Mass Effect 2 Discussion - Fight for the Lost

[quote name='Tony208']I think there's been so many failures because most of the stories of those games have been piss poor or mediocre ones that would only suffice in a video game. I have high hopes for Mass Effect because it has one of the best stores and dialogue ever written for a video game.[/QUOTE]I'm in agreement about the dialogue and story being top-notch. I don't expect such high standards to make it into the movie, unfortunately.
 
I love Street Fighter the movie, not even joking, it's quite funny with some decent action scenes and some nice nods to the game. Not a "good" film per se but entertaining as hell. I can quote Guile's lines all day. The Chun Li spinoff was a big disappointment though, just bad in a way that wasn't even fun.

A Mass Effect film is fine with me. Best case, video game fans get our Lord of the Rings-- the raw potential of the story and characters is undeniable. Worst case, I can forget it exists and just stick with the games.

Better at least get Seth Green to play Joker!
 
Well, I just rebought this game after trading it to GS for $56 (during that 50% bonus promo) right after I got my 1015/1015 out of it a few months back. I was going to wait for a Platinum Hits, all DLC-included, extravaganza but I just couldn't resist $19.69 (current used sale price - Edge - $10 coupon) + an additional future $10 coupon.

So, basically, I haven't played or even read about any DLC since the very early free stuff (Zaeed, some armor and stuff). What have I missed? I might fire it up and play my ME3 prep game (using my paragon Shep from ME1 - I screwed up and used my higher level Renegade one the first time - oh well...). I have cheap MS points to burn on the DLC for this so I might as well get it now. I barely use MS points for anything else any more...
 
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So they are going to make a movie based on a game that pays homage to sci-fi movies? This is one of the best games I have ever played so I would love to see a good movie made. The key word there is good. I don't see that happening. Hollywood will find some way to fuck this up. Hell I'm sure the guys that wrote the story for the game will have nothing to do with writing for the movie.
 
* For me, it's not a matter of "Will they get Tali's delicious curves correct?" or "Will they successfully convey the mood/emotions of the game onto the big screen?" or even the cast they choose to play in the movie. The idea of making a movie based off this game is just fundamentally flawed for me. The game centers around making individual decisions and dealing with the consequences/reaping the rewards.

I don't even have to go out on a limb to say that not one single person in this thread has the exact same Shepard as me. No one has the same feelings towards the various squadmates and NPCs in the ME universe, and no one has had the same experience as me. For game/movies like DOOM, Far Cry, etc. it's all the same thing - there's no degree of variation between the characters or the overall storyline.

No matter what they do with it, there's always going to be X % of the ME fanbase that's alienated by the movie. Choose a male Shepard: there goes the % of people that swear by femSheps. Make Shepard a Renegade: there goes the % of people who've always used Paragon Sheps. etc.

I wish that Hudson and the BioWare execs (w/e voice they have in this project) would point the movie in the direction of the books or some similar storyline that is 100% linear and has nothing to do with Commander Shepard's story. However, everything I have seen has included the words/phrase "Commander Shepard and his co-stars" in it - so I'm not very optimistic.

In my most humblest of opinions, we already have two Mass Effect movies with a third already lined up in the near future. They are called: Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2 (the pending one is Mass Effect 3). The games already have the dialog, action, cinematography, storyline, cast of characters, and star power of any average movie out there - why the need to go "to the big screen"?

* this is all based off of the idea that they are doing a movie that uses Shepard and crew. If the movie turns out to be some side story that falls in line with the ME universe, then that calls for an entirely different argument.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']
No matter what they do with it, there's always going to be X % of the ME fanbase that's alienated by the movie. Choose a male Shepard: there goes the % of people that swear by femSheps. Make Shepard a Renegade: there goes the % of people who've always used Paragon Sheps. etc.
[/QUOTE]

Man, you guys are all a bunch of pessimists. You'd think that the movie was greenlit and Uwe Boll was put in as director with Megan Fox playing female Shepard.

