#Sidequest: Burden of Command

[horizon-series-details]

The Vulture is a creature found exclusively in the desert regions in Forbidden West. I got these shots in The Stillsands region specifically though. Judging by the brown feathers, red head and feet, and location it lives in compared to real world locations, I’m fairly certain that these birds are based off of the Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura). They’re quite large for a bird the player can hunt, and are programmed to be skittish and flee once the player gets too close. We also see one when going through the “Burden of Command” sidequest, as Yarra has a pet Vulture named Meat. I would include photos of Meat if she looked any different from the standard vulture.

Hunting these birds is quite useful, as not only will they always drop bird meat and/or wild meat, but they have the chance of dropping rich meat, vulture feathers, or a vulture wishbone.

[oodlyenough]

I pretty much agree about arcane. I'm still enjoying it, but I feel like both acts so far would've been better suited for a whole season each tbh.

Yeah, there's a lot of story in all of their ideas and we're just kind of getting the cole's notes I feel. It's a shame. I remember thinking S1 felt breakneck sometimes, especially just from the pov of someone who loves writing fill-in-the-gaps fic and had a hard time finding gaps lol, but season 2 has the additional burden of having to be the final season and it's just not enough.

I'm not sure about act 1 was a season unto itself, but episode 6 could easily have been a season 2 finale leading into a third season. We should've seen more than a montage of commander Caitlyn, the black rose stuff started off cool to me but now feels like a huge sidequest in an already-packed season, Caitvi simultaneously needed more time together and more time apart, it's crazy that Jayce and Viktor's whole everything is happening over like a cumulative 15 minutes of screentime... Ekko wasn't even IN act 2...

AND Caitvi fans were/are still really hoping for a sex scene somewhere in there lmao 😭 there's no time for anything

From a purely practical standpoint I can see why Riot looked at the long development time for each season and thought "nope". But the product suffers for sure.

[crossdressingdeath]

#you have to keep in mind however that he's a 20 year old who lost all of his friends and his father figure and he blames loghain for it#and he's a new grey warden himself; of course he doesn't realize what it really means to be one. he barely is one#he only knows they're the first group to really care about him as a person and give him a sense of purpose and community#so of course he sees it as an honor to join the grey wardens; he took 'join us brothers and sisters' to heart#he cannot call loghain brother when loghain killed his family (tags via @chantrymouse)

Oh believe me I am very aware that Alistair's young. People never shut up about him being young whenever anyone mentions his flaws, there's an unfortunate tendency for people to talk like that erases everything he does wrong.

The thing to keep in mind is that this post isn't supposed to be "Alistair is a bad person". It's specifically "Alistair is a bad Warden". I'm also not saying it's a bad trait for him to have as a character (it's actually a very fun aspect of his general personality); my issue is in the fact that we don't get to discuss it or challenge him on it when an unwilling Warden should absolutely be able to say "Hey, Duncan took advantage of my desperate situation to force me into this against my will, please stop talking like he's a saint". It does make sense that he doesn't get how things actually work (although after six months as a Warden following years training in the Templars I would expect him to at least somewhat understand that this isn't Happy Family Fun Time), but the fact that he completely fails to grasp that the Wardens are a military organization famed for being incredibly shady and doing whatever's necessary to achieve their aims is definitely a flaw that makes him a bad Warden. You need to keep in mind that this isn't the Warden deciding to spare Loghain for funsies; making Loghain a Warden is Riordan's idea, and one he puts forward specifically on the grounds that there are "pressing reasons" to have as many Wardens on hand as possible. Riordan is the most senior Warden present by a very significant margin (he was Joined alongside Duncan). The Warden and Alistair... actually should be doing what he says. He's got seniority, he's the only one here who actually knows what he's doing, command rightfully falls to him. The fact that Alistair is inexperienced actually makes him deserting on the eve of battle even worse; Riordan clearly has a specific reason why he thinks Loghain should be Joined that the junior Wardens present don't understand yet due to their inexperience and so should really... y'know, at least hear out before losing their shit about it.

And it is really, really important to remember that that is what Alistair is doing. He is deserting. He's sworn to serve the Wardens, the final battle that will save or doom Ferelden is on their doorstep, and he deserts because his commanding officer said "Hey, we need more Wardens, it's actually important for reasons I won't get into in front of outsiders" and the person in charge of the Fereldan Wardens—who quite possibly is only leading the group because Alistair refused to, remember; a Warden who didn't want to be in charge to begin with has very good reason to fall in line now that there's a more senior Warden present to take that unwanted burden from them—says "Yes ser"... you know, like they should as the most junior member of the organization present whose experience is limited to wildly abnormal circumstances. This is a military organization! People always seem to forget that! It's not just a fun little found family, there is a chain of command that they're supposed to be following. And remember, one of the very first sidequests in the game (after leaving the origin) tells us that desertion is a capital offence! Riordan would be well within his rights to execute Alistair for this! He doesn't because he seems to in general be a pretty chill guy, knows they still need as many Wardens as possible, and possibly doesn't want to risk a fuss given he's technically part of the Orlesian branch and executing someone is a lot harder to clear up if there's issues later than recruiting someone is. (Also Alistair might be the king of Ferelden at this stage so... it'd be a little awkward.) I don't deny that Alistair's motivations are sympathetic! But the thing that is really important in terms of this post is that by deserting on the eve of battle because the Warden won't cut a man's head off without trial against the advice of the only experienced Warden present for him Alistair is proving that he is a terrible Warden. I get the sense he thinks that the "sacrifice" part of the Wardens' motto only applies to dying heroically in battle, but a good Warden has to be able to set aside more than that. I think part of it is that Alistair didn't sacrifice anything to join? He didn't want to be a Templar, joining the Wardens was a dream come true. But because of that he doesn't get that you are expected to sacrifice anything if it means stopping the Blight, and that absolutely includes grudges. If Duncan had survived he probably would've conscripted Loghain too! This is not the time for moral qualms, if they fail here Ferelden is almost certainly doomed! And Alistair doesn't understand that, and while that's incredibly sympathetic as a character trait it also makes it clear that... he's not really cut out for this life.

(God I wish that hardening him was less about bland platitudes about standing up for himself and putting himself first when he already does that unhardened and more about making him see that his Warden heroes were absolutely prepared to do things that disgusted them and hurt others if it meant stopping the Blight and if he really wanted to be a Warden capable of ending this he needed to be prepared to do the same... Give me Alistair learning that distasteful things are necessary if you want to be a good Warden, it'd make so much more sense with that being the path where he'll stay engaged to Anora even if you spare Loghain...)

Alistair: Joining the Wardens is an honour, not a punishment! Name him a Warden and you cheapen us all! I will not stand next to him as a brother. I won't! Asterius: Not all of us have spotless honour, you know. Alistair: Some things can't be undone or forgiven. This goes way beyond having spotless honour, we aren't talking about a minor hiccup in his past!

Says the (very recently former) Templar to the Circle mage turned maleficar whose very existence is unforgivable to Alistair's former brothers- and sisters-in-arms...

