It is my deep, deep, hope that when BioWare does the inevitable re-release of the original Mass Effect trilogy for the X-Box One and PS4 that they take to the opportunity to fix some issues with the original games that I think would open things up and make for a better experience.
The first is the relationship system. My main hope can pretty much be summed up as "Everyone is Bi". I mean, Jack is already canonically bisexual so leaving her out in the first place is pretty stupid to begin with. And I don't really see Miranda restricting herself to anything, let alone the gender of who she's going to sleep with or be involved with. But more importantly I think it's just stupid to live in a world where fans can accept romances between entirely different species where any exchanged bodily fluids are killer infections but you have to fight for and justify why two human characters of the same gender getting together isn't some radical and unbelievable notion. I mean, it's sad enough that we can't cross the final frontier of our insecurities in real life in 2016, so at least grant us the option to pretend that we've done it over a hundred-and-fifty-fucking-years from now. I really don't think that's too much to ask.
My second request is for sure the one that will never happen since I'm basically asking to have the game remade from the ground up, but, Mass Effect 2. It's by far the worst game in the series and I would really, really, love for that to change and have its flaws corrected. The main thing is there is no customization of any sort for the weapons. You can basically strip-mine the entire galaxy to get every single weapon upgrade there is, but those are just fixed damage increases and status effects like armor piercing and increased ammo capacity. It's incredibly boring and offers no real control over what is already a very limited weapons system. Without any DLC, the game offers only two of each variety of the main weapon classes (pistol, smg, shotgun, assault rifle, sniper rifle) with possible third options for the rifles and shotguns depending on your player class. So when given that already pitiful selection the game does itself no favors removing any control over how those weapons will be upgraded or what those upgrades will be. Preferably, a redone 2 will adopt 3's upgrade system of adding various items to the guns to heighten their damage or clip size etc. etc. Basically anything different from the first time around would be much improved and much appreciated.
The other things that could be fixed in 2 is the balance system between biotic and tech powers and its replayablity. My initial character in the series was a vanguard, and as I upped the difficulty in 2 I found myself increasingly frustrated by the game since I had apparently picked the wrong why to play it and the game made no real effort to disguise that fact. As the difficulties increase, each enemy gains a layer of protection. Okay, fine, that makes perfect sense. But the Vanguard class as no abilities to remove any of those barriers so my higher playthroughs basically consisted of hiding in cover using squadmate powers popping up to shoot, use a power, go back to cover, and then shoot some more while I waited for the cool-down to be over. It doesn't really help with immersion or satisfaction when you as the protagonist are easily the most useless member of your squad and your only winning strategy is to use your teammates to do all the heavy lifting while you crouch behind a wall fire at any stragglers.
Also, it's a bullshit move to strip the player of every accomplishment they've achieved and force to them to start at the bottom every single time they start a new difficulty. Playing through on Insanity isn't really difficult because the AI is smarter and uses better tactics (which they do), but because you has a player don't really have the tools to effectively deal with your opposition. Every health, armor, weapons, and power upgrade has to be redone and relearned every single time. So while your enemies are operating at the top of their game from the word go, you basically have to start down in the amateur league and work your way up until you aren't being torn to shreds every time you try to move in open ground. That, isn't difficulty, it's just a pile of arbitrary bullshit you're forced to swallow to justify that god-awful mining mechanic. Because really, if you kept all the upgrades and benefits like you did in the other two games, what was initially 22-25 hour game could be redone in about 10-12. That's just a sign of a poorly designed game and players shouldn't be punished for that when they go looking for a challenge in their games.
And lastly, we get to the ending. The original ending sparked a firestorm across the fandom because of how awful it was and for once the internet outrage was pretty justified. In the original game, there is only one throwaway line about the Reapers being controlled by an outside intelligence and when it appears it does come just straight the fuck out of nowhere and is so incredibly distracting that the final decision loses all impact since the context it's made in was never previously prepared for. Leviathan fixes those issues, but essential plot points shouldn't be relegated to content that has to be separately paid for and which a player may or may not decide to get,
More than that though, is the presentation. I have no real objection to an alien AI telling you that you have to decide what to do with the Reapers, but an alien AI should be well... alien. Having it appear as a little boy you said literally one sentence to before he died isn't poignant or thematic, it's just stupidly lazy. Have it look like the Leviathan creatures or don't give it a form at all, just have it be a disembodied voice that pops up as static or densely packed lines of code, doesn't matter. But the ending needs to actually feel like an actual outgrowth of the story an not some pipeline that every one is forced to squeeze through irrespective of how they've played the game until that point.
Most art forms are fluid, adapting to changing interpretations or additions added over time. "You're the One That I Want" isn't in the original Grease musical, but try to find a modern production that doesn't include it. Point is, redoing a video game series for a new console release affords the same opportunity to go back and tweak or modify the original work. It's a much harder, expensive, and work intensive feat than changing lyrics or adding a new stanza or adopting new production designs, sure, but I don't think we should merely pass on the flaws in a work to a new form because it would've taken too much effort to make it into something better.
RT
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