covered before. I could live with sad ending. Hell I could live with sacrificing Shep. But not in every ending! Not to mention all the other complaints about plot holes, (why was the Normandy running away?) Closure is the best way to describe what I need with this.

    I have devoured any information regarding the ending I could, but I think people are being too clever and giving too much credit to writers. I just think it was a lazy ending.

    until the ending this is an 8 or 9 out of 10 game. but the ending can not be ignored. unfortunately

    Play the game, by all means, you need to. But get it second hand, then maybe Bioware/EA will start to learn not to cut corners.    … Expand
  80. ArminW
    Mar 22, 2012
    4
    The game itself is mostly a 9, with great, emotional moments, good fights, some RPG moments from part 1 brought back and overall only a few minor flaws (boring fetch quests, confusing useless journal, and one insufferable enemy with script immunity).
    But the ending is such an monumental, epic fail, that I actually have to rate that a -1. Yes, it DOES have to be negative, because, honestly,     it not only spoils ME3, it manages to somehow spoil the entire series.
    It is way to short, badly written, shamelessly stolen from Deus Ex, makes NO sense whatsoever, it negates EVERYTHING you have done over 3 games, ignores al your choices and basically offers the same lame end sequence video with 3 different colored explosions. Unbelievably bad, and even worse if this is just a ploy to sell some kind of "epilogue DLC" later.
    So, the average between a 9 and a -1 is what I have to rate this.    … Expand
  81. Miang
    May 15, 2012
    4
    I would tell you the letdown this game is to me. But that would be wasting my precious time and typing. To me, ME3 is the best one of the series. This game could have been an extasis to any good gamer. But no, this is pure garbage. I only hope Bioware fix this with another ME or a good FREE DLC.
  82. Lew
    Mar 25, 2012
    4
    The introduction to the game was poorly done and pointless. The first act was somewhat fun but eventually I was just grind thru missions to accumulate items that in the end where meaningless. The next act was more of the same. And finally the end was a huge disappointment nothing in the rest of the series or in the game really impact how it ends.

    The game play was OK but I did not en    joy the addition of hand to hand combat. Also, I missed the heavy weapons of ME2.

    The character development was also pointless. I never felt like anything I gave my character was really important.

    So mostly the game was unfun and pointless. A terrible way to end 2 previously good games.    … Expand
  83. Raynulf
    Mar 26, 2012
    4
    The Mass Effect series as a whole is an amazing piece of storytelling, backed by enjoyable and interesting gameplay and a cast of well crafted characters. The rating given reflects the complete experience of Mass Effect 3. Had the game concluded with the themes and narrative quality of the majority of the game, it would rate 8/10.

    The game is immersive, reasonably well paced and takes pai    ns to reintroduce the majority of 'fan favourite' characters at least for a cameo and is thoroughly enjoyable, if by no means 'perfect'.

    In terms of gameplay, the combat is much improved, with the protagonist being far more mobile on the battlefield - however linking all movement commands to a single button which is interpreted situationally can be immensely frustrating - and the enemies are tactically more varied and force rapid shifts in player tactics. Unfortunately, the opponents are far from varied: Throughout the game there are essentially two factions you fight against in almost every encounter. Despite the focus on one-squad-vs-the-horde throughout the game, it does introduce a little variety in the form of shooting-gallery turret sections and a section in virtual reality.

    As a roleplay game (RPG), Mass Effect 3 is far more restricted than its predecessors, with fewer dialogue options and ultimately less choices, however the immersiveness of the first two acts will cause most players to generally forgive this, at least on their first play-through.

    If there is a complaint to be had (excluding the ending), it is in the fact that little of the prior decisions made in the series are actually taken into account within the Mass Effect 3 storyline: Species the player rendered extinct can be found throughout the game, artifacts the player destroyed utterly can be found on display, and so forth. While it is by no means uncommon or even unusual for sequential games to make assumptions and establish a 'cannon' series of events, the fact that Mass Effect 3 was specifically marketed as this not being the case causes it not to live up to expectations in that regard.

