Mass Effect 3

[Mav]

inb4TSLwasincomplete

[Lynk Former]

Both of the DLC for AC and ME aren't essential to completing the game. But I paid for a full game and even trivial DLC that you have to pay for does not make a full game. It makes a game with optional extras.

[leXX]

I would recommend getting Lair of the Shadow Broker at least. It really is an excellent DLC and adds alot to the story. It is further enhanced with the great Redemption Graphic Novel. If you're into the Mass Effect story, I would say both are essential.

[Darth_Calo]

Both of the DLC for AC and ME aren't essential to completing the game. But I paid for a full game and even trivial DLC that you have to pay for does not make a full game. It makes a game with optional extras.

 

Whilst I see (and in someways agree with) your point, I will again direct you to Assassin's Creed II as a better example of a game that came incomplete.

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For those that don't know: In that game, you assume the role of Desmond Miles, who must explore the genetic memory of his ancestor, Ezio Auditore da'Firenze (Ezio Auditore of Florence), a rennaisance era assassin, through the use of an "animus," which in the AC universe is a machine that projects the genetic memory of a subject onto a screen they can then "play" like a Video Game. The game is broken into "sequences," which encompass parts of his life. two sequences, totalling around 5-6 years or so of Ezio's life (covering the Battle of Forli and the Bonfire of the Vanities) are "corrupt" in the vanilla game; you have to download them separately from Xbox Live if you want them.

 

The DLC for ACII was a missing part of the story, you kind of need it if you want to know who Machiavelli is (in terms of the AC universe) when you meet him again in Brotherhood. beyond that, yes, it's not vital, but it's dissappointing that it was an incomplete game

[Lynk Former]

I have played AC, ACII and AC:B... and yes, I know how it all works with the series... it's one of my favourite series of this generation.

 

Just because they're called memory sequences doesn't make them ALL absolutely necessary to the games plot. There are a lot of memory sequences within all three main AC games that are optional extras... or more commonly called side quests. Ubisoft just gave them a fancy name to go with the whole Animus theme.

 

I'd like to also point out that if you haven't played the PSP and DS games then you're missing out on quite a bit from the AC universe as well. Oh and if you want to know more about the Dead Space universe but didn't bother to play Extraction, then you're missing out as well since those games have a huge chunk of story to them as well.

 

But the thing about AC is that you don't really need to see the extra memory sequences or play the extra side games to know about the main plot. Sure, you'll be a tiny bit behind than say, someone who has played the extra DLC or someone who has bought the PSP game at first, but you quickly catch up as you play the next main game. I didn't need the extra content to figure out who Machiavelli is in AC:B because there was enough subtext for me in the game to really work things out myself... and sure, if there's any extra information about him, then it's not really important to the main plot.

 

After all... who the hell cares whether Anakin lost a pebble that was his good luck charm 10 minutes before he met Padme for the first time (I made that up, duh) because it really isn't essential to the main plot.

 

Oh yeah, and also there's free DLC being released for AC:B of another memory sequence at this very moment.

 

 

So yeah, AC is guilty and so is ME... but I don't see AC as being worse than Mass Effect. They're both as bad as each other, just like they're as bad as Dead Space for all of its extra content which may amount to a collection of alternate armour suits... but I'd rather have gotten them by achieving something in the game rather than having to buy them as DLC. I guess I'm just oldskool like that. Most of these games that want you to buy extra DLC or give out exclusives for buying the most premium version of the game at launch are bull****.

 

Sure, there are a few exceptions I can find. The big DLC content for GTA IV was very well done and true expansions to the base game. That kind of content is okay with me because I understand the developer spent a lot of time and money making it and that's it's genuinely an addition rather than a patch.

 

I mean, going back to Mass Effect... I feel like a lot of the content being released for it are more like patches than anything else. "Oh, we were meant to add this extra character in the game but didn't have time to put her in, so here's a patch for the game... that you have to pay for, so you can have her in the game." What?

 

I'm sure they feel purely justified by all of this too since they feel that it'll stop second hand purchases from getting away with not giving them money since they'll want to buy into the DLC... though I feel that kind of reasoning is silly since the whole idea of people buying second hand games is the fact that they really don't have the money to be buying full price games or their extra content.

 

I know this is a huge and pointless rant, but I really hope BioShock doesn't exploit ME3 to this level... though I know they will.

