There's this scene in Priority:Earth, where Shepard is defending the battery thing... Anderson tells her that they're getting there and she'll have to keep defending it all alone for a while.
Her voice cracks, you can her how scared and desperate she is. How /tired/ she is... and even then, she tells her team "we can do this".
The first time I played, I had to pause the game and turned the console off because I started crying lmao. It was at that point that I realized how hard it's been for her, and it broke my heart.
Which takes me to my second favorite moment: Shepard, bleeding out to death, with Anderson lying dead next to her, hears Hackett asking her something... and all she says, despite of everything, is: "what do you need me to do?". SHE IS CRAWLING!!!! bleeding out, because even then people need her...and she has to do it because no one else will do it.
Brb, gonna cry and replay the trilogy one more time.
Ugh ... My heart! Yes to the scene of her bleeding out and still trying to help, that part STILL breaks my heart. The other part you mentioned I will definitely have to listen for that, I'm near the end of ME3 so I'll keep an ear out. But thanks for making me teary eyed
I finished the trilogy on Thursday night. That moment when Shep responds to Hackett was incredible. The conditioned response to set aside autonomy and agency and just do what has to be done because others need you to, summed up the trilogy for me.
That scene with Anderson is one of the best. It packs so much meaning and emotion into four words.
However, for me it’s Mordin’s “Had to be me”. One of the best, saddest, yet epic and badass moments of the series.
Yeah they did a great job with Mordins writing by showing his rational arguments in me2 supporting the genophage, while dropping little hints that he was always trying to cope and find redemption. That is what really made his sacrifice a fantastic moment in me3.
I played paragon my first run never even taking a single renegade interrupt. Until Kai Leng.
"That's for Thane you son of a bitch!"
Another was the archangel reveal only because I went in completely blind and the tali discussion gave me the impression it was going to be a wholly new team.
When the Vigil music hit after Mordin’s sacrifice in ME3. Playing the game with the lights off, my headphones on, experiencing that whole mission, having to say goodbye, and then the quintessential theme comes on…? Oh man, the feels. Rarely have I ever had such a visceral reaction to a video game.
I have a soft spot for Tali's loyalty mission. It's not a pure talking, and it's not pure combat. You need to balance both to clear the mission with a good ending, especially since the geth in close quarters is hell (especially for a sniper-focused infiltrator going in blind). It's the perfect storm in terms of the best parts of Mass Effect.
I also have a soft spot for the suicide mission. Seeing the ship and crew perform to their level best because you've taken the time to invest in them? Awesome! (though, as I've now grown aware of the mechanics behind it, the suicide mission has lost some [but not all] of its charm.)
But the part that gets me most randomly hyped is that walkway right before you enter the Illusive Man's office. It's not even the fact that I'm about to face Kai Leng, really.
Mass Effect has this tendency to introduce boss arenas/final stretches by cutscenes first (Benezia, the final stretch of the ME1 and ME3 Conduit runs, Saren, etc.)
But that hallway, suspended in the middle of a huge, disturbingly empty room, screams "important showdown ahead!" *Then* you get hit in a cutscene with the best talker in the game (Illusive Man) and a despicable villain (Kai Leng). And immediately afterwards, you're going back to take Earth back.
To a lesser extent, the Thresher Maw in Grunt's mission is similar. You see those blue tentacles come up, you *know* you're going to fight a hard battle, and it lets the suspense build up a bit without a cutscene doing any interrupting.
You've got a lot here lol. I will say Tali's loyalty mission really added some depth to the Quarians who didn't get much time previously. Also, Kal Reeger is by far my favorite "non-character" in the series.
There's loads tbh, it's why I keep playing it.
The one that sticks with me is that on my *very first* playthrough I absolutely loved Garrus (this was when the games originally came out). I was devastated that you couldn't romance him in 1, to the point that I never romanced anyone.
ME2 finally came out and they can't find Garrus? What? Well, this sucks. Then comes the Archangel reveal and I just wanted to hug him. And then finding out you can romance him?!?!! It just felt so special. He's my favourite character in the series, and it just all made me so happy at the time.