Getting more Mass Effect is always a good thing. Give the movie a chance before you dismiss it. At the very least, it'll be a positive influence in getting the Mass Effect brand out there to more people. Trust me, that's a good thing for us fans. Look at Iron Man, for instance. How many people really knew the character before the movies? Now, everybody knows about Iron Man. He's in the public conscious. As a fan, I think that's awesome.

And I just don't know why the personal decision aspect of Mass Effect is going to make the movie bad. Movies have never had the ability to "make it your own." You just sit and watch the show. I know they'll make it male Shepard with the standard face and Paragon decisions. That doesn't bother me one bit. I know they'll take creative licenses with the material, but that's okay too.

In short, I don't think we need to be negative about the movie at this incredibly early stage of the process.
 
I know this is a pipe dream, but the best way I could see them handling a Mass Effect movie would be to make a movie set in the mass effect universe, but not about shephard. Perhaps the movie could focus on another crew member/members that the player has less say in. Maybe it could be a prequel to ME1 or an in-between to ME1 and 2. Maybe it would even focus on a character that's completely new. Maybe it could be about the Shadow Broker.

There are a ton of things they could do with this.. the Mass Effect universe is so deep... but of course they'll probably just make a cheesy action flick and go out of their way to hit on every single thing in the game thinking they are doing fan service.

This opinion comes from someone who's absolute favorite star wars novels were the (original 4) X-Wing books, which had nothing to do with any main character in a Star Wars movie(except for maybe a brief cameo here and there)
 
What it comes down to is how much the makers respect the material. Do I think a ME movie needs to happen? Not at all. The game is already movie-like enough, so you've either got to adhere to it strictly (which seems a little pointless), or deviate (and piss off the people that love the game). I have to agree with whoever posted that this movie needs to NOT be about Shepard.

Game movies have always been bad (though I, as well, kinda enjoy Street Fighter, as hokey as it is), but Resident Evil finally made me give up. Not using the storyline is one thing, but that was one of the first times where a game that had an actual plot and universe set-up was just completely changed and pillaged, with no regard for the base material. I still get angry about that, and it's why I'm afraid of any Mass Effect movie.

That, and thinking about the default Shepard (represent, yo) and cringing at the idea of 'This Fall, Channing Tatum is... Commander Shepard!'. Argh.
 
I envision we'll get another Wing Commander movie.


The only way it WON'T suck is if they don't even follow the story of the movies. They just need to make a movie in the same universe; there are tons of stories to be told in the Mass Effect universe. But that is highly unlikely.


Edit: Just saw smoger basically said the same thing.
 
shrudder.... Final Fantasy..... Street Fighter..... Wing Commander.... Super Mario..... gosh its amazing on how many video game movies just did so bad....

Its sad that Tomb raider was the one of the few that was successful.... of course that had little to do with the story line...
 
A movie is a terrible choice. I'd rather take a straight to DVD animated or 3D either series or special of some sorts like the Halo DVD that was released recently.

As for the game. I've beaten it numerous times, but I recently started an adept (from ME1) because I wanted to use Kasumi cause she's so freakin' hot and awesome. I will probably wait for overlord before I play anymore of that game. Tony Stark Shepard to the rescue!
 
Mass Effect is also a game with a rich backstory. The codex entries tell about other races finding Prothean artifacts, the Galactic Counsel, Rachni Wars, etc etc. How does a film handle the exposition?

I'm guessing a simple prologue via LOTR, which really nerfs all the information. You could try to tell an early humanity story (Shanxi anyone?) and see Hollywood jam in Shepard there instead of Grissom and Anderson. That's assuming they "need" to use Shepard....which they probably would since they try to appeal to the general masses who may not recognize or care about other characters.

I'm not expecting much. And really, it brings in more people (which is cool)....just as long as it stays away for the core Mass Effect we all love so much. Rather not see people posting in here about how awesome it was to see Shepard win the Rachni Wars.
 
I've always thought that the only way a Mass Effect movie would work, is with a triple A director with a huge huge budget (say Avatar huge). Or a JJ Abrams type of Star Trek, where it is epic, well acted and fun. You really can't go low budget and small when it comes to a Mass Effect movie, the game is huge with huge venues and detailed creatures.

