In 2157, humanity discovered it was not alone in the universe. Thirty years later, they found a peaceful place among dozens of galactic species. But this idyllic future is overshadowed by a dark past: Reapers, a sentient race of machines responsible for cleansing the galaxy of all organic life every 50,000 years, are about to return. The leaders of the galaxy are paralyzed by indecision, unable to accept the legend of the Reapers as fact. But one soldier has seen the legend come to life. And now, the fate of the galaxy depends on him. Mass Effect 1 and 2 are among the highest rated games ever made. And if history has taught us anything it’s that successful third acts are hard to come by. So, does Mass Effect 3 serve as a satisfying conclusion to one of the richest stories ever told in gaming? Or does it fall flat; ruining what could have been an amazing trilogy? The story is an improvement over ME2, maintaining emotional moments with various characters but this time it doesn’t feel like filler. The Reapers have arrived and are slaughtering millions every day and leaving entire planets in ruins, with Earth at the forefront of their assault. Shepard, whose previous warnings of the incoming invasion were dismissed, now finds himself/herself tasked with putting an end to this nightmare. Clearly he/she can’t do this on their own so Shepard must unite the galaxy, convince other races to put aside their differences and assist by any means in the war, and discover a way to end the Reaper threat. Along the way you make numerous consequential decisions that the Mass Effect series is known for, gather crucial war assets, and engage in diplomatic and heartfelt conversations; all the while seeing how the decisions you’ve made in the previous two titles play out. This is indeed the most plot heavy of the three games. The writing, cinematics, and voice acting are as solid as ever and the musical score throughout the game is very well done. But the game is not without its flaws, however they are minor. The gameplay is very similar to that of ME2 but with slight modifications (i.e., customizable weapons, new level cap of 60, heavy melee attacks, combat rolls). The game does feel more action oriented and less RPG like with cover-based, run-and-gun gameplay at the heart of ME3 but it suits the overall atmosphere of the game. This is the apocalypse after all, with constant reports of death and destruction. Even the enemies are viler with the Reaper ground troops consisting of gruesome monsters that were once allied forces. Overall, the game has a grittier feel to it and this is illustrated in the gameplay. But the side quests this time around seem out of place and are fundamentally uninteresting. Most of them are acquired by overhearing conversations and the assignments themselves are typically fetch-quests. Given Shepard’s current situation and the urgency of the mission that’s been given to him/her, why waste time flying to a planet just to a collect a book and return it to its owner? And the presentation, while still incredible, seems to have been taken down a notch with minor texture loading and inconsistencies with lip-synching. There are still some minor technical issues as well with Shepard getting stuck in the environment, forcing the player to restart the current objective. Mass Effect 3 also features a multiplayer mode, a first for the Mass Effect series. The player creates a character from one of the many races found within the Mass Effect universe (human, drell, asari, turian, krogan, quarian, geth, batarian, salarian, vorcha) and teams up with up to three other players to take on wave after wave of enemies. Survive 10 waves and you win. Players gain experience, level up their character, unlock new weapons, and new customizable options for their character. It can get repetitive after awhile but for the most part it is very fun and provides even more replay value. Then there’s the ending, which, as I’m sure you know, is controversial. While the original ending didn’t bother me it could have been improved and the new, free Extended Cut DLC does just that. The very last thing you do in this game is, appropriately, make a decision. That’s right, this game’s final boss is a decision, and believe me when I tell you, it’s the hardest decision I’ve ever made in a video game. Four choices are presented to you each with their own pros and cons. And choose wisely, as your decision changes the very foundation of the galaxy itself. Closure is given, questions are answered, and the outcome of your decision is illustrated. The ending is beautiful and memorable and I wouldn’t change in any way. Ultimately, Mass Effect 3 is an outstanding conclusion to the Shepard trilogy. By the time the credits role it truly sinks in. This was my Shepard. I shaped him/her and made him/her the legend whose story will be passed down from generation to generation (as evidenced in the ending). The gameplay is fantastic, the graphics are solid, the music is gorgeous, and the writing is incredible. This is the best of the three and BioWare deserves praise for creating one of the most detailed and emotional stories in video game history. Graphics: 9.5 Sound: 10 Gameplay: 10 Overall: 9.9
