Mass Effect 3 PC
User Score
4.8 out of 10

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 4422 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,847 out of 4422
  2. Mixed: 379 out of 4422
  3. Negative: 2,196 out of 4422

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  1. AthanasiosT
    Apr 12, 2012
    3
    Well, let's put it that way : ME1 was top of the list. ME2 comes second. I played ME3 because I felt I had to follow the story, but I was deeply disappointed. It's clearly the worst of the three (poor scenario, repetitive shooting, poor RPG elements) and really has a weird (being polite here) and non rewarding ending. Sorry Bioware....
  2. ultraviper
    Apr 13, 2012
    8
    The good: The story kept me not wanting to put the mouse down until I was done. A lot of decisions you made back in the previous 2 games come up in conversations pretty often which is a nice touch. Many cameos from the previous games' characters as well. Graphics are very nice and really well optimized, ran great on my 4 year old PC at 1920x1080 with max settings. The multiplayer is pretty good, better than what I was expecting it to be like. Much more fun than the combat in the single player mode.

    The bad: Combat got pretty monotonous after the first couple hours. Every fight in the game is the same except for the rare occasions when you get to pilot a mech. The ending was lackluster, yes, but that shouldn't make the game an automatic 0 or 1 score, the ending is just one tiny part of this amazing series.    … Expand
  3. Rurouni
    Apr 14, 2012
    3
    The game was a solid 8 for the first third of the game, a 5 as I neared the ending and a 0 at the finale.

    I was really looking forward to ME3 to build on the fantastic experience of ME2. I even bought the collector's edition in anticipation of a fantastic closure to the series.

    Sadly the plot holes that emerged, as well as a sense that the ending sequences were rushed out led to probably     one of the biggest games related letdown I have experienced in a long while. I can not in good faith recommend this game to anyone.

    I suggest that the game websites that reviewed this game on launch do a before-after review after they have finished the game. I would be interested to see the final score on metacrtic.    … Expand
  4. LewisMweiR
    Apr 15, 2012
    3
    Great game until you reach the anti-climax deus ex machina lost ending,the mass effect franchise is one of the best of the game industry and is sad that the trilogy end is such a disappointing way
  5. Smiley15
    Apr 15, 2012
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Honestly in this game, everything good they add they add something terrible to even it out. The biggest improvement, by far, is the gameplay. They added tons of new weapons, rolling in cover, and to make Trench-Warfare a bit easier, quick-killing(grabbing). The singleplayer isn't as monotonous, in Mass Effect 2 it was recruiting and helping squad mates with the occasional mission against the collectors. However, the squadmates are a let down. Javik and James are the only new ones that haven't been seen before(forgive me if I'm wrong). Garrus, Tali,Liara, and Javik are the only alien squad mates, and there's no Drell or Salarian squad mates, much to my dismay. The graphics and animations are pretty much the same, if not slightly better. You can still upload from Mass Effect 2, so you aren't starting from scratch. For the ending, I am quite furious about it. Anderson is a fixed death (alongside other Mass Effect 2 squadmates like Legion and Thane) and apparently the indestructible Reapers are led by a ghostly kid who is also the Catalyst, a componet for the Crucible that you spend a lot of time looking for. Also, 2 randomly chosen squadmates will appear with Joker on survival island at the ending, not saying a word. However that's something that they're changing, so I will not be giving this game the 6 it deserves with it. As I mentioned before, many former squad mates are fixed deaths and die no matter what you do. However, all of the deaths, even the optional ones, are fitting. Thane dies saving a life rather than removing it. Legion dies either in defense of his species or to save them from annihilation. Mordin CAN(but doesn't have to) die curing the genophage, his biggest mistake. Samara CAN die fulfilling the code. Of course they add a heap of stupid and soulless characters, including a lesbian and a gay person. They also added Kai Leng, which I have concluded is a female after watching Thane hit him in his nonexistent balls 10 times. At least you get to slay him when it's over, I didn't hesitate for a nanosecond about the renegade interrupt. Also, they added Co-op Multiplayer which is the biggest new thing out of all the epic updates. You can FINALLY play as Salarians, Turians, Quarians, Asari, Drell, Geth, Krogan, Batarian, and even as a Asari Justicar. It's hard to implement slow motion attacks like Biotic Charge and such when others don't want random slow-mo, but they executed it very well. And a very prevalent topic is the day 1 DLC. I hated it too, but it's not a good reason for plop a 0 down as your score. The new War Assets idea was brilliant. Now you can do side quests and scanning parties for something more important than research material(removed, sadly). Anomalies and random missions were pretty much worthless in mass effect 2, except being very fun. Now they are fun and benefit you by giving a War Asset. Depending on the final decision in Mass Effect 2(destroying the Collector Base or not) you need a certain amount to keep Shepard alive and to keep Earth from utter destruction. A HUGE problem for me was the enemies. Besides having fairly stupid 1-shot kills (unavoidable once it starts), there's only THREE FACTIONS. It would be fun to have a boss on wave 11 in multiplayer, like a Geth Colossus or a Gunship, but no. In fact, in single player, the final boss is the infamous Marauder Shields, in which you have no choice but to use the limitless ammo M-3 Predator(Which I never used after I found my first Weapons Bench). At least they added gun modifications like extended barrels, and upgrading the guns to I and V and X. All in all, this game is excellent but if you're a poor starving person on the streets, prepare for the attack of the DLC.… Expand
  6. xminus
    Apr 15, 2012
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I have thought about what could be said about Mass Effect 3. I really wanted to like this game, I believe Mass Effect 1 was and still is the greatest Sci-Fi Rpg ever made. The second Mass Effect improved the fighting system and neutered the Rpg side of the game into oblivion. Mass Effect 2 was an adventure game that was just a fair game. But Bioware made it a lot better with dlc I played it again before the release of Mass Effect 3, it was long, the story made more sense. All in all it turned out to be a good game even though it was not the Rpg Masterpiece Mass Effect 1 was. Mass Effect 3, where does it fit into this? The problem is it does not. Seeing all the characters from the previous games was cool regardless of where the story took us. But the story only took us to the end. The big deal that everyone has made about the end? Silly you say? Bioware started it, the whole game is about the end, even when it is not being said, you feel it this is the end of the story. My seven year old daughter has that figured out. This is Bioware fault for making such a big thing about the end. With every step you know you are closer, with every familiar face you realize this is the last time you are going to see them. That is the story they choose to tell. They choose to shortcut any real story about what was going on, and made it about the journey to the end. If this game was the first in the series you would not see the inflated gamer scores on some of the web sites out there. You know who you are! ( Now Hang Your Head in Shame) this game is the first game that should be scored differently even though the story was bad, really bad. Even though the plot mechanics were bad, like talking to someone turning away and walking away only to find them sitting in the other room. Sliding down the ladder only to see you team at the bottom waiting for you, why did I have to deal with the ladder? And did not get to use magic like my team members? But seriously the art in this game is fantastic, it makes it a must own just for the art and environments the level designers created. The artist and level designers should start there own company. And hire some good writers to showcase their awesome work. They were truly trying to make a great game, this is where the artist integrity was, in the art, not in the lame story or half baked ending. That Bioware is still claiming that was in the writing of the end of a great story that spanned two Mass Effect games and was totally absent in the third one. Can Bioware fix the story, only if they can face the story and plot problems they created. But last I heard they just plan to explain the out of character bad ending just a little better, what ever that means. I am giving Mass Effect 3 a 6 score. I apologize to the artist's for the low score. I apologize to the writers for the high score, twice what you deserved. I really hope the writers can redeem themselves for plot holes that you could drive a truck through. But only time will tell.… Expand
  7. lod757
    Apr 15, 2012
    1
    i am still recovering from the shock , the entire game right upto the last ending part was amazing , and then it fails so hard , i don't think there is no excuse for ruining such a awesome game this way , on top of that , they are extending the horrible ending with a dlc nice :X what good is a game if the ending has been a joke
  8. Soujirop
    Apr 18, 2012
    10
    First, I want to warn you who didn't play this game, that it is not a good movement to trust the user reviews (and I will include myself in this). This is because this game is so controversial, that have made a lot of people enrage about it. This people, which didn't like the ending of the game, and therefore the ending of the franchise, are so frustrated that will easily give this title a 0/10 just because of its ending, which represents just the last minute of gameplay. In my opinion, this is very unfair, and can lead people to believe this game is actually bad, when it isn't. In fact, this game is probably one of the bests RPG you will have this year. Graphics: 9/10. With better graphics than its predecessors, ME3 meets perfectly what its expected for a science-fiction title of this generation. Sound: 9/10. This game will probably make you care about the music. Some of the songs really fit the critical moments, making them even more epic and memorable. Of course and as expected, Bioware also made a brilliant work dubbing the game. Gameplay: 10/10. If you though ME was a brilliant mixture of RPG and shooter playstyle, then you will simply love ME3, being even more dynamic and intuitive than its predecesors. The cover system will make u enrage sometimes, but you will be having so much fun that you will easily forget about this. As a negative, ME3 has more "autodialog" than previous bioware titles, which makes you get less involved in conversations, but don't worry, you will still be able to make pretty big choices through the game. Oh and good news for naughty players, ME3 allows same-sex romances, yum! Also, there's a quite addictive multiplayer mode. Story: 8/10. ME3 feels more linear than its predecessors, and it is. It also has less secondary missions and the main quest is probably shorter. Story is still immersive and the narrative is great, becoming quite emotional in some moments and portraying very good a stressed Sheppard, which will show the signs of pressure through the game and have a pretty hard time making some important decisions. It is satisfying to see what the characters of the previous games have become and most of them will return and make u feel the strong friendship they have with the protagonist. As a negative, ME3 story, while still good, fails to exceed that of ME2. The final stage could also have been larger and you will get a very unexpected ending that u may not like at all (I did like it, anyway). If you have played the previous games, then for sure you have to play this one and expect to have your own strong opinion about the end of the saga. If, on the contrary, you haven't playing the previous games, then... What are u doing here? Go to your nearest store and buy this three must-have!… Expand
  9. SHO1BANG
    Apr 18, 2012
    8
    Let's be clear. The game was really fun. At least for me. I loved the comabt, and for thee first time it didn't bore me (like it often did in ME 1 and ME 2). And the story wasn't too bad either, and trying to unite everyone was interesting and Cerberus was also an intriguing part of the story. -1 for even less dialogue choices ( they already started with this in ME 2). Often it didn't feel like an interactive RPG. But I can forgive that, it didn't bother me that much, as there were some great interactions with the characters in this game. And -1 for the ending. It's just stupid that you HAVE to do one of these 2 (or 3?) things, none of which leaves me satisfied. It's not TERRIBLE as many people say, but it's still NOT GOOD. I understand the cycle and everything, but you could have thought of something better Bioware... 8/10 for an overall great and fun game, which could have been ended on a higher note than this.… Expand
  10. Invader-Nik
    Jul 18, 2012
    9
    Mass Effect 3 is the brilliant conclusion to the popular series. Do not listen to these bad reviews, the game was brilliant. I found the endings really good, they fitted the 'Mass Effect' spirit and made a stunning conclusion. I think a lot of people wanted a 'Shepard defeats the reapers and lives happily ever after" kind of ending. But then they would force Bioware for a Mass Effect 4 (something Bioware didn't want to do)

    Brilliant game, brilliant ending. 9/10    … Expand
  11. hildegain
    Apr 19, 2012
    1
    If I were you I would buy Mass Effect 1 and 2 and play those first BUT I DO suggest you buy Mass Effect 3 and play it to at least see why it's so bad. The voice acting is great! The characters are good! The graphics are decent. The customization is good. Dialogue options, paragon and renegade are fantastic. BUT Bioware got lazy with the reapers. The plot is a COP-OUT. The ending betrays everything about the mass effect series.
    The writing is filled with holes.
    The game has been largely falsely advertised, you do not get anything that Bioware have promised in the past.
    This game resolves NOTHING.
    This game either ends with "a wizard did it" or "it was all a dream" depending on how you interpret it...
    This game takes everything ME1 and ME2 built up and says "that doesn't really matter now".
    You do not need to have played the other games to play this one, you don't. None of your choices, none of your decisions will account for ANYTHING.
    This game can be stand-alone but I suggest getting the far superior Mass Effect 2.
    There is a reason why ME2 is the people's favourite, it is coherent and the ending pays off.

    You get fewer squad mates in this game because apparently Bioware feel that you couldn't connect with the squad of Mass Effect 2 too well but everyone will tell you how much they love the squad you have in Mass Effect 2.

    Essentially this game was delivered to us with several promises that it fails to keep and not only that but it will personally insult you. Removal of everything wrong with this game will take several writers peer-reviewing each other's work to pull it off, no surprise then that many of the bad ideas in this game were NOT peer-reviewed in writing AT ALL.

    There are so many good ideas that they could have taken from ME1, ME2 and the novels. Remember the dark energy problem? That's gone now. Remember the reasons why Reapers harvest life? Gone too. Remember why you need to destroy the Reapers? Oh you know what? Just get it, I don't care how you get it just play it through and compare how it works compared with everything that came before.

    There will be times in this game that you fall in love with the story only to have your heart broken again and again every time the plot goes somewhere silly.