This game is as big as Star Wars (in game form) and cannot be treated like a summer popcorn flick like other game movies. That sort of style works for say Prince of Persia, but it WONT work for this game.
 
[quote name='BingoBrown']Man, you guys are all a bunch of pessimists. You'd think that the movie was greenlit and Uwe Boll was put in as director with Megan Fox playing female Shepard.

Getting more Mass Effect is always a good thing. Give the movie a chance before you dismiss it. At the very least, it'll be a positive influence in getting the Mass Effect brand out there to more people. Trust me, that's a good thing for us fans. Look at Iron Man, for instance. How many people really knew the character before the movies? Now, everybody knows about Iron Man. He's in the public conscious. As a fan, I think that's awesome.

And I just don't know why the personal decision aspect of Mass Effect is going to make the movie bad. Movies have never had the ability to "make it your own." You just sit and watch the show. I know they'll make it male Shepard with the standard face and Paragon decisions. That doesn't bother me one bit. I know they'll take creative licenses with the material, but that's okay too.

In short, I don't think we need to be negative about the movie at this incredibly early stage of the process.[/QUOTE]
Comparing Iron Man to Mass Effect just isn't a fair comparison, though. Iron Man has always been Tony Stark. There's never been any question whether he's male or female, a hero or a villain, whether he's Tony or John, whether he has long hair or a nice goatee, whether he prefers yellow/red armor or black/blue or orange/white, whether he was raised on Earth or from port to port throughout space, etc. All that is just the main character, which would be Shepard.

I personally think that the movie just won't be a believable or accurate representation of the game in the eyes of a majority of the people watching it - because everyone has their own unique idea of who Shepard is. Sure, they could keep him in a mask the entire movie, but then that ruins all the dialog he's in - which is the backbone of the entire game.

I'm not saying the movie can't be entertaining; I'm just saying that a movie based off Shepard's story can't be true to the game - there's just too much variation amongst all the players for there to be some consensus about who Shepard is. If you can't stay true to the game, then what's the point of making a movie? Their vision would be better suited towards something that has a set storyline and follows a linear path, like the books.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']Comparing Iron Man to Mass Effect just isn't a fair comparison, though. Iron Man has always been Tony Stark. There's never been any question whether he's male or female, a hero or a villain, whether he's Tony or John, whether he has long hair or a nice goatee, whether he prefers yellow/red armor or black/blue or orange/white, whether he was raised on Earth or from port to port throughout space, etc. All that is just the main character, which would be Shepard.

I personally think that the movie just won't be a believable or accurate representation of the game in the eyes of a majority of the people watching it - because everyone has their own unique idea of who Shepard is. Sure, they could keep him in a mask the entire movie, but then that ruins all the dialog he's in - which is the backbone of the entire game.

I'm not saying the movie can't be entertaining; I'm just saying that a movie based off Shepard's story can't be true to the game - there's just too much variation amongst all the players for there to be some consensus about who Shepard is. If you can't stay true to the game, then what's the point of making a movie? Their vision would be better suited towards something that has a set storyline and follows a linear path, like the books.[/QUOTE]

I don't think any of that matters though. Sure, it matters (to some extent) in the game, but movies are a different kind of animal, and people know that going in. If any Mass Effect fan gets upset that it isn't "his" Shepard up there on the silver screen, then that's his fault. Movies don't work like that, nor do they need to.

And in reality, there is more similarities in adapting Iron Man to the big screen than you think. Think of all the different stories that were told about Iron Man over the years. Think of all the different suits of armor. Think of the fact that Jarvis was actually his butler in the comics, but was turned into his on-board Artificial Intelligence for the movies. Things were changed. It wasn't the same vision of Iron Man that people had seen through the years. It was Jon Favreau's interpretation, and it worked. Furthermore, it didn't ruin the character or his story, but rather made it accessible to a huge audience.

The only people that get really worked up over this stuff are the fanboys that don't want "their" property changed. If you give it a chance, you might like how it turns out. Sure, mistakes may be made with the Mass Effect movie, and it may turn out to be a total dud. Or, it could turn out to be a massive hit that spawns legions of new fans and gives us more of what we love. But you have to give it a chance first. At this stage of the movie, there's no reason to be pessimistic.

