Mass Effect 3

 PC
User Score
6.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 7228 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3,703 out of 7228
  2. Mixed: 1,119 out of 7228
  3. Negative: 2,406 out of 7228
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  1. Whity
    Mar 9, 2012
    0
    Does not let me import my legal character of ME2 (it was also my character on ME1). It force me to install Steam like software with nearly no content. I've unsintalled both and lost 80$. Thx EA, next time I'll try to pirate your game before buying it.
  2. WJS6495
    Mar 9, 2012
    9
    Awesome game, Bioware did it again. Updated graphics, updated sound FX, weapon mods, voice-overs, etc. Just wish the game was longer. Seemed a bit shorter than the first 2.
  3. Lord_Dorkon
    Mar 9, 2012
    0
    What happened to Mass Effect? This was supposed to be the thrilling conclusion to a wonderful space epic. Instead we are given a game which feels like it was written by two different groups. The first 90% of the game (story wise) is compelling and exciting. However the ending and the last hour or so leading up to feel like they were written by someone with no understanding of how to trulyWhat happened to Mass Effect? This was supposed to be the thrilling conclusion to a wonderful space epic. Instead we are given a game which feels like it was written by two different groups. The first 90% of the game (story wise) is compelling and exciting. However the ending and the last hour or so leading up to feel like they were written by someone with no understanding of how to truly write at all. Plot holes opening up all around you and with the endings ripped off from Deus Ex makes me wonder what exactly Bioware/EA were thinking when the final script was approved. The endings completely go against the spirit of the series and more than that they are all essentially the same my making every other choice up to that point completely null. I find it even more offensive that almost all of the RPG elements have become so watered down as to be unrecognisable. The conversation wheel which longtime fans of the series such as myself have come to know and love rarely shows up now. And even when it does all it offers is two ways to say the same thing. Even worse, your choices in the previous two make no really substantial difference in this entry either. Even the illusion of choice is gone. You almost don't get to converse with your crew at all. Instead your interaction is mostly limited to selecting them like you do with Zaeed Massani in ME2 and they talk a little bit while you just stand there. This becomes a big problem because ME3 throws in with no real introduction or background characters who are completely new or have only been featured in the Expanded Universe. I like the voice acting and appreciate that the world feels more alive now with background characters talking to one another when you walk by, that is when the sound doesn't drop out. It's unfortunate that the coders haven't learned anything, all the cut scene glitches are back in full force. Including the one where everyone uses the same assault rifle during the cut scene, regardless of whether or not they can even use one. It's nice to see all characters from the first two one last time, a little family reunion if you will. It's a shame that almost none of them will be joining your squad again. I do like the direction ground combat has taken though the removal of heavy weapons is another negative in my book. The day one DLC feels more like game content that was cut out rather than an actual add on. And having this nearly story essential DLC on day one is just plain greedy.

    Mostly though I just can't get around the endings. It feels like a punch in the gut to those of us who were big fans of the first two. It's so out of left field that I almost expect M. Night Shyamalan to be responsible for this travesty. It's almost like ending The Lord of the Rings with Frodo riding a nuke into Barad-dûr with a cowboy hat on. I almost wish it would have been a Dallas-"It was all a dream" ending.    … Expand
  4. Ashleydenee
    Mar 9, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The Mass Effect series had been my favorite video games, bar none. As someone playing it from the beginning, I was an avid supporter and introduced the game to numerous friends and family but the ending has ruined the game for me. Taking my time, I picked every perfect choice and at the end I was left with 3 endings all of which made the character I had developed worthless. Was I able to save the galaxy? Yes. However, it was at the cost of a character and relationships which I had become deeply entwined in for the previous 4 years. Though the content pre-ending was good, the terrible ending which Bioware forced on the players makes me wish I had never played the game to begin with. Perhaps it's silly to care so much but I played an enriched game which allowed the players to really learn to love characters who, at the end of my game, were dead, stranded, or abandoned. Thanks for nothing Bioware...… Expand
  5. wiski
    Mar 9, 2012
    7
    It's a fun game, with some pretty glaring problems. : PROS : -- fun gameplay -- seeing the finish of the story with the characters you've played with in the previous games -- cool guns and armor : CONS : -- buggy gameplay -- outdated graphics (at times worse than ME2) -- buggy visuals (invisible characters, constant clipping, bad animations, etc...) -- lack of content (2 explorableIt's a fun game, with some pretty glaring problems. : PROS : -- fun gameplay -- seeing the finish of the story with the characters you've played with in the previous games -- cool guns and armor : CONS : -- buggy gameplay -- outdated graphics (at times worse than ME2) -- buggy visuals (invisible characters, constant clipping, bad animations, etc...) -- lack of content (2 explorable locations instead of multiple worlds and stations, most missions are short and to the point, less stuff to do outside of missions than either ME1/2, etc...) -- railroaded through the story without even the illusion that it's an open world game -- dialogue doesn't give you much option beyond BAD GUY/GOOD GUY -- every character in the game is presented to you on a platter, in the way that it might as well say "Do you want to sleep with this person? YES/NO" -- lack of mission depth (select mission, loading screen, kill stuff, loading screen, done) -- story important DLC provided on the first day -- Your decisions from previous games, and even this one, don't seem like they will matter, because most of the people that could have died in previous games aren't usable in this one and there are new characters anyway. It seems like they made the script for the game and decided how everything will end, and then looked at your past save to see how they could shoehorn any previous surviving characters into the game without disrupting the story. : : It's a good game, but not nearly as good as the previous two, and definitely not as good at the professional reviewers scores might lead you to believe it to be. The main reason to play this game is to see how it ends.… Expand
  6. zenoxis11
    Mar 9, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I made a metacritic account for the sole purpose of reviewing this game which was an abysmal letdown. I would have given it at least an 8/10 but there are so many problems it's not even funny. The story while being highly immersive and making you invested in your character and your teammates doesn't make up for it's absurd amount of flaws. Graphical glitches abound, pointless pauses in conversation, mission glitches that get stuck preventing you from continuing forward.

    But the biggest were the endings or should I say ending. The purpose of an ending is to give closure not raise more questions. Ignoring the fact that the ending has plot holes everywhere, it's still so poorly written that it's incredible anyone at Bioware thought it was acceptable. Is that to say the game is poorly written? Of course not, it's very well written, but the end that's supposed to explain the series is so badly executed it detracts from the experience as a whole. As a player, we should have to ask questions like, why isn't the normandy fighting the reapers on earth in the end, or why are the squadmates on the ground suddenly on board the normandy, or why are the mass relays always destroyed regardless of the choices made? To anyone playing this game currently, do not play past the conversation on board the citadel with anderson and he illusive man, everything afterwards gives no closure whatsoever and in fact forces the player to follow Bioware in the hopes that they'll achieve the closure they want. This is simply terrible decision making on the part of Bioware. I would have easily given this game an 8/10 if I ignored the glitches and absurdly bad ending, and while it can be argued that the game should be viewed as a whole, the ending's negative impact was strong enough to suck any joy I had in the experience getting there. So NO, 3/10 is the best I can do    … Expand
  7. zsec
    Mar 9, 2012
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. When the mass relays were destroyed, Mass Effect was destroyed.

    Mass Effect isn't Shepard, it's not the Reapers, it's not a single galactic species. Mass Effect is the connection of the galactic species, it's their bickering, their politics, waring, and friendship; with the mass relays gone that connection is severed.    … Expand
  8. Alienfreak
    Mar 9, 2012
    0
    Metacritic started to remove User Reviews. Not only gaming magazines and sites are nowadays bought with EA advertising money but also User Review pages delete User Reviews to please the great EA overlord. This is really poor. So I'm gonna repost my review and lower the rating from 2/10 to 0/10 due to the influence EA obviously tries to take on the consumer's opinion:Metacritic started to remove User Reviews. Not only gaming magazines and sites are nowadays bought with EA advertising money but also User Review pages delete User Reviews to please the great EA overlord. This is really poor. So I'm gonna repost my review and lower the rating from 2/10 to 0/10 due to the influence EA obviously tries to take on the consumer's opinion: ----------------------------------------------> First things first: NOTHING YOU DO DURING THE ADVENTURE CHANGES THE ENDING!!!!111111 The end videos are static and you do not even get the text boxes Dragon Age had. Even if you spend your money on DLCs it changes nothing. Also no matter who you had a romance with in ME2 its not gonna change anything. If you had a romance with Tali in ME2 don't count on her being nice to you in ME3. ---- This game is really a letdown. --- HAMMERHEAD LEFT OUT AGAIN TO BE PAID DLC!!!!1111 --- HUUUUUGE PLOTHOLES EVERYWHERE!!! Seriously. Whoever that writer guy is should take a serious break and start all over again with trying to make a good plot that makes sense and somehow manages to draw the player into it --- End sequence picture and Tali's face are just random pictures Bioware stole/licensed off the internet (google has them) --- A lot fewer People you have as squadmates to save money for EA --- Less than half the playtime of ME2 to save money for EA --- Really bad graphics when compared to many titles that come out nowadays. Not even any graphics settings on PC. Bad Frame Rates --- Repetitive gameplay from minute one. --- Repetitive enemies --- Bad AI --- Badly designed dialogues and options not telling you what you gonna say. --- Fewer places to visit so it saves a lot of money for EA! You can only buy stuff in the citadel. --- No character special missions so it saves EA a lot of money but less stuff for you to do --- Really bad presentation. Like the Normandy coming in like a WW2 bomber and dropping a bomb? Srsly!? A whole fleet opening fire and it looks more like 80mm mortars hitting something!? --- The endings are just lol. If you think you've seen bad endings try the ones from ME3. Biggest let down for a triology ever --- Bad Voice Acting --- Many bugs --- Uninteresting Characters Collapse… Expand
  9. Techstepper
    Mar 9, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I'll try to be objective
    Positive moments of the game:
    - Cool story. I played ME from part 1 just because of storyline
    - They finaly showed Tali's face :D
    - Epic soundtrack
    - - Graphics are good enough

    Negative moments of the game:
    - Day 1 DLC
    - BOOOORIIIING gameplay. There's and opinion that gameplay was made for CoD fanboys.
    - Role-play system - epic fail. Actually, it failed in ME 2. ME 1 had good one.
    - Gathering of war assets is so dull. Scan=>Gather=> FLEE FROM REAPERS (Repeat this over 9000 times)
    - The main hope of trillions of people, veteran soldier, the Savior of Galaxy can be a gay and sleep with his own shuttle's pilot. THIS IS RIDICULOUS!
    - And of course it's MOTHER****ING ENDING. All your choices in previous parts are TOTALLY USELESS. I guided Shepard through all of ME like my own son or friend just to watch him dying? All technologies was wiped out with destruction of Mass Relays?? Normandy crashed in the middle of **** nowhere??? This is **** I will never fogive BioWare. God, let them make DLC with normal ending

    This could be a great game, but ending ruins everything for me    … Expand
  10. exuwarshow
    Mar 9, 2012
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. One of the worst game I have ever played. Biggest let down in my gaming career. There was no happy ending, only **** If you watched BSG you know what I mean: an epic scifi tale with huge moral crises and battles and epic confrontations, ruined because some writers thought that they should get all existential at the end. I'll sum it up: there are 3 endings, all of which involve Shepard and Anderson dieing and the Mass Relay network being destroyed, resulting in organic life being sent back to the stone age. 1 is the reapers leave the galaxy forever, but an EMP destroys all electronics and the mass relays are gone, so there is basically no point in intelligent life. 2 is the reapers leave, but humans and geth are fused to make a new race of reapers for when the cycle begins again. And 3 is nuke everything, geth, reapers, humans, relays.