    I still have yet to even mention the ending really, I'll leave that as a surprise, I don't want to post spoilers...    … Expand
  12. theGrey
    Apr 23, 2012
    10
    I honestly don't know what the problem is with all these negative reviews. I've played ME1, ME2 and ME3 back-to-back (on PC) and let me tell you, ME3 is my favourite alongside ME2. The controls are smooth, the dialogue has all the depth I've come to love and all of my choices from previous MEs carried through 100%. I think the visuals and audio are truly epic and what I came to expect from a 2012 game. A big thumbs up from me. These user scores of 1 and 0 etc are obviously false or fabricated. It's unthinkable that someone could give this game such a low score.… Expand
  13. Daruwind
    Apr 24, 2012
    1
    Well we were promised many things by devs of that game. And because od ME1+2 we believed. The big majority of the game is a damn good ride but still you have the feeling that development needed like one more year. Game is rushed and many corners are cut off not polish into the gold. (Maybe they were intentions for future DLCs). But the most major problem is,that the fate of universe is decided in the last 10 minutes which completely negate all our choices so far. (Why import our choices, why all the hype about importance of our deeds,why ......) Now we are stuck with "artistic integrity" which is completely without logic with so many plot holes that even planets could fall through. Simply the end feels like completely from different world/space/time/hell...I enjoy re-playing of ME1+2 but now I don´t have will nor taste to try ME3 once more. And that´s really sad. Another issue and false ad is about multiplayer which is effectively necessary for "the best" ending. Singleplayer itself cannot provide you that ending there is not enough in-game point for it. (BW is looking into the matter, maybe future DLC which will allow it...) Disappointment is simply too strong.… Expand
  14. GirGir777
    Apr 26, 2012
    1
    Does the video game industry have anything left good to offer us? Mass Effect 3 shows nothing that could appeal to the fans of the ME trilogy. If I can give the game one thing, it's that it gives a good story, at least I thought it did from the beginning. Though it seems the game had a lot of potential, it built up and came off with VERY disappointing results. All the endings to the collection of trash known as the finale leave you mouth agape and croaking "Are you kidding me?" If I were anywhere near this company, I'd tell them to save their money, because this game should have flopped.… Expand
  15. 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
  16. GhostDog24
    May 3, 2012
    1
    The game graffics just the same as the ME2 with a little update. The game easier and faster than the ME or ME2. And not to mention the awful story... just a question for BioWare: Why the f**k did you fired Drew Karpyshyn out (ME and ME2's writer) and changed him to, no name writers such as Mac Walters and Neil Pollner? I can give this game 1 point because, I'm a huge Mass Effect fan and I used to love these games. Either way, if you wanna destroy this game history, play with it, and !no complain! because a lot of people warned you.
    PS.: Do me a favour EA/BioWare/Legendary Pictures/WB: Do NOT make a movie from this game 'cause I do NOT want a piece o cr*p from it. This game and the story already bad enough (and not because someone die at the end or not if you "lucky"...)    … Expand
  17. BlackCobra
    May 6, 2012
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. What started as a great series ended in such dissapointment . . . Mass effect was an incredible game, great story, interesting characters, cool upgrades and a nice ending that nicely set up Mass effect 2. ME2 changed the gameplay at little bit and user interface. But I was cool with it, some of the changes made sense streamlined game play and invetory. Characters all had a nice back story. The ending was worth all the extra work to get the achievments. And then there''s ME3 . . . every thing about the story seemed "rushed" like the folks @ bioware were saying "come on, hurry up, lets wrap this up so we can move on to some other game". I understand that it was made clear that this would be the last ME, but why did it seem like such a slap in the face. I havent mentioned any of the changes and improvement made to the game because it doesn't matter at the end. All the work you do seems to have no effect/reward at the end of the game. Once I got to the "final decision" I wasn't sure exactly what my options were. The choices seemed like bad, really bad, and dear god no! It took roughly a week to complete, but once it was all over I haven't played it since.… Expand
  18. Baenlynn
    May 8, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Having loved Mass Effect from the first instalment so many years ago, the denouement to this story feels as though I've just watched someone give the performance of a lifetime on stage and at their second curtain call, fall over into the orchestra pit and impale themselves on the entire woodwind section. The story in ME3 is book-ended by bad writing and shot through with wonderful, funny, heartwarming and heartbreaking moments, but it seems that Bioware got the ratio of good bits to bad bits the wrong way 'round. Part of this is the scope of what they have tried to do. For one: keeping the gameplay balanced in a computer RPG when your choices should in theory remove certain elements from the game (e.g. the Rachni queen) is difficult. Secondly: RPGs are meant to have a MASSIVE scope for player choice, and providing all of that for a computer game on less than 10 DVDs--in an era where everyone expects full audio for every line of dialogue--is going to be close to impossible. Let's not forget the game already had oodles of content for characters who could have died as far back as ME1: Ashley/Kaidan, Wrex, Everyone from ME2, and so it goes... Now that's a lot of data right there. Consider that the Kasumi and Zaeed DLCs for ME2 were over a gig a piece then probably a third of the data in the game itself was stuff some play throughs would never see.

    Could Bioware have done better? Hell yes! Were they fighting uphill against technology in terms of what they were promising to deliver? Yes again.

    This is one of the biggest problems with ME3's writing and it is that at present you cannot deliver a truly varied and unique experience in a Role-Playing game on a PC. You have two choices in that regard. You can make a story-driven game that will sacrifice openness and variability to a degree (like Mass Effect) Or you can create a gigantic sandbox which the player can explore but not really touch (like Skyrim). Trying to deliver something that retains game balance, has fully voiced dialogue and actually registers all your past actions in a meaningful way is impossible without some form of procedural generation. They definitely could have done the writing better of course, which by means of segue brings me to...

    The ending, which just REEKS of the 11th hour rush. The Citadel and Crucible are just two pieces of a giant MacGuffin designed to give organics a way to end the cycle of harvesting. Something started by some inscrutable AI who lives in the citadel? REALLY Bioware? There's a reason MacGuffin is seen as a pejorative term nowadays. Much of the game is like that apart from those wonderful shining moments, good and bad... Mordin's death, Femshep's date with Garrus, watching Joker and EDI talk, Legion's goodbye, Miranda confronting her father... Shades of brilliance from ME2, but it's almost as though the writers had something better to do and handed it off to the work experience kid. Hat's off to him for trying, but he's gonna need more training.    … Expand
  19. Neu-ro-man-cer
    May 9, 2012
    10
    Game of my Life!!! I just finished it. NO SPOILERS, don't worry :) I invested around 50+ hours in the game, done every side-quest, had nearly all the dialogs = I tried to extract as much as possible from the game. I was playing an imported character from ME2, which was imported from ME1. People, listen!!! There is no problem with the story or the ending!! It is consistent, it is even logical, and it has a huge moral and emotional impact (as does the story).
    My decisions from ME1 and ME2 were reflected in ME3. I wouldn't say that they completely changed the flow of the game, but they Had An Effect. A Mass Effect:))
    The game is brilliant!! It is better and bigger in every sense than ME1 or ME2.
    The story is larger, the game is more focused on essence, better graphics, good acting / voice acting, LOTS OF CHOICES and ways to play, and even the combat system and the multiplayer is enjoyable.
    About the ending (WITHOUT SPOILERS): you need to have a LOT of War Assets, and a correct Galactic Readiness level. Thats it. ...for the latter you need a legal copy of the game to be able to play online multiplayer, to increase the Galactic Readiness level from 50% to 100%.
    BUT: I could finish the game with a logical, and effectively POSITIVE ENDING with only 53% Galactic Readiness. ...but for that I needed to collect almost all War Assets throughout the game. ...so if you find less, then increase you Galactic Readiness, and then the end of the game won't be a guaranteed defeat, then you may have a POSITIVE ENDING!!!
    ...but you need to invest energy into it.
    This game has TONS to offer. The story is wonderful in my opinion. There are great thoughts scattered all around the plot. ...without spoilers it would be hard to mention any, so I need to stay silent about that now, but, hell it was a FANTASTIC GAME, and I am soooo sorry, that it was over yesterday night. ...it was long, very long (especially doing every possible side-quest, talking to everyone, etc.), but I could play it for even longer.
    So, considering this, the sheer size of the game, all the content, all the value (which is also Artistic value = Art), I would say that it was absolutely easy for me to forget about the small glitches here-and-there. See: the game was stable like a rock. BUT: here-and-there there were small animation glitches, and even minimal (far from game-breaking) quest-glitches, one or two at most from the latter.
    At the beginning the game is like a tutorial. A bit linear. For newcomers. OK. ...but then, be patient, and it will expand!! 3rd, 4th, 5th mission, and you'll see!! Just give it time. ...if you put this investment into this game, it will reward you with even more!! ...if you like science fiction, RPG and FPS, and all that.
    For me this was one of the best games of my life.
    It is TRULY MAGNIFICENT!!!
    ...but to be able to get that all, I'd strongly suggest you to play ME1 and ME2 __WITH ALL DLCs__!!!
    The game is constantly referring to ME1 and ME2 with all the DLCs (until "The Arrival" for ME2).
    But they are also great, so I'd suggest you to play it all BEFORE starting ME3.
    THEN all your investment will be rewarded. Money, time and energy - I promise.
    For me it did it.
    I wish if only BioWare (or any other company) would take the time and energy and ambition to make such GRAND GAMES in the future!!!
    Mass Effect 3 is SIMPLY EPIC.
    Nothing more to say.
    Shepard out.
    :))))))
    P.S.: About myself shortly: I am 34 years old, playing computer games for the last 30 years, even now, as a university teacher (I teach informatics and AI at my University).    … Expand
  20. yastru
    May 18, 2012
    10
    people, please dont listen to the trolls and check it for yourself. buy it, pirate it, loan it, whatever, but you must try it and dont let others make your opinion. the game is fantastic. pure 9 but il give it ten, just because of them.
  21. Arrogantius
    May 15, 2012
    7
    Most of the people who've played ME3 hate it because it failed to live up to THEIR expectations. Was the game as horrendous as most users say? Not at all. It was rushed, it's buggy, the endings are stupidly presented - not stupid, just done poorly - but the Mass Effect series - ME3 included, showed a great many just what the gamer medium can do, rather than just mindless and endless reiterations of the COD style of brainless gunplay. Imagine an epic movie you can actually play, can actually influence - that's Mass Effect as a series. See, people wanted ME3 badly. Really badly. So badly that they got what they wanted - ME released long before it should have been and now what could have been great has suffered for a lot of impatience, both on behalf of the fans and the creators. Too many fingers in the cookie jar. Not enough quality control - and I suspect - and ego or two in the way in Bioware's offices. The real trouble with a lot of games and movies is that the makers think the average consumer is pretty much a moron, and unfortunately, given the state of what's most popular nowadays, they're not far wrong. That's their business model: fans are stupid. So you get half-done and half-thought through and just too much wrong with it. Was the game "bad"? Nope. It was actually pretty good. Was it Mass Effect?

    That's trickier.

    We were promised many things with ME3, 99.9999999% of which we did not get. They *can* fix it. Unfortunately, by the time they do, no one will care.    … Expand
  22. Chagga
    May 15, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I find this game hard to score. As a game, until the last 10 minutes, it's very good (perhaps an 8 or 9), but the last 10 minutes basically trash the whole Mass Effect experience (ME 1, 2 and 3 to that point) so completely that the end is clearly a 0, both as an end to ME 3 and as an end to the series.

    Deus Ex Machina, lack of logic and things that exactly contradict specific quotes from the devs. 2 is about as high as I can go, as the end is so atrociously bad in any way I can analyze it.    … Expand
  23. Cytheria
    May 16, 2012
    7
    Let's ignore the ending here, because I guess anyone reading this review now either already knows about it, or doesnt want to.

    Truth be told, its a good game. Playing it I felt the tech had been improved enough to fix immersion in some areas without completely overhauling a system we had been used to since ME 1.

    That said, the story line was a little lack lustre and I didnt feel it was     quite as gripping as the franchises earlier installments.

    Dont get me wrong, there are a few moments that are truely and magnificently choreographed and will reduce most gamers to tears, but they are few and far between. Mostly however, I found that once again I felt like all my previous efforts had been ignored and for the 3rd time I had manic rush to collect my companions... again.... make them like me... again... and then actually get on with dealing with what was left of the main campaign. The multiplayer experience, for me has been where the game has demonstrated its real staying power. Taking a couple of key areas from the game (and with some later DLC a few new custom ones too) you and a group of up to 3 friends are pitted against AI opponents in a king of the hill style beat down, with assorted minimissions to keep things interesting. Even after clearing my 100% readiness for the end game of the single player campaign, I've found myself coming back to multiplayer because it is nice, casual friendly, fun.

    Mass Effect 3 is certainly worth a look if you have the money and time available to try it. Players opinions are very divided on the endgame thing.... personally I like where they went with the endgame, I just didnt like how it was presented to the player.. Your opinion will undoubtedly vary..

    I'm not commander shepard, but this has definitely been my favorite multiplayer game on my pc for the past few weeks.    … Expand
  24. Inuart
    May 16, 2012
    9
    When they looked at all the possible endings of ME2 they said something like "Too many variables! Too many variables!" so they created a points system to reduce the number of endings to ONLY ONE which is why user score is mostly red.
    BUT you will not realize you are being tricked until the last 3 minutes of the game so apart from these last moments the game is absolutely awesome.
  25. Dusty_Hayes
    Oct 4, 2012
    9
    Mass Effect 3 dam near perfect, the online mode is fun, nice graphics, lovely musical score, great story, ME3 still plays well, with some of the best voice acting and performances on game, while the ending has been updated and expanded making it reasonably durable I still can't give ME 3 a 10/10 if you own Mass Effect 1&2 this is a must.
  26. John117
    May 20, 2012
    0
    This game was a huge disappointment. The combat was boring, the story was terrible, and the ending essentially ruined the previous two games for me. Mass effect 2 was dumbed down from ME1, but it was still a pretty good game. This one takes it ten steps further. "Action mode" says it all. The graphics are worse as well, many of the landscapes look blocky, the water looks awful...the list goes on. I don't know what happened, if some of the better writers left between games, but the story in this one is cringe-worthy at every turn with few exceptions. I'd have rather this game had not even came out, which is saying a lot since I'd been looking forward to this conclusion of commander Shepard's story for the past 5 years or so. Don't buy this game.… Expand
  27. Naherven
    May 20, 2012
    3
    Mass Effect 3 can best be summed up in one sentence; a slap in the face to fans. Major decisions made in previous Mass Effect games barely matter, as the story either glazes over or outright replaces player-made choices. Neutral choices seem to be absent from most dialog, removing a lot of the Role-playing from the Role-playing game. Renegade choices, which were mostly a Machiavellian "ends justify the means", "I did what I had to do" mindset in previous games, now come off as just plain, absurdly evil decisions with no real justification. The pacing is bottom-tier as well. The opening level, which is supposed to be an amazing, exciting scene is reduced to a railed tutorial level. Scenes, which try to depict Shepard as suffering from the stresses of saving the galaxy, come off as hilariously bad, as if written by someone who had never heard of the proper definition of PTSD. Strangely enough, there are some beautifully-written, tear-inducing missions and scenes, scattered about the rest of the game, making the overall experience feel very jarring. As many, many other people have stated. the ending is just god-awful. It feels incredibly rushed and (without spoiling much) adds a Deus Ex Machina from nowhere, watering down any possible chance at a well-written, open ended ending and ending up with an "A", "B" or "C" cookie-cutter end. It's incredibly sad to think that most Creative Writing 101 students could come up with a better ending than what Bioware and Hudson pulled. The most ironic part seems to be that, of all things, the multiplayer is the most enjoyable part of a supposed RPG game, as the multiplayer is surprisingly well-made and has a high replay value. Being an idealistic man, I honestly hope that Bioware didn't mean to make the game as bad as it was. I hope that the ending was so poorly-written, so incredibly bad because EA demanded the game meet a very exacting deadline, causing parts that required great care and thought to be sloppily churned out. But with Bioware and others scoffing at fans' disapproval, labeling it as just "whiners" or "a vocal minority" and Bioware planning to release "Ending DLC" not to retcon the atrocity of an ending, but to "clarify" it makes me lose any hope of seeing this injustice made against the fans, the story, the RPG genre, the medium, and the art of story writing as a whole from ever being rectified.… Expand
  28. Lokiador
    May 26, 2012
    0
    Extremely disappointing. The RPG elements have almost vanished, the plot is nonexistent, the ending is an outrage, the plot holes are pervasive. This game is proof that good graphics and effort on so-called "gameplay" (read : introduce gears of war like combat system) do not make a game.

