Yes, Mass Effect 3 has a divisive ending. This is not in dispute, despite the fact that I happen to think it’s excellent. Mass Effect 3 is the final installment in the greatest gaming trilogy of all-time. It wraps up all of the series’ loose ends, and finishes Commander Shepard’s journey, alongside his friends and crewmates. New faces emerge and old ones reappear. Your choices from the previous games, especially Mass Effect 2, hold a lot of weight. Based on choices in the first two games, former crew members either reappear or they don’t. Choices in the first game affect the third. The end run of the second game profoundly affects Mass Effect 3, as your entire crew could potentially die. Everybody’s experience is different. While the ending may not be your cup of tea, Mass Effect is more about the journey, not the end result. And this is why Mass Effect 3 is the best Mass Effect game. It has great characters, difficult decisions, is incredibly immersive, and a fantastic story as Shepard ends his story and his fight for humanity’s survival. It has the most emotional moments in the entire trilogy. You feel the weight of Commander Shepard’s decisions as if they were your own, and this is just one of the reasons why Mass Effect 3 is the best Mass Effect game.
Mass Effect 3 has the most difficult decisions in the series. Do I cure the Krogan, or let them die off and kill Mordin in the process? Do I shoot Ashley/Kaiden in a standoff? Do I upload the Reaper code to Legion and potentially push Tali to commit suicide? The latter was a part of my first experience, and I couldn’t take it back. I was devastated. I felt the weight of Commander Shepard’s decision — no, I was Commander Shepard. As the game went on, I felt the weight of his decisions. All the sacrifices I made, some of the ruthless actions I took in order to save the galaxy — I felt the burden of those choices as the game went on, as did the Commander in-game. It is such an immersive experience, and while Mass Effect 2 was great, it didn’t have the same gravity, nor were the stakes as high. Mass Effect 3 is superior to the first two games in every way because not only are your choices so difficult, but it’s the culmination of everything the first two games built towards. It’s the most immersive experience in the trilogy.
On the technical side, Mass Effect 3 is the best-looking and most polished game of the Mass Effect Trilogy. The game runs incredibly smooth, graphically it’s unparalleled (which is why the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition is going to be so good), and it has the best gameplay in the series, building off of what was already established in the first two games. The music is also the best in the series, with Sam Hulick returning from the previous two games and legendary composer Clint Mansell from Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain, and Black Swan coming on board. They really went all-out for the third installment in the franchise, and it shows. The gameplay is a lot of fun and they improved much of the issues from the first two games. The characters are also engaging and the game has a great supporting cast, depending on who survived Mass Effect 2. It’s the bonds you forged during the first two games which will shape your experience in the third game. This is not simply a plot-driven game, but a personal, character-driven game as well. It’s executed to perfection, another thing that contributes to the fact that Mass Effect 3 is the best Mass Effect game.
Yes, the ending of Mass Effect 3 is divisive and may seem like a copout, leaving you three “colored” choices to choose from, shaping how the game ends. This doesn’t take away from the accomplishment that is Mass Effect 3, nor the trilogy at large. Mass Effect 3 is still the best Mass Effect game, despite this. It’s the journey, not the end result that matters. With the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition releasing in May, a brand new generation of gamers are going to have the opportunity to experience the trilogy for themselves. Will they receive the games, and Mass Effect 3, like the previous generation did? Or will they be satisfied with how it ends? At this point, it’s anyone’s guess. Mass Effect 3 is such an engrossing experience, much more so than its predecessors, and the ending, regardless of how you feel about it, cannot take away from that. The characters and choices you make are incredibly difficult, but when it’s all said and done, it’s an incredibly satisfying experience that will leave its mark on you. It’s the best game of the greatest gaming trilogy of all-time. Mass Effect 3 is nothing short of a masterpiece.