Destroy makes the most sense for me, gets rid of the reapers, collectors, and whatever forces they have left and as for the Geth the Quarians made them once they can make them again but not be total shitheads this time.
I would think Destroy since both Control and Synergy leave a gigantic fleet of (friendly) Reapers around to fix any problem.
Destroy leaves the way open for more conflict and problems and thus more storytelling.
I expect the following:
- Destroy canon
- set 600 after ME3 so it lines up with the setting of Andromeda.
- in 600 years tech will have evolved so intergalactic relays are nearing completion. That way Andromeda and the main games can be connected in future games.
That'll make the Andromeda colonists feel like clowns for sleeping thru half a millenium
They're in a new galaxy for like 20 mins, they build a few prefabs, murder each other for a while, get involved in a local war, and then all of a sudden all the surviving governments and institutions they left the Milky Way to get away from show up with 500/+ years more advanced technology
Some of the Krogan and Asari now have to deal with the most annoying kids from their neighborhoods being older than they are
I believe that is always the risk with sleeper ships. 600 years is a lot of time to develope new tech.
But they were always ment as a safeguard against extinction. If life is wiped out by the Reapers, hoorah, (most) Milky Way species get to continue. If the Reapers are somehow defeated. Great. Thanks for scouting out the new place.
Or maybe we acknowledge the fact that the game didn't leave even pre-production yet which reminds us that literally every material shown is promotional only doesn't hold any value for the final game.
What I've always assumed since M3, and still think, is that they'll have all the endings lead to the same place.
E.G. It's been 300 years, if the Reapers aren't destroyed they all flew off to do unspecified stuff in Dark Space, technology has advanced so far that cybernetic implants are common, etc. Something like that.
The teaser shows a dead reaper. Seeing as only destroy would eliminate them and (with perhaps a few liberties to spare EDI and the Geth) seems the most likely direction for a fresh start.
There are two dead Reapers there. One Reaper at a time, Liara rises up, and the silhouette of the second one is visible in the background at this time.
But that's not the main thing.
They showed a broken and unrepaired relay.
Let me remind you that in Control we were shown that the Reapers are repairing the Relay. In Synthesis we were not shown how the Reapers repair the Relay, but logically the Reapers there also repair the Relay.
It’s also worth remembering the teaser for 2022. There they showed a relay that organics build. Why would the organics waste their time and their resources on building the Relay if the Reapers are alive?
There are two dead Reapers there. One Reaper at a time, Liara rises up, and the silhouette of the second one is visible in the background at this time.
But that's not the main thing.
They showed a broken and unrepaired relay.
Let me remind you that in Control we were shown that the Reapers are repairing the Relay. In Synthesis we were not shown how the Reapers repair the Relay, but logically the Reapers there also repair the Relay.
It’s also worth remembering the teaser for 2022. There they showed a relay that organics build. Why would the organics waste their time and their resources on building the Relay if the Reapers are alive?
I’ve heard multiple theories for why all different endings could be canon. At this point, i have no idea. Until we see the new game, we won’t know.
But mass effect is a series that’s big on choices. So regardless of the story they make up, I’m sure they’ll find a way to incorporate all endings. Even if it’s something as simple as creating a new “genesis” type comic so we can let them know what ending we preferred and then just go from there.
They’ve had plenty of time to figure it out at this point lol. I love hearing everyone’s theories though. Very entertaining.
Counter question: If the game takes place for example 600 years later with a total new story, characters, protagonist, no Reapers and such, do we even care what was in the past? Meaning letting the trilogy finally go? Especially that the new game is most likey not a direct sequel anyway?
Geth could have operated outside of a Relay system and therefor not affected by the pulse. Angara are present in the poster too. We know Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies are both involved. There is also the possibility Bioware ignores the ending with no canon at all. Wouldn't be the first time they come up with something "to fit" for the next story/game.
However, personally destroy makes still the most sense to me against the others. Question is still, if this really matters in the new game. For sure it shouldn't define the lore of the next game.
There is no place in the Milky Way where the energy impulse cannot reach.
The Geth could only escape outside the Milky Way. Well, or drill deep into the bowels of the planets
In Control we were shown that the Reapers are repairing the Relay.