    Such a shame, the legacy of the two previous installments deserved better than that !
  29. Mudpooch
    Mar 2, 2013
    10
    Amazing game buy it and don't listen to all those haters. As close to perfection as is possible in this day and age to achieve and worth a lot more than its starting price. Its quite sad to see the low user score this game has received just because the ending wasn't to the liking of all the ADHD fps (I need gratification right away and I wish to engage as few braincells as possible to get there) players. In this case I would suggest listening to the professional video game journalists and put aside the red ink haters...… Expand
  30. JohnnyBeGood
    Jun 5, 2012
    5
    As far as combat goes, this is the best, cleanest, most fluid Mass Effect yet. I would say that it is the best 3rd person game I've ever played, combat and control wise. Story wise, it is easily the worst. The game lacks the bonding with the characters that Mass Effect 2 contained. The dialogue is mostly poor. We have all heard the gripes about the ending. To have an "A, B, and C" choice to end a game based on countless Paragon and Renegade endings is offensive. It's clear to me Bioware wanted to wrap up the series. It seems like they really rished it, even though they had a huge amount of time to work on it. The multiplayer is surprisingly enjoyable, and t made even better when played with friends. The countless unlockables are a nice touch, and free map packs are quite amazing. However, smooth gameplay and captivating multiplayer are not enough to save the game from its deplorable story. This is made worse when you remember that the reason you play a Mass Effect game is for the story. There's even a "narrative" difficulty setting for the campaign that tones the enemies' difficulty down to as though they are being controlled by toddlers. Overall, the game is worth a buy for die hard fans, but you'll end up trading it in after a few weeks. Don't expect the hundred of hours you put into Mass Effect 2 for this game.… Expand
  31. RangerGxi
    Jun 24, 2012
    9
    This game was amazing! The character was deep and the final conclusion made my boner rip through my pants. The gameplay was solid, with great innovation from EA but the game still holding to it's roots. I really don't understand all the hatred this game receives. If you read into the indoctrination theory and follow the correct ending you will probably see the ending as one of the greatest ending's of all time. The ending ranks high on my favorite endings, among Fallout 3, Bioshock, etc.

    People who hate this ending are self-entitled brats giant expectations that are unrealistic. Each ending PERFECTLY reflected your decisions throughout the game. lol    … Expand
  32. ackka
    Jul 4, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I would give this game a 8 for the gameplay and a 3 for the overall story line, which resulted in a 5. The combat system is fun, the weapons feel real and the environments are awesome. Only downside is the covert system feels a bit clunky at times, especially moving from cover to cover.

    The plot and the direction they decided to go were so bad as to be almost laughable for a company like Bioware. Without going into too many details you pretty much spend 95% of the game fixing plot elements from mass effect 1 + 2 and then 5% of the game finding all your work meant absolutely nothing.

    There were so many different ways they could have done this, why they decided to kill off this franchise, I don    … Expand
  33. thugmuffin
    Jul 8, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. It is not often that the last game in a series manages to effectively ruin the work of its predecessors and their replay values, along with its own. But Mass Effect 3 does exactly that. The extended cut does nothing to alleviate the problems introduced by the original ending, just as patching a few holes in the hull of the Titanic wouldn't stop it from sinking because of the ginormous hole created by the impact with the iceberg.

    What is Mass Effect 3's iceberg? Why does it ruin the first two games in the trilogy for me? Because of what the ending does to the reapers, and how it invalidates 3 games worth of work. The reapers in the first two games were a mysterious, godlike force that were, as Sovereign told us, beyond our comprehension. Mass Effect 1 was shrouded with an ominous enigma; we had no idea what motivated the reapers or what their true purpose was. All we knew is that they wanted to end sentient life in the galaxy, and that this wasn't the first time they had done it. Mass Effect 2 kept this up. Even before the ending in Mass Effect 3, the reaper on Rannoch tells Shepard that the reason for the mass genocide is "not something you can comprehend". But I noticed something was amiss in the proceeding dialogue. The reaper continues to say, "Without our intervention, organics are doomed. We are your salvation." This was just a hint at the **** that would occur in the last 5 minutes of the game. As it turns out, according to the Star-kid-god-deus-ex-machina, the reapers are merely puppets; he controls them. They are well within our comprehension. They aren't mysterious at all. Now when I play the first 2 games, I know that Sovereign and Harbinger are talking out their asses when they say that we cannot imagine their realm of existence. It's just sad how they effectively made two badass bad guys in the first 2 games into stupid little dolls. It makes the first two games hardly bearable.

    The Starkid tells us that they were his solution to the problem of how organics inevitably create synthetic life, which inevitably kills organic life. So his solution is to kill all organic life before this really happens. Are you kidding me? First of all, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Why not just let organics get themselves killed instead of forcibly doing it? Second, why did I just spend the last 3 games repairing the relations between the Geth and Quarians? Does it mean nothing at all that I manufactured a peace between them? Oh, you're telling me it happens in every cycle? ****. Third, why all of a sudden is the core theme of the game synthetics vs. organics? I thought it was about making my own decisions, crafting my own destiny, and uniting all species under a common goal, organic or not? Now, all of a sudden, oh it turns out the Geth will eventually kill you, so we'll kill you before that happens. Simply unacceptable. Honestly, a third grader could write a better ending. And I'm forced into making a stupid decision at the end of the game that doesn't really incorporate any previous decisions, like the developers promised. Saved the Rachni queen? Cured the genophage? Created peace between the Geth and the Quarians? LOL DOESN'T MATTER. Pick a color.

    Now when I try to replay the series, I know I will be forced into this awful ending, none of my decisions matter, the bad guys are just tools, the Geth will kill everyone if unchecked, and Ashley/Kaiden will still not trust me despite everything I've done for the galaxy.

    Also, what was the point of Mass Effect 1? If the Starkid is a part of the Citadel, why didn't he just open the relay instead of letting stupid Sovereign fumble around like a fool? He can apparently generate a blinding light that merges synthetic life and organic life, which is far more complicated than anything that's ever existed ever, so I'm sure he's capable of pressing a damn button. And even if he couldn't, it apparently only takes 6 months for reapers to get from dark space to the galaxy, so why didn't they just do that in the first place?

    The only reason I'm so upset is because how much I loved the first 2.9 games. I saw the Mass Effect trilogy as this generation's Star Wars, a space opera of epic proportions that has a meticulous and interesting universe. But Mass Effect 3 really just makes me.. sad. Because its ending did not do the series justice. The Rannoch, Tuchanka, Mordin, and Thane scenes all brought me to tears. The entire series was astounding up until the last few minutes. Bioware had the chance to define the Mass Effect trilogy as the new standard for story driven games. But now? It's just.. bleh. I will probably never buy a Bioware game again. First Dragon Age 2, then SWTOR, and now this. They have fumbled 3 great franchises. Oh well.    … Expand
  34. GeorgeA
    Jul 19, 2012
    2
    Forget the terrible, plot hole-ridden abomination Bioware calls an "ending". This game has far worse problems than that. An incredibly lazy deus ex machina plot involving super-mega-awesome reaper destruction device known as " The Crucible" to some of the most ridiculous scenes in the history of video gaming(Tali's possible death sequence, for example). The writing is atrocious and seems to be done by a seven-year-old fan-fiction writer. The "neutral" dialog response is now completely removed, so most of the time you have two illusionary choices in dialogs, which don't affect anything at all. That is,if dialog wheel even appears, as it has been mostly replaced by auto-dialog. The world of Mass Effect has shrunk from the quite large Citadel areas and dozen of huge,explorable (though empty) planets in Mass Effect to six crammed locations at the citadel with bland grey architecture and bleak Normandy in the third game. Not even four relatively small, but at least completely different hubs like in Mass Effect 2 .But the final nail in the coffin are "quests".The way it works is already anecdotal-you wonder around the Citadel, "overhear" two people talking about some stupid item, your journal will update, you go to that area, scan the planet via boring planet scanner, "retrieve" that item and give it back to those idiots at Citadel. That's it. No dialog wheel, not even a cutscene, nothing at all. There are other kind of RARE side-missions, where you go to a boxed area and kill everything on your way to... retrieve data or item. There is not a single side-mission, which even remotely looks like an RPG quest should, let alone being interesting. The combat is the same as the second game, a boring cover-based Gears of War like shooter with million enemies per level to kill. Weapon mods are almost completely useless, armor sets are literally copy/pasted from Mass Effect 2 DLC. Hell, most of the time you can't even talk to your teammates on Normandy. The only reason I don't give it a zero, is because some really good moments here and there. In all, a disaster of epic proportions, no doubt. Bioware managed to destroy an interesting and promising science fiction action-adventure game with RPG elements and that's not easy even if you work deliberately to do just that.… Expand
  35. tuobniklat
    Jul 20, 2012
    0
    oh god oh god it's so **** bad why why why was this made please god end the suffering end it all **** me bioware, what happened to you babys, rest in peace
  36. 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
  37. Honest-Person
    Aug 5, 2012
    4
    EA HAVE BOUGHT BIOWARE = BEGINNING OF THE END OF EXCELENT GAMES Too sad for me heard that bioware, "one of the best",is now in the hand of the money eater, you can cleary see this line of influence in simple things :
    ===ME1 before EA === 1- Exploration on every planet, searching for stuff 2- Buy armor for each member and race! in the market, and cool wepons. 3-Variety of skill points t    o add. 4-You can run- walk-kneel- change combat to pasive mode. 5-Good side quests ===ME2 Now EA=== 1-No more exploration "boring probes" 2-Can't change or buy armor for the teammates "empty markets?" 3-Skills "simplified" 4-No more Kneel, just run-walk-change combat to pasive mode. 5-Have side quests ===ME3 Now EA=== 1-All exploration is reduced to this arcade style flight the damm ship and right click 2-Items? Recicled armor from ME2, and yeah fish and spaceship to fill the empty shops. 3-Skills improved, true. 4-No more kneel or walk mode, just run yesss and shoot a horde of monsters, for every meter you make. 5-Side quests? What the hell is what they made in ME3.

    CONCLUSION: You can see this in simple things, Moving to the garbage game line step by step, and in the next game, just 1 teammate and 1 weapon, and then release 10 DLC For characters and items.    … Expand
  38. Sankfang
    Aug 24, 2012
    0
    I will not lie to your face like many of the "Critics" have. This game is a total waste of time and a prime example of the end ruining the entire story. A pathetic attempt to push out a triple A game when in truth we are only given a sub par, (trying to be COD) waste of time. Bioware has long since abandoned their story and RPG roots. Another company beaten down by EA and staffed with people who write worse then fan fictions. Making this game a ZERO out of Ten, from the Two I would have given it because of Biowares bad PR handling of the situation. Shame on you Bioware, you had real talent untill you pissed us all off, go away and make room for companies who diserve out money.… Expand
  39. Squirrel_Empire
    Aug 26, 2012
    8
    The ending isn't perfect. In fact, it had me in a rage where it made me feel as though the rest of the series was no longer relevant. The extended cut gave me a slightly better ending, but I still feel as though the ending doesn't live up to the standard of the series. That said, it's actually still a fantastic game, and I felt as though I was going to give it a perfect 10 throughout all of it, until I hit the ending. It's not a great ending, and I have many reasons why I don't like it. It does seem to mar the overall experience, but after some consideration, I did remember that there was a genuinely great game before that. Was it a satisfactory end to my Shepherds journey? Hell no. But it was one hell of a ride until I got there.… Expand
  40. faceless-1
    Dec 1, 2012
    4
    OMG well done EA. First u totally ruin Command and Conquer with CnC 4 and then you butcher Mass Effect. Story is full of plot holes and Crap, but the day 1 DLC and really failed ending even with extended cut. The game play almost 0 RPG elements feels like just bad clone of Gears of War. ME 1 was one of the best RPG games, but WTF is this????
  41. mowca
    Sep 18, 2012
    0
    Your first impression on this game may be good. But after all i need to give it ZERO. i played all classes, with multiplayer and all side missions and seriously this is not even a game. It has fine moments of story and THAT IS ALL, and to be honest i bought this game because i wanted to see how this story ends. THE ENDING IS HORRIBLE and without DLC extended cut its not even an ending. Maybe it is an action game but i completed all content using just ONE F***ING KEY. You can put match in your keyboard and focus only on mouse to complete this game. There is only ONE moment you need to use something more. They way you do your side missions is so annoying i wont even write about this. Don't buy this S***.… Expand
  42. shinran
    Nov 12, 2012
    2
    Felt really unfair that I don't get all dialog/story options because I didn't import a character from ME2. This is a very poor game design because I actually played both ME and ME2, but I didn't keep the game saves. Without the saves, ME3 makes many assumptions that didn't match with my personal experience from previous games. It gives me limited dialog choices and event outcomes. I had to act out of characters in several occasions. It's one thing to enhance experience using previous game saves, but to require it to unlock main event outcomes is a very very very poor game design. Could just prompt for more background info if the player didn't have a game save.… Expand
  43. WindAeris
    Dec 1, 2012
    1
    This was a null game with no plot. It feels rushed and much too repetitive. I couldn't bare to continue it, and actually returned it after playing it twelve hours. I kept saying "It'll get better, it'll get better" but it didn't.