    Additionally, regardless of player choice, Mass Effect 3 will force feed the protagonist with a lot of previously nonpresent anguish over certain events, which is very much out of keeping with the concept of player-determination.

    Still, despite these flaws, it easily rates 8/10 for the first two acts, when viewed on its own merits. And for these first two acts, I would recommend this game to any fan of the Mass Effect series, with the caveat they immediately stop playing the game afterwards, and do not complete it.

    And then, theres the ending.

    On the chance that somehow, someone is not aware of this fact: A lot of customers are not happy with the ending (to put it mildly), and frankly, their dissatisfaction is perfectly justified.

    The final act of the game dismisses the overall game theme of player choice and consequences thereof, railroading the player along a series of events - some agreeable, many not - until the point the game ends. Specifically the game, not the story.

    In the final hour of one of the greatest epics told in the computer game medium, Mass Effect 3 utterly fails to deliver, from a narrative, psychological and philosophical perspective. Themes established from the beginning are discarded, new and inexplicable characters are introduced the very end, illogical and circular 'exposition' contradicts established story and background and last but not least, established characters are forced to act completely against their nature as the player is shoe-horned into an A/B/C choice, regardless of their prior actions through the series. Even the very narrative style is switched in the very last minute.

    To make matters worse: The ending also, for no reason, destroys the entire premise of the game universe with utterly inexplicable and near-identical, emotionless CGI animations.

    So sadly, despite 5 years of excellence in the series, 15 minutes of cutscenes (with no player control) quickly and thoroughly ruin the overall experience, and the game must be rated with that in mind.


    As a disclaimer: Bioware are, and hopefully will continue to be, an excellent developer, who have produced some of the most enjoyable stories in the gaming media, which is one of the reasons the terribly written ending to ME3 is so surprising.

    I would recommend people do NOT boycott the brand, or anything equally extreme, but instead avoid pre-ordering their products or relying on pre-release reviews, and instead wait for peer reviews, such as these here on Metacritic.    … Expand
  84. mackswift
    Apr 7, 2012
    4
    This is probably one of the few times I've written my review of a game, and those other few times were games like the original Deus Ex and Red Alert 1 & 2. But this.....this....ending, even a week after finished the game; nay the trilogy, and I've still got a bad taste in my mouth.
    Here I was on Earth with my squad and we just handed another Reaper its ass. And we're hightailing it to that     transporter up to the Citadel. No clue what was going to be up there. And then one big laser blast from Harbinger......and it was the series finale to the Sopranos all over again.
    The first game was a great sci-fi RPG that introduced us to the universe and laid out the plot, problem, and all the tantalizing little bits and hints of what was to come. Mass Effect 2 was phenominal. I was so drawn into the story, I literally played all weekend until I finished.
    I was stoked for the third game, and while playing it; I was having a blast. I jumped into the multiplayer and had some fun there too. Remember the Reaper on Rinoch and all the choices you made right after that. My choice seriously **** things up and I ended up taking a mulligan! I never took a mulligan like that before; so understandably I was even further stoked as to what the end of the game was gonna entail.
    Yeah, um, Bill Lumburg style, um, yeeeahhh, that ending......
    It sucked. What happened to my squadmates? To Garrus? Tali? Liara? What a letdown. Not to mention that I read what was intended to be the ending that Drew Karpyshyn had drawn up for the series; that the use of the 'Mass Effect' fields was creating a large buildup of dark energy that was going to destroy the galaxy. And the Reapers were creatures that absorbed technologically advanced races and used their genetics in the hopes of finding an answer to stop the dark energy buildup.
    Now that would have been a cool frakking ending!!!!!!

