Mass Effect 3

[admeister]

I'm not sure if I like where this is heading...It might end up being something good though.

[WilliamsF1]

A MMO possibly?
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[Jarrod]

Stuff.

Mass Effect: Infiltration A third person shooter iOS game by Iron Monkey (Dead Space iOS). Play as an operative infiltrating Cerberus bases to free hostages and collect evidence against their crimes. Can be tied to Mass Effect 3 to increase your galactic readiness, and will also unlock 'exclusive weaponry'.





Mass Effect: Data Pad seems to be some kind of info terminal for your iOS devices. Keeps you updated with story info and character messages. Also features some kind of troop deploying mini-game to effect galactic readiness.

"From Dust" DLC has shown up for purchase at GameStop in the US. Receipt gives a code, and it apparently costs US$10. No other details.
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[Benza]

damm IOS games are getting good looking.
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[admeister]

I'll bet the gameplay is pretty basic though.
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"The first person to prove that cow's milk is drinkable was very, very thirsty." - Fact Sphere.

[Jarrod]

Dead Space controls okay and is pretty faithful, though compartmentalised as expected. Interested to see how this plays exactly.
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[mrcool37]

I lol'd. Now you can RROD your new console in half the time with the all new,

Mass Effect 3 Console Vault Armor



This Limited Collector's Edition: Mass Effect 3 Vault, armors your console to show Shepard at his best. His chest piece features the iconic "N7 logo" that lights up in two different modes. Each Mass Effect 3 Vault comes with its own numbered Certificate of Authenticity and code that can be redeemed for bonus items in Mass Effect 3's Multiplayer experience.

*Exclusive Mass Effect 3 Armor Design
*Two mode LED Light Up N7 Logo
*Commander Shepard textured chest piece
*Mass Effect 3 code for bonus Multiplayer items.
*Battery Powered Lighting Effects
*Includes Headset / Controller Cradle
*-$99

DLC attachments to all these gimmicky add-ons and tie-ins is getting quite ridiculous.

[Jarrod]

Anthony if you buy that I will punch you.
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[grim-one]

[Anthony]

[Jarrod]

[Karai Pantsu]

[Jarrod]

New vids. FemShep trailer tomorrow.

Mass Effect 3: Build a Customizable Arsenal shows off (poorly at that) some of the tweaks you can make to your armour, weapons and online character.

Mass Effect 3: Adrenaline-Pumping Gameplay shows off explosions and bro shooting in your *cough* 'role playing game'.

Mass Effect 3: Ruthless and Intelligent Enemies gives us another look at the same enemies we've seen over and over. If you're on a blackout maybe don't watch this.

Mass Effect 3: Integrated Storytelling gives a brief info to the 'choices' you can make in the game. Nothing particularly spoiler worthy or all that significant to be honest. Dpes show a bit of a space battle, so skip it if you want that to be a surprise.

BioWare also re-released the co-op trailer with the spelling error fixed .
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[Jarrod]

FemShep trailer.

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[OropherX]

her character model looks so weird, like someone out of Alice Madness Returns.
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[Cyph]

Maybe I'm late to the party, but does anyone else see a reference to the plot/universe with the name of the protagonist being Shepard?

[ObsoletE]

You can get early access codes to the ME3 demo through the Facebook app currently running.

i got one first play, though since the demo is out on the 14th anyway (cos it's not like us geeks will be doing anything else that date, right?) i'm hoping to get a code for the Normandy avatar item.

the demo is pretty cool. nothing surprising for players of ME1 and 2 (although i did play through on RPG mode, haven't tried action or story mode yet, and likely won't.)

if you have been on info blackout though (and tbh, you probably aren't even reading this thread) then i'd probably avoid it.

EDIT: dammit, looks like all codes are gone... i wants my normandy!
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My Play-Asia Affiliate Link.

[Jarrod]

Not being able to holster your weapon in combat zones is lame, thank you BioWare. Poop. Also funny that they squarely blame console RAM limitations. Thank you consoles.
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[gamesavers]

Hi Guys,

I just wanted to chime in with our price, which I believe is one of the best going at the moment for Australian format stock, located within Aus. - meaning you'll actually receive it on release day (not 2 weeks later like some other 'Oz game shops' if you know what I'm saying!)

We have the console version for $94.99 and PC for $84.99 - with free express shipping.
http://www.gamesavers.com.au/product/mass-effect-3

I've also put together a custom special edition for Perth people who are attending the midnight launch (event details on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/events/310759278971489/)

Mass Effect 3 'Midnight Edition' http://www.gamesavers.com.au/mass-effect-3-midnight-edition

Cheers,
David

[Benza]

[Coltaine]

Finally finished ME2. A bit disappointed tbh, but it was still good fun. Anyway, I'm excited to play ME3 now because it will be the first time I get to use a character through 3 consecutive playthroughs, carrying consequences of "choices" (lame as they may be) with you. Pretty cool, especially since I played ME after ME2 was released, meaning I played and made decisions so I could get the most out of ME2. And I did the same in ME2 in anticipation of ME3, so ME3 will be just me, doing what I want, how I want it.