    I suggest not getting this game and playing the first two games.
  44. KillerCornflake
    Feb 5, 2013
    5
    My first experience of the Mass effect series was through the second game in the trilogy, and that really did set the standard high straight from the off. I thought the best idea would most likely be to purchase the 1st game before playing the 3rd one as to account for decisions made throughout the saga. This turned out to be a rather meaningless venture as determined by Mass Effect 3. With the good, the graphics in this game are neat and arguably the best out of the bunch, it's polished and tidy with a few exceptions that require the gamer to overlook. Combat has been unstuck slightly from what in my view was a more static system in ME2 and ME1, refinement can be observed.

    With the bad then, bearing in mind that most fans of the series will (rightly so) compare this title to it's predecessors, thats what these points are based off. The dialogue options came as a shock to my system, they took away what made the previously fun and exciting conversation choices and beat them down to formulaic two way cutscenes. Even if a player is to explore every single option in a wheel with more than two choices, it merely serves as providing information that mostly accounts for the people who have never played ME before, this trend is also visible with BLATANT repetition of the lore of some species (geth quarian war) that it makes long term players sit and think 'hmm i knew that'. Compared with the other two games, the "sidequests" in ME3 are for the most part dull fetch and return tasks to introduce a feeling of galactic warfare, yet in actual fact it is just another way of EA herding people to spend money in a cash shop to upgrade for the multiplayer seeing as it is the easiest way to increase "galactic readiness" which is ESSENTIAL if you want to end up with a "good ending", i won't get into that one.

    In short ME3 takes a few steps forward in combat and graphics departments, even so these are still not perfect by any means, even small matters of convenience such as in ME2 your squadmate's ability they were using was highlighted on the tactical menu so you could see what you selected, here it's not, little things like that. ME3 takes a major step back in terms of dialogue choice, i can't even talk to my own companions without the game deciding when it it "the right time", even then i can only say a selection of similar phrases. I'd get the game purely for it being ME3 and the end of the series, but don't go in with a high expectation of it matching what you had come to expect.    … Expand
  45. Macdealer
    Feb 14, 2013
    10
    Well. We already know everyone hated the end. Okay, okay, the end is not exciting, but forget about the end, this game is great. End the trilogy in amazing way. The game is short comparing to 1 and 2, that's the only problem. And it's kind linear too. Anyway, it's a closing game, and because of that its great. have the flaws, but yet one of the best experience in 2012. And for being one of the best trilogy ever, deserves a 10 points. I'm expecting games like ME soon, it touched my soul. I miss this games.… Expand
  46. Aldos
    Mar 7, 2012
    5
    So far i've played 10 hours, and i'm really into the game. The battle system is good, a mix from ME1 and 2, graphics and sounds are lacking though.
    Romances are ok, i like the fact that Bioware has tried to reach a bigger audience and let everyone go according to their taste.
    The story so far is ok, but from what i've heard the ending is not original at all, which is kind of sad, because t    his series had a lot of potential.… Expand
  47. SehrEinsam
    Mar 7, 2012
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I can't give it a better score. So much went wrong. Biggest ****-up I see are the Canned Endings that all end in same thing(more or less). Really guys? You like Deus Ex so much you had to make a dumbed down ending for ME3 based off it? And really? Killing off a character you've progressed from start finish is just... well, Someone else here put it this way; "like a rollercoaster that ends in a brickwall." Dunno about ya'll but I didn't invest all the time in playing these games and developing my character just so I can watch you hit him/her with a "noble" death scene. If that's gonna happen, why keep up with the Romances? Speaking of Romances, not really my issue, but I'm willing to bet there's a massive horde of pissed off Talimancers who are up in arms over the "reveal". I was at least hoping they'd render the character but all you get a little picture next to your bed. So, Bioware artists should probably steer clear of the SciFi Conventions. But this all goes back to my beef with the ending. Why even have romances, friendships, ect, when you're gonna kill off the main character anyway? At least in the DA/KoTOR series' your character develops these and even in the end, they don't simply DIE(unless you're a suicidal Warden I guess.), they move on and even got a little post-plot story. In ME3 you're SOL. Nice Job Bioware. You really screwed the pooch on this one. Story is good, though it seems like someone was behind the writers with a pistol shouting "FASTER!" Everything is rushed and doesn't have the same depth as the first two. If you play for the story, Rent it. If you don't play for the story, don't bother buying it. Just go read the ending spoilers.
    Gameplay? Well, They introduced Easy Easy Easy mode. Last play through I never even lost my shields in the Narrative mode. Other than that it's Mass Effect 2 gunplay. Oh and there's Gears of War, I mean Multiplayer too. But you gotta have a Gold Live account! More money. Like Release DLC... I thought I was hearing things when they asked me if I wanted the DLC stuff when I picked up my copy.
    All together, the only redeeming factor is that I can, in fact, not feel guilty about going back and killing off everyone in ME2, since they all die anyway. There's no real way BioWare can make up for the Ending(s). At least I got to shoot the Irritating Man. Thanks BioWare, for that one little redeeming tidbit.    … Expand
  48. Enigma_Syrus
    Mar 8, 2012
    7
    I'll get this out of the way, I was disappointed with Mass Effect 3. The graphics in ME3 are very hit and miss. During gameplay, its fast, responsive and it looks great. But cutscenes are terrible; the animations are atrocious and the shading it lackluster at best. I really do believe that Bioware took a step backwards by going with the Unreal3 or putting last time in the art assets of the game. Now, a pleasant surprise was multiplayer. I didn't think it'd be good. I thought it'd be some side distraction, something to play once and toss away. But the multiplayer is actual good in its own right; just not worth $60. It does however give a really good example of what the core gameplay of the ME series is capable of. I would honestly like to see it expanded into an MMO or expanded multiplayer experience; so long as they leave the gameplay intact and perhaps allow more customization.

    As for the story, I can't tell you too terribly much. It definitely appears to be on rails, much more so than ME1 or ME2. I play as a FemShep and Jennifer Hale's acting is still great, too bad my custom face didn't import worth a damn. I won't even get started on the "default" FemShep. Terrible... if you compare male and female Sheperd, you can see where they spent their time.

    So in the end, is it worth getting? Right now, I'd have to say no. I was really looking forward to this game and it has ended up as a disappointment. But you should get it when the price lowers to around $30-$40. That's the price should've paid for closure (sorta) and the multiplayer experience.    … Expand
  49. BlueReckloose
    Mar 9, 2012
    9
    The game is a very good step up on the story telling from Mass Effect 2, there is just more to the telling this particularly go around, lots of dialogue. It's definitely better on story telling than the first, where you get snippits and bits constantly, instead of running up to characters only to have them drop an encyclopedia out of there mouth like what happened in the first one.

    I'm al    so really liking that the whole encyclopedia effect has been relegated to being more optional, as it does sometimes pop up, but after the important conversation. So, you end up getting back story after actually meeting a character, and you don't feel some prescient need to roll through it all.

    The way items works feels a great deal more in depth than ME2. There just seem to be more options, which is good. I still preferred the item system from the first, but ME3's items are superior to the seemingly non existent options of ME2.

    The expanded romance options from the first two games are really nice. I always felt left out and somewhat prudish playing the first two with having so few options. And for all the people complaining about "gay romance" ruining the game, it's low key, fitted incredibly well to the game and story. Nothing feels out of place, it's just part of the world. I really liked randomly running into a few NPC's that would briefly touch on their own relationships as well. It makes the world feel more alive than the previous two titles.    … Expand
  50. saiyadjin
    Mar 10, 2012
    6
    1. of all - > I enjoyed every single game you made from Mass Effect series. 2. - > When i heard you were importing multiplayer into ME3 i thought "what the hell, could be fun, but i hope SP stays as good as it was, maybe even better since it was "final game" of the franchise", but i was wrong. 3. [spoiler] - > when i saw that ending i was like "WAT". i spent 2 days 0-24 hours playin' the game,
    to be sincese i actually enjoyed that, killed some **** followed illusive man over the galaxy, collected defense for citadel, fleeets over the galaxy etc... got it all done. green bar max. and then i get like useless ending that didn't mean **** are you **** kiddin me BIOWARE?
    even if you don't really know it, you let a LOT, like few million people down with that ending. i was unsatisfied 2 days and i felt like **** for 2 days because i didn't get a proper ending. yes, i'm not gonna buy any game that your **** company makes. ever. i watched youtube like 3 times how ME2 ended. it was in a way spectacularl. yes it was good, awesome. but here in this game... REALLY?
    so as i said i wasted 40H of playin or less to get all the war assets and **** and in the end it doesn't mean anything. DOESN'T MEAN ANYTHING. REALLY? also when you finish it.... you don't feel any satisfaction at all... whole galaxy lost it's way of traveling... really? what? what?
    i'm still dazzled by that ending. totally useless and dumb. i feel like there's been a stop on game development. yes i know how it probably is. EA sets the date = 9.3.2012. game has to go out in sale. you were doing a nice job up to a month before. and then you probably saw = no more time = let's end the game as ****tiest as we can. = dumb end = dumb game. i'm telling you, game without a good ending = bad ending. i'd give a game 6 / 10, if last 5 mins weren't last 5 mins and you let one more mission in there (like say, running around the citadel, chasing illusive man, last fight with him etc..) and then that boy **** you came up with, with normal ending and satisfying animation = i'd give your game 9/10. jsut because ending would be epic = saviiour of the galaxy, also it would be emotional if you gave your life to save the galaxy, but not the way this crap of game ended. it's just hooooooorrrrriiiiiiibleeeeee. horrrible. i'm also not gonna say how much you **** up dialogues, check'd me1 and me3. heaven and earth. me1 - > lost of talking, choices everywhere, could be even better - > me 3 = yes - no, **** s**** **** horrible again. but i can't say everything is bad. i can see combat improved, yes, i'm glad it did, still not enough different enemies, saw more in me1 or me2. could have been better. you see BIOWARE ... you made 3 games where you made like 5 000 000 people who play ME series attach to the character, and expect them to give them emotionally satisfying end where you feel like a hero who saved galaxy. but you gain **** and don't feel **** it's just ****.
    and that animation? joker and 2 characters on some planet... WAT? what's that supposed to be? i'm really dissapointed into this. i REALLY REALLY HOPE that you will make DLC for i'd buy it anyway 10- bucks or so - which would add next things:
    1. - satisfying ending (citadel doesn't explode, reapers die, shepard dies, energy beam goes over mass relays throught galaxy and destroys reapers, but mass relays stay intact) (in this ther'es like whole fleet of turians, krogans, salarians and other battlecruiser ships near earth.. how would they go back? really? )

    2. - another citadel mission where you chase illusive man, and fight him (he's supposed to be stronger then kai leng) and implanted with lots of implants.

    3. more more more more more dialogue options.

    4. add use of that war assets on citadel that you looked up for. 5. add more stuff to find, check, more systems. 6. CHECK 1 aGAIN! i was really disappointed in the end, and i hope if there is ever mass effect 4 or some dlc that you won't be interrupted by EA games's RELEASE DATES. because i know how it is. we would RATHER BUY A GOOD GAME, then a half product that was rushed because your publisher said so. **** PUBLISHERS and give us a good game, it's gonna bring you money.    … Expand
  51. SOAR21
    Mar 11, 2012
    6
    I've played this series since game 1, and I've read a lot of the negative reviews. While I was disappointed with this game, and while I did note many (most) of the mentioned issues with the game. Yes, Bioware should've foreseen the fallout of the DLC, and just released it as part of the game. Corporate world; welcome to it. It's not like this is uncommon these days in the industry (or any industry). However, I think lamentations of the writing issues and gameplay have been blown out of proportion. When I finished the game I was quite disappointed since I don't think I've played a game with higher expectations. My main issues were the stub of a story they called the main plot. I did reach 25 hours or so of singleplayer gameplay, but a lot of it was chasing war assets in every cluster of the universe. Also, the half-hearted ending that made me feel like my 100 or so hours of ME gameplay were wasted. Multiplayer is not required for the best ending. I played 25 hours of singleplayer and got the best possible ending, though admittedly collecting war assets was quite tedious. They could've done more with the characters; I only lost Kaidan in ME1, yet, felt like all my efforts saving my team were useless since I saw some characters only a few times. The new party member they add is a complete joke, a dead-end of a character. However this game is not a 0 out of 10. Anyone who rated a 0 is someone who underwent the same feeling of disappointment I did then just lashed back. Story-wise, definitely the worst game of the series. Characters come and go in a blur; relationships consist of just a few conversations. Gameplay-wise, however, ME3 is much better in my opinion. Harder fights, more varied enemies, smarter enemies, more organic-feeling powers. More customization than ME2, thankfully, but also thankfully less than the smothering options in ME1. Environments were very varied, as were the situations. Multiplayer is just coop wave gameplay over and over again, but the combat is good enough that I'm finding myself playing a lot of multiplayer and still not getting bored, as are thousands of others. I don't expect to log that much more time on multiplayer, but it'll last me longer than such a simple system should, and that is because of the excellent combat. I am still a great fan of the series though this one dropped the ball a little. I'm considering another playthrough from the very start. All in all, a feasible buy, but hardly the game of the year.… Expand
  52. RobDYoung
    Mar 11, 2012
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The short version: As an action game, Mass Effect 3 is a fantastic success thanks to its improved combat system. As an RPG, it's less phenomenal, due to a pulled-by-teeth story, rampant sentimentalism, and limited options for character development. Even so, this game could have been fantastic all around if it weren't for an ending that undermined much of what the first two games accomplished.

