Mass Effect 3

[Tron Bonne]

This been posted:

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/10/mass-effect-3-outed-on-ea-store/

[Update 3:56pm ET: Well, that was fast. Unsurprisingly, EA assassins have leapt into action, lobbing a throwing star into the unlucky server that housed the just-there-a-second-ago Mass Effect 3 listing. We've got our screen grabs after the break if you want to relive the memories.]

The EA Store has added a pre-order listing for Mass Effect 3 for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3. The listing includes a description that notes the "Earth is burning" and Commander Shepard (that's you!) has to gather the races of the galaxy to launch "one final mission" against machines striking from beyond known space.

No release window is provided on the site. Well, we guess that confirms the rumors we've been hearing about. The game is expected to be officially announced tomorrow during the 2010 VGAs on Spike. Just in case the page gets pulled, we've saved a full screengrab after the break, along with the game's description, just below. Also of note, the search screen which lists Mass Effect 3 releases for the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 platforms. This, of course, is likely placeholder data (evidenced by the PC release's unlikely $59.95 price tag) and there's no release dates, placeholder or otherwise, so it's anybody's guess as to whether all three versions will be released simultaneously.

Earth is burning. Striking from beyond known space, a race of terrifying machines have begun their destruction of the human race. As Commander Shepard, an Alliance Marine, your only hope for saving mankind is to rally the civilizations of the galaxy and launch one final mission to take back the Earth.​

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[ProjectPat2280]

But Pat! How can the Xbox brand possibly survive if two guys from Bioware appear at a Sony event? Didn't you know the Xbox 360 is doomed to failure? Isildur's Heir has said so many, many times. It must be true.


Rest in peace Xbox. We hardly knew ye.

D'oh! Iv forgotten about the thousand other times he's claimed the Xbox brand was dead. I guess i should just toss my system out the window, i mean with the nail in the coffin coming and what not.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

Oh lord.

Can you make just ONE post that doesnt have a negative attack towards Microsoft? Did Microsoft kick your dog or something? How did you go from being this foums biggest MS fanboy to one who despises the 360?

Also, the term is TIMED exclusive, not TIMELY exclusive.

Kid, are you in love with me or something?
I respect your sexual orientation, but i´m not interested.
If that´s not the case, what´s your problem?

What´s your problem if i´m negative towards Microsoft?
That´s was not the reason why i wrote that, but still.
And the all me being the biggest MS fanboy on this forums is the biggest mistery since aliens, atlantis, the bermuda triangle and the easter bunny; but hey, don´t make me spoil your fun, continue believing that i was.

 

[ProjectPat2280]

Kid, are you in love with me or something?
I respect your sexual orientation, but i´m not interested.
If that´s not the case, what´s your problem?

What´s your problem if i´m negative towards Microsoft?
That´s was not the reason why i wrote that, but still.
And the all me being the biggest MS fanboy on this forums is the biggest mistery since aliens, atlantis, the bermuda triangle and the easter bunny; but hey, don´t make me spoil your fun, continue believing that i was.

Haha, dude, you've been called out as an MS fanboy before, dont try to deny it. You then proceeded to do this 180 where you made sure everything out of your mouth was anti 360. Maybe you never were a 'fanboy' but now you just want to trash MS for no real reason. Its strange.

It's not so much the fact you are so anti MS now, its the fact your "predictions" are of the worst kind. None of them ever hold any water and result in just 'wishful thinking that MS fails'.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

Haha, dude, you've been called out as an MS fanboy, dont try to deny it. You then proceeded to do this 180 where you made sure everything out of your mouth was anti 360.

It's not so much the fact you are so anti MS now, its the fact your "predictions" are of the worst kind. None of them ever hold any water and result in just "wishful thinking that MS fails".

I will let Soapy answer it:

Didn't you know the Xbox 360 is doomed to failure? Isildur's Heir has said so many, many times. It must be true.

So, if i´ve been called out as an MS fanboy, it must be true.....

And my "predictions"?
I never predicted that the Xbox brand will die, that will not happen because morons in the US don´t allow it to.
Now, before some brainless drone accuse me of being anti-US to, i´m just stating facts, as the US is the only market were the XBox still has second place.
MS can´t get a foot in Japan and they lost Europe this year, so yeah, IF the US "wakes up", the Xbox brand is dead....this is not whisful thinking, this are facts.