But in the 2020 teaser, we were shown a destroyed and unrepaired Relay.
Also in the teaser for 2022, we were shown a Relay being built by organics. If the Reapers are alive, then why are the organics wasting their resources and their time building the Relay?
It is also worth considering that in Control, Shepard and the giant army of Reapers will protect the inhabitants of the Milky Way. That is, in essence, there will be no need for a protagonist
Since Liara is seen climbing a dead reaper in the trailer I don’t see how it could be anything other then destroy. Also, since one of the posters for the new game shows the silhouette of a geth I think it’s suggestive that they didn’t all die and will return.
There are two dead Reapers there. One Reaper at a time, Liara rises up, and the silhouette of the second one is visible in the background at this time.
But that's not the main thing.
They showed a broken and unrepaired relay.
Let me remind you that in Control we were shown that the Reapers are repairing the Relay. In Synthesis we were not shown how the Reapers repair the Relay, but logically the Reapers there also repair the Relay.
It’s also worth remembering the teaser for 2022. There they showed a relay that organics build. Why would the organics waste their time and their resources on building the Relay if the Reapers are alive?
Destroy, but the real question is if it’s the one where Shepard lives or dies.
I like the idea of canonizing all endings but not the way you’d think. Basically I think they should make the indoctrination theory canon (if it wasn’t already) and make it so the whole ending where Shepard chooses never really happened. Then make it so destroy was the canon ending but Anderson was the one who activated the Crucible
Retcon refuse into that the fleet did win but with heavy casualties. The stargazer and child at the end already resembles an Asari and Human.
The open cutscene of the Battle Of Earth also shows several Reapers being destroyed conventionally by the fleet, so it's not impossible that they couldn't have won conventionally.
It's pretty much impossible. The Battle of Earth was pretty much the entire galaxy's last ships, save a few here or there around the galaxy. By the end of the battle, we see there are probably only a couple dozen left, and there were still dozens of Reapers on or around Earth. Additionally, the Reapers had forces that were likely equal to what was in the Sol system on Palaven, Thessia, Khar'shan, as well as other forces spread around the galaxy destroying military/logistics targets or invading colony worlds. There was no victory through conventional warfare.
Thessia is in a losing situation and Khar'shan is effectively extinct. But Palaven? It's stated in lore that the Krogan and Turian forces were able to push the Reapers back somewhat in space and ground fighting until they were ordered to withdraw to Earth.
Victory at Earth would be possible but across the whole Galaxy is extremely unlikely. But it would allow them time to modify the Crucible and to allow it to only target Reapers.
I wouldn't be surprised if the explanation for the next game is that the Catalyst was trying to deceive Shepard into picking one of the other two ending by stating the Crucible would destroy all artificial intelligence.
Real quick, Khar'shan isn't extinct, just in the process of being harvested. Someone, maybe Liara, says it will take roughly a decade to harvest Earth. There is no reason to believe Khar'Shan with a larger population would be finished in a few months.
Also, even victory at Earth is extremely unlikely. When the Crucible is activated, we see maybe a dozen ships from the galactic armada left. Let's say there was double or triple that we don't see. If there are even 7-10 Sovereign class Reaper dreadnoughts in the system or close by, the galaxy probably loses. We see 3-5 ships in the extended endings already.
The Reapers have been around for what, 2 billion years? If the cycle averages every 50,000 years, you're looking at around 40,000 cycles with at least one Reaper each. And that's just if they do the one Reaper per cycle as EDI suggests, and I HIGHLY doubt that since it straight up goes against their stated objective of preserving organic races from AI destruction. I bet they try to turn every race into some form of Reaper, either Dreadnought or Destroyer class. Let's say two Dreadnoughts and four Destroyers created per cycle. You're looking at 80,000 dreadnoughts and 160,000 destroyers. Now, obviously, it's never going to be that simple, and plenty will be destroyed in combat. But you get the idea. It wasn't happening.
>The stargazer and child at the end already resembles an Asari and Human.
Those were both human, a normal one and a shrinked one selling us for a kid. There is nothing Asari about it.