    Combat: 8/10

    While the game could have used a bit more polish on controls, the new combat pacing, wide array of enemies, and the improved cover system are all phenomenal. Two complaints: 1) Spontaneous dialogue is often left incomplete because you run so quickly from Point A to Point B that the next dialogue interrupts the previous one. 2) We still have a global cooldown on abilities that makes combos or even training multiple abilities feel useless.

    Non-combat Systems: 6.5/10

    In an attempt to hybridize the weapon and armor system of the first and second games, ME 3 gave us the flaws of both worlds. While it was great having weapon statistics and upgrade options again, the methods for upgrading were too complex and tangled to be fun.

    The map system of ME2 is, more or less, back as expected. They eliminated the annoying probe/scan system, but didn't implement anything truly interesting in return. Still, it's a step up.

    Role-playing elements: 6/10

    As far as actually leveling up, improving abilities, and using them in combat, this game did a great job. Top marks overall â    … Expand
  53. MarqsS
    Mar 11, 2012
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I finished the game twice. First time with standard Bioware settings and it felt empty and lacking. It just wasn't 'it'. But when I loaded my save from Mass Effect 2 game changed a lot. There was more meaning to what I did, some random NPC-s were changed to my old squad mates and game became suddenly very, emotional and entertaining.

    It was very enjoyable experience until ending came... Then I just realised how would it feel to be punched in the... well, you know where by Mike Tyson... three times...

    Three nearly identical endings, every one of them equally terrible. There was no meaning to your choices, no consequences, nothing! And then lack of epilogue hit me in the face. Not even some text like in Dragon Age, just small pop-up "Yay! You have become a legend! Now go and buy our DLC-s!"... Worst ending I ever experienced in my 10 years of gaming... So to sum it up, 9/10 for the game, 1/10 for the ending... Just play the game, it;s great... but just before the end turn it off, you won't be heartbroken as I was...    … Expand
  54. malra
    Mar 11, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I would like to preface my review with this statement: As a stand alone game, ME3 kicks a***, it is the best gaming experience in a long time. However, as part of a series I have invested hundred of hours in, 15 plus replays each of ME1 and 2, working through the universe, the relationships, figuring out the lore and the canon, ME3 is the worst gaming experience ever. As I looked at the screen in the final scenes I couldn't understand what was happening, how did I get to this? I fully expected this Shepard to die, that is who this Shepard was, but to say he's dead but controlling the reapers? what does that even mean? To say he lives because he magically endured the explosion of the mass relay inside the citadel or the descent through atmo to earth? I want t replay, to get that ng+ secret ending, but ME3 is so emotionally taxing, especially to a fan who has invested so much time and effort in replaying the first two games, just to get to the ending that left me staring at my t.v. screen and asking "what just happened?" I don't see how I can take that roller coaster ride again.

    I would also like to state that this is not meant to cast aspersions on Bioware's ability to create great games or great franchises. I still play Baldur's gate and Neverwinter Nights, and given the fanbase backlash across the gameverse, not just on the BSN, I would say ME in totality proves that Bioware can write games that totally, emotionally invest the player in ways that no other company has ever been able to do. As someone who has been part of that fanbase for so many years, it is hard for me to see them not only go all Firefly-Battestar-Xfiles-Farscape with unsatisfying plotholes and canon destroying finality but what was up with all that stargate-ascension-existentialist crap?    … Expand
  55. SoManyGames
    Mar 11, 2012
    2
    I dont know...I just dont even know. Like the first two, this game is a bland slow game about a space marine fighting a space evil bent killing stuff. You fight it by slowly walking down hallways and slowly aiming at slow moving targets. "fun". I kinda enjoyed the other two...even though they had odd unneeded limitations and were relatively bland, they could have been worse. This one...I couldnt get into this one. It was particularly poorly written. Without getting into specifics, the "fixes" to the other game's issues were half-assed. The game felt like it was forced, with some kind of agenda...I just dont know. I guess I could give it a higher score based on graphics and production values...but I feel I have to rate this game in comparison to the others, which I already consider average (5)… Expand
  56. kzotra
    Mar 11, 2012
    7
    Being one of the people who had prepared my game files ME2 just the way I wanted them, I was very happy when playing the game. I think the game is very good, and a lot of the changes are for the better, especially the loading times.

    However there is one huge letdown; the ending is terrible. Even if the ending was half-assed, I would have given the game a 10, but the ending is so bad I giv    e it a 7 instead.… Expand
  57. 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
  58. Scotsman1706
    Mar 11, 2012
    0
    Until the end of this game, it was the greatest thing that I ever played. The endings made all my work for naught, I believe that I have been cheated and lied to. "I don't want to live on this planet anymore." - Professor Farnsworth
  59. 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
  60. MrsMod
    Mar 12, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I have never been a huge gamer, that is my husband, but when I discovered the Mass Effect series I fell in love. I loved everything about it, I felt like I was part of the story and that my choices mattered in the larger picture. I have never played a game where I felt so connected to my characters and emotionally involved with the entire game. I have played the series faithfully and waited anxiously for the final chapter of Shepard's story. Sadly I felt like there was not enough interaction with my crew, just standing there listening to a dialogue that was I had no say in. I didn't feel like there were enough side quests and I was disappointed when it felt that I spent more time fighting Cerberus than the Reapers. For the most part though I enjoyed the the game. It just felt to short to, this is a story that people love and they could have gone so much farther than they. I could have also lived with that. But the end of the game was the biggest disappointment that I could have ever imagined. I was expecting my choices to matter, to have a say in what my Shepard chose, but I was given 3 choices that my Shepard would have never made. There were gaping plot holes and all of the choices that I made in the previous games were thrown out the window. Ex. I made Anderson councilor but now Udina is councilor. My ending choices should not have been made up of choosing what color I want my ending to be.… Expand
  61. Sealance
    Mar 12, 2012
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. As a sci-fi fan and lover of the Mass Effect series and universe I found myself just contemplating what to say about the game.

    I personally like the graphics and it feels much more detailed than the previous games. Animations didn't bother me much. There were however a few annoying bugs. The one that mainly pissed me off was the inability to import my custom face from ME1 and 2. There were also issues with squad members becoming stuck and "blocked".

    Combat is much more intense and although the multiplayer is kind of weak, it is something that I enjoy. I personally don't think it's worthy of being called co-op. Co-op for me is playing through a story campaign (such as Left 4 Dead, Dead Island and Aliens - Colonial Marines)

    *SPOILERS*

    The story in Mass Effect 3 is brutal and the Normandy retrofit gives it a dark and foreboding feeling. Since my custom face wouldn't import properly I tried to re-create it, but I ended up with someone looking like a cross between Dominic Purcell (from Prison Break) and Jason Statham. It is clear that the events of Arrival took a heavy emotional toll on Shepherd and the early parts of the game does leave emotional scars. For me, his haunted look shines through when looking at Tali's photo frame in the cabin. It was nice to see Tali's face but the manner of which they showed her face was very disappointing, and to top it off it was a photoshopped "free license" photo from the internet. I had a vague recollection of seeing it before, until someone posted an actual link.

    Looking at the story up until the ending, I think it is actually well-written and very tense. It is too bad that it has been streamlined. The dialogs and voice acting are very good and I like the character interactions. I laughed when Tali got drunk and complained about the "induction tube".. "Tali.. it's a straw!"

    Mass Effect 3 is a beautiful game, and I have very mixed feelings about the ending. I got the "best" ending where Shepherd apparantly survived.

    It's difficult to see how they would make a sequel when every relay gets destroyed.. How they would make an MMO out of this mess is beyond me, unless some clever writer comes up with something clever.

    Liara mentioned something about multiple effects in parallell universes (or something like that.. i don't remember exactly) so perhaps that is a faint clue of what's to come (if anything).

    Perhaps they could discover some abandoned Cerberus project relating to FTL travel without the need of relays, such as an obsolete cruiser with a prototype FTL drive that was inactive during the events that destroyed the relays.

    The "aftermath" storyline could be something relating to this and trying to rebuild and reconnect the galaxy again.

    Speculations.. thoughts.. hopes.

    For now, with the ending that ME3 got, I can't give it more than a 5-6 ish on the scale. It MAY deserve an alteration if Bioware does something about it. I understand why alot of people are unhappy with the game. It's like uncovering a Mona Lisa only to have someone spill a bucket of paint on it.    … Expand
  62. Gokalex
    Mar 12, 2012
    8
    I didn't like how the game had day1 dlc, but that the only thing i didn't like (and btw if u just change an ini file u can unlock the dlc) anyways everything else is good about this game, multi-player is good, single-player was awesome, except how the multilayer affected the single-player, anyways i loved almost everything about it, even the ending, a real ending to a game for once.
  63. HungryCats
    Mar 12, 2012
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. When I first read of the low scores on MetaCritic, I assumed that the fuss was over the Day One DLC, and that gamers were venting (wrongfully, imo) by bombing the site with low scores. While the Day One DLC still has a lot of people steamed, it's clear now that the real problem is the ending(s) of the game. The problem is not that it's negative/sad/depressing/somber/etc., but that it was really poorly implemented (almost identical video for three endings? WTF?), that it really doesn't offer Shepard a choice that's in character, it doesn't give players closure on what happens to everyone (NPCs, the rest of the galaxy, Earth itself...), it dismisses almost all of the choices the player made in the game and in fact is so brief that it feels like it was just tacked on at the 11th hour. Don't even get me started on how multiplayer is shoved down the player's throat if they want to achieve the "best" possible ending--I could be wrong on that, but my bar was green all the way and Shep still went down hard. Anyway, I'm giving a good score (not great, but good) because the other 95% or so is simply some of the best storytelling Bioware has done, and the voice over work and characters are employed to tell this last part of the tale so well. To have a single game generate such a strong emotional reaction from its fanbase speaks very well of how well it was crafted--which is all the more reason why so many are angry at the final ten minutes or so. Anyway, hope Metacritic doesn't cut out all of the negative reviews here, because they're passing a message loud and clear to the developer and publisher about what the fanbase/formerly loyal customers consider to be really half-assed work. Want to sell some DLC? Fix it.… Expand
  64. Gunmars
    Mar 12, 2012
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Mass Effect 3 is not what it could have been. In all reality I was disappointed at some aspects of the game but overall the game is far from being horrible. Lack luster story and failure to really give a connection to previous companions was a major downfall for me. The story isn't as epic as expected for the finale, some lines seem very forced and non committed and the chat wheel got stripped down where you have two dialog choices that are basically nice and mean response. The paragon and renegade choices that you get at key points follow the same style, paragon is super nice and renegade is a worse version of the normal conversation choice. Overall the chat system and voice acting is simply adequate.

    Graphics are a slight improvement with an emphasis on slight with problems with many facial animations, especially a problem with eyes rolling back into characters head all the time. Combat is a exact clone of Mass Effect 2 with some minor change ups such as a few turret sequences and Shepard solo missions. As for squad mates this was the glaring problem in my opinion, going from 12 choices (with DLC) in Mass Effect 2 back down to 6 (7 with DLC). I get this is supposed to have a vague focus on the "human story" and having a new human companion is nice but the lack of "new" unique squad mates is somewhat disappointing. Human James Vega, Robotic EDI and DLC Prothean Javik are the new comers with Garrus, Tali , Liara and Kaiden/Ashley are the returning squad mates. EDI nor Javik made me say to myself "I can't go without these people" I ended up connecting with James Vega but ran with my standard Garrus/Liara squad a majority of the game. Maybe it's me just going with the known hand or maybe the new squad mates aren't that interesting. Multiplayer for me was a pleasant and unexpected surprise. For those that don't know the multiplayer rip off "horde mode" effects your story modes "Galactic Readiness". Basically it is a great incentive to get people into the online aspect of the game by basically making it so your chances are slow bad without a high galactic readiness that you need to do at least some of it to achieve the best possible endings for the Mass Effect 3 story. Now for combat, it is basically a 4 player horde mode with some random objectives thrown in so you simply can't fortify a spot and sit there. Your main goal is to survive 11 waves of every increasing enemies, not just their numbers but strengths, each map has 3 possible enemy factions you can choose or be completely random. Reapers, Geth and Cereberus are your teams adversaries. You start out as a basic human that can be any of the games classses and as you beat waves and eventually all 11 waves you get credits and experience. Experience will let you unlock skills just like in story mode and credits can be used to buy varying equipment chests. The basic chest has common but useful items such as medi gel to heal and ammo enhancements. The mid range chest costs more but contains at least 1 uncommon item which varies from weapons to new races to play in multiplayer, along with common items like the first chest. Finally the top end chest is very expensive and requires multiple map completions to be able to afford but it guarantees a uncommon item with the decent chance of another uncommon with some common items. This mode also has a difficulty modifier, you can choose between bronze, silver and gold difficulty. The only difference is the very increased difficulty between them and the exp and credit rewards are substantially better. A side note about galactic readiness is that it will decay about 3% a day so it will need to do some multiplayer if you wish to have 100% readiness for future story play through if you wish.