Ultimately, we know that Bioware is a fantastic storyteller. I'm hopeful that they've retained some creative control over the movie, which will result in a great film that we can all love.
 
Yeah, I can't see the movie being good.

Video game movies generally suck. As do most movies based on licensed material. You get some good movies based on books, some on comics (but plenty of terrible ones for every good one) etc. But I've never seen a video game based movie worth a damn.

Plus, the big appeal of Mass Effect is that the story isn't 100% linear--you play a role in shaping the details of the outcome. Without that, the story is really nothing super fantastic IMO--pretty typical sci fi space war story.

Point being it would be hard to make the movie anything other than a decent, generic sci fi/fantasy movie IMO. It could turn out ok, but I don't see it being a masterpiece even with a big budget and good director etc.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']I personally think that the movie just won't be a believable or accurate representation of the game in the eyes of a majority of the people watching it - because everyone has their own unique idea of who Shepard is.[/QUOTE]
All movies based on something else deal with that problem to some degree. Everyone who read Lord of the Rings has their own vision of what the Shire is like, what Gandalf's voice sounds like, whether a Balrog has wings, etc. A movie doesn't have to (and shouldn't try to) please everyone, it just has to present the writer/director's vision of the story in a compelling way.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']All movies based on something else deal with that problem to some degree. Everyone who read Lord of the Rings has their own vision of what the Shire is like, what Gandalf's voice sounds like, whether a Balrog has wings, etc. A movie doesn't have to (and shouldn't try to) please everyone, it just has to present the writer/director's vision of the story in a compelling way.[/QUOTE]

Kind of. But here everyone was going off Tolkien's vision--both fans of the book and the director telling the story. The source material is the same to everyone.

This would be a bit different since Shepard can be male or female, a saintly do gooder or an out for themselves renegade or somewhere in between since the player has control over all of that.

My guess if they do it is they go default male shephard and go the do gooder/paragon route to have the pure hero.
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']This would be a bit different since Shepard can be male or female, a saintly do gooder or an out for themselves renegade or somewhere in between since the player has control over all of that.[/QUOTE]
Well maybe that can work to the movie's benefit. With LOTR you have people saying things like, "How dare they make Arwen rescue Frodo instead of Glorfindel, that is factually inaccurate, blah blah." In a Mass Effect movie you can't really complain that "the real Shepard" never would have spared the rachni queen, or abandoned the council, or had sex with Liara, or whatever, because there is no single official canon, only various possibilities.
 
[quote name='BingoBrown']I don't think any of that matters though.[/QUOTE]Shepard's identity and the decisions he makes (along with the consequences he faces for making said decisions) are the most important things in Mass Effect, and the only things separating it from any other sci-fi tale.

You can change Ashley's looks, the armor that Tali wears, the color of Liara's skin, Garrus' voice, etc. for a game/movie and still have it be Mass Effect. What you cannot take out of anything involving Mass Effect is the decision-making and the weight of the decisions' consequences.

What need is there for a 2-3 hour look at someone else's interpretations of Shepard and crew? The games are as well done (or better) as any average movie and they last for 30+ hours.

Watching a Mass Effect movie takes away from the personalization that you feel as you create, play, and learn as Shepard. You're not making the decisions on the big screen and you're not facing the consequences of it - someone else is. You're not having a massive effect on the galaxy around you in a movie, someone else is. The spirit of Mass Effect is characterized by molding Shepard into what your idea of a hero is. Without that portion of customization and personalization, the game/movie is soulless.

Movie about Commander Shepard and crew =/= Mass Effect.

[quote name='Ryuukishi']All movies based on something else deal with that problem to some degree. Everyone who read Lord of the Rings has their own vision of what the Shire is like, what Gandalf's voice sounds like, whether a Balrog has wings, etc. A movie doesn't have to (and shouldn't try to) please everyone, it just has to present the writer/director's vision of the story in a compelling way.[/QUOTE]Lord of the Rings is not a good example.