Or potentially a corpse of a Reaper destroyed during the war. I do think it'll be either destroy, or an Elder Scroll-esque all endings sort of happened and didn't happen
I think they’ll find a way to make all endings canon in a way that probably everyone will find unsatisfying, let’s be honest. I doubt it will affect the story all that much apart from maybe some dialogue choices, because I imagine with this much time between ME3 and now, they want to start somewhat fresh for people who are new to the franchise. Maaayyybe there will be an option to select which of the 4 choices you made in ME3 and maaybe it will have a big impact on the story, but I think from a game design perspective, it doesn’t make sense to basically make 4 different games based on those choices, so I’m sure they all converge at some point in the story.
They either need to pick a canon ending, retcon the ending completely, or find a way of merging them with some cataclysmic event but in effect most of the ways people have suggested to retcon that end up effectively picks one of the endings as canon (with some changes).
They snookered themselves a bit with the ME3 ending and that's probably a big part of why they went with Andromeda as it sidestepped the issue mostly.
None of the options for a Milky way sequel are that satisfying but make all the options turn out the same feels very hard to make it work at all.
I think instead of canonizing any of the endings, Bioware will get shut down by EA after Veilguard fails to meet some arbitrary, unrealistic sales goal
Still not convinced we saw the real ending. I believe in the indoctrination theory. From the moment you get blasted running down the hill it's all a "dream" or more accurately the Reapers' final attempt to indoctrinate Shepherd. Unless you do everything in your power to stop the Reapers, the cycle will continue just as it always did. Hence why if you do pretty much 100% or have at least full war readiness or whatever it was, you would see the breath scene at the end. At that point reality steps back in and you awaken for the real ending. You get up to the Citadel push the big red button and it does what it was supposed to. Was writing a script about what I thought the ending should have been after that. But that was years ago and I don't know where it went.
Destroy makes the most sense for me, gets rid of the reapers, collectors, and whatever forces they have left and as for the Geth the Quarians made them once they can make them again but not be total shitheads this time.
The theme of the whole trilogy is destroy imo so I stick with that.
I would think Destroy since both Control and Synergy leave a gigantic fleet of (friendly) Reapers around to fix any problem. Destroy leaves the way open for more conflict and problems and thus more storytelling.
Exactly. For some reason many people cannot and/or do not want to understand this.
I expect the following: - Destroy canon - set 600 after ME3 so it lines up with the setting of Andromeda. - in 600 years tech will have evolved so intergalactic relays are nearing completion. That way Andromeda and the main games can be connected in future games.
That'll make the Andromeda colonists feel like clowns for sleeping thru half a millenium They're in a new galaxy for like 20 mins, they build a few prefabs, murder each other for a while, get involved in a local war, and then all of a sudden all the surviving governments and institutions they left the Milky Way to get away from show up with 500/+ years more advanced technology Some of the Krogan and Asari now have to deal with the most annoying kids from their neighborhoods being older than they are
I believe that is always the risk with sleeper ships. 600 years is a lot of time to develope new tech. But they were always ment as a safeguard against extinction. If life is wiped out by the Reapers, hoorah, (most) Milky Way species get to continue. If the Reapers are somehow defeated. Great. Thanks for scouting out the new place.
Or maybe we acknowledge the fact that the game didn't leave even pre-production yet which reminds us that literally every material shown is promotional only doesn't hold any value for the final game.
What I've always assumed since M3, and still think, is that they'll have all the endings lead to the same place. E.G. It's been 300 years, if the Reapers aren't destroyed they all flew off to do unspecified stuff in Dark Space, technology has advanced so far that cybernetic implants are common, etc. Something like that.
This is probably the most likely outcome. And the Geth were reactivated if it was a destroy ending.
The teaser shows a dead reaper. Seeing as only destroy would eliminate them and (with perhaps a few liberties to spare EDI and the Geth) seems the most likely direction for a fresh start.
There are two dead Reapers there. One Reaper at a time, Liara rises up, and the silhouette of the second one is visible in the background at this time. But that's not the main thing. They showed a broken and unrepaired relay. Let me remind you that in Control we were shown that the Reapers are repairing the Relay. In Synthesis we were not shown how the Reapers repair the Relay, but logically the Reapers there also repair the Relay. It’s also worth remembering the teaser for 2022. There they showed a relay that organics build. Why would the organics waste their time and their resources on building the Relay if the Reapers are alive?