Now, for the last time, i don´t want the Xbox brand to die, i just want it to fall as low as to MS asks "What the hell are we doing?".
I loved the 360 when i bought it in 2007, but then Peter Moore left (now i understand why he did it, because he saw the vision MS had for the console), and all went downhill....fast.
The problem is MS wants to turn the Xbox from a gaming console to a media box without asking anyone if they want it.
It would all be fine if they build it with that in mind from the get go, but no.
Now, look at Sony..
You have movies, music and all that, but never once looked away of what they are primarily, a gaming console.

 

[Wolvieboy17]

You're right Isildur... I hate the fact that i can hang out with my friends and chat while watching foxtel, or going on Twitter and Facebook. Global networking and combining of media services is so CLEARLY the opposite way that the industry is heading.

Seriously, who cares? If you don't like xbox, dont buy one and play what you like. So sick of overly negative *****e bags. I hate what the internet has done. Pre-internet rants, all my geeky game/comic/movie friends were just passionate about the things they loved. Now, on the internet, all everyone does it b***h and moan about the things they hate. It achieves nothing, it pisses everyone else off and it clearly doesn't make them feel any better otherwise they wouldn't have to keep on freaking doing it.

Now can we talk about Mass Effect 3, which is infinitely more interesting a subject for conversation?

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

You're right Isildur... I hate the fact that i can hang out with my friends and chat while watching foxtel, or going on Twitter and Facebook. Global networking and combining of media services is so CLEARLY the opposite way that the industry is heading.

You clearly didn´t understood nothing of my post expect what you wanted to.

Now can we talk about Mass Effect 3, which is infinitely more interesting a subject for conversation?

At least one thing we can all agree on.

 

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

On a second note, i pray that there is no MP on the game, because if so, not only nothing is sacred anymore, this might be the begining of the end for video games.

I bought the Orange Box back in 2007 and it had the best SP I have probably played in a game and to this day I'm still playing Team Fortress 2. I've been playing Starcraft II again recently and got one of the best RTS SP games as well as an MP that pretty much a country's sport. I haven't played Uncharted 2 but the SP got pretty rave reviews as well as a supposedly decent MP. I don't think all games obligatorily need to be Call Of Duty slapping on a 6 hour SP with a MP designed for 14 year old Puerto Rican boys who think they are 2pac reincarnated.

 

[Wolvieboy17]

You clearly didn´t understood nothing of my post expect what you wanted to.

So what you're saying there is that I actually understood everything?

 

[Flash Facts]

I don't think all games obligatorily need to be Call Of Duty slapping on a 6 hour SP with a MP designed for 14 year old Puerto Rican boys who think they are 2pac reincarnated.

Do you realize how racist this sounds?

I'm guessing it was unintentional as most of the comments I have read from you give me the impression that you are not a fool.

 

[Crockett]

If it is ME3 they will reveal at the VGA's (since more info is pointing to that it will be ME3) I wonder if Bioware is really considering putting a MP feature in it, now I know there's plenty of single-player game that got/will get MP mode, Bioshock 2 and Dead Space 2 etc but the thing is the Mass Effect series is a RPG, if they want to focus on getting all the aspect of making the last great game for Shepard why bother putting a MP mode in it? But if they manage to make it work and as long as we still will get a great game then it's fine.

 

[Wolvieboy17]

I think they'd be more likely to have some kind of drop in drop out co op than they are to have a deathmatch mode or something.

 

[Crockett]

That could work, as long as Bioware don't lose focus on making the game great then I'm fine with MP feature, the co-op could work.

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

Co-op scares me simply out of virtue of being a part of the SP element.

 

[Master Chief]

If Bioware puts co-op in or if EA forces them to put it in I'm gonna be pretty pissed. It's gonna be a sad day if Bungie ever listens to the thousands of idiots who don't play RPGs to be immersed in a world. Sure playing with a friend can be fun but goddammit not when the initials of the game are ME.

 

[Wolvieboy17]

See, i'm of two minds about co-op for Mass Effect, and i've had many discussions on these boards about it in the past. I would personally love it, but there are so many potential problems. I wouldn't want it if it detracted from the single player experience in any way at all. If it was an easy drop in drop out thing, a plus one type thing, like Fable 3, it could work. That way, if people want to they can play with a friend, or they can just do single player.

Its a big risky thing, that I wouldnt want them to do unless they could do it proper justice. That said, if anyone could do it the proper amount of time, care and dedication needed, it would be Bioware.

 

[Master Chief]

Just by being there it detracts from the single player experience. The game is intended for you, the player, to take on the role of saving the friggin galaxy. I wouldn't mind co-op in a game set in the ME universe but not in a game where you're supposed to play as Commander Shepard. Even if it's an option I can ignore it'd be a bummer knowing Bioware catered to the whiners and featured something that offered very little in the big picture. "GUYSSSS, YOU'VE GOT IT! YOU CAN NOW PLAY AS ONE OF YOUR BUDDY'S SQUAD MEMBERS!!" whooo, let's throw a party.

