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RobertFiddler — Mass Effect The Solution - Page 06
Published: 2012-08-27 07:49:17 +0000 UTC; Views: 8212; Favourites: 76; Downloads: 35
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Mass Effect The Solution - Page 01This is my Mass Effect shortcomic The Solution. An Alternative Ending-ish thing. I normally just try to explain a few things why I think the Mass Effect game shouldn't have ended here.
WARNING! CONTAINS MAYOR SPOILERS! YOU DON'T WANT TO READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T PLAYED THE GAME YET!
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Page 6: The Ending
Tell me what you want, no matter how tempting it is.
-If I have been shot latetly
-If I have lost consciousness more than 2 times in the past hour
-If I know that I was about to die just a few minutes ago
=I DO NOT FOLLOW THE EFFING LIGHT!
If we choose destroy we get a cutscene where (we can assume) see Shepard taking a breath between rubbish. Like waking up from a nightmare.
That must be on Earth in London! Even in the Extendet Cut DLC, we see the Citidel Explode. Still we get the scene.
Shepard is not immortal and he was near death. There is not way Shepard could've survived the explosion. Which means the only way we can get that scene if we are on Earth. And we were the the whole time.
It is proven that Reapers can enter the minds of Humans, giving the visions or nightmares. It is unexplained if Shepard's mind really met the Catalyst or it's just a trick. The fact the Shepard never left Earth stands. Maybe it is real but only in his mind. The Reapers are machines. We have seen Shepard enter virtual reality. There is even a race that is called Virtual Aliens [look up the codex for more] And The Reapers are the most advanced creatures in the galaxy. They virtual reality must look far more realistic and dream like than the ones Shepard already visited.
We don't know if the Crucible really works the way the Catalyst is telling us. We don't know what will happen, or how we will win. But we have hope. Hope is all we need to fight. And all reason not to believe a single thing the Catalyst is saying.
Mass Effect (c) BioWare
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Comments: 33
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Well that was just plain awesome and gut wrenching
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I haven't finished ME3 but am playing through it now and hope too soon. I've read about the seperate endings and I agree with your interpretation. Through all that Shepard has been through, it's not until the attack on Earth ....that shepard starts experiencing hallucinations (the boy in the air duct that magically disappears) and the hallucinations purpose is to validate Shepards own feelings of failure, helplessness and guilt for failing to prevent the inevitable. Afterwards Shep is literally haunted by this through nightmares that serve as a constant reminder that Shepard can't save everyone. That Shepard will fail. Logically...with everything that's happening, anyone would feel the stress of it but Shepard is faced with the impossible throughout the entire trilogy. The attack on Earth was hardly her first failure...throughout ME1&2 she failed to save hundreds (or more) lives and at times even made choices that sacrificed them. Hell, Shepard DIED and was still able to just 'roll with it' upon her ressurection and facing the fact that now...it wasn't just one reaper but an ARMY. Her entire crew was taken and STILL didn't hesitate to dive in head first on a suicide mission - leading her closest friends/family into what she believed would be their deaths.
Having done all this though, Shepard exposed herself (and her crew) to more than enough reaper tech to allow indoctrination to at least start to take hold. Cereberus sent whole teams of scientists to research just pieces of dead reaper tech and they became indoctrinated. The steady change in the Illusive man and his goals also suggest that even he was indoctrinated (from supporting the progression of humanity -> to humanity dominating the galaxy -> to using reaper tech to effectively take any humanity his cereberus troops ever had away and slaughtering human colonies for the sake of dominance). To me it seems the illusive man is just another tool or avenue for whatever/whoever it is that's behind the driving force of the reapers. While I don't know (or didn't know until I read your comics) the specifics on how the game ends....it's always been quite clear to me that destroying the threat is the only way to go. To have that constant reminder that you failed and that all is hopeless...through all of ME3 - only to be offered hope from some unknown entity that only shows itself when you hold it's fate in your hands. This...'synthesis' option you mentioned is a load of BS. I can just picture my FemShep asking this 'crucible' why I should choose to save them by merging when clearly they sought no such evolution with organics in the past. It's always been synthetics vs organics and now that they're losing they suddenly want to deal? Pfffft.
I will be taking great pleasure in destroying them. Even IF the citadel is destroyed...the citadel isn't a home world. May not be very 'paragon' to say this but better the citadel than entire planets.
