Mass Effect 3

 PlayStation 3
User Score
5.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 2029 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,067 out of 2029
  2. Mixed: 218 out of 2029
  3. Negative: 744 out of 2029
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  1. jstevo
    Apr 3, 2012
    10
    Simply brilliant. Great action, sense of suspense. Has everything, strongly recommended. Have played all the Mass Effect games and was initially nervous about the Multiplayer, but its excellent. PSN: jstevo.
  2. Hybridiction
    May 18, 2012
    9
    This is the score the game actually deserves. Now before you down-vote me, you will find if you average around the fifty + critic scores the game received it would be around the 89-93 area. Take off the moronic user score feature metacritic, it is used as a tool by a bunch of forum trolls and butthurt fanboys who really have no clue how to review a game. Of course this review will beThis is the score the game actually deserves. Now before you down-vote me, you will find if you average around the fifty + critic scores the game received it would be around the 89-93 area. Take off the moronic user score feature metacritic, it is used as a tool by a bunch of forum trolls and butthurt fanboys who really have no clue how to review a game. Of course this review will be down-voted by them, and I'll probably be called a "suck up" to the gaming media, but let's look at the facts first. High expectations almost always lead to disappointment, and those who have insanely high expectations will always be disappointed. This is why when you look at a game objectively, or rather as it is, instead of what you wanted it to be, you would find that it truly is a good game. Whether you disagreed with the ending or had problems because you "Felt" that the choices you made in the previous installments weren't reflected enough, it really doesn't matter. It's no reason to give this game a score below 7, and the fact that this game is rated a 3.9 is really quite pathetic. To even think that this game is only worth a "3.9" you would have to be some grumpy old man living in some old folks home or some kid who stays in his room all day, has no friends and doesn't know how to enjoy quality entertainment. The decisions you made in the previous games do reflect in this one, and yes they matter. Characters that die in ME2 wont be around, characters you saved in ME1 do make an appearance and yes your choices DID have reflect in ME3. Name a game that carries the choices you made from game to game on the same level mass effect has? You cant, there is only stand alone games with choices like the witcher 2, but what game from sequel to sequel to sequel does what the ME series has?. The fact people cry because they feel that their choices never meant anything is LAUGHABLE seeing as how they have nothing to compare it to. Give mass effect some credit, it has done a pretty damned good job. The ending to the series is fine, and honestly it really doesn't matter what bioware did people would have cried and crapped their pants. Everybody has a different idea of how it should have "ended" Bioware cant possibly meet everybody's expectations. The gameplay was much improved from the previous two, they added in some more RPG elements, still not as robust as ME1 but pretty close with the talent choices, weapon mods and tons of armor and loot to find. Mass effect 3 is a good game that sold well and that the majority of people enjoyed playing, don't listen to the vocal minority of idiots on here who probably pirated the game or never even played it at all and are just jumping on the hate bandwagon to hate the game like it's some "fad" to do so or makes them "cool and different" Stfu, sit down and enjoy the game. End of story. and....advice to metacritic......implement a system where people need to enter the serial code of the game they bought in order to actually review it. See how many of these idiots are still around after that......you wont find many… Expand
  3. Jacktheripper99
    Jul 9, 2012
    9
    Many people criticize the ending, which really wasn't the main issue for me. The game-play, which from ME1 - ME3 has always been the problem for me, and the main reason why I stay, was because of the story. The enemy AI has always been meh, and ME3 is no different. They claim they improve it, but all I see is UC 2.0 meaning, more enemies on the field spawning, and pinning you down andMany people criticize the ending, which really wasn't the main issue for me. The game-play, which from ME1 - ME3 has always been the problem for me, and the main reason why I stay, was because of the story. The enemy AI has always been meh, and ME3 is no different. They claim they improve it, but all I see is UC 2.0 meaning, more enemies on the field spawning, and pinning you down and throwing perfectly arc grenade at you. Doesn't sound exciting or generally fair doesn't it? The squad AI is still stupid, but there no point in talking about something Bioware clearly think is okay. Plant scanning is still present, which I don't like, but they made it more bearable than ME2, which was ridiculously long, and time consuming, which is the point. ME3 isn't a long game outside investigating questions, new plant scanning system, obnoxious time consuming things in the game, like the scanning from the war room, stuff like that. The story is still great, and with the new extended cut, which wasn't really needed, sense they kept the same endings, and I just overall feel happy I stay with the series till the end, even though I don't like the game-play. The endings is what it is, and like movies, I just accepted it for what it is. It's good, its good, it's bad, it's bad. Overall ME3 is a okay game, but the praise that the series has been getting with all these present issues, mainly the game-play, makes me wonder where these people who rate this game so high, are coming from? There plenty of games that have these issues, and are rated down terribly, but it seems popularity is the main critic here, than a actual critical review, but that just the way I see it.… Expand
  4. stalkern
    Nov 8, 2012
    10
    One of the best games ever released. The combat, the interaction, the decision making that changed the game, the story, and even the ability to develop modern relationships made this my personal all-time favorite video game. For the group of people who are giving this game a low rating based only on the last 5 minutes of the game: Seriously? Numerous hours of incredible game play, andOne of the best games ever released. The combat, the interaction, the decision making that changed the game, the story, and even the ability to develop modern relationships made this my personal all-time favorite video game. For the group of people who are giving this game a low rating based only on the last 5 minutes of the game: Seriously? Numerous hours of incredible game play, and you're whining about the last 5 minutes? It's not a movie, people. I can respect everyone's opinion, but these posts are the equivalent of saying, "I'm divorcing my wife after 10 incredibly wonderful years because she pissed me off yesterday."… Expand
  5. Electromatic
    Mar 9, 2012
    3
    There's no denying the fact that BioWare has created a truly vivid and unique world with the mass effect Universe, a galaxy composed of memorable and lovable characters that have drawn in fans all over of the world. Generally speaking, the majority of Mass Effect 3 was well paced, with emotional twists that seem to make the player truly care about the fates of all the characters aroundThere's no denying the fact that BioWare has created a truly vivid and unique world with the mass effect Universe, a galaxy composed of memorable and lovable characters that have drawn in fans all over of the world. Generally speaking, the majority of Mass Effect 3 was well paced, with emotional twists that seem to make the player truly care about the fates of all the characters around him/her. Yet the Ending seems to undermine all of that. It seems as though BioWare forgot the fact that the last two games took a more romanticized approach, that if the player sacrifices enough, whether it be by decisions alone, or by cranking out as many hours as possible on side quests, there's a chance for success, even if it has to be bittersweet. This concept failed to present itself at the end of ME3, which changed the whole concept of hope and brotherhood, which was a constant factor throughout the whole series. I don't believe that the ending deserved a "they all lived happily ever-after", but if enough reinforcements are gathered, a bittersweet ending with severe losses, and an epilogue would of added the needed closure to this trilogy.… Expand
  6. KingMJE
    Mar 14, 2012
    0
    The game was OK, There was some interesting story decisions to make and the action was pretty nice. multiplayer is pretty fun, all the classes are very different from eachother but adept can solo everything. all of the endings are terrible, i am no longer supporting, EA, Bioware, or origin.
  7. skinny_mean_man
    Mar 19, 2012
    0
    Mass effect is my favorite next gen console series. but mass effect 3 is a middle finger to the fans who have loved the series since day one. unless something is seriously done to fix this game i will never buy from bioware again. they were my favorite company and now they are my most hated
  8. coop667
    Mar 22, 2012
    0
    Ending is a joke. This is a great game that suffers from the most god awful endings I have ever seen. Plus Bioware does not do their Multiplayer events with PS3 users and mentions it in the fine print. Save yourself the trouble and the $60 and wait for it to drop in price in a couple months.
  9. Nippur
    Mar 25, 2012
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. After so many reviews from users there's not much to add to the failure that this game is. I could (grudgingly) forget about many things like: day one (prothean!) DLC - many bugs - lab door scanner - Normandy's elevator - Alenko - romance implementation - X button pressing - absence of tactical combat - counterintuitive boss fights - flat and uninteresting side missions - fed ex missions - endlessly repeating conversations in the Citadel - war assets recollection system - etc. What I cannot forget and forgive is: BORING story for an RPG with the precedents of ME1 (good story) and ME2 (great character interaction) - absolutely nonsensical ending to your 3 games long quest. The ending is not sad. It just doesn't make any sense. Doesn't reward you for all the work you've done through ME 1, 2 and 3. Your "key" decisions and hard worked diplomacy are worthless. The war assets you have mean nothing more than a slight difference in a cutscene. The endgame could be sad, but it should reflect most of the story so far. The ending looks like coming from a bad 80s amateur game. Child-computer is the worst implemented idea I've seen in a game since the Lost finale. There's no repairing to be done here. Even if it's a free DLC, I've lost all motivation to follow this story. Some guys said that is EA's fault. There's some truth about corporations being always against artistic quality. But the fault here is primarily of the creators. They've tried to make a Call of Duty in Space, without the actual quality of the original corridor shooter. Just so you know. If you HAVE to play this game because you've played 1 and/or 2, either rent it or borrow it. I lost 70 USD. Let's hope you can save them.… Expand
  10. FHansson
    Mar 9, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Warning! This review contains heavy SPOILERS!

    Ah, Mass Effect! The first Mass Effect, a science fiction, space opera, with a wonderful story that made you want to play until the day you die. And along comes Mass Effect 2. The game play has been refined and polished but the story dropped a bit of its impact in this one. It's a great game none the less.
    And in steps Mass Effect 3. I'd really hate to say this, but what happened?! This game is rushed and milked beyond belief.

    Let's start out with point one. The DLC. From Ashes stars a critically lore heavy and story driven character that will fight for you, and they sell you this for ten dollars. This is not acceptable! Those who play Mass Effect play it for the story mostly and now Bioware and EA wants you to pay extra to get more out of the story from Mass Effect 3?! Stupid!

    Point two. The combat. The combat is clumsy and more dumbed down. You stick easily to walls and you end up rolling to the side when you would like to sprint. This could've been fixed with the ability to rebind the cover, dodge, sprint and interact keys to different buttons or keys or whatever. This ruins the flow of the game and it just sucks to talk so bad about this game. Point three. The side missions and the ending. The side missions... Are basically not useful at all, because no matter what you do, you end up with the EXACT ending in all possible ways. Only two endings. One renegade and one paragon. This is just disappointing. Point four The story. The story, I hate to say is a disappointment, but it's dumbed down. The vastness of the story is large and but it's still lagging far behind the first and second Mass Effect. However... Unfortunately the story has alot of plotholes and the explanation to the reapers ways make no sense, and some of the things in the story just leave you asking... "Why?!". Lastly. Overall. I don't like ratings, but if I have to slap one on, I'd give it a three. This is being generous! The major downfall of this is its story and its ending. The story is rushed and underdeveloped, and those who expect a good one will should not expect it. The game play is rather lousy and if I could sum up the game in one word, it would be "rushed". However, the only reason I give the game anything higher than a 1 is because I admit it. After playing my character E.G. Shepard through ME1 and 2 and then seeing the wrapup. I had tears whelling in my eyes by the beginning of the ending cinematic. I choose the Paragon way, because, really... Unless you're just experimenting, nobody would pick the Renegade ending when they actually follow their heart on what to do. Because that one is just cruel!    … Expand
  11. Audustum
    Mar 15, 2012
    0
    Fantastic game in almost all senses of the word. Great story, great characters, great gameplay, but then it all gets ruined by an awful ending. I mean bad. If you do buy it, stop it right after Shepard talks to his crew before the final push and don't go further.
  12. RT_ViraL
    Apr 1, 2012
    9
    The story of Mass Effect was a story I can relive countless times over, a game where choices are made from the heart. This game embodies what it is to be a human. A choice of how decisions can alter the present, and alter the future. This game is what that stands for. Epic, surreal and incredibly engaging, the entirety of this game should not be missed, regardless of the ending. It is aThe story of Mass Effect was a story I can relive countless times over, a game where choices are made from the heart. This game embodies what it is to be a human. A choice of how decisions can alter the present, and alter the future. This game is what that stands for. Epic, surreal and incredibly engaging, the entirety of this game should not be missed, regardless of the ending. It is a perfect game in storytelling and gripping fashion. The ending didn't ruin the series for me, but dampened it. But not as badly as most people are saying. You are missing out on a game that defines this generation's lust for story. Buy this game, and it will learn to love you back.

