Mass Effect 2 *spoilers around pg 29/30*

[Morat20]

For the record, I would totally play a Fifth Element MMORPG.

Ruby Rod's a Space Bard.

[rk47]

Romancing joker     QTE to prevent broken bones during the ride?

[Sir T]

Greeeat. This is going to make playing No Romance Shep even more challenging. 

I wonder if the throwaway cutscene is going to be the director walking in and yelling at you "Damn you! We recorded hours of dialogue and watched hundreds of hours of porn as research and you just insist on just doing the damn job. Well fuck you asshole!"

To which I'd probably tell him that its his problem if he thinks the Doc is unfuckable since she is over 35. 

[Surlyboi]

Chakwas is hot. Reminds me of Helen Mirren and that accent is killer.

[Minvaren]

Chakwas is hot. Reminds me of Helen Mirren and that accent is killer.

I was all  when you had a drink with her in ME2, wondering if she actually was a romance option.  Then I was all when nothing happened.

[Paelos]

Yep I wanted to bang the silver fox as well.

[UnSub]

Chakwas is hot. Reminds me of Helen Mirren and that accent is killer.

I was all  when you had a drink with her in ME2, wondering if she actually was a romance option.  Then I was all when nothing happened.

And that drink, you really never talk again.

[cironian]

Then I was all when nothing happened.

You just have to use your imagination for what really happened during that fade to black when they are drinking.

[Morat20]

Then I was all when nothing happened.

You just have to use your imagination for what really happened during that fade to black when they are drinking.

Hot, wild, kinky mature doctor sex in a room the entire crew can see into?

[Lantyssa]

That brandy was strong stuff...

[Minvaren]

Then I was all when nothing happened.

You just have to use your imagination for what really happened during that fade to black when they are drinking.

Hot, wild, kinky mature doctor sex in a room the entire crew can see into?

With EDI helpfully piping "brown chicken brown cow" music throughout the mess hall.   

[Rasix]

Then I was all when nothing happened.

You just have to use your imagination for what really happened during that fade to black when they are drinking.

Hot, wild, kinky mature doctor sex in a room the entire crew can see into?

The door to the AI Core is right there.  30th century equivalent of the broom closet.

[Stormwaltz]

The door to the AI Core is right there.  30th century equivalent of the broom closet.

I think Legion would have had some choice observations about that.

In fact, a running commentary between it and EDI would have been called for. Oh hell. That would have EPIC.

Now I have regrets. :(

[Polysorbate80]

Speaking of Legion, does he get left out of the whole deal, or relegated to "sentient battery operated device?"

[Stormwaltz]

As far as I'm concerned, Legion has no emotions. A romance with it would be strictly one-sided.

[Morat20]

Speaking of Legion, does he get left out of the whole deal, or relegated to "sentient battery operated device?"

Geth's best line was cut anyways.

"Geth do not intentially intentionally infiltrate".

[Polysorbate80]

"Geth do not intentially infiltrate".

Doctor:  *moans*
Shepard: *grunts*
Legion: ...."SURPIZE BUTTSECKZ!"
Shepard: "AAAAAA! WTF!"
EDI: ...."Wiping memory.  Plotting collision course with nearest mass relay...."
Shepard: "WHY??"
Legion: ..."There was a hole."

[K9]

I think Bioware is tying too hard to make the Sims in space; but perhaps that's what people want.

[Ratman_tf]

I think Bioware is tying too hard to make the Sims in space; but perhaps that's what people want.

Tell me that's a joke.

[Stormwaltz]

Tell me that's a joke.

Jenny works on Dragon Age, not Mass Effect.

Also, she gave birth Tuesday morning. I don't reckon she's posting much.

[LK]

200 years into the future, multiple races and mass changes in human society as a result, but people still have hang-ups on homosexuality? I guess if racism is in full effect...

But they better give me the option to Renegade Interrupt anyone being blatantly homophobic, punch them in the face, throw them in the airlock, then space 'em. "Anyone ELSE got a problem with the gays?" Storyline solved, gimme my Renegade Points.

Paragon path would be a bit too sappy and humorless to be an entertaining choice; it'd be a Power Rangers episode without the kung-fu and robots.