Anywayss...enough of my ranting. Saw your comics posted on reddit and love them all. I hope to see new Andromeda themed content when the time comes :3
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As much as I want to believe the headcanons of the synthetics surviving the destroy ending and Shepard surviving. What's done is done. Shepard is dead period. Mass Effect Andromeda is coming out several hundred years after the Reaper War. It done. Finished. Don't get me wrong, my feels every time it happens, but its time to move on. I'm not trying to sound mean or anything.
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Why are you so education with me, telling me to calm down, on and art I did 4 years ago.
Nevertheless, the 3 endings would result in 3 fundementally different sequels.
The endings sequence is still too much of a dream-like absurdity for me to take serious, and thus, I don't care
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Oh no, Im not criticising. I love this art but I'm just saying how I'm kinda fed up with people who wont accept the ending. I'm not saying you specifically, I'm talking about some people. And don't get me wrong I was upset with the endings, but I just got over it. Again super sorry for causing any anger or confusion
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I know but I'm also full with people who do not realize that Synthesis and Control are both simply against everything that Shepard stood and fought for
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yeah, I guess you're right there.
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I don't mean to sound disrespectful. I like Mass Effect as much as the next guy, but:
For the LOVE OF GOD, give it up people! SHEPARD IS DEAD! PERIOD!
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This is why, no matter what, even after EC, even after Citadel, I will always believe in the Indoctrination Theory.
Bioware refuses to confirm or deny it, and no dlc has officially disproved it yet. So until they officially come out and say 'Indoctrination isn't real guys, move along' then I will continue to believe it.
BTW this comic is beautiful and perfect for me. I romanced Garrus and had him in my team for the beam run. I believe he'd come after me too.
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Thank you very much ^^ I honestly agree
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You're very welcome.
I think I may write a fanfic of my Shepard waking up after the attempt and destroying the reapers once and for all. We'll see.
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I agree. Bioware has taken a very arguable choice deciding to NOT give a straight and explicit answer, both about the Catalyst plans for Shepard and about the conclusion of his story, namely the absence of a scene portraying explicitly the Reunion between him and L.I. . However, the developers have mostly atoned for this mistake (in a way never seen before in videogame history), giving us several most clear hints both that this IS going to happen soon and that, at the end, the feats the player accomplishes in the three games DO pay off.
When I finished the Extended Cut, my exact thoughts were: the Reapers are destroyed, the Catalyst faded away, the Cycles broken once time for all, Cerberus disbanded, maybe the heroic sacrifice of the Geth is persuading the galactic public opinion and politicians to start accepting sentient synthetic lifeforms as the people they are. And Commander Shepard is alive, and finally able to spend the rest of his life as he desires, by the side of his Loved One. Victory, indeed, and it was totally worth it.
About the Citadel. Just before the one I mentioned, there is another picture of the station showing it immediately after the activation of the device; it is possible to see that the Presidium is heavily battered, but NOT destroyed, while the Tower is still intact (more or less). We should also consider that Shepard found himself inside the Citadel Foundation, near the Master Contol Unit of the Relay Network and maybe the main Computation Node of the Catalyst; it is surely the most sturdy section of the entire station, protected by some of the strongest traditional barriers in existence. This may very well reduce an important part of the structural shock (and it is possible that only a fraction of the "explosion" itself was harmful to an organic lifeform).
Yes, the timeline of the ending isn't linear, but there is a technical reason; as a rule of thumb, the slides are flashforwards meant to show the consequences of your actions from few months to several years in the future, while the cutscenes display events taking place mere hours or days after the Activation.
And it doesn't mean that Quarian will forgot the Geth. As I have already said, I am deadly sure their sacrifice have opened the eyes of the galaxy, expecially their creators' eyes (Tali and Koris couldn't be the only sane woman and man), as Ackett's words heavily suggest. It is EXTREMELY PROBABLE that Geth will be rebuilt/repaired; however, without the Reaper code they will have to regain sentience trought natural evolution and, even if helped trought deliberate modifications, this process will take surely years. The slide, on the other side, portrays a moment only several months in the making, as suggested by the Quarians still wearing their complete suits (the buildings belong probably to one of the "Memorial cities" Geth have repaired long ago and mantained); there are not Geth because they are still common , although respected, V.I. .