    There is no victory over the reapers, and a new age of galactic peace and cooperation, prosperity, etc. Only dead Shepard and dead dreams.    … Expand
  11. timriley
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    Just awesome. Fantastic story line, characters. Graphics are top notch. That BioWare gives players the option to choose the sexual orientation of their character is both refreshing and open-minded.
  12. Gene
    Mar 8, 2012
    7
    I'll leave the moaning to others, here are the basics: Running, dodging, and hugging a wall are all handled by the spacebar, which means if you try running from an enemy close to a wall, you are just as likely to crouch behind it and have your face eaten, combat is way more twitchy and less tactical than either of the two previous games. Quick time events with no prompts, I went throughI'll leave the moaning to others, here are the basics: Running, dodging, and hugging a wall are all handled by the spacebar, which means if you try running from an enemy close to a wall, you are just as likely to crouch behind it and have your face eaten, combat is way more twitchy and less tactical than either of the two previous games. Quick time events with no prompts, I went through half the game before realizing that those overlong death animations are actually quicktime events where I had to mash the F key. Story was very solid, I loved it up until the just before the end, and then was massively enraged. The writers spent way too much effort making s*** epic and mystical, and as a long time fan I felt robbed, although I don't think new players will feel effected. I just wanted an end to a war 5 years in the making and finding out what happened to all my friends, the loopy nonesense they gave for an ending just completely broke the flow of the entire series.… Expand
  13. kishe
    Mar 8, 2012
    2
    Dumped down gameplay, dumped down story and dumped down everything. The bioware we used to know and love is dead, replaced by this EA/Bioware abomination that is only interested in profit.
  14. Taciter2000
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    I keep messing up my score so let's try again. I can't speak for anyone else but personally, I thought this final episode in the Mass Effect franchise was a colossal betrayal. I have spent a considerable amount of time and money procuring and experiencing every bit of available content for both prior episodes. I have spent countless hours meticulously refining my Shep and his backstoryI keep messing up my score so let's try again. I can't speak for anyone else but personally, I thought this final episode in the Mass Effect franchise was a colossal betrayal. I have spent a considerable amount of time and money procuring and experiencing every bit of available content for both prior episodes. I have spent countless hours meticulously refining my Shep and his backstory only to see my efforts frittered away by a unscrupulous EA board and their erstwhile stooges in BW, both of which are now beyond redemption in my eyes. I was savvy enough to avoid the travesty that is SW:TOR but I surrendered my judgement went I decided to give BW the benefit of the doubt this time round - more fool me. Oh and why are all the the fanbois attacking other posters? It's not their place judge others' critiques.… Expand
  15. Lifewhacker
    Mar 8, 2012
    2
    After putting in nearly 100+ hours in the first two Mass Effect games and loving every second of it, Mass Effect 3 left me more than disappointed. The story feels really dumbed down, filled with plot holes and for lack of words, just really bad. There have been tons of technical glitches so far, including issues installing with Origin. (LOTS of texture pop-in, etc on a GTX 260- more thanAfter putting in nearly 100+ hours in the first two Mass Effect games and loving every second of it, Mass Effect 3 left me more than disappointed. The story feels really dumbed down, filled with plot holes and for lack of words, just really bad. There have been tons of technical glitches so far, including issues installing with Origin. (LOTS of texture pop-in, etc on a GTX 260- more than enough to run the game) Bioware has been on a decline lately, and Mass Effect 3 officially lost them an otherwise loyal fan.… Expand
  16. KerrJMF
    Mar 8, 2012
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game itself was, by far, the best of the series. However, it was absolutely ruined by a slate of unbelievably sour endings. None of your previous choices matter in the end. The last twenty minutes are depressing and bleak, even with the "good" ending. If your are emotionally invested in your squadmates or LI, proceed with caution and expect the worst; for the worst manifests. The Bioware writing crew seemed to go the extra mile, complete with introducing inexplicable plot holes to make the endings extra dour. The ending will ruin it for you. Promise.… Expand
  17. ittarter
    Mar 8, 2012
    8
    I've only been playing for five hours and I'm hooked. SP is fantastic -- the plot, dialogue, visual effects, leveling, fighting -- and MP looks promising too. All the meaningless 0 scores this game suffers on Metacritic -- just ignore them. I played around 200 hours between ME and ME2, I've played KOTOR, I've played DAO and DA2, I'm a lover of the FPS of Crysis and the legendary RPGI've only been playing for five hours and I'm hooked. SP is fantastic -- the plot, dialogue, visual effects, leveling, fighting -- and MP looks promising too. All the meaningless 0 scores this game suffers on Metacritic -- just ignore them. I played around 200 hours between ME and ME2, I've played KOTOR, I've played DAO and DA2, I'm a lover of the FPS of Crysis and the legendary RPG series, Diablo 2. This game easily trumps them all. Especially if you're a lover of the lore because you've played through the earlier games in the series. Don't cheat yourself. Buy the first one and play it through, then the second, then the third. They're all excellent and I can't think of a more compelling universe ever made -- Star Wars only gets props because it was first (and Middle Earth too, of course). And ME3 will still be around 100 hours of gameplay afterward when you've properly prepared yourself for it, to enjoy it for all it's worth.… Expand
  18. soniamdisappoin
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    I did not realize it at the time but when I watched gurenn lagann last year I had already watched the plot to this game months before it came out, i loved the series for having a unique story but the fact that the bioware ripped their story leaves me heartbroken, i want to give them a second chance with the dlcs, hopefully this wont be too much to ask for
  19. ThomasBerg
    Mar 8, 2012
    7
    After reading most of these user reviews while playing the game i couldnt belive what i was seeing. I thought the sheer production value and epicness of the game/scope and how promising the end was stunning to say the least and while i missed most of the exploration and RPG elements from ME1 and ME2 i understood why they were dumbed down since you have more pressing matters to attend toAfter reading most of these user reviews while playing the game i couldnt belive what i was seeing. I thought the sheer production value and epicness of the game/scope and how promising the end was stunning to say the least and while i missed most of the exploration and RPG elements from ME1 and ME2 i understood why they were dumbed down since you have more pressing matters to attend to and running around wasting time would break my immersion. I wasnt suprised when i saw that the from ashes dlc would be an extra feature, i am a bit puzzled as to why they chose a prothean for this DLC, while not critical to the plot, it does answer a lot of the main questions i had about the epos. Since they made such a huge deal around the protheans and its mysticism, the more i talked with my prothean squadmate and got immersed into his story i was more and more suprised why this wasnt part of the main game.
    Ive been a fan of the mass effect genre since the first game came out, ive read all the comics, books studied the lore and i even loved mass effect 2, perhaps not for the dumbed down RPG elements, but the game was genuinly challenging and fun, characters and storytelling and voice acting was stellar.

    When i looked at my time played how it felt and how my war asset bar was nearly full, thats when i first started to worry.
    After a certain cuscene with tali i was so moved i nearly broke a tear, thats how immersive the game was.

    As i progressed feeling soon my long pondered, unanswered questions would or would not come to a close, i got more and more worried since the last hours felt somewhat rushed but was put to a rest when i got the grand epic feeling when the fleets arrived at earth. I was nearly standing in my chair, awed at the greatness of the moment.

    Then came the final assault on earth. This was also grand in scale. Ive wanted to see earth in mass effect ever since i glared at its magnifisence on the lunar base mission in ME1. The war torn earth looked grim and desperate and upheld my expectations. Then came the ending. Not since the conclusion to the ace seeries, sopranos have i felt such a black hole in my stomache. I felt betrayed at first waiting til after the credits. I searched all the forums i could about what i did wrong how i could get this abysmal ending and how i could fix it, seeing as i had nearly 100% completion and full paragon. Was this a bug? A mistake on my part on an important desicion? I pondered this for many hours until i was forced to accept, that was it. This was the ending to the biggest sci-fi epos in gaming history.    … Expand
  20. MSTA
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    I played the first 2 games and was told that the ending would be really bad so not to have high expectations going in. I lowered my expectations to the floor and really enjoyed the gameplay. Then, at the end I totally regretted ever playing this series. The ending is by far the worst ever and then on top of that, the post credit cut scene is an even bigger slap in the face. Never againI played the first 2 games and was told that the ending would be really bad so not to have high expectations going in. I lowered my expectations to the floor and really enjoyed the gameplay. Then, at the end I totally regretted ever playing this series. The ending is by far the worst ever and then on top of that, the post credit cut scene is an even bigger slap in the face. Never again Bioware. Never again.… Expand
  21. Pitt90
    Mar 8, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I could've forgiven a lot about ME3 ... after all, I love the franchise. ME1 was amazing; ME2 I liked despite being railroaded into working for an organization I did my best to hinder at every turn during ME1, and having my Spectre status be meaningless; and despite ME3 having graphics that looked like they came from the 90s and introducing a completely unnecessary multiplayer aspect to a single-player RPG.

    I could've forgiven them for all that ... but then I played til the end. Bioware's lead writer Mac Walters said the last in the series would be about our choices having impact ... but it didn't. No matter how good we were; how hard we worked; what choices we made, the galaxy is boned and there's nothing we can do to have *any* semblance of a happy ending. Does it happen in real life? Sure ... but we play video games to escape the hopelessness of real life and to have a chance, just a chance, to make a better world. I expected sacrifices, I expected tough choices, I didn't expect a deus ex machina.    … Expand
  22. legislacerator
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. As an individual who has been a huge fan of Mass Effect since the launch of the first game, I was disappointed with how Mass Effect 3 played out. Actually, I believe disappointed is not a strong enough term- I was utterly devastated. To have the story built up beautifully over five years and to come to care about the characters and the outcome of your decisions was a huge emotional investment for many players; it was an investment on which we received no returns. The ending(s) of the game left something to be desired. They were incredibly clichéd and felt tacked-on, almost as an afterthought, and with no consideration to any of the events of the previous two games. The worst part, personally, was that Mass Effect 3 lived up to even my expectations- until the last twenty minutes or so of the game. Those last twenty minutes (or what is known in-game as Citadel: The Return) soured the entire narrative experience, including the years of story that came before.… Expand
  23. Gunny_IIDTA
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    Got to say i am very disappointed with this game, i dont know if its just me but the graphics have got worse the game mechanics are still clunky and unwieldy (despite that i still love ME2) the character writing has gotten extremely chicle... What the hell happened to Kotor/Jade empire bio ware that's what i want to know. Also this game being clearly developed for consoles has not helpedGot to say i am very disappointed with this game, i dont know if its just me but the graphics have got worse the game mechanics are still clunky and unwieldy (despite that i still love ME2) the character writing has gotten extremely chicle... What the hell happened to Kotor/Jade empire bio ware that's what i want to know. Also this game being clearly developed for consoles has not helped it in the slightest… Expand
  24. Almin
    Mar 8, 2012
    5
    The games doesn't make much difference of the choices made in the previous games, and plot holes are there, gaped with duct tape writing.
    There is some minor bugs (like getting stuck in the Normandy **** near joker), a useless quest journal (seriously).
    The endings are disappointing, same animations, different colors. Having a high galactic readiness score barely changes the endings    The games doesn't make much difference of the choices made in the previous games, and plot holes are there, gaped with duct tape writing.
    There is some minor bugs (like getting stuck in the Normandy **** near joker), a useless quest journal (seriously).
    The endings are disappointing, same animations, different colors. Having a high galactic readiness score barely changes the endings (actually, just one).
    Overall it's not a bad game, it has some enjoyable moment and dialogues, but it could have been much better.
    PS: I personally find that the DLC character to be pretty important, give really nice insight of the protean and all, and I really feel that he has been cut from the game (were he blends a little to well for a DLC) to be a juicy $$$ DLC.    … Expand
  25. Zireael_Ua
    Mar 8, 2012
    1
    This game was great, interesting, brilliant, before...This is MOST STUPID end ever!!!1 I cant believe this **** is end Mass Effect 3. Hate ME series now.
  26. Hippari
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    This doesn't feel like it cost 50 million dollars to make. I'm wishing it didn't cost me 80 dollars to buy.

    Before all that, I never really got into any Bioware games beyond Mass Effect, but the first one really snagged me. I bought it on a Steam sale for 5 dollars because it was so highly praised. I saw why! Its combat was moderately challenging, had a great story, cool characters and    This doesn't feel like it cost 50 million dollars to make. I'm wishing it didn't cost me 80 dollars to buy.

    Before all that, I never really got into any Bioware games beyond Mass Effect, but the first one really snagged me. I bought it on a Steam sale for 5 dollars because it was so highly praised. I saw why! Its combat was moderately challenging, had a great story, cool characters and I enjoyed their interactions with each other and the universe they lived in. It was a living breathing environment that I was simply enraptured by. As soon as Mass Effect 2 was announced, I preordered the Collector's edition because I had no idea that things were going to get cheesey. Still, the game didn't disappoint me. It looked better, put me in some great new environments while cutting out a lot of the generic copy paste elements from the first and best of all, introduced some more great characters with genuinely cool interactions between them. Sure the classic combat got thrown under the bus in favor of the tried and true bootleg Gears of War system, but it wasn't broken by any means. It still left me with a good enough taste in my mouth to preorder the CE of ME3. Besides, I was this invested in the series, I had to see it end.

    Oh boy. Too put it simply, Mass Effect 3 is lazy. The characters look, move and sound terribly. On the design front, I could take or leave most to f the new outfits and the textures are also hit or miss, but some character's faces look positively simian (Ashley). Margaret Cho bot makes a cameo in the game for whatever reason that is, taking the place of Kelly Wong's established character. From a quick google search, she is actually pretty, but you wouldn't think so from the way she's rendered in game with her ginormous squirrel face and mouth that moves independent from the rest of her features. I heard that a lot of the development was put into voice acting ,which is believable because there are loooots of it, but the volume normalization is really off and on to the point of me wonderig where the money went. Margaret Chobot in particular has a bad habit of leaning away from the mic every now and then. If she were saying anything important I'd doubtlessly be more irritated.

    The game's animations are also sloppy; there are LOTS of poorly thought out loops mixed with awkward general movements. I giggle everytime I knock an enemy down and they break dance windmill flare there way back to their feet, but I can't help being disappointed with the stupid looking running animations.

    Oh, the breakdance comment reminds me of the developers decision to make the spacebar do everything. Sometimes it works! Really! On tuchanka I found myself just holding spacebar and marvelled at how my character ran and jumped over the stuff I wanted to jump over, and slid and rolled everywhere I inted them to. Theeeeeen... there are cases where I'm trying to pick up an item on the ground and my Shepard instead chooses to do kumbi rolls around it for 45 seconds before sliding into cover behind a chest-high wall, not having picked up the item I tried telling them to. Nobody's perfect.

    One thing that really broke my heart though was the fact that all my Saved character faces were imported poorly. I could recreate them, sure, but that's just pathetic. I don't understand why it's like that. If they added more options to the character creation bits, yeah sure, but they didn't. Why couldn't my sheps be imported properly?

    Of course, aside from character continuity, none of these previously mentioned issues were the thing that made me enjoy this series. After all if I want good and fluid combat I'll play Gears of War. If I want great animations I'll play GTA4. I wanted to see what became of these characters that I'm so invested in, of their universe that fascinates me so. I don't want to spoil anything, but God, this is where the ball was dropped. A lot of characters are cameos and after thoughts, like an old friend who stops by to give a quick hello in the middle of a roadtrip. The story has also drowned in nacho cheese to the point that it has simply become predictable when not outrageous and kinda generic where it used to be something special. It almost makes me feel as if Mass Effect 2 was a completely pointless existence. I have a sneaking suspicion that they knew the old players would come back no matter what and they had to focus on roping in new ones.

    The multiplayer's cool though, I guess. If you're into that. I'm not.

    I thought it would be funny if I ended this review on an after thought. Get it?    … Expand
  27. Haartian
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    The game itself - in terms of graphics, narrative, combat, general atmosphere and gameplay - is close to perfect. There are incredible moments in the story arc, and the game delivers a truly cinematic experience.

    I'd risk saying it's the best space opera cRPG ever, beating even the previous two to the title. Well, there's just one 'but'. ME3 *would* be the best space opera cRPG ever, if    The game itself - in terms of graphics, narrative, combat, general atmosphere and gameplay - is close to perfect. There are incredible moments in the story arc, and the game delivers a truly cinematic experience.

    I'd risk saying it's the best space opera cRPG ever, beating even the previous two to the title. Well, there's just one 'but'.

    ME3 *would* be the best space opera cRPG ever, if not for its ending.
    WIthout spoiling too much - the three possible endings of Mass Effect 3 are more than just bad. They are atrocious. Even though Bioware claims that there are 16 possible endgame options, the difference between them comes down to... colour change. That's it.

    The ending of ME3 ruins the whole saga experience. It will leave you dry and dispassionate, and drain all joy from re-playing ME 1&2 and ME3 itself.