This bit really does show how Alistair... doesn't understand how the Wardens actually function. Like actually there are very few things the Wardens consider genuinely unforgivable, and even less that can't be properly punished by the delightful combination of "get Joined and fight an archdemon and if you survive that go to Orlais". I've said this before but it's especially interesting that he thinks becoming a Warden is an honour when for pretty much every potential Warden it is very much "join the Wardens or die". I think my favourite is Cousland, where Duncan explicitly holds their survival as leverage to force their parents to agree to give them to the Wardens. I really wish you got the chance to actually discuss that with him, because I feel like an actual conversation where the Warden gets the option to say "Duncan forced me to join the Wardens on pain of death (and if I told him I would actually prefer to die forced me to do it anyway), how dare you look me in the eyes and call it an honour?" would be so tasty.

[amgarrak]

Ves’ Detailed Choices and Timeline: DAO

THIS... is a very long, quite unnecessarily detailed step by step guide to Ves’ choices in Dragon Age: Origins. I will make another one for Awakening and then a third (far simpler) list of major choices for both just for ease of reading.

AEDUCAN ORIGIN - Had Bruntin killed, not an unusual choice for her reputation within the Assembly. - Did not fight in the provings but was seen and spoke happily with the armsmaster, interested to hear of the recent gossip especially in regards to casteless winning a proving. - Challenged Lord Dace for his attempt to trick her into supporting his financial burden, a truly desperate and foolhardy thing for him to do. Ves defeated Mandar Dace in an honour proving but did not kill him, congratulating him on his prowess. - Did not believe Bhelen’s assertion that Trian wished to kill her, chalks up the accusation to his youthful nerves and political inexperience, framed for Trian’s murder. - In her conscription to the Grey Wardens, Ves sees how far she had strayed from Paragon Aeducan’s virtues, how that lead to this outcome for her family and people. She resolves to not make that mistake again, the Darkspawn are the only enemy of concern to her now.

OSTAGAR - Spoke with Loghain and learned of the tension between him and the King, with some trepidation. - Finds the resolution not to meddle in politics to be quite a difficult one for her. - Did not give the deserter food.  - Gave the flower to the houndmaster and later names the Mabari ‘Mandar’ - Found Missionary Jogby’s box. 

LOTHERING - Killed the Bandits. - Avoided a confrontation with the Merchant, not her business. - Calmed the Chasind through shaming him for his cowardice. - Sent Loghain’s men away with the message ‘Let’s talk first’ - Agreed to help the Blackstone Irregulars. - Persuaded the revered mother to release Sten.  - Avoided the mob whilst leaving Lothering. - Did not complete most of the chanters board quests, just enough to pay for supplies and have some funds left over. 

REDCLIFFE (Alistair, Leliana, Sten) - Begrudgingly agreed to help the villagers and so fully prepared for the battle.  - Paid for Bevin’s sword.  - Happily lied to Owen in her intent to search for his daughter to persuade him to restart work. - Got Dwyn to fight through intimidation. - Got Lloyd to fight through intimidation. - Learned of Berwick’s mission and got him to fight for the village.  - Lead the village in it’s defense, thoroughly accustomed to commanding soldiers in such hoard-style engagements and everyone survived the night. Gifted the Helm of Ser Ferris the Red and is intrigued by it’s dwarven craftmanship. - Left Jowan in his cell. - Found Valena, much to her own surprise. - Listened to the suggestion of sacrificing Isolde for a blood ritual, but when told that it put Morrigan at risk alone in the Fade with little ways to help her, she resolved to kill Connor. Knocked Isolde out to do it. - Has little time for the request to seek out the Urn of Sacred Ashes, considers the whole Redcliffe fiasco a waste of time.

CROW ASSASSINS (Leliana, Morrigan, Sten) - Attacked after briefly returning to Orzammar’s gates, upon seeing Loghain’s forces there alongside Mercenary companies, she left and so ran into the Crows. - Met the merchant with Shale’s control rod along the way. - Thoroughly questioned Zevran. - Quite easily allowed him to join her in defeating the Blight. 

MAGE TOWER (Morrigan, Wynne, Alistair) - Initially agreed to clearing out the tower for Greagoir but upon finding Wynne she agreed to seeking out Irving. Ves is already thoroughly tired with mages.  - Ignored most magical sidequests on the way up, except when Morrigan noticed the Black Grimoire. She also read about the multiple copies of the ‘rare’ tome, which she found very funny. - Was not convinced by Fade Duncan. - Had trouble with the confusing passages of the Fade and got thoroughly frustrated but did eventually succeed in freeing her company and defeating Sloth. - Saved Irving and ignored Cullen’s angry concerns in the face of Greagoir’s reassurance. - Grudgingly allowed Wynne to join then. 

DENERIM (Leliana, Zevran, Sten) - Upon running out of provisions and needing much of their equipment repaired or replaced, those least recognisable snuck into Denerim.  - They take jobs from Kylon, the Mage Collective and a few from the Chanter’s board to make enough money to stay in the city discreetly and get what they need. She also agrees to look into assassin contracts for the Crows. - Ves is reunited with Gorim as they return from their labours. To see him alive lays her heart to rest and she is happy to hear of his fortune on the surface, but she does not ask him to join her, not when she failed him. Too dangerous for him and his family to be seen conversing with her long, she takes the letter and shield back to their rooms in a backwater tavern. She reads it there and does not sleep for the storm of thought that it inspires in her.  - Levi Dryden finds them here by chance, though Ves is noncommital about his request initially. - They are accosted by Ser Landry the next day and, though Ves talks him down from a duel, she determines that they need a proper base of operations and accepts Levi’s request. 

SOLDIER’S PEAK (Sten, Morrigan, Zevran) - Before arriving, Ves pointedly avoids wading into a confrontation between Gwaren and Bannorn soldiers.  - Slays the Demon within Sophia Dryden. - Drinks the Blood Concoction. Anything that will give her an edge over the Blight. - Allows Avernus to continue his research, insisting on ‘sensible’ methods, not necessarily ‘ethical’ ones.  - Finds Asturian’s Might, gives it to Alistair when they get back. - Encourages Levi to make the Fortress habitable in exchange for supporting their endeavours, supplying them and doing what he can to hide their movements.  - Stays until Mikhael has outfitted the company with proper Warden equipment, which Ves now agrees they have enough security to bare, staying hidden now less important than staying relevant. Let people see them doing their job. Ves herself modifys the blighted armour taken from Sophia Dryden to fit her, destroying the makeshift forge she used to do so and discarding the tainted tools as well. 

Ves takes them from Soldier’s peak to Redcliffe, pausing at Lake Calenhad to search for Sten’s Blade. They also encounter the Kingsguard here and Ves is given the key to Cailan’s chest containing secret documents, still in Ostagar. She puts this at the bottom of her list of problems. Upon arriving in Redcliffe and seeing that Arl Eamon is still unconscious, she frustratedly acknowledges that none of the other Nobility of Ferelden will speak with her and in order to settle the Civil War she will need Arl Eamon’s connections. She begins to plan the journey back to Denerim, but seeks out the Golem first. 

