GamesRPGMass Effect Legendary Edition11 years later, nothing has rivaled the swansong expansion for my favorite sci-fi RPG seriesWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesRPGMass Effect Legendary Edition11 years later, nothing has rivaled the swansong expansion for my favorite sci-fi RPG seriesWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: EA)
When I think about a moment in a game thatdeeplyaffected me – I’m talking tears streaming down my face, an ache in my chest, just inconsolable – one scene always comes to mind. Standing at the docking bay, looking out over the Normandy ship, Shepard quietly reflects on everything they’ve been through with the crew in Mass Effect 3. The final fight is on the horizon and the fate of the galaxy still hangs in the balance, but right now, it’s all about appreciating the time they were able to spend with those they care about. “The best times of my life were spent on that ship. Been a damn good ride,” Garrus says, before walking away with the rest of the party. “The best,” Shepard replies shortly after, as they stand alone before their ship. I couldn’t have put it better myself. Playing through the trilogy really was a damn good ride all those years ago, and it still is just as engaging to play now as it ever was.
“I should go”
(Image credit: EA)
Say what you will about Mass Effect 3 and its endings, but I loved the third installment. Mass Effect 2 is an all-time favorite of minethat took the series to new heights, bringing us closer than ever to a crew of characters thanks to its high stakes suicide mission. Naturally that meant that when Mass Effect 3 came around, expectations were high. But even so, I had the best time with it. I enjoyed every opportunity it gave me to spend more time with the characters I’d gotten to know so well as I tried to prepare myself for the eventual end. When the Citadel expansion came around a year later, it felt like such a fitting finale, rounding off the RPG with a memorable shore leave adventure that took us away from the war and the reapers to throw a party and get some much-needed R&R.
Swooping is bad(Image credit: BioWare)After 6 Baldur’s Gate 3 playthroughs, I’ve returned to the choice-heavy game that kickstarted my love for RPGs
Swooping is bad
(Image credit: BioWare)After 6 Baldur’s Gate 3 playthroughs, I’ve returned to the choice-heavy game that kickstarted my love for RPGs
(Image credit: BioWare)
After 6 Baldur’s Gate 3 playthroughs, I’ve returned to the choice-heavy game that kickstarted my love for RPGs
Fond farewell
(Image credit: EA)
That’s not to say that we haven’t gotten some stellar expansions in the years since. The Trespasser DLC in Dragon Age: Inquisition, for example, is about as close as it gets to the heights of the Citadel in Mass Effect 3. Superbly finishing up the story of the fantasy RPG, Trespasser also leaves off on a moving group shot of the companions, and then sets up what’s to come inDragon Age: Dreadwolf.The Witcher 3also had a very strong showing in this department with both the Hearts of Stone and Blood Wine expansions, the latter of which brought Geralt’s epic adventure to a memorable close.
I’m sure there are many, many other examples I could pluck out of the last 10 years, and everyone will have an expansion that forever sticks in their mind – regardless of how long ago it was released. But for me, nothing has had quite as much of an impact from a personal perspective. It likely speaks to my great love for Mass Effect overall, but everything about the Citadel DLC just feels like a big love letter to the trilogy and to us as the players. Not only did it let me enjoy the company of characters I’d come to care about a lot over the years, but it also let me bid farewell to a series that has meant so much to me in the most fitting way. 11 years later, I’m still thinking about that one scene. You’re right Shepard, experiencing the Mass Effect trilogy really was “the best”.
A big fan ofgames like Mass Effect? Check out our pick of thebest RPGsyou can play right now.
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Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”