Space Opera Fans discussion

The Mass Effect trilogy borrows heavily from lots of space opera ideas and sources, one of which is the Revelation Space series. It's a fantastic game series. (Minor spoilers). Let's see: instead of Inhibitors there are Reapers, but they have the same mo more or less. Cycle of wiping out sentient life on a galactic scale. Check. Main characters are into archaeology? Check. Factions? Check. Varying classes of AI that occasionally go rogue or if helpful get to manage ship systems and weapons suites. Modifications? Check. Awesome game? Yes, my favorite, because it is a space opera through and through. What are your thought on this game vs. space operas?

I just moved your discussion down into 'Reader Discussions' and tagged it for you, MorningLightMountain (it ended up someplace wonky where you originally posted it).

Now ... who here has played Mass Effect? I've only played it twice ... quite some time ago. I have to be careful with MMORPGs ... I tend to go in and not come out for weeks :-)

I LOVE the Mass Effect series. I've been familiar with it for a long time, probably since around the time the first game was released, but I didn't get the opportunity to play until just a couple of years ago. I've played through the whole trilogy 4 times now and it definitely surpassed all the expectations I'd formed over the years.

The story and characters are all amazing - I definitely never expected to become obsessed with it. It's one of my favorite space opera sci fi setings, second only to Star Wars, which was my first love. And based on what I know about the "textbook" definition of space opera, Mass Effect is the epitome of one. And since it's a game, there are a lot of people out there who haven't gotten the chance to experience it. In that sense, I sometimes wish it was a movie or a book so everyone could have the opportunity to take part in such an awesome story/environment. But at the same time, having a movie or book would of course require a canon storyline, which would totally ruin the concept of player choice that makes the game so special (I'm looking at you, KotOR...). I really hope they don't go through with the movie idea. I'd take ME4 over a movie any day.

I totally agree with that. I can't wait for the next installment.

I loved this game as well and was really astonished at how well the story dragged me in right from the start. So much so that I have found most other games to be pretty weak in comparison now. I agree with A.J. about the movie though and hope it does not happen. I am always baffled why people think it will directly translate. When you play this game you are the central character and decision maker in a sprawling epic that takes about 40 hours to compete. Same thing with a book, you are totally immersed in the story. The movie just happens around you and would just have me thinking about how many parts they missed. Great story though and anyone with a passing interest in games should definitely give this a go because it is really the sci fi game that I had been waiting my whole life for. I am Commander Shephard and this is my favourite store in the Citadel.

The big problem I had with Mass Effect is in typical WRPG fashion it tried to have it's cake and eat it too in terms of YOU CHOOSE. Where basically no matter what you did everything was effectively the same...sure maybe one character died instead of another but it didn't really dramatically change anything.

It basically comes down to how much I hate the good/evil system compared to the flag system. Even worse it really only changed the endings compared to a flag/route system which will like actually entice me to play multiple times. But if you were doing multiple routes you would have to choose a true-route unless you did it like Muv-Luv (view spoiler)[ Turns out all routes were true because the main heroine was throwing the world into a time-loop over and over again until the main character started remembering the old loops and took new actions which threw the main character on the last game route (hide spoiler)], or like in VLR (view spoiler)[ No really huge spoilers (view spoiler)[ Where you had to solve the final puzzle by completing all the other routes and using your knowledge from going though the other routes to just instant solve all the puzzles without any clues. (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]. You can pretty much tell if the your choices matter is a cop-out...because the game is made by a western developer and it has the words OVER 30 DIFFERENT ENDINGS. The key is that the number of endings don't matter what matters is routes. Who cares if the last page of a book is different when the rest of the book is all pretty much the same.

Now what I loved about Mass Effect was pretty much all the silly side content, the cheesy ads, the this is my favorite store in the Citadel, the very awkward elevator scenes. I felt the humor in the game was always top notch, and the plot was decent enough and at least the renegade options were often humorous as well.

As far as a movie Mass Effect that sounds bad, it would work wayyyyyy better as a Saturday Morning Cartoon show.

Loved this series but that ending man....I look at it this way now. The Citadel DLC occurs after ME3 "ends". Still I do like replaying it from time to time.

Fiannawolf wrote: "Loved this series but that ending man....I look at it this way now. The Citadel DLC occurs after ME3 "ends". Still I do like replaying it from time to time."

I never minded the ending(s) that much. Granted, I did have the Extended Cut installed from the outset so I never had the pleasure of seeing the "real" endings, and I've always been a little bit of a sucker for bittersweet endings anyway. I always torment myself by doing the Citadel DLC right before going to Cronos Station and triggering the end-game sequence.