    Overall Mass Effect 3 is solid, it isn't the epic ending we expected from BioWare. The story we expected to be amazing came off as somewhat dull and predictable at points. The graphics had a slight improvement with unexpectedly odd facial animations but the cinematics and sound track are amazing. Your new squad mates aren't very interesting but the return of old friends that make it acceptable with enough variation. The endings aren't what I expected but the piano soundtrack during the ending mission and cinematic gave me the feeling of suspenseful hope followed by what felt as a shallow victory. The big surprise for me with Mass Effect 3 was the multiplayer, while I doubt it has the staying power needed to be super active for more then a few months, possible DLC can give a fun and usually rewarding multiplayer experience more life then it should.    … Expand
  65. gigaidioticus
    Mar 12, 2012
    6
    In the interest of obviously keeping this spoiler free - I'll just say that the game was good up until the last bit. I enjoyed the new'ish combat and being able to upgrade weapons and powers almost entirely as how I saw fit. The graphics were good (on console) and the new team member(s) were, for the most part, well fleshed out. The story was - almost - phenomenal, although I did encounter a few glitches that made some side missions unplayable (which will likely be fixed in a patch, hopefully). Anyway - I gave it a 6/10, which could have easily been a 9/10 had the last portion not left me so unfulfilled.… Expand
  66. Poizun85
    Mar 13, 2012
    9
    %99 masterpiece and 1% of an ending that leaves much to be desired. Don't listen to all the QQ's about this game it is absolutely amazing and a great ride through the end. All your choices matter in what forces you can recruit to save Earth. The combat is streamlined and there are plenty of weapons. Lots of emotions run rampant throughout the game and really dig deep, but in a good way. I was a bit weary on the multiplayer aspect but it actually delivers as a fun " BLOPS zombie" type gaming experience. Fantastic game I would recommend to everyone that is a fan of RPG's.… Expand
  67. aikeno
    Mar 13, 2012
    9
    Another great story from the folks at bioware, tons of new things to do and places to explore. A couple weird looking animations that can be obnoxious but do not take away from game play or storyline. as for METACRITIC, the site has gone to the trolls that give every game they can a 0 and most likely don't even own the game.
  68. Iconix
    Mar 13, 2012
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I'd like to start by suggesting that people ignore all of the knee-jerk 0 or 1 score reviews given to this game, many of which are being written by people who admittedly haven't even played it. Mass Effect 3 is not a bad game, it's not even a mediocre game. It is a FANTASTIC game with an admittedly subpar and unsatisfying ending, and a large number of people are losing sight of the context because of their (understandable) attachment to the series as a whole.

    To begin, let me state my biggest pros and cons from the previous two games:

    Mass Effect 1:
    Pros: Fantastic, engaging, compelling story with interesting characters and a rich background.
    Cons: Clunky mechanics and gameplay

    Mass Effect 2:
    Pros: Vastly improved gameplay mechanics, well-developed character-oriented stories
    Cons: Main storyline is underdeveloped in comparison to all the time you spend on the individual character stories, RPG customization elements severely dumbed down

    Now let me say what Mass Effect 3 did about the problems in the previous games, first regarding the gameplay mechanics and the RPG customization elements:
    The gameplay in ME3 is the best in the series by far. While the cover controls are somewhat clunky at first, they aren't difficult to get used to. ME2 was absurdly easy even on the hardest difficulties, and there was very little variation in enemy tactics, while ME3 is far more challenging and presents much more differences between the tactics and abilities of different enemies.

    The RPG elements of ME3 are far better than either of the previous two installations of the series. Instead of having an enormous, confusing pile of weapons and equipment with no easy way to sort(ME1), or having almost no choices to make whatsoever because each new item you get is a clear upgrade over the last(ME2), you get a system of interchangeable weapons with varying stats, each suiting different preferences, and each can be modified further to allow everyone to create a customized setup that suits their playstyle. Instead of having tons of skill points to split among tiny incremental updates to two dozen skills(ME1), or having a meager set of abilities with only four ranks and one minor specialization each(ME2), you now have a healthy mix of both active and passive abilities, with each giving three opportunities for further specialization, allowing two people playing the same character class to end up with drastically different abilities.

    Now, to the most important part of Mass Effect, the story. I'll try to keep the spoilers as generic as possible. ME3 made two big improvements over ME2 in this regard. First, it made the story drive the game again like ME1, instead of the characters like ME2. Second, it managed to make everything feel connected to a larger purpose. Everything you do in ME3, even down to the most seemingly menial tasks, all has a feeling of being part of the greater aim of preparing the galaxy for war. I did every side mission I could find while I was playing ME3 and never once did I feel like I was doing something that felt out of place in my effort to prepare the galaxy to fight the Reapers. Within the main story missions, the writing is great, the characters are compelling, and there are far more choices that leave you stuck thinking about a morally gray outcome than many of the more black-and-white choices of the previous games. I know many people are upset at the fact that many ME2 characters get little more than a short token appearance, and some of them die in unavoidable fashion, but I think these people are missing the point that A) all of them could have died in ME2 so there's no way they could all be written into major roles, and B) part of the impact of ME3 is showing that death is an unavoidable consequence of war. On the whole I found the main storyline to be exciting, compelling, and well worth the price of admission.

    My gripes with Mass Effect 3, like many others, regard the ending. First of all, I think the segment of the game on Earth is much too short. For the amount of time we spent building these assets I expected a bigger and more complex finale, which is one area where ME2 excelled by breaking up the final mission into the various segments with different goals. The finale on the citadel, while it does bring closure to the storyline, is unsatisfying mainly for its lack of connection to all the choices you made previously. The player is left to imagine the ramifications of Shepard's last choice and legacy of other decisions but doesn't get any of the exposition we were all hoping for. The war assets also have much too little an effect at the very end.

    What it comes down to is that Bioware made an incredible game that loses its coherence in the final hours. I'd give the first 90% a 9.5/10 and the ending a 5/10, and I'm hoping that Bioware responds to the criticism and does right by their fans, because this game, and this series as a whole, deserve it.    … Expand
  69. icedemonofozz
    Mar 13, 2012
    10
    This game presents ideas about the singularity and a post human future in an approachable way. The story is affecting if you have bothered to invest time in the personal relationships. Playing this game was personally affecting. The ending which so many are complaining about was philosophically and intellectually satisfying. The lack of choice in this game is not a negative because without the restrictions that brings there can be no meaningful narrative. I like this game.… Expand
  70. kaleka-veteRrun
    Mar 14, 2012
    9
    The beautiful game, a milestone in the history of gaming. The only negative is that the videos and the cutscenes does not affect the passage of side quests and important decisions that you take in the game. 9.0
  71. draculdracul
    Mar 14, 2012
    6
    For me is playing ME playing in an interactive movie. This is what i expect and this is what i got. The story is so well written that during the game the main story effected my decisions drastically. Where i normally choose for a peaceful and "good" solution, now i did not hesitate to do evil just for the greater good. ME3 had convinced me that the menace of the reapers was so immense that i decided to eliminate entire species. The convinced threat made me decide to even shoot a friend and old teammate in the back just for the greater good. This convinced me that even in real life there is a devil in everybody if the circumstances are that way. The story is so great that you expect a grand final. You live up to this moment. I even cancelled all my appointments when i started the last and final chapter. This was it. I made some terrible decisions just to get ready for this moment. My expectations of this end was huge. ... Then i started to play the final mission. It started good but after a while the story ended in a way i totally not expected. Suddenly i had a choice of 3 options where non of them where satisfying referring to the epic intro of the first missions. It felt like there was no more budget to end this game properly. When i tell bedtime story's to my children and i want to finish it fast i say in dutch: dan een olifant met een dikke snuit blaast het verhaaltje uit. In english this means "then an elephant comes with a big snout and blows away the story". I had the exact same feeling with this end. It felt like there was no more time to end it properly. The gap between the high expectations before the last mission and the final end was so big for me, that i had the same emotions like most of the people who graded this game here. I was so disappointed. I could not believe that such a good story and overall game(s) ended this way. It took me a few days of setting aside my disappointment to look at the game objectively. This all says 2 things in my opinion. ME 3 is such a good game with a great story, it moves you and makes you think about real life decisions. However, because this game is so good you expect something extraordinary for a final. And in this last part i think ME3 completely failed. This effects the overall opinion of the game so much that most of the loyal fans of ME judge the game so badly. Just because of this bad ( or to psychologically difficult) ending.

    I probably graded ME3 with a 2 or 3 myself the first days, now i think ME3 is a victim of its own quality. If you are good, there is no place for errors. At least not if this magnitude.    … Expand
  72. RegularNoodle
    Mar 14, 2012
    10
    While I do want to buff this games score up as much as possible I actually believe this game is a 10. I've not played a better game than this, making it the new high bar for me. Somehow this game was rated by hundreds of players within hours of release despite the fact that it's a 20 to 30 hour game. A note to Metacritic: please shut down abused user scores.
  73. Faux
    Mar 14, 2012
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. In preparation for this release I played through Mass Effect 1 and 2. As with the first time I played the games I was impressed by their storytelling, gameplay, and general polish. The choices I made felt like they affected the game world in a variety of ways and my interactions with various characters changed the tone of the story, even if the inevitable confrontation with Saren and the Collectors was preordained. Opening up Mass Effect 3, the first thing that struck me was that the weight of all of my previous decisions was built into the game. Every character I saved in Mass Effect 2 remembers me and the trials we went through, those that I didn't save were conspicuously absent. The sympathy I showed the Rachni in ME1 was put to the test early, and my 90+ hours of trying to fix the genophage finally met fruition. At times the choices in this game can be paralyzing- Bioware has done a good job of making the options true "tough choices"- set against the backdrop of trying to rally the various races and military forces in the universe together to fight the reapers, Shephard must occasionally decide between those things which help the war effort and those things which are the "good" thing to do. You'll learn this early on when asked to send biotic children to the front lines or not- Do you take this powerful weapon that risks the lives of a group of gangly teenagers, or do you keep them safely away from the front lines? Do you make your military stronger, or do you preserve your humanity?

    The ending requires special mention because I think that it is unfairly maligned. It is not a "happy ending". Shephard does not fly off into the sunset, a woman (or man) on his arm, smiling confidently as his enemies erupt in flame behind him. This is the end of the story, and "success" is measured in terms of humanity's survival not Shephard's. The emotional impact of ending the story is artfully done, and in many ways the cries that have come up from the community are the result of actually being impacted by a game's ending (which is not something the gaming community is used to).

    As for the plot holes that people talk about, I urge players to play through the entire series if they are legitimately aggrieved. Sovereign's dialog explains much of the Reaper's motivations, as does the Collector dialog in ME2. It makes perfect sense so long as you assume that the Reapers aren't lying about their motivations or intent.    … Expand
  74. Vic
    Mar 14, 2012
    9
    I give this game 9/10 Good: Awesome story, memorable characters, great ending (completes the story, no cliffhangers, !watch the credits there's a scene after it!), awesome soundtrack, one of the best combat systems, the game is very cinematic which is a strong side of it! Bad: Graphics (no any improvement since the last game low resolution textures just break the whole immersion, I guess that's because when they try to please console gamers, whose pulling the whole industry down with their almost 10 years old machines), the story seems short if you ignore all that stupid Citadel side quests (not considering N7 missions which were pretty cool), day one DLC (what the f**k), the whole game lacks of innovations (nothing new in the gameplay just some minor tweaks, if it wasn't the last in the series I'd give it much lower score), some minor bugs.

    PS: Overall it's a great compelling story that ends the great trilogy!    … Expand
  75. Greggor
    Mar 14, 2012
    7
    I am giving this game a 7 instead of a 10 because of the ending. We were promised 14 different endings, tailored to your character archetype, how you played the game, and the decisions you made. Instead, we got two different endings. You can win, or you can lose. This depends only on whether or not you have completed enough missions by the end of the game. If you win, you can very slightly alter the end-cinematic depending on the choice you make after the final battle. Your decision, however, has no impact on the story, and everything that you did in the game is basically invalidated by this frustrating conclusion. It's a highly disappointing end to the series, which is why so many people are upset about it. Now that the bad stuff's out of the way, let's move on to the good. The game was very fun. I beat it in three days, and I slept only a few hours each night because I simply couldn't put the game away. The story was extremely captivating, the combat was really visceral, and the dialogue was fascinating as always. This game does credit to its predecessors, which were also paragons of the shooter RPG subgenre. It's a real shame that they ended the series on such a terrible note, but that doesn't detract completely from the game's other virtues. It was fun, and I have no trouble recommending it to friends.… Expand
  76. 2484Stryker
    Mar 14, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. For those who invested the time & effort into playing the entire series, this latest and final installment will be fun to play right up to, but not including, the ending. By itself, ME3 is a very good game, with awesome combat mechanics and weapon/character customization. It has some very emotional moments that really draws you into the world of Mass Effect. However, the ending (singular form intended) completely negates all your choices and your actions from all three games, and forces you to accept a singular notion from your arch-nemesis - that synthetics will always destroy organics. You're given a limited number of nonsensical choices that no Shepard would ever agree to, but the game forces your character to choose from them, and he does so without question (very out of character). In the end, all of us may have taken a different route on our Mass Effect journey, but the destination is invariably the same - and that would have been OK had the destination been choice-driven. Given all that, I still enjoyed playing the game, although I now have zero inclination to experience the trilogy again. If you loved the series, then I would still suggest that you play this game (ignore the review bombers). Just hit ctrl-alt-del when you get to the ending.

    In summary, the game's ending is a disappointing end to a very good game; the game itself is a disappointing end to an epic series. RIP Mass Effect.    … Expand
  77. SapphireSnake
    Mar 15, 2012
    9
    the beginning of of the game doesn't set the tone of the game as well as the other two however this changes very quickly after the episode of earth. it's a fantastic game and I think the end is actually really good to end the series. it kinda reminds me of the epic greek tragedies which has similar style and in my opinion the game goes out with this sense of greek tragedy (the genre look it up). the only bad thing I really have to say against the ending is that you never get any good explanation of what happens to the rest of the crew, however I think this is a minor annoyance in comparision to the whole game and I felt that the tird installment was more about shepard rescuing the galaxy than shepard rescuing the galaxy with h*s crew!

    it's an epic game and few games has ever given such strong emotions of happines, sorrow and most of all longing as the whole mass effect series has done!    … Expand
  78. Ireland914
    Mar 15, 2012
    8
    Fantastic finale to a series I have enjoyed from beginning to end. A gripping story as usual and a satisfying ending to the trilogy. Some minor flaws that don't take away from a thoroughly enjoyable gaming experience.

    Excellent gunfights with a decent cover system. Interesting characters (new and returning) with unique and fascinating backgrounds and fates. Some choices you make actuall    y do seem to have significant consequences on the final outcome. Well-paced action with lots of side missions to keep you busy between completing primary objectives. Completing every aspect of the game can take upwards of 20 hours for full completion. Satisfying ending options that bring the Mass Effect trilogy to an epic conclusion.

