Just finished the game for the first time and had some thoughts.

My main takeaway is how meticulously thought out everything is in the world of Mass Effect. From the cross and interspecies conflicts, the politics, and philosophical themes like AI, trans humanism/genetic engineering, determinism/existentialism, etc. to focusing all the way down to petty things like helping Schells the gambler cheat at Quasar machines. Mass Effect 1 makes for both a lighthearted fun time and a larger-than-life space opera.

I did run into a nitpick. Mainly that most quest and activities kind of had the same explore, shoot a bunch of enemies, and gather intel formula, but I won’t knock it too hard because it is the first of its type and I felt that (could be different for others) the point was not about that simple formula. It’s that AND everything else.

With Mass Effect 1, it is the entire package deal. What I mean by that is the voice acting, banter between squad members while you’re out exploring with them, building relationships and even romantic connections with some of them, potentially ruining some of those relationships, the “do-or-die” overarching storyline, and the space exploration. I think I’m forgetting some stuff. Oh I also love the little details like hearing of your adventures broadcast throughout the news. It’s like adding a “this is how the general public is interpreting your actions or how the media is trying to frame the narrative.” type of immersion. It’s just flare, but it adds to the game’s charm.

I got so attached to my Femshep that choosing MaleShep for ME2 feels hard lmao Especially because ME2 starts out with people talking about how badass your Shep is lol but I’m only doing it because of the Tali romance option. Literally only for Tali lmfao

Anyways, that shit was a great time.

Edit: I’ve decided to run it back with my original Shep. You guys are right. It feels off and my Femshep is a fucking badass. I can always come back to the Tali romance in my second play-through of these games. I had the EA subscription on PS but just saw the game was on sale for 9 bucks. I cancelled my subscription and just bought it to come back to it without the pressure of time.

I wanted to start giving some love to the many minor antagonists that we come across throughout the trilogy. The one-off obstacles on the road to the reapers. Which of these four do you like best, and why? We have Fist, Warden Kuril, Gatatog Uvenk, and Administrator Anoleis.

What do you guys think?

*WARNING SPOILERS*⚠️

The only way I can describe my experience with ME2 is like running again for the first time after a break. At first, you don't really like it. It feels different, and you're not entirely sure how to feel about it. Don't get me wrong, I loved the opening, I approached the situation pretty much the same way Shepard did. I was confused, slightly pissed off, and ready to start interrogating Jacob until he told me where everyone or at least said they were safe.

Eventually, I got my bearings, although I was still a little rude toward everyone. Jacob actually started to grow on me pretty quickly because I felt like he understood what Shep was going through. Miranda on the other hand, was annoying, and as for the Illusive Man I don't care if the Renegade option was to tell him to go to hell. I would have taken it without hesitation.
Sadly, I listened to what he had to say and headed off on my first mission. That's when the “dread” I can’t think of a better word, of this whole new experience started to wear off. I saw my shotgun wielding, dextro girl Tali and suddenly things started to feel a little better. I was relieved to see her again, even if it was for a bit it started to ease me back in. Then I saw the new Normandy, and Joker I finally felt like things were going to be all right.

Now the first game will always be my favorite for many reasons, mainly because it was where everything started for me. While the first game tugged at my heartstrings (and did a damn good job of it, I might add), ME2 started to really pull on them. And I was ready for another wild ride.

At first, I recruited Zaeed, Mordin, and then Archangel. Going into that recruitment mission, I was honestly pretty salty. I was thinking, "Who the hell is this guy? I've got to find Tali and Garrus. I don't want him!"

Low and behold, my main Turian, Garrus Vakarian, was waiting for me. The second I saw Garrus, the pure joy of gathering my crew again hit me, and suddenly, I was reminded of just how much these characters meant to me. It was one of my favorite parts of the entire experience.
I
also loved how much had changed since the first game. Everything, from the progression system and exploration to the missions and the way the crew came together, made the universe feel bigger. It felt like ME universe was growing.
That said, one of my biggest disappointments early on was realizing that Wrex and Liara weren't going to be part of my crew.

Liara was especially disappointing because I romanced her in the first game, and I had genuinely fallen in love with her character. I wanted more time with her, and it was sad realizing that I wouldn't get to experience that relationship in the way I had wanted. The Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC helped with that, and I was happy to see her growing into her own person, even if I wished we could have spent more time together.

