Head2Head #1 - Mass Effect 3's mass market modes

Welcome to Head2Head, Made2Game's debate series that sees two of our contributers argue over a recent or timeless gaming topic. This week James Bowden and Mick Fraser butt heads over Mass Effect 3's recently discovered modes of play.

The mighty ship Mass Effect 3 sprang a leak last week with a dashboard update giving eager fans unplanned early access to an upcoming demo, an upcoming demo in a rough state.

But we're not here to discuss how the demo was lacking textures and animation, no, we're here to discuss a much earlier point in the demo than that.

Before you start playing, Mass Effect 3 actually gives you a choice between 'story', 'action' and 'RPG' modes, with each making slight tweaks to the experience in an attempt to appeal to gamers that may have had issues with Mass Effects combat or, erm, its conversations.

Put simply, 'story' makes combat very easy and doesn't skimp on the conversation. 'Action' gets through the talking as quickly as possible, presumably cutting out choices, and focuses on nitty-gritty combat. 'RPG' mode reportedly offers the usual mix that the Mass Effect fan has grown accustomed to.

Here to argue why this change should be welcomed with open arms is James Bowden while shooting it down with a biotic blast of hate is Mick Fraser.

The Reapers are coming! But they'll lie down like dogs if you want

For Mass Effect 3's Mass Market Modes
-James Bowden

I'm the youngest member of my family, one sister sits above me, and was afflicted with a love for video games at a young age. With parents who often struggled to comprehend the technology of a CD player, this meant conversations at the dinner table were always awkward.

“Did you have fun blasting the baddies?” My dad would say. Likely not meaning to be as patronising as you'd imagine, but to him video games seem like nothing more than frivolous. It's a common misconception of the medium we're still addressing today.

I would often retort as such, defending my most beloved hobby, “There's more to it that that you know. It's a cognitive puzzle. It's about becoming the character, about living their trials. The story is good too, you should try it.”

To his credit my dad would always try. Bless him. He was a whizz at a Game and Watch and could hold his own in a Mario Bros versus match but the 3D era left him behind.

Considering he loves watching James Bond films it always confused me that he didn't relish the idea of 'being' Bond.

Is your dad also missing out on Mordin's version of Gilbert and Sullivan?

But now I think about it, actually being Bond, playing on those higher difficulties to create that compelling challenge, was tough. And investing in fantasy universes at the time, when Baldur's Gate was king, was daunting as combat was more punishing than a Victorian teacher with an unsatisfied dislike for all children kind.

So I'm excited for Mass Effect 3 now, for my dad.

He'll be able to play in 'Story Mode' and while the combat may be so simple that he's effectively walking from one plot point to another, he'll be walking from one point to another. Then I'll be able to discuss how amazing the plot was and bond over how fun it is to throw mugs around with telekinetic powers! It'll beat another conversation about my four-year-old Clio anyway. If you're reading Dad, I just checked the tires.

The 'story' and 'action' modes in Mass Effect 3 effortlessly open the game up to more people. But it's not the game I care about it opening up, it's the story. It's the characters. It's the world. Why is Star Wars so popular? Well you don't need agile reactions and a lesson in twin stick aiming to plonk yourself down and consume Star Wars.

Then what's to say someone who enters Mass Effect as an 'Action' player won't graduate into an 'RPG mode' player at a later date? Just because they skip dialog trees and focus on the blasting doesn't mean they won't be immune to the charms of the Mass Effect universe. The simple fact I can tell a Gears of War 3-head 'play this, it plays like your game but you can throw people around like they're ragdolls' should be the bait that lures another wave of Spectres in.

Then if they discover 'RPG mode' gives them a better experience what's to say they won't then play Dragon Age? or Skyrim? or Fallout? what's to say that creating that open door won't enhance their gaming and make players ask more from industry in the process?

But regardless of all this higher purpose funk the point remains - I'll get to talk about Mass Effect with my dad. That alone justifies it all for me.

That's alright Garrus you stay in cover, I'll do everything. Like always

Against Mass Effect 3's Mass Market Modes
-Mick Fraser 

If Crystal Dynamics were to announce that the Tomb Raider reboot would feature a mode that removes all the climbing and just gives you a straight line to run in, how excited would you be? I’m guessing not very: the Tomb Raider franchise is as famous for its second-storey acrobatics as for its curvy heroine, and even the option to remove such an element is unthinkable.

So why do Bioware insist on dumbing down their games? Dragon Age: Origins was an exceptional RPG, and yet in a bid to please the mass market the developers saw fit to remove almost all of the tactical depth and replace it with imprecise button-mashery for the sequel. Sure I remember enjoying the game on its own merits, but these accessibility changes effectively killed the Dragon Age series for many fans.

And now, if the recent Mass Effect 3 beat leak is anything to go by, it would appear that Bioware are at it again. The original Mass Effect had a near-perfect formula, but Bioware decided to make some alterations for the sequel that really paid off. At the expense of some of the more traditional role-playing elements, they crafted one of the best action-RPG titles of recent years. Had Bioware chosen to simply transplant that formula into a third story, most fans would have been happy. However, wasting resources that could have been used to refine the solo game in order to create several unnecessary alternate campaign modes is mind-boggling.

Conversations make up a huge portion of Mass Effect, just how much will 'action mode' cut out?

The low-story 'Action Mode' is clearly an attempt to corner a portion of the shooter market and bring in those gamers who complain that RPGs are too 'beardy'. I understand that the 'RPG Mode' is purported to feature a combination of Action and 'Story Mode' to deliver the 'classic' Mass Effect experience, but why do the elements need to be separated at all? Why do Bioware assume they need to idiot-proof their games? Mass Effect DLC Pinnacle Station featured an action-packed VR training course – why not include a similar element in ME3 to cater to the action junkies? Surely a VR suite isn’t too much to ask in a sci-fi setting.

The Story Mode, conversely, is said to include “more conversation options” and “less action”. No, no, no. The first two games have several difficulty settings – if I want a challenge, I choose a higher setting; if I want less story, I skip a few conversations – but the RPG elements remain. My argument is not against choice, or even against the player having finer control over their experience, but against mass market pandering that effectively takes things away from the main game – you know, the reason millions of gamers are waiting for March 2012. I want to experience Mass Effect 3 in its entirety – all the action, all the story, all the choices, in one mode. If RPG Mode promises that, I’ll be man enough to back down my argument. But if one mode will always contain less than the others then I’ll only become more vehement.

Maybe as a result of the Dragon Age 2 backlash Bioware are trying to please all the people all the time, which is admirable – except the existing fans are the important ones in this franchise; it’s simply not a series to join halfway through. Even the option to release number 2 onto the PS3 without the original is bewildering until you see how much money it made. If you’ve played the others and know what to expect you’re already champing. Otherwise, what are you buying it for anyway? The multiplayer? Unlikely.

At the end of the day, if you want a straight cover shooter with minimal story, you’ll go for Gears of War. If you want a deep RPG with less direct action, you could do worse than Dragon Age. If you want a highly-cinematic narrative with huge levels of choice and functional gunplay holding it all together – well, you used to go to Mass Effect. Now, I’m not so sure.

Even when out of bullets Shepard really knows how to bring the pain in Mass Effect 3, here's his 'invisible flaming sword' technique. Beats the flimsy elbows of past games anyday

So who do you agree with? Do you think appealing to the mass market is a necessary step for the future of Mass Effect or is this simply a waste of time better spent honing the spectacular series finale? We'd love to hear your thoughts below!

Words by James Bowden (Twitter - @Dalagonash) and Mick Fraser (Twitter - @Jedi_Beats_Tank)

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