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Mass Effect 3 Extended Cut: Was It Worth The Wait?


Mass Effect 3 Extended Cut: Was It Worth The Wait? (Opinion Article)

Discloser: This article is solely the opinion of this one writer and does not reflect the overall opinion of this entire site.

Spring Break 2012. Families, young, old, and everything in between flocked to the beaches of both the east and west coasts to revel in a short glimpse of the upcoming summer. Those unfortunate enough to not be able to participate in over-glorified tourism spent time at the pool and with their families and friends, enjoying this week of relaxation and freedom from school and for some, work. Though I did enjoy some of these endeavors, the thing I looked forward to the most was a game I had longed to play for four entire years, Mass Effect 3. Receiving the game at the beginning of Spring Break meant an entire week to spend playing the most anticipated game ever in my gaming career. The fanatic I am, I of course scourged eBay, having been too arrogant to pre-order the Collector’s Edition ahead of time and was treated to the punishment of them being sold out. Paying much more than I would have otherwise, I had invested in this game more than any other game in my entire life. And was it worth it? Of course! Now this is by no means a review of Mass Effect 3 (though I believe it to be one of the greatest of all time), but instead an insight into the infamous ending.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

I got the game in the mail and started it on Monday of Spring Break, arriving to the conclusion that Saturday afternoon. Anticipating the inevitable defeat of the Reapers since the end of the first game, I knew it was coming. I woke up that morning knowing that today, the machines bent on destroying all life as we know it were going to be vanquished once and for all. The ending came and gone and alas many were disappointed in how the war ended but there was no true impact and result from all the decisions and choices made across three entire games. Bioware had attempted something no other franchise had done before in truly making your voice count in the game you played but when the final credits rolled, no matter what choices you made, you roughly had the same ending as everyone else.

But I liked the ending.

There I said it! I am apart of the staunch few that stand by Bioware’s original ending, praising the brave sacrifice of one man to save the galaxy. Normally, I would be on my soapbox demanding change just like the majority, but I didn’t simply because the ending Bioware gave, gave me closure on Shephard’s life and the Reapers’ lives for that matter. Peace and salvation for all those I cared for because of Bioware’s fantastic character development. So why does a few decisions matter? The ending left an air of mystery into where the series could possibly go next. The thought that the mass relays were completely destroyed, leaving many races and peoples stranded in their systems (many of which were presumed to be stranded on Earth) left me pondering about a new series where there is no racial discrimination but instead galactic unification. Against a new threat? Of course. Which is why I of course chose the Synthesis ending and still stick by that one, loving the idea of a unity and equality between organic and synthetic life, plus that was a sick green color! (no pun intended) I went onto Bioware’s Facebook page, praising the ending and overly excited for where the series was headed next. Whether that be continuing the story of the Normandy crew through the eyes of a new main character (more of my hypothesis about that at a later date) on an adventure across this strange new world they landed upon or somewhere completely different, I am ecstatic regardless! But now to the main event: Tuesday’s release of the Extended Cut. 

All I have to say is this is where I am now disappointed and in more ways than one. First of all, the download was an entire 1.85 GB (almost 2 GB’s!!!) for a 5 minute, that’s right 5 minute, additional cutscene/slideshow. Now yes that is 5 minutes for each ending including all new 4th ending, entitled “Refusal”, which by the way is not good at all except to amuse yourself to the idea that the cycle will continue (but actually inferring in the post-credit scene that the next race does in fact destroy the Reapers anyways). Other than that, there’s not a whole lot to the extended scenes. My second problem is a short and simple one. Yes, I did in fact enjoy the extra scenes (and humorous other ending) but why make us wait so long for this? Couldn’t have this been made much faster? Did Bioware even intend for all this to happen and if so, what was their goal? And finally, my third and biggest problem is the fact that Bioware did this in the first place. It is the battle between the consumer and the creator. But I personally think they should have stood by their original ending and not added anything because this decision has ultimately taken away some of the power a developer has in their own creation. From now on, who’s to say this whole community uprising won’t happen again and cause an entire game to be completely different than what it’s creator would have wanted it to be. Game is an art whether the main stream society wishes to believe so or not, it truly is and how would you like it if you spent a couple years putting your entire self into something you believed in and loved just for a person to hate it? And not only that, but they only hate something as small as your sculpture only has four fingers. Would you go to the trouble to completely remove the hands and spend months to rebuild them just for one pinky? Yes we are the consumers and yes we put the money in their pockets but does that give us the right to demand they change or even simply add to their creation? We wouldn’t have Mass Effect without them so don’t take them for granted. Don’t you trust them? I do. And that’s why I can’t wait for Bioware’s next game, be it Dragon Age 3 or a new Mass Effect, because when it comes down to it, I trust Bioware to deliver a rich, compelling storyline and truly immersive, choice and player driven experience that no other developer can do.

As always for walkthroughs for this game and/or tips (including videos) just comment or send me a message! I’m always willing to help!

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The Microsoft Surface Finally Surfaces


On Monday, June 19th at a press conference in Los Angeles, California, Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer, finally unveiled Microsoft’s first ever tablet PC. Entitled the Microsoft Surface, this is Microsoft’s leap into the tablet industry in what they claim to be greater than Apple’s iPad. Standard competitor trash-talking aside, the specs of the Surface speak for itself (full list of both model’s spec as well as a comparison with the iPad 3 can be found here).

The Surface will be launching alongside  Windows 8 (currently expected to be released fall 2012) and will also be powered by the Windows 8 OS. In an industry filled with Apple and Android powered tablets, it will be interesting to see how this newbie does. This announcement also coincides with the previous announcement during Microsoft’s E3 press conference for SmartGlass. A new, innovative way of increasing connectivity across tablets, phone, Xbox, and more, expect the Surface to take full advantage of enhancing your entertainment experience.