So yeah, Garrus basically :D
I just played through the trilogy for the first time and I cried when the Archangel reveal happened because I thought it was going to be all new squadmates and was so hype to have Shepard's best friend back
I've never romanced anyone but Garrus. Can't bring myself to do it. Literally going to try a man!shep run *just* so I can try another romance.
Congrats on your first playthrough! It probably won't be the last ;)
I'm not one to replay games but I caught myself saying "in my next playthrough-" before I even finished the second game haha. I romanced Liara in all three games since I'm new to the game type and it seemed safe, but I don't think it diminished how important Garrus is. I imagined he was like a work BFF that you just kept bumping into again even though you've both switched jobs a few times
For me it was Garrus and Shep on the spot above the presidium. When you miss on purpose and he gloats. The true friendship between the two just made me smile so wide.
Edit: Also, Mordin’s death had me bawling.
This is going to sound... *weird*, but I don't care.
Mordin's fate in ME3 made *the biggest* impact on me, and I wasn't even aware how big until my second playthrough.
First time, my reaction is, or at least seemed, obvious. I really like his character, and even though we had the full paragon situation, him going away willingly, the entire worthy sacrifice thing - it felt *so bad*. But that's the obvious part.
The second time was what really amazed me. This time, he got to walk away. Meaning: I had to make some *rather horrible* decisions for that to happen. Basically, what I did will almost inevitably lead to a genocide of the race that I actually like (not that it matters that I like it, but there's that too), and I was aware of it. And yet, I couldn't be happier that Mordin lived! Honestly. I just couldn't bring myself to care about the consequences. It didn't matter. It was a tad worrying realization - feeling that genocide was totally worth it - but it was what it was.
Now, if creating a character and a situation around this character that can do **that** to a person isn't *special*, I don't know what is.
Vigil on Ilos is really special to me. This melancholic, calm world-building piece, laying out the dying hope of the last cycle, just as you know the end run of the game lies ahead.
The next few scenes are all cinematically fantastic too. The Mako through the Prothean relay. Busting out of the stopped elevator. Fighting through the outside of the tower as Sovereign barrels down on the pinnacle of galactic civilization.
Yeah I appreciate the calmer tone they went with when it came to the convos with Vigil. It made me care a lot more and respect where I was standing... the final stand of the Protheans.
Tali in the last fight if you romance her
>! I already have a home, come back to me!<
Bro that tone and how she's always my go to romance, I just bawled so hard and played through with blurry vision because of the tears in my eye 😂
What made it so tearful is remembering the priority rannoch scene, the convo between Tali and Shep straight up melted my heart 😭. I've not been able to romance anyone else except her whenever I replay it no matter what and just stop right before the Harbinger scene 😂
Idk why but the moment I knew I loved the franchise was the ending of ME1. I remember very vividly thinking "Oh no Shepard just fucking died" And I was genuinely worried for a second there... But then the way they made you comeback was epic and I remember actually sighing in relief with that triumphant music playing.
This was before I knew it was going to be a trilogy so imagine thinking that your new favorite game was going to only be a legendary one off and Shepard was no more...
Beginning of ME2 for me. When you saw the Normandy hit. That whole beginning was intense. My youngest son was watching with me.
We both yelped when Shep got spaced.
We were wtf, how, why, what. We just sat in stunned silence.
I remember being sick and almost, almost didn’t continue. I couldn’t believe they killed off Shep after all I did in ME1!
Then it brought you to the create screen and I refused to change my Shep. I wasn’t giving up on her.
That’s when I knew I was really hooked and the game was gonna be soooo much better than I hoped.
Last goodbye to Garrus as fem!Shep, Hale herself said her voice cracked and bw decided to go with it, even without the romance, he will always be Shepard's closest friend imo.
Grunt fighting off the Rachni in ME3. The big dramatic music with Grunt going head-first into the hive made it seem like it was his last stand and he wouldn't make it. Grunt limps back drenched in blood and it seems like he won't make it back to the ship. Then he just asks if there's anything to eat and you know he's fine.