Our first look at the Citadel, Virmire, Ilos, etc. all came from seeing them - not reading about them and forming our own mental image of it. There's no debating amongst fans of what Omega, Illium, or Freedom's Progress looks like because it's right there in the game.

The voices for Shepard, Ashley, Liara, etc. are also undeniable - as we've spent countless hours in dialog with them.

The only things left for debate are "What did the Quarians look like before bring driven out by the Geth?" and "Did the Protheans really look like the statues seen throughout the game?" and so on. Those are the areas where a director can come in and say "This is what I think" and give some compelling look at these various things - and they don't have anything to do with Shepard and crew.
 
Hmm do you think the DVD/Bluray would have alternate endings?;)

I do agree the biggest thing that makes Mass Effect what it is is the choices you make and the consequences of doing so.
 
[quote name='DarkNessBear']Come on.. I guarantee none of the characters in ME1 or 2 will be in the movie including shepard.[/QUOTE]Pretty much all of the articles talking about this have mentioned the movie involving Shepard and crew.

Like this:
[quote name='Kotaku article']According to The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision Blog, Legendary has set events in motion that may ultimately bring Commander Shepard and his merry Mass Effect co-stars to the silver screen. Screenwriter Mark Protosevich, whose credits include The Cell, I Am Legend and Thor, is "in talks" to adapt the game.[/quote]
 
Eh, to be honest I don't think the decisions are that big of a deal. If you've played through both games on multiple play-throughs making decisions both ways (and I think most of us have) there really isn't too much of a difference between the results. Sure Shepard's attitude towards things like the council can be worlds different but no matter what you did you still ended up defeating Sovereign.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']
Watching a Mass Effect movie takes away from the personalization that you feel as you create, play, and learn as Shepard. You're not making the decisions on the big screen and you're not facing the consequences of it - someone else is. You're not having a massive effect on the galaxy around you in a movie, someone else is. The spirit of Mass Effect is characterized by molding Shepard into what your idea of a hero is. Without that portion of customization and personalization, the game/movie is soulless.

Movie about Commander Shepard and crew =/= Mass Effect.
[/QUOTE]

It seems like your critique is more on film in general. No, it doesn't engage the viewer/player in the same manner. But it can still be a good film. Would you critique Star Wars negatively because you can't experience it as if it were a game?

If your point is that interactive video games are not the same thing as movies, then I agree with you. There's no debating that. However, we don't need to experience a Mass Effect movie in the same way as we do the video game.

Ultimately there seems to be a big hang-up over the fact that Mass Effect the game has these massive choices that we all make differently. I disagree. If you were to boil down the plot of Mass Effect 1 to a 2 hour movie, you'd lose a vast majority of those decisions. Ultimately you'd still be Shepard, chasing Saren and the Geth, unraveling this mystery, and attempting to save the day in the end. Do you think the Rachni subplot would even be involved? Or the colonists on Feros? Probably not, there's just not enough time to set it all up in one movie.

So ultimately, you're worried about some relatively minor choices that are made in game, that don't really effect the outcome of the plot and wouldn't even be given time on screen. In my opinion, losing the ability to choose Shepard's decisions wouldn't have any relevance on the movie.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']Pretty much all of the articles talking about this have mentioned the movie involving Shepard and crew.[/QUOTE]

That was taken from Kotaku, and the article they linked to as their source never even mentioned Shep. That was either something off the cuff or pure speculation on their part.

Really though, I cannot see how they could use Shep. Shep is more of a framework for a character rather than a character itself. As a character, he's little more than a random Space Marine who finds out another official has gone rogue and has to rein him in. It's the player that makes Shep what people grew to like.
 
[quote name='DarkNessBear']Come on.. I guarantee none of the characters in ME1 or 2 will be in the movie including shepard.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, that's my guess.

Or at best side characters will be the focus like in the (mostly lame) books.
 
[quote name='Filbert']Eh, to be honest I don't think the decisions are that big of a deal. If you've played through both games on multiple play-throughs making decisions both ways (and I think most of us have) there really isn't too much of a difference between the results. Sure Shepard's attitude towards things like the council can be worlds different but no matter what you did you still ended up defeating Sovereign.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, that's one gripe I have with the series--the decisions just don't have monumental outcomes.