    Some negatives include the fact that there is no significant improvement in visuals. Pretty environments and models more graphics options and higher-resolution textures in some areas would have been nice (eg. armor and player bodies in general). Some minor graphical glitches and missing textures but nothing too serious. Some side missions descriptions are a little unclear as to what your objective is and how to accomplish it. Also, some way to keep track of an inventory of items you've collected for side missions would have been nice.

    Overall, I was very happy with this game and how it brought the Mass Effect trilogy to a close. The story is just as good as it was in the first two games, the graphics are pretty good, and there aren't any game-breaking flaws. It really gives you the sense that the fate of every sentent being in the galaxy is resting on your decisions. I recommend this game especially to someone who has played the previous installments.    … Expand
  79. TheArchitect
    Mar 15, 2012
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. While I raged against Bioware for ruining Dragon Age series with Dragon Age 2,and feared they might do the same with Mass Effect I was positively surprised with Mass Effect 3,while not perfect it is pretty good combining elements of Mass Effect 1 and 2 in one game,personally I dont mind the endings,though I would like more explanation and closure,something that they should fix with a DLC.I do understand that most players expected a fairy tale ending "and they all lived happily ever after" but I was positively surprised by the generally grim endings.Fairy tale endings are rather unrealistic,especially in consideration that galaxy is fighting against vastly superior enemy.Still the endings need more closure and explanations,current endings leave a lot of things open to interpretation though it is possible they wanted to make them like that.

    Pros

    -Smoother and more dynamic combat though I dont like the too fast power cooldown time (enables constant spamming of powers meaning that on lower difficulties you can win most battles relying on powers alone)
    -Decisions from Mass Effect 1 and 2 have a significant impact on the experience of Mass Effect 3
    -Lots of cutscenes that add to immersiveness and cinematic feeling
    -Feels more realistic and darker than 1 and 2
    -Interesting missions and twists (for example EDI becoming available as a squadmate)
    -Beautiful visuals and great performance
    -Haunting music

    Cons

    -Endings need more closure and explanation
    -EMS has little effect except for getting a third ending which is synthesis (they should make it similar to Mass Effect 2,low EMS means dead squadmates and other allies)
    -Not enough squadmates (Mass Effect 2 spoiled me with the number of squadmates)

    Hopefully they will bring in some great DLCs that will fix loose ends,add more to the story and give closure to endings.Still it is pretty good game and I was positively surprised.Low scores on Mass Effect 3 present here reflect the hate for the endings,prior to endings I am sure most of the haters really liked the game.    … Expand
  80. Alpha_Nexus
    Mar 16, 2012
    7
    The game is has changed a lot from ME1 and ME2 for both good and bad.

    The Story is engaging and the way the reveals bits of story without a cutscene is great, like hearing NPCs talk as you walk around. I find myself stopping between 2 NPCs chatting just to find out more about the backstory. However, the story is more linear than previous games and doesn't feel like you're making Shepard y    our own character. Basically your dialogue choices don't really affect the ending, instead it relies on your collecting "War Assets" (setup alliances, completing side quests, scan planets for items, etc...) for slightly different endings. Even then, the endings only differ with your choices in the last few minutes of the game. It makes it feel like your actions through the game really doesn't matter.
    I like how Bioware allows players to customize how they prefer to play the game by giving them options to ignore selecting dialogue to focus on action or make shooting easier to focus just on story. The War Readiness system is an interesting idea that I like in theory but it makes the game feel more "grindy" because you have to do all these side quests and scan all these planets. It also feels like a cash grab by Bioware/EA because you can increase the Readiness by buying their iPhone game or, in multiplayer, you can buy upgrade packs with real money. You can get the Readiness to 100% without paying extra or multiplayer but you would have to do a lot of side quests and exploration. The Multiplayer feels a little less "grindy" because it has a good variety of maps and enemies and you can unlock new weapons and upgrades by using in-game currency (gained by playing online games). The co-op multiplayer is a pleasant surprise. It reminds me of playing Uncharted 2 Multiplayer with swarms of enemies and little objectives to complete (assassinate targets, defend an area, activate devices). I had alot of fun with friends playing the game. There are some bugs with multiplayer that makes it annoying. It would be nice to be able to reorder your quickbar skills like in Singleplayer and the button for cover/activate is unreliable. I get stuck in a nearby cover instead of activating an objective.

    The cover system is worse in this game than ME2, my character sticks to places too easily. If Bioware tone down the distance of when to automatically stick to cover, it would make it alot more tolerable. The shooting elements feel good but nothing like a hardcore FPS. Getting a gib kill feels good and the aiming system feels right with the right setting (I had to turn off "Mouse Dampening" to feel better). The simplified inventory system, shopping system, and weapon upgrading is a lot better in this game than the previous games.

    The From Ashes DLC, is great. It seamlessly integrates with the main game and feels like part of the main game. It gives such an important background information about the Mass Effect Universe. The DLC character is great and the conversions with the character is worthwhile. I honestly cannot see how this DLC be excluded from the main game, the content adds so much depth the game. This DLC should have been available to all players who brought the game new, it feels like it's such a key component to the Mass Effect story. Shame on EA/Bioware for making this a paid DLC on Day 1, instead of working on bugs or improvements. Also, the idea that you can spend real money to unlock random stuff in multiplayer (with no guarantee of getting everything) adds to the feeling that EA/Bioware are trying to squeeze cash from their fans.
    Conclusion:
    The game mechanics definitely improved overall, but the story doesn't feel like a classic Bioware RPG where you have complete control over Shepard's development. I cannot give this game a perfect score because of some bugs and the Day 1 DLC (From Ashes) should have been free to all players that brought the game, like in Dragon Age 2 with Shale. It integrates so nicely to the game that it should have been part of the game from the start. This also gives the impression that EA/Bioware trying to squeeze as much money out of their loyal fans. When they should have spent that extra time polishing the cover system, speech system, animation system, or fixing save game importing instead of making this Day 1 DLC. If they had even waited a month to push out that DLC, it would have made less fans feel like they're getting robbed for supporting the franchise.    … Expand
  81. Drekor
    Mar 16, 2012
    9
    This game is a great example of people expecting more than is possible. The game continues with the same story, same theme and same style as the previous ones. Expands on the character customization available in the previous two, makes "scanning" much less ridiculous and introduces a lot more choices which shift how you travel to the end.

    The ending certainly was not the greatest, it seem    s like it was a scene that should have been played over several hours rather than 10 minutes but that doesn't detract from the fact the rest of the game was well done. Many people are upset because they feel your choices don't matter, which I don't agree with, the way your journey progresses through the game as well as dialogue is heavily influenced by your previous choices. I think again people were expecting too much and that the ending would have a variation for every combination of choices out there ... which would be absurd.… Expand
  82. Berzerker556
    Mar 16, 2012
    8
    Too much EA not enough Bioware.

    The previous game (ME1&2) decisions have very little quantifiable effect, seems like rather than implementing all of the carry over they just fake it by having some scripted vocal moments acknowledged the decision, but to add no over all game effect. The combat and character building further builds on ME2 and is slightly improved. The weapons selection felt     about right, and the class system feels about the same as ME2, maybe more refined and defined. The story starts strong and seems to hold up until you realize that you spend more of the game dealing with Cerberus and building the army than actually fighting the reapers. The army build felt generic and ineffectual on the very short battle for against the reapers. The fight for earth was also extremely short and disappointing. I was also let down by the ending but I won't spoil it.

    Overall, it doesn't seem like they made the game they set out to. The decision and force/team building mechanics felt partially implemented, or implemented to give the illusion of choice/consequence. The game is suppose to be about the battle for earth, but there really is no battle, there is a war, but the player doesn't get to enjoy much of it. The ultimate resolution also felt very generic, a little to "chosen one" for my taste. It is a decent game for $60 and the DLC does add to the experience but overall it was a slight letdown having played ME2 for the first time a few days before ME3 launched and immediately transitioning to ME3.    … Expand
  83. Aviod
    Mar 16, 2012
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game overall plays like mass effect 2 basically, which is a good thing.

    I felt less impressed by the story, they were so many blanks... For example, when the reapers take the Citadel to planet earth to protect. It doesn't say what happened to all the people on the Citadel. Sure you go up later, and see lots of dead bodies, but are they the bodies harvested from planet earth? sure the resources of C-SEC with the resources i collected and authorized could of hold out better.

    Also how the hell did Udina become council man, I chose anderson at the end of mass effect 1. He was also council man on mass effect 2, when i imported saves. I imported saves to mass effect 3 but Udina is council man.

    I didn't like how mass effect started as-well house arrest for blowing a balterian relay or something (must be mass effect 2 DLC which in my opinion DLC always seemed like a rip off... Sure the expansion pack (Awakenings) was good for Dragon Age:Origins as it was like a true game, but DLC it seems like $$$ for a simple weapon or something, or another character with one short quest that costs 1/3 of the original game price)

    The fuel and scanning planets things was boring in my opinion, and they butchered by ship, with so called improvements... I had 1500 fuel on mass effect 2, in mass effect 3 it's 1000. I also had awesome particle beam leasers that ripped through the Collectors easily, and great Shielding.

    The ending was worse of all, it didn't even feel like an ending, just a cheap cut off. I choose Synthesis option. Great the reapers leave earth.. I suppose everyone part machine, part biological..

    You see the normandy travelling through the cortex of a mass relay with your crew, another hole in the story... Where the hell are they off to with my crew, whilst they was a big battle on earth and around.