    A 9/10.    … Expand
  13. vixvicco
    May 12, 2012
    9
    The game was great, I think the ratings on here are really inaccurate. I would not put down a whole game based on the last ten minutes of the game. Everyone who is boycotting the game is ruining it for everyone else who may have gotten a chance to play this fantastic game. It is a vast improvement on its predecessors, the graphics are amazing, especially on the PS3 and Xbox and everythingThe game was great, I think the ratings on here are really inaccurate. I would not put down a whole game based on the last ten minutes of the game. Everyone who is boycotting the game is ruining it for everyone else who may have gotten a chance to play this fantastic game. It is a vast improvement on its predecessors, the graphics are amazing, especially on the PS3 and Xbox and everything about it feels polished. If you are a true fan of the series, or even someone new to the series, I would not give this one a miss.… Expand
  14. gamer99
    Mar 13, 2012
    8
    Mass Effect was a good game in my opening and DLC at 1st day is not the best way to make consumers happy. The story was great and the multiplier is optional which is great for who just want to play the story aspect and want to ignore the multiplier. The ending was not as bad as i thought reading all the review on who terribly it is but if you are looking for a game that makes all ofMass Effect was a good game in my opening and DLC at 1st day is not the best way to make consumers happy. The story was great and the multiplier is optional which is great for who just want to play the story aspect and want to ignore the multiplier. The ending was not as bad as i thought reading all the review on who terribly it is but if you are looking for a game that makes all of your decisions of the past years matter mass effect 3 is a good game. There are little texture drops and a few bugs but if you looking for a solid multiplier and a great finale to a story that you have been waiting for then this a good game. It lost some points due to the fact of fetch quests that are there in the game that takes the weight of the story away and the DLC was actually important to the story line, and should have been provided in the game it self.… Expand
  15. DefeatTheSerum
    Apr 23, 2012
    9
    First let me start off by saying that despite the controversy, Mass Effect 3 is an amazing game. It is true that In some fields it does come up short when compared to it's predecessors (ie. Side-quests) but it also not only matches but excels past the first two games in other fields such as voice acting, plot coherency, character development, and the ability to draw out real emotion fromFirst let me start off by saying that despite the controversy, Mass Effect 3 is an amazing game. It is true that In some fields it does come up short when compared to it's predecessors (ie. Side-quests) but it also not only matches but excels past the first two games in other fields such as voice acting, plot coherency, character development, and the ability to draw out real emotion from it's audience. In terms of gameplay I don't think many would argue that it has far surpassed the second game in terms of tight, fluid shooting mechanics and has surged light-years past the original. While RPG elements in terms of ability and class customization in both the second and third installments are lacking when compared to the first game, ME3 seems to find a good balance of taking the streamlined elements of the second game and enhancing them to more closely resemble that of the first game (ie. Branching ability paths, weapon customization, and armor customization). One of the larger gripes among critics of the game is that autodialogue is more present in the third game. And this is true. While some saw this as a step back in terms of interactive storytelling I personally saw it as a way to allow the story to flow a bit more smoothly in conversation (my personal opinion of course), that's not to say that you won't still be able to make your own choices throughout the game. You will, but you will also see your Shepard speak more on his/her own. It is enjoyable to see (again, despite popular belief) many of your choices from the previous two games affect the story as you progress THROUGH the game, which brings me to the part of the game that many feel is a deal-breaker. While the game as a larger whole is affected by what you did in the previous two games it is hard to argue that choices you made throughout the series affect the ending in any real way (other than the amount of war assets you accumulate), although BioWare has announced they plan to rectify this in their upcoming "Extended Cut" DLC (free of charge). While I may not be one of the people who seem to have made it their mission to hate the ending in any outlet they can find, I do have to admit the ending is weak. Gamebreakingly weak? Absolutely not. But it is weak. All of that's not touching on multiplayer which is a fun, ableit repetitive distraction. So all in all Mass Effect 3 and the Mass Effect series in general is without a doubt a gaming triumph worthy of having a look at by anyone who enjoys the gaming medium, or anyone who is looking for an overall rich and immersive gaming experience.… Expand
  16. bloodredsaint
    May 24, 2012
    10
    This game was amazing. The gameplay mechanics were better than its predecessors, the graphics look amazing, and it is extremely fun. Most negative reviews come from self-entitled gamers who get angry at the ending or the DLC and give it a 0.
  17. recentio
    Jun 27, 2012
    8
    With the release of the Extended Cut, I feel a revised review is now in order. The gameplay is improved from ME2. Still not top tier combat gameplay, but fun for someone not hardcore about their shooters (which includes me). The writing is spotty, rising and falling in quality between missions. Some missions are truly some of the best game writing I've played through. Others are meh. TheWith the release of the Extended Cut, I feel a revised review is now in order. The gameplay is improved from ME2. Still not top tier combat gameplay, but fun for someone not hardcore about their shooters (which includes me). The writing is spotty, rising and falling in quality between missions. Some missions are truly some of the best game writing I've played through. Others are meh. The ending may not feel like a natural story progression, depending on whether you play with your focus on characters or on central plot. It's not the greatest game but it's a good game. Worth a play or two, IMO.… Expand
  18. OddSuperFuture
    Mar 16, 2012
    0
    The game is absolutely top notch until the ending is reached and you're presented with 3 choices. 3 choices which completely dismiss any decisions you've made prior in any of the 3 games. There are 3 ending scenes with no closure and a convoluted, out of character plot which disregard the franchises key themes. This destroys any motivation you may have to replay this game-or any of theThe game is absolutely top notch until the ending is reached and you're presented with 3 choices. 3 choices which completely dismiss any decisions you've made prior in any of the 3 games. There are 3 ending scenes with no closure and a convoluted, out of character plot which disregard the franchises key themes. This destroys any motivation you may have to replay this game-or any of the other ME games. I Hope Bioware learn from this. Ending DLC correction is desperately needed.… Expand
  19. Bulldozer
    Mar 30, 2012
    0
    This game could have been a masterpiece but the final result is only a forgettable mix of bugs, holes in a childish plot with the "wish" to be serious, a ton of shadows and emphasis everywhere, no exploration, no puzzles, flat dialogues and the worst ending in videogame history. In certain things it could deserve a 11 but in others not more than a -20 so my balance is 0. Nothing more thanThis game could have been a masterpiece but the final result is only a forgettable mix of bugs, holes in a childish plot with the "wish" to be serious, a ton of shadows and emphasis everywhere, no exploration, no puzzles, flat dialogues and the worst ending in videogame history. In certain things it could deserve a 11 but in others not more than a -20 so my balance is 0. Nothing more than a "project" of a game, an interesting project never terminated and poorly done, or at least that's not good to be released like this.… Expand
  20. Jalt08
    Mar 10, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Ultimately no matter what path was chosen, what actions where taken, who lived and who died, at the end of this journey, all that remains is your ship and your crew abandon you.

    The first 95% of the game is amazing, its everything I hoped for and more. The last 5% is the biggest slap in the face imaginable. If you have invested 100's of hours from the first game until this one, you will be left stunned and appalled that none of the choices you made, none of the battles you fought, nothing you did in those 100's of hours ultimately pays off in any of the three endings you can pick from. With the three endings and the DLC on day 1, EA/Bioware show that fan support means nothing more than a dollar symbol to them. While most of the joy lays in the journey to the end of the game, there is no replay value at all in this game, because no matter what journey you take, the ends are all ultimately the same except for color variations and if synthetics live or die.    … Expand
  21. TomatoTornado
    May 17, 2012
    8
    WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH, DAY 1 DLC......waaaaaahhh.......so don't buy the DLC. Not so hard, is it?

    Good Lord there are a lot of whiny butts in here.
  22. bahamut24
    Mar 12, 2012
    8
    Owning a PS3 i have only played ME2 before this. Its an extremely engrossing EPIC story and great gameplay, until the end. without spoiling anything the last 30 minutes or so are the most disappointing in recent history, in fact their is a internet uprising to change the end. Apart from that and a few bugs that will be cleared up via patches in the future the rest of the game isOwning a PS3 i have only played ME2 before this. Its an extremely engrossing EPIC story and great gameplay, until the end. without spoiling anything the last 30 minutes or so are the most disappointing in recent history, in fact their is a internet uprising to change the end. Apart from that and a few bugs that will be cleared up via patches in the future the rest of the game is outstanding. Great characters and a good 30-40 hrs of single player gameplay. At the moment it is not as good as its predecessor but future DLC and patches may change that. I gave it an 8 out of 10 because in spite of my personal disappointment, and because there may be changes coming, it is still a great experience.… Expand
  23. iSpeakTheTruth
    Mar 10, 2012
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. **** u Bioware. And **** u EA. And also **** u too Commander Shepard (ha).. I had high hopes for this game.. I have the N7 edition and ME2 is my fav game of all time (PS3). I beat ME3 a little under 40hrs. All was good, and I was beginning to think ME3 would be my new fav game. I saw Tali's face and was pleased for the moment, cause I didn't know it was a stock photo yet. But all was still good, I saved Tali's homeland, cured the genophage, found peace between the geth and quarians, helped Miranda save her sister, help jack save her children, stopped the illusive man, etc... then BAM!! I get a **** ending with 3 decisions that are all basically the same but with different colors. You said we would have closure and have all our questions answered. Uh, I have a question. Why the **** did I spend all this time perfecting my Shepards story, if none of my decisions were going to matter at the end? I expected the prothean device to kill the reapers and save the galaxy, but na, it summons that kid that died and he's telling me some **** that doesn't even make sense. But seriously, I don't mind Shepard dying, I kninda knew he was since its his last game. But how about showing the aftermath of what my final decision caused. Show me whats going on with the people I care about, show me what happens with Tali, Liara, Ashley, Garrus, Miranda, Jack, and all those other people I spent countless hours building a relationship with. Don't show me Joker crash landing on some unknown location. He's gonna eventually starve anyways, since he can't leave thanks to the Mass Relay being destroyed for no reason. I think Bioware put somebody else on charge of the ending, while they worked on the multiplayer that nobody asked for. Or they plan on releasing a DLC for $10 called "Shepard's Alternate Ending" that's really supposed to be the original ending. Either way, they already ruined a once great franchise. I gave this game a perfect 10.. until the last 10 minutes. I That brought the score down to a zero.… Expand
  24. udoh
    Mar 12, 2012
    0
    Mass Effect & Mass Effect 2 are amazing, the way your choices matter, then things you do has an impact. These choices matter in Mass Effect 3, and some of the events in ME3 are wonderful. BUT, Stop playing when you are asked to go to the Asari Homeworld, because after that everything you have done for the last 5 years doesn't matter at all. Really bad writing, plot holes, and some veryMass Effect & Mass Effect 2 are amazing, the way your choices matter, then things you do has an impact. These choices matter in Mass Effect 3, and some of the events in ME3 are wonderful. BUT, Stop playing when you are asked to go to the Asari Homeworld, because after that everything you have done for the last 5 years doesn't matter at all. Really bad writing, plot holes, and some very strange team mate choices, things just don't feel right. Such a shame.… Expand
  25. Zenvo_ST1
    Apr 24, 2012
    6
    The ending was so bad you cannot even explain it. What a joke....especially for a build up and empty promises of 3 games. Aside from that it is a great game though. Bad developing and bugs are the reasons I am not giving this game a 10.
  26. wutani
    Mar 13, 2012
    3
    The two previous Mass Effect games were excellent, the third game fell flat in the later sections of the game, copy paste textures galore all over London some of which are laughably bad. The biggest disappointment in the third game was the ending,all of our actions and choices during all of the games had zero impact on the endings of the third game, the endings created plotholes all overThe two previous Mass Effect games were excellent, the third game fell flat in the later sections of the game, copy paste textures galore all over London some of which are laughably bad. The biggest disappointment in the third game was the ending,all of our actions and choices during all of the games had zero impact on the endings of the third game, the endings created plotholes all over the place.… Expand
  27. peterwdawson
    Mar 24, 2012
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Can a game's score really be dropped that low by having an awful ending? Absolutely, especially if it retroactively makes you no longer want to play the earlier games.