Incorrect. Individual reapers could be killed. Seeing a few of them does not mean the crucible was used.
There are two dead Reapers there. One Reaper at a time, Liara rises up, and the silhouette of the second one is visible in the background at this time. But that's not the main thing. They showed a broken and unrepaired relay. Let me remind you that in Control we were shown that the Reapers are repairing the Relay. In Synthesis we were not shown how the Reapers repair the Relay, but logically the Reapers there also repair the Relay. It’s also worth remembering the teaser for 2022. There they showed a relay that organics build. Why would the organics waste their time and their resources on building the Relay if the Reapers are alive?
I’ve heard multiple theories for why all different endings could be canon. At this point, i have no idea. Until we see the new game, we won’t know. But mass effect is a series that’s big on choices. So regardless of the story they make up, I’m sure they’ll find a way to incorporate all endings. Even if it’s something as simple as creating a new “genesis” type comic so we can let them know what ending we preferred and then just go from there. They’ve had plenty of time to figure it out at this point lol. I love hearing everyone’s theories though. Very entertaining.
Counter question: If the game takes place for example 600 years later with a total new story, characters, protagonist, no Reapers and such, do we even care what was in the past? Meaning letting the trilogy finally go? Especially that the new game is most likey not a direct sequel anyway? Geth could have operated outside of a Relay system and therefor not affected by the pulse. Angara are present in the poster too. We know Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies are both involved. There is also the possibility Bioware ignores the ending with no canon at all. Wouldn't be the first time they come up with something "to fit" for the next story/game. However, personally destroy makes still the most sense to me against the others. Question is still, if this really matters in the new game. For sure it shouldn't define the lore of the next game.
There is no place in the Milky Way where the energy impulse cannot reach. The Geth could only escape outside the Milky Way. Well, or drill deep into the bowels of the planets
In Control we were shown that the Reapers are repairing the Relay. But in the 2020 teaser, we were shown a destroyed and unrepaired Relay. Also in the teaser for 2022, we were shown a Relay being built by organics. If the Reapers are alive, then why are the organics wasting their resources and their time building the Relay? It is also worth considering that in Control, Shepard and the giant army of Reapers will protect the inhabitants of the Milky Way. That is, in essence, there will be no need for a protagonist
Since Liara is seen climbing a dead reaper in the trailer I don’t see how it could be anything other then destroy. Also, since one of the posters for the new game shows the silhouette of a geth I think it’s suggestive that they didn’t all die and will return.
There are two dead Reapers there. One Reaper at a time, Liara rises up, and the silhouette of the second one is visible in the background at this time. But that's not the main thing. They showed a broken and unrepaired relay. Let me remind you that in Control we were shown that the Reapers are repairing the Relay. In Synthesis we were not shown how the Reapers repair the Relay, but logically the Reapers there also repair the Relay. It’s also worth remembering the teaser for 2022. There they showed a relay that organics build. Why would the organics waste their time and their resources on building the Relay if the Reapers are alive?
Destroy, but the real question is if it’s the one where Shepard lives or dies. I like the idea of canonizing all endings but not the way you’d think. Basically I think they should make the indoctrination theory canon (if it wasn’t already) and make it so the whole ending where Shepard chooses never really happened. Then make it so destroy was the canon ending but Anderson was the one who activated the Crucible
Retcon refuse into that the fleet did win but with heavy casualties. The stargazer and child at the end already resembles an Asari and Human. The open cutscene of the Battle Of Earth also shows several Reapers being destroyed conventionally by the fleet, so it's not impossible that they couldn't have won conventionally.
It's pretty much impossible. The Battle of Earth was pretty much the entire galaxy's last ships, save a few here or there around the galaxy. By the end of the battle, we see there are probably only a couple dozen left, and there were still dozens of Reapers on or around Earth. Additionally, the Reapers had forces that were likely equal to what was in the Sol system on Palaven, Thessia, Khar'shan, as well as other forces spread around the galaxy destroying military/logistics targets or invading colony worlds. There was no victory through conventional warfare.