HONNLEATH (Alistair, Zevran, Morrigan) - Tricks the demon into releasing the girl.  - After being surprised by Shale’s free will, she asks for her help against the blight.  - Upon returning to camp, Morrigan reminds her of her continuing worry for Flemeth’s looming treachery. The trek to the cabin is riddled with darkspawn but Ves’ sense of loyalty to Morrigan as a part of her company wins out and she goes with Sten, Wynne and Zevran to kill Flemeth, which she succeeds at, to Morrigan’s surprise and delight.  - From here they begin the journey to Denerim, but first go to find the Dalish. - On the road they find a newly struck meteor and Ves is taken with the strange metal.

BRECILIAN FOREST (Sten, Morrigan, Zevran) - Is somehow not surprised that (upon finding them, which took some time) the Dalish are also in some immediate peril. She agrees to help them with an air of resignation, realising that nothing will be easy for her from here on, and prepares to enter the forest.  - Zevran calms the Halla, Ves asks him about his relationship to the Dalish and hears about his mother. - She does not involve herself with Cammen and Gheyna. - Does not agree to seek out Danayla but still hears her husband out.  - Does ask about Wynne’s apprentice, Aneirin, more for curiosity’s sake than anything else. - Finds the hunter and returns him to the Dalish camp.  - Tries to reason with Swiftrunner when it turns out he can speak.  - Speaks with the Poetree and agrees to find his Acorn for him, begrudgingly. - Finds the dalish gloves after discovering the demon campsite and gives them to Zevran. - Does discover more about the elven ruins by completing the ritual, too damn curious about history for her own good.  - Frees the Arcane Warrior. - Does agree to speak with Zathrian, though not before making sure the Spirit of the Forest and Swiftrunner understand ‘This is not my problem! You all understand? This! Is not my business or my problem!’ She convinces Zathrian to undo the curse, her motive purely being that ‘I would like to have one less sickness that turns people into mindless monsters to worry about’  - After returning to camp, she allows Alistair and Leliana to escort Wynna back into the forest to find Aneirin, though she does not go herself. 

DENERIM (Alistair, Leliana, Wynne) - On the road, they are attacked by Assassins hunting for Leliana and upon arriving in Denerim Ves seeks out Marjolaine and convinces Leliana to kill her.  - She also eventually agrees to go with Alistair to see his sister, when it becomes clear he will not go by himself. Afterwards she is quite harsh, asking Alistair what exactly he expected from a woman he had never known.  - Finally they find Genetivi’s house and the false Weylon is discovered. Resigned to the fact that this is apparently something she is going to do, she notes down the village’s location.  - She recieves a letter from the Blackstone Irregulars before she leaves, apparently the son of it’s leader wants his father killed. She finds Raelnor and tells him to get a grip on his company, she can’t clear up every mess. 

On the road she stops at Soldier’s Peak so that Mikhael can take a look at the Meteor ore. Recieves Starfang. They also briefly camp near Orzammar’s gates to re-assess the situation. The large numbers of forces are gone, but a representative is still there harassing the doorman. Ves quietly asks after Sten’s sword before moving on. 

HAVEN (Sten, Shale, Leliana) - She was no less happy about the situation than Sten was, but he acquiesced to her arguments. - The whole town, civilians and all, turning on her was certainly not what she had expected, but it did sound right.  - She convinced Genetivi to return to Denerim, beating him in stubbornness by a hair’s breadth. - Kolgrim’s offer had been tempting, but Sten’s word convinced her against trusting him, he was right after all, no one in their right mind would believe this all a good idea.  - Encountering Trian’s ghost, she resolutely told herself that this was all some magic/spirit/fade trick. But still, she could not help but treat him as the brother she lost.  - She passed these trials and took a pinch of the ashes. All of it seemed easily explained by ‘Magic’ but she was glad Leliana at least enjoyed herself. - She absolutely leaves the dragon well enough alone.

RETURN TO REDCLIFFE (Alistair, Leliana, Morrigan) - Before going to the castle, she went to Dwyn and wrangled him out of Asala, to give back to Sten at Camp. - Ves is immediately wary upon Eamon’s waking. Putting Alistair forward for the Throne seemed unnecessary and yet another play of the political game. She struggles to find the neutral path here, vieing between the wrongness of a Warden as a King, versus the undeniable political gambit of actively manipulating the situation herself. She stays quiet, for now. But remains neutral in her tone and excuses herself to continue about her business. Finally time to return home, no matter the situation she finds there.

ORZAMMAR (Sten, Zevran, Morrigan) - Seeing little has changed, she accosts the door ward’s accoster. Persuaded the Ambassador to leave, once again asking for Loghain to speak with her. - Did not help create the chantry in Orzammar, and was particularly derisive about it.  - Agreed to take Dagna’s request to the circle tower, no matter how much it bemused her. - Sought out the Assembly, immediately rebuffed Bhelen’s representative without care, not glad to hear that Harrowmont was vieing for the throne but determined to plow on.  - Met Harrowmont’s representative outside of the Assembly and was ready to pledge to his cause, despite her own misgivings. But Zevran’s lack of faith in Harrowmont’s leadership was not only well founded, it rocked her surety in her decisions.  - She went to the Shaperate to think, and was surprised to find Czibor’s lack of acknowledgement of their past relationship quite grounding. After the disorientation of seeing her home so at war, she remembered she is not a dwarf of Orzammar any longer and her motives must only be in aid of the Grey Wardens. - She took to the Provings as a Grey Warden in order to settle her indecision the good Dwarven way, taking her win as a sign of the Stone’s favour and in the end dedicated her win to Bhelen.  - Returns the documents to the shaperate. - Returning to Vartag Gavorn, she takes the documents (obvious forgeries to her) and does as she is bade. The meeting between her and Bhelen is ice cold, she gathers her mission and goes to Dust Town, picking up the lyrium deal on the way. - Routing Jarvia completed, she returns to Bhelen and his surprise at her actions. And she does tell him, you forced my hand, Harrowmont has no backbone. Your inflated sense of self confidence and righteousness is marginally better than that. Bhelen has his own venom to offer and Ves has to constrict her replies before it gets out of hand. Branka is missing and her vote is necessary to break the stalemate. Into the Deep Roads it is. This is almost a relief to Ves, the Deep Roads has always been her battlefield. 

THE DEEP ROADS (Oghren, Alistair, Morrigan) - Ves reluctantly agrees to Oghren’s company, agreeing that he will know Branka’s mind better than her. Shale she considers taking, but eventually the worry that exposure to Lyrium and (potentially) the forge of Golems itself will effect her newly regained free will dissuades her. Ves simply promises to return with whatever she can find about Shale’s past.  - Kills Ruck, tells his mother he died heroically.  - Finds the records of Orta’s noble house.  - Finds the records of the Legion of the Dead’s noble status.  - Finds the topsider’s blade. - Meets Kardol and is quite warmed by his more familiar greeting, though he remembers her exiled status a moment later. Helps push the line back to Bownammar’s gates with great zeal, seeming to gain strength and conviction the further they treck into the deeps.  - Ves is not surprised by encountering a broodmother, though is surprised that Alistair had not been told of them before. Branka’s explanation for the horror is sickly logical to Ves. Finding out how Golems are made lights a fire in her, but not the kind Caridin wanted. And whilst it is painful in the extreme for her to kill a Paragon, she preserves the Anvil. In this moment her choice for King is even more solidified, Harrowmont would never have the enduring stomach necessary to keep the Anvil. Bhelen did.  - Bhelen is elected King and Ves lives with the twinge of guilt she still feels to see Harrowmont slain when he had been her supporter, even if it had been for his own political machinations.  - She ignores Bhelen’s intent to reinstate her as a member of house Aeducan, but giving her Trian’s Maul is a step too far and she leaves promptly. - Persuades Kardol and the Legion of the Dead to fight on the surface. 

