Pay Off

So I just finished Mass Effect 3 and to any gamer, this series is a must play, solid. I did a few playthroughs of the first two games and got a lot of enjoyment out nearly ever aspect: the game play, the story, the characters, the music, the visuals, the lore...it goes on.

I have loved nearly every game BioWare has put on the shelf and even the games that weren't so awesome, were still good. They know how to do RPGs.

With all that said, though, my endorsement aside... I will join the majority of people I have talked to so far by saying this about the ending of Mass Effect 3: Are you kidding me?

Now, to avoid spoiling it the game for any potential readers, I am sure all two of you have played it, I will dodge revealing content.

There was a whole lot of build up for this series, a whole lot. You end up overcoming insane odds with a rag tag crew of aliens, humans, and synthetics in countless nearly unwinnable scenarios. Each Mass Effect leaves you thirsty for more...except this one. I could rant about this all day or the pretentious philosophical bullshit tacked on, which as a writer I could feel being telegraphed about halfway through. I could rant about the post credit DLC advertisement. I could rant about the post credit cut scene that feels like a band aid on a bullet wound. It was almost as bad as the Knights of the Old Republic II ending, which was actually not done by BioWare, but Obsidian who were not really at fault; Lucas Arts made them rush it... I digress. I'm not going to rant about one game's ending.

However, I would like to point out a trend of Epic Fails in storytelling. Not every ending has to be a Hollywood ending, look at anything directed by the Coen brothers; great work, not always happy. Closure, a pay off...

I'll keep this short by listing potentially great stories that ultimately fall short because of their last act:

The Dark Tower - I have distanced myself from Stephen King books because of his saturation of dramirony (Dramatic Irony) in stories, but this was last straw
Heroes Season 1 - Started off decent, jumped the shark near the end and yet I was hopeful enough to comeback for season 2...which was awful
Mass Effect - Explained above
Knights of the Old Republic - That second game was rushed because Lucas Arts wanted it out by the holidays
Dead Island - Fast forward to final encounter where you first encounter and defeat the villain
Borderlands - This one I will be forgiving on, but also at the same time be annoyed because they fixed the abrupt ending with DLC, that you had to pay for, but was worth every dollar
Most Anime - I think the majority of writers in Japan either hate their viewers or are killed off near the end of their series and replaced
Most Movies - This is an entry for another time...

I could go on, but I feel it is time for some audience participation. Add your own story that falls shorts, but please don't give away the story if the story itself is worth it despite the finale...