    If you're a fan of the series, DON'T BUY THIS. At least until Bioware changes the endings.    … Expand
  28. EasilyAnnoyed
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    Oh my. Where to start? As badly burned as I was by SW:TOR, my wife bought this for me anyway. I think it was a mistake. Day one, I install the thing just because I love Mass Effect and decide to give EAWare one more chance. As soon as I load my save carried over from ME and ME2, my Shepard's face DOESN'T EVEN PORT OVER CORRECTLY! Are you kidding me? The cornerstone of the ME series, yourOh my. Where to start? As badly burned as I was by SW:TOR, my wife bought this for me anyway. I think it was a mistake. Day one, I install the thing just because I love Mass Effect and decide to give EAWare one more chance. As soon as I load my save carried over from ME and ME2, my Shepard's face DOESN'T EVEN PORT OVER CORRECTLY! Are you kidding me? The cornerstone of the ME series, your choices carry over doesn't even get past the freaking FIRST TIME I see my Shepard? WTF? Yeah, your choices come across but we haven't tested jack s***.

    Day one DLC for $10 featuring something pivotal to the series...yeah, no thanks.

    Bioware's actions in the last few months are the biggest letdown in my long history of gaming. Good riddance, and I hope your company dies a very rapid and painful death.    … Expand
  29. zoozooboo
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    The only thing surprising about the negative reaction to this game is that took you all so long to realize these overpaid basement-dwellers have been making hackneyed, nerd-baiting snoozefests since the overrated Knights of the Old Republic (a game with one of the all-time stupidest twists in any medium). It speaks multitudes of Bioware's lack of creativity that the second they break freeThe only thing surprising about the negative reaction to this game is that took you all so long to realize these overpaid basement-dwellers have been making hackneyed, nerd-baiting snoozefests since the overrated Knights of the Old Republic (a game with one of the all-time stupidest twists in any medium). It speaks multitudes of Bioware's lack of creativity that the second they break free of their D&D and Star Wars licenses (disregarding Jade Empire, which I admittedly haven't played), they jump immediately into creating aesthetically bland space operas and high fantasy romps because the 'spergers can't have their pinned-on mittens ruffled by change or new ideas. Compare the openings of games like Bioshock or Skyrim - games that give you a sense of true mystery and dread, games that prelude to their greater themes and ideas in the first few minutes - to Bioware's uninspired openings: You're standing around as you're totally personal and unique and awesome character (let's just call him/her "M. Sue" for argument's sake) whose super-unique jawline just gives him LOADS of personality, I'm sure, then someone talks your ear off for twenty minutes about PURELY EXPOSITORY BUNK and then whatever they're talking about attacks you in your vanilla spaceship/Game of Thrones field. Sure, you can't judge a game entirely by its opening, but this really illustrates how little Bioware understands about storytelling, tone, or personal expression in art. Their obsession with being "cinematic" is laughable as well, because, 1.) D&D campaigning (the only sort of story structure Bioware seems able to create) is in no way "cinematic," 2.) gaming has reached a level of artistry that most people who take the medium seriously are past trying to just be film's little brother (a reason why the actual gameplay in this developer's titles is so often maligned), and 3.) if this unholy mix of Uncanny Valley Barbie dolls and outdated space opera chic somehow stumbled into the multiplexes, it would tank faster than you could say "The Spirits Within." I'm not one to say you can't make an engrossing game based on going around talking to people... hell, I love the LucasArts adventure games of yesterday. But the difference is those games had style in spades - from the whimsical noir of Grim Fandango to the truly creepy mystery of The Dig - whereas Bioware is simply content to milk easy characterizations and plots (if I ever have to help another space-slut track down her deadbeat space-dad because he owes her space-money or WHATEVER, may I be forced to have sex with a Krogan for the rest of my days), knowing they're working in a field where, until recently, the bar was low enough to get away with it. (It is also interesting to note Dragon Age II, despite its numerous gameplay flaws, was the only Bioware game that comes close to being more than the sum of hastily borrowed parts. And of course it was the start of the internet backlash; nerds don't like it when you slip some beef into their pink slime.) It genuinely makes me angry that the writers try to pass off their totally exploitative (and cringe-worthily awkward) sex scenes as promotions of sexual equality, because they didn't just include hot lesbian action to turn on the fanboys then realize they needed to include some male homosexuality as to not look entirely pandering. The company is skilled at creating an immersive experience, I will give them that, and not every moment spent in their universes is entirely unpleasant. But with schlock writing, unoriginal concepts, and often shoddy gameplay, why do they get a pass for creating a world that's cool to hang out in for a couple hours? That is the bare minimum you're expected to do when creating a piece of narrative entertainment! If you honestly think these games are the pinnacle of any sort of storytelling or characterization, by God, read more books, watch more films, play more games, live more life. Then, come back and see how your Shepard (OMG, does YOUR Shepard Renegade Interrupt people because MY Shepard totally does lololol) and all his dead-eyed and dull-voiced pals relate to things made by people who have seen sunlight in the last ten years. My theory is, they won't.… Expand
  30. Sigvatr
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    Synopsis review: Mass Effect 3 sure looks great (Models look nice, both characters and levels, and no visible textures problems on the main characters/levels.), yet it has many deep flaws that cannot be forgiven, these flaws are: The ending was horrible, a lot of issues story wise, very weak animations, the level design is mediocre (I said it looked nice, but design of a level does notSynopsis review: Mass Effect 3 sure looks great (Models look nice, both characters and levels, and no visible textures problems on the main characters/levels.), yet it has many deep flaws that cannot be forgiven, these flaws are: The ending was horrible, a lot of issues story wise, very weak animations, the level design is mediocre (I said it looked nice, but design of a level does not equal the quality of the models/textures/UVs.) and to round this list off; There are some issues cornering the gameplay. While being a resident of the Netherlands, I was obliged to actual download this new, and fresh game from Bioware: Through the Piratebay. (Your jimmy can remain unrustled, it is legal here to do so.) Yes, really the Dutch law allows for downloading of everything. Look into our Wetboek van Strafrecht if you don not believe it, Biodrones. Warning: Spoilers. Anyway, time for the main review: After the start-up the menu looked clean and normal, and even for a console-port it had many options within the options menu. I could actually change AA-options, any many other things to! (Poly amount of the characters and levels, resolution of the textures, etc.) I applaud the people who designed the menu, I consider this menu one of the better things of the game. And after playing the game itself I noticed that the animations are very weak, the NPC's walk and run like any random Bethesda character. (For the scrubs, this means that when a NPC decides to run his upper body doesn't show any sign of the running that is going on, it's horrible.) The level design is also pretty bad, while not as bad as the animations, it's still weak. The potential of the nice models/textures isn't fully used in the design of many levels. This might be because of the CoD approach, yet it feels more like a corridor shooter then a game where a full blown assault is launched against the ENTIRE universe. (The last levels really show this off.) For instance take the level where you join up with the Turians: There is a very tiny space where you can walk and find/talk with NPC's. One reaper walking somewhere near the base, and a small vista here and there. It should be: A big and well designed fighter base. This is not the case. That's a bit sucky, Bioware, sucky indeed. Story and gameplay then: The two most important thing in games ever. Story wise everything comes to an end. This is ok, yet it feels cheap: Tali jumping of a cliff, Miranda dying, that doctor alien dying, these NPC's survived almost two games, and now they all die by jumping off a cliff. Blergh. Also some other NPCs are poorly written, from characters that are really stereotypical gay (In a game that takes itself very serious this feels strange and awkward, it's just as bad a stereotypical straight character.) and two NPCs that keep making talking gestures yet they do not speak. And I found this couple of mime players throughout the game, perfect for movies, weak for games. Toke me out of the immersion. My final note is on the very low rating, while Bioware/EA deserves this. ME 3 would get a 5 maybe a 6 out of 10. Yet this very low grade it due to a few events, first off all: Dear Bioware, hiring people who do not like to play video games will get you a 3.2 for your 20+ $ million game. For sure. And going after the CoD audience is even worse, the average gamer is 32 years old, Caucasian, semi-Atheist/christian, that raises the question: Was this game created for the average gamer? In my opinion: Nope. Leave this game be, and if you see it in the shop, place another game in front off it so people don't throw away their money. Sigvatr out.


    Edit: After playing the game some more I have seen a lot of sprites. Lowering the score to a zero because of that. Sprites in a 3D game? Almost in front of the player, Bioware please! Shameful Display!    … Expand
  31. omegaferrari
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    this game is brilliant, good graphics and story,all those complaining really dislike pc gaming or gaming as a whole, this game from the very start grips you and even if it is more action oriented, the rpg elements are here and there to add depth to player development , good game. dont miss it , im enjoying it, the same way i enjoyed 1 and 2, if you liked batman arkham city , deus ex 3 ,this game is brilliant, good graphics and story,all those complaining really dislike pc gaming or gaming as a whole, this game from the very start grips you and even if it is more action oriented, the rpg elements are here and there to add depth to player development , good game. dont miss it , im enjoying it, the same way i enjoyed 1 and 2, if you liked batman arkham city , deus ex 3 , dead space 2 and the like , you are gonna enjoy this.… Expand
  32. kriosis
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    After playing Mass Effect 1 & 2 I had high hopes for ME3. Sadly this game did not live up to the hype. While there was improvement there is also far more problems that can't be overlooked. I'll cover the improvements first. Pros.
    1) Certain combat mechanics have been refined. Building your character works similar to the previous games but a lot more skills a far more useful this time    After playing Mass Effect 1 & 2 I had high hopes for ME3. Sadly this game did not live up to the hype. While there was improvement there is also far more problems that can't be overlooked. I'll cover the improvements first. Pros.
    1) Certain combat mechanics have been refined. Building your character works similar to the previous games but a lot more skills a far more useful this time around. Allowing more customization to how we would prefer our abilities to work as we progress was a really great idea.

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

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

    Cons.

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

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

    5.)Tali's face is so original. Oh no, it's an image taken from google then photoshoped. I didn't romance Tali, if you did I really feel bad for you. I'd be pissed at the lack of effort put into her and her race as a whole. They're humans in space suits with no immunities. 5.) I'm running out of room. So lets get to the obvious. The ending, holy hell are they familiar. After doing some digging it seems they pretty much ripped the ending right away from Deus Ex Human Revolution. While it worked for that game. It does not work here. This is what we've been building up to? Technically 3 endings where the only difference is 3-4 seconds and changes in color? There was absolutely no closure here, nothing.was.solved. You're screwed no matter what you pick. This is not what the player wants to feel after so much time in this series. Like Tali's face, the ending background was stolen, from a Windows wallpaper. TL:DR Wait until it's in the bargain bin. Even then, you're better off imagining your own ending. Dream about it if you have to. Dream seems sum up the ending in more then one way.    … Expand
  33. internett
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    This is not BAD, i vas writed negative review but when i play more then 2 hours is acualy briliant game, dont judge when you just started game ! just finish game and you wil change your mind you wil see
  34. vish
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    This is atrocity. 1. DLC 'From ashes' already on the disc of collector's edition at least.
    2. Problems with new facial system. I bought 2 collector's editions of Mass Effect 1 and 2. I lived with my character for 4 years already. And now what? I just have to wait for BioWare doing their job correctly? 2 years of development and this is how you treat paying customers?
    Thank you Electronic    This is atrocity. 1. DLC 'From ashes' already on the disc of collector's edition at least.
    2. Problems with new facial system. I bought 2 collector's editions of Mass Effect 1 and 2. I lived with my character for 4 years already. And now what? I just have to wait for BioWare doing their job correctly? 2 years of development and this is how you treat paying customers?

    Thank you Electronic Arts for making the BioWare company it is today. Great games, great crappy performance, great greed.

    Lights out.    … Expand
  35. rawrOMGrawr
    Mar 8, 2012
    1
    I read all the negative user reviews and thought "meh, troll campaign". Having now bought ME3 I can tell you how wrong I was.

    I started play and was greeted with a full-on 5 minute IG cutscene which told me nothing of what had happened since ME2, built no atmosphere and could have been better acted out by brewer's yeast. This would have been OK had there been something pretty to look at,    I read all the negative user reviews and thought "meh, troll campaign". Having now bought ME3 I can tell you how wrong I was.

    I started play and was greeted with a full-on 5 minute IG cutscene which told me nothing of what had happened since ME2, built no atmosphere and could have been better acted out by brewer's yeast. This would have been OK had there been something pretty to look at, however by the end of this protracted, dry-wretch-inducing fable I was still waiting for the textures to pop in. They never did; and neither did the skybox (which looks like a late 90s perlin noise experiment), text renderings (HO5M4H0V - oops, I mean NORMANDY - I'm looking at you), bullet graphical effects or any other advancement in graphics technology since the early 00's.

    I have read complaints about the animations and I tend to agree with them, however I did derive some entertainment from this aspect of the game by finding a battle zone, blasting the Benny Hill theme from my stereo and then dashing around it, avoiding cover wherever possible. Due to the new "playability and experience-centric" combat system I actually found it quite difficult to die while doing this.

    Sadly, the story-line and telling is the biggest casualty here. I don't usually complain about story-lines per se because usually this borders on personal preference - who gets mad at a book because things don't end the way they want them to? - but in this instance I feel I have to; the story line simply ignores anything that happened in any other ME game and the setting as a whole. Imagine if a scene in LOTR: The Return of the King had seen Sauron march up to Aragorn, flip on his ghetto blaster and serve him legal notice to get down and funky for hobbiton. Could be a great scene; shouldn't be in a LOTR movie - right? The writers of ME3 would disagree with you.

    The voice acting is wooden and poorly synced with facial animations, just as the lines are tired, cliched and poorly synced with your dialogue "choices". I don't use those inverted commas lightly; the dialogue choices are akin picking one of two bottles labelled "coke" and "pepsi", one filled with water from the fountain of youth and the other with aqua regia. It's hard to take a game seriously when almost every dialogue choice plays like the grail scene from Indiana Jones and yet does nothing to advance the plot.