    Gameplay wise its alright, though Bioware really needs to stop having random NPC chatter intrude with regular chat. The sidequests are also a little boring, though still more enjoyable than mineral mining. Also again Bioware makes there more stuff to buy than there is money to be earned which will always irk me as a packrat gamer. Still these are nitpicks.

    The first real damning issue is the fact that multiplayer must constantly be played to ensure oneself the best ending. Multiplayer intruding into singleplay is a giant no-no, at least in this method. Obviously co-op and such is fine so long as it isn't required in what's supposed to be a single-player game, but this is generic multiplayer, that is also quite buggy and has seen players dropped from games for no clear reason, and they decided it would be a good idea to tie it to single-player. And yes, it isn't just play or forget, you have to keep playing to keep your score where it needs to be. This was after it was promised you wouldn't have to play it to do this.

    And then there's the damn ending. People have compared it to Blade Runner, Total Recall, Minority Report and so on, saying there's layers. That really doesn't matter in the end. The fact is, at face value you get a terrible conclusion that doesn't use any gameplay mechanics properly as well as ignores the narrative as it was built up until then. If you buy into such gems as the indoctrination theory, its still terrible, because a game that has been about unity and ending long-standing grudges suddenly decides to get overly artsy and interpretational. That is a massive tonal backlash, and it furthermore fails as art since it fails to convey its intent. Knowing that this is where all the games had been taking me is just horrifying. Shepard dying isn't an issue, it just flat out makes all your decisions amount to diddly squat because the writer wanted to get an interpretational sci-fi ending. Those kinds of endings can work, but not in this series, and especially not with what came before it in the game itself. It's not just building a lead balloon, its building one and throwing it against spikes hoping it only be penetrated. It just doesn't work.    … Expand
  28. Chandler
    Mar 9, 2012
    0
    How can this version get so much praise from Reviewers? The PS3 version has some of the worst frame rate issues I have EVER seen. I played it about an hour before I said **** it and returned it. The game is nigh unplayable like that. You just can't release crap like that in this time and age. The PS3 version getting 90+% is nothing lass than a travesty and just proves that professionalHow can this version get so much praise from Reviewers? The PS3 version has some of the worst frame rate issues I have EVER seen. I played it about an hour before I said **** it and returned it. The game is nigh unplayable like that. You just can't release crap like that in this time and age. The PS3 version getting 90+% is nothing lass than a travesty and just proves that professional reviewers just slap big scores on big names because they either get payed off big time or fear the backlash from mindless fan boys.

    Concerning the game itself, its alright, BUT DO AVOID THE PS3 VERSION IF YOU CAN.    … Expand
  29. Leftyy
    Mar 21, 2012
    4
    In short, I never believed that the ending was as bad as everyone said it could be, turns out I was wrong. When you're actually playing the end, it doesn't feel as awful as most would make it out to be. But in the moments after the game ends and you ponder what you've just finished, you will realize your true disappointment in the ending of the game. The elimination of any type of endingIn short, I never believed that the ending was as bad as everyone said it could be, turns out I was wrong. When you're actually playing the end, it doesn't feel as awful as most would make it out to be. But in the moments after the game ends and you ponder what you've just finished, you will realize your true disappointment in the ending of the game. The elimination of any type of ending variation, lack of closure, and a short, lazy little cutscene filled with unanswered plotholes should answer your question as to why it's so awful without spoiling anything. In short, the ending was just bad, and it takes away from the exciting couple of hours that lead up to it.

    I might give this a higher score, but honestly, I can't say the ending was the only problem. Never mind the dlc, who cares about that. My beef lies with the technical points of the game and the gunplay itself. Obviously most of you enjoy the gunplay and I know I'll get flak for this, but even in Mass Effect 2 I found it to be boring and unoriginal, it feels like a stiff cover shooter that seems like a dumbed down version of Uncharted except with those gimmicky biotic powers. Also, the game has a really poor framerate that will annoy you throughout much of the game, terrible lip-syncing, and to top it all off the game froze on me a few times and I had to reboot my PS3.

    To be honest, I don't think was an abysmal game, but it will never live up to the second chapter in the series' greatness nor will it ever be considered one of the great video games of this generation. Although I think it deserves all this hate, I find it sad that Bioware was stubborn enough to butcher its greatest franchise, and what's even more sad is that it's probably EA's fault for making Bioware rush the ending so that they could get it out before the end of the fiscal quarter. That's just plain wrong. I don't care whether they're going to patch the ending or not, I'm selling this game before the price takes a nose dive when no one wants to buy this piece of garbage.    … Expand
  30. Mr_Wednesday
    Mar 26, 2012
    2
    I did NOT play the single player yet, because I will play it on my xbox - as if you have no savegame, your previous standard choices are as sh*tty as possible. But I played a LOT of the multiplayer, and despite the amazing gameplay, it is plagued by so many bugs, sometimes you just give up. You will fall from the map, become immortal, enemies will turn invisible, be teleported into theI did NOT play the single player yet, because I will play it on my xbox - as if you have no savegame, your previous standard choices are as sh*tty as possible. But I played a LOT of the multiplayer, and despite the amazing gameplay, it is plagued by so many bugs, sometimes you just give up. You will fall from the map, become immortal, enemies will turn invisible, be teleported into the scenario, the server will crash midgame, you get an error when trying to buy things.... For an AAA game that costs 70 Bucks (with the "optional" DLC), this is unforgivable. So disappointed with Bioware....… Expand
  31. ypmud
    Mar 16, 2012
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. ok first off i would like to say well done bioware on finishing the game all be it poorly the ending was a bit naff and sucked a tad i felt sorry for joker.
    Now down to the nitty gritty bioware I found the game amazing in some areas heart wrenching in others and down right funny in parts i did find joker's sarcasm and witt to have been toned down and having a prothean for the final battle made me choose tarvik and edi all the time, having said that the game is a ending to what has been an epic 5 year run for bioware however there have been some flaws. 1 the frame rate on the game is at sometimes disgusting any game that runs 20fps native at 720p should be sent back to the developers with a note saying must try harder. 2 the story lacked the grip of me2 making you wonder what is the illusive man up to when is sheppard going to bed miranda and what the hell is cerburus. 3 the ui for me3 on ps3 is just messy infact very messy. 4 the loading times are not acceptable or good and the lack of install to ps3 hard disk isnt clever either.

    All in all the pro's equal the cons however it made me feel a bit naff that you cant acheive the true ending without playing the mp or if you have 100% completion in me1 and me2 and imported your character again a bit poor    … Expand
  32. boddilyfluids
    Mar 16, 2012
    0
    Breaks cannon, massive plot holes, incomplete game. While this is the final chapter in one of my most cherished series, there is very little that remains after a botched ending that can be considered good.
  33. SirYakalot
    Mar 18, 2012
    3
    Fantastic design, everything else lacks. This game suffers hugely from the same thing that fable 2 and 3 did - we loved the first one and forgave its flaws simply because it was a first game, but it's the third game now and the flaws are still there. I honestly want to love this game, I really really do, but honestly it just feels like a mess.
  34. donmaciu
    Mar 18, 2012
    1
    I can start with frame rate falling extremely in ps3 version. It's even worse than it was in ME2. Then we have small problems with ME2 Love Interests almost entirely omitted, Tali face ..... but it still leaves a solid game. But the biggest disappointment is the ending. I don't know who thought this sorry excuse for an ending would cause any positive reaction. Sure, it works for some...I can start with frame rate falling extremely in ps3 version. It's even worse than it was in ME2. Then we have small problems with ME2 Love Interests almost entirely omitted, Tali face ..... but it still leaves a solid game. But the biggest disappointment is the ending. I don't know who thought this sorry excuse for an ending would cause any positive reaction. Sure, it works for some... maybe for 9% of players. I loved the series... but now i hate it. I won't be playing any BioWare game soon.

    Indoctrination theory is dead, and so is our hope of getting decent ending. Apparently writers are happy with what they did... I'm speechless, but still Holding the Line...