She takes the company back to the Tower, firstly to complete a tidy lyrium deal since their funds had begun to run dry what with the army now being fielded, but she also manages to remember to ask after Dagna’s request. At this point, she also haggles a boat out of the Circle Tower, making the subsequent journey back to Orzammar and then to Redcliffe far quicker than it might have been. Whilst in Orzammar, she makes another trip into the Deep Roads to find Cadash Thaig.

Back at Redcliffe, Ves tries to covertly question Arl Eamon on whether it would not be more prudent to simply acquiesce to Loghain’s regency in order to make him more amenable to discussion on the darkspawn threat. But this is firmly rejected and Ves puts Eamon under the ‘unreliable ally’ catagory. The board is set, the Landsmeet is called and Alistair is put into the firing line, something that worries Ves more and more as the days go on. 

DENERIM She is relieved to see Loghain so early. The impromptu meeting solidifies his position in her mind, which she is grateful for. Yes, Wardens are politically conniving and a dangerous unknown in his eyes, they took advantage of Cailan’s naivete and are conspiring with Orlais. Knowing his opinion gives Ves the final puzzle piece to understand all the events leading up to this, which leaves her in a good mood, much to Eamon’s confusion.

RESCUING ANORA (Zevran, Leliana, Wynne) - Eager at the idea of (at worst) gaining more information about her opponents and (at best) gaining Loghain’s daughter as an ally, Ves happily sneaks into the the Arl’s estate.  - Finds the Arl’s son. - Finds Imminric and promises to give his ring to Alfstanna. - Releases Soris. - Releases Vaughan on condition that he supports the Wardens in the Landsmeet. - She makes it all the way through the palace and kills Howe without alerting the upper story guards and it is only with Cauthrien’s confrontation that she is caught. She does not give up Anora, instead surrendering to Cauthrien without a fight. - She waits a little time, hoping that perhaps her capture might allow her to speak with Loghain more privately and come to some kind of arrangement. But Sten and Zevran break her out before that can happen.  - With the revelation that Anora no longer trusts her father, Ves is even more relieved. Keeping the current Queen on the throne is not only the smoothest solution, it is also the most neutral. She isn’t accustomed to having her moral dilemmas so easily tied up. Anora finds not just a willing but a glad ally in Ves. 

THE ALIENAGE (Sten, Zevran, Wynne) - Breaks into the Tevinter base of operations and is not in the least bit surprised to find a slaver operation running.  - Has Devera take them to Caladrius. - Rejects the initial offer, intimidates Caladrius into leaving with his life. She knows how to fight Tevinter Magisters far more dangerous than him after all.  - Picks up the letter, releases the elves and returns to Eamon. 

THE LANDSMEET - Before the Landsmeet, Ves takes Alistair aside and tries to impress to him the danger he is in. He has been pushed into a game with rules he doesn’t understand and with penalties he has no idea about. She tells him he has to remain verbally clear that he doesn’t want the throne. Anora will be Queen and he can continue in the Wardens, but he has to keep singing that tune. She cannot protect him and remain neutral if he doesn’t.  - Persuades Cauthrien to step aside - Focuses on issues of the Blight and avoids accusations surrounding Ostagar. - Nearly unanimously supported, including the Antivan crow’s illicite support.  - Duels Loghain herself, which turns out to be quite the difficult fight. Loghain is far faster than she expects and she takes some blunt hits in the time it takes for her to compensate. But she wins out in the end through sheer strength and durability.  - Things somehow go downhill dramatically from there. She does not address Alistair’s veherment rejection of accepting Loghain’s surrender, does not really have time. She was not aware Riordan had acquired the cache of Archdemon blood to induct new Wardens and kicks herself for not spending more time winning his trust so that he might have informed her beforehand. - Inducting Loghain into the Wardens seems prudent and a fine way of enforcing Warden pragmatism and neutrality. Alistair’s anger, she expects, but before she can really talk him down he has already claimed the crown in front of all the gathered nobility of the Landsmeet.  - Suddenly she can no longer protect him. Anora is queen and she calls for Alistair’s head, just as any sane ruler of a tenuously peaceful country should and Ves cannot find words to save him, especially not when he has denounced being a Grey Warden anyway.  - But the Landsmeet is won, the country behind her and Loghain survives the Joining. 

RETURN TO OSTAGAR (Loghain, Wynne, Zevran) - With time enough to spare ahead of the Army and a new recruit they all need to get accustomed too, Ves finally follows up on the key to Cailan’s chest.  - Finds Maric’s sword and gives it to Loghain. - Finds the documents. - Defeats the worrying darkspawn necromancer and the risen ogre. Takes Duncan’s weapons.  - Gives into her own wishes just once and does not give Cailan a King’s burial, leaves him to the wolves. 

REDCLIFFE - The answer to how an Archdemon can be killed seems like the last piece to a puzzle she hadn’t known she was pondering until that moment. And there is a moment of gallows humour as she looks at Loghain realising what his stance on Wardens might have cost them. But that mellows quickly, if Riordan does not succeed then she has to consider which of them would be the better sacrifice. It is a narrow thing, but in the end she internally agrees it should be Loghain’s price to pay. Still, this seems like one loss on top of the other, and a sad one when she had been truly starting to like having him at her side. He had fit into the battle-roll of her second so well too... - Morrigan, as always, surprises her. And at this point she truly trusts that, whatever this end goal of hers might be, it will not be an unbearable one. Morrigan is her friend, after all. She persuades Loghain to take this course only a little easier than she expects too and they have an awkward morning. 

THE FINAL BATTLE (Loghain, Zevran, Morrigan; Sten as Leader at the Gates) - The Blackstone Irregulars under Raelor were holding out within the city and join Ves’ ranks. - Both of the Darkspawn Generals are defeated. - Ves leads the armed forces well and specifically calls on the dwarves to hold key positions about the city.  - Slays the Archdemon herself. 

EPILOGUE - Requests of Anora that Ferelden send more forces to help Orzammar push back against the Darkspawn. - Is quite nonplussed at the suggestion of being made a Paragon, but makes some preliminary organisational plans with Gorim before he tells her to leave the administration till later. - Initially assumes she will stay in Ferelden and oversee the rebuilding of the Wardens.  - However, in a stroke of melancholic desire to just have a month of... something else, she agrees to go with Sten to see his homeland and invites Zevran to go with them on the trip. - Asks Loghain to lead the wardens whilst she is away.  - Returns six weeks later and joins him at Soldier’s peak to help him wrangle the arrival of Orlesian Wardens before going to Vigil’s Keep to take up the Arldom there and, of course, it can never be that simple. 

