Mass Effect 3 Extended Cut: Free DLC Announced - Bittersweet Victory

Reprinted from EA's investor website 

BioWare Announces Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut

Free* DLC Pack to Provide Additional Cinematic Scenes to the Ending of Mass Effect 3 this Summer

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- BioWare, a Label of Electronic Arts Inc. announced Mass Effect™ 3: Extended Cut, a downloadable content pack that will expand upon the events at the end of the critically acclaimed Action RPG. Through additional cinematic sequences and epilogue scenes, the Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut will give fans seeking further clarity to the ending of Mass Effect 3 deeper insights into how their personal journey concludes. Coming this summer, the Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut will be available for download on the Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and PC for no extra charge*.

"We are all incredibly proud of Mass Effect 3 and the work done by Casey Hudson and team," said Dr. Ray Muzyka, Co-Founder of BioWare andGeneral Manager of EA's BioWare Label. "Since launch, we have had time to listen to the feedback from our most passionate fans and we are responding. With the Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut we think we have struck a good balance in delivering the answers players are looking for while maintaining the team's artistic vision for the end of this story arc in the Mass Effect universe."

Casey Hudson, Executive Producer of the Mass Effect series added, "We have reprioritized our post-launch development efforts to provide the fans who want more closure with even more context and clarity to the ending of the game, in a way that will feel more personalized for each player."

The Mass Effect franchise is one of the most highly decorated series in the history of games, having earned over 250 awards from critics around the world. Mass Effect 3 launched last month to universal critical acclaim, receiving over 75 perfect scores. For more information on Mass Effect 3, please visit http://masseffect.com, follow the game on Twitter at http://twitter.com/masseffect or "like" the game on Facebook at http://facebook.com/masseffect. Press assets for Mass Effect 3 are available at www.info.ea.com.

Making the rounds to all the major news outlets now.  Pretty big win for the fanbase.

Mass Effect 3's Multiple Endings Depend on Multiplayer Play?

At this point, it shouldn't be a surprise that there are multiple endings for Mass Effect 3.  What may surprise you is that to obtain the "best" ending in the game, you probably have to play multiplayer.  The ending you get depends on your war assets and readiness level, which multiply to determine your effective military strength.  This leaves a sour taste in my mouth for a "single player" experience. 

You can get enough war assets through single player to obtain the ending, but it is very difficult.  You basically have to complete every quest in the game.  Essentially, the game forces you to play multiplayer co-op in order to complete your single player experience.  This tactic seems a little underhanded.  Maybe it's a way to drive the sales of unlockable multiplayer items.  I don't know.

It is possible to get the best ending in single player without playing multiplayer, but it’s hard. All your war assets only count for 50% of their potential value. The biggest gains in War Assets come from a culmination of your decisions in the previous games and your decisions here.  If you’ve helped a race before, and you help them in this game, you can get their full support and resolve their conflict... possibly even getting someone else on your side.

In other situations, a wrong call somewhere along the line or a Paragon or Renegade score too low to pick the right thing to say, can mean a character dies, a race is demoralized, and if they fight for you at all they’re worth much less to the war effort.

All this isn't to say that Bioware didn't make a great game.  They did.  A lot of the complaints over this readiness and ems issue seem to stem fro the fact that people just aren't happy with the game's ending in general.  I just wish the culmination of your single-player efforts didn't depend on a multiplayer experience.  I'd rather just see a focus on the story.  It seems like another strike against EA/Bioware that has already come under fire for things like Origin restrictions on the PC, DRM issues, and the day-one-DLC fiasco.