OH GOD BIOWARE WHAT THE FUCK HAVE YOU DONE

[Aerozord]

Originally Posted by stefan

because thats what this is, really. a poorly thought out attempt at pandering that will attract noone and insult people you already had buying your product.

look I know you want to believe that pandering hurts sales, but it doesn't. Its why every industry does it. As I said, its a societal thing, not a gaming thing

[Azisien]

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

Lemme just ask you this, Kerensky, because I think this is what it really boils down to.

...You really like Mass Effect, right? As a series? I imagine you're a huge ME1 and ME2 fan like I am.
So let me just pose this question to you. If Bioware could only do one thing with its time and money when developing ME3, what would you rather see them do: Actually include a proper sendoff for the beloved character of Mordin Solus, or waste precious time, effort and resources to include Jessica Chobot's likeness as a love interest?

...This should not be a difficult question. It shouldn't have been difficult for Bioware, either.

Hey Mr. Lawyer, isn't that a loaded question?

[Kerensky287]

Originally Posted by "Half Assed" Karesh

Nonono. You're not justifying this. Even if a creature like the Thresher Maw breaking the kinetic barriers of a Reaper made sense, the basic concept of the scene is silly. From a narrative perspective Reapers have represented "If this shows up we are dead" enemy. A single Reaper destroyed damn near every ship defending the Citadel, and the whole first games plot was based around describing just how fucked the Galaxy is if the Reapers actually get to Citadel space.

If something has to give, it should have been the Thresher Maw.
Even though in the first place the reaper just shouldn't be there for the Thresher Maw to fight.

I don't want to make this into a discussion about fictional physics and mechanics, but there are totally ways to justify it if you try. And I want to try, because the idea of killing an all-devouring ancient evil by throwing an angry carnivorous worm at it is fucking hilarious.

We don't know the context of the scene, really. This could be one damaged Reaper threatening the planet after retreating from a spacefight. By hiding within the planet's atmosphere, it renders itself immune to the larger threats out there (hesitant to fire on their own planet) while giving it plenty of options for wreaking havoc regardless.

A Thresher Maw is a nice, localized bit of ordnance, and it's so creative that the Reaper probably wouldn't have seen coming - and with the damage sustained to its kinetic barriers and sensors after the spacefight, it wouldn't have known what hit it.

But again, that's not what this thread is about.

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

Lemme just ask you this, Kerensky, because I think this is what it really boils down to.

...You really like Mass Effect, right? As a series? I imagine you're a huge ME1 and ME2 fan like I am.
So let me just pose this question to you. If Bioware could only do one thing with its time and money when developing ME3, what would you rather see them do: Actually include a proper sendoff for the beloved character of Mordin Solus, or waste precious time, effort and resources to include Jessica Chobot's likeness as a love interest?

...This should not be a difficult question. It shouldn't have been difficult for Bioware, either.

Originally Posted by Azisien

Hey Mr. Lawyer, isn't that a loaded question?

Thanks! Yes, that question is very loaded, and not particularly necessary. It's a hypothetical question with no basis in reality, worded in a way to strongly imply that one choice is better than the other, while obscuring the lack of solid supporting details. There's no reason to believe that Bioware would have had to make that choice.

[Krylo]

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

Lemme just ask you this, Kerensky, because I think this is what it really boils down to.

...You really like Mass Effect, right? As a series? I imagine you're a huge ME1 and ME2 fan like I am.
So let me just pose this question to you. If Bioware could only do one thing with its time and money when developing ME3, what would you rather see them do: Actually include a proper sendoff for the beloved character of Mordin Solus, or waste precious time, effort and resources to include Jessica Chobot's likeness as a love interest?

...This should not be a difficult question. It shouldn't have been difficult for Bioware, either.

Chobot.

[Solid Snake]

Originally Posted by Azisien

Hey Mr. Lawyer, isn't that a loaded question?

It honestly should have been the easiest question any member of Mass Effect 3's production team was ever asked.

...And of all of the voice actors for major ME characters, Beattie was more instrumental to Mordin's character than most. Like if you're going to replace a voice actor and relegate a character in such a manner, do that shit to Jacob, I couldn't care less about who voices him. But Mordin? Mordin's voice was an instrumental part of his characterization and his appeal. Mordin was practically voted the best new character on several gaming websites for the year ME2 was released. I just...I just don't get it.

Kind of like how I don't get how a single Reaper wipes out half the military starships in the universe, and then a Reaper is totally blindsided by a Thresher Maw. It feels like they're retconning how powerful Reapers are so the galaxy can actually stand a chance against them, as opposed to powering Shepard up or even giving him a reasonable deus ex machina Prothean device or something to justify giving the galaxy a chance.

EDIT: Also: Krylo, you are weird.

[stefan]

Originally Posted by Aerozord

look I know you want to believe that pandering hurts sales, but it doesn't. Its why every industry does it. As I said, its a societal thing, not a gaming thing

I don't give a single floating fuck about sales numbers, you smug self-assured little shitwagon. What I care about is that bioware is compromising the integrity of their work for the sake of maybe getting one or two more units sold, with the double bonus of more or less directly insulting their actual loyal customer base.

Any intelligent businessman is going to tell you that insulting a serial customer is the stupidest thing you can do as a business, and that's exactly what they're doing here. Its a regular symptom of the industry, where companies will ignore and belittle people they know have bought their previous releases in hopes of luring in untested buyers, not caring that when they deliver a substandard product and burn their old customer base in the process, they hurt themselves in the long run.

And no, pandering only gets you sales when its what the customer wants. If its an unasked for addition that diverts resources from the main draw while simultaneously appealing to noone, then it does nothing for sales.

Also, stop trying to pretend that you automatically know more about economics and business practices and integrity than other people, because you're just making yourself look like a shitgrinning morlock with the business sense of a lemming.

[Karrrrrrrrrrrresche]

Originally Posted by Aerozord

look I know you want to believe that pandering hurts sales, but it doesn't. Its why every industry does it. As I said, its a societal thing, not a gaming thing

Pandering might work. But there's no evidence that pandering like this does, will or ever did work. Contrary to what you said what made Mass Effect successful was a good story, good characters, and good game play

Originally Posted by Kerensky287

I don't want to make this into a discussion about fictional physics and mechanics, but there are totally ways to justify it if you try. And I want to try, because the idea of killing an all-devouring ancient evil by throwing an angry carnivorous worm at it is fucking hilarious.

It's fucking hilarious but it's also pathetic.
The secret to saving the galaxy can't be throwing Thresher Maws at the enemy!

[Krylo]

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

EDIT: Also: Krylo, you are weird.

Mordin's super old, anyway. You can't expect me to flirt with him. He probably dies of old age half way through.

Edit: RE: Thresher Maws; Acid attacks DO ignore kinetic barriers.

[Kerensky287]

Originally Posted by "Half Assed" Karesh

It's fucking hilarious but it's also pathetic.
The secret to saving the galaxy can't be throwing Thresher Maws at the enemy!

Well, duh! You can't have Thresher Maws in space.

...

...Or can you?

[Solid Snake]

Originally Posted by stefan

I don't give a single floating fuck about sales numbers, you smug self-assured little shitwagon.

stefan I agree with you for the most part and all but please don't make our side of the argument look fucking terrible with the ad hominem bullshittery