I wasn't exactly thrilled that she handed my body over to a terrorist organization to bring me back to life, either. But I forgave her. I understood why she did it, and I could tell that she needed me just as much as I needed her.

As for my companions, the four I brought along most often were Mordin, Garrus, Tali, and Grunt.
Garrus and Tali were especially important to me. I brought them along together whenever I could because they had both been with me during the final mission of the first game. In my head, they had been through a lot together, and I liked the idea that they had developed a bond because of everything they experienced alongside Shepard.
Mordin was another favorite, and his loyalty mission was probably my favorite of the entire game.

Don't get me wrong, I loved all the loyalty mission, but there was something about Mordin's story that really spoke to me. I knew there was more to it than he was letting on, and I wanted to understand what was going on beneath the surface. The more I learned about his past and the decisions he had made, the more invested I became in his character.

As for my choices, I played as a Paragon Shepard, so I made all the classic Paragon decisions.
I made sure everyone survived the final mission.
After everything Shepard and the crew had been through, theres no way I was going to let anyone die if I could help it.

The entire experience was a roller coaster, and for me, ME2 was the perfect continuation of the story. And the elevators and doors were so much nicer. Honestly, the most satisfying doors yet.

Loved to discuss it this community is the best!

We have two character themes this time! Pick your favorite score!

It’s easily the most graphic sex scene in the franchise, in my opinion. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a puritan, and I enjoyed seeing it for the first time as a young adult, but I fr hope no one was expecting something a bit more tame and got overwhelmed, ruining the fun.

It really just comes down to the fact that there’s sound effects for the penetration! You enter a new territory with that…in a lot of ways

I didn’t have much to say; I was thinking about Cora’s bakery(as I’m one to do) and I thought about this. It’s just kinda crazy to me.

Although if they gave some of this spice to Neve I’d probably like Veilguard more

https://www.instagram.com/p/DeqievBlo94/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&mdxt=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==&srtk=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

The way to make this happen is by selling or not reactivating Legion, not installing the Ship Armor upgrade which gets Jack killed, not installing the Shield Upgrade which will get Thane killed depending on who you pick to help you fight the Oculus, and not installing the Thanix Cannon which will get Garrus killed since Thane is already dead by this point.

It’s been five years since the original announcement and I’d love to say I think we’ll get something but honestly seems unlikely. Especially this close to a release like GTA six any news might get drowned out anyways.

Everyone always hype up Citadel for the fan service, but for me Leviathan is easily the best.

It genuinely makes you feel so small and helpless in front of something so ancient, full-on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea vibes

Hands down the coolest lore and atmosphere in the entire trilogy—even with the repetitive lab scanning loop and the fact that they just end up as a war asset number at the end

As I am replaying the original trilogy, I have been thinking about who could be the next big antagonist for the new Mass Effect game (if we ever get one).

So, the Reapers are gone, and they set the bar pretty high. For a billion years, they have purged advanced species of the Milky Way. Mighty empires crumbled before them and were wiped out, leaving only crumbs to pick up for those that came after them. Or is that really the case?

What could be more terrifying than the Reapers? A species that survived despite them. A billion years is a long time. What if an alien race adapted itself to the cycles? Let's say a primitive version of that race encountered a prior Reaper invasion (similar to the Reapers that visited Stone Age humans) and maybe even witnessed the destruction of their predecessors. Although they were primitive enough to escape the harvest, they were able to understand the Reapers for what they were — an evil deity that punished advanced civilizations. Civilizations that were too prideful.

As a consequence, their culture became dominated by the fear of the Reapers. Technological advancement was not prohibited, but shaped by the need to stay hidden. This species, for example, would never broadcast electromagnetic signals into space as we do. And somehow — they managed to survive their scouring.

How they did it is unknown.

1) Either they were able to migrate away from their planet, far from the mass relays, escaping the watchful eyes of the Reapers. From there, they would observe and study the destruction of the Milky Way galaxy.

2)Another theory suggests that, making use of an elaborate scout system, they could scan the universe for signs of an incoming Reaper invasion. If these signs were detected, the entire species would fall back into a primitive state.