    Not that Sopranos style series finale mess we were left with.    … Expand
  85. Angus
    Apr 8, 2012
    4
    The Mass Effect trilogy was great, many great moments in Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2. I know a lot of people loved 2 but it was a step away from what made ME1 so great. Mass Effect 1 was an RPG with inventory management, gear options in the field, looting and so on. The story was stellar, all the characters came off well. It was a well rounded and near perfect game. Mass Effect 2 simplified it, no more inventory, no more gear changes in the field, little to no inventory management, but the story was just a titch under how great ME1 was. ME2 was bit harder to get into and took 2 playthrus to start making sense to me. There was no distinguishable bad guy and over 70% of the games storyline was just gaining the loyalty of your squadmates which only 2 came from the previous game. The bad guy you do find out in the end, but I missed it the first time around. The games combat mechanics and exploration were nothing like ME1. ME1 had cover but it was not Gears of War cover which it became in ME2 and ME3, the exploration in 1 was great imo, but the vehicle to explore in did not work well with the terrain they gave you to explore. I wish they would have kept open worlds and open world quests like ME1 so exploration was a part of ME2, but the simplified it for "new customers." ME2 still was good, but with so much removed from gameplay it was hard to swallow. No spoilers but if you play ME1 then 2 you will see they retconned Shepherd into a bad situation for 2. It ended up working out though after a few playthrus.
    Now to ME3. So much was built up for this game. Anyone who played Shepherd was expecting a grand finale with challenges and all the choices you made to matter. The choices you made from ME1 thru ME3 are just a number which grants you only 1 second extra on one of the 3 endings. The 3 endings are near identical in everyway except the 1 second cutscene at the end of the Red Ending. There is also the other 2 endings, Blue and Green. No matter what you do, you get this one ending that comes in 3 colors and in the Red one you can get 1 second extra with a high enough score. Nothing you did showed up in the cutscenes for the end game which should have been bare minimum. The endings in my opinion turn the main Character into the worst villain in history rather than send him off like a hero. It is ok to kill the main character in story like Mass Effect 3 and in fact he could have died in ME2, but to send him off as horrible person even if you played the good guy options through was unforgivable and it kills the entire experience.
    This review is based on Mass Effect 3, not the whole series. The reason I gave it a 4 is that it is the same combat system as 2, add in Weight which reduces your ability times the more you carry, but still no inventory, no in field changes, once you leave your ship you got what you got, also all exploration is gone, everything is level based now. The game is a Gears of War cover shooter clone.
    It is not plausible that you did all that you did in such a short time in the story. Leaving Earth and going out to get resources and items to come back and based on advertisement, "Retake Earth." This is not an option based on the current endings though so the avert is basically just smoke and mirrors. Nothing new is added to gameplay, choices are removed from dialogue, no more neutral options, its jerk or good-two-shoes Roleplay, nothing in between.
    The whole great trilogy was awesome, but the last 10 minutes of Mass Effect 3 makes you feel like crap. The last 10 minutes invalidates everything you accomplished throughout 1, 2 and even 3. Now some would say, "it's the journey," "not the destination." That is not the case in ME3, everything fit together at least on a base level, the story remained the same throughout even with the RPG element removal, then all of a sudden a different story starts, plot holes are thrown at you, new characters are introduced, people are hoping for "the dream ending," and all the choice you had before is now removed. One never seen before character at the end forces you into Red, Blue, Green options even though the protagonist would never listen to this new character ever before.
    The producers told us no A, B, C endings, but that is what they gave us. Mass Effect Series rating prior to ME3 = 9 out 10, after 5 out of 10 considering all 3 games, due to fond memories of 1 and 2, but realizing they meant nothing and are not the same game/story as 3. I did not think you could ruin such a good story even with a bad idea, but Bioware actually found a way to pick exactly the opposite of everything they did before.

    I sure hope Bioware gets back to its roots someday and remakes ME3 into the game they promised. Only if they could get away from EA.    … Expand
  86. petarded2
    Apr 16, 2012
    4
    The Mass Effect series started out with Mass Effect 1 as an interactive science fiction epic, reached middle age with Mass Effect 2 as a solid action game with dialogue options, and with Mass Effect 3, develops Alzheimer's disease and becomes Gears of War + occasional purposeless choice.