    There's more - the controls, the "RPG" system, the AI and the return of the mini games (now transformed into button-press-cutscenes) - but, in all honesty and not being a terribly fussy gamer, I could have honestly enjoyed this game if it had got any one of the major parts above right. It didn't and hence I didn't. I sincerely hope that you have found this review persuasive (If you haven't bought it yet) or condoling (If you have).    … Expand
  36. aimlessgun
    Mar 8, 2012
    6
    Most of the game is amazing _________________________________________________________________________________ -Good combat _____________________________________________________________________ -Great atmosphere _________________________________________________________________ -Amazingly done little details __________________________________________________________ -A lot of very emotionalMost of the game is amazing _________________________________________________________________________________ -Good combat _____________________________________________________________________ -Great atmosphere _________________________________________________________________ -Amazingly done little details __________________________________________________________ -A lot of very emotional moments _______________________________________________________ -Some of the toughest and most heart wrenching decisions I've had to make _____________________ -Thoroughly addicting and enjoyable (until the end). ______________________________________________________________________________ So-so stuff: _______________________________________________________________________ -Slightly too much autodialogue. Not a huge deal though. ____________________________________ -Effect of many previous choices given mention but not explicitly detailed, left to your imagination (works for some) _________________________________________________________________________ -Dialogue ranges from great to cringe inducing _______________________________________________________________________________ The horrible: ______________________________________________________________________ -Ending is some of the worst writing/storytelling of all time. NOT because it is a "sad" ending. Because it comes out of nowhere and makes no sense. It would take an essay to detail everything that is wrong with it. ________________________________________________________________________________ 90% of the game is awesome. By that measure, I could give it a 9/10. But endings are important. ________________________________________________________________________________ Worth buying and playing.… Expand
  37. Jaitsu
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    The gameplay is great and all, and the story is as good and ever, but BioWare/EA made a huge mistake in essentially FORCING the player to play a ton of the multiplayer to get a halfway decent ending for the single-player. Bioware claims that the game can be beat without playing the multiplayer, but that's mostly lip service; you CAN beat the game without the MP, but you're going to get aThe gameplay is great and all, and the story is as good and ever, but BioWare/EA made a huge mistake in essentially FORCING the player to play a ton of the multiplayer to get a halfway decent ending for the single-player. Bioware claims that the game can be beat without playing the multiplayer, but that's mostly lip service; you CAN beat the game without the MP, but you're going to get a terrible ending if you didn't go and do EVERYTHING possible in the SP, and even if you do, you can't get better than a subpar ending. That's a really, really bad design decision - especially considering how bad the MP is. It doesn't encourage teamwork, it encourages leaving your teammates to die so you can take all the kills and you don't have to fight for cover or deal with them drawing fire to your location when you're trying to be sneaky.… Expand
  38. Snowsve
    Mar 8, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game built up so much epicness and I said multiple times before the last mission that this was the best SP-game I've EVER played. And it got destroyed under 10 minutes, by creating paradoxes (synthetic life who kills organic life so they don't get killed by synthetics LOOOL), Joker's getting some pstd and decides to run to a mass relay, and shepard is gone forever, putting the galaxy into a dark age and even if he survives he will NEVER see his LI, his friends or another nebula again. They tried to make a Deus Ex 1-ending, but they failed miserable and decided that a deus ex machina-ending would do the trick. I'm honestly depressed, it was my favourite game series of all time and Bioware gave me the finger.… Expand
  39. MassEffectFShep
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I had to wait a few hours after finishing the game before writing a review because I wanted to take some time to look back on ME1/ME2 and be as fair and objective as possible when collecting my thoughts on ME3. This game is amazing in several ways: (1) dialogue between familiar (and to some extent unfamiliar) characters feels more real and natural, (2) combat is a lot more interesting and, in some scenes, more challenging than both ME1 and ME2, (3) the cinematic scenes depicting various key events in the story are visually engaging and easy to connect with emotionally, (4) the romance interactions between Shepard and his/her LI is a vast improvement from both ME1 and ME2, and (5) the overall visual element of the game (the Citadel, the new worlds that you visit--Rannoch and Thessia for example, and the characters themselves) made it really easy to immerse yourself in the game. Having been a huge fan of ME1 and ME2, I was happy to see that Bioware came through in these areas. I had moments where I laughed, moments where I felt giddy, and plenty of moments where I cried (e.g., Thane's death). That being said, I was incredibly surprised at how much the ending affected me. Up until the very last moments in the game (I would say up until the part where the destroyer reaper vaporizes people around you while you painfully drag yourself toward the beam), I would have given the game a 10/10 hands down. I would have bowed down to Bioware for telling the greatest story ever told. And then there was the ending: (1) The number of plot holes left is an insult to the bajillion hours that I invested in the first two games, (2) the Deus Ex-style ending completely chaffed my soul, and (3) I received next to NO closure on all of the relationships that I've been building up until the point. What happened to the people on the citadel (e.g., Bailey, the council, etc.) What happens to my team? What happens to the two squadmates that I took with me in the final battle scene? What happens to the races that I just spent hours trying to unite in hopes of a more relevant and fitting ending? I loved the Deus Ex ending in Deus Ex because it fit with what the story was about up until the end; Mass Effect was more than just a morally ambiguous thought exercise on organic vs. synthetic existence--it's SO much more than that--so why condense it all to that? I don't need Shepard to live in the end (and I certainly don't need a happily-ever-after ending where nobody dies and everyone is all smiles at the end of the reaper invasion), but I sure as hell was under the impression that I'd have the choice. I put so much thought into paragon vs. renegade, which is arguably the main driving force in the plot up until the very last scene, and it seems like no matter what you do you are boxed into an ending that's uncomfortable, unclear, and unnervingly disappointing. I was amazed at how emotionally connected I felt to the Mass Effect series, and spent what felt like an eternity looking forward to the final part of the trilogy. In terms of ME3, I felt completely satisfied with the exception of the ending, which seemed totally out of place and unnecessarily broke my enthusiasm and passion for the game. Do I hate the entire series now because of the way it ends? No. Will I deny that all 3 games are amazing in multiple ways and have allowed me to be a part of an epic story? No. Can I jump on the 10/10 bandwagon for ME3? Absolutely not, because the ending of such a huge story is critical, and in my opinion it was an epic fail in this game. If I could go back in time, I would probably have not played the game past Shepard's last speech to his/her team--at least at that point you were excited/terrified/scared, but you also had the hope that other characters instilled in you, and the hope that you spent so much time instilling into other characters. So in the end, I can't give this game a positive review, although it kills me to know that it would have been such an easy thing to do if the ending had (a) more variation and more of an actual decision-making component to it (such that all endings aren't essentially the same--I know there is room for argument here, but I maintain that it can all boil down the same basic ending), (b) incorporated more of the choices that you have been making for the past three games, (c) more relevance to the personal side of Shepard (e.g., how Shepard has evolved over time and who Shepard has become), and (d) more closure on all of the characters, relationships, and decisions that you just spent three games experiencing. You almost did it, Bioware. So close and yet so far.… Expand
  40. Asher
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    Don't be fooled, use your brain and think: Why would the "critics" all like this game but most of the public hates it? Easy answer: Either said critics are on EAs payroll or they fear the future repercussions from EA (no interviews/early copies) if they give it a bad review. These sorts of things happen in the vidya industry, the bigger the publisher, the more likely it is to happen.Don't be fooled, use your brain and think: Why would the "critics" all like this game but most of the public hates it? Easy answer: Either said critics are on EAs payroll or they fear the future repercussions from EA (no interviews/early copies) if they give it a bad review. These sorts of things happen in the vidya industry, the bigger the publisher, the more likely it is to happen.

    Awkward animations, hamfisted dialogue, 2008 graphics, cheap plot mechanics, recasting much-loved VAs...it's like Bioware went out of their way to make this game horrible. Also don't forget the NO HOLSTERING and the excuse given for it: "we ran out of memory" LOL! They ran out of memory on the ps3 version ONLY, they could've EASILY put holstering in the 360 or PC version but decided to keep the shortcoming, if that doesn't scream INCOMPETENCE, I don't know what does...

    I can understand the urge to finish off the story after you saved your ME2 save file for months now but whatever you do, DON'T PAY FOR THIS GAME, otherwise you're telling Bioware that a half-assed effort is okay.    … Expand
  41. UpsetGamer
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    I can't believe "news" sites are saying ME3 is hated because of homophobic gamers.This is just the EA/Bioware propaganda talking, hiding behind a homophobia accusation when in fact this game is absolutely horrible.Everything is recycled content, graphics are worse, boring story, boring gameplay and yes boring sexual relationship.The great majority of gamers hate how sexuality is presentedI can't believe "news" sites are saying ME3 is hated because of homophobic gamers.This is just the EA/Bioware propaganda talking, hiding behind a homophobia accusation when in fact this game is absolutely horrible.Everything is recycled content, graphics are worse, boring story, boring gameplay and yes boring sexual relationship.The great majority of gamers hate how sexuality is presented in this game because it's stereotypical, boring and forced down our throat, there have been plenty of gay characters in games before and nobody cared, It isn't about that, it's about turning a game into a political platform and making us pay for it by falsely hypeing it up.We knew there was going to be gay romance and nobody cared, what we didn't know was that the game was going to **** this much.… Expand
  42. Inception
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    I dont know old Bioware. This game doing other company, because I seen very bad game.
    Bad graphic - where is HD texture pack on PC? Where is it? Dialogues - bathos, bathos, bathos everywhere, many bathos. What is that? I dont 7 year is old Gameplay - crap. Where is RPG elements? Where is it? Shooting, always shooting.........
    This is EPIC FAILURE.
  43. elterifico
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    I think it's a very great game, I enjoyed the story line of every mass effect game. I love how the choices we made inflict on the experience we have. But when I put the story apart, I find it is still a good game, but average. I would give 7.5 for the gameplay. And 5 for the graphics and the AI. Problem is that it's made on over 5 years old hardware...
    I still hate what they done to    I think it's a very great game, I enjoyed the story line of every mass effect game. I love how the choices we made inflict on the experience we have. But when I put the story apart, I find it is still a good game, but average. I would give 7.5 for the gameplay. And 5 for the graphics and the AI. Problem is that it's made on over 5 years old hardware...
    I still hate what they done to Crysis 2, and Dragon age 2 (even though I loved DA2, it's not a PC game anymore like DA that was, much more deeper), but I think all the bashing I see here about ME3 is not justified. They did what they could with what they had... Problem is Sony and Microsoft for delaying video game evolution. PC market is to small to sustain mass blockbuster productions like mass effect.

    And now we learn that the next XBOX will grant us the pleasure of playing with the fantastic radeon 6670, hell my 2 years old 5770 is twice as fast.
    Guess we will wait a long time to see a real AI and graphics evolution for our game. But I rather enjoy what we have, like the awesome story of the Reapers angainst all living things!

    In that perspective Bioware made a terrific game whit a story that made me forgot I was playing a game optimised for such crappy hardware.    … Expand
  44. lucian01
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    What a crap game! Bioware has done it again! Crap characters, crap story and crap setting. I don't understand all the positive reaction from users. They can't be playing the same game as I am. Either that or they are running a smear campaign against the public because they think we're homophobes. If that is the case - GET A LIFE!
  45. lyt2210
    Mar 8, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Beautiful scenery, wonderful music, and bad endings this pretty much sums up my ME3 experience. No matter what you do, no matter the choices you have made along this road EA has you dying, there is no ending where you see your lover ever again(unless you play mp get +5k EMS then you will get a 1 second clip of someone taking a breath). At the end of the game post credits they a have a grandpa and grandson on what looks like the moon with trees staring at earth. The ending has the mass relays being destroyed so why bother helping the quarians retake the home world they'll never see it. Basically everyone is pretty much stuck in the sol system until somebody figures out FTL without mass effect. To put it simply I emotionally invested myself in this game, in my character, in this mission only to be letdown. I remember when I first made my character Emily, an infiltrator I spent literally an hour just turning her head side to front just so I would have the perfect face. I would redo entire missions in ME2 if I failed the first time to get a crew member's loyalty, I played tedious mining mini-games so I could outfit my ship, I stayed true to my lover from ME1 in hopes of finally having a good ending in ME3 after the disaster called, Horizon. All these choices are moot now thanks to the really rushed ending. The ending was pick the ending you hate the least, not a reward for doing all you could to get a high enough EMS score. No the "3" choices (if you can call them that) are a letdown, just a punishment, no reward. I suggest to those who have not bought it yet wait for it to go down in price, because the bulk of the story is good and some of the scenes will make you a little teary eyed. It is an amazing game right up to the last 30 minutes. Remember peoples the saying goes the only thing that people will remember is what you did...well Bioware what do you have to say for yourself about this atrocious end to a otherwise magical series.… Expand
  46. Spaceguy5
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    (1) Yes the game has day 1 DLC, which sucks. Does that detract from it? Heck no.
    (2) Yes, the game requires Origin to play. Does that detract from it? Heck no.
    (3) Yes, some of the animations in the game aren't perfect. But overall, they're very good. It's no worse than the other games in the serious, I don't understand why people are whining about this so much. (4) The graphics and sound    (1) Yes the game has day 1 DLC, which sucks. Does that detract from it? Heck no.
    (2) Yes, the game requires Origin to play. Does that detract from it? Heck no.
    (3) Yes, some of the animations in the game aren't perfect. But overall, they're very good. It's no worse than the other games in the serious, I don't understand why people are whining about this so much.
    (4) The graphics and sound quality are very good, especially considering this is made on the Unreal 3 engine, which is ancient.
    (5) Yes, the ending is total crap. But that's only 10 minutes out of a muuch longer game. As much as I and a lot of people loathe the ending, it's still just a small part of the game.

    Overall, I loved it. Very enjoyable story, good graphics and sound quality, new gameplay mechanics (thank you for getting rid of that stupid hacking minigame, and for finally replacing the resource gathering minigame with something that isn't a total waste of time) and better weapon/character appearance customization and variety. I truly think it deserves a 10/10. It was pretty bug-free too, I encountered very very few bugs, I had worse bug trouble in ME and ME2.