[cburambles]

The fact that he tracks down his "guards" (alone, probably because he's embarrassed or something) to literally just give them an IOU instead of a simple "thank you" is hilarious. --> what makes it even funnier is that he also pulls that in rebirth if you manage to do great in the gongaga protorelic sidequest (in the jpn version he sounds even a bit bashful like he's happy to have a new protector around but doesn't want to show it. If you do badly, he says something along the lines he can't trust other people but only himself, which is interesting knowing how annoyed he is at Tseng for assigning him bodyguards earlier)

But yeah, it kinda show how he tends to see relationships as either something transactionnal or as a threat/ challenge to him & doesn't think or knows how to develop genuine connection with others, despite that it's clear he has attachements like the Turks or D.

Elena, I think, is pretty aware about how she feels & acts. She clearly knows how to interact with civilians ( even call-out Reno, Rude & Tseng in CoS bcos she does a better job interacting with them) & understand the importance of image & community is the one who end up not only has Midgar mostly evacuated post-meteorfall by using rumors but also do proposition to Rufus that he accepts and handle most of the medical buisness from the recruitment to production & the distribution, making her the Turks that is the most calculative but also influential for Shinra's policies.

However she's someone really self-righteous & with her own assumptions who has either a low sense of empathy or is actually good at compartimentalize it away. She's someone who want to fit in, to prove that she's not lesser, that she doesn't want to be a burden, it causes her to go overboard, added with a lack of information that her colleagues or superiors doesn't share with her.

I think the one case where she doesn't understand herself is her puppy crush on Tseng. She clearly has a lot of admiration for & want to emulate him bcos he's the perfect image of a Turks & thinks they are similarly-minded & she wants his approval (while she clearly doesn't know who he is or he feels undearneath the facade.)

Elena also is someone who struggle to move on & it's clear Shinra's fall affect her.

Something I wonder is if 7R will tackle that topic concerning Rufus. The game delved a lot into his psyche & mental state o it makes me wonder if we might actually see him own up to his faults & how it might factor into his relationship with the Turks in part 3.

One of the main problem with his relationship with the Turks in the compilation is that it lacks of emotionnal development when CoS tells the reader that they are close to be comrades & on the verge to be something akin to a found family. And instead of illustrating that thru dialogue & interactions, Nojima just summarized it in one paragraph, coming from the POV of the elderly folks living with them in Healen's Lodge.

7R has the possibility to remedy to that by putting some challenges in his relationship to the Turks & give him opportunity to grow & make him earn his loyalty beyond meteorfall outside of " he saved our lives & the job is exciting".

The fact Elena has a lot of dialogue about Rufus & how she doubts his leadership but also can't help respecting him for taking command from the front ( something eng speakers are likely to miss out due to the way english localization botched some of of the dialogue in the mines & the Turks & Rufus are not spared) with a line that is peak tsundere behavior in Rebirth, kinda hints to that direction. Like we finally got one Turks who is willing to question his decisions because he needs to do better as a leader.

Idea: Rufus thought he would test the newest Turk himself by pretending to be a hologram in the Combat Simulator. He wasn't prepared for how absolutely savage Elena is with her shit-talking. She somehow pulls a real explosive from her pocket and...he doesn't do this anymore, let's just say.

Tseng: 🤷‍♂️ Well, I advised against it

[thewillowbends]

Thoughts on TLJ - SPOILERS

Now for some spoilery content!  Now that I've had a sleepless night going over some of my feelings about it, I can shuffle through what I did and didn't like.

- - - - -

TLJ Positivity:

-I liked the trajectory of Rey's whole storyline.  I had hedged my bets between two concepts - Rey as Anakin reborn (which, admittedly, I preferred because I'm an indulgent prequel junkie) or that she was a nobody, representing an entirely new generation to whom the Skywalker legacy was being handed to.  The wound up being the latter, but I'm not as disappointed as I expected.  While I have...many, many issues with some of the characterization in this film, hers felt like it progressed the most naturally.  This idea of legacies and prophecies going the way of the past, of letting a new generation start fresh but not at the expense of destroying it, of letting the PEOPLE take ahold of their destiny instead of the burden falling on a few "chosen ones" is not something I feel is necessarily a bad moral lesson for the audience nor fundamentally detrimental to the movies' previous material.

Note: I'm still writing that Rey-as-Anakin fic.  YOU CAN'T STOP ME DISNEY.

-Adam Driver has a really nice gym routine.  So does John Boyega.

-Kelly Marie Tran is adorable, guys.  She is literally the cutest.

-A film could never hurt for more POC and they could definitely use in the main cast, but I will say that the newer movies definitely feel more "casually diverse."  There are POC in the Rebellion, POC in villains, POC in the civilian culture, POC in the main cast.  It doesn't feel forced.  They're just THERE, which is how it should be.

-Adam Driver is also really good in this movie.  Considering we're not getting as extensive a backstory as most of us wished for Ben, he still does a remarkable job making the character engaging through his performance.  They essentially give him Vader's original plotline in ESB/ROTJ before the "Vader as Anakin" storyline came into fruition.  So he's sort of Vader's heir in a new and more devastating way.  Kylo isn't emotionally stable or enough of a visionary to really be the driving force of an empire, so it'll be interesting to see how that tension between Hux and Kylo works itself out in the last film.

- @ahollowyear  - I got a real kick out of how much of the actual storyline you accurately predicted vis a vis Kylo and Rey.  You wrote that fanfic, what, a year before the details of TLJ even started coming out?

-I am deeply relieved that we avoided the reductive light/dark balance the trailers teased at.  The dark side is still what imbalances the Force - it inevitably exists but is not necessary for balance.  Also, that the main cast's discussion of ~character complexity~ was not that open ended, since the film's protagonists actively reject more of the nihilistic viewpoints being thrown by side characters.

-Carrie Fisher is always and forever the queen. <3

-I liked the final scenes with Luke.  I really liked the choice of a binary sunset to bookend Luke's story.  Genreally, I'm not a huge fan of ALL POWERFUL JEDI, but I can deal with astral projected battles from a Skywalker because Skywalkers are special.  But he went out in a way that I found meaningful and touching.

TLJ Negativity:

WHERE THE HELL ARE RIAN JOHNSON'S EDITORS IN THIS MOVIE.

Seriously, what was going on with the writing process here?  Why is the plot all over the damn place?  (Answer: Because they didn't plot out this arcs in advance and it shows.)  Why do we spend 30-40 mintues on a casino sidequest that literally has NO ACTUAL EFFECT ON THE GODDAMN PLOT.  What are characters like Benicio del Toro's and Laura Dern even doing in this film?  We literally are trying to balance nearly two casts (OT/ST) worth of character development, the last thing you want or need is unnecessary characters distracting from the main development or wasted scenery.  And that's what literally the entire middle chunk of Rose and Finn's plotline - wasted action.