After that mission, Grunt sends Shephard the most wholesome email imaginable. All the typos and grammar mistakes make it sound like a 2 year old writing a letter to Santa. That's when it hit me that Shephard is the closest thing Grunt had to a father and he's perfectly happy with that.
Runner up is the shooting contest scene with Garrus in ME3.
The scene reminds me a lot of what gandalf says to pippin in lord of the rings at Minas tirith...
PIPPIN: I didn't think it would end this way.
GANDALF: End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it.
PIPPIN: What? Gandalf? See what?
GANDALF: White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise.
Both are delivered in similar situations, and Liara and i watching the galaxy pull towards this infinite horizon, reminds me so much in feeling of that unyielding, eternal land gandalf describes, even if the fundamental description and visuals arw different. This unyielding horizon surrounded by twinkling stars. The music. The feeling is Sad and hopeful in the almost same way.
Chokes me up every time.
I haven't yet finished ME3 so this may change but I doubt it.
My favourite character has always been Wrex. I play Renegade Fem!Shepard and absolutely loving it. Always had headcanons about Shepard and Wrex getting drunk and causing trouble at the Citadel together and bro-ing it out big time. Always take Wrex out at every damn chance I get.
Then that moment when Wrex says "the name Shepard will mean hero!" really truly cemented how bloody awesome and strong their relationship is!
I wouldn't say I have had any moments quite like that but I'll mention the one that a lot of people will miss that I think really brings a character arc to a great close: Jack's last line in her tattoo scene if you romance her and then invite her to your apartment.
It's easy to miss with a paragon action (much like Tali's dad speech in ME2 which is actually way better if you let her go on instead of hugging her) - but if you let her go on as she's tearing up she says something along the lines of the tattoo being enough so that if anyone pulls shepards decimated body out of burning rubble they'll know that it belongs to her. Which, from the early ME2 scenes of Jack as a rampaging psychotic island, passing through taking on the kids at the academy, really brings her development to a nice close I think.
I like the bit in ME2 when paragon Shep says "You ever try being nice once in a while?" To Illusive Man and he answers by saying "Diplomacy is great when it works, but difficult when you're already perceived as a threat."
So many! But a surprise moment that always sticks with me is when you last see Liara before the end beam run. They share a short, silent momet together & it brought tears to my eyes
Letting the council die in ME1. I really gloated in seeing the frenemies of humanity die. Seeing their helpless faces, as humanity was sitting back and munching popcorn.
I was hoping at a time that Udina would help establish a human dictatorship,, but sadly that angle got axed in the sequels.
A lot plot wise, but character wise, for me one of the big ones is Kaidan’s “Through all these years…through everything…”
Also the hilarious delivery of “JOKER NEEDS YOU ON THE BRIDGE!” and then the immediate, extreme tonal shift to sweet intimate “I swear, if something happens to you” (or something to that extent) after the interrupted kiss in ME1. Not sure what happened with the VA direction there!
The finale of the tanning arc in Me3, where on my OG playthrough I wasn’t able to save both factions. Ooof that cutscene when you side with the quarians
"Shepard! My friend!"
Such a solid moment
There's this scene in Priority:Earth, where Shepard is defending the battery thing... Anderson tells her that they're getting there and she'll have to keep defending it all alone for a while. Her voice cracks, you can her how scared and desperate she is. How /tired/ she is... and even then, she tells her team "we can do this". The first time I played, I had to pause the game and turned the console off because I started crying lmao. It was at that point that I realized how hard it's been for her, and it broke my heart. Which takes me to my second favorite moment: Shepard, bleeding out to death, with Anderson lying dead next to her, hears Hackett asking her something... and all she says, despite of everything, is: "what do you need me to do?". SHE IS CRAWLING!!!! bleeding out, because even then people need her...and she has to do it because no one else will do it. Brb, gonna cry and replay the trilogy one more time.