    Ignore all the moronic trolls spamming extremely low scores. They're just butthurt sheep (I really wonder how many have even played the game) who don't like the Day 1 DLC and/or the ending (heck, I saw some complaining that BioWare used stock photos--a great deal of games/movies/books/ads/everything uses stock material. That's what stock material is made for, to be used in a big variety of projects.)    … Expand
  47. wajeffd
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    Mass Effect 3 isn't perfect. It has some frame glitch issues and character body & face placement errors (where shep is looking vs. where the character he's looking at is standing) that will likely be fixed with follow-on patches. Yes, it screams "there's DLC yet to come"... but this is a business not a giveaway. For the end of what I hope will just be the first Mass Effect trilogy (GIVEMass Effect 3 isn't perfect. It has some frame glitch issues and character body & face placement errors (where shep is looking vs. where the character he's looking at is standing) that will likely be fixed with follow-on patches. Yes, it screams "there's DLC yet to come"... but this is a business not a giveaway. For the end of what I hope will just be the first Mass Effect trilogy (GIVE ME MASS EFFECT 4!!!!!!!), ME3 is a wild ride with a lot more that is FANTASTIC than bad. I hope Bioware puts in the work to fix some of the problems, but the work they put in already should make them proud. BUY THIS GAME!!!… Expand
  48. ItaJohnson
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    The other reviews all giving this P.O.S. negative reviews all cover the points pretty well so i dont feel the need to make a long diatribe asto why this game eats crap. The fact that the paid reviewers rate it so high makes me want to vomit. Aside from the whole gay thing (and being gay is pretty common these days.. if you own an apple product you ARE gay and probably in denial) the gameThe other reviews all giving this P.O.S. negative reviews all cover the points pretty well so i dont feel the need to make a long diatribe asto why this game eats crap. The fact that the paid reviewers rate it so high makes me want to vomit. Aside from the whole gay thing (and being gay is pretty common these days.. if you own an apple product you ARE gay and probably in denial) the game is short as **** but what do you expect when they make a 1/2 assed single player game and a 1/2 assed multiplayer game. Mind you i never liked the first mass effect and HATED the fact that they took the 1 enjoyable thing (the mako) out of the second game. When will the idiot masses learn that bioware doesnt exist anymore, they are EA and as such they release more DLC than they do game. PLEASE for the love of god do not buy this game and if you already did DO NOT buy any DLC, if you do you are essentially saying " i am all for paying too much for ****ty games and than paying even more for content that should have been in the game to begin with.", which makes you an idiot. I wouldnt mind releasing a game and then an expansion like in the old days, but **** no frills gaming.… Expand
  49. Dragoncurry
    Mar 8, 2012
    1
    The execution of ending and many elements of the story is an insult not only to loyal Mass Effect fans but also to RPG fans in general. BioWare managed to do two things successfully: 1) Trivialize the effort a player put into the entire game by not addressing the achievements of the game in a climactic ending and 2) Ruining a trilogy of relationships between characters, races and heroesThe execution of ending and many elements of the story is an insult not only to loyal Mass Effect fans but also to RPG fans in general. BioWare managed to do two things successfully: 1) Trivialize the effort a player put into the entire game by not addressing the achievements of the game in a climactic ending and 2) Ruining a trilogy of relationships between characters, races and heroes through a sheer lack of care towards player sentiments regarding the aftermath of the game. There are also incredible inconsistencies in pacing and ending just give off a terribly unfinished, unpolished feel that is a truly disappointing experience. It's really sad.… Expand
  50. oso
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    Right now iam not able to play the game because it keeps telling me i had somehow entered a wrong cerebrus code... i have no idea what that is supposed to mean but as long as im not allowed to play this **** legitimate buyed copy of ME3 it is a ZERO POINTS for me.
  51. SaBOTeur
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    The writing and plot in this game are by far the worst in the trilogy. The use of deus ex machina betrays BioWare's incredibly lazy narrative and ridiculous ending. Choices and consequences are non-existent, the combat is simplified to the point it's painfully easy even on hardest difficulty, animations are clunky and facial animations are always deeply entrenched within the uncannyThe writing and plot in this game are by far the worst in the trilogy. The use of deus ex machina betrays BioWare's incredibly lazy narrative and ridiculous ending. Choices and consequences are non-existent, the combat is simplified to the point it's painfully easy even on hardest difficulty, animations are clunky and facial animations are always deeply entrenched within the uncanny valley. Characters are stupid, boring, predictable and funny for all the wrong reasons. Avoid this game at all costs, your time is better spent elsewhere… Expand
  52. Metaldaze
    Mar 8, 2012
    2
    Not just a terrible way to end the franchise, peoples choices seem to actively be shamed or spit on. Certain LI's are barely in the game and you are pidgeon-holed into how the game will end. The beginning was amazing, especially as a hardcore ME1 & ME2 fan but at the end of the game you end up with a sour taste in your mouth as if you've been sucker punched in the face and made to thinkNot just a terrible way to end the franchise, peoples choices seem to actively be shamed or spit on. Certain LI's are barely in the game and you are pidgeon-holed into how the game will end. The beginning was amazing, especially as a hardcore ME1 & ME2 fan but at the end of the game you end up with a sour taste in your mouth as if you've been sucker punched in the face and made to think you wasted your time.… Expand
  53. gerbano
    Mar 8, 2012
    1
    Is it me or reviewers didn't play this game enough to notice how badly written and designed ME3 is? At first I didn't understand how a game could earn such different ratings from critics and gamers but then I played it... If you played Dragon Age 2 and felt disappointed, wait and play this one. Dumbed down mechanics and a badly written story apparently are the norm for every new gameIs it me or reviewers didn't play this game enough to notice how badly written and designed ME3 is? At first I didn't understand how a game could earn such different ratings from critics and gamers but then I played it... If you played Dragon Age 2 and felt disappointed, wait and play this one. Dumbed down mechanics and a badly written story apparently are the norm for every new game Bioware. I won't waste my time (and money) with them anymore and I strongly recommend you do the same.… Expand
  54. Nogard123
    Mar 8, 2012
    1
    Seems Bioware has lost its touch,iam glad i didn't buy this piece of crap.
    The endings are just a big fu to all its fans.
    And then there is the day 1 dlc ,Bioware sold its soul to the (devil/EA)
    I feel sorry for the people who bought this,i know my money wont ever go to a Bioware game again ,ever!
    How the mighty have fallen.
  55. AshenPhoenix
    Mar 8, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Bioware has now proven that they are entirely incapable of delivering sequels nowadays. After the catastrophe that was DA2, which left me with a great feeling of dissapointment, I was vary, but since I thought the ME series had other developers than DA2, I still thought I didn't need to worry. But it seems everyone at Bioware has read the same game developer book, "How to ruin promising IPs". I truly loved DA:O and ME1, I liked ME2 although I was worried of the direction. But this game and DA2 is pure crap.

    Worst of all is Biowares inability to deliver satisfying endings although that is far from all there is. I thought DA2's ending was the worst, but ME3's "Different Colors" endings are a slap in the face of ALL humanity. Take those two games and add in SW:TOR and you can see how badly Bioware manages these days, and the only reason they are still succesfull is because of past glories. To Bioware: Anyone can see that you don't want anything to do with the RPG community anymore so stop trying, leave RPG out of your game making PR and just go make braindead shooters and try to compete with MW and BF series.    … Expand
  56. tommy22
    Mar 8, 2012
    6
    Reasons for a bad score (i would normally give this game an 8.5 but the ending really sucked and the only way for bioware to take notice is to take an extreme score).
    -movement on the battlefield, not as smooth as mass effect 2
    -the find the resource being as boring as scanning planets -side missions have nothing to it -overall story on cerberus -some speech was very childish especially in    Reasons for a bad score (i would normally give this game an 8.5 but the ending really sucked and the only way for bioware to take notice is to take an extreme score).
    -movement on the battlefield, not as smooth as mass effect 2
    -the find the resource being as boring as scanning planets
    -side missions have nothing to it
    -overall story on cerberus
    -some speech was very childish especially in the beginning (who wrote this script?); some was excellent tough
    -lipsinc off
    -very disappointing ending
    -ce dlc
    -no original missions (except for the one where you hack into the server mainframe)
    It is certainly not as bad as dragon age 2, but I am still disappointed; maybe I expected to much.    … Expand
  57. 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 theI'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
  58. stefanakisgr
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    Mass Effect was great . The story , the characters , the combat system . Pure brilliance . Then came Mass effect 2 , which took a step back from the rpg part , but made it up somehow with richer companion stories , great voice overs , and a story build up to the 3rd part , that while weaker than the 1st , gave a sense of continuity and a promise of great adventure to come with mass effectMass Effect was great . The story , the characters , the combat system . Pure brilliance . Then came Mass effect 2 , which took a step back from the rpg part , but made it up somehow with richer companion stories , great voice overs , and a story build up to the 3rd part , that while weaker than the 1st , gave a sense of continuity and a promise of great adventure to come with mass effect 3 . Well crap . This is the biggest disappointment in the history of gaming . Don't be fooled by the critics , I honestly think they either took money or they didn't play the game AT ALL . Its terribly linear , your choices are choices only in name , they affect nothing . Graphics glitches everywhere that break immersion constantly , the story is just stupid , and the ending ? REALLY ? The Kotor2 ending was a masterpiece compared to this . And while they are at the business of ruining a great game , how about cutting a very important piece of the story and charge extra for it from day 1 ? Yep they did that too .

    Bioware , you are dead to me ....    … Expand
  59. hugamuga
    Mar 8, 2012
    8
    Just finished it, and it took me according to the game 19:10 which is roughly the same amount of time it took in the previous 2 games. While the game is great, and I really like the new combat system, it tends to get repetitive towards the end. Enemies are pretty limited in variety and missions all seem to have similar objectives. Its still worth playing although I would avoid paying fullJust finished it, and it took me according to the game 19:10 which is roughly the same amount of time it took in the previous 2 games. While the game is great, and I really like the new combat system, it tends to get repetitive towards the end. Enemies are pretty limited in variety and missions all seem to have similar objectives. Its still worth playing although I would avoid paying full price off Origin (in Australia) as it's a lot cheaper to just get it in store.

    I was mildly disappointed in the lack of squad mates, for most of the game i was limited to 5, and while this will vary with some players it did seems a bit of a small selection to choose from. I won't say anything about the story apart from that I enjoyed it, but not as much as the first installment, but it is still at the typical Bioware standard. While I haven't bought the DLC I really do not see it as being a major problem it really just like any other paid DLC in the mass effect series, while it adds new information and interesting things about the mass effect universe. It is in no way required to enjoy the story and you will not notice its missing presence.

    Overall a decent ending to a great series, well worth your time and money, but by no means perfect.    … Expand
  60. LEMIEUX66
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    What the heck happened after Mass Effect 1? The story is dumbed down the feeling of the first and partly the second game is gone...Have they fired all veterans at Bioware and replaced them with people who makes action games for 13 year olds??? where is gaming headed??im genuinly scared and sad i really loved Mass Effect 1:-(
  61. Esiasch
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    I'm really confused by the user reviews here. I am quite a ways through the game and the only thing I have experienced is more of the same from Bioware (which is to say, more gaming greatness). The resolution of plots big and small throughout the series is incredibly satisfying. The combat was a little shaky at first but once I started to grasp the flow of the new combat system it becameI'm really confused by the user reviews here. I am quite a ways through the game and the only thing I have experienced is more of the same from Bioware (which is to say, more gaming greatness). The resolution of plots big and small throughout the series is incredibly satisfying. The combat was a little shaky at first but once I started to grasp the flow of the new combat system it became obvious that Mass Effect 3 would not only overpower its predecessors but my highest expectations as well. Great job Bioware!… Expand
  62. muchacho
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    A shining example of what a terrible job Bioware does when porting console games to PC. Space bar is used to do four functions, the fov is terrible making it hard to explore the game environment and the textures are a lower quality than the ones in Mass Effect 2.
  63. Samiba
    Mar 8, 2012
    7
    The whole game was being marketed with the promise that every decision you have made matters. Well that is nice, the only problem is, it is not true. Of course the story becomes a little bit different with each and every one of your decisions, but in the end it will not matter. Think about it like this, you can go to work in a 100 different ways, but when you are there, will it matter howThe whole game was being marketed with the promise that every decision you have made matters. Well that is nice, the only problem is, it is not true. Of course the story becomes a little bit different with each and every one of your decisions, but in the end it will not matter. Think about it like this, you can go to work in a 100 different ways, but when you are there, will it matter how you got there? No. You will still have to do, what you are told. Sadly this is the case in Mass Effect 3 as well.

    The War Assets system. Sounds good, seems good, even smells good, but it does not taste well, why? Because Bioware forces you to play multiplayer in order for you to basically achieve a perfect or even good playthrough. Why? Because they were probably afraid that people will not play it. How does multiplayer reflect in the actual game? Simple, your Effective Military Strength ( which in theory decides the outcome of the game ) is calculated via your Total Military Strength * your Galactic Readiness, which can be increased by playing the multiplayer. (It will start off at 50% and you lose 1% each day, tough it can not go under 50%) The conversations. The script is great, but that is expected from Bioware. My only take on it is that it feels way too binary sometimes, of course most of the time it makes sense, but I still feel like that there was some laziness on Bioware's part in this matter.
    The scanning. It's an improvement from Mass Effect 2's abysmal scanning system, but I still find it somewhat boring after the first couple "catch me if you can"s. And the fact that you have to do 90% of the sidequests this way does not make it any better.

    If you have read this review so far, you might wonder why I gave the game the score I did. That is because gameplay wise the game runs very smooth, the combat system is great, and the graphics are nice. Also where I live we have a saying:"The path you take is more important than the destination". And while I was disappointed in the ending of the game, I think the way the whole game plays out and actually integrates the story of other Mass Effect media in the game is amazing. I can also understand why the community is mad at Bioware and EA. The DLC in my opinion has either the greatest integration of a DLC ever known to man, or was really cut from the actual game. I want to believe that it is the first, but the way corporations and people work today I feel that it might be the latter. Overall, it is a good game, but I am sure Bioware could have done better.    … Expand
  64. Nichtswisser
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    Welcome to to the future of Bioware.. It really seems that all those guys that know what they were doing left Bioware and were replaced by characters inspired by the movie "Ideocracy". There is that otaku women which is probably a virgin and who seems to have a yaoi (gay male romances) fetish. Than there is that crazy dude I saw in a DA2 video and who came up with the "awesome button". AndWelcome to to the future of Bioware.. It really seems that all those guys that know what they were doing left Bioware and were replaced by characters inspired by the movie "Ideocracy". There is that otaku women which is probably a virgin and who seems to have a yaoi (gay male romances) fetish. Than there is that crazy dude I saw in a DA2 video and who came up with the "awesome button". And there is probably one EA suit dude who is never without his statistics why call of duty is so successful and who spams his opinion in every meeting that more explosions are needed. And with those 3 responsible for game design ME3 is what we got. Lots and lots of gay romances, just as much explosions, and the evolution of the "awesome button", the "awesome does all button"! And it really is awesome when you try to run away and instead take cover with your back exposed to the enemy! Yet just like with DA2, the most "awesome" button is the one which removes this **** from your hdd!… Expand
  65. Brimsurfer
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    This is the best game out there at the moment. Great combat mechanics, great story and a ton of choice. Multiplayer is also awesome, graphics and combat animations are amazing. The story has great twist and the game has 16 different endings, yes 16! This game is at least 10 times better than anyother modern RPG out there with the exception of Witcher 2. Definitely worth your time andThis is the best game out there at the moment. Great combat mechanics, great story and a ton of choice. Multiplayer is also awesome, graphics and combat animations are amazing. The story has great twist and the game has 16 different endings, yes 16! This game is at least 10 times better than anyother modern RPG out there with the exception of Witcher 2. Definitely worth your time and money. I am getting a huge kick out of multiplayer :D.… Expand
  66. SaintArdael
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    I really like the campaign setting of the world, and first and second part, I took great pleasure. But the third part ... it's a nightmare.
    The second part was good, even if it had some flaws. They were small and inconspicuous. Here they just did catch the eye.
    Shepard. The hero, twice saved the galaxy, put ashore. What the hell? As the Alliance could write off the hero of the galaxy,    I really like the campaign setting of the world, and first and second part, I took great pleasure. But the third part ... it's a nightmare.
    The second part was good, even if it had some flaws. They were small and inconspicuous. Here they just did catch the eye.
    Shepard. The hero, twice saved the galaxy, put ashore. What the hell? As the Alliance could write off the hero of the galaxy, and perhaps the spectrum at the beach? But okay, the plot error. But the animation is running, oh, I do not want to see ...