The main plot endings are the same either way. Just a consequence of wanting to have decisions carry over to future games--they can't have big impacts on the plot or you can't tell a coherent story across multiple games.

So they're limited to minor plot points (whether the council is alive or not etc.) and side quest stuff not related to the main plot.

But maybe ME3 will change that and decisions on who lived and who died etc. will have a bigger impact since it's the end of the trilogy and probably unlikely that ME3 would be imported into any future ME game.

ME4 would presumably be no characters (or at least a very different threat to them) and probably be on the next gen xbox, which would make importing moot unless there's an easy way to upload 360 saves to it somehow.
 
[quote name='Filbert']Eh, to be honest I don't think the decisions are that big of a deal.[/QUOTE]

[quote name='BingoBrown']So ultimately, you're worried about some relatively minor choices that are made in game, that don't really effect the outcome of the plot.[/QUOTE]

[quote name='dmaul1114']the decisions just don't have monumental outcomes.[/QUOTE]

headexplodes.png


[Sarcastic] Where did you guys get early copies of Mass Effect 3, and how many times have you beaten the game with characters that have all made different decisions to reach this conclusion that "decisions do not effect the outcome of the plot"?

[Factual] The outcome has not been revealed to us yet. Not one person in here knows how their decisions will affect the ending of the story (Mass Effect 3). What you guys are talking about is effectively "What I did in Chapter 1 didn't have some huge, overwhelming impact on the end of Chapter 1 or the beginning of Chapter 2."


[quote name='BingoBrown']Would you critique Star Wars negatively because you can't experience it as if it were a game?[/QUOTE]Just like with the LotR example above, it's not a fair comparison. Star Wars's main story arc (the ones in the movies, at least) is a straight line. Mass Effect's story arc is a spider web - there's no canon beginning, and there's not one specific end.

If your point is that interactive video games are not the same thing as movies, then I agree with you. There's no debating that. However, we don't need to experience a Mass Effect movie in the same way as we do the video game.
Click to expand...
What's the point of experiencing Mass Effect in a linear, impersonal way?

Ultimately there seems to be a big hang-up over the fact that Mass Effect the game has these massive choices that we all make differently. I disagree. If you were to boil down the plot of Mass Effect 1 to a 2 hour movie, you'd lose a vast majority of those decisions.
Click to expand...
What is gained by reducing this huge, brilliant story down into a two hour cliff notes version?

Ultimately you'd still be Shepard, chasing Saren and the Geth, unraveling this mystery, and attempting to save the day in the end. Do you think the Rachni subplot would even be involved? Or the colonists on Feros? Probably not, there's just not enough time to set it all up in one movie.
Click to expand...
Once again, what's the point of skipping out on major parts of the story? You're missing out on some of the best parts of the game, for...what? More combat scenes? More scenes of Shepard nailing aliens? Story and dialog should be the focus of any form of Mass Effect, and by removing things like Feros, Noveria, etc. you're taking out crucial portions of the story and the dialog.

----------------

What can a two or three hour film based on the events of the games do for Mass Effect that the games and books and comics cannot do? What is gained from making this movie that would otherwise be unattainable with the current forms of Mass Effect media?
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']
[Sarcastic] Where did you guys get early copies of Mass Effect 3, and how many times have you beaten the game with characters that have all made different decisions to reach this conclusion that "decisions do not effect the outcome of the plot"?

[Factual] The outcome has not been revealed to us yet. Not one person in here knows how their decisions will affect the ending of the story (Mass Effect 3). What you guys are talking about is effectively "What I did in Chapter 1 didn't have some huge, overwhelming impact on the end of Chapter 1 or the beginning of Chapter 2."
[/quote]


Hey now. I said very clearly in the part of my post that you didn't quote that Mass Effect 3 may prove me wrong.

Otherwise, the decisions from Mass Effect 1 and 2 didn't have a big impact on plot thus far.

