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Mass Effect 3 has, depending on certain conditions, up to three possible endings.

The end-game options are clearly laid out for Shepard, and each scenario is apparently represented by a different path Shepard can walk down. It is made very clear that how the ending plays out is up to Shepard to decide in this moment. So it only stands to reason that Shepard should be explicitly told, or given a clear visual indicator to, which path would lead to which ending.

However, when I reached the final decision point, I did not see anything that clearly indicated which actions would lead towards which ending. Certainly, I could have gone online and looked up a walkthrough to help me figure things out. However, I really feel that the game should have done a better job of leading me towards where I wanted to go.

In the end, I went with what my gut was telling me might possibly achieve my desired result - though I still really worried that the action might have actually led to an ending other than the one I desired. Fortunately, this ended up being the right choice for me. So, in some regards, I suppose it can be said that the game did its job even though I don't really feel like it did.

Still, I'm left wondering if I might have missed something. Is there a clear in-game indicator of which actions will reflect each of Shepard's possible choices? I'm specifically not looking for a simple guide that says "if you do this, you'll get that ending". I want to know what, if anything, the game does to give such directions to the player.

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Not sure why this got closed as not constructive. The answer is fairly straightforward - no debate/polling/argument/discussion needed. If anything, I could agree with arguments for Too Localized. But not constructive just does not fit. – Iszi Jan 25 at 19:02
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I'm really just getting more confused about the negativity in the votes on this question. Seven down-votes and five close-votes (though I thank the two up- and four reopen-votes) so far. Meanwhile, a question about something that is made much more blatantly obvious in the same scene, Where did the Reapers come from? has three up-votes and no negative action at all. (Correction: As I was writing this, it got one down-vote.) – Iszi Jan 26 at 8:15

closed as not constructive by Michel, kotekzot, KatieK, Alok, SaintWacko Jan 25 at 18:35

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1 Answer

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Watch the cutscene again. Whenever the star child discusses an option, the camera highlights the appropriate path toward that option.

"I know you've thought about destroying us." - Camera indicates the red platform and demonstrates Shepard shooting it.

"Do you think you can control us?" - Camera indicates the blue platform and shows Shepard holding on to it.

"There is another solution: Synthesis - Camera shows the glowing green energy beam directly in front of you.

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Interesting. I must have dismissed these as non-informational (just adding more atmosphere than anything), possibly because the people represented in the first two visions actually aren't Shepard. For the red option, it looks like Anderson in the vision - note the combat uniform, military rank stripes, and hat. For the blue option, it appears to be the Illusive Man - note the business suit and slick hair. In fact, for the latter, Shepard even says "the Illusive Man was right". In any case, both were clearly male and I was playing a female Shepard. youtu.be/q6wyX4F1O1E – Iszi Jan 25 at 15:43
Come to think, the whole bit about Anderson & The Illusive Man being in the first two visions (and there being nobody - for that matter, no vision - in the third) is an interesting commentary on the alignment of your choices. Do you follow what your good military leaders have always thought is best? Do you choose to pursue the megalomaniac's agenda? Or, do you follow your own path which leads to an option only you have even been given to consider? – Iszi Jan 25 at 16:06

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