Bonus round: what’s the most absurd run you’ve done?
I tried to do renegade once, but I always end up going paragon by the end. I just can’t be a dick to my crew, no matter how hard I try… 😢
Tali romance. No doubt. Geth and Quarian alliance, Shepard always hits the news reporter. Big stupid jellyfish. All of those I just can’t not do in every run.
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ME3 requires you to do a personality change if you ever decide to not stick with one or the other. I miss the ME1/2 days when you could be neutral and it just felt like “fuck it, let’s get the mission going” because realistically sometimes you don’t need to go into a tirade about how fucked the system is or how you don’t care how fucked the system is.
Regardless, ME3 Renegade is just full on psychopath sometimes because you have to have the opposite of Paragon and that means occasionally just completely fucking losing it and watching Samara kill herself and then shoot her daughter anyways thus invalidating her sacrifice while simultaneously showing that Shepard recognizes killing Falere would incite Samara and doesn’t want to fight an incredibly powerful biotic so he just allows her commit unalive because he knows she will do it cause her code has no grey areas.
It’s absolutely brutal in the most cunning of ways, Shepard takes the easy road and just let’s her remove herself as an obstacle for the equation. Falere is dead because she’s a potential banshee and Renegade Shepard is willing to kill her simply because she may eventually become one, but they can’t tell Samara that so they just play along and watch as she blows her brains out.
ME1 Renegade: Smart-Ass
ME2 Renegade: Bad-Ass
ME3 Renegade: Ass
Oh dip. I didn’t know Shepard would kill Falere if Samara offed herself. That’s fucking dark.
I’m grateful to YouTubers like BigDanGaming for uploading the pure renegade runs, I don’t think I could ever stomach actually doing one. I tried in ME1 and it was brutal. Like, the amount of shooting to kill Wrex is not something I’d care to repeat again. :(
The best part about mass effect is that there is no cannon. You can do what you want and that’s just as valid.
That said, I can’t really play Shepard as a real renegade. There are some great moments, but trying to save everyone and basically being a paragon is how I view Shepard when really pressed.
True dat. I don’t really even have a cannon ending, though I am one of those scoundrels who is partial to synthesis. Depends too much on which Shepard I’m playing.
I usually go full paragon on the characters I like (Squadmates, Anderson, etc.) but full renegade on anyone I don’t like (Saren, TIM). Romancing Liara in ME1, then going for Tali in ME2 and ME3. Leading Garrus on the “good” path. Saving the council. Geth/Quarian alliance. Curing the genophage. Synthesis.
I tried to play it different many times, but in the end I just can’t help myself but to stick to these points.
Colonist // Sole Survivor: Shepard has lost everything, twice. Come out of the unlikeliest scenarios consistently.
This gives them a pragmatic view of survival and a chip on their shoulder for Batarians and Cerberus. Seeing the way people have been mistreated, Shepard goes out of their way to help those that are genuinely in need while mercilessly fucking up anyone who is causing suffering to others. Always betray Cerberus, tell TIM to fuck off in every possible scenario, probably a little prejudiced toward Batarians.
So Paragade, basically. 60/40.
“Lot’s of ways to help people, sometimes heal patients, other times kill dangerous people. Either way helps.” -Mordin
Paragade Shepard Shepard is a pretty strong playthrough. My Shepard tends to be a bit more diplomatic with TIM until the crew gets thrown into the truly shitty situation on the Collector ship and EDI says the Illusive Man set us up. Yes, we got the data but Shepard stops being nice about going along with TIM.
That’s how I play it when I don’t do sole survivor, knowing the evils they did in ME1 makes it difficult but I’ll give TIM the benefit of the doubt until he throws me into the situation and lies.
full paragon and garrus. i tried a renagade run once, made it to that one part in me3, and that playthrough sits unfinished to this day.
i agree, its hard not to be the good guy.
I do not know, i have several i consider “canon”, but canonicity doesnt really work for a game like mass effect.
