Double Feature!

So I had some free time on my hands, so I figured I would send out a post that was more about other things than Mass Effect 3. Now ME3 is not the only thing I think about or want to put up on this blog, I have other post drafts not involving ME3 that I want to touch up on and send out later. But if you want to see a Mass Effect 3 related post, check the rest of the blog. xD
As I have stated before, I am studying to be a Robotics Engineer at the only college that offers such a degree, Worcester Polytechnic Institute.  Its pretty awesome, I am a tour guide here so if you do end up checking this place out, I could possibly give you a tour O.o.  Also, I sing and am in the Glee Club here, WHICH IS TOTALLY AWESOME.
I am white if any of you were wondering, and no I am not racist. I am religious, but I will never expunge my religion on anyone, unless one would want me to, but then again who would want that? (that is a joke :P)
I also enjoy writing, be it poetry, or just a good old adventure or fan fiction.  I have a deviant art account for that, even though I should have another account being deviant art is well, art, but then I can see totally awesome artwork, AND i made that account first and don't want billions of others out there. I also like to draw comics, but we shall see where that goes. I have a bunch of stuff in the tubes so there will be more writing.
Lets see, one last fact: If you are ever on campus and hear a very loud screeching, yelling, or random sound, there's a 50% chance that its me.  Its my nerd call you see. Anyway that's about it I think... Let me see if there's a draft I can merge with this one to add to it, I feel so weird shooting out a small update.

Well then, it seems that I have found something! Its music related, and its a band that I feel that is under-appreciated by the masses. They are called The Features. This indie band hails from Tennessee, and was started when the guys were merely in middle school.  Now they only did covers then, but they stuck together and kept working at the music. This band quickly became their life, with several of them (dont know if all of them did) dropping out of college to pursue what they love. Of course the band could make enough money to make ends meet, so they had to take side jobs.
Now every song that they make sounds unique and has awesome and heartfelt lyrics that go along with them.  Lets look at the beginning of their song, Temporary Blues:

Traded in my tennis shoes
For steel-toed rubber boots
I've got my own uniform to wear
They've given me a plastic hat,
Ear plugs and a funny net for my head
I'm well prepared.

 

Now that sounds like someone's going to work! And you would be right there. This song is about the terrible working conditions that the song writer, Matthew Pelham, experienced as a Pillsbury factory worker. It also serves as a song of hope. Take a listen, and you'll see, their song sounds genuine, full of life, and totally heartfelt.  I absolutely love their music. Similarly from the same album, their song. Wooden Heart is another perfect song.      

  

Its about a man having his heart broken, only to try to make a new heart.  However his heart is never the same because of this.  This was also my first song that I heard of them, back in the days where I played Tap Tap Revolution like a boss. I would also like to point out how the songs sound so different, and yet they are clearly the same band.  Not that many bands can do that, and I say that its a testament to how awesome the Features are. The features have 3 major albums out right now: Exhibit A, Some Kind of Salvation, and Wilderness. Again, the variety that exists in each album is huge but the difference between each album itself is incredible.  Exhibit A has one of my personal favorite songs,The Idea of Growing Old.  Its a song about the singer wanting to grow old together with his love. (here are two links one has a wedding video in it, so if that feels awkward, this recording is worse but not as awkward xD) Ive already talked about some songs on the Some Kind of Salvation album, so you can look up the rest of the album later. Finally, Wilderness is the newest album.  It has some great songs like How it Starts, Golden Comb, and Rambo.
I also wanted to add another for those that enjoy rap. My opinion on rap is that I enjoy it, but the lyrics really do matter to me.  If they are explicit, I just don't see any point in it, and I feel that we are just above the thought that we need to bang every chick we see. There is one rapper that I thoroughly enjoy. And that rapper is Trace Blam and his DJ Soul Chef. Just like The Features, he has awesome lyrics and songs as well. Now I first came to hear of them through a parkour montage, Double White Power (which is totally awesome and I think you should see it). I would also like to mention that they are from Eastern Europe, so they dont understand racism like we do (probably for the better too).  Anyway, the song that plays during the montage is one of my favorites of his: Success.