    I loved this series; the first game's universe and narrative blew me away, and I had a soft spot for     Mass Effect 2, even with it's lack of main plot, developed antagonist, or any real sense of purpose. At least Mass Effect 2 was distinguishable from its predecessor. At least Mass Effect 2 introduced and developed a cast of interesting characters. At least Mass Effect 2 didn't *completely* forget the aspects of exploration from Mass Effect 1. I cannot say this much for Mass Effect 3.

    The majority of "player" dialogue in Mass Effect 3 is automatic, and the dialogue wheel *never* has more than 2 options on it, maybe the occasional "inquisitive" option for the rare gamer who wants more than chest-high cover and a big gun. Maybe this would be admissible if the choices had any considerable difference, but typically both options just say the same things in different ways.

    The Citadel in ME3 is much improved over any city in ME2. This struck me as peculiar until I realized that it was literally the *only place* in the entire game where Shepard isn't constantly shooting things (other than the Normandy, of course). It's the only place with stores. The only place that gives nonessential quests, the last remnant of RPG in this series packed into one location.

    The nonessential quests are just insulting. I refuse to dignify them with the title "Side Mission." They are 3 lines of dialogue: (1) "Gee, I wish I had item X," (2) "Here you go," (3) "Thanks." I'm not even exaggerating. Literally 3 lines, every time. You don't even enter into a conversation.

    One impressive feat is that this game manages to find time for all of the immense Mass Effect 2 cast of characters, but these encounters are brief and generally don't provide much closure for the characters (with the notable exceptions of Thane, Mordin, and Legion).

    The combat is an improvement over ME2, that is to say, "it's slightly more like Gears of War." It feels a bit like clunky and you can roll around to your heart's desire. However, it has somehow found a way to be even *more* segregated from the story. You could replace all the combat situations with black screens saying: AND THEN SHEPARD SHOT THE THINGS, and the story would make complete sense. No decisions are made outside of the designated decision-making areas.

    This isn't even touching on the cliched story. After countless generic often-forced self-sacrifice scenes, generic space marine characters, and innumerable poor attempts at adding emotion, the game tries to save itself in the last 15 minutes with a forced twist ending. It'd take over 5000 characters to explain just how many different ways this ending is awful.

    Overall: Lazy game, what little that distinguishes from predecessor is negative, if you liked the previous installments just replay them. Had potential, but extremely poor execution.    … Expand
  87. Whoo71
    Apr 16, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I cannot tell you how excited I was for ME3. I pre-ordered it back in June (first pre-order ever), and replayed the past two games back-to-back up until release. There were some really good parts (the Krogan subplot and Quarian/Geth subplot,) but there are so many bad aspects I'm having a really hard time finishing my second play-though.

    First off, the journal system is broken. You get a quest, and it shows up, but it never updates. I could be in the middle of a quest, leave, come back, and totally forget where I was. This is the smallest problem I have.

    One of the biggest problems is the amount of automated dialogue. Shepard talks a lot by himself, and I mean A LOT. You have a lot less control over what he says, and when you do you you only get two choices: A - I BE GOOD MAN, and B - I EVIL AND RUTHLESS. There is no option to remain neutral in conversations. Auto-dialogue is also rampant among squad-mates. You rarely engage in conversations where you pick what to say. I'd guess 80% of squad-mate conversations are automated.

    My next problem is the story-flow. It's very linear. You're forced to do the "Priority" missions in a specific order. Allowing you to do the missions in a different order would make the game significantly less linear.

