calibrations

I got no strings --- whether we intend to or not, we're always adapting, changing or charging in a certain direction - purposely shifting or unconsciously sliding along multiple continua/spectrums/between absolutes
--- This rant will be about Mass Effect, specifically Mass Effect 3. warning: spoilers below

First of all, I'd like to applaud the game’s writers and developers for the way they subtly managed to weave a range of universal themes into the dialogue and the story, and for creating such beautifully fleshed out cultures, religions and origins for a bunch of different alien races; not to mention the invention of distinct and colourful characters - each with a unique personality and differing yet compelling opinions on all sorts of issues, with a fascinating backstory to boot. One of the minor characters in a sidequest mentioned how the galaxy loves variety. An understated but unapologetic endorsement - a fine example of BioWare playfully patting itself on the back - and they deserve it; their manufactured world is impressive - a simple fact that shouldn’t go without being acknowledged, even if the creators have to do it themselves. Few would dispute the depth and immersive quality of the Mass Effect universe, but when it comes to the matter of wrapping up the trilogy, that is where creator and critic come into contention.

The whole Mass Effect universe, due to serendipity or by design, to some extent, seems to revolve around the concept of choice and free will. This is evident not only in the gameplay, but also constantly worked into cutscenes and dialogue trees. The message ‘You always have a choice’ is ever-present but iterated in different contexts enough that the constant reminders stop short of feeling trite. If the folks at BioWare were ever guilty of planting subliminal messages in their games, it would most likely be that one. The game places emphasis on cause and effect - the consequences and therefore responsibilities of making certain choices - illustrating, at times more clearly than others, the repercussions of your actions, which in turn could influence various important choices of other characters throughout the galaxy - making player decisions actually feel as though they carry weight.
Given this, it’d make overwhelming sense for indoctrination to be the ideal, apt and poetically just method of attempting Commander Shepard’s destruction - not by using bullets or lasers, but by a battle of willpower - the ultimate weapon against this hero, given what he/she stands for. All a plan to bring him/her under their sway - to use as a tool in dividing the galaxy. The illusion of choice - of control, the Reapers' main goal being to destroy free will. The Indoctrination theory has a lot of evidence backing it up, and if it is true, it would be brilliant - despite not providing the closure that everyone was expecting, but sometimes you have to defy expectations in order to offer something better, but if the ending was simply meant to be taken at face value, frankly it just seems half-baked and not at all in keeping with the quality and legacy of the Mass Effect franchise so far. At least if they had gone with the Indoctrination Theory, they could have defended their vision of a 'better' ending with some conviction. As it stands, the vast majority of fans who have identified with the characters and universe do not seem to think the current ending has lived up to, much less surpassed, their expectations.

I can understand why they’d be willing to upset some fans, if they were sure that they had an ace up their sleeve to reveal and win them all back, but I really don’t understand how they could’ve done such a sloppy job with Tali’s portrait and not expect some backlash from it. For people who put such detail and attention into nuanced and organic dialogue, and creating such a rich vibrant believable universe, why would they undermine the authenticity of the experience by swiping a stock photo off the internet and not even bother to hide it? There's just no excuse for it. After creating a character well-loved by the community and despite having built up anticipation and hype surrounding her appearance over two whole games, they not only managed to disappoint the fans spectacularly, but did it in such an obviously negligent way. For a company that prides itself on its relationship with its fans and listening to their feedback, it’s bewildering that they would do the very opposite of what the fans want. Why would BioWare troll its audience?

Then again you could argue, BioWare has creative license to the game, not the fans, but BioWare is a game company looking to sell their games to consumers. Perhaps they may see themselves as artists, but until they’re willing to open a gallery and live on the streets, they still have to cater to the people who are emotionally and financially invested in their product. I honestly want to believe that BioWare knows what they’re doing - that they have the means to vindicate themselves - that the confusion and controversy is all part of some twisted marketing ploy or brilliant avant-garde storytelling device that we’re all just too shortsighted to see - that Ray Muzyka and Casey Hudson are both sitting in those modern chairs that engulf you, in a swanky penthouse apartment somewhere sipping champagne. ‘All according to plan,’ Casey utters with a sinister smugness. ‘It is time,’ Replies Ray. With a nod, Casey reaches for the intercom. ‘Execute order 66’ And BioWare reveals what they’ve been planning all along, and that the leaked ending was merely a decoy, and that the skittles ending was just the tip of the iceberg - the prologue to the epic TRUE ENDING that Mass Effect deserves - one so mindboggling and comprehensive - a bomb that just blows everybody away with how amazingly well-thought out it was and how it manages to justify that abomination that is called the ending to Mass Effect 3. I don’t need an ending that answers all questions and ties up all loose ends, I just want one that matters - one that shows some evidence of my efforts, that they did not go to waste - one that proves I didn’t spend all those hours scanning planets and traipsing up and down the normandy for nothing - one that affirms the fact that my choices made a difference somehow.
Either the people at BioWare are insane or geniuses. Right now there’s evidence that points both ways. Like Shepard rushing blindly towards that infernal beacon - I reach out to an abstract flickering that I idealistically, quixotically, desperately believe to be hope, because it’s all I have left. Or perhaps I am the Illusive Man, looking to get my way, seeking control of the uncontrollable, being imperceptibly manipulated by illusions and desires.

Maybe that’s the statement BioWare is trying to make: that the answers can’t always be given to you, and you can’t always be sure of what will happen or has happened. A way to make their universe truly real. If the player puts themselves in Shepard’s shoes - if the player is truly wielded to the character - if their perception of the world is identical - there is no way of knowing what Shepard does not. If Shepard is indoctrinated, so is the player. If Shepard died, he/she wouldn’t have known the truth about whether he/she was indoctrinated or not. He/she wouldn’t have watched the outcome of the final decisive battle, friends charging to their deaths or retreating to be picked off one by one.

We fell in love with their synthetic world for how it so accurately reflects the one we inhabit. An analogy for our own daily battles, only different in scale - a brilliant metaphor, one that incorporates intergalactic wars and salarian scientists. Every interaction designed as a reminder that the world is painted in shades of grey, and that nothing in the galaxy is certain.
We cannot say for sure what the creators intended by that conclusion, and we cannot ascertain it by examining their work. To truly make their work and legacy immortal, to birth a genuine legend, there cannot be a definitive end - there will always be controversy and speculation. If this was BioWare’s aim, they have truly succeeded.

We are frustrated by not being fed a belief, only marginally less than actually being told what to believe. Perhaps that is why the Shepard of the story’s fate is not clearly given - to remind us that whatever the nature of the light placed before us, we still have to make a decision. or maybe i just give bioware too much credit