Life often flows like a lazy river, only to pick up speed and crash over a precipice as an out-of-control waterfall. We hold tight to the oars and do our best to navigate the course, never giving up, smashing through the waves. On this journey people come and go, pets vanish into the ether, parents step out of the blue and into the black, and your kids grow older as you hang tight to life, waiting for the moment the undertow pulls you under. As you travel the path, certain events stand out as beacons of light and darkness and it is these events that shape us and make us who we are.
The other night I ran into an old friend of mine at a yogurt shop I had not seen in ages. It was great to see him. I was nervous because our paths separated time ago and we have not been in touch although living in proximity. I remember reading a book of fiction in college where characters in the story mysteriously disappeared. It usually is not a good practice to have characters drop out of a story without some explanation given to the reader. I cannot remember the title of the book, but I remember the professor telling us that when you graduate and move out into the real world people will do just that—disappear from your life when you least expect it. I have found that to be true.
My friend and I shared a universal love of gaming. We discussed the subject at our chance meeting and how we do not play a lot these days with busy lives and family. He asked me to recommend a game to play, so I suggested the Mass Effect Trilogy when I discovered he never experienced the game. When he asked me if it would take much of his time I made the mistake of telling him it would take over his life. That is true to a certain extent, but I should have mentioned that he can play the game in 20 or thirty-minute increments at his leisure.
Mass Effect is one of those unique events that stay with you for a lifetime. After completing the trilogy, I have found it difficult to play other games because for me none seem to match the wonder and excitement of the Mass Effect Universe, the character interaction, the planet-hopping adventures, and the all-around badassery. The graphics and fighting mechanics are not as great in the first installment, but the story is strong and graphics and game control excellent in ME 2 and 3.
A beautiful thing about the Mass Effect experience is the plethora of fan art the game inspired. Fans of all ages have created buckets of art, mods, and videos like the one I included in this post. Sure, there is controversy surrounding the end of the trilogy, but if you are a fan of science fiction, the franchise is a must play. The successor, Mass Effect Andromeda, is fun, but it lacks the emotional bond you develop with the characters of the trilogy, and the writing lacks depth.
The video I picked for this post uses advertisements made to market the game, not actual gameplay. I went with this selection because of how the clips and the audio from Disturbed did a fantastic job of touching on the high emotional bond players have to the game. To see the in-game mechanics check the following video. Cheers!
I would love to hear your stories of how Mass Effect touched you and made a difference in your life!
Thank you for the lovely vid. Yes, you made me cry. How has ME touched me? I carried that icky heavy feeling of grief with me for a year after the ending of ME 3. The characters live in my heart and in my world (headcanon) Commander Shepard and his crew are living it up in the Citadel Apartment and Shepard is standing at the piano practicing the tune Liara taught him.
I also wrote several fanfiction stories to get over it. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7932998/1/An-Earth-Left-to-Save is one of the stories.
Great story. It is amazing how the ME characters live on in our hearts and minds. I remember the time I sided with Legion and Tali died. I literally could not sleep the entire night and honestly thought about her and her passing as if she was a real person. The game really makes you care about the characters in a way no other game has done for me.
I wrote a short Mass Effect fanfic once. Here it is: https://loschaos.com/ashley-williams-battle-for-london-mass-effect-3/
Cool story with pics! And another interesting web site to explore. Allowing Tali to die is a direct path to gulping fear and guilt. Then Garrus clinches it when he says, I never got the chance to see her face, but I always thought there was an angel under there.
Yup – has to be one of my most bonehead gaming moves ever!
Mass effect isn’t just a game, it’s an experience. It’s one of the best science fiction stories I’ve ever encountered and affected me in a profound way. I named my Shepard after myself and made him look like me because I wanted as much immersion as possible. I felt everything I did. All of the consequences. Decisions I made would haunt me later in a time when I nothing else to be concerned about. I felt I had actually formed relationships with the characters and every decision mattered. You fall in love with the characters and from 1-3, you’re on a journey where everything is on the line. The emotions intensify over the games. People change, but in the end, they’re still who they were before. Every decision made changes the probability of an outcome a little bit and mass effect portrays this beautifully. I found myself wishing I lived in this universe. I wrote about it. I found myself going there in my dreams. This video you posted was quite fantastic in my opinion, in ccapturing the intensity, emotions, and beauty of the series.
Mass effect enters your life as a fun time killer. It exits as a long journey, winding to an end, that has changed you; for better or worse.
Great comment!. It is truly a wonderful game.