    My last, and biggest problem, with ME3 is of course the ending. You're given absurd logic by a "God Child," and you are unable to tell him to go to hell or shoot him in the face. You're forced to pick one ending that can have 1 of 3 colors: blue, green, or red. None of your choices matter, and nothing in the ending makes sense. The announced Extended Cut is just going to be polishing a giant pile of ****

    ME3 is unfinished. Everything from the ending quality, to the bad side-missions, to the horrible animations and textures just makes it evident EA rushed BioWare to meet a deadline. Again. Letting themselves be bought out was the worst choice BioWare ever made. Their products will continue to decline in quality, and soon all traces of the old BioWare will vanish.

    This is the last game I will buy from EA/BioWare. First DA2, then BF3, and now ME3. EA has totally ruined BioWare.    … Expand
  88. filby08
    Apr 16, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Playing this game is like finding out that your beautiful, intelligent and sweet girlfriend was really a hooker all along who hated you and was only in it for the cash. I played ME1 once before ME2 came out. After ME2, I played both games in succession about 8 or 9 times. I was so excited when ME3 came out, I was finally going to wrap up all my Shep's stories, and they were all going to have a different ending. Except not. It's the same ending for every single one of them, and it makes no sense. After finishing Mass Effect 3, I felt repulsion to a franchise that I once adored. There are some great moments in the game, almost like Bioware's last shred of integrity was working overtime to outdo all the bad, but it's not enough to redeem it. It's not just the ending, the players who romanced most of the ME2 characters were left sorely disappointed by the lack of character interaction. Ashley, the tough soldier girl, was mirandafied - because apparently the game didn't have enough pornstar looking women in it. The addition of Allers, a badly voiced, do nothing character based on an IGN reporter, was a glorious mistake. Kai Leng, one of the main antagonists, felt like he accidentally walked into the wrong game on his way to Street Fighter or something. Day one DLC is a massive Eff you to the fans (and the "Buy More DLC!" message that pops up while you're trying to process the endings is just awful). The multiplayer, while fun, should have been given less development time. I would have accepted it as a DLC even, if that were possible. I don't know who's idea it was to scap the final boss fight, but that person needs to go sit in a corner and think about what they have done.

    There are some positives, I won't forget them. The voice acting, for the most part, is superb. Some of the character arcs are handled brilliantly (Mordin !), I found the combat system highly enjoyable (coming from someone who fumbled through ME1 on normal). As a card carrying Garrus fangirl, I felt spoilt by the romance subplot. I liked the idea of the EMS, but I wish some of the larger plotlines (Racnhi, for example) were given more in the ending. The squadmate banter was fantastic, and it was great nice to see them recognise each other's existence in the cutscenes. I liked that I could customise my weapons again, even if it did feel a bit pointless.

    But none of this makes up for the fact that it feels like my reward for being a devoted fan is getting treated like a nuisance. My first gut reaction after the ending was "Wow...Bioware must really hate me." It's like they got sick of crafting a masterful story and phoned the rest in to appeal to the COD crowd. I don't like to play the "they dumbed it down to appeal to the masses" card...but that is really how it feels. The worst part, is I am not sure this is all entirely Bioware's fault. The ending, of course, rests solely on their shoulders, but I am not sure about everything else. If the reviews say anything, it's that Bioware now makes games for critics, and not their fans.    … Expand
  89. Kubotory
    Apr 21, 2012
    4
    If the first and second episodes were not, I would have given a 6, may be a 7 for this game. Unfortunately, they exist. This episode has no scenario, no charisma, and the RPG side is dead. I'm very surprised by the scores that ME3 received. This game doesn't deserve 8 or 9 points compared to it predecessors.
  90. LFC_Onder8
    Apr 28, 2012
    4
    Highs :
    Game-play - Quick, fluent. Action packed. Squad mates were good and the AI was clever through out the entire game. Story - Through out most of the game you made choices some of them were brilliant and mattered, some brought you to the point of tears, some may of made you question your own morals.
    Multiplayer - Fantastic multiplayer, although seems a bit more sluggish somehwat, mayb    e its just me, but overall it was good.