No quests lost in ME2 by killing a character in ME1 for instance. No difference whether council is alive or dead. It's just some differences in dialogue etc. It made no difference in ME2 whether it was Wrex or the random new guy leading Clan Urdnot for instance. So the decisions really haven't had much impact....

.....YET. ME3 could prove all that wrong. And I hope it does, or else all the decision making is just a gimmick that has little point in the end. Like all the island mystery that had little point in Lost since they tossed it all aside by the finale!

Personally I don't care that much. I play for the game play--exploring, combat, the dialogue trees, etc. The story is good for a videogame, nothing more than that to me and not a main draw for me to the series. Doesn't compare to stories in my favorite movies, books etc. Especially ME2 which was pretty thin on plot IMO--especially compared to ME1--as it was just a bridge game centered around gathering a new team.

But I'm also not the huge fan you are. I played ME1 once, played ME2 twice including all the DLC thus far, only play on easy etc. so I don't take it nearly as seriously as you do.

[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']
What can a two or three hour film based on the events of the games do for Mass Effect that the games and books and comics cannot do? What is gained from making this movie that would otherwise be unattainable with the current forms of Mass Effect media?[/QUOTE]

$$$$ for the license owners.

I expect the movie to be as useless for really adding to the experience as the two novels (haven't read the comics).
 
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At the end of the day it all boils down to money. Dollar bills.

Do the producers, directors, cast, crew and what not really give a shit about the different choices and multiple outcomes throughout the game? Hell no they don't. They want to make a good movie and totally bank off of it.

I totally agree that the decisions and outcomes and everyone's different interpretation of Shepard is what makes the game really amazing, but honestly the film companies and individuals involved in the movie really don't give a shit as long as they make money.

I totally disagree with the movie just as much as I disagree with the Wold of Warcraft movie. There is just simply too much lore to put in ANY movie no matter the length.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']
What can a two or three hour film based on the events of the games do for Mass Effect that the games and books and comics cannot do? What is gained from making this movie that would otherwise be unattainable with the current forms of Mass Effect media?[/QUOTE]

Books, comics, and video games are not the same as movies. They do not provide the same experience.

I guess you could ask why make the LotR films, because there are books of them. Why make Iron Man, because there's comics of it. Yet those are different experiences, no question. Same thing with 30+ hour Mass Effect game versus 2 hour Mass Effect movie. A totally different experience.

The issue isn't why make a movie. The issue is the reaction of making a Mass Effect movie. If you don't want a movie made, then don't watch it, but don't be too negative on it without knowing more. I think it's a good idea to make a Mass Effect movie, if done right.

I just get the feeling that everyone spouting how a movie is terrible for Mass Effect, and is the wrong move for the franchise, and isn't needed are going to be the same people who are first in line when the movie opens. Of course, only time will tell on that prediction.
 
[quote name='BingoBrown']Books, comics, and video games are not the same as movies. They do not provide the same experience.

I guess you could ask why make the LotR films, because there are books of them. Why make Iron Man, because there's comics of it. Yet those are different experiences, no question. Same thing with 30+ hour Mass Effect game versus 2 hour Mass Effect movie. A totally different experience.[/QUOTE]Lord of the Rings books --> Lord of the Rings movies

-and-

Iron Man comics --> Iron Man movies

=/=

Mass Effect games --> Mass Effect movie(s)

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Making a film adaptation of a book, comic, or graphic novel is much different than what's going on here. None of the things that have been mentioned (LotR, Iron Man) have come in comics or books that say "Build Your Own Adventure!". The stories for those two things were written and finished a long time ago and do not involve anywhere near the amount of subjectivity that Mass Effect does.

Making a two hour film adaptation of a thirty - forty hour cinematic video game that's already blurring the line between movie and game doesn't make sense. The movie (again, if based on Shepard's story) cannot out-do the game, nor can it even come close to representing the spirit of the game. All the life gets sucked out of the Mass Effect name just to be plastered on a bigger screen for 1/15th the time it would take to complete the game. The story suffers, the dialog suffers, the relationship between the characters suffers and you are left with sci-fi action 3D IMAX high-def battle scenes with the Mass Effect name tacked onto it.
 