Now do you know of a song that talks about trying your hardest and being successful, but also having the swag that he has.  Now there are other songs, like From A Far, and All That I Do that have less lame lyrics if that's what you feel, to me its all awesome.  O and did I mention that his site gives away the album, Bottles, for free? BONUS AWESOMENESS!!
Anyway, those are only two of the bands/artists that I listen to, if you guys like my suggestions here, please tell me it would make my day!! Furthermore, if there are any requests on topics or ideas to make this blog better just tell me, I'm an easy going guy and will certainly take a look at least. Finally, to the people that have already seen my blog and commented, thank you and please keep checking on the blog, as I've said before, I watch my view counter like a hawk xD.
Well guess I have to get to working, expect more posts on the way (ME3 related and others!).

And if anyone subscribes to me, it would make my life. Just my two cents... :P

NotCras

Something done right

So here we have another update here, and this is in lieu of some awesome development along the Mass Effect 3 ending debate.  Someone actually answered our angry calls, and they answered right!! Dr Ray Muzyka, co-founder of Bioware has made a statement himself about the ending and whats going to happen, and I feel like analyzing it for anyone that will read.

EDIT: Here's an interesting read as well: here.

The man himself.

So, lets start!! Dr. Muzyka starts off with a pat on the back to Bioware.  He says:

 "As co-founder and GM of BioWare, I’m very proud of the ME3 team; I personally believe Mass Effect 3 is the best work we’ve yet created. So, it’s incredibly painful to receive feedback from our core fans that the game’s endings were not up to their expectations. Our first instinct is to defend our work and point to the high ratings offered by critics – but out of respect to our fans, we need to accept the criticism and feedback with humility."

Just the fact that he acknowledges that they messed up is HUGE.  Think of it this way, there were so many "expert sources" that were telling us just to accept the ending and move on. Bioware shows us that they truly do care about their fanbase, and want to continue to have us.  Rightfully so I say! In addition, just to point out, he is right when he says the Mass Effect 3 was their best work ever created, it was just the fact that the ending sucked... and i think everyone can agree on that. Then Dr. Muzyka describes how they have devoted tons of work to trying to fix this.  They seem devoted to fixing this. Later in the piece, he goes on:

"The reaction to the release of Mass Effect 3 has been unprecedented. On one hand, some of our loyal fans are passionately expressing their displeasure about how their game concluded; we care about this feedback, and we’re planning to directly address it. However, most folks appear to agree that the game as a whole is exceptional, with more than 75 critics giving it a perfect review score and a review average in the mid-90s. Net, I’m proud of the team, but we can and must always strive to do better. "

Its funny how he says that they accept everything with humility, however they are constantly trying to show us that many official reviewers gave it "perfect scores" and "mid 90 averages". I feel that we cant put too much stock into official reviews, because we don't know anything about the political happenings behind the scene that might sway a review.  I'm not saying there are, but we never know. In addition to that, reviewers are mostly of the same mindset: one of an artistic mindset. This mindset would probably be the one that would appreciate the "artistic" current ending that Bioware gave us.  It is not a representation of the masses. It seems to me that he is trying his best to make us seem like they are humbly accepting that they did wrong, however I think its purely the fact that their fanbase is going bananas that's causing any change around here. But just the fact that they are acknowledging their failure is HUGE, so dont discount that.  Dr. Muzyka then finishes off the piece calling out for help.

"If you are a Mass Effect fan and have input for the team – we respect your opinion and want to hear it. We’re committed to address your constructive feedback as best we can. In return, I’d ask that you help us do that by supporting what I truly believe is the best game BioWare has yet crafted. I urge you to do your own research: play the game, finish it and tell us what you think. Tell your friends if you feel it’s a good game as a whole. Trust that we are doing our damndest, as always, to address your feedback.  As artists, we care about our fans deeply and we appreciate your support."

Now after reading this, I think everyone should give their support and send in what they think to Bioware.  This would benefit us two ways: first of all, everyone has at least one great idea, and I think that Bioware would make a totally original story by taking those good ideas we have and combine them. Im certainly going to do that, in fact I shall do so right here!