I also agree with you about EDI, althought I doubt that it will be possible to recreate entirely her complex personality exactly as it was due to the loss of part of her hardware; either she will have to gradually recover her full former self or she will actually be more like a "daughter"based on the legacy code of EDI. Either way, Joker will find solace and happiness, either as partner or as father.
Hmmm, that is an interesting interpretation about the ending, whatever your opinion on the "truth" of the epilogue can be. Eventually, the most important thing is to have enjoyed the experience, and to finish it with glory and rightness.
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Now this is a thought-out comment, Noctambulotti.
That's pretty much the EC's saving grace. Sure, it wasn't perfect, it didn't give us the complete view and still had a bunch of irritating flaws - but it left enough space to say "okay, so at least SOME survived... enough to rebuild, apparently, so we're not totally screwed, at least now we have a chance - maybe a slim one, but still a chance". Once the anger over details cools down, people can think of the greater picture.
The Geth might've kept a backup drive somewhere since physical bodies aren't much of an issue. EDI might've had a plan to get back. People could've gotten stuck, but at least some have a chance to survive, cooperate, invent, evolve, recreate galactic society, with or without the Citadel. It could be slow, but centuries of progress are hard to lose just like that. And maybe, just maybe, the Shadow Broker had some sort of mass relay research data in his computers, so Liara can share that. A "never say never" ending regardless. We see people living on the slides! It was a drastic sacrifice - many are bound to die - but one that actually gave hope to the survivors. Shepard might've died depending on EMS and such, but s/he gave the galaxy a chance the Reapers didn't even consider.
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Brilliant work! To manage to express so much deep emotions and meaning trought such a brief and simple medium is not a common feat. Sir, I am in awe.
Hmm, it seems that you are a supporter of the notorious "indoctrination theory". Honestly, I have always seen it as nothing more than a desperate attempt by players to rationalize the state of uncertainty and incongruity of the first version of the ending. Don't get me wrong, some part of it are interesting, but it would have left many more questions than answers and, at the end, there aren't enough proves to sustain it.
For example, the Citadel. In the Extended Cut, if your EMS are high enough, after you chose Destroy you can clearly see that the station is damaged, but NOT crumbled; during Hackett final speech, you can even see a picture portraying it, not many months later, entirely repaired. This makes sense; since the EMS represents both technologic solutions implemented in the Crucible and the military strengh used to protect it during the battle, an high enough score means that the device is able to control the power surge efficiently, cutting collateral damage to minimum.
Therefore, Shepard is NOT seen, alive, among the rubble of London (that would be impossible), but in the same area near the Crucible attachment, or the hall beneath, while rescue is surely on its way. However, this doesn't mean that Reapers have not tried to manipulate him. The form chosen by the Catalyst is clearly an example of emotional blackmail, as well as his claim of the destruction of every syntetic lifeform (a lie, only Reaper software and hardware are affected, which sadly means the Geth and EDI; othervise, Shepard would be dead too).
It isn't a dream or an allucination; the same flawed logic of Catalyst isn't a proof of his unexistence, but only of an hardcore programming set by an unthinkable alien species trillions of years ago, which gives it unfathomable intelligence, but not the wisdom to rewiew its primary directive.
It is all extremely, positively REAL. And for this reason, it is even more important to see the truth behind the possibilities, consider what your friends and Loved One want, follow your line of thought, and finally DESTROY the Catalyst and its horrible "solutions".
Oh, and you are right. In this situation, I am as sure as hell that I WOULD NOT FOLLOW THE DAMN BRIGHT LIGHT! I have a promise to fulfill, a Rannoch lady to come back to and an house to build.
I like to think that when Shepard will wake up, after a month of coma and intensive care, the first thing that he will see will be Tali'Zora vas Normandy at his side, holding his hand.
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Thank you very much, It's actually not hard to much emotion into a work, if you are yourself overwhelmed with it. The Mass Effect ending was one of the biggest disappointments I ever had to feel, and I was and still am mad at EA and Bioware because I know they have the ability. They just screwed up and instead of fixing it they say it's "artistic vision", nearly saying that 80% of their own fans a too dumb to understand that vision.
As for the Theory, I'm more like a fan of "Iceberg Theory". 90% of it is beneath the surface. It's there even though it is not clearly visible.