There are so many good ideas struggling to be communicated in the absolute muddled mess that is the middle of the movie.  We have a storyline about light and dark being natural opposite but neither being an inevitability outside of our personal choices.  We have the theme of the natural order of things, life begetting death begetting life, and the idea of legacies carrying us through strife so that we can become the heroes of our own making instead of relying on others to save us.  There's commentary about the significance of failures, how sometimes they're more important than victories because of what they reveal to us about ourselves and each other, and how we come to terms with them when they can't be easily remedied.  The casino is clearly meant to be a commentary about exploitative capitalism and the way the evil of fascism destroys culture and people from the top down.  All of these are great ideas, but you need to have that effectively communicated to your audience, and you need to communicate it meaningfully.

And the characters.  THE CHARACTERS.  The chaaaaaaaaaaaaraaaaacters.

Rey and Kylo I'm fine with.  Their development doesn't bother me.  I can even deal with Rose, though I wish her purpose in the plot wasn't so hamfisted.

But Finn and Poe?  Why did it feel like their character arcs literally rebooted for this film?  Poe is clearly inteded to be a kind of surrogate son to Leia ("mother of the rebellion"), serving as a foil to Ben, so I get why there's a general parallel there in the two progressing toward leadership roles - one who violently grasps at power, while the other faces some hard lessons about the reality and sacrifice of command as opposed to heroics.  I feel like that's a natural progression of what we saw in their relationship in TFA, but it still feels like a step back because the level of experience and confidence we saw in him in TFA doesn't mirror how Leia views him in TLJ.  If anything, he should have been growing into the position of command so that Leia can effectively and believably pass that legacy on to him.  Instead, what we get is a plotline that suggests to us that Poe isn't really ready for him, which is...regressive?  Like, all of these character should have been going through these changes at the start of the film, not ending on them.

(This being said, what the hell is wrong with Admiral Holdo that she can't understand the value of basic communication?  Like, she's meant as a lesson to the audience about mistaking reckless action for heroism, but it's hard not to agree with Poe when she's literally telling NOBODY UNDER HER NOTHING.  How easily could all of that drama been avoided if she's just said what the actual plan was instead of creating so much fear and uncertainty on the bridge?)

(I totally ship Leia/Holdo though.)

And Finn.  Oh my God, I feel so bad for John Boyega.  What a waste of his charisma and talent.  Most of TFA is Finn going from a deserter seeking *individual* salvation from the First Order and recognizing by the end the responsibility one has in the stand against evil.  So he basically...rehashes that entire character development here?  Wouldn't it have made more sense to see him struggling with his reputation as a hero in the Rebellion and then coming to terms with his new role?  Let him wrestle with the existentialist uncertainty of being able to make his own choices!  Explore the trauma of his experiences in the army by having him struggle with his fear and uncertainty while infiltrating the First Order - use it to emphasize the contradictions of his experiences with the freedom of his new life.

If you wanted to interject some moral ambiguity, why not have him address the issue that the New Order's army is essentially a SLAVE army?  Wouldn't that scene with Phasma held much greater power if he'd tried to appeal to his fellow soldiers about the destruction the New Order has wrought on their lives, about the potential they could have if they rose up against them?  If you're going to have Benicio del Toro nihilistically declaring that the war is endless and therefore moral standpoints are meaningless, why not have Finn reject that meaningfully to both the audience outside the movie and within it?  Legit y'all, my ideal ending for this man is to take his place in helping rebuild a newer, better system for all of them - and what better way than by helping to rehabilitate his fellow child soldiers?

Just ugh, out of everything that bothers me in the movie, Finn is the character that leaves the worst taste in my mouth.  He was my favorite in TFA, and his character development should be progressing beyond this point by now.

Also: GOD HELP ME if they kill off Leia in episode III.  It would be beyond heartless and irresponsible given the overall thematic trend of the movies.  The character who tells us dejectedly that she "went out fighting" is arguably the one who should live to pass the legacy on and die peacefully.

TLJ neutrality:

-I am on the fence regarding Luke's characterization, leaning towards finding it less problematic than others might.  He's pretty clearly suffering from severe depression, which can take a person to some pretty dark places.  Most of my struggles with his characterization center around his confrontation of Ben.  Do I feel that Luke is somebody who would pull the blade on his nephew?  Part of me violently rejects that, but there's another part that considers it from the perspective of somebody dealing with the horror of thinking he created another Vader, of knowing what Ben could become, of the Force showing him a horrific future...and giving into that temptation the dark side presents in thinking our choices are already made. I can dig the idea that part of nefariousness of the dark is in undermining our belief in full agency.  Could I believeably see him, in a moment of weakness, pulling his lightsaber?  I'm vacillating on the issue.  Ben Solo isn't all that particularly different from Jason in the old EU, and Luke toed the line of darkness dealing with his fall, too.

-I'd really like more EU exposition as to what exactly what down with Snoke and Ben when he was a child.  How was he already THAT damaged by the time of Luke's confrontation with him?  What was going on that Luke was either blind to or struggling to care for him without Leia and Han's help?

-I go between feeling like Leia was well used here to feeling like she could have done so much more, that we could have seen more emotional strife with her where Ben and Luke are concerned.  Instead, we knock her out partway through the movie, which is such a shame because we no longer have the option of the third movie to be her swan song.  Carrie Fisher was wonderful here, but I struggle with whether I feel like this story gave her the send off she deserved.

-The twins reunion.  It was touching and memorable, don't get me wrong, but it's sad to think that's the end of it.  I figured something like that was coming, but STILL.  God, Skywalker/Organa life depresses me.

-Speaking of, I'm a total idiot because it took me entirely too long to catch on to what was going on the astral projection scene.  Hurr hurr, I said, when did Luke build a new lightsaber?  And get sweet clothes?  And did he lift the X-wing out of the water to get there?  omfg, all of the hints were there, I'm just ridiculous.

-Yes, the scene with Leia saving herself with the Force is pretty cool.  Not sure if I feel it toes into ridiculous territory, though.

-SWEAR TO GOD DISNEY, if you give me a love triangle in the third film with girl fighting over Finn, I will flip my shit.

TLJ LOLs:

This movie practically made Rey and Ben canon, and I had a tremendously unkind moment of smug amusement at how the more obnoxious antis were going to react to this film. The histrionic discourse is the thing of legends, let me tell you.

[suguelya]

so I’ve been listening to the earliest vesperia drama cds for some time - you know, those that basically retell the entire story with extra dialogue, slightly better sound effects and different soundtrack (which without the sidequests or the actual playing all fits in like 6 hours lmao)

here’s my favorite excerpt from the final volume, with full translation under the cut. please enjoy this magnificently gayer rendition of an already gay moment

Yuri:  Hm? Yeah, sure. What's up?

Flynn: Not here. I'll be waiting at the entrance.

Yuri: So are you going to tell me why you're so serious?

Flynn: Are you just going to go like this?

Yuri: Huh?

Flynn: The people who command the entire world are gathered here. Now's the time to tell them all you've done.

Yuri: Not this again...