    That boy, burn him in hell. Yes, he died. It is sad. BUT WHY THEY CURSE OF NIGHTMARES! I am extremely furious when Shepard was walking slowly on the forest. Just do not Mass Effect, and The Path.

    An incredible stubbornness of quarians. No matter what the galaxy is almost captured the reapers, WE WREST HOMEWORLD URA-A-AA COMRADES!

    And, of course, the ending. It's just terrible. Damn you, writers Bioware! Boy catalyst, oh, that was invented. You have killed the game. You burn in hell.    … Expand
  67. Dresden
    Mar 8, 2012
    4
    I haven't been so let down with a game since Deus Ex: Invisible War. The problems with this game are numerous and I could go on and on. I really don't have a clue how websites can give this 9s and 10s and expect to be taken seriously.

    The graphics are worse than ME2. It's the same engine, how did that happen? The Illusive Man's skin is smudged and compressed now and in some places NPCs    I haven't been so let down with a game since Deus Ex: Invisible War. The problems with this game are numerous and I could go on and on. I really don't have a clue how websites can give this 9s and 10s and expect to be taken seriously.

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

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

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

    Just all around disappointed in this game and I've had enough from EA/Bioware.    … Expand
  68. CazicLFD
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    This game was a huge dissapointment for me. The soundtrack was terrible compared to what was in me1 and me2, the animations are awful, most of the writing is absolutely horrid. The way they handled the characters from me2(besides garrus and tali) in this game was also a big let down. What pissed me off the most about this game was the story however, more specifically the ending. I wontThis game was a huge dissapointment for me. The soundtrack was terrible compared to what was in me1 and me2, the animations are awful, most of the writing is absolutely horrid. The way they handled the characters from me2(besides garrus and tali) in this game was also a big let down. What pissed me off the most about this game was the story however, more specifically the ending. I wont give away spoilers, if you enjoyed ME1 and ME2, stick with those, dont waste your time with ME3, because when you finish it you will be thoroughly dissapointed with the entire series because of the ending.… Expand
  69. WitcherGabriel
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Let me put it this way - after this game I'm pretty much done with Bioware as my favorite RPG develoeprs. Lets go from the beginning. First of all - why is ENTIRE crew from Mass Effect 2 left you?! I mean they said that they with Shepard till the end no matter what. They with Shepard till Reapers destroyed. And bam! You have no one. If you romanced the most fragile and complex character in the ME2 - she's not in Me3. Why? Shepard fixed her, Shepard was her fortress sort of speak. And she left him right on trial... what's the point of Vega? I mean he has no idea what is going on with Shepard and other crew members, he has kinda no idea who is Shepard. So Vega is 5th wheel in all that. Also boxing scene is pathetic because of how very slow they were boxing and how repeatetive moves were. And council... I sacrificed them and placed Anderson in there and yet here we are... council is the freaking same and Udina is there (default option if you don't import save game). What was the point of doing what I did? I finished maybe something like 1/4 or 1/5th of the game and honestly I don't want to come back. Also - it's origin only with clumsy controls. So bottom line - I am VEEEEERY disapointed in this.… Expand
  70. anubite
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    Mass Effect 3 is a bitter disappointment. I will do my best to briefly explain its flaws without spoiling anything.

    1. Very little care was paid to the story. There are many nagging plot holes that will distract you throughout the game. Glaring logical flaws that have existed since Mass Effect 2 and even Mass Effect 1. More importantly, characters behave very erratically in this game,    Mass Effect 3 is a bitter disappointment. I will do my best to briefly explain its flaws without spoiling anything.

    1. Very little care was paid to the story. There are many nagging plot holes that will distract you throughout the game. Glaring logical flaws that have existed since Mass Effect 2 and even Mass Effect 1. More importantly, characters behave very erratically in this game, seldom true to their original characterization in the previous games. BioWare took the easy way out in most cases, killing off characters at obvious moment. The plot is predictable (I found myself calling out what would happen hours before it did) and the characters and concepts new to Mass Effect 3 are either ridiculous (Kai Leng, the future space ninja) to just shallow (James Vega, token mexican-american space marine). The endings, suffice to say, will leave you in shock with how lazy they were crafted.

    BioWare did impress me with how it handled some of its lesser side characters though, I did not expect so many of them to return as cameos and not simply emails saying, "Hi, remember me?"

    2. None of your choices impact much in ME3. If you played the previous games, you'll find ME3 a little easier to play with some difficult decisions removed (such as choosing one character or another to live), but overall very little changes depending upon your choices in the previous two games. Almost nothing changes based on your choices in ME3, which is a bit surprising. Not even your paragon/renegade status really seems to influence anything.

    This is really wrenching. Major decisions like letting the Rachni living in the first game or not, have no bearing on the game's events in any meaningful manner. But also, deciding who you ally or help or not in ME3 really has no effect on the game's ending... or really much of anything.

    3. This game is ugly. BioWare really outsourced its artwork this time. Facial animations and modeling are inferior to ME2. Many big game reveals (a picture of Tali's face) are stock photo touchups (and by that, I mean literally importing a stock photo into photoshop and putting a lens flare over it). Level design is not as creative as in the original ME. There are occasionally some good in-game environments (such as a certain vegetated piece of Tuchanka) but they are few and far between. In order save memory consumption, BW even had to remove the ability to holster your weapon in combat areas. This broke immersion for me, with my character always hunched over looking down the barrel of their gun.

    Whoever designed Diana Allers' "dress" should be shot.

    4. The voice acting in this game is tolerable, though there are some spotty moments (Wrex stands out at times).

    5. The dialogue wheel is horribly dumbed down in this game - I was shocked. Immensely. There is always a "top" or "bottom" choice to pick (two choices) and every once in a while you'll get an 'investigate' option with 3-5 choices there, but less than 10% of the time do you ever get a "middle" option to pursue in dialogue. You're either paragon or renegade in this game, you can't walk the line through any situation. You're either on their side, or you're not.

    6. The gunplay is a little improved. Some of the new abilities are interesting. However, level design has not been improved from ME2/Me1, I'd say it's gotten worse actually. A lot of corridors, people constantly shouting at you to keep moving -- you can't even stop to look around and enjoy the scenery you like, or even plan an approach to your enemy. Corridors and guns are pretty much all you can expect in this game.

    I did enjoy the aspect of building up an army to fight the reapers though, and for a moment (towards the beginning of the game), I felt a little desperate as to whether I would be able to reach maximum army strength. I thought that the more time I dawdled on side missions, the less chance I would have at beating the game. But I shouldn't have been so silly - of course not. Why challenge the player?

    7. The multiplayer is trashy and I don't understand why they wasted development time on it -- besides marketing purposes anyway.

    8. The different difficulty selections are nice, but narrative is immersion breaking and insanity is pretty much 'dumb' in some instances of the game, where enemies zerg you.

    9. The AI is atrocious. Many encounters in the game are made easy when enemies funnel in through drop points or doorways - you can't just stun them all with a Biotic spell. AI tend to just get behind something and shoot from it.

    10. Not a single boss fight was designed well. They feel really tacked on and lame.    … Expand
  71. JunglePredator
    Mar 8, 2012
    2
    I've already scored this low on the gaming store's site I bought it from & will actually give point form why it gets low scores here.
    -EA conducting aggressive anti-consumer behaviour against users who display "discontent behaviour" in any official forum. Lowers enjoyment of playing game.
    -Significant day 1 DLC/add-on items that should be part of the game but EA is requiring cash for.    I've already scored this low on the gaming store's site I bought it from & will actually give point form why it gets low scores here.
    -EA conducting aggressive anti-consumer behaviour against users who display "discontent behaviour" in any official forum. Lowers enjoyment of playing game.
    -Significant day 1 DLC/add-on items that should be part of the game but EA is requiring cash for. (i.e. the Razer branded item's bonus guns)
    -"Professional" reviewers seem to have been paid off for positive reviews
    -Graphics toted as being "top notch". It's Unreal Engine... I haven't played a game using this engine that HASN'T looked good. ME3 is just average when placed beside many of its competitors
    -Over aggressive DRM (yes it effects the game score as it affects how often & where I can play the game)
    -Game is not a 10 out of 10 by a long shot so it should consider itself lucky to be getting the 2 I'm giving given the negatives.
    Disclosure: I have only played the demo; am still working on my Mass Effect 1 play through before proceeding to ME2 then ME3. Own most the content for all 3 (lacking Razor rifle for ME3 at this point)
    Example of Unreal Engine 3 games I've played for comparison: Alpha Protocol, Batman: Arkham City, Blacklight: Tango Down, BlackSite: Area 51, Borderlands, Frontlines: Fuel of War, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas 2. (Probably more too)    … Expand
  72. SrMoure
    Mar 8, 2012
    6
    This is not bad game, unless you compare it with mass effect I or mass effect 2 which were really awesome games where you were driving the character and the history. All that magic is gone, thus I understand why people give this game low ratings . For a mass effect game this is lame. For the average games this is agood one. Probably people who never played the previous ones of like fpsThis is not bad game, unless you compare it with mass effect I or mass effect 2 which were really awesome games where you were driving the character and the history. All that magic is gone, thus I understand why people give this game low ratings . For a mass effect game this is lame. For the average games this is agood one. Probably people who never played the previous ones of like fps game style would vote this one higher. What is unbelievable is all the (paid?) critic reviews who are giving only top scores and highlighting how good is the game almost without negative aspects. Fortunately here in metacritic most of the users have expressed their opinions so everyone can read that this game is not the perfect product paid reviews are trying to sell. I imagine Bioware is trying to get users to vote and comment in their favour, but that would be a bit more difficult than to heavily advertise in a bunch of gaming publications. I mean, if Bioware is paying you a los of money for publicity, you won"t be talking down their new star product .That wouldn't be a business wise decision.… Expand
  73. puzzlemaniak
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    I'm just feeling so terribly disappointed with ME3, it's like either Bioware doesn't give a damn about their fans, or EA purposely makes them create games like that. At the first glance it doesn't look bad, you can import your old character, game tells you what choices have you taken (the most important ones naturally), you can customize looks like in ME, classes have close resemblance toI'm just feeling so terribly disappointed with ME3, it's like either Bioware doesn't give a damn about their fans, or EA purposely makes them create games like that. At the first glance it doesn't look bad, you can import your old character, game tells you what choices have you taken (the most important ones naturally), you can customize looks like in ME, classes have close resemblance to ME2 ones (similar abilities, new "specialization"-like forks though + some additional skills sometimes), and god, after you're done it starts. Intro might look ok, but certainly graphics don't - engine got old, but it's not a excuse, you feel like playing some low grade console port instead of major game, textures are hideous, animations as well (especially Anderson's, and omg, he's footaged even in demo), nothing special in lightning or mimics departments, so in short - it's like ME2, bah, maybe even worse. Art direction makes up for it though, as it did before, some views are really stunning plus majority of "open" areas (open only by name, zones are as small as they used be) really feels deep. No major concerns about music/sound, even though like 50% or more is reused which hurts. You'd think they moved some budget elsewhere (like story, dialogues etc.), but then "fun" begins. Main plot is really shallow, each subsequent mission kinda pushes you through, pace is just too high, I admit, some turns really are decent, but imho, everything is just too blatant and easy to anticipate, especially closer to ending - it's like they either ran out of cash or EA pushed devs so game could be released earlier. I don't know, but for sure, ending in this game is just very weak (at best), and can really cause outrage in some impatient fans. Anyway, it's still better than what was done to all the sidequests, now they're close to inexistent - like 80% them is simple "get the item' (usually by snapping it from shops or finding in new user unfriendly galaxy exploration), bring it to Citadel (no other quest hub), talk to NPC and claim reward. No dialogue choices (bb persuading or threatening npcs for greater rewards), just probe-item-reward cycle over and over again. You can feel lucky if npc actually has anything to say, mostly it's just simple 1-liner w/o choice, just like it was with Kasumi and Zaeed ship dialogues in ME2. Now imagine it dumbed down even more, and you get brief look on how npc interaction looks, really. Yes, even with important persons, including team mates. When dialogue wheel appears you can be certain it's either opportunity for some questions regarding landmarks, persons etc. or binary paragon/renegade choice, "Do or do not" like Yoda would say, and it applies here in a very bad manner. You don't feel like you have control over action any more, not mentioning choices you've done before (if importing) are barely touched, should you kill or spare certain people (notably ME2 squad mates), outcome is basically the same, npc gets replaced by some random other, lines stay the same, and it just keeps turning like it was. Hell, I even tried dialogue with 'Irritating Man' with opposite choices and it was just the same, only Shep's lines changed. For the joke's sake you had paragon/renegade limited choices, and they didn't do the trick either, which is just ridiculous (not enough money for creating proper dialogue scripts and doing VA? I don't think so) and pushes you away from game. So far I could name only 2 things that changed in plus - combat and weaponry. Fighting is much faster than it was in ME2, you get some new skills and ways to customize them, also choice of weapons is much larger, with additional customization in that field by adding 2 mods of choice for each. Now you have to decide if you want, let's say super strong Black Widow rifle or some small SMG, because each one differs in weight and your overall balance changes cooldowns on abilities, by either shortening them or lengthen by as much as 200% (if really encumbered). You have some fancy new mechanics like shooting through walls and such. All in all not too shabby, but not with these controls, especially often cumbersome space usage. Since I'm close to 5k limit, I'll just do a quick balance:
    +fast-paced fights with various tactics applicable +weapons customizable again! +overall design -gfx -story -dialogues -interaction -exploration -side quests
    -"flat" choices
    -close to 0 influence on story outcome
    -certain plot turns are just plain stupid
    -npcs have no character (especially new)
    -multiplayer
    -ME badge in spite of being that bad
    -horrid endings
    -general lack of polish
    -1st day DLC not free (greedy much?)
    -Origin
    Yup, it's really that big let down, no BW games for me anytime soon, unless they repent and leave leeches from EA.    … Expand
  74. Bojo
    Mar 8, 2012
    7
    Here lies an honest review...