The problem is that this artistic vision would work with a book. Because the reader takes more time to find clues, understand, think, and can find out at the end if our intensions were right. But this is a game, nearly an Interactive Movie. They should've gave the gamer a straigt up answer instead of this confusing bullsh*t and "choices". The problem is that the gamers even after a whole load of DLCs are still not convinced that their hard work through 3 games were worth anything at the end.
The "indoctrination theory" is great work of fans. And if you are looking for it just for a moment you can see it has proofs. So many it fills up 2 hour long analisys videos on YouTube. But it has a problem, namely that fans built a tower from it with the ground peace of "the Catalyst lies or that isn't even real, only an illusion of Harbringer" and that is disproven by the latest DLC. The problem is, that people forget that this tower of evidance has other pieces and just think the whole theory is disproven just because Leviathan confirms one piece is wrong because "there is an intelligence that controls the Reapers". As you said, it still doesn't mean that Shepart can't be under Reaper Indoctrination attempt. That isn't disproven, as well as many other puzzle pieces hidden in the story. I say more, the Extended Cut gave us lines that proves that theory even further. But I believe I already said that, sorry for the maunder
As for that the Citadel. True just the center (Presidium and Tower) of it explodes, leaving most parts of the wings intact. But. The epicentrum of the explosion is exactly where Shepard suppose to be, at the connection of the Crucible. As for that, no matter how much we have improved the technology of the Crucible, Shepard couldn't have survived that -> I don't think that he was really there, it seems simply impossible.
Yes, That emotional decoy of the Catalyst is clear sign that it is trying to trick Shepard, which is why it's so often mentioned by the believers of the indoctrination theory. But more clear points about it's lies remain unseen.
The Catalyst said all syntetics will be destroyed, so far we don't see syntetics in the destroy ending. You say only Reaper software is effected. But as I see, the Mass Relays are also Reaper Tech. And they have been reactivated. I'm just too optimistic but I don't think the Geth and EDi can't be repaired. Also I never cared about the ending cutscenes, because of the "slideshow." It doesn't gave me the feeling that this really happening. And the Normady flies away only months ago after the krogan build a city? Nobody, Wrex or Hackett searched for them or anything? The whole timeline of the Ending is confusing. It can be followed, putting the pieces together of course, but why this shitty order? Doesn't make sense, and that's why I can't believe what I see at the ending. As well as the plate with EDI's name on it or the Quarians not even trying to repair the Geth just move on like "they helped us even though all those years we tried to destroy them, but now they are gone. Oh well, easy come, easy go"
Damn right about that. It is the only logical solution to end the terror. Just because it can keep enternal safety of controlling the reapers or infinate knowlege to through sytesis, it doesn't justify the loss of millions of billions of lifes enslaved and locked up inside those Reapers. There is a reason why is the destroy ending is the only ending with Shepard surviving. You can only live if you stay true to your beliefs.
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I agree. Bioware has taken a very arguable choice deciding to NOT give a straight and explicit answer, both about the Catalyst plans for Shepard and about the conclusion of his story, namely the absence of a scene portraying explicitly the Reunion between him and L.I. . However, the developers have mostly atoned for this mistake (in a way never seen before in videogame history), giving us several most clear hints both that this IS going to happen soon and that, at the end, the feats the player accomplishes in the three games DO pay off.
When I finished the Extended Cut, my exact thoughts were: the Reapers are destroyed, the Catalyst faded away, the Cycles broken once time for all, Cerberus disbanded, maybe the heroic sacrifice of the Geth is persuading the galactic public opinion and politicians to start accepting sentient synthetic lifeforms as the people they are. And Commander Shepard is alive, and finally able to spend the rest of his life as he desires, by the side of his Loved One. Victory, indeed, and it was totally worth it.
About the Citadel. Just before the one I mentioned, there is another picture of the station showing it immediately after the activation of the device; it is possible to see that the Presidium is heavily battered, but NOT destroyed, while the Tower is still intact (more or less). We should also consider that Shepard found himself inside the Citadel Foundation, near the Master Contol Unit of the Relay Network and maybe the main Computation Node of the Catalyst; it is surely the most sturdy section of the entire station, protected by some of the strongest traditional barriers in existence. This may very well reduce an important part of the structural shock (and it is possible that only a fraction of the "explosion" itself was harmful to an organic lifeform).
Yes, the timeline of the ending isn't linear, but there is a technical reason; as a rule of thumb, the slides are flashforwards meant to show the consequences of your actions from few months to several years in the future, while the cutscenes display events taking place mere hours or days after the Activation.