Dear Bioware, 

<3 Little blue babies

I, in addition to every loving fan of yours was terribly upset with the ending. I dont think you can deny that one bit. In a fit of inspiration and devastation I myself made an ending. You can find it here. Please read it, but its not the exact ending that I want, because I trust that you will have an even greater ending to tell. First of all, keep the current ending in, but add on. My first point is that I think it would be incredibly rewarding for players to go through the real endgame with their romance option, be it Liara in my case.  In that, you could truly make some emotional scenes.  We want the ending to move us, to make us cry, to make us feel accomplished.  For me at least, I want Shepard to live because I want him to have those little blue babies with Liara. But that's because you guys made me really care about all the characters, not just Shepard. But to be honest, I don't care if Shepard dies (ok maybe i lie) as long as it is not in vain. Just think of the awesome story telling you can do with the romance option with Shepard in his last minutes, or to be there when they survive and defeat the reapers. It would be amazing I say!!
I also feel that having some more involvement with the squad in the final endgame is important too.  If they die, I want to hear their last words on the comm.  If they're in the squad, I want original dialogue for the battles on Earth. It would be a lot of work, but it would pay off.
We didnt see the fruits of our labors as well.  I would look into the sky in London, or even on the Crucible, and all I could see were Alliance ships. Where were the Turians, Quarian, and Geth fleets?? There were some glimpses of those working together, but I feel that the point wasnt totally driven home.  How great would it be if Wrex was shouting inspiring words not just to Krogan troops, but all Human, Turian, and even Salarian? There are so many things that could have been done in that respect that I feel was lost.
Bioware you have enchanted me with your games for a while now. The Mass Effect series was incredible but my journey with you guys didnt just start there.  Kotor blew my mind and was my staple rpg for the longest time, I still play it too. Dragon Age: Origins was an amazing confirmation that Bioware is still the Bioware that I knew. Heck, I even went to Good Old Games and bought Baldur's Gates 1 and 2 because I loved your company and its games so much.  Then Mass Effect 3 tore me to pieces, I felt so betrayed.  Its not just the ending that betrayed me, but the fact that it was soooooo good before the end. Please fix this, I believe that you indeed are listening, even if you dont respond to me (it would make my life if you guys did though wink wink). If you really are watching and reading everything we say, I expect an ending that will blow me away with all the different endings that people put together combined into one gigantic amazing ending that really matters... and brings a true end to our labors. It might have been Shepard in the game, but we were the ones that were/are actually saving the galaxy.  And boy do we want to save it.

NotCras

First Update: Im still here but Im sad and heres why:

Hey soon to be people reading this (because i just started). I havent posted in a little while, but thats only because of two reasons:
a) spring break is over and im busy now
b) Im debating what to write about and im actually taking this whole blog idea thing seriously haha.
Thing is though, I do have an idea that I feel Im just gonna rant on about and see where it goes.
Namely, the Mass Effect 3 ending.
I had completed Mass Effect 3 late at night on about the second day it was out, and I was absolutely depressed with the ending. I had gotten the digital deluxe edition, and played it nonstop for two days (it was spring break). And all that was in vain since the ending had no closure, was utterly confusing, AND WHATS WITH THE NORMANDY? But instead of ranting like a raving lunatic, let me approach it calmly and discuss all my ideas.
First things first, Mass Effect was probably the best game I had ever played until the ending. The gameplay was so much fun, battles were great, dialogue was perfect as ever, the enviroments and just overlying sense of reaper destruction was perfect. Then came the ending.
First of all, Im going to point out that for a series based totally on player choice, and one that stressed different endings, there was almost none of that. In fact, wasnt everyone extremely excited for ME3, because the endings could be really different from each other since they dont have to worry about a sequel? My shepard survived! Whoop dee doo, and now he's on a planet of rubble, while his love interest and (questionably) fiercely loyal crew ran away from the fight and crash landed on some other planet. Now theres a theory out there that the ending was a hallucination/indoctrination. First of all, it would possibly make sense, the Normandy fleeing because the only hope in the universe was just disintegrated. Plus we dont know how much time it took while he was out for any hallucinations to occur. What doesnt make sense in this theory to me is that if Shepard just got fried, how the heck can he be hallucinating/fighting indoctrination? Even if that were the case, how could the crucible fire when Shepard, presumably on Earth, was fighting indoctrination? How could a mental battle activate the crucible when the citadel still had to be opened? I feel that there are so many holes in that theory that i cant believe it. To go a step further, if everything was a hallucination, that means the Reapers won no matter what Shepard chooses. Why not just show the Reapers winning and have an amazingly heroic death scene for Shepard and his crew? Which brings me to my next point, the lack of any epilogue.
Even the ending that Bioware gave us couldve had closure if they provided an epilogue of what happened afterwards. Im not asking for something large either, some confirmation that either civilization is rebuilding on Earth or something like that, or that enough people survived and its all good, so I know that what I did matters. Or even that the Reapers won and the cycle is starting over again. It could literally be a slideshow for all I care, how long would that have taken to make? Barely any time I feel. I just want to know. Also to add to it, almost none of the questions about the Reapers or anything were answered. To go back to the indoctrination theory, Saren was indoctrinated by the Reapers convincing him to join him. In order to convince anyone subtly, they would have to at least make up some story to make their cause more believeable. But they didnt with Shepard, they gave a terrible reason to him that no one would really believe (especially with the geth around...) This made the game have absolutely no closure and thats why everyone is freaking out. Its not what the bs official reviewers say its because the series was supposed to give us closure, but instead they didnt. Even with the little grandpa ending there, you dont have any knowledge of what happened to anything important, just that humans are alive.
For me, the endings would go something like this:

