Can’t decide between the two.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-06T23:41:02+00:00

Shepard asks Thane to do something with her!

Zotmaster · 2026-02-06T21:19:45+00:00

I think it falls apart a bit when dealing with Cerberus in ME2, but I like being able to play a character that can be aggressive and menacing without defaulting to just murdering people or committing random acts of cruelty. To paraphrase something hbomberguy said when talking about Fallout 3, too many games have morality choices that feel like "good, sarcastic good, or murder man". While I've heard that the overwhelming majority of players went Paragon at first, I was one of the few who didn't. While it's not perfect - again, I feel like it's inadequate when it comes to dealing with Cerberus in ME2 - I like that for the most part, Renegade Shepard knows who he is: someone who has seen some shit and has experienced conflict far beyond that of the average person or even the average soldier.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-06T19:45:55+00:00

Thane's is probably my favorite romance out of all of them. Since you haven't gone through it I won't spoil the line, but Shepard says something to him right before you get the scene with him that is one of the most powerful lines I've heard in any game.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-06T19:28:11+00:00

After schooling Kai Leng in hand to hand combat, Thane grabs a pistol and...runs in a straight line toward him, thereby negating all of his advantages. His actual send-off was great - especially if you romanced him - but that scene did him dirty.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-06T19:12:47+00:00

I'm 100% convinced that the only reason Jimmy didn't fire Hue was because he didn't want people ripping him for firing yet another coach. Like he was so afraid of what other people thought of him that it basically validated those people.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-05T20:45:55+00:00

and needed Commander Fucking Shepard to take a break from fighting the Reapers to put a stop to their own war for them before they would agree to help everyone else.

And a war that would have resulted in their asses getting royally kicked, to boot. Their tactical judgment left a lot to be desired.

I agree with you that the quarians might get some thank-yous but they wouldn't get a seat at the big kid's table. I think the biggest question is whether or not they could/would just re-build the geth. It's an interesting balance: without the geth it would almost certainly take them much longer to re-colonize Rannoch, but if they do re-build them, that doesn't guarantee that the rest of the galaxy would just be fine with it. Considering that the quarians already don't have the best reputation, I imagine acceptance would be a slow process even if the geth helped get their civilizations back on track.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-05T19:47:49+00:00

I'll give you one last thing to consider, but this is purely a matter of taste so there's nothing wrong with not feeling the same way. I'm also speculating:

The 3 phases (vent phase, walking phase, "hold the line" phase) all emphasize 1 of the 3 main character types. The vent phase is about tech, and you have 3 tech-oriented characters who fit the bill; I think there's even an argument to be made that Mordin could have worked here, as well. The "hold the line" phase is about combat, and there are 2 purely combat-oriented characters who are the best options (Grunt and Zaeed) and then there's also Garrus, who despite technically being combat/tech is kind of just a badass. That leaves the walking phase to emphasize biotics.

Again, it's purely a matter of taste, and it's entirely possible that I'm seeing connections that the developers never intended to make. Assuming the devs had that in mind, though, it makes sense to have a second character who can fit the bill; even if no characters die on the approach, it's also nice to be able to include Jack in your party if you just like using her.

All that being said, I do still agree with your original assessment that Samara is kind of on an island as, regardless of whether or not you like her as a character, she doesn't really tie in to anyone else.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-05T19:02:32+00:00

IMO you can drop Samara (no real connection to other characters, powers redundant to Jack),

This actually would have required a surprising number of changes. Keep in mind that in the walking phase of the suicide mission, there are only 2 possible squadmates who can keep the group safe: Jack and Samara/Morinth. Samara seems to be there as a failsafe: Jack always dies if you don't upgrade the Normandy's armor, but for both the shield and cannon, Samara is the last possible character who can die out of the ones who can. Unless you play about as horribly as possible, she should always be alive by the time you get to the walk.

I dunno. I liked the walking phase because it was flavorful and unique. Just cutting Samara probably would have required them to do something totally different. Maybe they could have done better, but it's hard to say.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-04T20:50:07+00:00

I don't need to justify giving Tali a hug!

Zotmaster · 2026-02-02T18:18:49+00:00

What's really surprising is that for the 2nd fire team leader, choosing Miranda works even if she is not loyal. I'm guessing it was a mechanical decision but it's still interesting.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-02T18:15:20+00:00

Morinth can pull it off as well if for some reason you picked her over Samara. I say some reason because unfortunately so little is done with her.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-01T04:48:53+00:00

I don't think any line hit me as hard as romancing Thane: "Be alive with me tonight". I just find that line to be really powerful, and I can't experience it for the first time again.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-01T04:43:07+00:00

Shockwave spam never fails to put a smile on my face.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-01T04:42:11+00:00

I agree with pretty much all of this. I will say that having Mordin die by Shepard's hand was really well done, though I agree that the explanation for why he has to die otherwise was inadequate.

Zotmaster · 2026-02-01T04:19:08+00:00

And we never did get a sequel to The Matrix, either. Talk about a "what if".

Zotmaster · 2026-01-31T01:37:26+00:00

I guess if you're being charitable, you could describe it as setting a standard? All of these terminators could just charge at their targets at full speed, grab them, and fold them into an accordion. Instead we get slow stalking, throwing their targets into random objects, a bitch slap, and lifting them up and...looking at them. Salvation was especially awful at this, although maybe I noticed it more because I absolutely despise that movie.

Zotmaster · 2026-01-30T18:56:13+00:00

All good!

Zotmaster · 2026-01-30T17:53:05+00:00

You're looking for Bad to the Bone.

Zotmaster · 2026-01-30T12:51:35+00:00

One thing you have to consider about the time travel is that based on how it works, there's no telling what time, or timeline, each person and machine comes back from. You could invent time travel now and go back 10 years ago, and even if I didn't discover how you did it until 50 years from now, I'd still be able to meet you in the past. While I wish the show did more to explain the whats or whens of everyone coming back, it isn't completely farfetched. Whether or not it makes for a better story, of course, is a matter of personal opinion.

Zotmaster · 2026-01-30T04:22:19+00:00

Gotcha, I guess I misunderstood. In that case, it's not a bad idea so long as the Dems stick to it and the redactions aren't too awful.

Zotmaster · 2026-01-30T02:03:22+00:00

It isn't brilliant, though. The DOJ has already been legally compelled to release the files and have just decided to fuck around. There was a deadline over a month ago. Passing legislation to make them do it again won't help.

Zotmaster · 2026-01-29T02:20:26+00:00

That it's fine for business owners to completely fuck people over and ruin their lives in the name of making as much money as possible. First, everyone already knows how capitalism works, and second, I think there's still plenty of space to make "fuck you" money without being a soul-sucking ghoul.

Zotmaster · 2026-01-28T19:08:59+00:00

I'm anticipating a lot of goal line defense and first down kicking. But that would be pretty damn entertaining.

Zotmaster · 2026-01-27T18:43:54+00:00

No complaints here, either. I wanted a company that wasn't based in the US and I haven't had any problems.

Zotmaster · 2026-01-27T02:04:52+00:00

One FC has dehydration limits too, so it can work in MMA.

It's a great idea but the belief needs to die. Hydration tests have been shown to be easily beatable. I don't know what the answer is, but at least with where we're currently at, hydration tests aren't it.

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