And it doesn't mean that Quarian will forgot the Geth. As I have already said, I am deadly sure their sacrifice have opened the eyes of the galaxy, expecially their creators' eyes (Tali and Koris couldn't be the only sane woman and man), as Ackett's words heavily suggest. It is EXTREMELY PROBABLE that Geth will be rebuilt/repaired; however, without the Reaper code they will have to regain sentience trought natural evolution and, even if helped trought deliberate modifications, this process will take surely years. The slide, on the other side, portrays a moment only several months in the making, as suggested by the Quarians still wearing their complete suits (the buildings belong probably to one of the "Memorial cities" Geth have repaired long ago and mantained); there are not Geth because they are still common , although respected, V.I. .
I also agree with you about EDI, althought I doubt that it will be possible to recreate entirely her complex personality exactly as it was due to the loss of part of her hardware; either she will have to gradually recover her full former self or she will actually be more like a "daughter"based on the legacy code of EDI. Either way, Joker will find solace and happiness, either as partner or as father.
Hmmm, that is an interesting interpretation about the ending, whatever your opinion on the "truth" of the epilogue can be. Eventually, the most important thing is to have enjoyed the experience, and to finish it with glory and rightness.
Sorry for the repost!
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This is amazing. I love the fact you have made so much emotion around a short comic, it brilliant, so much thought and yet it makes sense. ^-^
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Thank you very much, ^^ I glad I succeeded to make it like this
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You are most welcome. Keep up the awesome work. =]
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Thank you very much 
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but why must it be so sad.
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I admire so much about the Indoctrination theory, but Bioware never even confirmed it with the extended cut DLC but more so denied it. It could have made perfect sense that the game finally was Shepard's ultimate battle for control of his mind, no matter what people say like, oh he had contact with so much Reaper and Prothean artifacts that he is immune to indoctrination-bullshit, it states that indoctrination that doesn't rapidly decay a hosts mind and create a husk takes months to years, Protheans weren't even able to resist indoctrination and became the Collectors. No matter how badass Shepard can be in the game he is still just human, and although he has a strong will, the Reapers slowly diminish it with giving him the feelings of no hope. I find it a better ending to the game to imagine this than just the whole kill everything synthetic, control Reapers, or synergy endings. There isn't any such thing as space magic, synergy is just becoming a husk.
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It's a matter of point of view. I think that even the Extended Cut DLC contained things that can give more proof for Indoctrination Theory. But because it looks better, with the narration and the slideshow many people don't see those small evidences.
Let's go through it what the Extended Cut contain:
-Added new Refusal ending: If we refuse to choose, we hear the Catalyst say "So be it!" But not in the voice of the child but in the voice of a very angry Reaper. Question: Why would be angry? They want to continue the cycle, they think it's the best solution. If Shepard refuses, they would think it's because they solution is still the best. There is no reason why the Catalyst should get angry from Shepard's refusal of finding a new solution. (illogical behaviour issue, proves that the Catalyst lies, or at least hides something)
-Added dialogs: If Shepard says, they can win without the Crucible, and he says "I don't believe you!" The Crucible get's angry and says in very harsh tone "Your Belief is Not Required!". That line is lauder and echoes more, make Shepard immediately lost the fighting spirit. Proof that the Catalyst is trying to repress Shepard's mind.
Not removed parts that are the strongest prove of the theory:
-Flawed logic of the Catalyst
-Unlimited Ammo
-Glowing eyes in control and syntesis along with getting black husk skin
So the EC actually gives more power to the Indoctrination Theory. Simple as that. They don't want to confirm it for some reason even though it would be the biggest mind blowing thing. Maybe if they would claim they did planned it to look like Indoctrination, some people will attack that they just say it because the Theory got popular. So actually there is no hope for getting a clear answer.
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Well, then I guess it's just better we get mindfucked than a straight answer, but a lot of modern gamers just can't handle the endings that make you think, they just want some kind of big badass boss fight with Harbinger at the end. I regretfully still have not beat the game on extended cut, and I didn't bring the game with me to college
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The ending is so cool. And I really like the way you are thinking! Very interesting..
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Thank you glad you like it ^^
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A beautiful comic. Amazing art and some very interesting ideals. Well done.
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Thank you
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I love Tali the most XD
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