1) Crucible fails because it wasnt ready in time/you didnt recruit enough people to make it work properly. Reapers win.
2) Crucible destroys the system because the people you recruited were not trustworthy and sabotaged it (due to indoctrination), or a malfunction causes it to destroy itself.
3) Shepard makes it to the crucible and sacrifices himself to save the universe.
4) Shepard makes it to the crucible, and in the ensuing destruction of the Reapers, falls down to Earth on a piece of the Citadel, only to be found later by the crew and L.I.. Happiness at last!
5) The might of the galaxy actually overcomes the Reapers through conventional force.
6) Forsaking the crucible, Shepard sacrifices his humanity to become a Reaper of Reapers using Cerberus technology. The L.I. then tranfers themselves onto the Reaper platform as well so they can be together forever. (this is a huge departure from the established plotline already, but I like it too much to not say it. Plus, i havent thought out everything yet so how he does it is still a mystery)
7) Realizing all is lost with this cycle, Shepard and the crew go into hiding/stasis (much like the Protheans) to prepare the next cycle (meaning there would be more adventures with Shepard)
8) The endings that are in the game right now EXCEPT the normandy crashes on Earth. I feel its incredibly random and a slap to the face of your Shepard to strand them on some unknown planet.
9) Reapers win, and make a Human Reaper as a consolation of the fight that the humans/galaxy put up.
10) Heres another total plot change idea, Shepard forces the Reapers hand by uplifting every species in the known galaxy. This will provide a place to show the motivations of the Reapers. Just think, like a Burn and Run tactic, you get rid of everything so the Reapers will either harvest everything and leave the galaxy totally empty or do nothing. Just the thought of uplifting another civilization should have been an awesome idea for the ME3 people to investigate. Just think, you could uplift the Yagh (the shadow broker's species I cant remember the spelling), which runs the risk of them taking over the galaxy. From the way Ive seen it, the Krogan deserve their uplifting, even though they were a little slow to get to the point of deserving it, the Yagh dont at all, and it would provide some very hard decisions as well as some awesome Squad Member conversations/actions as well.
11) Shepard sacrifices himself, and depending on the love interest, either they get pregnant with Shepards child in the romance scene, or they do something to honor Shepard (like building a house on Rannoch or something like that).
12) Shepard suffers sever wounds from the blast, gets helped by Anderson, or a squadmate, or the L.I., or even the whole squad, and together with everyones help activates the Crucible/saves the galaxy. That ending would have the whole cooperation themes prevalent everywhere else in the story and be a perfect tie in/tear jerker if anyone dies.
13) Same as before except as they activate the Crucible, they all huddle together as they sacrifice themselves for the universe. It'd be so perfect I feel.
14) (this is one added later) The Crucible acts as a giant EMP that disrupts all technology in the system. Since the Reapers are tech they are shut off as well.  Engineers Donnelly and Daniels figure a way to jump-start our tech and so everyone is all good.  Then we find out that the Charon Relay has been shut down because of the EMP.  Its the perfect time to study how they actually work with all those Crucible scientists! This raises us to the level of awesomeness as the Reapers, but at the same time we are using them for good.