    PS. sorry for my English    … Expand
  35. sympathy4saren2
    Mar 16, 2012
    0
    An absolutely terrible game, and an insult to both Mass Effect fans and rpg gamers alike. Gameplay is boring and repetitive, rpg elements are minimal at best and the loot system is a joke, there is no inventory, linear level design, zero exploration, massive plot-craters and weak writing all around. The developers also lied about day one dlc and the fact choices mean anything. They don't.An absolutely terrible game, and an insult to both Mass Effect fans and rpg gamers alike. Gameplay is boring and repetitive, rpg elements are minimal at best and the loot system is a joke, there is no inventory, linear level design, zero exploration, massive plot-craters and weak writing all around. The developers also lied about day one dlc and the fact choices mean anything. They don't. Save yourself money and avoid this game at all costs.… Expand
  36. Protectereli
    Mar 10, 2012
    4
    Im a big fan of the ME series, sadly i only own a ps3 so i never got to experience the first game but i loved the second game and beat it mulitple times, the combat is amazing and the customization is amazing in mass effect 3 but wow bioware you completely dropped the ball on the endings, i can understand sad endings, but there needs to be a way to get a good ending, thats why theIm a big fan of the ME series, sadly i only own a ps3 so i never got to experience the first game but i loved the second game and beat it mulitple times, the combat is amazing and the customization is amazing in mass effect 3 but wow bioware you completely dropped the ball on the endings, i can understand sad endings, but there needs to be a way to get a good ending, thats why the previous mass effect games were so good, you knew you could get a bad ending, but if you did everything correctly everything would turn out okay, playing commander shepard for years and developing in game relationships makes you feel like you are commander shepard, and giving him the endings avaiable was a complete fail and ruined this amazing game franchise for me.… Expand
  37. senshigoro
    Mar 10, 2012
    0
    This game is an insult to all Mass Effect fans.
    After to games the conclusion is now, that everything you did in the last 5 years was just a joke. Nothing you were doing had any real consequences in the game. Of course some things may happen differently, but after all, nothing you did, had any influence on the outcome of the Reaper conflict.
    Bioware wanted to tell their story and you are    This game is an insult to all Mass Effect fans.
    After to games the conclusion is now, that everything you did in the last 5 years was just a joke. Nothing you were doing had any real consequences in the game. Of course some things may happen differently, but after all, nothing you did, had any influence on the outcome of the Reaper conflict.
    Bioware wanted to tell their story and you are not really welcome in this story. I never felt so stupid after paying full price for a game. This may be the biggest disappointment in the last 10 years of gaming.    … Expand
  38. dragonknight4
    Mar 10, 2012
    0
    Day-1 DLC, issues of character skipping, dropped animations, buggy scenes with failed DOF usage and characters clipped into and stuck to the scenery, not an RPG, homoerotic gay male sex scenes, garbage ending. Game isn't worth $60 but you should only pick it up if you can find it for $1.
  39. bidou
    Mar 10, 2012
    1
    Buggy in combats (poorly balanced some ennemies are simple some are simply tremendously hard to kill), poorly written scenario, sh*tty ending. The worst of series already seriously overrated.
  40. Nichtswisser
    Mar 8, 2012
    3
    Welcome to the future of Bioware.. It really seems that all those guys which know what they were doing left Bioware and were replaced by characters inspired by the movie "Ideocracy". There is that otaku women responsible for the romances which probably is 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 upWelcome to the future of Bioware.. It really seems that all those guys which know what they were doing left Bioware and were replaced by characters inspired by the movie "Ideocracy". There is that otaku women responsible for the romances which probably is 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
  41. goblue22
    Mar 10, 2012
    0
    This game is absolutely AMAZING right up until the final 15 minutes or so. The end of the game is really a slap in the face to anyone who has stayed with the series from the beginning.

    I am not saying this because I did not get the end that I wanted. I would have been perfectly fine with an ending in which everyone died - because at the very least that would have been a clear and well    This game is absolutely AMAZING right up until the final 15 minutes or so. The end of the game is really a slap in the face to anyone who has stayed with the series from the beginning.

    I am not saying this because I did not get the end that I wanted. I would have been perfectly fine with an ending in which everyone died - because at the very least that would have been a clear and well defined end. This series has always been defined and advertised as character driven. The player is encouraged to get invested in and attached to the characters in the Mass Effect universe. And yet the way this game ends is simply unacceptable. The ending gives very little understanding of exactly what happened, and the player is given very little to go on in terms of the fates of the characters.

    I have never been one to write reviews or have strong opinions on games. I am not even one who typically gets attached to series the way I got attached to Mass Effect. But the way the end of the game seems like Bioware came up with it in maybe 10 minutes is, in my opinion, a betrayal of the fans.    … Expand
  42. Em-Man
    Mar 10, 2012
    2
    The game featured a promising start. It was exciting to finally see everything you did in the last 2 games make a difference in Mass Effect 3... Only that it didn't. Nothing you did in the game has a result or consequence in this game, not even the stuff you do in Mass Effect 3. You can't do any major choices during the game. The combat feels like a bad version of Gears of War. The endingThe game featured a promising start. It was exciting to finally see everything you did in the last 2 games make a difference in Mass Effect 3... Only that it didn't. Nothing you did in the game has a result or consequence in this game, not even the stuff you do in Mass Effect 3. You can't do any major choices during the game. The combat feels like a bad version of Gears of War. The ending is horrible and makes the whole story of Shepard from the first game to the third feel irrelevant.… Expand
  43. Ryan2212
    Mar 20, 2012
    1
    95% of the game is f**king epic. The last 5% (the end) sucked. Yes I know there are people out there who liked the ending and that's cool. I personally needed more closure and yeah I'll admit I'd like a chance o have a happier ending. Hopefully future dlc will be able to provide the last 5% lacked.
  44. progamer
    Mar 11, 2012
    0
    A 0 for a buggy unplayable mess.If game worked a 8.Mass effect 2 was made on the ps3 because of the added stuff and it plays way better.i dont know why they dont even say they are going to patch the game.
  45. cpmartins
    Mar 11, 2012
    0
    Installation went smoothly. This is it, the end of the triology. ME 1 was a masterpiece. ME 2 was a bland cover-based shooter. But that was ok, I wanted to see how this thing would end. Booted it up, went into graphical options to change some things. Ok, where is the FOV option? Oh, so no FOV for me then. Unistalled and returned. What score should I give a game that makes me physicallyInstallation went smoothly. This is it, the end of the triology. ME 1 was a masterpiece. ME 2 was a bland cover-based shooter. But that was ok, I wanted to see how this thing would end. Booted it up, went into graphical options to change some things. Ok, where is the FOV option? Oh, so no FOV for me then. Unistalled and returned. What score should I give a game that makes me physically ill when I'm playing? Oh yeah. 0… Expand
  46. scienceproof
    Mar 11, 2012
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. What could have been a fantastic game is ruined by it's utterly dire ending. It's just incomprehensible that the bioware writers thought it was a good idea - hmm, let's finish this amazing trilogy by forcing players to pick one of three slightly different endings, of which none of your previous choices will impact. Let's deliver these endings in the most clichéd and contrived manner possible. To top it off, lets pretend in our marketing spiels that this isn't the case, so we don't put people off from giving us lots of money.… Expand
  47. DemonDZ
    Mar 11, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I feel like I just ate the perfect sub, except the ends were made out of the worst thing you can imagine.

    First the From Ashes DLC (which isn't DLC it's ULC as in Unlockable Content, since it's already on the disk) which just botched it from the start, then I get into the game and it's awesome, I was engaged so many things I had done in the previous games affected my War Assets which would help me in the end to get a truly fitting ending for Commander John Shepard, we reach earth, the crucible is done, our chances are low but measurable, We already destroyed a Reaper and are ready to launch the final attack to take back the citadel and use it as the catalyst for the crucible to defeat the reapers. And then the Harbinger lands! Finally I get to face down my enemy that haunted me throughout the second third of the epic adventure that is Mass Effect, but we say **** it!" and charge for the catalyst in a suicide run, I felt like I had actually gotten the assets to defeat the harbinger, I had Jack and her bionic artillery, I had that Volar Bombing Fleet and some other assets I can't remember off the top of my head. I accept it, the Crucible is inbound for earth and we really don't have the time to fight the Harbinger as epic as that fight would have been.

    It's a suicide run, people dying left and right, I can't even see the rest of my 3-man cell of my lovable girlfriend Tali'Zorah nar Rayya vas Normandy and long time friend in arms Garrus Vakarian, I fear that they might have been killed already, but I press on having already lost too many friends to let the reapers win. I'm almost there and I get hit, I can't see. I wake up, body aches, bleeding, my armor is a mess, so is my already scar-riddled face, I get up, with my last strength I destroy the resistance along the last stretch and I board the Citadel. There's dead bodies everywhere, none of them slaves of the reapers, I feel weird, I had helped C-sec setting up defensive turrets, I had organised a Citadel Militia, resistance should have been made, I push on and this is where it all goes to hell, The Ilusive Man, Anderson that somehow made it on board after me but is ahead of me in a linear walkway, the white light as the crucible won't fire. I meet the Catalyst that gives me 2 **** options out of 3 **** options there are, I fullfill my mission, I destroy the reapers dying in the process, and as Commander John Shepard dies and I see the results unfold a bit of myself dies as everything, the preliminary creation of my characters personality (not paragon/renegade but actual character personality creation) saving Garrus as Archangel, Mordin's sacrifice, the technology recovered from the collector base, saving the rachni queen, getting a fleet, forming an inter-species galaxy-spanning alliance, the largest fleet ever seen, the most unified defence, helping all those people, all those diplomatic relations, sacrificing the geth and killing Legion so the Quarian counter-attack won't get decimated, all those things, and what can i get for it? a little more effort and I would get to see Shepard twitch as he is probably dying of blood loss. Nothing I did meant anything in the end, the entire ending is a hollow gesture, all my time meant nothing in the end. This ending is so horrible that it actually affects my experience of the earlier games... I had so much about gameplay I could think about, there's goods and bad but the only thing that pops up when I think about Mass Effect is that ending.    … Expand
  48. mythandoryx
    Mar 18, 2012
    4
    Don't get me wrong, ME3 is an AMAZING GAME! It's just the ending that pisses me of. I've spent five years on this franchise working hard to make all the right choice in order to have a closure that suits my expectations! However, the ending made me feel as if none of that mattered! I've lost interest in continuing the game or even replay anywhere in the near future. I was also frustratedDon't get me wrong, ME3 is an AMAZING GAME! It's just the ending that pisses me of. I've spent five years on this franchise working hard to make all the right choice in order to have a closure that suits my expectations! However, the ending made me feel as if none of that mattered! I've lost interest in continuing the game or even replay anywhere in the near future. I was also frustrated by BW's day-one DLC policy! It made me feel cheep! As I'm nothing but money-milking mating for the Big Gaming Kahunas. THE ENDING MUST BE CORRECTED! BW is a great company that makes great RPG's. I'm confident that they won't disappoint their fans for long. Maybe!… Expand
  49. MCRMJ
    Mar 19, 2012
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Considering the amount of time you are likely to have sunk into the series as a whole, can I, hand on heart recommend you play through the third game? No. I would advise you to steer clear.

    Not through any misguided rant over the (extremely poor) ending, but rather more sensible reasons. The whole premise of Mass Effect is how the decisions you make affect what happens in the game world, expanding or contracting the story, tailored to how you want it to pan out. So, when the last 15-30 minutes of the game throw everything you've toiled over over the last five or so years, out of the airlock and reduce the finale to a choice of three simple decisions (all of which have basically the same outcome, at least visually) then it makes it very hard to tell people to buy this game. There's also the glaring contradictions to past characters behavior and Mass Effect lore. If, you are still determined to play the game, do so, as the majority of it is excellent, but be prepared to cut your losses with the series as it doesn't just leave a 'bittersweet' taste in the mouth, but a nasty sour one.    … Expand
  50. Tulak_Hord
    Mar 11, 2012
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The first 95% of this game is incredible and worth playing. It introduces new characters and themes while (for the most part) successfully wrapping up story lines from the previous two games. Unfortunately the last 10-15 minutes of the game undermine everything that has happened up to that point. All your decisions are rendered meaningless and random plot hole after random plot hole end what up to that point had been one of the greatest games I have ever played. What is most insulting is that the ending feels cheap and tacked on, almost as if the developer ran out of time and resources and just threw some random stuff together hoping no one would notice. This game is not worth buying until the developer removes the glaring plot holes and fixes the ending to reflect the character's choices throughout this game and the previous two.… Expand
  51. omegaxxxfly
    Mar 13, 2012
    0
    Simplified, outraged, DLC on the first day, an inconclusive ending, and apparently are going to see more dlc, just Fu$% You Bioware you let me down, thank you for this true masterpiece of crap.
  52. PrinceHandsome
    Mar 25, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. If you're a big fan of the original Mass Effect and didn't quite catch Mass Effect 2, you'll be wondering if you're playing the right game when you start Mass Effect 3. A thing that bugged me a lot right away was the fact that it auto-picks dialogue for you (the entire opening cutscene, Commander Shepard is friendly and a bit sarcastic, regardless of how you've been playing him/her during the past games), taking control out of your hands. They also did away with all of the neutral choices, forcing you to be Renegade or Paragon the entire way through. The game has some breathtaking set pieces, but they feel like distractions. The gameplay is essentially identical to Mass Effect 2 with some small improvements, such as more guns, and a streamlined power system.