    I romanced Ashley in my play-through. you see joker, edi and ashley walk off Normandy. No conclusions except joker, is part synthesis. I wanted to see wide spread celebrators, like on star wars movies when they blew up the darkstar and defeated the empire. Call me egotistical but i wanted some recognition. I unknown to others sacrificed myself to save the Galaxy. I don't see peoples reactions, especially by crew members past or present. I wanted to see their reactions, See Garrus have that drink on mem others sad and happy then moving on with their lives. Thats my view on things.    … Expand
  84. Bobbydylan
    Mar 17, 2012
    8
    Mass effect is an amazing series, and ME3 does well to live up to it's stirling reputation. While the plot has a few holes in it, anyone thinking that the first 2 did not, is sadly blinded by fanboyism. The game retains the move towards 3rd person shooter that the series made in 2, this feels more fluid and clean. The inclusion of MP added some life to the game, but beyond affecting my Galactic Readiness, I cant see myself playing this for long.
    While a great many people are upset with the ending, I found it to be quite satisfactory. You'd swear that the ending was "it's all a dream and everything you been through is for nothing". But the game ends with a conclusion to the current story, and leaves the future very much in the air. All in all, a great game, of the spirit of Star Control 2. Just dont expect perfection. The minor holes in Plot, and bugs in the game keep my scone below the 9, it would otherwise deserve.    … Expand
  85. DeadlyJoe
    Mar 18, 2012
    8
    ME3 was a genuinely enjoyable experience as far as games go. I prize control freedom above most other attributes of a game, and Bioware has nearly perfected the combat controls with this final edition of the series. I rarely felt as if my character was getting hung up on walls or doing things that I wasn't commanding it to do. ME3 is going to define the RPG/Shooter hybrid genera going forward. In terms of gameplay, there is nothing to dislike about ME3. The game is at least as big as ME2 and the stunning graphics and audio really pull you into the universe. There is absolutely no reason that this game doesn't deserve a solid 10/10... if you were to consider only the game-side of ME3. The only reason why I'm giving the game an 8/10 is because I, like many others, didn't really appreciate the story's flustered conclusion. I don't expect RPG's to read like an Orson Scott Card novel, but the end of Mass Effect was truly one of the most disappointing endings of any book series that I've read or any game series that I've played in recent years. The ending felt rushed, poorly imagined, and anticlimactic.. It didn't give me the feeling of accomplishment that a 5-year long trilogy probably should have given. The ending also pens (in neon ink, underlined, and in bold) the penultimate closure to the series. It's difficult to imagine Bioware trying to create a new story arc around ME3's ending, which tells me that they want to ditch the franchise entirely, which frankly would make zero sense from a business point of view. Anyway... all of this shouldn't scare you away from the game. ME3 is absolutely worth playing, and I highly recommend it.… Expand
  86. TheSlakey
    Mar 19, 2012
    8
    Community drama and imagined personal slights aside, it's a really good game that suffers from a general lack of production rigor. If you've played any recent Bioware game, you should have some feel for what I mean. Gameplay is excellent except for the buggy/grind filled ME1 style side quests and journal problems, though not as bad as ME1. The dialog and cinematics are some of the best in the series. The dialog can be hackneyed in places, and there are some cinematic bugs, but it's 90% gravy. The last 10 minutes of the game have some really bad presentation issues, and they tread roughshod over sensitive ground. Watch the ending(s) on YouTube before you play if you're a fan of the series.… Expand
  87. Blastooo
    Mar 19, 2012
    7
    The game was fairly good until that damned end, I ignored the crappy cover based combat system and silly scanning part, all because the story that really sucked me in, i made peace between Geth and Quarians, made Turians and Krogans cooperate, and for what? So i can watch some 2001:Space Odyssey wannabe ending. Horibble. Not to mention the whole thing was such an anticlimax, no harbinger final fight, no nothing just multi-color explosions.… Expand
  88. Thepeak12
    Mar 19, 2012
    1
    The only thing that was good in this third installment was the combat. Most dialogues were automatic and not to mention the LACK of it. Every choice you had to make in the series amounts to absolutely NOTHING in the end. The ending sucked so much that I wish I never got to the ending, it really kills replayability and the series as a whole. I do NOT recommend buying this game, you will just be disappointed. Stick with ME1 and 2, because this third game will ruin everything.… Expand
  89. lucaburzum
    Mar 19, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The best game in the series for sure..... until the last 10 minutes.
    The ending is absolute crap, confused, nonsensical and full of "space magic".
    Adding insult to injury, all the choices you've made in the prevoius games do not count toward the ending, which is basically a "pick your favorite color" choice.    … Expand
  90. BOSTONJOHN32
    Mar 19, 2012
    6
    Well i will start by saying that im amazed that critics scored this game nearly perfect but not many went into detail about ending, never mention it @ all or simply (and boldly) allowed readers to think the game was great from start to finish, then i happened 2 go "outside the bubble" and found smaller, more obscure reviews and the score factored in that the ending was "literary suicide" as one wrote. as quoted by r. ebert "if you had to ask what it symbolized, then it didnt" and i can say that this very much sums up the ending, struck in awe like many, i wasnt even sure if i had beat the game and had to check mt trophy in order to sort out if i did. thats just it, i felt like i did not know what had just happened and had to wait for the credits to scroll to know its over,and so i convince myself that ok maybe i just did not see the right ending and maybe i got the bad ending, "yes that must be it, w/ so many endings i must have screwed up along the way and got the bad ending" come to find out i got the desired and the most "definative" ending.. so then i go back and replay the mission etc and all the other endings are pretty much identical beside a different color or "end sequence" which consisted of a minute or so animation of walking another direction etc. i wont get into conspiracy theories or anything which is out of context but its kind of hard not to fall prey or offer self to some distraction or debate because we not only invested time, we invested emotion.. hours upon hours of carefully making right choices for a desired import etc, and for what? if i kind of got a heads up from critics that "decisions do not play as significant a role in mass 3 as it did in the prior 2" then i wouldve been able to prepare,lol.. but we are hearing words like art, story telling masterpiece also we were told by bioware that this would have multiple endings, a deeper consequence/decision mechanic, an end which would the opposite from lost, well no it may actually take the belt away from lost for the wtf just happened moment but the fact is that i shouldve known that a game which has a formula that works almost seamlessly, based primarily on decisions as well as story driven sequences which make the gamer care, think and DECIDE, it works so good that while i played every mass efect i made every decision carefully to prep my shep for the import into the next game, so if i am playing a game and already thinking of the next one then the system is almost flawless imo.. BUT it is obvious E.A had a bit of influence and brings me back to my point with this "formula", they deserted it and decided for MASS APPEAL rather than mass effect and i noticed this during the demo and how much emphasis was put on how one can play the game how one wishes and that the game can be toggled to suit any style, dont like stories? choose combat.. hate decisions? well you can toggle that too.. but wait, isnt that the part of mass effect which makes it like few others? and isnt that what i have spent many hours doing to have a desired and effective playthrough as well as end? was it just me or did it feel silly to scan planets this time around? as to say "hey dont want to waste time scanning for elements, well we fixed that too" huh? call me a loser, call me what you want BUT i enjoyed taking my time scanning for minerals and elements and launching probes with a feeling of purpose, because that was one of the many things which made me love this game, felt like what i did mattered and fulfilling. i can understand E.A 's stance from a business perspective, their knowledge and tactics of knowing that the fanbase of mass effect are going to buy this game regardless so lets find some fresh blood, but did the solid core and fan base have to feel jipped, let down, disappointed, confused and as well as angry in exchange for new profits/gains? well the core, the fans well we are mass effect. it breaths because we let it, we let it because it was great ,brought quality and emotion and stood apart from many other games and the exp was one like few others. but as much respect a game/developer may get through time can be undone in ten minutes.. i can not say that mass effect 3 was a bad game, but after putting in hours of decisions, careful choices to have it not effect anything in regards to the end , other than the war assets and "co-op"readiness , well i feel like it was more of a "okay hurry up and get this over with and go play co-op after" the fact remains that mass effect 3 is still a solid game, but an ending which was promised to be the finale we dream about also being admittedly rushed well how does anything rushed ever result to anything other than sub par to par? a game is about the exp, mass effect is about a unique and gripping exp BUT the end ruined both.. its obvious a lot has changed in the gaming industry in the past 5 years, mass effect supports this in every respect, reapers went from FEAR INDUCING to PAWNS… Expand
  91. Mogul
    Mar 19, 2012
    9
    I'm a bit surprised by how many people seem to hate this game. In terms of gameplay, there are only minor differences between Mass Effect 3 and Mass Effect 2. The characters are still interesting, the combat is fun, and the overall story is solid (despite several annoying plot holes). There were several moments during the game where I had to step back a bit, and just look around and absorb how awesome something was. Sure, there are a number of things that I found annoying. For example, I loathe the new James Vega character. The new multiplayer mode is very repetitive, and generally stupid. There is also the incredibly awful ending, and the annoying fact that one of the best squad members is only available through day one DLC. This checklist of negatives, however, does not make Mass Effect 3 a bad game. I still found it to be well worth playing, and a quality addition to the Mass Effect series.… Expand
  92. mdc837
    Mar 19, 2012
    8
    This was a solid game. It was thoroughly fun for most of the game. I loved the combat gameplay, the customization options with the armor, guns, squad, and RPG skill tree. What i was less than happy with was that so many of the missions that were sidequests were simply to fly your ship to another galaxy and click on a planet and find the spot and click. I would much rather have had the squad actually go onto the planet, have to fight my way to the prize and then obtain it. It would've made the side missions much more fun and extended the re-playability of the game. Another thing is they should have allowed for you to have an option to skip cinematic scenes instead of forcing you to watch certain ones. Overall though this was a very fun game that had the potential to be great with a few tweaks. Bioware did a good job with this one. The ending that everyone is getting upset over is something I do not understand. I had no issue with there being a conclusion to the character and played through all three endings. This was the best shooter/RPG I have played since Borderlands was released and I was pleased with it overall.… Expand
  93. Quichotte9
    Mar 20, 2012
    7
    ME3 is what I expected after the ME-ME2 transition -- simplified and less open. As a PC player, I was annoyed at the control changes -- got over it, but not at the environment constraints (exploring the Citadel anyone). Can't over that one. As for the decision paths, well they are more of a railroad in ME3 than ME2 and more so than ME.

    The big itch for me is the art direction -- the facia    ls are very early 2000s. Ash looks awful. As for the split breast look: let it die. You want to release pseudo-pin-up art, do that and do it well. The manga/anime business have done so for over 30 years. My personal favorite look right now is Miranda.

    As for the rest of the art direction: too busy, too distracting and thus too useless. It makes for distracting if not frustrating game play. Therefore, my take on this is "failed". Still, there are moments -- the Citadel holding dock picture wall.

    Storyline, well there is again a sense of railroading. Yet, I expected it. This is the closing chapter, and about the end of the adventure and story. A little heavy-handed, but not disappointing. The treatment of the individuals caught in a thunderstorm over which they have little control was expected and fairly mature. Sorry, in war, few come out unscathed.

    Now did I enjoy the game experience -- yes. Did I get my money's worth -- yes. Could it have been better -- yes. Still, I give it a 7. Good game.    … Expand
  94. makseffect
    Mar 21, 2012
    5
    the game Mass Effect is excellent, but Mass Effect is a complete disappointment (((In the pursuit of a new audience Bioware f*** up a second time and this time of thing will not spoil. As a fan of the first part I do not believe them anymore. Let them do simulations gay. It's what they are now able to
  95. DeonCadme
    Mar 21, 2012
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I just finished it 5 minutes ago and wish I could give it a better review because it was a Mass Effect game but I cannot. The biggest reason is the story; it has big holes, really poor pacing, poor content and threads strangling themselves or mutating into monsters. The child in the beginning of the game is a strange choice, someone at Bioware seem to think that a random child which we have absolutely no emotional connection to will trigger an automatic, emotional reaction... especially when he annoys you because he completely brakes up the pacing during the attack on earth. Then the child haunts your dreams in the game and return as the face for the lord of the reapers at the end of the game. They also try to force feed us a childrens' horror story that synthetic life always take over at the end... what? What happened with coexistence? And it just goes on and on... A lot of amateur writers out there could have developed a better and much more coherent story.
    Another thing that annoyed me is that they pulled a Fallout 3 on us, did no one at Bioware read the news some years ago? Shephard is killed at the end so they travel back in time after the game is finished, just before you launch the final attack on the Reapers so that they can sell us DLC... These are major reasons why I gave the game a poor score and I hope that Bioware finally listen on their community for once. I will be careful before spend any money on another Bioware, fastfood game because all I see in this game is that they want to harvest our wallets.
    Other reasons that I pulled down the score is the uneven graphics... I have a decent 3D card (GTX 560) so the game looks beautiful in my personal opinion and this is why I absolutely do not understand why they had to add low quality movie sequences? They should have kept everything in-game so that quality stayed on a constant, higher level and it is also a lot more friendly to editing so... no idea why they did it.
    I also do not understand why they fed us a half-assed multiplayer mode? They could have used that time to polish the game instead. I do not mind multiplayer though, it fits the Mass Effect universe but it would have made a lot more sense as a separate product where it could have received a lot more attention.
    I really leave this game behind me with mixed feelings but the part that probably bugs me the most is that I do not feel that end was good. Mass Effect 3 deserved a better ending and the previous games centered a lot around the interaction with the teammates. It would have felt a lot better if Shephard lived so that you had a last chance to interact with the teammates and have a proper conclusion surrounding them. Especially those that you interacted the most with like Joker, Garrus and Tali in my case...    … Expand
  96. Lacsapix
    Mar 21, 2012
    9
    A great game with an amazing story. The feeling you get when you interact with these huge decisions is unlike anything I've experienced in a game. The reason this game isn't earning a 10 is the ending but that subject has been discussed by many other reviewers.
    The ending is just a dent in a sphere with a very solid core underneath.
  97. Robbie1982
    Mar 21, 2012
    10
    I gave this game 10/10 on the Xbox review, and reading some comments. The galactic readiness meter needs to be patched. I have realised it is pointless. U work really hard to get everyone into the fight, making important decisions and completing sidequests. And the readiness meter stays at 50% !! Till u go kill some stuff in multiplayer, where u can conviiently spend lots of Bioware (EA Points) on weapons packs. That is a huge fault with this game. That can be patched tomorrow in a flash (although I ran into a few bugs so maybe that is this ?)Despite this, and my last mission having a depressing casualty count. I Would still score this game 8. The more I think about it - what a huge flaw. But it is so incredibly easy to patch. Just make it possible to get single player readiness to 90% and politely tell us when that is reached to go play some multiplayer.… Expand
  98. IronGuy410
    Mar 21, 2012
    9
    It's embarrassing that so many people just looking for something to hate in a game this good are willing to go on websites and give 0 scores just because the games ending isn't the one they specifically would have wanted. The truth is, while the game is somewhat streamlined even when compared to the last one, the combat is just right, the graphics are actually quite jaw-dropping, the story throughout the entire game is thrilling, extremely emotional and more epic than ever before, the voice acting is as great as the previous games, the co-op is surprisingly good and ties in well with the story, the whole game itself is 30 hours long and very replayable and the ending, which is where most of the hate seems to be directed , in my opinion does a great job of closing this incredible sci-fi trilogy.… Expand
  99. Spoy
    Mar 21, 2012
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I am deeply dissapointed with all the other reviews on this site, most of them focus on one thing. or 2 First off you don't give your rating to a game because of it's ending and it's ending only. Don't do that, nor day 1 DLC that does not matter of the quality of the game only the price. A good review focuses on 3 Main things -Graphics -Story And most importantly - The gameplay. They give all the Pros and Cons of all 3 main things. Now what's with the people bashing on CoD on a Mass Effect 3 Review? seriously? you can mention a game on a review only IF the game has something to do about it. But i'm afraid that Mass Effect 3 has NOTHING to do with Call Of Duty. So enough Now for my Review: (I will only review the singleplayer for now) Part 1- The Graphics The Graphics got some detail improvements that you can't really notice untill you look at it. The textures on the character resolutions are better, the shadows are crisper than mass effect 2. The level designs are sound way less linear, it gives you some space to move around in many different places, and they look good However, there are some 2D pictures you can see at the beggining of the game that really dissapoints you. Apparently Bioware haven't spent much time improving the background details that they should have. The running animation doesn't look natural, it looks more like "Creature-ish". However the Cutscene animations are better than the in-game ones. Summing the Graphics up + Higher resolution character detail +Better shadowing +Better level design - Bad Background - Bad In-game animations Lets go to the Story Part The Space Opera is back with another good story, but let's not jump to the ending now ok? Mass Effect 3 Story overall gives ou a bunch of hard decisions that may change your game ending forever, the story may develop differently along the choices you make along the game. Yes not all things that you did on ME2 or ME1 matter on the final game. but some REALLY do per example some Things related to legion might bring you peace between the Quarians and the Geth. Giving you 2 powerfull allies for the battle of the Earth. The most thrilling and exciting parts of the game are the quiet ones, they actually make you feel like if you were commander Shepard. The cutscenes are very well made and match with the soundtrack that gives it it's proper feel. Now the ending was a major Dissapointment to everyone who played it, there are multiple plotholes and the lack of choices in it. Story Overall +Variety of decisions (before the ending) +Good cutscenes. +Good Quiet parts of the game with excelent Combination of soundtrack - Bad Endings - Only a few of the decisions you make on the previous games matter a bunch Gameplay: The gameplay is the same as mass effect 2 with some improvements Like a better melee combat, Variety of modifiable weapons and armor. Letting you customize your shepard as you want. and a better level geometry, not so linear anymore. But the AI is dumb as always +Better melee combat +Modifying weapons and armor +Better levels -Bad AI I'll give Mass Effect 3 an 8 out of 10 because that's what i think it deserves because selling DLC on day 1 SHOULDN'T involve on reviews… Expand
  100. DaneMetchnikov
    Mar 23, 2012
    10
    Simply the one best sci-fi games I've ever played (I can only think of HL2 as better one), I must give it a 10. Great, emotionally involving conclusion, with lots of heroic moments. The interactions/relationships between the main characters are even better than those designed for the previous game (including the same sex romance option, which I think adds even more realism to the universe created here). The combat system was simply great: fast, easy to use, effective. The graphics were amazing, from the scenarios to the facial expressions. The moral options really forced me to think carefully what I was doing and most of them were in a grey area that was difficult to sort out. I cannot believe how many people are giving this amazing game a 0, just because they didn't like one aspect of it (even if it's the story's conclusion); especially considering they claim to be huge fans of ME1 and ME2. How can they not see that ME3 is better than its predecessors almost in every aspect (RPG, combat system, graphics, relationships, moral options, action). I'm really glad that critics reviews are so favorable and I really hope that user score and reviews improve over the weeks.… 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]
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  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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