I imagine the Character Sheet will now include "Name / Class / Sexual Orientation". 

In all seriousness, I don't expect it to be that big of a deal? I'm sure the appropriate moral authorities looking for a new lightning rod to generate viewership dollars through outrage will highlight it and stir up shit for their benefit.

[UnSub]

But they better give me the option to Renegade Interrupt anyone being blatantly homophobic, punch them in the face, throw them in the airlock, then space 'em. "Anyone ELSE got a problem with the gays?" Storyline solved, gimme my Renegade Points.

Ahh, but what if you want to role play the homophobic? Does spacing "the gay" earn you Renegade points?

(Of course, I tried to play a run through of ME as xenophobic and still had aliens all over my ship. Only one I could keep off was Wrex. Still need to do an ME2 run on that same character and see how that plays out.)

[Stormwaltz]

200 years into the future, multiple races and mass changes in human society as a result, but people still have hang-ups on homosexuality? I guess if racism is in full effect...

Technology changes. Humans don't. Please excuse me for quoting my own unofficial ME no-longer-dev diary:

My problem with the Roddenberrian image of united humanity is that I think real humans tend to be greedy, selfish creatures that don't easily share political power, possessions, money, or living space. That's how we were made to be - evolution is usually unkind to the altruistic in times of scarcity. Only exceptional individuals can rise above their own biological impulses to place the needs of the many above the needs of the few or one.

I freely admit my glass is always half empty.

Based on this logic, I find the concept of "world government" ludicrous. Put any two people together, they'll find something to argue about. There are too many opposing and entrenched positions on Earth about who did what, who owns what, and who should get what. Every day, people are killed over grievances thousands of years old. I can’t conceive of that changing unless the nature of mankind changes. Should our species one day evolve into such saints, I doubt you and I would still recognize them as human.

My feeling is that in the future, changes of technology and economy will allow increasing numbers of ethnic and ideological microstates and micronations. People will build peace for themselves by establishing enclaves with like-minded fellows, and keeping The Other out.

Certainly we see this trend in the modern age. The Soviet Union and Yugoslavia shattered virtually overnight. Quebec and Scotland have independence movements. Tens of thousands flood the streets in protest of “globalization” – the forcible integration of national economies into a world free market. In the US, the last decade has seen increasing divide between Red State and Blue State. We don't talk with our neighbors, we talk to people who think like us on the forums of the Huffington Post or Free Republic. Groups on both left and right speak openly of seceding from the United States, a discussion which would have been unthinkable 50 years ago.

I look at the post-WWII Earth and see that the center cannot hold against factionalism and regionalism.

[Merusk]

All of which stems from our human-centric view that we're the center of the universe.   The day we meet a race capable of blowing the shit out of us, I expect a lot of that will disappear or recede into the corners.  You're correct that tribalism and us vs them is bred into our genetic code.  However, on that day we'll have a much bigger and more alien THEM to worry about than something as mundane as skin color or invisible map lines. Particularly if we're still crammed on this one insignificant planet.

I've always tended to see a world government as inevitable, too.  As technology advances and distances become more and cross-planetary distances become more insignificant it'll happen.  I'm also sure it won't be a Democracy or Republic that finally brings all under one flag, it will be a dictatorship.

[Morat20]

Rodenberry doesn't say it, but at least TNG is clearly a post-scarcity (or damn close approximation) society. When you don't lack for food, shelter, entertaiment, health-care, and live long and comfortable lives....

Well, you find other shit to be miserable about, but you don't tend to rise to actual revolt because you lead comfortable lives. You want things to stay roughly the same. So you bitch a lot.

And those guys don't get on screen -- what you see are the oddballs, the freaks that want to go wander around a dangerous universe poking it with a stick, rather than staying at home in their perfectly fit bodies they don't have to exercise, watching any enterainment they want, eating gourmet meals for free, and basically living lives that today's ultra-rich would pay every penny they own for.

That's pretty much the basis for Bank's Culture novels, which are pretty Rodenberry at first glance. Of course, the books are all about peeking below the surface --- the characters are all people who dislike living in Utopia and have managed to fuck their own lives, their perfect and happy society is the product of Newspeak (a much gentler, kinder Newspeak -- but still designed to format minds as they grow into the virtues of the Culture), and SC and their brethen can be right bastards.