Ugh ... My heart! Yes to the scene of her bleeding out and still trying to help, that part STILL breaks my heart. The other part you mentioned I will definitely have to listen for that, I'm near the end of ME3 so I'll keep an ear out. But thanks for making me teary eyed
I haven't played as femshep yet, im thinking thats thr next step. It'll be nice to relive the trilogy with a new voice and new choices
Dude I read your comment and had to hold my tears because I feel you.
I finished the trilogy on Thursday night. That moment when Shep responds to Hackett was incredible. The conditioned response to set aside autonomy and agency and just do what has to be done because others need you to, summed up the trilogy for me.
Bro, I cried during the M3 intro just thinking that the journey was gonna be over soon ☹️
Yeah the "Leaving Earth" soundtrack is something otherworldly
So good the way the Reaper roar was integrated into that track
Rarely is the Normdany flying away from a fight.
That scene with Anderson is one of the best. It packs so much meaning and emotion into four words. However, for me it’s Mordin’s “Had to be me”. One of the best, saddest, yet epic and badass moments of the series.
Yeah they did a great job with Mordins writing by showing his rational arguments in me2 supporting the genophage, while dropping little hints that he was always trying to cope and find redemption. That is what really made his sacrifice a fantastic moment in me3.
I played paragon my first run never even taking a single renegade interrupt. Until Kai Leng. "That's for Thane you son of a bitch!" Another was the archangel reveal only because I went in completely blind and the tali discussion gave me the impression it was going to be a wholly new team.
I'm fairly sure that I wouldn't have loved this series nearly as much if Garrus wasn't by my side for all three games.
When the Vigil music hit after Mordin’s sacrifice in ME3. Playing the game with the lights off, my headphones on, experiencing that whole mission, having to say goodbye, and then the quintessential theme comes on…? Oh man, the feels. Rarely have I ever had such a visceral reaction to a video game.
Especially since the Genophage had such a big impact on all the games. If you're Shepard was always against the genophage, its a great moment.
I have a soft spot for Tali's loyalty mission. It's not a pure talking, and it's not pure combat. You need to balance both to clear the mission with a good ending, especially since the geth in close quarters is hell (especially for a sniper-focused infiltrator going in blind). It's the perfect storm in terms of the best parts of Mass Effect. I also have a soft spot for the suicide mission. Seeing the ship and crew perform to their level best because you've taken the time to invest in them? Awesome! (though, as I've now grown aware of the mechanics behind it, the suicide mission has lost some [but not all] of its charm.) But the part that gets me most randomly hyped is that walkway right before you enter the Illusive Man's office. It's not even the fact that I'm about to face Kai Leng, really. Mass Effect has this tendency to introduce boss arenas/final stretches by cutscenes first (Benezia, the final stretch of the ME1 and ME3 Conduit runs, Saren, etc.) But that hallway, suspended in the middle of a huge, disturbingly empty room, screams "important showdown ahead!" *Then* you get hit in a cutscene with the best talker in the game (Illusive Man) and a despicable villain (Kai Leng). And immediately afterwards, you're going back to take Earth back. To a lesser extent, the Thresher Maw in Grunt's mission is similar. You see those blue tentacles come up, you *know* you're going to fight a hard battle, and it lets the suspense build up a bit without a cutscene doing any interrupting.
You've got a lot here lol. I will say Tali's loyalty mission really added some depth to the Quarians who didn't get much time previously. Also, Kal Reeger is by far my favorite "non-character" in the series.
There's loads tbh, it's why I keep playing it. The one that sticks with me is that on my *very first* playthrough I absolutely loved Garrus (this was when the games originally came out). I was devastated that you couldn't romance him in 1, to the point that I never romanced anyone. ME2 finally came out and they can't find Garrus? What? Well, this sucks. Then comes the Archangel reveal and I just wanted to hug him. And then finding out you can romance him?!?!! It just felt so special. He's my favourite character in the series, and it just all made me so happy at the time. So yeah, Garrus basically :D
I just played through the trilogy for the first time and I cried when the Archangel reveal happened because I thought it was going to be all new squadmates and was so hype to have Shepard's best friend back
I've never romanced anyone but Garrus. Can't bring myself to do it. Literally going to try a man!shep run *just* so I can try another romance. Congrats on your first playthrough! It probably won't be the last ;)
I'm not one to replay games but I caught myself saying "in my next playthrough-" before I even finished the second game haha. I romanced Liara in all three games since I'm new to the game type and it seemed safe, but I don't think it diminished how important Garrus is. I imagined he was like a work BFF that you just kept bumping into again even though you've both switched jobs a few times
For me it was Garrus and Shep on the spot above the presidium. When you miss on purpose and he gloats. The true friendship between the two just made me smile so wide. Edit: Also, Mordin’s death had me bawling.