But ultimately as a gamer, you’re most likely wondering what does this mean for you? Well, personally as a fan of both Microsoft and mobile gaming, I see this as a perfect marriage of the two. With the processing power the Surface boasts, you’ll be able to play any normal PC game without sacrificing anything all the while being able to do it on the go. However Microsoft would be foolish not to extend their own line of software to the tablet from first party exclusives to the Xbox Live Marketplace. The Surface is Microsoft’s best effort at establishing a foothold in the mobile gaming market, while innovating at the same time.

For more information on the Microsoft Surface, stay tuned with us here and we will keep you up to date as always!

Destinia Review


Destinia is an action RPG from the fantastic mobile game developer, Gamevil, known for their renowned Zenonia series. Destinia is currently available for the iPhone, iPod, and iPad through the App Store and all Android devices through Google Play (formerly known as the Android Market). First, I would like to disclose that this review was done with the Android version of the game but the iPhone version was tested some and there was no noticeable differences found.

Now, Destinia follows the story of a young man named Duke, a former member of the Imperial Guard, who is imprisoned after refusing to follow an order from his superior. The story begins with a rebel group led by their princess Crystal breaking into the prison to bust out her mentor, in the process setting Duke free. Duke helps the group free her mentor and then leaves the group after repaying his debt, going back to his hometown he hasn’t been to in years in search of his childhood friend. Thus begins a cliché RPG fantasy story filled with love, tragedy, rebellion, loss, and victory. As an RPG fan, I very much enjoyed the story somewhat reminiscent of a classic Final Fantasy story. But enough about the dramatic stuff. Let’s talk about the heart of the game, the gameplay. Like I said earlier, it is an action RPG with an emphasis on action. At the beginning of the game, you are given the choice of which class you want to play as. The choices are: the warrior, gunner, and thief. The warrior class is all about heavy-hitting and powerful melee attacks. The gunner is all about ranged attacks through obviously the use of guns. And last but not least, the thief who doesn’t actually steal anything (at least that I know of) is all about speed and dual-wielding swords. Now, personally I was a little disappointed that there was no magic class (as that’s what I always choose in fantasy games) but quickly found a sufficient substitution in the thief class. Fueled by fast paced movements and coupled with dual-wielding attacks, this class gave me quite frankly the most fun I’ve had in playing a mobile action game. Not only that, but surprisingly, each button press felt truly powerful.

Other than the basic attacks, each class has their own unique skill tree with which you can customize your hero to be what you want it to be, giving that RPG feel. You can then “hotkey” the skills to specific slots on the actual screen for use during combat, with each skill using up mana. When leveling up, you get to also increase your mana, health, and other basic attributes just like you would expect from an RPG. Once you have leveled up to a certain point, you are even given the choice of picking from 6 sub-classes to specialize in. Leveling is actually frequent, especially at the beginning of the game, making you feel like not only are you having fun fighting monsters but being rewarded by it as well with experience points. And not only do you get XP from monsters but also a lot of loot. Almost every monster you kill will drop something, whether it be gold, a potion, or a new piece of equipment. The customization extends to your equipment as well with many different armors and weapons to wear, each with their own set of benefits. Not only that but on top of all this, you can even forge two pieces together to make something entirely new! And if that’s not enough, occasionally a monster will drop a recipe with which you can use to create your own equipment with the right materials that can be bought at a store or found from looting corpses. This adds to the extra things there is to do other than blast your way through the main quest.

Speaking of quests, other than the main one there are plenty of side quests to keep you busy for hours. Considering this is a mobile game, there are limitations of course so don’t expect a lot of differentiability between quests. The only variances are your usual fetch quests, where someone wants you to go kill a specific monster and pick up an item it drops or deliver something to another person (which usually leads to another side quest). The other variant is simply going and killing a certain amount of a specific monster with very little justification as to why. But again, the exciting combat, loot, and XP is more than enough reason.

Finally, when you get bored with the main story, you have the option to jump into the mulitplayer or Multi Mode, as it is called in Destinia. With a stable Internet connection (be it 3G, 4G, or Wifi), you can battle against other people in an arena. You are connected to someone of about the same level as your character from the main game but possibly different classes than you and sent to the arena. Here you are not only fighting against that person but a few monsters as well and the winner is given an honor point which can be used to buy items from the store and be ranked in the global leaderboard. There is also an auction house where you can sell or buy items from other players. There is even a small pet system that Gamevil included that every once in a while in the main game, a monster will drop an egg which you can hatch to have a little pet follow you around and help you out in battle (not to mention they are very cute!) and even in the multiplayer, but expect other players to have their pets helping them out as well.

The Good: Cute anime-style graphics reminiscent of Gamevil’s acclaimed Zenonia series, matched with fun hack-and-slash gameplay, customization, and not to mention a cute pet system all make Destinia a worthwhile lengthy mobile game. And when you’re done with the main game, you can continue your adventures in the multiplayer.

The Bad: Musical score is unfortunately very limited, mostly to the moments you are in town but even then it is only one song that is catchy but will get boring after hours and hours of only hearing that song. Also very limited in the types of side quests to offer. Finally, a strange way of making the menu system work where you can’t simply press on something you see, you must move on the D-pad to the specific thing you want to click on and then press the main action button, this weird way could have been avoided.

Should you get it? Of course! If you’re an RPG/fantasy action fan or a mobile gamer looking for something a little less casual, this is the game for you! You can download the entire game right now for free or pay a little bit of money and get an ad-free version of the game.

Overall Score: 9.0/10

As always, if you have any comments, suggestions, feedback, or need any actual gameplay tips and/or walkthrough of specific boss fights or anything else (I will also do video walkthroughs) just let me know in the comments below!