#starting with me2

[catsharky]

As terrifying as it would have been, I like to think there was a moment of peace there at the end, among the stars.

-

So... this is the next part of the Shakarian comic, but it's not the big one I said would come next. I've made the decision to put that on the back burner for now and pick away at it a lot more slowly while I continue on with what I originally had planned. The next thing you see from me will likely be the Joker-centric part I mentioned a while back, but for now please enjoy this rare coloured comic in the meantime.

Part 1 • Previous Part • Next Part

[the-fae-tricked-me]

If they never intended on Garrus being romanceable, they shouldn't have gave him the small, slutty, switchy waist on top of the immaculate personality and vibes they made that man exude in me1

[ndostairlyrium]

I think I'm less disappointed with the finale than others because I was there for the me3 finale debacle lol

The bad part is that me3 finale made sense. It was just um, straight up one of the worst ideas they could ever think of, but it made- sigh.

Here you have like, the perfect build up, the stakes are me2 level of "if I fucked up during the pt my friends are gonna pay the price", and closure with your companions. However it's contradictory asf, it forces you to break immersion and, in the wrongest moment for a rational thought makes you say "wait, why are we back to step 1? what about the bli- aw the lost elf theme ;; hold on, why aren't you bringing up the things that has been repeated nonstop via super long expositions throughout the game?? MR. MORRIS COME BACK, CONFUSE ME AGAIN"

It's gorgeous, but it doesn't make sense, and then it does, and then it doesn't again. I am confusion

Back in my days (lmaooo) we got an apology and a 2gb free dlc called "extended cut" that was like this meme

but it did patch only a few things. The finale stayed there. Immutable

and we only had to presume what went wrong during development, but then we all saw the artbook and agreed that maybe there were interferences from above and that the real treasure was the friends we made along the way and that would die horribly if you had 50% or less of reactivity that you could raise only by playing the multiplayer and those who were playing the game on a console had to spend money to gain access to it

Yeah, I don't think they're good at finales. "But at least"

[nonuel]

mass effect fandom typically has no problem disregarding or rewriting portions of canon, but one thing i have almost never seen touched is the friendship between garrus and shepard. so here is a poll because i am genuinely curious. i tried to be as expansive as poll limitations allowed, but since we are already throwing out canon i recognize there are a lot of variances that haven't been included. because of that, i would particularly like it if people elaborated about their non-romantic relationship with garrus in the tags, comments, or reblogs - especially if you are someone who has voted for any of the non-friend options. thanks for your time!

this post is not meant to be garrus critical. garrus enjoyers are welcome to participate in the poll, i only ask that you are respectful toward other people who may not have him as their favorite, or who may just simply roleplay a shepard that does not have him as their (best) friend for whatever reason.

[kaidanalenkosprmanager]

THE BEST OF SHENKO 1/?

The end of the world has a way of reminding you of all the things you forgot to say do. Mass Effect: Legendary Edition (2021)

[nellasbookplanet]

I know I'm about a decade late but I've been replaying the Mass Effect trilogy for the first time since I was a teenager and I'm going absolutely bonkers trying to figure out if the endings are actively and stupidly working against the core themes of all three games, or if they actually thematically work but in the bleakest way imaginable.

All three endings are the embodiment of what we've been fighting literally from the start. In ME1 Saren thinks the Reapers cannot be defeated and so strives for Synthesis, thinking it will save us but not realizing he's already been indoctrinated and has basically willingly turned himself into a husk by the end. In ME2 & 3 the Illusive Man thinks destroying the Reapers would be a waste and that we should instead control both their technology and them as a species, ignoring that this is not only a heinous thing to do but also incredibly arrogant, seeing as anyone poking at Reaper technology gets indoctrinated. Both Synthesis and Control are actively argued against by the very narrative. That in combination with Destroy being the only ending in which Shepard survives, it’s no wonder many fans seem to consider it the only "true" ending (and it’s also not very surprising the indoctrination theory got so popular).

But Destroy comes with its own issues. Aside from the ethical implications of only being able to win by committing genocide against your own allies (synthetics in general, geth and EDI in particular), like with the other two it seems to be actively argued against throughout the narrative.