Flynn: Half of my achievements -- or more -- are really yours.

Yuri: So what? It doesn't matter who did them.

Flynn: It does. Why do you always choose the option that's bad for you? Why do you try to bear everything by yourself? Do you think I can't take the burden?

Yuri: You're carrying what I can't. I know I can do what I want only because someone's watching out for me.

Flynn: But...! Forget it. I can't explain. I'll just yell at you again.

Yuri: In that case...try it like this.

Flynn: Yuri...!

Yuri: You're not going to beat me in an argument. But you know what you can beat me in. This.

Flynn: I see...You're right. Just like always. Everything I feel is in this sword!

Yuri: Good. Come on!

Yuri: You keep getting better!

Flynn: You do, too.

Yuri: Guess life has taught us both a few things.

Flynn: How many years has it been since we fought like this?

Yuri: Uh, we fought in the coliseum. Did you forget already? Flynn: Of course not. Just, you know, a lot of stuff has happened. It's...

Yuri: Yeah?

Flynn: It's just different.

Yuri: Yeah. It feels different for me too.

Flynn: I wonder what it is. Yuri: Beats me. Does it matter? I am so gonna kick your ass! Flynn: No no no no no no, I'm gonna kick your ass! Yuri: Ooooh, it's on now!!

Flynn: I can't even win with a sword anymore.

Yuri: Hah hah hah. Loser.

[ Flynn: You've gotten better, Yuri.

Yuri: You too. You would've beaten me easy if you were still like when we were kids.]

Flynn: Didn't we swear on our swords when we were kids? We would fight to make people smile.

Yuri: Even if we followed different paths.

Flynn: Even if we bear different burdens.

Yuri: Even if people praised us, or hated us.

Flynn: The knights and the guilds won't change. Right?

Yuri: There are places in each of us the other can't reach.

Flynn: That's why we're not alone.

Flynn & Yuri: *laugh*

[nazih-fares]

Five years after the final controversial Mass Effect 3 episode, Bioware’s Sci-Fi RPG is aiming for a comeback and its first launch on the latest console generation. A brand new galaxy to visit, with revamped mechanics and new narrative system, the franchise gets a new look with Mass Effect Andromeda and tries to do what most “reboots” do in the industry: to not disappoint its fan base while attracting newcomers to the series. The question here is simple: is it a success?

Before we start, it is necessary to give you a bit of narrative context of Mass Effect Andromeda especially for those that didn’t play the original trilogy. The singularity of the adventure experienced by each player during the first three Mass Effect forces Bioware here to find a way out of the trilogy, without having to decide among a string of choices and possible options like it did in Dragon Age Inquisition. Instead, Bioware created the concept of the Initiative, an organization with a single goal to provide a new home for humanity and its allied Milky Way Alien species (Asari, Krogan, Turian, Salarian), by colonizing potential “golden” planets in Andromeda galaxy. Thus began a 600-year journey thanks to Cryogenic sleep, where each major Milky Way race was put in stasis throughout the long journey, before reaching Andromeda. This is how your adventure begins, in the skin of a newly awoken human colonist (Ryder will be your family name, whether you choose the default male/female names, or edit your own), which you can, like all other Mass Effect, design from scratch at the start of the game.

Mass Effect Andromeda is probably the franchise entry with less oomph than the iconic adventures of Commander Shepard, which you can feel directly within the early hours of playing the game. Slow-paced and unattractive, they put us in command of a group of characters that have the heavy burden of arriving after the brilliant team that was in the original Mass Effect trilogy. Thankfully after a few hours, the first story trigger reminds us to recall memorable moments of the Mass Effect saga, and soon discover that Mass Effect Andromeda is also a more joyful Mass Effect game, pitting us against new enemies, with uncharted territories and unknown Alien races to discover, that ends on well-paced and convincing final chapters, but leaves us with many questions unanswered. Is that a sign that Mass Effect Andromeda is laying the stones of a new trilogy or multiple-episodic adventure? Probably, and I highly doubt it won’t. In any case, without spoiling the story for any of you, Mass Effect Andromeda is a game that starts slow, but ends up having a proper pace within couple of hours, reminding us why we love the series, and will take you anything between 20 to up to 60 hours if you take the time to carry out all the side missions and tasks (estimated based on my current playthrough).

Mass Effect Andromeda’s success is all thanks to its universe and lore which is still as captivating and interesting as it was in the original trilogy. The iconic elements that made the series are reused again so as not to disturb the fans, and so the Nexus acts as a new Citadel, the Tempest replaces the Normandy ship and even the Mako Land Rover from the first Mass Effect returns in a new design and name as the Nomad. The overall structure of Mass Effect Andromeda meets the typical specification of the saga, which will make you chain long dialogues with multiple choice, exploration of planets, lots of return to the Nexus but also events and relationship building on the Tempest. Like Mass Effect 2, and in contrast to the third episode that is more stingy on this point, Mass Effect Andromeda decided to make us live more events that deepens the relationship between the characters on the ship, whether it is through sidequests (which are sometimes fun and refreshing) or simple exchange of dialogues between Ryder and the other crew members. The result is very convincing and even compensate in part the lack of charisma of most new characters, especially for those that got used to Garrus, Liara and others from the original trilogy.

Mass Effect Andromeda like every previous title offers a great load of missions and quests to do. If Bioware has not skimmed on quantity, it must be recognized that the quality of the latter varies greatly. You should know that a lot of effort was put into the writing and the overall narration of these missions, which avoids at any time to see you inherit a task without knowing the reason behind it. Similarly, a handful of lighter and shorter quests help you “chill” a bit between major chapters of the story, bring a bit of freshness to the whole ensemble, while others, more copious, can have an impact – although often minimal – on your main story mission. But like previous Mass Effect game, there’s still so many fetch and deliver sidequests, and an abuse of the scanner ability in missions, even if it has further usefulness which I’ll talk about more later on.

The more interesting missions are generally those at the core of the narrative axes of colonizable planets, which percentage of viability makes it possible to evaluate your influence on them. To boost this viability number, you will have to venture on the surface of these semi-open worlds with the Nomad. The latter can be improved throughout the game to facilitate your navigation and has two configurations, depending on whether you are looking to climb steep trails or to speed through clear terrain. On that note, the planets are less generic than the large empty areas of the first Mass Effect, and Andromeda playgrounds are more carefully designed, playing effectively between large deserted areas and dense populated areas for missions and enemies, as well even the game’s version of dungeons which are called Vaults. In the end, there’s so much to do on each of the five planets that can be colonized in the Andromeda galaxy, done by clearing important missions, field analysis, exploration of vaults, clean-up areas from hazardous environments, optimize local outposts, and more to reach a 100% viability level.

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While the roleplaying part of the Mass Effect series was gradually toned down in favor of a more pronounced action-based gameplay, you’ll be happy to know that Mass Effect Andromeda actually puts its RPG core first, while dusting off the rest to make it a more dynamic gameplay. The difference is as noticeable in combat as it is during your travels, as our main character now has a jetpack sort of booster, which helps him take longer jumps but also can be used in fights as a way to strafe away from danger. These new gameplay elements singularly changes the fights which are more exciting and dynamic, yet still requires you to smartly use cover like the previous games. The new automatic cover system struggled to convince me initially, but was finally much more enjoyable over time as I got used to it.

