Mass Effect

[Fixer]

The proble with that is... the Reapers MADE the Relays. So really, they're helping to continue the very problem they've created. I feel it makes much more sense to have them more akin to thinking they're saving and preserving life for it's own sake. It really doesn't need an external crisis to work. It could just be the conclusion they came to after watch civilizations burn out and die so pointless and they felt it was such a waste in that.

I guess I just like my evil space robot squids to be a bit more esoteric in their morality.

It makes a lot of sense when you go back to Vigil's reveal in Mass Effect. Element Zero Mass Effect technology is not the only technological path that can be taken by developing species. The Reapers leave behind examples of the tech having the species of the galaxy develop their own variations of the technology and seeing how various species have better biotic potential before harvesting them. Effectively the Milky Way galaxy is one giant trial and error experiment to improve their own knowledge and fine a solution to the dark energy problem that they haven't been able to resolve in any other way.

Considering that the Reapers are literally built from that technology and their very existence is harmful to the fabric of the universe it would be logical for them to do anything to try and fix the harmful side effect of element zero use rather than try to find an alternative.

[CharlesPhipps]

I preferred the Transhumanist F***-Up argument.

Some time, long ago, some species wanted to become immortal and eternal so they uploaded themselves into big epic Star-Destroyer-sized spaceships. Except, it didn't work and the result was the Borg rather than Heaven.

And these creatures "uplifted" everyone else.

So the Reapers are doing us a favor by their logic. Despite it coming with liquidfication.

[Rodan56]

It makes a lot of sense when you go back to Vigil's reveal in Mass Effect. Element Zero Mass Effect technology is not the only technological path that can be taken by developing species. The Reapers leave behind examples of the tech having the species of the galaxy develop their own variations of the technology and seeing how various species have better biotic potential before harvesting them. Effectively the Milky Way galaxy is one giant trial and error experiment to improve their own knowledge and fine a solution to the dark energy problem that they haven't been able to resolve in any other way.

Considering that the Reapers are literally built from that technology and their very existence is harmful to the fabric of the universe it would be logical for them to do anything to try and fix the harmful side effect of element zero use rather than try to find an alternative.

But... they specifically make a bunch of element zero based technology to specifically enforce a specific technological and societal evolutionary path. The result is the same everytime. They are basically repeating a failed experiment constantly. It makes no sense. They deliberately sabotaging their own test. Their subjects will only ever go down a single specific path laid out for them. That's how the harvest works.

I'm with Charles here, it makes more sense when they have a transhumanist mindset, not a "If you use hyperdrive too much you'll destroy the universe!" thing.

[CharlesPhipps]

There's been multiple explanations for the Reapers.

* Sovereign implies that the Reapers are using the Harvest Cycle to create small innovations on their own technology by controlling the development of existing races.
* Sovereign also says they have utterly inscrutable motives and we should just accept that.
* There's the implications of dying stars.
* There's the Human Reaper
* Then there's the "Buggy Software" answer

You could do other ones too if you wanted.

[Fixer]

Most of those would have worked.

A lot of the important things would be to not contradict the previous information we had about the Reapers.

They were malevolent, utterly contemptable of organic species and the geth using a combination of terror tactics in converting being into zombie monsters. Were only interested in humanity as a viable species for whatever they were going to do, which was something to do with genetic diversity and biotic potential.

Shep's body was also valuable to them. Probably for being such an incredible badass.

The post-human idea could work if they only judge humanity as worthy.

The "preserve species" motivation has to fall back on the "cliched AI following its programming to stupid ends" trope which undermines the Reaper's lovecraftian aspects and contradicts everything we knew in the theory-crafting prior to the game's release.

[Winter]

So at the end of last year I posted a 8 part fan fix called Rewriting Mass Effect 3, the basic idea here was what I would want in a future ME game which, for me, would be rebooting ME3 and ME2's DLC Arrival into a expansion pack while leaving the first two games alone, again side from Arrival.

For this Reboot of the third game I took a lot of inspiration from DAO, KOTOR and DAI and taking the best parts of ME3 as the basic ground work and while it's not perfect I was pleased with my little project. But anyway the reason I wrote this is because for me, Mass Effect is pretty much dead, or at least in a coma after the train wreck that was Mass Effect: Andromeda.

I honestly think that just rebooting the third game is the best option here as MEA's failure pretty much assures that no one will want a sequel to that game unless it is really REALLY amazing while rebooting ME3 and making it so the ending is, you know, actually impacted by the choices of the player instead of BioWare.

Here's a link to my rewrite if anyone is interested and I would like to know what you think of it.
https://www.deviantart.com/journals/?q= ... Masquerade

[Nevix]

* There's the implications of dying stars.

This was leaked before the release of ME3 as the cause of the Reaper Cycle, since the universe itself would break and FTL would become impossible if Mass Effect technology weren't limited.

But, it was leaked, and the higher ups decided to change it.

Hence the ending mess we got.

This is another reason why I really want to slap people who leak details like this. It often ruins the end product for everyone, and just makes the situation worse.

[Winter]

* There's the implications of dying stars.

This was leaked before the release of ME3 as the cause of the Reaper Cycle, since the universe itself would break and FTL would become impossible if Mass Effect technology weren't limited.

But, it was leaked, and the higher ups decided to change it.

Hence the ending mess we got.

This is another reason why I really want to slap people who leak details like this. It often ruins the end product for everyone, and just makes the situation worse.

Even with that in mind it would still be a "Your Choices Don;t Matter" ending which means nothing you did mattered in the end. The only difference is that this ending was set up before ME3 while the Little Blue Troll wasn't foreshadowed until the Leviathan DLC, and even then only in one conversation.

The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt, shows how to do this sort of thing right as while choices from the first two games don't really add up to anything, the choices you make throughout the game do effect the out come of the games ending. Does Ciri live or die, who wins the war, what is the fate of all the characters you send 100ds of hours getting to know. All come down to your choices which even includes minor side quests.

In fact when I watched W3, I had yet to buy the game, I was a bit worried because conjunction seemed to come out of nowhere at the games finally and I was having flashbacks to ME3's ending when the Little Blue Troll showed up. But unlike ME3 W3 handled this a lot better as it was short and to the point and was at least set up a little bit and while Ciri says that this is her story not yours the game reminds everyone how important your choices are.

While my heart will always belong to Dragon Age: Inquisition W3 is a amazing game that deserves all the praise it gets and shows what ME3 Should have been if they had followed through on their promise.

[CharlesPhipps]

I think the ending only needed to be edited, not changed.

Just end the game with a fade out on Shepard lying beside Anderson and maybe a voice over saying something like, "The Reapers are blowing up!"

It would have been touching, sad, and still worked.

[Winter]

I think the ending only needed to be edited, not changed.

Just end the game with a fade out on Shepard lying beside Anderson and maybe a voice over saying something like, "The Reapers are blowing up!"

It would have been touching, sad, and still worked.

Possibly, though I would rather that be one of the endings instead of the only one because that still ties into the biggest problem of ME3, if you're going to die no matter what then what is the point of any of this? If Shepard is doomed to die then why fight to keep him/her alive in ME2, why promise your love interest that you want to grow old with them and join them on their home world? I'm not against Shepard dying but I would rather that be a result of your choices, mistakes and successes, be the reason you die instead of it just being the only option based on things you have no control over.