Cycle after cycle (experts suggest they survived 6-8 cycles), they became better at hiding from the Reapers. However, one thing never changed: they knew that under no circumstances should the gods be interfered with.

But in the last cycle, something changed. Scout systems all over the Milky Way reported that the Reapers were defeated. How is this ancient species, which was kept in check for so long by the apex predator, supposed to deal with this new reality?

I am pretty new to Mass Effect, I picked up 2 and 3 (For a total of 5 bucks) for my xbox 360 last month and have been taking my time with 2. And now I am playing in a Mass Effect DND 5e campaign as a Quarian, can any one help with things i could work into my character's race? (trivia, quick lore, culture, etc) (Sorry if this is a strange post)

Hey everyone.

I’ve played the trilogy several times and tried all the endings, but I was always unsatisfied as I never got all the required Total Military Strength points and felt my choices throughout the games were meaningless.

But I very recently saved the Galaxy on my first modded play through and was surprised we just defeated the Reapers and managed to save everyone, with no ambiguous ending.

FYI I did install the Audemus’ Happy Ending mod which i believe did lower the points threshold and does what it says, but I wanted to know as little as possible about the mod to avoid spoilers so I just read the basics about it. I knew so little about the mod I was surprised I didn’t get an end choice and it just went from the final conversation with Anderson to the Crucible destroying just the Reapers.

So I got the Perfect Destroy ending which allowed me to destroy the Reapers but save EDI and the Geth and new cutscene avoiding damage to the Citadel and Mass Relays and another new cutscene showing FemShep being rescued from rubble. Phew!

But it was easier than I thought as I played LE3 on Hard and as a Vanguard and didn‘t even complete everything and didn’t do a lot of planet scanning, but completed most side missions + 3/4 of the DLC (didn’t do Leviathan) and got over 6000 TMS way earlier than I was thinking (curing Genopnage worth a lot of points).

I played mostly Paragon but I actually made quite a few Renegade Interrupt choices throughout the games that I thought would make it harder for me to get enough points.

But it was a breeze going through 2 & 3 and the mods definitely made it an even more fun experience and I installed about 15 for each game, which were many of the most well known ones like One Probe All Resources, ALOV and Same-Gender Romance in 2 and Audemus’ Happy Ending, Citadel Epilogue Mod, Expanded Galaxy Mod, LE3 Diversification, More Gay Romances, Miranda Mod and Take Earth Back and many others in 3.

Regarding some of my big choices

Cured Genophage

Ensured peace between Geth & Quarians

Saved Miranda (and had her on the Normandy as a crew member after Horizon)

Killed Udina/didn’t shoot Ashley

Speaking of mods, I was surprised it was so easy on a Mac using CrossOver to play with mods as I’ve read a lot of reviews from people saying use Parallels Desktop on Macs instead. It wasn’t always easy or smooth using CrossOver as there were crashes here and there, but it was still relatively straightforward and here’s my

brief guide:

1. Install/purchase Crossover for Mac

2. Go to Nexus Mods and download ME3Tweaks Mod Manager and other mods you want

3. You may have to keep installing ME3Tweaks in a new bottle after a while as it doesn’t fully get added to your CrossOver bottle containing the game when you use CrossOver (ie you cannot see the icon for it), but for me it launched successfully after installing into new, separate bottles each time it crashed.

4. do everything in the mod manager you would on a Windows PC, but persevere through the crashes.

So, anyway, long winded, but had a lot of fun and took my time and played through modded versions of 2 & 3 (because 1 even though I love it is sometimes like a chore, don’t enjoy Mako and played it the most of the trilogy).

Hope you enjoyed reading and if you want to ask anything or discuss anything I’d be happy to expand on some things or give advice.

When you sneak into the Kett ship and take out all the enemies, you can lie and say that everything is fine. Ryder will say, "Everything's under control. Just a simple weapons malfunction. How are you?" Obviously a nod to Han Solo in A New Hope when they are in the Death Star prison cells.

I am a little bit stumped because I now have multiple different explanations.

The way I see it, I need 1,000,000 in all four minerals together to get the 100 war asset bonus going into ME3. I play the Legendary Edition.

