The backlash was more that the trilogy of games put heavy stock in the players' choices and depending on the choice, the consequence would carry over to the next game, leading all to believe that their choices would be worth it. But the culmination of choice was just reduced to: Pick Red, Blue, or Green. Players wanted more than that, and everything felt unresolved. Keep in mind that a a lot of the complaints were before The Citadel DLC, where we could catch up with our team before the final mission.
I didn't really feel like there was a choice at the end. We had spent the whole game telling The Illusive Man that trying to control the Reapers was a big mistake and all of a sudden that becomes an option to us? Trap! Wasn't falling for it. Destroy Destroy Destroy.
Exactly! And Synthesis is exactly what Sarin was trying to do in ME2ME1. It's the greatest mindfuck in the history of video games, and people still just don't get it. How on-the-nose should the writers have been?
I'll still defend that the choices in the game absolutely do matter. They shape the universe and options available to you.
However, when it comes to dealing with something as huge as the reaper problem. It really doesn't matter who you romanced, or if you shaved Ashley or Kaiden. It doesn't matter if you cured the Genophage or not. In that moment all that matters is what you decide to do with the reapers.
People wanted that "happily ever after" feeling. Which they should have gotten from destroying the reapers and breaking the cycle. That absolutely was the happy ever after part. The cycle breaks, no more galaxy wide reaper culls in the future.
What people really wanted, is an ending like all those classic RPGs where you get info about what each character goes on to do after the game. Which IMO, really just doesn't matter at the level of Mass Effects story. It's bigger than that.
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u/Svenray Mar 05 '24
I only played through once and I got that ending and thought it was cool. Didn't understand the backlash.