You are the strongest at the end by striving for cooperation throughout the games, showing time and again that destruction isn't necessary. You save the krogan from extinction, stop the geth and the quarians from wiping each other out. From Javik we find out that the strength of this cycle compared to his is the diversity and cooperation between alien species; from the Leviathan DLC as well as the history of the geth and of EDI we find that synthetics are only violent by mirroring their creators, and can be peaceful just as much as organics. And yet here is an ending arguing for completely wiping out all synthetics.

Assuming the writers were not actually trying to work against their own themes, this makes all three endings incredibly bleak. With the constant emphasis on making hard choices throughout the trilogy, is the point that there is no way to achieve a truly "good" ending? That you'll have to compromize your morals or your allies or both to stop extinction? That Saren or the Illusive Man's solutions could have worked had they not been corrupted, similarly to how synthetic implants (a step toward synthesis) did not automatically corrupt Shepard (with Kai Leng as a foil of cybernetic implants instead leading to indoctrination), or reaper code upgrades didn’t automatically corrupt EDI or the geth?

But if so, why are all endings presented as... happy? Why is Synthesis lifted as the epitome of evolution and peace while never touching the sacrifice of agency in the name of survival? Why does Control lift the "power in control" and "wisdom of harnessing the strength of your enemy" while ignoring the ethical implications of basically indoctrinating and enslaving the reapers in turn? Why does neither of these endings lift the risk of them turning sour the way they did for Saren and the Illusive Man? Why does Destory lift victory and rebuilding while ignoring the literal genocide that took place to allow for it? None of these are presented as bittersweet endings in which morals had to be sacrificed in the name of survival and a better future, but they also work against the themes in such an obvious way that I refuse to believe the writers didn’t notice. There must be more to it.

[sweetmage]

Zaeed is so hot!! Why did no one tell meeeee!?? Sketchy old man fucker mode ACTIVATED! I need him BAD!!!

[heat-sink]

I forgot how much I fuckin hate the game mechanics in me2

and the limiting of what guns each class can use.... man they made some stupid ass decisions

[aceghosts]

ROONEY SHEPARD (CP2077 AU)

You only feel it when it's lost Gettin' through still has a cost Quietly, it slips through your fingers, love Falling from you drop by drop -Who We Are by Hozier

TEMPLATE by @marivenah

Taglist (Lmk if you want to be added or removed): @sstewyhosseini, @nightbloodbix, @strangefable, @marivenah

[chelshiart]

realized that i got to get all my crossover headcanons out before the new MB book comes out in september sooooo...

[grimwarden]

.... Finally finished me2. The last mission.... I never sweat so hard in my life but everyone's alive and well. I'm glad I got into the game so late.

[passiveaggressiveturkeys]

Yes I could use the custom character creator but the idea of TIM going “no we must bring her back exactly as she was, including that completely impractical hairstyle, we have no way of knowing if having hair constantly falling over one eye is what gave her the motivation to save the galaxy”

And then Miranda just having to sit there muttering “I am a scientist” while becoming Shepard’s resurrect/coma hairdresser

It’s just funny to me idk

[weirdbabs]

i am once again thinking about how fucked it is that sacrificing like half to three fourths of the ships/crews to save 3 people is considered a paragon option but sacrificing about 75% of your unit to defeat the enemy is renegade. why would sacrificing thousands of people to save 3 be considered “compassionate” or “heroic” while sacrificing 75% of your unit (which is 7-14 people apparently, so like 5-11 people) to ensure you won is considered “ruthless” or “apathetic”

(i know why. its bc the first mass effect game doesnt really seem to have a grip on what it wants its morality to be much more than blue= nice, good and red= bad, mean)

[bigboobshaunt]

Just finished Mass Effect...!

[redpool]

I finally got access to Mass Effect 1 and I'm going to do a playthrough of all three of them.

[kaidanalenkosprmanager]

THE BEST OF PRIORITY: TUCHANKA (PART 2)

Featuring: Cmdr. Sophie Shepard, Lt. James Vega, EDI, Urdnot Wrex, and Dr. Mordin Solus With: Urdnot Bakara And a Special Guest Appearance by: Kalros, Mother of All Thresher Maws I MADE A MISTAKE! I made a mistake... big picture made of little pictures- too many variables. Can't hide behind statistics... can't ignore new data- my responsibility. Need to go- running out of time. Not your work, not your cure- not your decision. Had to be me- someone else might have gotten it wrong... Mass Effect 3: Legendary Edition (2021)