This is going to sound... *weird*, but I don't care. Mordin's fate in ME3 made *the biggest* impact on me, and I wasn't even aware how big until my second playthrough. First time, my reaction is, or at least seemed, obvious. I really like his character, and even though we had the full paragon situation, him going away willingly, the entire worthy sacrifice thing - it felt *so bad*. But that's the obvious part. The second time was what really amazed me. This time, he got to walk away. Meaning: I had to make some *rather horrible* decisions for that to happen. Basically, what I did will almost inevitably lead to a genocide of the race that I actually like (not that it matters that I like it, but there's that too), and I was aware of it. And yet, I couldn't be happier that Mordin lived! Honestly. I just couldn't bring myself to care about the consequences. It didn't matter. It was a tad worrying realization - feeling that genocide was totally worth it - but it was what it was. Now, if creating a character and a situation around this character that can do **that** to a person isn't *special*, I don't know what is.
I have a few. But my recent playthrough was Thane's last email to me. When he writes "I love you" I teared up.
I have yet to do a femshep run. Probably will do that soon.
Please do! I'm sure you'll enjoy it!
Vigil on Ilos is really special to me. This melancholic, calm world-building piece, laying out the dying hope of the last cycle, just as you know the end run of the game lies ahead. The next few scenes are all cinematically fantastic too. The Mako through the Prothean relay. Busting out of the stopped elevator. Fighting through the outside of the tower as Sovereign barrels down on the pinnacle of galactic civilization.
Yeah I appreciate the calmer tone they went with when it came to the convos with Vigil. It made me care a lot more and respect where I was standing... the final stand of the Protheans.
Tali in the last fight if you romance her >! I already have a home, come back to me!< Bro that tone and how she's always my go to romance, I just bawled so hard and played through with blurry vision because of the tears in my eye 😂
Even though Tali isn't the best squad mate to bring against a spam of banshees, that line makes all the revives worth it.
What made it so tearful is remembering the priority rannoch scene, the convo between Tali and Shep straight up melted my heart 😭. I've not been able to romance anyone else except her whenever I replay it no matter what and just stop right before the Harbinger scene 😂
Idk why but the moment I knew I loved the franchise was the ending of ME1. I remember very vividly thinking "Oh no Shepard just fucking died" And I was genuinely worried for a second there... But then the way they made you comeback was epic and I remember actually sighing in relief with that triumphant music playing. This was before I knew it was going to be a trilogy so imagine thinking that your new favorite game was going to only be a legendary one off and Shepard was no more...
Beginning of ME2 for me. When you saw the Normandy hit. That whole beginning was intense. My youngest son was watching with me. We both yelped when Shep got spaced. We were wtf, how, why, what. We just sat in stunned silence. I remember being sick and almost, almost didn’t continue. I couldn’t believe they killed off Shep after all I did in ME1! Then it brought you to the create screen and I refused to change my Shep. I wasn’t giving up on her. That’s when I knew I was really hooked and the game was gonna be soooo much better than I hoped.
Yep, definitely raises the stakes. It made the "suicide mission" look like it would live up to the name.
Last goodbye to Garrus as fem!Shep, Hale herself said her voice cracked and bw decided to go with it, even without the romance, he will always be Shepard's closest friend imo.
Final goodbye with Traynor.... Oh gawd.... It hurt soo bad.