    Lows:
    Characters : Dead, personality wise, completely dead. You get a completely new character and he is basically a idiot who works out a lot and somehow he is actually and N7 Candidate, I have already forgotten his name, SERIOUSLY. Oh, and the small amount of characters is also quite disappointing considering in the other two there were so many. Story/Ending : Sucker punch in the face or a kick in the private area. Your pick    … Expand
  91. Thawn
    May 3, 2012
    4
    I'll make this short as there is probably little I will say that has not already been stated. But the end line of Mass Effect 3 is the question of whether a game can be ruined by the ending. It should be noted first off that this game is an even further step away from Mass Effect 1, while the level up system is more complex then it was in 2 the game is still essentially a combat sim with dialogue for plot. And here in lies the issue, Shepard no longer has fully articulated options based on what you choose, instead you have a pretty much zinger line in between the standard dialogue. While this did occur in 2 on occasion this is the entirety of the game's dialogue in 3. Combat gameplay is vastly improved, with the insanity A.I being highly sophisticated (though mildly spamming with grenades). As such the game itself will give you some challenge if you want it, and while the pacing is kind of jumpy you do get a sense of motivation once you approach the mid point of the game. However the last 5 minutes of the game will ruin the whole thing, I don' t just mean the ending but the game essentially at the last second takes the rules of the series and ignores them. If I had bought this game as a standalone combat game then I would be greatly pleased, but I bought this to finish off the ME trilogy. And I can honestly think of no way that they could have ruined this ending more. It is not the ending you the player made, it doesn't even feel like the ending the design team made. It is just such a change from the tone of the series that you can tell that something is wrong the moment you hit the ending.… Expand
  92. ryn
    May 15, 2012
    4
    There are many areas where ME3 has improved upon it's predecessors. Unfortunately, the price for all of these improvements was too high. Let me start by saying that the ME universe has never felt so small. The Citadel is the only hub "world"Â
  93. strangel0ve
    May 19, 2012
    4
    this game was like a bad movie, you follow, step by step, the cheap storyline. theres even an option to disable choosing dialogues which tells you how important your decisions are in this game apart from the action, which is fun it's achingly dull.
  94. Gothic90
    Oct 29, 2012
    4
    There are signs everywhere that Bioware isn't the company it used to be. Maybe the current direction is more profitable for them, but it is a win-lose situation at best when fans get relatively unpolished games for $60. Now, my criticism has little to do with the ending as many others have already pointed that out a thousand times. Mass Effect 3 is frustrating to play through in almost all aspects of the game. Combat seems to be improved from Mass Effect 2, but who the hell binds FIVE conflicting functions to the same button? The class experiences are a regression from ME2. After their signature ability got nerfed to ground, Engineer, Adept and Sentinel just feels like the same generic mage class, throwing fireballs of different colors. The only thing Vanguard does now is spamming two buttons, gone are the days when Vanguard was a tactical class. There's no weapon limitation and it becomes weight limitations, which also restricts the number of possible builds. Ironically, the multiplayer is a pleasant surprise because you actually CAN try out lots of different character builds, even though it still suffers from the same frustration that 5 functions for your space bar. Now on to the story. While the main campaign does have several good moments, and some of the companions do have little moments that are very well written, the long auto dialogues AND the lack of dialogue choices (only two in most dialogues) make it feel frustrating to role-play as Shepard. You want to play a practical Shepard but also wants to punch a certain Quarian admiral in the gut? Too bad, he still does the impractical move of driving him off the ship; you want to play a casual bad-ass? He still salutes at Hackett. It seems as if a third personality cannot fit into that binary dialogue wheel. The story and combat in this game is also completely segregated, and often makes me wonder 'why the hell am I doing this, just for more points?', things like that. The game also feels unpolished. If you look down to any place that you could not walk to, you will find extremely lazy animations. Long story short, aside from the terrible ending (which still is bad after the DLC), Mass Effect 3 is a game composed with a linear script and bad 3rd person shooter mechanics. It is not a Shepard role-play experience anymore as so many personality customization is gone. You are way better off spending your money on an old but good shooter and then buy a good movie DVD.… Expand
  95. Timber
    May 16, 2012
    4
    I'll keep it simple. ME was perfect, ME2 was not as good but held itself quite well. What is this 3? How do you take a brutal amount of good things and trash most of them is beyond my understanding. The ending, bioware.... did you really thought about paid DLC for the ending before the "rage"? That stupid kid is a joke. But not only, ME3 is full of lame characters and dialogs, it feels as a new crap series, not ME.… Expand
  96. Gimee50k
    May 21, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The ending isn't the only problem (though it's a big one, because it takes away what the entire series was founded upon)
    The entire game is so unlike the other 2, and limits character choice to the point that it seems you aren't in control of your character (limited dialogue trees and shepard talking without choice are very prevalent in this game) Not to mention the ridiculous amount of gameplay and plot issues that overall make this game below average (in my opinion.)    … Expand
  97. ArcticBlue
    Jun 7, 2012
    4
    This game was supposed to be the pinnacle of the Mass Effect series, a glorious conclusion to a great story line. In the end you feel cheated, like nothing even mattered. Don't get me wrong, the game is fun to play, until you end up watching the last 10 minutes being thunder struck at the lack of originality and closure. I've heard that the team's "artistic integrity" has to be preserved, so they won't change the ending, although I did expect a new DLC. There are different problems with this game, starting from its movement away from ME 1 and its RPG style and ending with the numbers to signify your military strength. It just seems boring, Gears of War in space would be a better description. And promising 16 wildly different endings, but only providing 3 with MINOR DIFFERENCES is a goddamn blasphemy. I give it a 4 because it was interesting, but that **** ending about a Jesus space child is so out of context and random that I seriously considered giving this game a 1 and burning my copy of it.… Expand
  98. AdamTheDullBoy
    Jul 19, 2012
    4
    The biggest issue with this game is its failure to deliver what the overall story arch of the previous Mass Effect games was leading up to. Mass Effect 3 is nothing short of magnificent and plays very well until its last few hours; during which, however, it starts to fall apart in an unprecedented manner. Unlike during the brilliant final mission of Mass Effect 2, almost none of the thematically important choices the players made during the game (or the previous installments) manifest themselves in the moments where the Mass Effect trilogy should have reached its climax. This ultimately renders all Mass Effect games a letdown, even pointless, since the overarching consequences of our decisions have been the M.O. of the series from the very beginning. Likewise, the infamous ending of the game (even after the Extended Cut) is a textbook example of inconsistent script writing that feels incredibly disjointed from the core themes of the series, as if the writers responsible for the rest of the Mass Effect universe had nothing to do with it. In the end, it is irrelevant whether the third act of Mass Effect 3 is so cheap and rushed because of EA, greed, Bioware's obligation to implement a multiplayer into the game, etc. The bottom line is that it's a failure of the concept and the storytelling that made the series unique in the first place, in short, it is a failure of artistic integrity.… Expand
  99. drSpockwa
    Jul 28, 2012
    4
    This has been a love hate purchase for me. * The story is good, although not the Epic everyone raves about. * The controversial ending is not as good as it could have been, but not as terrible as hyped * The combat experience is great! Leveling character kits from experience is a fun mechanic * Graphics aren't that great for this day and age * Lip syncing with dialog is horrible. They shouldn't have even bothered if this is what they came up with.