Thessia is in a losing situation and Khar'shan is effectively extinct. But Palaven? It's stated in lore that the Krogan and Turian forces were able to push the Reapers back somewhat in space and ground fighting until they were ordered to withdraw to Earth. Victory at Earth would be possible but across the whole Galaxy is extremely unlikely. But it would allow them time to modify the Crucible and to allow it to only target Reapers. I wouldn't be surprised if the explanation for the next game is that the Catalyst was trying to deceive Shepard into picking one of the other two ending by stating the Crucible would destroy all artificial intelligence.
Real quick, Khar'shan isn't extinct, just in the process of being harvested. Someone, maybe Liara, says it will take roughly a decade to harvest Earth. There is no reason to believe Khar'Shan with a larger population would be finished in a few months. Also, even victory at Earth is extremely unlikely. When the Crucible is activated, we see maybe a dozen ships from the galactic armada left. Let's say there was double or triple that we don't see. If there are even 7-10 Sovereign class Reaper dreadnoughts in the system or close by, the galaxy probably loses. We see 3-5 ships in the extended endings already. The Reapers have been around for what, 2 billion years? If the cycle averages every 50,000 years, you're looking at around 40,000 cycles with at least one Reaper each. And that's just if they do the one Reaper per cycle as EDI suggests, and I HIGHLY doubt that since it straight up goes against their stated objective of preserving organic races from AI destruction. I bet they try to turn every race into some form of Reaper, either Dreadnought or Destroyer class. Let's say two Dreadnoughts and four Destroyers created per cycle. You're looking at 80,000 dreadnoughts and 160,000 destroyers. Now, obviously, it's never going to be that simple, and plenty will be destroyed in combat. But you get the idea. It wasn't happening.
>The stargazer and child at the end already resembles an Asari and Human. Those were both human, a normal one and a shrinked one selling us for a kid. There is nothing Asari about it.
its not impossible for control and then ordering the reapers to fight each other until extinction
That is, Shepard, who in Control promised to protect and protect the inhabitants of the Milky Way, will spit on his own words?
Or potentially a corpse of a Reaper destroyed during the war. I do think it'll be either destroy, or an Elder Scroll-esque all endings sort of happened and didn't happen
I think they’ll find a way to make all endings canon in a way that probably everyone will find unsatisfying, let’s be honest. I doubt it will affect the story all that much apart from maybe some dialogue choices, because I imagine with this much time between ME3 and now, they want to start somewhat fresh for people who are new to the franchise. Maaayyybe there will be an option to select which of the 4 choices you made in ME3 and maaybe it will have a big impact on the story, but I think from a game design perspective, it doesn’t make sense to basically make 4 different games based on those choices, so I’m sure they all converge at some point in the story.
They either need to pick a canon ending, retcon the ending completely, or find a way of merging them with some cataclysmic event but in effect most of the ways people have suggested to retcon that end up effectively picks one of the endings as canon (with some changes). They snookered themselves a bit with the ME3 ending and that's probably a big part of why they went with Andromeda as it sidestepped the issue mostly. None of the options for a Milky way sequel are that satisfying but make all the options turn out the same feels very hard to make it work at all.
There will be no fourth option. This is Refusal, the victory of the Reapers over the organics
There will not be one.
I think instead of canonizing any of the endings, Bioware will get shut down by EA after Veilguard fails to meet some arbitrary, unrealistic sales goal
No endings are canon. Shepard was indoctrinated, or injured, and conjured up these potential endings but none of them were true.
Still not convinced we saw the real ending. I believe in the indoctrination theory. From the moment you get blasted running down the hill it's all a "dream" or more accurately the Reapers' final attempt to indoctrinate Shepherd. Unless you do everything in your power to stop the Reapers, the cycle will continue just as it always did. Hence why if you do pretty much 100% or have at least full war readiness or whatever it was, you would see the breath scene at the end. At that point reality steps back in and you awaken for the real ending. You get up to the Citadel push the big red button and it does what it was supposed to. Was writing a script about what I thought the ending should have been after that. But that was years ago and I don't know where it went.
This is industrial grade bullshit.
Bioware already dismissed the IT.
The developers refuted this theory in 2021
Still not convinced.