    To summarize, the story is good, if not somewhat linear. However this may come out of necessity to finish the story. While plot holes are noticeable and some pieces don't make sense, most of this can be credited to bad pacing. While given time the story and pacing become more bearable, it is a disappoint given the polish we experienced from the first two.    Here lies an honest review...

    To summarize, the story is good, if not somewhat linear. However this may come out of necessity to finish the story. While plot holes are noticeable and some pieces don't make sense, most of this can be credited to bad pacing. While given time the story and pacing become more bearable, it is a disappoint given the polish we experienced from the first two. Further more, while it is disappointing many of the decisions in the first two games make little difference here, the progression of the story is set with emotion, and can be over looked when one realizes it wasn't much different from the first two. Gameplay is good, an improvement overall. Combat is good and improved, with more variety in weaponry and tactics, though a somewhat clunky cover system hold it back in some areas, the variety you can get out of a character is amazing.
    Presentation is amazing. A great soundtrack and good voice acting bring you into the experience. Set pieces are huge and bring about a feeling of desperate times and hopelessness. The wars feel like battlefields, and covert missions feel sneaky. The story can hold this back as it isn't as polished as it could be.
    This game was extremely looked forward to by fans, and it simply couldn't please everyone, however it is stupid to rate this game low because of some disappointment. Review correctly, or don't review at all. Oh, and I forgot to review the Multiplayer, that's because it was a stupid idea, and honestly, maybe if they'd put the time they put into multiplayer into the story there would have been less pacing and plot hole issues.    … Expand
  75. BobSponge
    Mar 8, 2012
    0
    Got a refund for the game, here is why:
    1. EA - day1 DLC
    2. EA - Multiplayer/internet access - fighting piracy on my expanse.
    3. BW - Poor story writing.

    Going to play friends copy. EA will not get my money.
  76. Molotova
    Mar 8, 2012
    2
    ----The bad:
    1/ The decisions from ME1 and ME2 have very little impact on ME3. Most are decisions are hacked away to funnel one down the story path. 2/ Romance is forced upon the player. In ME1 and 2, I always picked up "lets focus on the mission, no time for that kindof stuff with whole galaxy at stakes" option. Garrus who was the companion I had with me the most in ME2, except for when I    ----The bad:
    1/ The decisions from ME1 and ME2 have very little impact on ME3. Most are decisions are hacked away to funnel one down the story path. 2/ Romance is forced upon the player. In ME1 and 2, I always picked up "lets focus on the mission, no time for that kindof stuff with whole galaxy at stakes" option. Garrus who was the companion I had with me the most in ME2, except for when I gave him the lead of the fire squad and the like in the suicide mission. All of a sudden he jumps out of the closet and wants a homosexual relationship !? That is insulting even to homosexuals... makes no sense, breaks the immersion.
    3/ The ending is bad. Seemed to be stolen from Deus Ex, except in Deus Ex they made sense.
    4/ The Game of Thronesque knack for killing off characters/companions the reader/player has grown attached to advance the story and for some canned emotional factor. Except for a novel when it happens the story advances and it is nice. In a RPG the player just feels helpless, conned and like it is a means to shove another cut scene down the throat.
    ----- The good: The multiplayer part. It is a nice addition to the game, although unnecessary if the single player game had any appeal or replayability ---- The ugly: Day 1 DLC. I am less bothered about it than most, for me it just translates into a quite expensive full game. Still it is a blatantly ugly move by BW/EA, and their cover up PR BS is just as ugly.    … Expand
  77. Slit
    Mar 8, 2012
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. What a train wreck! I got the feeling all the writers got sacked once ME2 was done and the script was written by marketing department. Writing is THAT bad.
    1) Dialogues. Shep can only spew epic nonsense like "This is EAAAAARTH! There is way to much grandeur and epicness in every line, often completely inappropriate, and they took away all the neutral options.
    2) Retconning. You'd think that when they planned Mass Effect to be a trilogy from day 1 of ME1 development they wouldn't have to introduce major villains half way through the 3rd installment, use MacGuffin as a motivator or have a ton of plot holes.
    3) Ending(s). Um yea, some will be happy that those piss off Disney, lived-happily-ever-after, audience. I'm kinda with them myself. But at the same time they have no difference between them except for special effects color, they invalidate completely every choice the player has made over the course of the trilogy, provide zero closure and have more plot holes than a Michael Bay movie.

    Not to mention that MOST of the arsenal is distributed via DLCs now, Origin is forced down your throat and so is a rather poor Multiplayer. And how could I forget the infuriating 1 button control that always does something other than what you wanted?

    How could experienced and talented developers on a huge budget get every single thing wrong? I guess working on DA2 and SW:TOR at the same time as ME3 didn't help. BioWare bit off more than it could chew and the customers ended up paying.    … Expand
  78. kolas310
    Mar 8, 2012
    10
    /i like how some people seem to have finished the game in one day. Right now I played for 12 hours and it seems that it's not even the third of it. As a fan of the series I must say that it's awesome, it's like BioWare took everything that was best in 2 previous parts and put it in this one. Of course there are some drawbacks, small one is character animation, and the bigger one is that we/i like how some people seem to have finished the game in one day. Right now I played for 12 hours and it seems that it's not even the third of it. As a fan of the series I must say that it's awesome, it's like BioWare took everything that was best in 2 previous parts and put it in this one. Of course there are some drawbacks, small one is character animation, and the bigger one is that we have little choices while talking, and there is a lot of it, so it just begs to give a little bit more of possibilities to a player. Still - the game is great, atmosphere, fighting, tactics, character progression, just makes me wanna play more and more.… Expand
  79. 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
  80. lasertank
    Mar 7, 2012
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game is linear and repetative. Decisions made in ME1 & 2 all lead to the 3 similar suck endings. The ending concludes nothing but leaves more problems. All kinds of tragedy are intentionally forced upon players and provides insufficient reasons. The RPG essenses: dialog, history, puzzle, are all missing in ME3. The rushy epilogue disclose how badly bioware wants to kill this game. In ME1 & 2 the length of the ending cinematic last more than 5 minutes, but in ME3 only a less than 1 minute miserable epilogue awaits you.… Expand
  81. Anarion25
    Mar 7, 2012
    10
    Awesome game. A great end to the series. 10 for sure. Not sure why the trolley are hammering it..........we weird. Up there with the first two without a doubt.
  82. CMASC
    Mar 7, 2012
    0
    If you're a fan of the Mass Effect series, you'll be disappointed by this third installment and I'll just note the things cons straight away:

    -Having the multiplayer or co-op tied to the outcome of your single player campaign ending (DRM) therefore forcing you to play multiplayer just to get the best single player endings. -Absolute rubbish ending for the series, and there's no after    If you're a fan of the Mass Effect series, you'll be disappointed by this third installment and I'll just note the things cons straight away:

    -Having the multiplayer or co-op tied to the outcome of your single player campaign ending (DRM) therefore forcing you to play multiplayer just to get the best single player endings.
    -Absolute rubbish ending for the series, and there's no after story narrative either.
    -Having to pay extra money just to get a DLC that should have been free in the game at the first place since it has essential information and part of the plot for the game.

    Those are just few of the many other things that makes this a total disappointment for me and about everyone else, I just feel cheated and betrayed by Bioware and EA, want my money back.    … Expand
  83. tsargon420
    Mar 7, 2012
    2
    It has good elements, and the gameplay itself is generally fun, but the awful characters, writing, plot, the fact that its about 15 hours long and features 4 companions while claiming to be a rpg along with the whole dlc catastrophe drags this guy down to a 2.
  84. Sharky70
    Mar 7, 2012
    0
    Loved Mass Effect 1 and 2, this is a linear piece of **** I find myself watching TV in the background simply to keep myself somewhat entertained. Characters lack emotion, and don't have the same feeling in the previous games. Bioware pretends that the criticism is purely hate, when by looking at the negative reviews, this is clearly not true. Dialogue options are simplified and boring,Loved Mass Effect 1 and 2, this is a linear piece of **** I find myself watching TV in the background simply to keep myself somewhat entertained. Characters lack emotion, and don't have the same feeling in the previous games. Bioware pretends that the criticism is purely hate, when by looking at the negative reviews, this is clearly not true. Dialogue options are simplified and boring, combat is about the same, hardly any improvements, and explore-able environments have completely disappeared. This game is a giant joke. Personally, I'm pretending that Mass Effect 1 and 2 are true to the series, and 3 never happened. This is what the Crystal Skull movie did to the Indiana Jones series, it raped it.… Expand
  85. Catbus
    Mar 7, 2012
    0
    I loved the first Mass Effect. Bioware has absolutely ruined Mass Effect for me with this latest installment. Horrible endings, writing, etc. What Bioware has done to this series that had so much potential from the first installment is criminal. Avoid this game, avoid this developer.
  86. Abisco79
    Mar 7, 2012
    10
    So first off I would like to state my score is more of a 9.8/10, but since I can't do that, I guess I'll stick with a 10.

    So, let me also get out of the way that I am an avid mass effect fan... I've played mass effect 1 and 2 countless times, and love the games to death. They definitely had their flaws, but each had a gripping story and powerful characters. The biggest flaws for me was    So first off I would like to state my score is more of a 9.8/10, but since I can't do that, I guess I'll stick with a 10.

    So, let me also get out of the way that I am an avid mass effect fan... I've played mass effect 1 and 2 countless times, and love the games to death. They definitely had their flaws, but each had a gripping story and powerful characters. The biggest flaws for me was that ME1 had poor shooting mechanics, and ME2 had poor RPG mechanics.

    Mass effect 3 fixed both these issues.
    Now, please disregard all the 1 reviews, and many of the 10 reviews. These people are either trolling or have no idea what they are talking about. The game is NOT a 1/10 (which is the equivalent to a game you cannot play due to bugs such as the DS games that comes out for children based around barbie dolls). If anything, the shooting and RPG mechanics are at their finest, demonstrating a true synergy between the two. It's great fun, but you can definitely choose to focus on not shooting as much, or using abilities as much. The options are readily available to you.

    For me, the game really does ALMOST everything right. All the characters from the past are back, if you import your character choices do matter. Things get very exciting and there are loads of deaths. The soundtrack is awesome, same with the voice acting.

    Now for my two problems with the games (you can assume that everything else other then these points were so irrelevant to me that they fit in to the game well):
    - Auto dialogue: Now I have to say, at the beginning I was really annoyed, and am still kind of SLIGHTLY bummed about it, but when you get 3-5 hours into the game, the choices open up. You don't have as many choices as ME2, but that's because they cut the fat out. No longer do you have 2 choices that are basically the same thing. The illusion of choice has been removed. Maybe that annoys people, but its something you can get over quickly.

    -The endings: Now I won't ruin anything, but I just expected a bit more. I was ready to give the game 10/10 (rather then a 9.8/10), but the ending really detached me from the game... It made me stare at the screen for a bit and think... well... is that it? It slightly ruins the entire experience for me, though the journey was with it, my mind is still getting over whether the destination was worth it.

    Facts for reference:
    22 Hours
    Adept, Hardcore, Imported from ME1. Overall, I loved the game. If you can get past the fact that you don't have a choice about EVERYTHING shepard says, and are ready for endings that may leave something to be desired, then go ahead and buy the game. Its totally worth it and I loved every minute of it. Score: 9.8/10 (Rounded to a 10 for metacritic)    … Expand
  87. sevsquad
    Mar 7, 2012
    9
    I'm about 12 hours in now and I have to say the game is quite fantastic, it seems they are following the current trend of games actually using cinematography in their cut-scenes, so the cut scenes actually have meaning this time around. The graphics are undeniably improved while still maintaining the basic look of the characters (so Assari actually look like they have skin instead of aI'm about 12 hours in now and I have to say the game is quite fantastic, it seems they are following the current trend of games actually using cinematography in their cut-scenes, so the cut scenes actually have meaning this time around. The graphics are undeniably improved while still maintaining the basic look of the characters (so Assari actually look like they have skin instead of a failed to load texture solid blue tone) The story starts off bad, (I mean like written by a high school creative writing class bad) but gets better the longer you play, the gun customization system is much deeper and no more planet scanning for minerals!