    The story is interesting and fun up until the last twenty minutes or so. The ending of the game felt like Bioware had been casually writing a decent story before realizing they had a deadline, and so they rushed everything into an A, B, or C ending. Quite literally, nothing you've done in the past games matters during these last few parts. As long as you have 5,000 war assets and 100% readiness, they let you pick whatever ending you want. Literally. You're presented with the Paragon choice, the Renegade choice, and then a strange, over-the-top Neutral choice, and you simply pick one and watch the 10 minute cutscene of confusion roll out.

    Characters, major and minor, from the entire trilogy return. Some of them have sidequests, whereas others show up in small cameos in major missions. You may find yourself wanting to accumulate your dream team from Mass Effect 1 or 2, but the squad selection is incredibly sparse, the smallest squad in the entire series, which consists almost entirely of Mass Effect 1 squad members.

    The story makes almost no sense right out of the starting gate if you didn't play the DLC in Mass Effect 2. A DLC in Mass Effect 2 involves Shepard trying to slow down The Reapers after defeating The Collectors, destroying an entire star system in the process. This lands him with his/her Specter status revoked, his ship grounded, his/her rank being stripped, and him/her in jail. If you did not play this DLC, they do not explain it to you, and actually state later in the game that someone else ended up doing this because Shepard didn't. Why are you in jail, then? No explanation is given.

    Furthering the DLC issue, Bioware actually stripped endings, multiplayer characters, companions, and sidequests from the base Mass Effect 3 game, meaning you'll need to pay another ten or twenty dollars to have a legitimately 'full' game, and as such, the entire experience. This may not be a big deal to some gamers, but I felt offended by the nickel and dime aspect of it, and so I felt that it deserved mention, for any potential buyers.

    The Multiplayer is arguably the best part of the game. It involves you and up to three of your friends playing on a map, fighting off 11 waves of either Reapers, Geth, or Cerberus, completing Objectives along the way, before fighting off hordes of enemies at the Landing Zone as you wait for extraction. You'll find it quickly becomes predictable and repetitive, but the Collectable Card Game style of unlocking things will keep you hooked. You level up your unique Multiplayer characters with Experience, but after every game you also get money, which you use to buy Packs of varying price and value. Each pack comes with new equipment and attachments, with chances for new characters and weapons as well. It's fun and addictive, and also plays a role for your single player experience, adding to your army and galactic readiness.

    The downside of Multiplayer is that, to get the best ending, you need to play it. I am aware that Bioware claims you don't, but it is an absolute fact that you do. You start out with 50% Galactic Readiness in Single Player, and it goes down by 3% every in-game day. You need 100% to have full access to the army you gain, and the only way to raise your galactic readiness is to play multiplayer. As such, it is literally impossible to have full reign of your army, and as such, the best ending, without playing Multiplayer.

    Overall, Mass Effect 3 is a disappointment. It's not a terrible game, by any means, but it makes far too many promises, and delivers on far too few. Die-hard fans of the series will enjoy it, but will look back on the days of Mass Effect 1 and wonder 'What happened to the game series I fell in love with?'    … Expand
  53. Brodesmus
    Mar 23, 2012
    0
    This game is excellent...until the last 15 minutes or so. The ending (there is only one with different colors) destroyed one of my favorite video game franchises. Mass Effect appealed to me because the choices that you made had weight, they affected the story in a tangible way, but no matter what you did in any of the games you always get the same choice of endings. Red, blue, or green.
  54. ZexenVatenkeist
    Apr 19, 2012
    9
    The conclusion of the epic sci-fi + shooter + RPG trilogy, there was a lot of hype and pressure surrounding the release of Mass Effect 3. And from the very start, it is obvious Bioware was not afraid to be bold: the game kicks off with a heavy dose of story, action and Reaper destruction. From there, it falls to you to travel through the galaxy building up an army for the counter-attack onThe conclusion of the epic sci-fi + shooter + RPG trilogy, there was a lot of hype and pressure surrounding the release of Mass Effect 3. And from the very start, it is obvious Bioware was not afraid to be bold: the game kicks off with a heavy dose of story, action and Reaper destruction. From there, it falls to you to travel through the galaxy building up an army for the counter-attack on Earth; and trying to solve all interplanetary political conflicts in the meantime. This is very well done, and progression is smooth and maintains the same level of tension through the whole game. Graphics are amazing (albeit a bit buggy at times), with Reapers on the background ravaging almost every planet you visit. Dialogue is well-built and the voice acting is great. Gameplay remains almost the same, which is also great. Playing the game on harder difficulty levels is a much bigger challenge than in the previous installments, as most combat areas are circular and you are constantly flanked; a good thing for those who, like me, found Mass Effect 2 a bit too easy. The only flaw in Mass Effect 3 is the end. It is not as terrible as you might have heard, but it is confusing, has many plot holes and simply discards all the morality choices you made through the whole series: you may be the most terrible Renegade who ever lived and still choose the Paragon finale. Despite this serious flaw Mass Effect 3 is still a great game and a fitting end to an epic trilogy altogether.… Expand
  55. CuseGirl
    Apr 18, 2012
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Graphics: Really good for most of the game. Only issues were the cutscenes. Cutscenes are "in-engine", so anytime a movie-like scene takes place, it's with the same system as the gameplay. During some cutscenes, you have some clipping and for many reasons, your characters aren't holding their assigned weapons. But overall the game looks great.

    Sound: The music is perfect, the sound effects (shooting, explosions) were great too. The voice work was mostly great as well.

    Story: The story is pretty good until the middle of what I would call the "Third Act". The Third Act starts with the Thessia mission. This is where plot armor rears it ugly head and really drags the story down. Also, use of characters from Mass Effect 2 was weak throughout most of the game (outside of Mordin, Tali, and Garrus). The 2 biggest issues I had with the story/writing is to not include a former high ranking Cerberus officer, Miranda Lawson, in the invasion of her former employers space station. It makes no sense that there's no confrontation between Miranda and TiM or a discussion about her resignation or a discussion about TiM running Sanctuary.

    And after Cronos station....the Ending mission and it's cinematics just don't make sense. Either the writers were trying to fool the player and then planned to let us download the real ending later or the writers thought they were gonna come up with some philosophical in a sci-fi game and it just looks bad. No matter how you slice the ending, it simply unravels boatloads of story threads that were already sewn up. It leaves the player feeling very confused and empty inside. Not a good way to end a trilogy and the ending really ruins the replay value.    … Expand
  56. Old-Jim
    Apr 17, 2012
    2
    Well, I finished ME3 last week and then spent a week in my spare time reading all about the travesty that was the ME3 ending. Yup, it was beyond awful. It really killed the entire ME experience for me; yes, all three games; five years; all dead. Here are my thoughtsâ
  57. Broxigar
    Apr 27, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I am so sad I had to do this, I never thought I would have to. Mass Effect WAS an epic series. However I cannot condone what they have done with this game. If you don't buy this game new you will have to pay more to access the tacked on multiplayer. Yea, you heard me. There was Disk Locked Content that you had to pay $10 to unlock, which most people were going to given that the character was a Prothean. They promised you would not need to do multiplayer to get all the endings, however the best ending (a five second scene of Shepard taking a breath) is not possible to obtain without doing the multiplayer currently. Excluding 2 or 3 the side quests are atrocious. The gameplay is improved and the characters are great, Garrus being the stand out, but all this is forgotten as you try to figure out what happened in the last 10 minutes and realized it wasn't written by the same people who did the rest of the game. It's a disaster I won't even bother to go into detail as I'm sure every other review hits on it. This is the single worst ending in the history of gaming. It's like Bioware doesn't want anyone to buy from them again. Giving me a terrible ending and adding the text "Buy more dlc" isn't going to make me happy.… Expand
  58. my3dlife
    Apr 29, 2012
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A plus 10 game ruined by a a minus 10 ending. I threw them a bone for some awesome stories before the ending.

    Mass Effect is the ultimate game for 2.99 games. I played them never having read of any controversy surrounding ME3. ME3's ending doesn't just ruin one game, it ruins all 3. Replayability is dead.

    The ending breaks all rules of basic, good story-telling. So much for artistic vision. The artist had his eyes glued shut here. A heretofore unknown super being antagonist is introduced at the end and offers up circular logic as the reason for the bad guys, the reapers. Synthetics will destroy you so to keep that from happening, we will destroy you. Thanks a lot.

    Metacritic points out that the Shepard you create is basically you. That's right. And the characters you meet often become your friends. You make decisions that really affect them and you care. The game introduces not only the star kid, but a "real" version of him at the beginning of the game. I didn't like him too much throughout the game, but once I got "the ending" with his glowing counterpart, I hated him. He isn't what I've been fighting for-that's the characters, my family, Jack, Garrus, Liara, Tali, and so on. Not some kid. He is forced upon me. Shepard winces and shows more emotion for this than for the self-sacrifice of others I do care about. Even so, I could live with this if the starkid didn't exist as is at the end. Maybe.

    The endings are cookie cutter cutscenes based upon 3 stupid choices that themselves are based on some flawed "logic". This logic is disproved elsewhere within the game and would make at the very least a 4th choice or rejection of the 3 given not only possible, but required. Shepard would not make a choice from 3 genocidal options and not at least say, "wait a minute!"

    Chronology of end events don't match up, nor do the actions of certain characters. Joker, fighting for Earth wouldn't, but also couldn't run away with characters that were with Shepard on Earth when s/he got nearly burned to a crisp. Some see the Jungle planet as an allegory for Eden with Adam and Eve. Nice work if the ones that get off the Normandy are Joker, Vega, and Garrus-all male and not all human.

    Back to the kid. In order to buy in to what he's selling I at least need to be able to make a good case for why he's there. The game doesn't. My enemy, the antagonist has been something that looks more like, I don't know, a REAPER. Satisfaction comes from being involved at some gut level with the defeat of the antagonist. Not some push of a button in a galaxy far away. Ok, a shot from an infinite ammo pistol that magically appeared in my hand.

    Basically, I spent the whole game building up war assets that I don't use and don't get to see at the end and that really have little meaning, except that I might get a really bad ending (you know worse than me dying after creating genocide) where the Earth vaporizes. Ok, this should happen anyway, given your choices.

    And those characters I loved throughout the series...well if I had a romance with a certain blue girl, she gives me a gift before I toddle off to mostly die. I have no idea what it is because I'm just floating in stars. Ok, I can use my imagination, but it seems like it was cut. But there's a precedence for this. This blue girl was mostly missing from ME2, but did get a tacked on storyline. Once you finish that DLC though, blue girl is gone from the game. That's ME2. As to the other characters and that awesome first main reunion we all have where we get to push together to fight off those nasty reapers, well forget it. Some are there in London saying goodbye, but some you get to make a phone call to. So satisfying. I don't even get to see Jack and her bionic kids raising hell.