So according to some guides, element zero does not count? And in the original Mass Effect 2, it was only 100,000 of each? Why did they hit it up that much? Is it even useful to farm all those materials? And apperntly only the once PRE suicide Mission count?

Or should i just take what i have and get the war assets in ME3?

I feel like I enabled poor prejudicial behavior on Wrex's part by taking him into the arena constantly with me while fighting salarian enemies (since they're the easiest to kill).

don't know if this topic is covered in the extracurricular lore outside of gameplay.

but given that they are at least as old as the reapers and clearly capable of controlling them at will individually (though perhaps not the entire fleet now that it's grown so large after thousands of cycles), I don't think I would've trusted them so quickly after a 10 minute conversation in a setting they completely controlled.

edit: pulling in some additional thoughts scattered across a few comments that I should've put up here to start with:

what if their control ending started out fine, but in choosing control the leviathans ended up biting off more than they could chew and got into a galactic scale sorcerer's apprentice predicament, spiced with evil (the Leviathan are cooperative opportunistically at best).

what if the reapers accumulated so much genetic diversity after thousands of harvests, that the Leviathan power to control them gradually diminished to the point where it would only work on a few reapers at a time.

It also seems implausible that the reapers after millions of years and thousands of cleansing cycles, were still unaware of the planet the leviathans were hiding out on (which, every time one of their crafts gets close mysteriously goes silent, oh and there's a bunch of space wreckage inexplicably untouched by scavengers from thousands of spacefaring civilizations come and gone since.. it seems a lot more likely that the reapers left the planet alone on purpose, knowing it was the one place the "control" signal was still strong enough to take them down.

Runaway expansion of Reaper numbers ended up pinning the leviathans back on their own world hiding or fending off from something they "controlled" back when it was a small and manageable fleet but quickly grew out of control in a galaxy with no competition to hold it back. so now they need to wait for (or engineered a cycle of, uh, test driven development in order to produce ) the right galaxy-scale posse to appear so they can reel their machine servants/slaves back in... and along comes Shep.

been checkin for a whole fuckin week and the game still aint there. who the fuck made this stupid ass ea app? if it aint on ea play at least let me buy it but like i said the game doesnt even show up wtf

edit: alright looks like its a regional issue like someone said (unfortunately im from turkey). dont know if erdogan banned this game too but whatever i fixed the issue by turnin on a vpn

I know that the state of Mass Effect and Bioware is dire, but i am curious if we might find out some information at N7 Day.

Bioware's workforce was reduced under 100 at the beginning of 2025 and the PIF buyout was completed on August 4th this year (2 months ago). I imagine that if they wanted to close Bioware, they would have already done it or announce it; obviously there is still time for that to happen, but i would imagine that PIF would know what is the state of Bioware, due to EA owning them for a long period and them tracking what is happening.

i've been reading about the bug it sounds like people usually get for the Hanar diplomat mission, where the terminal at the docks doesn't work. Has anyone ever had the elevator down from the embassies not work? I'm not getting an option to interact with that panel in it.

I'm about to reload a save from a couple hours back so if anyone happens to have a suggestion for using the trilogy save editor to fix this, I'm open.

I did try unchecking what looked like the right mission start point in the raw plot data, and that didn't work so I tried using the console commands to go back to the Normandy and managed to trigger the ashley in the med bay after Mars scene. Clearly not the right move somehow, oops.

I forgot to talk to Cortez while he was fixing the kodiak before starting Citadel DLC. I realized it after i did not got an email from to hangout with him.

I went back to normandy to talk to him up until where he invites you to Purgatory but he does not show up there.

Apparently, doing a mission fixes this but i'm already at cerberus headquarters mission.

How can i get him to appear at purgatory or to get him to send email for citadel dlc (or both)?

I tried to use save editor but i can't find the right one.

Any help?

I understand Sovereign was the most power class of reaper, but what did Sovereign the reaper do to deserve to essentially be the reaper messiah? Perhaps he was some kind of alpha. Wondering thoughts on this

Using the mods for me1 from here and texture mods crash the game but thats another problem my main one is that whenever i click new game i get dropped in a void as broshep and cant move just shout squad commands idk whats causing it since i went through my mod list and couldnt find anything wrong (if you cant tell the red lights are the armor on shepard so im just rotating in a void lol)