None of the endings are great, per se, but I remember I accidentally did the Refusal ending the very first time I played and that one sucks. I think Destroy is probably my favorite (I've tried all of them just for the heck of it).

Still, it's by far my favorite game series. Now they just need to go back and remaster the old KotOR games and I'll be a happy camper

The original KOTOR still stands as my favorite game of all time. I played 6 or 7 times. Don't get my inner geek started...,but I second that motion.

Bye the way KOTOR is now on I-PAD.

I would prefer new KOTOR games instead of a remaster.

Yeah but new KotORs would mean canon Man!Revan *massive eyeroll* The whole point of an RPG, after all, is the concept of your-character-your-headcanon-your-choices. It's been ages since I've played SWTOR but I feel like even it has kinda ruined the old games. Well, the Revan novel is what started the whole debacle in the first place, but still.

With the new films coming out there's the possibility that they'll make a Knights of the New Republic game.

They lost me with the funky light saber reveal. It will be a struggle to stay open minded because in the back of my head, I'll always be saying, my KOTOR Sith was better.

MorningLightMountain wrote: "They lost me with the funky light saber reveal. It will be a struggle to stay open minded because in the back of my head, I'll always be saying, my KOTOR Sith was better."

Seriously? Two seconds of teaser footage is enough to ruin a film for you? Man you've got tough standards!
At this point we have 164 seconds of footage, most of which is of empty desert and black scene transitions. There's no way to establish an informed opinion on that little data, let alone a serious debate.

Mass Effect is probably my favorite Space Opera ever.

MorningLightMountain wrote: "They lost me with the funky light saber reveal. It will be a struggle to stay open minded because in the back of my head, I'll always be saying, my KOTOR Sith was better."

I think it should have shields too and lasers. Make it so crazy, it's like a mini Star Destroyer that you can hold...

What I'm getting at is there is no such thing as a "pure" lightsaber, so you shouldn't get upset at a new lightsaber version. Plus the two side things will likely play a pivotal part for that Sith. Those things aren't going to be there just to be there.

Actually for several thousand years light sabers were fairly constant in that universe. There were established fighting forms with different goals and light saber length, diameter, and hilt varied based on that, but that other than that it was the same style of weapon. I think that is what bothers me. They just rolled in and changed it, whether or not they bother to pay respect to all the history remains to be seen.

In a way I'm glad the EU got rebooted. No more "canon" Revans. Everyone is on the same page. But I digress. Ill be waiting for ME4 reviews to hit from normal people before I leap in again. Loved the characters and setting but I did get to see what the original endings were like even before the Extended cut and Citadel. So...maybe if they have a different writing team for the main story Ill give it another chance.

I just bought the Mass Effect trilogy for PS3. I've heard so many great things about it, that it has to be at least an all right game. Gonna get started on it tomorrow morning.

Jonathan wrote: "I just bought the Mass Effect trilogy for PS3. I've heard so many great things about it, that it has to be at least an all right game. Gonna get started on it tomorrow morning."

It's seriously one of my favorite trilogies/stories ever, including movies, TV shows, and books. The characters are amazing, the visuals are great, and the music is flawless. I have a hunch you'll LOVE IT.

Except I've been fighting the urge to start another playthrough lately and people keep posting stuff about it and it's making it really hard to resist... Dang it, I've got a book to write!

I love that gif. That was from Tosh.0 if I'm not mistaken.

It's the choose your own adventure that did it in for me. I can't get past that part of the game, mainly because since videogames introduced the dialogue tree for your character's response I have hated it. Never saw a point to it. To me it takes the player out of the story because they're either thinking "should I be good?" or "heh heh heh, I'm gonna be a dick".

Either way it's no longer the story that's being paid attention too, it's now the player playing just to see what sort of reaction they will get based off their choice from the dialogue tree.

The choice also stunts the dialogue. There is no longer any flow to the story. It's just someone talking. Pause. Player thinks about how the choice in dialogue will effect the moral compass of the character, which will effect what the character is allowed to get in the game, and suddenly whatever was just said is only important to what ability the character can get.

I think the Uncharted series, Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls have done the story right in a videogame. Elevated the story in videogames to the same level as movies (not quite book level). Uncharted is action, but moves fast so you can never forget what just happened in the story. Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls are movies you play. All of them Sony put a lot of effort into getting fantastic story/script writers, and Sony spent a ton of money on hiring orchestras to do the score.

I wanted to love Mass Effect because it's a sci-fi game, but alas.

I also rambled a lot because I really do hate the choose your adventure story telling in videogames.