    Then we come to the end end. It's like you fell off a cliff. There's no context as to what just happened. No chance to see the impact, no place to hang a feeling. Most of the choices result in your (Shepard's) death, except for one incredulous piece that suspends all reality. A gasp-available with high EMS-those war assets and basically multiplayer factored in. Ok, so that means you get to see what it means to people if Shepard dies or lives right? Nope, no. Nothing. Most that are unhappy with the ending want choices that add up to the possibility of worst and best case scenarios and they want to see the impact on the galaxy, the Earth, their friends, and their love interest. They want a choice to make sacrifices that make sense and a chance to live and see the aftermath. And have choices then as to where Shepard goes afterward. Choice the game has always given.

    Bioware gave Mass Effect a pulse, Shepard gave it a face, the characters in it gave it a heart, players gave it a soul. With this ending, Bioware used ME3 to kill Mass Effect. The creator rebelled against and killed the created. Drink your ovaltine.    … Expand
  59. tcb
    Mar 11, 2012
    7
    The story was disappointing [the ending especially, but not exclusively]. The game crashed 8 times in 25h of game play... Testing anyone? Graphics were sometimes very bad: textures popping in and being loaded 5s into the cut scene. It was still fun to play though [most of the time]. But it didn't live up to it's possibilities and expectations. Pity.
  60. Twist_of_Cain87
    Mar 14, 2012
    9
    Unfortunately this is a game that attracts the biggest of internet trolls. There is tons to love in this game and a few that I really miss from earlier iterations. I like that it is about political dealing and survival again rather than the run a gunning of Mass Effect 2. I like that they were able to take some of the conversations out of your hands based on your reputation. I like theUnfortunately this is a game that attracts the biggest of internet trolls. There is tons to love in this game and a few that I really miss from earlier iterations. I like that it is about political dealing and survival again rather than the run a gunning of Mass Effect 2. I like that they were able to take some of the conversations out of your hands based on your reputation. I like the better scanning methods for planets so that you don't spend all your time hoarding resources. I like being able to customize my armor and weapons. I like that the multiplayer is a functional part of creating the ending rather than just a breeding ground for stat whores. I miss some of the great party members from Mass Effect 2, but like that they resolve their storylines in this game. If you have a problem with gays, than don't pursue that romance option. If you have a problem with EA's marketing strategy for From Ashes DLC, than don't buy it. The combat is tight, the controls are solid, and it looks and sounds like Mass Effect. While certain complaints are valid, it does not warrant the backlash it has received. The gaming community is a sad beast that tears apart the few story tellers that are trying to create new and vivid worlds for you to explore with the tact and intellect of a petulant, spoiled child.… Expand
  61. ADIL
    Apr 17, 2012
    7
    A good, but not serious
    Mean a problem in the beam!!! The control problem in personal hero!! The problem in the comments!!!
    The game is not important to the required level never ....
  62. Tokyochuchu
    May 15, 2012
    10
    Mass Effect 3 has some notable bumps on it's road; It has limited freedom when compared to it's predecessors, some technical instabilities (mostly glitches & framerate issues) and a confusingly muddled ending that has stirred up a hornet's nest of internet trolls. That said, these are all moot points in the face of what Mass Effect 3 delivers to the player, which is the best Sci-Fi actionMass Effect 3 has some notable bumps on it's road; It has limited freedom when compared to it's predecessors, some technical instabilities (mostly glitches & framerate issues) and a confusingly muddled ending that has stirred up a hornet's nest of internet trolls. That said, these are all moot points in the face of what Mass Effect 3 delivers to the player, which is the best Sci-Fi action game ever made. The things you get to see and experience in ME3 are totally amazing! There are so many unforgettable moments to be had. The plot is excellent and the script keeps the emotional connections fixed in the spotlight. The result is an action game with a true sense of meaning and consequence. The afore mentioned ending is both blunt and strange, but it's mystery's beg for debate just like all classic Sci-Fi should (2001: A space Odyssey springs to mind). Mass Effect 3 is a series high and one of the best games I have ever played in my 20+ years of gaming.… Expand
  63. Biss
    Mar 28, 2012
    0
    What a sh**y ending. No chance of a good ending, even if you have make only correct choices over all 3 games. Bioware has lost all his skills. First gameplay and now storytelling. Nothing more is left of a once great development studio.
  64. Bitek
    Apr 3, 2012
    10
    I just do not get all these 0 scores. The game is just great. If you love Mass Effect 2 you will love Mass Effect 3. 3rd installment is just as good if not better than Mass Effect 2. I've been playing the game for about 4 hours now and I just started ! There is so much to do in this game. Reportedly there is 40 hours of game play in Mass Effect 3 plus multiplayer that i frankly do not careI just do not get all these 0 scores. The game is just great. If you love Mass Effect 2 you will love Mass Effect 3. 3rd installment is just as good if not better than Mass Effect 2. I've been playing the game for about 4 hours now and I just started ! There is so much to do in this game. Reportedly there is 40 hours of game play in Mass Effect 3 plus multiplayer that i frankly do not care much about. I've heard that many have problem with the game ending but this is not the reason to give this game 0 score. Graphics are solid, animations are solid. Bioware put a lot of effort into this game. Once I started playing the game i could not stop. I got hooked up on it instantaneously. Controls are pretty much the same as in ME2 so the learning curve was short for me. Overall great title. 10 out of 10. Do not listen to all these 0 reviews. Just pick up the game and you will love it.… Expand
  65. ThaaBusines
    May 2, 2012
    10
    Haters are always going to hate. Yes the ending was bad but the whole game is still in my top three of my favorite games ever, its a classic and I hope the ending DLC will make the ending awesome so that this game can take the deserved place of my favorite game of all time.
  66. NoireroboT
    Apr 29, 2012
    10
    Everybody reviewing this and giving it a bad rating are plainly stupid.They are all hardcore fans of this series.If fact,i am one too.BUT,i never expected from BioWare to just make EXACTLY what i wanted,in exactly the way i wanted it.Also,most people give this game a 0-3 just because of the ending.Really?So,you do not rate the game,you just rate the ending and that is it.You don't rate theEverybody reviewing this and giving it a bad rating are plainly stupid.They are all hardcore fans of this series.If fact,i am one too.BUT,i never expected from BioWare to just make EXACTLY what i wanted,in exactly the way i wanted it.Also,most people give this game a 0-3 just because of the ending.Really?So,you do not rate the game,you just rate the ending and that is it.You don't rate the fantastic gameplay,the customization,the powers and everything else.You just rate the ending?I agree,there are some flaws such as the fact that the characters seem to be ok with one big friend of their dying and there are some dumb deaths is this game too.The dialogues some times are dumb too but i don't really care.I have picked the RPG style of gameplay,which yes,had been dumbed down.Also,another thing i did not expect with the most annoying being the unexplained FPS drops on Ps3(haven't seen any on the XBOX).BUT,all this does not matter to me,a hardcore fan.The gameplay is excellent and the powers are also a good addition to the game.Also,i like how i can be emotionally connected with a character,the way the game makes that happen is great.Also,there are many decisions to be made,for example,with who will you make a romance or whether you will chose the ''good guy'' path or the ''bad guy'' path(decided by the dialogues).The side missions are a bit annoying,with the majority of them(after some time)being in the Citadel.I will not talk about the multiplayer since i don't really play it.
    This game deserves an 8+ rating,BioWare did a good job.The ending could be better yes,BUT a game is NEVER judge by its ending only.    … Expand
  67. Belthus
    Apr 10, 2012
    9
    Yes, the ending is lame. However, if you can get past the disappointment in the last five minutes of the story (which you can watch by searching on YouTube), the gameplay is almost identical to ME2. The story, for all the (justified) gripes about the ending, is in other respects even better than in ME2. Multiplayer is a fun yet minor addition.
  68. VanCyric
    Mar 29, 2012
    9
    Game is very good, if you are not as those kids, you should not listen to them.
    My registration here only one purpose - to help this game and save it from kids. :)

    Ð
  69. AndrewE
    Apr 16, 2012
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I'm not just giving this a "10" to attempt to combat all the "0"s out there, I honestly think this game is a 10 and it is probably the best game I've played in the last 7-8 years. I was genuinely astounded... as to how WONDERFUL the ending was. The controversy is ridiculous. It basically boils down to unintelligent individuals who need to have everything explained to them very slowly to be satisfied, and intelligent people who are capable of inferring their own ideas for the future of the galaxy. Shepard did his job, he sacrificed himself not only for the galaxy, but every single life that will ever come into existence in the future. That is amazing. The specifics of what happened after his death are no longer his concern. Please DO NOT change the ending Bioware. Don't give in to the lowest common denominator. People were expecting a Michael Bay ending and instead were introduced to Andrei Tarkovsky. It's unfortunate that people don't have a far enough reaching intellectual grasp.… Expand
  70. Tachikoma
    Apr 16, 2012
    9
    Before clicking to write a review of my own, I checked the current reviews of the game from other people and can see something very sad already.
    Many people have given it a low score purely out of hatred for ME2 and yet clearly have not played ME3! I, before giving ME3 a chance would have verbally given this a low score myself but having given it a chance I see my error.
    Now to start, I    Before clicking to write a review of my own, I checked the current reviews of the game from other people and can see something very sad already.
    Many people have given it a low score purely out of hatred for ME2 and yet clearly have not played ME3! I, before giving ME3 a chance would have verbally given this a low score myself but having given it a chance I see my error.
    Now to start, I played the demo first..and I hated it. It felt awful to play and showed no RPG elements at all but after my friend Brad said I needed to play it I went out and bought it anyway..how right he was.
    What I found was an excellent game with brilliant mechanics, a wonderful story and great selection of missions. Everything has been improved over ME2 (which was a travesty) and the story is nicely wrapped up in the end.
    Yes the endings were not great, and it did feel like trying so hard to get as many troops as possible was pointless in the end but, all things aside, this game blew me away.
    So I ask that those of you who have written negative reviews and given low scores based purely on nay-sayers in forums, stop being sheep, think for yourselves and actually give the game a go!    … Expand
  71. drewj311
    May 5, 2012
    10
    This game does not deserve such a low rating. To me this series stands out as the greatest Sci-Fi creation since Star Wars. The story and character development, combined with tight game-play make the Mass Effect series the greatest gaming experience I have ever had. I see a bunch of gaming-elitist whiners in these negative reviews. Sure ME3 had some flaws, the RPG elements were tonedThis game does not deserve such a low rating. To me this series stands out as the greatest Sci-Fi creation since Star Wars. The story and character development, combined with tight game-play make the Mass Effect series the greatest gaming experience I have ever had. I see a bunch of gaming-elitist whiners in these negative reviews. Sure ME3 had some flaws, the RPG elements were toned way down and the ending was abrupt and left me wanting more. But I had to speak up, lest one person be discouraged from trying out this amazing series.… Expand
  72. xfcrowman
    May 15, 2012
    10
    Great game, and an excellent conclusion to the trilogy. If you haven't played it yet, do yourself a favor and ignore all the overblown reactions of others and judge the quality of the game for yourself. I deliberately ignored all the hype/complaints, played through the game, and loved every minute of it, including the ending and the from ashes dlc. Afterwards, I read through the crazedGreat game, and an excellent conclusion to the trilogy. If you haven't played it yet, do yourself a favor and ignore all the overblown reactions of others and judge the quality of the game for yourself. I deliberately ignored all the hype/complaints, played through the game, and loved every minute of it, including the ending and the from ashes dlc. Afterwards, I read through the crazed fan reactions and was surprised with all the hate.