    My primary problems are around game stability:
    * I played this on the PC. I suspect console gaming is more stable.
    * The cover system is awful. They chose to use the same button for running and going into cover which means you spend about 10% of combat fighting the game itself to get into cover when you want to, or out of cover when you didn't want to, because you ran too close to a corner and it thought you wanted to go into cover.
    * If an enemy comes up behind you while in cover, good luck getting out of cover to run/melee. You can't melee from cover.
    * Waiting - You get to wait at least 30 seconds after pressing any key for the intro when the game starts, till you get the main menu, because the game insists on connecting to EA's servers then validating your DLC. Why couldn't this happen either quicker, or start during the intro? And why is this even necessary if I'm playing single player campaign.
    * Multi-player - This is really the part I like most of the game because it is pure combat. However:
    * The match making system is SLOW and flaky. You spend a lot of time waiting for the servers to place you with a group of other people. Very often I cancel and retry and it gets right in.
    * If you get sick of waiting for the Quick match to add you to an existing lobby/game, you can create your own, but plan on waiting at least 5 minutes for anyone to appear in your lobby. More waiting.
    * Once you get into a multi-player game About 1 in 10 games will have some type of syncing issue with the servers or peers. You'll shoot at enemies that are stuck pumping ammo int an enemy with out it's health meter changing, and then they magically appear next to you and kill you.
    * About 1 in 10 games ends with an enemy stuck in a wall or 20 feet off a ledge off the edge of the map, so you better hope someone has an area of effect weapon like a grenade to kill it or your stuck ending the match. * Experience and game $ is only awarded at the end of an 11 wave match. This makes some sense because you don't want people being flaky and jumping in and out and messing with the team continuity. But when the game goes nuts, and you get dropped or quit because there is no other option, you get nothing.
    * You get to the end of a multi-player game and there is an awesome stats screen to see how you did. But the guy that hosted the game decided he is done and leaves, so you don't get to review your stats anymore.
    * About 1 in 20 in game purchases will lock up during the transaction. Purchases are made from either real cash through bio ware points( I've never done it, and won't) or game $ you earn from matches. About 50% of the time, after you restart the game from the lock up, you see the pack that you purchased during the previous crash.
    * For a while, I couldn't launch the game till online research uncovered that I had to start Origin (EA's required digital distribution system) in Admin mode.