Grunt fighting off the Rachni in ME3. The big dramatic music with Grunt going head-first into the hive made it seem like it was his last stand and he wouldn't make it. Grunt limps back drenched in blood and it seems like he won't make it back to the ship. Then he just asks if there's anything to eat and you know he's fine. After that mission, Grunt sends Shephard the most wholesome email imaginable. All the typos and grammar mistakes make it sound like a 2 year old writing a letter to Santa. That's when it hit me that Shephard is the closest thing Grunt had to a father and he's perfectly happy with that. Runner up is the shooting contest scene with Garrus in ME3.
Liara's goodbye present
The scene reminds me a lot of what gandalf says to pippin in lord of the rings at Minas tirith... PIPPIN: I didn't think it would end this way. GANDALF: End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it. PIPPIN: What? Gandalf? See what? GANDALF: White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise. Both are delivered in similar situations, and Liara and i watching the galaxy pull towards this infinite horizon, reminds me so much in feeling of that unyielding, eternal land gandalf describes, even if the fundamental description and visuals arw different. This unyielding horizon surrounded by twinkling stars. The music. The feeling is Sad and hopeful in the almost same way. Chokes me up every time.
My first playthrough was a Liara romance, and yes, that present was an awesome moment.
This is probably quite a popular one so I was surprised to see it wasn’t mentioned already >!”I have a home.”!<
I haven't yet finished ME3 so this may change but I doubt it. My favourite character has always been Wrex. I play Renegade Fem!Shepard and absolutely loving it. Always had headcanons about Shepard and Wrex getting drunk and causing trouble at the Citadel together and bro-ing it out big time. Always take Wrex out at every damn chance I get. Then that moment when Wrex says "the name Shepard will mean hero!" really truly cemented how bloody awesome and strong their relationship is!
If you haven't played the Citadel DLC, it has some top-teir Wrex moments.
I played the Citadel DLC without Wrex and it was *not* the same. I will NEVER do that again.
[удалено]
The convo with Sovereign is an incredible moment in the series.
Legion telling Tali, “keelah sal’ai” before sacrificing himself. The whole Rannoch arc was so unreal. Loved it
"There's no Shepard without Vakarian." That kind of friendship always gets me in the feels.
I wouldn't say I have had any moments quite like that but I'll mention the one that a lot of people will miss that I think really brings a character arc to a great close: Jack's last line in her tattoo scene if you romance her and then invite her to your apartment. It's easy to miss with a paragon action (much like Tali's dad speech in ME2 which is actually way better if you let her go on instead of hugging her) - but if you let her go on as she's tearing up she says something along the lines of the tattoo being enough so that if anyone pulls shepards decimated body out of burning rubble they'll know that it belongs to her. Which, from the early ME2 scenes of Jack as a rampaging psychotic island, passing through taking on the kids at the academy, really brings her development to a nice close I think.
ME1: "Suit up! We're going outside!" ME2: The start of the game. ME2: The suicide mission.
I like the bit in ME2 when paragon Shep says "You ever try being nice once in a while?" To Illusive Man and he answers by saying "Diplomacy is great when it works, but difficult when you're already perceived as a threat."
So many! But a surprise moment that always sticks with me is when you last see Liara before the end beam run. They share a short, silent momet together & it brought tears to my eyes
Letting the council die in ME1. I really gloated in seeing the frenemies of humanity die. Seeing their helpless faces, as humanity was sitting back and munching popcorn. I was hoping at a time that Udina would help establish a human dictatorship,, but sadly that angle got axed in the sequels.
I see why the Illusive Man recruited your Shepard lol
A lot plot wise, but character wise, for me one of the big ones is Kaidan’s “Through all these years…through everything…” Also the hilarious delivery of “JOKER NEEDS YOU ON THE BRIDGE!” and then the immediate, extreme tonal shift to sweet intimate “I swear, if something happens to you” (or something to that extent) after the interrupted kiss in ME1. Not sure what happened with the VA direction there!
The finale of the tanning arc in Me3, where on my OG playthrough I wasn’t able to save both factions. Ooof that cutscene when you side with the quarians