    This game is a great example of when the professional critics have it right for a change - this game is one of the best releases of this generation, and it would be a mistake to miss it.    … Expand
  73. movieman123
    May 20, 2012
    8
    Everyone is hating the ending but it is not that bad if they could explain which i have heard bioware is planning on doing this summer but over all it is one of the best games I have played and the import makes it a whole new experience overall it's and 8.
  74. dam1730
    Aug 2, 2012
    10
    ARE YOU SERIOUS PEOPLE! You can't give a game a terrible score just because you didn't like how it ended. I will agree that overall it isn't as good as Mass Effect 2. But, there is not excuse for giving zeroes to this game. I'm going to give it a ten to try to balance it out. It really deserves an 8.5, which is a solid score. All of these reviews are just angry people who reviewed the gameARE YOU SERIOUS PEOPLE! You can't give a game a terrible score just because you didn't like how it ended. I will agree that overall it isn't as good as Mass Effect 2. But, there is not excuse for giving zeroes to this game. I'm going to give it a ten to try to balance it out. It really deserves an 8.5, which is a solid score. All of these reviews are just angry people who reviewed the game 5 minutes after finishing it and are full of emotion. The amount of zeroes shows how much emotion the game brought out. It is very rare to see a game that has this much of an effect on people, which is a tribute to the writing of the game. I would say this game is definitely a must have for anyone who has played and finished Mass Effect 2. Also, the new ending DLC is out now, so you can pretty much disregard over half of the reviews on metacritic.… Expand
  75. bundykins
    Apr 30, 2012
    7
    Yeah it's a good game, all the geeks online moaning about the ending need to go get girlfriends or something.
    My mate lent me this, cant say I really understood the space soap opera plot, but the combat is tight, the upgrades meaty, and the sci-fi styling as it should be.

    My favourite game so far in 2012 (but probably wont be come christmas).
  76. snowsnows85
    May 19, 2012
    7
    All I play on this game is the multiplayer. I played the story for about an hour and got really bored with it. Seems to me this game offers a much better multiplayer than it does a story. Although they should give you more maps, stronger weapons and power ups for when you play it on gold challenge. I hear the higher n7 level you get, the better the ending, so you half to earn a betterAll I play on this game is the multiplayer. I played the story for about an hour and got really bored with it. Seems to me this game offers a much better multiplayer than it does a story. Although they should give you more maps, stronger weapons and power ups for when you play it on gold challenge. I hear the higher n7 level you get, the better the ending, so you half to earn a better ending from what I understand, that's mainly why people were let down from this game. But to me the story was just boring.… Expand
  77. funky_monkey
    Mar 28, 2012
    10
    Everyone has pretty much already said everything there is about wether the ending is good or bad so i wont talk about that. All i say is keep an open mind and you might enjoy it. I thought overall it was a pretty good game game with interesting features such as how you can customize your weapons more to your fighting style. This game does a good job at telling you what everyone is up toEveryone has pretty much already said everything there is about wether the ending is good or bad so i wont talk about that. All i say is keep an open mind and you might enjoy it. I thought overall it was a pretty good game game with interesting features such as how you can customize your weapons more to your fighting style. This game does a good job at telling you what everyone is up to and concludes the small endings pretty well. I think my biggest complaint was how there was not as many team members to choose from as there was in the last game and not as many speech options and situations were you could choose the speech. I don't really care that the ending might not be that diverse and am kinda glad too because it makes the ending more finite. The real reason i play this game is not for the big story of saving the universe but the small story of the people you deal with and the interactions with them. That part of the game makes it more real, knowing your fighting to save your lover is more important than saving strangers. I feel this game may have some small flaws but it more than makes up for it by the deep story it tells along the way. If you enjoyed LOST, then you will absolutely love this game. My biggest gripe and recommendation for the next Mass Effect game if there ever is one is more lesbian relationships, not really a complaint but something I personally would like. This is a great experience with great relationships both friends and lovers of either sex alike. This is a epic tail that I would recommend for anyone who enjoys a good story.… Expand
  78. acisawesome
    Apr 21, 2012
    10
    Ah yes "Mass Effect is an awful game series", I have dismissed that claim. ME3 brings in quite a few innovations to the table since ME2, and I think that it brings in almost all of your major choices from previous games amazingly. The combat is quite similar to the untrained eye, and, even though that would be a good thing anyway (ME2's combat system was sublime) it's not true. Combat itAh yes "Mass Effect is an awful game series", I have dismissed that claim. ME3 brings in quite a few innovations to the table since ME2, and I think that it brings in almost all of your major choices from previous games amazingly. The combat is quite similar to the untrained eye, and, even though that would be a good thing anyway (ME2's combat system was sublime) it's not true. Combat it ME3 is much more brutal, difficult and it forces you to make use of its environments (which are a much more 3-dimensional setting than previous games. One mission in it particular forces you to pull out every trick you have in an attempt to survive long enough to finish (immensely difficult on insanity). The combat it also much more cinematic, being able to pull enemies over cover near you at either stab them, crush them, or a variety of other things much to my humor. The story (ending excluded, is one of, if not the best writing in games I have ever played, pulling at emotional heart strings, but with enough witty dialogue to keep it from being depressing. In response to the ending controversy, is the ending good, god no, does it makes sense, again no, but does it ruin the entire series, or even the game? No, do you know what I did when I finished ME3? I sat down and played it again. Then I went out and bought the "From Ashes" DLC, (not necessary, but I would recommend it, it adds to the story and adds some interesting dialogue) got that onto the game, but I didn't play it as soon as I got that. I went back the ME1 comic and started the whole series again (that's about 40 hours a game, 50 if your going for everything like I was). And I still loved the journey as Commander Shepard, even though the ending was lack luster. The multiplayer is surprisingly good, and I found myself surprised at how much I was enjoying it, though it is harder than the single player campaign, and with the free "Resensurgence" DLC that was released earlier, its only getting better, the only fault is it doesn't show your total play time, but I can forgive that. So, in the end Mass Effect 3 is a modern triumph in games, with some faults (ending, and loss of SOME dialogue options (though you still retain most of them)). Take this review from a fan who has put over a thousand hours into Mass Effect, over a thousand hours into EACH Mass Effect and that isn't including the multiplayer, this game is great, perfect? No, but still a modern miracle in the gaming. As a side note, all of these awful reviews (the 0, and 1's) are from fans who feel cheated by the ending, and are so angry that they cant see that the journey there is magnificent. Some of them are right about it, but they have far to harshly judged it. e.g. the ending is awful, I can never play Mass Effect again 0/10; which I proved wasn't always true in this review. All I can do now is urge you to buy this game (and the others as well, they make it better, especially if you choose save a guy called Wrex from the first game, his dialogue is amazing)… Expand
  79. OarSmaN
    Apr 27, 2012
    7
    After 2 successful pieces this one was a little bit disappointing... especially ending.. plus poor rpg features.. scanning planets for resources... but overall i can say i had to play and see how the story ended...
  80. aidclu06
    May 26, 2012
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game and story were brilliant. JUST the VERY VERY ending was a little disappointing.
    If you loved ME1 and ME2 you will undoubtedly like this and ignore all the hate about the ending. I personally did not like the ending either. but 99% of what I played was GREAT. Bioware are changing the game ending and the Indoctrination Theory also is very interesting. So give the closing chapter a last chance.
    Great game    … Expand
  81. javierich0
    May 17, 2012
    7
    Soooooooo many plot holes, the decisions you made through the series pretty much don't count towards the ending. You can skip the first two games and you won't miss anything.
  82. masterooomp
    Jun 17, 2012
    10
    I loved this game!!! I can't understand why people hated the ending. I thought the ending was pretty good because of the choices you can make. Plus, there is so much replayability that i want to go through the game again and again to get a different EMS and pick different choices. Plus, great graphics and amazing gameplay. Overall I just loved this game!!!
  83. FemShep
    Jul 1, 2012
    10
    The problems that everyone had with the ending have been fixed with the Extended Cut and additional closure and clarification was added making this game the ideal choice for purchase if you haven't already. :)
  84. Drakko89
    Jul 9, 2012
    9
    Mass Effect 3 is an above average game. They've tweaked the game play, kept the same high caliber music and the story is above average. Without going into too many details, Commander Shepard is facing off against the reapers who plan on wiping out most sentient life in the universe. It's not the best game in the universe but I enjoyed it. You may disagree with the ending but you can'tMass Effect 3 is an above average game. They've tweaked the game play, kept the same high caliber music and the story is above average. Without going into too many details, Commander Shepard is facing off against the reapers who plan on wiping out most sentient life in the universe. It's not the best game in the universe but I enjoyed it. You may disagree with the ending but you can't argue that the events leading up to it aren't at least pretty good. As for decisions not having immediate or significant impact: the games take place within a small time frame (2-3 years?). How do you expect to see the effects of those decisions within such a small time frame? If they make a follow up within the mass effect universe, it will probably take place a few hundred years after Mass Effect 3. There is no way this game deserves less than a 6 and users that have given it less than that because Bioware didn't make it exactly the way they wanted it are incredibly stupid. I wish I had been able to recruit my ME 2 squad mates, that they had included more neutral options in the dialogue, included more side missions and most importantly, hadn't spent so much time trying to cater to new gamers to the franchise(to name a few things) but I can still say that the game is very good. Not perfect but very good.… Expand
  85. ImBigking
    Jul 28, 2012
    9
    The Mass Effect trilogy is just amazing and Mass Effect 3 is one of my favorite games ever. It shines in every single aspect but one: the ending. Sadly, this outstanding game was slightly ruined by an inconsistent ending. Anyways, the whole experience is really great, and everyone should give it a try.
  86. peteyboysama
    Aug 19, 2012
    9
    Mass effect 3 is great. Don't let angry self righteous gamers discourage you from playing this game. There is a reason why all the critics rate this game so high. The graphics, story, and game play are great. I've only been playing the since 2, but this game doesn't disappoint. It isn't perfect, but it's great. Must play series, and with the update there is no reason you shouldn't play it.
  87. gyigyo2
    May 18, 2013
    10
    Its easily the Best Game of 2012 i really enjoyed and liked every minute, Yes even the ending was great i nearly cried and this is the only game what could make me cry.Finally not a dissapointment boring always fairy tale happy ending.
  88. JackDanielz79
    Dec 20, 2012
    8
    Very enjoyable! I gave ME1 a 7, ME2 a 9 and this one a 8. For those with complains about the end, go read Dune Cycle from Frank Herbert, the last book is about the same, you don't get any answers, you're maybe a little pissed off but hell, you just want more! Dune was a success and so this title is in my mind. However, what disappointed me is that it look like my choices don't have muchVery enjoyable! I gave ME1 a 7, ME2 a 9 and this one a 8. For those with complains about the end, go read Dune Cycle from Frank Herbert, the last book is about the same, you don't get any answers, you're maybe a little pissed off but hell, you just want more! Dune was a success and so this title is in my mind. However, what disappointed me is that it look like my choices don't have much impact in the end on what happen in-game... but I didn't realize it before read it over the internet, so maybe the replay value is a less than it could be, but playing it was as I said, very enjoyable.… Expand
  89. Darklink
    Jul 19, 2013
    10
    First of all I've never actually played the game. BUT! Since its release I've had so much fun reading the reviews I honestly believes it DESERVES a 10/10 score. Every time I feel down or bored I come on Metacritic and feel alive again! I think Bioware never realised it but they invented the Mass Comedy genre in a night. Some of the reviews here are pure gold. Seek for the "fistula" one,First of all I've never actually played the game. BUT! Since its release I've had so much fun reading the reviews I honestly believes it DESERVES a 10/10 score. Every time I feel down or bored I come on Metacritic and feel alive again! I think Bioware never realised it but they invented the Mass Comedy genre in a night. Some of the reviews here are pure gold. Seek for the "fistula" one, it's left-hemospheric exo-plasmatic. To all the reviewers here, a HUGE thank you! You made this game awesome! :D… Expand
  90. abbadona
    Apr 25, 2013
    0
    Great gameplay, phenomenally disappointing story. Since the story is the most important thing to me in a game the horrid ending is simply a massive letdown that trivializes every choice you ever make.
  91. Judgefraps
    Jul 8, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Hrm.. positives.. much improved combat and a real sense of an end of everything in the events leading up to a last stand against an all powerful enemy, most of your old favorite crew members make an appearance at some point and you can end many long running story arcs satisfyingly on the path to the end.. oh and the soundtrack is really top notch.
    Negatives.. The ending sucks, the new characters are pretty 'meh' the marine dude is just plain dull.. nowhere near enough customization, rpg elements are really threadbare in this game and god that sucks...    … Expand
  92. armil04
    Aug 8, 2012
    6
    Really BIG disappointment. ME2 was more RPG-ish than this part, which is basically nothing more than a TPP shooter WITH some possible upgrade options. Crew-mate interaction is less than poor, making it impossible to create any true feeling of a team fighting 'the ultimate enemy.' But, at least I'm a fan of shooter games...
  93. yuemoonmagic
    Aug 10, 2012
    9
    A wonderful game with a huge story full of actions, emotions and surprises. The hardiest thing is like a great novel, to be able to tell yourself, at the end of the game "yes this is really the end of this story". Thanks Bioware.

