Mass Effect 3 Endings: BioWare Gives In to Fans
On the night of March 18 to 19, a message appeared on the official Facebook page of the [Mass Effect](/games?search=Mass Effect) series stating that BioWare does not plan to change the ending of [Mass Effect 3](/games?search=Mass Effect 3). The post caused such a negative reaction from the fan community that it was deleted. Moreover, BioWare posted a denial on Facebook.
In this heartfelt text, it is said: "We actively and seriously take the feedback we receive from players, and we are not ruling anything out at this point. Currently, we are still gathering and processing information from you and have not yet made a decision regarding requests to change the ending. Your reactions and opinions are of utmost importance to us. We apologize for the confusion caused by that message. Our priority in this discussion is to maintain open and productive communication with you, [to] our dedicated fans."
On Twitter, it's even more interesting: BioWare community manager Jessica Merizan wrote: "Someone made a slip on our [Mass Effect](/games?search=Mass Effect) channel [on Facebook]. We are still gathering feedback to create content that considers that [feedback]. Thanks for your understanding :)". It's good that those who are mistakenly allowed access to BioWare's information channels do not refer to [Mass Effect](/games?search=Mass Effect) fans as "sheep, stupid... ...". Because you know, anything can happen.
It’s no surprise that BioWare is being so gentle and quickly retracting. First, supporters of changing the ending continue to cause a stir on the forums. Second, they have collected about $70,000 in donations for the Child's Play program (providing games and toys to sick children, and attention to the issues of first-world fans of ME3). Third, several enthusiasts (prompted by a person with the forum nickname El_Spiko) complained to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) about BioWare. They accuse BioWare and Electronic Arts of false advertising (a whole forum thread has been dedicated to these claims). The final product does not match the promises regarding the ending of [Mass Effect 3](/games?search=Mass Effect 3) made by the developers before the game’s release, says El_Spiko, who also wrote to the sportloto BBB (Better Business Bureau).
Fourth, BioWare surely remembers that modern fans are something like a Zerg swarm, if not worse. If they aren’t fed, you can end up with not just charity and complaints to the FTC, but an ion cannon aimed at your site.