    I really wish this game were more stable, so I could enjoy it more Fortunately, I got it on sale 50% off, so I don't feel too hosed by EA and BioWare.    … Expand
  100. piccina808
    Aug 5, 2012
    4
    As a huge fan of previous games, especially Mass Effect 2, to say that I am disappointed would be a serious understatement. The ending of Mass Effect 3 is not only the conclusion for this game, it's for the entire franchise, so for it to be like this is an insult to the fans. But to forget about the ending for a second, and look at the entire product, it's not at all brilliant. Combat is faster and yes you can now climb. roll, etc. but it just feels awkward, especially on the pc version, where one button for all makes your head explode. Tons of auto dialogue, many of the previous choices don't matter at all, it's like you didn't have any choice in the previous games, side quests are not side quests, they are fetch quests, extremely boring and idiotic, and to make matters worse, journal is a complete mess, there is no information about any of the quests, have you collected anything, is it 75% complete, no, so you better prepare piece of paper and a pen and get working. Unacceptable, the entire game. I will give it 4/10 because there are still great moments because of the surrounding characters, but all in all, they should just forget about making this and start anew.… Expand
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Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
89 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 23 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 23
  3. Negative: 0 out of 23
  1. CPUGamer
    Apr 11, 2012
    90
    BioWare captures the scale of the conflict well, but always focuses on the people involved in it. It's pretty amazing just how badly EA disregarded the heart of the game – the characters and the world – when they began their marking blitzkrieg, but don't worry, it's oh so definitely there – Day 1 DLC, controversial endings, and questionable use of resources be damned. This is a fine, lovingly crafted game with a clear vision despite the realities of corporations and damning business practices.
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  2. PC PowerPlay
    Apr 5, 2012
    80
    A game that's more shooter than role-playing, and a conclusion that's more spectacular than dramatic. [Apr 2012, p.47]
    Read full review
  3. Absolute Games
    Mar 31, 2012
    85
    Finishing a trilogy is always difficult. Tying off dozens of story threads which had been woven by players into many different tapestries is a daunting task. Mass Effect 3 is the first game that succeeded at this colossal undertaking.
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