    I would say the biggest problem I have with it right now is that many time side quests don't tell you which system to go to so you have to guess. But that is relatively minor.    … Expand
  88. Quiett
    Mar 7, 2012
    10
    If nothing else, they added options for mouse sensitivity and hiding your helmets. I really give it an 8, just putting 10 to counter all the zeros.
  89. gossen
    Mar 7, 2012
    1
    The horrendous graphics with 2d sprites everywhere, the unfinished product where a crucial thing to be able to connect to your imported character is not working (importing ME2 faces) . The story is written in such a budget-cut way it leaves very little room for replay as I myself have retstarted every mission where one had to make a (what one thought was a game-breakingThe horrendous graphics with 2d sprites everywhere, the unfinished product where a crucial thing to be able to connect to your imported character is not working (importing ME2 faces) . The story is written in such a budget-cut way it leaves very little room for replay as I myself have retstarted every mission where one had to make a (what one thought was a game-breaking answer/stance/change) just to replay said mission, take a different choice AND everytime see how the choices I made really didnt matter (these are no spoilers: Hi mordin, Hi Salarian embassy council) . I am extremely, extremely dissappointed with this unfinished product. And my wife being a devout christian the gay relenships and statements in the game are extremely disturbing. I´m taking it back to amazon and demand a refund, Ill push it as far as I can because Im furious over this unifinished crap"game" made in a 14 year old graphics-engine (unreal) which with its 2d-sprites still crasher in important locations so one has to try go another way.... I cancelled my sons SWTOR account and stated the same reasons so you get the message, Im through with you as a developer (still on my 4th playthrough on skyrim with 80% sidequests), never get tired but this crap Ive stopped playing as off this moment.… Expand
  90. Zellith
    Mar 7, 2012
    1
    Lots of bugs in conversation - graphical in nature. Peoples poses instead of seamless transiton into another would just pop into new poses occasionally. The voices a lot of the time didnt match the lip syncs whatsoever so peoples faces sometimes would look like ventriloquists. I even found and experienced a few bugs along the way. My main problem is the games ending. It just failed toLots of bugs in conversation - graphical in nature. Peoples poses instead of seamless transiton into another would just pop into new poses occasionally. The voices a lot of the time didnt match the lip syncs whatsoever so peoples faces sometimes would look like ventriloquists. I even found and experienced a few bugs along the way. My main problem is the games ending. It just failed to deliver on every level. It left me angry and confused. This game had so much promise and it was squandered. I do not recommend this game be purchased at this time. Wait for the price to come down.… Expand
  91. Juicepants
    Mar 7, 2012
    9
    This game might be the best game I've ever played. I have no idea why so many people feel the need to give it a 1 the day it came out. The one button for cover/sprint/action can be obnoxious, but the dialogue is amazing and it's the culmination of one of the best video game stories. Ignore all the haters If you liked ME1 and ME2 this game will be the icing on the cake.
  92. Docjam
    Mar 7, 2012
    6
    I'm lukewarm for this game. While the gameplay is good and the story is passable as a stand alone game, it is wholly disappointing as the highly anticipated conclusion to the Mass Effect trilogy. The first game was very ambitious and had a lot of promise. It toted that decisions made in the game would affect the fate of the galaxy, and with the second game, it was much hyped that theseI'm lukewarm for this game. While the gameplay is good and the story is passable as a stand alone game, it is wholly disappointing as the highly anticipated conclusion to the Mass Effect trilogy. The first game was very ambitious and had a lot of promise. It toted that decisions made in the game would affect the fate of the galaxy, and with the second game, it was much hyped that these decisions would carry through multiple games and have meaningful consequences. One of the largest failings in this game is that once again, Bioware failed to deliver on those consequences of decisions. If someone had been killed off, someone who fills the same role just with a different name takes their place and does the exact same thing. Not to mention I am quite disappointed that despite my efforts to save my Mass Effect 2 squadmates that I found interesting and had grown attached to, none of them save the ones that were also in the first Mass Effect can become part of my squad. Several survive their missions and become "war assets" and yet, they cannot fight with me? Why? It feels so cheap and lazy of Bioware to have just pushed them aside in favor of some morose looking guido. The squadmate I romanced was reduced to cameos, Legion, who I had barely gotten to utilize in Mass Effect 2 due to the timing of his recruitment, yet had grown to like and was very excited to use again, "sacrifices" himself, just like Mordin, just like Thane, it gets old just killing off characters instead of rewarding people for having saved them in ME2 as optional squad members.

    On another note, I have no problem with homosexuality, that's your own choice.. but I think Bioware has gone TOO far with pushing it in your face in this installment. It doesn't feel natural to the characters. In Mass Effect, homosexuality was limited to just the Asari and it wasn't true homosexuality in that case anyway. Same in Mass Effect 2 though Aria makes a comment suggesting Shepard find a nice girl, or a nice boy, and Kelly is bi. Suddenly in Mass Effect 3 EVERYONE is now gay. I have a gay squadmate, I have a gay yeoman, I have a gay shuttle pilot, NPC's all over are talking about their same sex spouses, there's a gay female soldier in purgatory.. it's like there's some galaxy wide reaper indoctrination effect that makes everyone homosexual so all organics stop breeding and the reapers win no matter the outcome of the war (only the Krogans seem to be amped about breeding). In Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2, I commonly had female NPC's flirt with me, in Mass Effect 3, I have yet to have a woman flirt with my maleshep aside from my romance interest from Mass Effect 2 and the news reporter on my ship. I THOUGHT Trayner was an option, but she says she's a lesbian instead. Meanwhile I have men hitting on me left and right.

    Bioware tries way too hard for this demographic and it feels forced and detracts from the gameplay. Having Kaiden be potentially gay and a few other NPC's would have been enough. Bioware obviously hasn't learned their lesson on this from Dragon Age II. Same gender romance options should be available as OPTIONS, but never thrown in your face everywhere you look,. An entire character's background story should never revolve around their sexual orientation either (as it was with Cortez)    … Expand
  93. SublimeShadow
    Mar 7, 2012
    5
    The Good: Interesting (though unoriginal) story tied and linked to your previous Mass Effect excursions. Better gunplay and customization of combat features. Had a few well done story telling elements and ended in a cleverly ambiguous cliffhanger.
    The Bad: Graphics, not enough dialogue, no way to easily change or reverse decisions, on that note not enough decisions, too easy (headshot,    The Good: Interesting (though unoriginal) story tied and linked to your previous Mass Effect excursions. Better gunplay and customization of combat features. Had a few well done story telling elements and ended in a cleverly ambiguous cliffhanger.
    The Bad: Graphics, not enough dialogue, no way to easily change or reverse decisions, on that note not enough decisions, too easy (headshot, headshot, headshot, spacebar), nowhere near enough side-stories or enough gravitas to the few side-stories included (incoming dlc), generally didn't feel like there was much to do.
    The Ugly: Plot crucial day 1 dlc (played without it, regretted it a few times), deus ex machina everywhere, no way to choose what choices you made in the past if you don't have your savefiles handy, mandatory multiplayer for "readiness".    … Expand
  94. Radegar
    Mar 7, 2012
    1
    Wau, I see EA was finally successful at destroying Bioware. This game lacked so much, I dont even understand, it was so hollow and empty. What was done to characters is quite similar to dragon age 2. And again, ending just like in dragon age 2 is practically unchangeable. If ill be rating any other game from bioware in the future it wil be rated a lot better by me for reason that i wont beWau, I see EA was finally successful at destroying Bioware. This game lacked so much, I dont even understand, it was so hollow and empty. What was done to characters is quite similar to dragon age 2. And again, ending just like in dragon age 2 is practically unchangeable. If ill be rating any other game from bioware in the future it wil be rated a lot better by me for reason that i wont be using bioware quality standard because it isnt there anymore.… Expand
  95. e_x_p
    Mar 7, 2012
    0
    Do not buy this game. I repeat: do not buy. Never have I been so appointed with a supposedly *blockbuster* game. The let down comes not only from the video game itself, but the company philosophies behind the production and marketing. Mass Effect 1 was a fine game to begin with; Mass Effect 2 dumbed down the gameplay but intrigued with a mass universe of options and story lines. MassDo not buy this game. I repeat: do not buy. Never have I been so appointed with a supposedly *blockbuster* game. The let down comes not only from the video game itself, but the company philosophies behind the production and marketing. Mass Effect 1 was a fine game to begin with; Mass Effect 2 dumbed down the gameplay but intrigued with a mass universe of options and story lines. Mass Effect 3 has neither. EA & Bioware decided to throw away the fine-grained RPG elements and hooking storylines all together. Instead, ME3 became a gimmicky and overhyped product behind EA's big corporate strategies. First they refused to release the game on Steam (Valve's premium gaming platform with high praires from millions of players) because Valve had *incompatible* policies for publishing games. What does EA want? Right, spy on its users with Origin. Secondly, the honest user reviews here are both the truth and a protest to EA's review-lobbying strategies (9.2 vs 2.9 which do you really believe). What happened when they realized the truth? Like a dictating government, they pushed Metacritic admins to remove unfavorable reviews. Even if it's true that EA, Rockstar, Blizzard and other big game companies all buy high reviews for their marketing, at least MAKE A GAME that deserves to be praised. Not this piece of junk. Steam removals such as Dragon Age, Crysis, and Mass Effect .... I am not going to buy another EA game again.… Expand
  96. HALover9000
    Mar 7, 2012
    3
    I really had a lot of fun on Mass Effect. I loved Mass Effect 1, maybe even more on the sequel, but I was generally disappointed on this game. I expected the fun of the first 2 and the great writing, but the story was meh and the gameplay was not as good as the other two. This lived way below the hype of the other 2. Also, DLC on the first day? Really, Bioware? Either the DLC is part ofI really had a lot of fun on Mass Effect. I loved Mass Effect 1, maybe even more on the sequel, but I was generally disappointed on this game. I expected the fun of the first 2 and the great writing, but the story was meh and the gameplay was not as good as the other two. This lived way below the hype of the other 2. Also, DLC on the first day? Really, Bioware? Either the DLC is part of the game, or the DLC is released weeks after.… Expand
  97. moarx
    Mar 7, 2012
    3
    For being a AAA title, Mass Effect 3 seems to be very cheaply made. Somehow the graphics seem to have gotten worse since Mass Effect 2, and it's very noticeable throughout the entire game. Textures are fairly low res (even on the PC version), animations are clunkier than ever, and most levels are very linear/claustrophobic but still lack detail (incredibly small maps with poorly madeFor being a AAA title, Mass Effect 3 seems to be very cheaply made. Somehow the graphics seem to have gotten worse since Mass Effect 2, and it's very noticeable throughout the entire game. Textures are fairly low res (even on the PC version), animations are clunkier than ever, and most levels are very linear/claustrophobic but still lack detail (incredibly small maps with poorly made skyboxes).

    The dialogue is far worse than in the first 2 Mass Effect games, seemingly taking a lesson from Dragon Age 2's writers. The central plot is better, though the disappointing ending(s) and seemingly random character deaths manage to ruin it. Bioware has introduced more of the character customization found in Mass Effect 1, but at the same time the combat is worse than ME2's. The controls are extremely clunky, you'll often find yourself dying due to getting stuck in/randomly leaving cover due to having the space bar bound to several different actions. The AI is fairly basic, generally leaving themselves out in the open though Bioware have given them more shields/health to add artificial difficulty.    … Expand
  98. diula3
    Mar 7, 2012
    3
    this is very disappointing lack of variety of combat elements. just shoot and run shoot and run and thats it binding every action into one key responsible for run,pick, cover, heal is absolutely retarded this will get you killed very often when you try to run but it ducks into some ridiculous cover rpg elements are ridiculously insufficient. poor graphics on pc lack quality anti aliasing ,this is very disappointing lack of variety of combat elements. just shoot and run shoot and run and thats it binding every action into one key responsible for run,pick, cover, heal is absolutely retarded this will get you killed very often when you try to run but it ducks into some ridiculous cover rpg elements are ridiculously insufficient. poor graphics on pc lack quality anti aliasing , just some ridiculously blurry silly fxaa instead of msaa and high texture also lacking no match for skyrim and previous mass effect titles what a shame bioware such a huge let down… Expand
  99. Bannu
    Mar 7, 2012
    0
    This score is based on the view of the build up to Mass Effect 3. If Mass Effect 3 was a stand alone title, with no prequel or setting up of a sequel, then I'd give it maybe a 5. But this game is utter trash as far as gaming standards are concerned. First off, the gameplay experience is weak. Is it fun? It's time consuming and better than doing homework, sure, but is it actually fun? NotThis score is based on the view of the build up to Mass Effect 3. If Mass Effect 3 was a stand alone title, with no prequel or setting up of a sequel, then I'd give it maybe a 5. But this game is utter trash as far as gaming standards are concerned. First off, the gameplay experience is weak. Is it fun? It's time consuming and better than doing homework, sure, but is it actually fun? Not for me, I am sure plenty of drones will enjoy this game for what it is, but looking beyond it, it's just a 3rd person shooter, with a leveling system, and a plot-holed filled story-line. And here comes the problem and why anytime I reach the point where I can say: This game isn't that bad, I realize that this game has a story and it's insulting my intelligence. Mass Effect 1 set up this neat little plot/mythology about Reapers and their times in history where they'd come out and wipe everything out. Through the entire game you kind of feared the Reapers, if not, out right terrified of the idea of them. There are tales of how merciless and prompt they were, wiping out civilizations in a matter of moments. They seemed omniscent. Pretty good stuff. Mass Effect 2, it did nothing for the plot really, but at least it had some fun forever-alone stuff you could do in it. Like continue developing relationships with characters, explore, etc. And the Reapers seemed to be scarcely mentioned. Now in ME3, the Reapers are finally here, in the hour of twilight. And what do they do? They suck at their job. They come off as inefficient. They seem like machines given AI to wipe out stuff, but in a rather slow and terrible fashion. I won't spoil anything, but yea, the Reapers, for having this reputation of being amazing, are terrible at everything, even dying. Sure, if you play it as a game, most everyone will like this. If you play it with the mind set that you want to play a video game worth your/my money, and you have an ounce of intelligence, you will find this game disappointing on all levels. Bioware has proven to not care about you, being innovative, or ethics.… Expand
  100. Rubenh
    Mar 7, 2012
    1
    Painful. I loved the Mass Effect saga, but this installment utterly ruins it. It's an insult to gamers worldwide. Bioware approaches the story telling as if they are attempting to make a brain damaged turtle comprehend. Consequently, it is HIGHLY flawed, simplistic and lacking. An awful result. Addtionally, they have taken a break from anything that made the previous installmentsPainful. I loved the Mass Effect saga, but this installment utterly ruins it. It's an insult to gamers worldwide. Bioware approaches the story telling as if they are attempting to make a brain damaged turtle comprehend. Consequently, it is HIGHLY flawed, simplistic and lacking. An awful result. Addtionally, they have taken a break from anything that made the previous installments interesting and unique(choice-based storytelling; intriguing plot turns; emotional commitment) and replaced it with blatantly ostentatious cinematics that would only impress the aforementioned ''turtle-minded''. It's not just a shame, it's an insult. Bioware has gravely insulted and disappointed me by ruining what used to be such a great story. Don't go look for it and don't buy it. The only thing this game has to offer is a lesson in how blatant greed can ruin absolutely anything.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

8
#8 Best PC Game of 2012
2
#2 Most Discussed PC Game of 2012
5
#5 Most Shared PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
89

Generally favorable reviews - based on 23 Critic Reviews

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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