A few questions regarding the story. Might have missed the details or forgotten them seeing as how dull it actually is.

1) In ME, the Citadel was revealed to be a relay for the reapers. Sovereign was a reaper resting in vicinity of human/alien space. It awakened, used le geth and Saren to prepare the passage for the reapers. They ultimately failed, but not without some geth and friends blowing up a few things on the citadel. Missing anything?

2) The collectors cause some shit in ME2 to create a new reaper, as is custom, apparently. Only difference now is they aren't building a prothean ship as is implied to be the norm for the reapers, but rather a human one. They are led by a reaper named Harbinger. Scary stuff. I assume the reapers don't have a way into the space which we are protecting otherwise they'd just have done so and not bothered sending the collectors to do their bidding. So what is the threat? Where are the reapers? If they can't get to our territory then why are they a problem?
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[Jarrod]

1) Not really missing anything. The Citadel is basically a super relay the Reapers normally use to exit dark space into the galaxy and attack at the most ideal point. Attacking the citadel gives them access to census data for all space faring species, as well as nerf all other relays and thus keep civilisations grounded. The Keepers were supposed to activate it, but the Protheans botched the Reaper's signal. Sovereign, who normally 'leads the charge' and makes sure it all goes okay, noticed it wasn't working, and over time used Saren and the Geth as a tool to lead a charge and retake the Citadel. He failed.

2) Collector's normally act as 'researchers', I guess, during Reaper downtime, experimenting on and analysis organic data to give the Reapers in dark space as much information about what they'll face when the attack, and who best to harvest. Due to the above, the Collectors were instead tasked with constructing a Reaper with human genetic material, probably because they wanted another Reaper to wreck stuff up. That is dead, and so are the Collectors.

As for the other stuff, they're basically plot holes, bad writing and poor planning by BioWare. Essentially the last two games are now being made mostly irrelevant because the Reapers are somehow flying back to the galaxy and attacking anyway, just without the element of surprise and ideal entry point that the Citadel would have been.

It's a typical sign of a trilogy that wasn't really planned out very well, and expected given the nature of game development. I'm sure BioWare had a rough idea, but they didn't know if Mass Effect would be a hit or flop. There was always, always the gamble that the game would sell terribly, severely diminishing the likelihood of two sequels. So, naturally, they invested a lot of effort into creating a self contained story with a beginning, middle and end, with a small taste of where a sequel could go.

But, because they are making the whole trilogy, they've basically dug themselves a hole. Nothing comes close to the perceived stakes of Mass Effect, Sovereign's attack, the plight of the Protheans, and everything else. ME2/ME3 make the events more or less redundant, the necessity of Sovereign spending thousands of years plotting his attack less impressive, and the whole doom and gloom of the Reapers a bit bland.

I was kinda hoping they'd go the Sauron rout; a great enemy looking to return that never actually does. Alas, they did what they had to do to make it epic big and blockbustery. That and I don't have complete faith in BioWare's writers.
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[Coltaine]

^ Thanks. I guess the thing that's disappointed me most about the series is how the story, lore, characters and so on, lack innovation. How poor this is, I guess, is only emphasized by what you explained above. Poor planning and then blockbuster trump card that turns everything else redundant. It's like killing off a character in a novel to only bring him back later with some silly story. It feels like cheating. It feels like I'm being cheated. Surely the creative department could have thought of something a bit more clever and rewarding than the reapers going "Well, fuck it, looks like we'll have to do this the easy way after all". We'll see in ME3 in any case, I guess.
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[grim-one]

Bioware should hire George R R Martin.

6+ years to write a game's story might be a little bit much though....
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[Jarrod]

I'm not phased by the lack of innovation. I've always taken Mass Effect for what it is; a homage to all things sci fi. Basically every single plot point, idea and concept in the entire series is derived from typical sci fi tropes established by 70s sci fi television, movies, books and all that. There's not a lot of true 'originality' there.

But it's also a very dense and rich universe with lots of lore to absorb, and there's not much of anything like that in the world of gaming, not unless it's something based on another sci fi franchised that was established outside of gaming.

It's pure cheesy sci fi nonsense, but that's what I expected so that's what I like. I'm not really drawn to the series for exceptionally original writing, though I do wish they'd strive for a bit more cohesion and plausibility (within context), something they've been slipping up with lately.
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