But maybe I'm just being bitter about the whole thing because I've hated co-op since it molested RE5.

 

[Fenrir]

There is nothing I hate more than this shameless proliferation of multiplayer in games that are supposed to be purely single player experiences.

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

Just by being there it detracts from the single player experience. The game is intended for you, the player, to take on the role of saving the friggin galaxy. I wouldn't mind co-op in a game set in the ME universe but not in a game where you're supposed to play as Commander Shepard. Even if it's an option I can ignore it'd be a bummer knowing Bioware catered to the whiners and featured something that offered very little in the big picture. "GUYSSSS, YOU'VE GOT IT! YOU CAN NOW PLAY AS ONE OF YOUR BUDDY'S SQUAD MEMBERS!!" whooo, let's throw a party.

But maybe I'm just being bitter about the whole thing because I've hated co-op since it molested RE5.

I don't mind it when separated from the SP experience - Metal Gear/Uncharted and it looks like Dead Space 2 and others managed to do so without intruding in the slightest but a co-op experience just feels like it would intrinsically change the single-player element in some way.

We should take note that we are all speculating, we in reality have no concrete idea what will and won't be announced tomorrow.

 

[Wolvieboy17]

But I don't understand what the problem with optional co op is? If it's purely optional and they don't alter the single player at all, then isn't that an everyone wins scenario? People who want to play pure single player are happy and people who want a friend to join in are happy?

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

No if it wasn't to alter ANYTHING I wouldn't mind in the slightest - but I really don't see how that would work. I can't think of any game that had co-op that even while playing the story solo the function wasn't obvious in some way. Generally there's a second NPC character ala Gears or there's a team environment like in Halo Reach to allow the second player to jump in.

The thing is the single player would have to be tweaked in some way to allow both players to play on-line with one another when the co-op is being used, otherwise whoever is the host would be in complete control over how the game is played. This might work for close friends but people who want to hop on Live and use said co-op randomly might find the setup less than convenient.

How would the cut scenes be visualized? How would the game be balanced to account for a second human player? I see a huge mess developing.

Maybe some kind of mini-campaign or something like what Portal 2 is doing - that I would be down for but again not at the expense of the SP mode.

 

[Fenrir]

But I don't understand what the problem with optional co op is? If it's purely optional and they don't alter the single player at all, then isn't that an everyone wins scenario? People who want to play pure single player are happy and people who want a friend to join in are happy?

That depends upon the story. For some games like Halo or Gears of War, where you're naturally part of a team, co-op can seamlessly blend into the experience. But for games (and especially RPGs) like Mass Effect where it is about you - creating your own character, defining him/her through your choices...co-op and multiplayer only drag down the single player experience. There is only a finite amount of resources a developer can throw at a game and when part of those resources end up on some tacked-on, half-assed multiplayer components which would have otherwise been better utilized for turning a good single player experience into an extraordinary one, it is infuriating.

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

Also just to look at it from a different perspective would Bioware WANT a cooperative RPG with Old Republic coming out next year?

 

[Armored Avenger]

Considering EA have said that single player games are dead they will likely force Bioware to add some multiplayer into Mass Effect 3 somehow. I hope there isn’t, but if it does happen I would rather have a standalone multiplayer mode which doesn’t interfere with the single player campaign in any way.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

Considering EA have said that single player games are dead...

Frank Gibeau is a moron, but he didn´t said that per se, what he said was:

“EA is very comfortable moving the discussion towards how we make connected gameplay – be it co-operative or multiplayer or online services – as opposed to fire-and-forget, packaged goods only, single-player, 25-hours-and you’re out. I think that model is finished. Online is where the innovation, and the action, is at.”

He can´t be further, but if it goes ahead, either is the end of EA or the end of the industry, as video games can´t live without single player, but they can easily live without online.
The last sentence "Online is where the innovation, and the action, is at"...well, it is all about action i give him that, but innovation.....more than the campaign?
A better sentence should have been: Online is where the MONEY is, because it´s way easier to capitalize on the MP than the SP; that´s why everyone want to have MP in their games, not only they can sell Map Packs and DLC alike, but because it´s one way (not the only one, but companies are too stupid to look elsewhere until someone else does) to fight the pre-own games.
That, and if things continue i agree with Patcher, someone someday will make a subscription for MP.