One of the reasons I liked DS9 was the exposure of a more realistic Federation -- complete with dirty tricks department, and the entire war showed that even the most virtuous officers would say "fuck the rules" when survival was on the line.

[caladein]

All of which stems from our human-centric view that we're the center of the universe.   The day we meet a race capable of blowing the shit out of us, I expect a lot of that will disappear or recede into the corners.  You're correct that tribalism and us vs them is bred into our genetic code.  However, on that day we'll have a much bigger and more alien THEM to worry about than something as mundane as skin color or invisible map lines. Particularly if we're still crammed on this one insignificant planet.

I've always tended to see a world government as inevitable, too.  As technology advances and distances become more and cross-planetary distances become more insignificant it'll happen.  I'm also sure it won't be a Democracy or Republic that finally brings all under one flag, it will be a dictatorship.

The thing is, first contact in Mass Effect is very different from that of say, Star Trek.

From my understanding, Humans weren't immediately blown to bits by the Turians, although we probably would have lost quite badly had it gone the distance.  There was a bit (or a lot?) of rallying behind strong leadership as a result of knowing we weren't the only ones still out there but there's still plenty of room for people to be massive pricks to each other in addition to everything else out there.

Fake Edit: Oh wow, this Culture series sounds awesome, I need to get on this.  One of the Wikipedia pages says I should start with the second one first?

[Morat20]

Fake Edit: Oh wow, this Culture series sounds awesome, I need to get on this.  One of the Wikipedia pages says I should start with the second one first?

Player of Games is most accessible. Consider Phlebas is good, but defintely a rougher work. Use of Weapons is very good, but it's got a sort of weird...story-shape.

Player of Games basically introduces you to the Culture, the sorts of people in it, and kinda of the main players and attitudes everyone has without overwhelming you. Plus, it's short enough that if you loathe it, it's not a lengthy investment to figure that out.

If you really want to amuse yourself, read Player of Games then go check out The Wasp Factory or The Bridge, which is some of his non-Culture straight-up fiction. I've heard interesting things about Feersom Enjin but never read it.

[Ratman_tf]

People do change, in predictable ways.

Try suggesting color segregated bathrooms to your HR department. I bet they'd look at you like cukoo bird just sprang out of your forehead. And yet these things existed in america within the memories of people still alive today.
We're currently on our first black president (and he hasn't been shot yet!  )

I think homophobia will become like that, and transsexuals are on the rise. Sure, there will still be some holdouts, it's never a binary situation.

And then we'll replace it with xenophobia. And get over that in time as well. 

[tmp]

some tidbits about ME3 at http://www.computerandvideogames.com/301101/e3-2011-games-mass-effect-3/

apparently having new hair technology means everyone gets hair. Including Jack.

[bhodi]

If you really want to amuse yourself, read Player of Games then go check out The Wasp Factory or The Bridge, which is some of his non-Culture straight-up fiction. I've heard interesting things about Feersom Enjin but never read it.

I also recommend the Algebraist. Fantastic book.

[Stormwaltz]

I also recommend the Algebraist. Fantastic book.

Seconded.

[Sjofn]

I'm sad Jack will have hair. She had a lovely head.

[rk47]

I'm sad Jack will have hair. She had a lovely head.

Well, I don't care. In my save, she's already dead.

[Azuredream]

I never brought her along for anything, so I can't say I care one way or the other.

[caladein]

I quite liked bringing Jack around on missions, she and Garrus were probably my favorite combination of dialogue and combat fun. I wrote this a year ago (!) about the Kasumi DLC and strangely, I still think along these lines:

Kasumi, the character, is quite good.  Even taking her through just an initial visit to the Citadel and Mordin’s recruitment mission I found her incidental dialogue to be some of my favorite so far.  There’s a triggered piece of dialogue on Omega about the use of light that reminded me a lot of my, now, other favorite character to take around, Jack.  Both characters’ statements are from the “bottom”.  They’re not the usual expository lines you might get from fancy-pants characters and also not the “Ooooooooh, so shiny” crap from callow characters (who may or may not be space hicks).  Both Kasumi and Jack give perspectives that usually aren’t given about places and even less often done well in my experience.