    Un jeu merveilleux avec une histoire énorme pleine d'action d'émotions et de surprise. Le plus difficile, comme avec les bon roman, c'est de    A wonderful game with a huge story full of actions, emotions and surprises. The hardiest thing is like a great novel, to be able to tell yourself, at the end of the game "yes this is really the end of this story". Thanks Bioware.

    Un jeu merveilleux avec une histoire énorme pleine d'action d'émotions et de surprise. Le plus difficile, comme avec les bon roman, c'est de pouvoir se dire "oui, c'est bien la fin de cette histoire". Merci Bioware    … Expand
  94. Fluffy-4-Evah
    Sep 5, 2012
    10
    I really love this game, the single player was so awesome and mind blowing, that in the end it really, really made cry for the first time in 12 years, it sucked me into the game's story, and it didn't let me go.

    Despite what other people say, this is really a game for Bioware to be proud of, I'm going to stay loyal to this series, they tried new things, and thats what they need to do,    I really love this game, the single player was so awesome and mind blowing, that in the end it really, really made cry for the first time in 12 years, it sucked me into the game's story, and it didn't let me go.

    Despite what other people say, this is really a game for Bioware to be proud of, I'm going to stay loyal to this series, they tried new things, and thats what they need to do, some people just cant stand changes or new thing, Deal with it, the time is still ticking, and you cannot expect company's to stop experimenting on new features. I really saw the game tech evolve into something more nice and powerful, and it apparently did because i got blown away by not only the story, but also by the awesome effects, the awesome game play, and the awesome, voice acting!

    In short this i a must have, you need to like that the games will *Evolve* to be able get more and more awesome then it is now.

    If you don't like new stuff, sorry but then your really out dated..
    The added the extended cut to make you able to make more choices, and they did, so stop whining, or GTFO.

    10/10 Cant wait for the next related game!

    @ bioware: Great job, i'm still a fan, and i always will, just ignore the whining people, think the ending sucked, that makes it a invalid statement, because you really make be cry, and I'm not even kidding..    … Expand
  95. Marmalade
    Sep 29, 2012
    3
    I honestly don't know WHAT to rate this game, because the first 99% of the game was mostly great, with the exception of a few things I'll get into. Don't hate me, but I love, LOVE the multiplayer aspect of the game (even though in principle I know I shouldn't, because it likely took away from the development of core aspects of the single player game, but I'm just going to be honest here).I honestly don't know WHAT to rate this game, because the first 99% of the game was mostly great, with the exception of a few things I'll get into. Don't hate me, but I love, LOVE the multiplayer aspect of the game (even though in principle I know I shouldn't, because it likely took away from the development of core aspects of the single player game, but I'm just going to be honest here). Though I admit that after three or four play-throughs the multiplayer can get boring and repetitive, I don't do it every day and I enjoy just being able to go in and shoot stuff with other players when the mood strikes me (as long as they're not some nerd with a headset who screams at everyone in the group - that's when I leave and requeue). That being said, I DON'T like how multiplayer ties into the single player aspect of the game with the whole Galactic Readiness crap and how your GR degrades every few hours if you don't grind through dozens of multiplayer games. I like playing a few sessions of multiplayer now and then, but I don't like HAVING to play it because it will affect the outcome of my single-player campaign (because there are SO many outcomes...right? ;) Cupcakes anyone?). This was a horrible idea on Bioware's part, because it forces the player to grind battlegrounds in multiplayer to the point where it gets boring and tedious - I'd rather play it when I want and not feel compelled to. Another problem I have with the game is the lack of depth of my relationships with my companions. I didn't feel as connected to my companions as I did in other Bioware games - I think they did a better job in DAO and SWTOR in that you actively fostered relationships with your companions, which unlocked more conversation options. I know this isn't as big of a part of the ME franchise, but my relationships in the first ME felt deeper and more involved. I also hated that I had to pay an extra $10 to get the Prothean as a part of the story - something that should have been included in the game, not day 1 DLC. I bought it anyway, because I wanted the full experience and after the fact I feel that the story of ME3 would have been less complex without him - but I WILL NOT be buying any future DLC for this game in the future. Ever. After experiencing the boatload of epic fail that was the ending - I won't invest my money or time in another Bioware game in the future. The story had so much build-up, so much drama, and so much choice - only to be screwed in the end by some random star child that was introduced in the last 10 minutes of the game who gave you three choices that all ended up causing a literary dissonance in the context of the series and made every choice you made mean nothing. Yes, I hated the ending. I actually watched the (three) endings before I actually played through the game, because I read a lot about how much uproar they caused. I'd never played the ME series before, so I took the time to go through the series to see if the ending made any sense in the context of the series - and no, it didn't. The writing of the ending was sloppy, and even with the "extended cut" it was still the same ending and haphazard writing - it just gave a false sense of closure. I won't rate the game 0 because there were so many great moments in the game - but the ending completely screwed everything it built up to, and the blatant false advertising of this game NOT having "Choice A, B or C" as an ending has made me lose all faith in Bioware as a company (though let's face it - they're EA now and not Bioware anymore, which is sad because they used to put out high quality games that engaged me as a player, inspired me and blew my freakin' mind). I'll still play multiplayer every now and then, and I'll make up my own ending in my own head, which I feel is just as valid (if not more) than the crap we were given.… Expand
  96. DanMaster
    Oct 9, 2012
    9
    It makes me sad to see so many haters. So what if Bioware didn't make a perfect game like we were all expecting? Yes Mass effect 3 has flaws, like a terrible ending to a beloved trilogy. But it has given us much more: hours and hours of gameplay, acción/RPG gameplay, stellar Voice acting/ script, tons of side missions and exploring, lovable/likable/crappy characters, beautifulIt makes me sad to see so many haters. So what if Bioware didn't make a perfect game like we were all expecting? Yes Mass effect 3 has flaws, like a terrible ending to a beloved trilogy. But it has given us much more: hours and hours of gameplay, acción/RPG gameplay, stellar Voice acting/ script, tons of side missions and exploring, lovable/likable/crappy characters, beautiful worlds and lore, dinamic battle system with different classes that totally change the way we play as Shepard, female and male Shepard ( how many games do that). I could go on and on, writing pages about what's to love about mass effect 3, but I guess we all know that. Bioware tried they gave us "Extended Cut" DLC, so yes The Finale was a HUGE dissapointment but we can't turn our back or our heart to the whole trilogy. Once in a lifetime does a Trilogy end like it should, only Back to the Future and Star Wars Return of the Jedi did it right. Matrix 3, Robocop 3, Lord of the Rings 3, all failed. Mass Effect 3 was a bittersweet end to an Epic and memorable Trilogy, perfection is hard to reach in this modern day competitive world and Mass Effect came so close. They set the bar really High with ME 1 and ME2. Thanks for trying Bioware,you succeded in creating a pop world social sensation.… Expand
  97. Azyral
    Jun 14, 2013
    10
    Hahahahahahahahahahahaha! Look at all these haters for hating on a game. If you hate the ending, I doubt that this game is scores 0 because of that. Man, these people are retards.
  98. Exur
    Dec 8, 2012
    0
    All the choices you made in previous games, all the heartbreaking decisions, the entire Mass Effect lore got flushed down the drain with this disaster piece. Nothing you did in the trilogy mattered because in the end, it was all a story. Nothing really happened. Good job Bioware.
  99. Tom_green_day
    Apr 27, 2013
    10
    While the ending was questionable, I feel Mass Effect 3 is my favourite Mass Effect game. The tension are stakes are ramped up through the game as you see the extent of the Reaper's damage, and levels reflect this. Once again characters are beautifully written, and each moment pays off. Gameplay is smooth and intuitive, it flows well and for once all the powers do something. Multiplayer isWhile the ending was questionable, I feel Mass Effect 3 is my favourite Mass Effect game. The tension are stakes are ramped up through the game as you see the extent of the Reaper's damage, and levels reflect this. Once again characters are beautifully written, and each moment pays off. Gameplay is smooth and intuitive, it flows well and for once all the powers do something. Multiplayer is also really fun, and the rewards encourage you to play more. Playing as other races is also enjoyable, and the free DLC is much appreciated.… Expand
  100. ultramitch
    Aug 13, 2013
    10
    A worthy conclusion to the Mass Effect series as a whole. Aside from the lack of choice and plot-holes near the end, which was later fixed with free DLC, this was by far the greatest gaming experience ever!
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Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best PS3 Game of 2012
2
#2 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2012
6
#6 Most Shared PS3 Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
93

Universal acclaim - based on 30 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 30
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 30
  3. Negative: 0 out of 30
  1. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    Apr 10, 2012
    100
    Mass Effect 3 is an amazing experience in and of itself. It's also the perfect capstone to a true AAA franchise, offering a poignant conclusion that'll stick long after the credits have rolled. You're standing on the precipice of one of the best games Earth money can buy. [April 2012, p.60]
  2. Playstation: The Official Magazine (US)
    Apr 3, 2012
    90
    If ever a game was more about the journey than the destination, it's Mass Effect 3. And what a journey it is. [May 2012, p.71]
  3. Official PlayStation Magazine Benelux
    Apr 2, 2012
    95
    The RGP elements have been toned down considerably in favour of more action. For some this will sound like a bad thing, but trust us when we say that Bioware has thought this through. With the Reapers invading, it would be kind off silly to go on a shopping spree on the citadel. [April 2012, p.60]
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