When it comes to combat tools, all major weapons and powers of the series are back in the game, but the latter have been revamped to offer more variety of playing style. Level progression is once again done thanks to a skill tree, where you spend points in each talent branch, as extensive as the original Mass Effect. On top of that, Bioware decided to add even more depth, with something called profiles, which are activated and upgraded depending on how you distribute your skill points on the talent tree, and activate some extra bonuses, rather than forcing you to pick one distinct class at the start of the game and end up stuck with it until the end. These profiles are very similar to the classes for the original trilogy, and range from Soldier, Engineer, Adept, Sentinel, Vanguard to Infiltrator, plus a new jack of all trades profile called Explorer. Each profile (which can be switched instantly even during combat) has its weaknesses and positive traits, which can be either extra weapon damage percentage if you’re using the Soldier profile, or even turn temporary invisible when dodging properly as an Infiltrator profile. On top of weapons, armor and improvements that can be equipped, the scanner now makes it possible to analyze different elements of the environment, whether it is fauna, flora, enemies, machinery, or anything else and accumulate research points to initiate technology research. Finally, it will be necessary to use minerals recovered via probes or mining systems, direct extraction on planets or from merchants against a few credits to create these newly designed or researched weapons, armors, and mods before equipping them on your character.

Sadly, the interface has some questionable ergonomics on that front, but the research and development system is easily tamed after a few hours and proves invaluable to improve your equipment, especially if you intend to complete the title on higher difficulties. Despite its problems of ergonomics, the entire interface is not as unpleasant as you would expect from a Bioware RPG, and can be handled at ease on the long run. Other options add to the title’s RPG elements, such as the management of strike teams that you can send on missions to gain additional resources, which reminds me a bit of the Assassin’s Creed III’s contract missions. These missions can be directly played via the multiplayer mode, which makes its return by using the basis of Mass Effect 3, or can be dealt with by the AI on its own with a real-life timer. On top of all that, the final RPG elements is in terms of the Nexus itself, which gains levels by colonizing planets, and allows you to unlock different military, commercial or scientific bonuses.

By abandoning its guided system ranging from the pragmatic character to the model of virtue that is the Paragon, Mass Effect Andromeda gets rid of a Manichaean system in favor of a new model of personality building according to your preferences. This system certainly suits the style of our character in this opus, but it is a bit disappointing when it comes to the consequences of our choices, which are more difficult to perceive, often masked by tricks and illusions of change. For example, one of our first core mission objectives allows us to choose between two different “path” for your colony outpost, which is either focus on a military or scientific objectives. This will then activate secondary quests, but there’s not really any major differences depending on your choice, except very basic dialogue lines. Sure, while the previous Mass Effect played an illusory part in this type of decision, the trilogy still offered a better balance between your choices and its real consequences on the game, your character and his crew. Wish it was the case, but in Mass Effect Andromeda, even choices that have a real influence on your team are rare, and I have a feeling that these consequences will only be visible in the longer term, in an upcoming and probable sequel.

Now that we’ve talked about most elements of the game, it’s time to discuss the biggest let-down of Mass Effect Andromeda which is on the technical front. Even within weeks of its launch, and after a bunch of updates, there’s so many collision, frame drop and even game crashing issues, without pointing out at facial animations that are very low standards in comparison to the previous Mass Effect games. Understandable in semi open-world planets where a lot of elements are loaded, but there’s even a lack of fluidity in enclosed areas (like the Nexus or your ship), which overall is unworthy of an AAA production. Strangely, none of these defects alone makes the game unplayable, but their number and regularity can annoy and break the immersion, and it’s the console users that suffer the most, especially on Xbox One. During the time I played, I sadly experienced a lot of these issues on my Xbox One (learned it’s the same as well on other consoles), and while even the progressive resolution system aims to reach an optimal frame rate cap of 30FPS, the game engine (which is Frostbite now instead of Unreal Engine) has difficulties to render in some instances, which are countered by an adaptive v-sync, which results in screen tears.

On PC, the performance is obviously dependent of your resources, and our testing machine is high-powered 8GB NVIDIA Geforce GTX 1070 fitted on a 4th Generation Intel i7 4790 3.6Ghz CPU and topped with 16GB of RAM. For those of you that like to tinker with the settings and get the dials just right, Mass Effect Andromeda has you covered. The game handles ultrawide resolutions just fine, although the loading screens looked kind of strange. There’s also an FOV slider (a veritable must-have for PC gamers), although I was fine with the default setting.

In terms of graphics settings, the game offers four standard settings: low, medium, high, and ultra. Of course, if you want to change any of the specific settings within a preset, you’ll end up in ‘Custom’. ‘Ultra’ doesn’t actually max out the settings completely, as HBAO isn’t set as high as it’ll go. It goes without saying that you’ll need beefier hardware to hit those higher benchmarks. Once you scale your settings down, the game will automatically switch down your resolution, so be sure to disable resolution scaling if you want to keep higher resolution but switch out some settings.

The game’s higher resolution settings will need reasonably demanding hardware, as our GTX 1070 just barely managed 1440p, with some noticeable drops here and there. At 1080 FHD it managed remarkably, and I only recall a few fps drops throughout the game. In terms of visuals, FaceGate notwithstanding, the game manages to look incredible even on medium settings. The shadows, the AA, the textures – this is truly a masterpiece for the eyes. Just don’t focus on the actual eyes.

Even with all these technical issues, I cannot deny the fact that Mass Effect Andromeda is gorgeous in terms of artistic direction. Each planet, open zones, vaults and even the Nexus are gorgeously painted, and if you are lucky enough to have an HDR-compatible TV, do not hesitate to activate the option on your Xbox One S or PlayStation 4 Pro consoles to get that little pushed contrast that really pops the colors. In terms of sound effect and soundtracks, Bioware worked with John Paesano, better known for his recent work on Marvel’s Daredevil Netflix Original series. His compositions are in line with what was proposed in the original trilogy, perfectly accompanying the action, despite a less important presence of significant themes, and heavily influenced with the original Mass Effect with a nice blend of “space synth” and traditional orchestral work.

Mass Effect Andromeda was reviewed using an Xbox One digital code of the game purchased by the reviewer as well as a PC version of the game provided by EA Middle East. The main review was done on Xbox One by Nazih Fares while the PC version was tested by Mazen Abdallah on a PC running Windows 10, with an 8GB NVIDIA Geforce GTX 1070 fitted on a 4th Generation Intel i7 4790 3.6Ghz CPU and topped with 16GB of RAM. The game is also available on PlayStation 4 in both digital and retail stores. We don’t discuss review scores with publishers or developers prior to the review being published.

Mass Effect Andromeda is neither a bad entry to the series, nor a title capable of reaching to the heights of the original trilogy. Five years after the final controversial Mass Effect 3 episode, Bioware's Sci-Fi RPG is aiming for a comeback and its first launch on the latest console generation.