Notice how none of my endings involve the Catalyst little boy VI thing. My opinion was that its a good idea, but Bioware just threw it into the mix leaving it an underdeveloped mess. I also want everyone to notice the fact that I just wrote up 12 semi unique endings. This variety could have been Mass Effect 3, but instead we get to choose our own light show and the same confusing/heartbreaking ending for everyone. And thats including the Shepard surviving endings. Which leads me to another rant, they say that there are 16 endings, but thats a lie because they are all the same. I would also like to mention that the Refuse ending that was thought up is another awesome idea, BUT i didnt want to include anything that involved the catalyst little boy VI thing. On a side note, I feel that its perfectly acceptable that the Mass Relays are destroyed, since they are also Reaper tech and technically are the remnants of their influence. On a random note as well for coping with the Normandy crash ending, theres still quantum communication right? So the Normandy crew could still be in contact with the rest of the universe right?
But now back to the main rant about the ending haha. I also feel that many characters dont get that good of a sendoff or even appearance in ME3. Some of these characters you grew to know and love, and now they just appear for a short time and thats it. If the former squadmates that arent squadmates now had better stories, then think of the awesome storytelling they could have done. There were so many people that deserved more, maybe even some deaths, or maybe there could have been more contact after you saw them initially? It just all seems like lost ground to me. Speaking of dieing, the ending is just unnecessarily bleak as well. What about the others you know sacrificing themselves like squadmates? If Bioware wanted to make a sad but awesome ending, have some people die heroically right? None of this meta crap writing. Think of it this way, there is a select group of people with the right mindset to enjoy those kind of endings. There is another group of people that would enjoy those endings if it was all explained to them. But they arent the majority and Bioware should have known that. Thats another reason why everyone is mad, they went in the wrong direction with the ending. As I stated before, some of us need closure. The number of closure seekers is WAY greater than the number of people that like the ME3 ending. Inversely though its the exact opposite reason of why I think ME3 failed.
Which brings me to what I think the fatal flaw of Mass Effect 3 was: EA trying to make the game accessible to everyone. That means that things cant get too dependant on the previous content because then the other people would be missing out. But instead of making a balance, they just shrugged it all off and made it open for everyone. If they hadnt, just think of the revenue they would get, everyone would be freaking out about the game, and convince all of their friends to get it. The thing is, they would have to get the first games, and by the time they play those they are completely sold on the whole Mass Effect series. Then they would have even more loyal fans. Instead what happened was that in order to make Mass Effect more accessible to everyone, they had to make the best endings available to even the people just starting out, AND they had to keep the level of previous game references to a minimum so the people dont get bogged down with unfamiliarity. What resulted was a failure to ride the fine line of that strategy working. In fact, James Vega, the character whose sole purpose was to keep new players in the loop didnt. I feel that despite some off comments, nothing was really explained, in fact except in the beginning, everything involving him can be skipped. So much for that.
I could go on forever, and I will if people want. Im thinking of when I post this onto my newly started blog Im going to post the link into some of the Bioware threads to see what kind of conversation it will cook up. Im just so depressed that such an amazing trilogy was ruined (in my eyes). To be honest, at the moment I cant even play that many video games because Im so disheartened. (for whoever's curious im stopping because of sleep not because I have nothing else to write about).
Anyway, ranting this out makes me feel a little better, and I made up my mind Im definitely posting this on Bioware forums.
In the meantime Im going to sleep and debate what else to put up here haha.
EDIT: did some changes in the morn and now i shall post, haha lets see how it goes!
NotCras

Well hello thar

So hello world!

Im NotCras, youve probably havent heard of me, and to be honest i probably would not have heard of me either, but o well. Now you know I exist. Let me be honest with you guys, Im busy, Im forgetful, and this is around my 3rd blog attempt... lets see how it goes. Im just gonna start immediately and maybe it will catch on.

Just before I start, a little bit on the blog, this will be (hopefully) a depository of just ideas, thoughts, drawings, a little bit of everything.