[igyman]

I'd say Lynk nailed it right there. With the exception of Episodes from Liberty City and perhaps the Borderlands DLCs, every other DLC is something that should have been in the game. ME2 is among the worst (or perhaps best, depending on how you look at it) examples of an incomplete game. There were two party member DLCs, one was free, but the other was paid, even though at least part of it (dialog audio files, etc.) was already in the game. The game came with a set of controls for the Hammerhead, but no Hammerhead, until the Firewalker DLC. There were several paid equipment DLCs and one paid skin pack DLC and we all know how poor ME2, a game that is supposed to be an RPG, was when it comes to equipment. I might agree that the Overlord DLC is not essential with it basically being an unimportant side quest, but since the game is way too short for its price, it would have been more than fair for it to be included in the main game. Lair of the Shadow Broker is another story - this DLC tells a very important part of the story and while I might be disappointed that a character like the Shadow Broker, who had that much potential was wasted on a single DLC side quest, it is nonetheless a very important side quest that most definitely should have been in the main game.

 

The worst possible example of an incomplete game whose cut content was sold as DLC would be Mafia II, but since we're discussing ME and my post was already long enough, I'll just leave it at that, at least for the time being.

[Darth_Calo]

my whole point is that Mass Effect 2 shipped as a complete game. Assassin's Creed II did not. the Two missing sequences from that game are more vital to the storyline then, say, the Operation: Overlord mission pack. or the Normandy crash site. those are fluff pieces. even LotSB doesn't add anything to the Mass Effect 2 story, it just starts to prepare you for 3. are you not going to buy those add-ons? that's fine. you'll still have a complete game experience. The GTA IV add-ons are a rarity, true expansions that add something worth the...$5*. Another good example of a good DLC is Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening. Entirely new experience. where as the Fallout 3 add-ons are just stuff that adds new areas and new missions but doesn't add a new experience. MOST DLCs are in the ME2 camp, not the GTA IV camp.

 

 

*the GTA IV add-ons were more than $5, but a lot of DLCs are $5 or less.

 

if you post saying "the GTA IV add ons were more then $5, read my disclaimer above. thanks

 

 

@igyman having played Borderlands and Dragon Age: Origins I'll say (IMHO) that the DA:O expansion, Awakening, adds far more then the stuff they added for Borderlands. (which, in my opinion, isn't that great a game)

[Prime]

@ Prime: I'd rage if MP was dlc you had to pay for...

I was thinking more along the lines of an MMO where you pay to be able to play on big servers.

[igyman]

@igyman having played Borderlands and Dragon Age: Origins I'll say (IMHO) that the DA:O expansion, Awakening, adds far more then the stuff they added for Borderlands. (which, in my opinion, isn't that great a game)

 

I agree with you there, but Awakening is a proper expansion, while Borderlands only has DLCs which try to be expansions.

[Darth_Calo]

Mass Effect 2 is a fun game. it would be just as fun without the DLC besides...no, even including the Lair of the Shadow Broker. "should have been in the original game" no...not really. that's why it's downloadable content: it's optional stuff that doesn't add a ton of depth to the game and is (usually) available cheaply. $8 or so for LotSB wasn't bad. $2 or $4 for some new weapons? yes maybe they should have included it in the purchase price...but they didn't. I am not defending the business practice but suggesting that maybe they weren't done working the kinks out of Kasumi and wanted to hold it back for later when they finished it. I heard that the Hammerhead was plagued by technical issues. would you rather BioWare release it on day one with the issues, or hold it off to fix them? the Lair of the Shadow Broker was planned but not even announced until the summer. they have yet to truly announce the next piece. plus, it was already a two disc game; would you really want them to try to cram more on there and have probably made it three discs? no, i doubt it. again i don't agree with the business practice of selling us this crap seperately. I bought them, yes, but you don't have to buy them. Dragon Age: Origins had both types. the 'this shoulda been in the vanilla game' type (Return to Ostagar, Warden's Keep) and the 'Gee this is compelling' type (Leliana's Song, Awakening, Witch Hunt)

[Mav]

plus, it was already a two disc game; would you really want them to try to cram more on there and have probably made it three discs? no, i doubt it.

hahaha silly 360 and its DVD's

 

Also stfu about ACII being incomplete the 2 memory sequences that were "missing" were no more significant to the plot of ACII than any of ME2's DLC's were to its plot. You should be more pissed that you (probably?) didn't play AC: Bloodlines for the PSP because that adds a hell more to the overarching AC plot than those 2 memory sequences. Besides this is the Mass Effect 3 thread, I don't know what the **** started you on this ACII tirade, but nobody cares and it's just annoying.

