Plotting a course: how Mass Effect 3 brought the trilogy to a close

From Eurogamer: "Whatever you think of Mass Effect 3's final moments, it's fair to say BioWare's third chapter brought the trilogy to a close in style. Over the course of the game, every squadmate past and present gets their turn in the spotlight, major story arcs get revisited and tied off, and Shepard is prepped for their last big mission.

But how did BioWare begin planning Mass Effect 3? How much was set in stone already? And how did the studio start tackling the headache of (potentially) killing off everyone in Mass Effect 2's extraordinary Suicide Mission? To celebrate the release of Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, I sat down for an extended interview with lead writer Mac Walters to discuss how the game's story was set down - and some of the things which changed along the way. Read on for new details of cut ideas and swapped missions, plus an early idea for an Easter egg which would have ended the whole trilogy in the first half hour of Mass Effect 1."

[ArchangelMike]

And then Anrdomeda brought the whole franchise to a close.

If EA can release a game like Jedi fallen Order, then I see no reason why they can't release smaller standalone games withtin the Mass Effect Universe. There's just so much back story, and they could pick up with anyone of the companion characters.

DLC like lair of the shadow broker, demonstrated that we don't really need commaner Shepherd to enjoy Mass Effect. I'd play a standalone game with Garrus, or Liara, or even the Illusive Man. But not Kaiden though. Kaiden always dies in all my playthroughs.

[DJStotty]

I want to know what the deal is with the new mass effect trailer, when Liara spots shepherds armour in the snow.

[Rebel_Scum]

Dunno why the suicide mission is always mentioned as if its the greatest thing since sliced bread. Its fairly mediocre as far as missions go and is definitely nothing compared to ME1’s final mission where you’re fighting your way on the outside of the citadel.

[LordoftheCritics]

Its the opposite.

[Rebel_Scum]

Yes my Lord.

[dolfa]

ME2 collector ship end was for me the best game implementation of squad members and the decisions you make troughout any rpg squad based game. This is why was ME3 ending for me such a let down. I expected similiar experience as was on the collector ship. Instead we got something like lame half cutscenes and boring talk with possibly not existing entity without any squad members contributing.

[enkiduxiv]

I actually think that if they made the approach to the crucible just like the invasion of the collector base everyone would have been more impressed with the endings. SLIGHT SPOILERS: Basically, give every character a task. If Wreav is commanding a ship instead of Wrex, the Normandy takes damage and you lose a crew member. Or if the Geth are there as reinforcements instead of the Quarians, have the Normandy's shuttle get shot down and lose a crew member.

Hell, a modder could almost do it. The cut scenes could be the same with a brief shot of rendered graphics showing the crew member right before their death and then fade to black. It would add so much more weight to the game's final act if the choices you made up to that point had a visible effect.

What we got was a cut scene that was either more or less elaborate based on your galactic readiness. It didn't really feel like you accomplished anything with a unique playthrough. I think that doing this one small thing would make the ending a little easier to stomach.

[ArchangelMike]

The suicide mission was brilliant and a high watermark fo the entire series. The consequences of your previous actions, and the characters you saved or lost during the game were reflected in that last mission. In fact there was a trophy for getting to that last mission without loosing any characters. Apart from the mission itself, the story and buildup, and then the various endings. It was definately the high point of the series.

[-Foxtrot]

By disappointment, no real pay offs where your choices mattered and a stupid space kid...