[Tysyacha]

I'm having a dilemma here:

 

As much as I love the Mass Effect series, I don't really know if it's going to be worth it to start ALL OVER with Shepard again from ME1. I mean, ME3 may have "over 1,000 variables" that the player influences and/or controls, but I could care less if I discovered Artifact A on Planet B and whatnot. The Mako sections of the game were absolute torture for me. Perdition. H-E-7-7.

 

What do you think? Should I create Shepard from scratch again in ME1, or go for the ME2 default Shepard and the outcomes s/he has by default (no Council, Wrex dead, etc.)?

[igyman]

You should find a ME1 savegame on the web that has a Shepard that would suit your style of playing. I don't have a link for you, but I'm pretty sure someone posted it at least once in the ME2 thread. I personally didn't mind replaying everything, since the default ME2 premise is the complete opposite of what I did in ME1.

[mimartin]

What do you think? Should I create Shepard from scratch again in ME1, or go for the ME2 default Shepard and the outcomes s/he has by default (no Council, Wrex dead, etc.)?

 

Wrex dead would be enough for me to replay. Even if ME2 ruined ME1 for me. I've tried to play ME1 again, but no can do because of how much fun I found ME2.

 

Still the dilemma of Wrex being dead may be enough for me to reconsider it.

 

I know I'm no help...

[DarthParametric]

http://www.masseffectsaves.com/

 

Btw, ME2 is on sale on Steam for $10, unless you live in Oz where you pay the southern hemisphere tax and get it for $20. ME1 is $10 as well.

[Mav]

http://www.masseffectsaves.com/

 

Btw, ME2 is on sale on Steam for $10, unless you live in Oz where you pay the southern hemisphere tax and get it for $20. ME1 is $10 as well.

Too late to make the sale, but you could always get one of your stateside Steam friends to gift it to you, and Paypal him/her, if you have any...

[Lynk Former]

Too late to make the sale, but you could always get one of your stateside Steam friends to gift it to you, and Paypal him/her, if you have any...

This.

 

Mav and Jeff have helped me out with getting cheaper games (and uncensored L4D2) by doing just this.

[DarthParametric]

I'd already bought it myself at launch (imported it for $50 rather than pay the local $90-odd). I got PC ME1 the year or so previous when they had it on Steam for $5, and of course got it on 360 at launch back in 07 (before the EA buyout when they said there wasn't going to be a PC version). I was just posting it for anyone that might be interested.

[Darth333]

 

What do you think? Should I create Shepard from scratch again in ME1, or go for the ME2 default Shepard and the outcomes s/he has by default (no Council, Wrex dead, etc.)?

 

Save game editor: http://www.masseffectsaves.com/tools.php (it's not complete but it allows you to change several plot variables when you import an ME1 save into ME2 such as who lives and who dies, who is councilor, romances and a few other things.) Someone will likely make one for ME3 too.

[Mav]

Save game editor: http://www.masseffectsaves.com/tools.php (it's not complete but it allows you to change several plot variables when you import an ME1 save into ME2 such as who lives and who dies, who is councilor, romances and a few other things.) Someone will likely make one for ME3 too.

That's cool, thanks for that DTrips, I couldn't be bothered to play ME again jus tto change some variables. Too much vidya, not enough time

[Negative Sun]

Saw the teaser last month, I wet myself a little when I saw it.

[leXX]

The May issue of Game Informer is going to have a feature on Mass Effect 3. Does anyone here get the magazine? It would be great if someone could scan the pages for us.

[Sabretooth]

Not sure about anyone here, but if Skyrim is any indication, scans should be up within 12 hours of the issue release. Also, it's rather considerate of the Reapers to attack West Africa and the Atlantic Ocean first.

[Alkonium]

Is it just me, or is that another redesign of Shepard's N7 armour?

[Achilles]

I think it's just you. Looks identical to the ME2 N7 armor (unless you're seeing something I don't )

 

EDIT: Link