I just don't see why you care so much.

If don't like the idea, just don't see the movie. I doubt I will unless it gets stellar reviews, which is highly unlikely.

The movie won't have any impact on the game. The crappy resident evil movies didn't tarnish the video games or anything.

Everyone pretty much agrees that it will likely suck like all video game movies and just be a quick attempt to cash in on the license and just end up a cheezy sci fi flick.

Most of us will just not read about it, watch it, or think about it any more and just wait for more ME2 DLC and ME3 to come out!
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']I just don't see why you care so much.

If don't like the idea, just don't see the movie. I doubt I will unless it gets stellar reviews, which is highly unlikely.

The movie won't have any impact on the game. The crappy resident evil movies didn't tarnish the video games or anything.[/QUOTE]

Agreed. To me, a great example is Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. I've been a big Indiana Jones fan since I was a kid. I was eager to get another Indiana Jones movie when Kingdom of the Crystal Skull came out. Unfortunately, it sucked. It doesn't tarnish the good reputation of the original trilogy, though.

Furthermore, there was a side benefit to the movie. While it wasn't as good as previous installments, it did bring Indiana Jones back into the public conscious. This meant vast licensing opportunities that would never have happened without KotCS. Action figures, novels, comics, and many other great licensed items were released. At the very least, even if the Mass Effect movie isn't very good, we should hopefully get some other forms of good media released because of the movie.

Ideally though, the movie will be great and we'll get additional good media. Either way, I don't see this as being bad for the franchise.
 
[quote name='yukine']Damn straight, I want my Mass Effect kids meal toys.[/QUOTE]

"Tali vas Normandy quarantined kids meal box" - she'll come in a double bag sealed twice and hand sanitizer.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']Pretty much all of the articles talking about this have mentioned the movie involving Shepard and crew.

Like this:[/QUOTE]
Yes I know that, but the script is not even written/finished. They go through sooo many drafts. And like dmaul said, not even the books focus on the story of Shepard. It wont happen.
 
[quote name='GhostShark']At the end of the day it all boils down to money. Dollar bills.

Do the producers, directors, cast, crew and what not really give a shit about the different choices and multiple outcomes throughout the game? Hell no they don't. They want to make a good movie and totally bank off of it.

I totally agree that the decisions and outcomes and everyone's different interpretation of Shepard is what makes the game really amazing, but honestly the film companies and individuals involved in the movie really don't give a shit as long as they make money.

I totally disagree with the movie just as much as I disagree with the Wold of Warcraft movie. There is just simply too much lore to put in ANY movie no matter the length.[/QUOTE]

Now who are the people they plan to appeal to with making a Mass Effect movie? Pretty much the fan base is going to be the people that played the game(most likely the people that played it more then once)

If that your fan base, you better make them happy and it seems pretty hard to make us happy considering how much we know on the story so far. To keep the story straight without major conflicts but also not overlapping what we already know is a very broad line.

Unless they plan to go after a crowd that hasn't really played the game(sorta the route RE went and Tomb raider as well)

I don't see how it can really become a decent success.
 
The people who played the game aren't a huge number in terms of movie box office. Let's say there are 5 million people who've played the games (just guessing could be higher or lower). At say $10 average ticket that's only $50 million dollars, which probably wouldn't break even for a scifi movie that would need a budget bigger than that with all the required special effects etc.

Their goal will be to make a sci fi movie that can appeal to a bigger audience than that. So yeah, they'll be going the Tomb Raider etc. route and just trying to make a decent sci fi movie--and most importantly have a lot of flashy effects to put in the trailer to get people who have no idea it's based on a game to go see it.
 
Should we start listing out the dialogue we know they need to put into the movie?

* I should go.
* You have a message at your private terminal.
* Can it wait for a bit? I'm in the middle of some calibrations.
 
[quote name='shrike4242']Should we start listing out the dialogue we know they need to put into the movie?[/QUOTE]

For the sequel: "I'm Commander Shepard, and this is my favorite store on the Citadel."
 
To end my part in the debate (since it really doesn't belong here, anyways):

Any attempt to bring Mass Effect 1 and/or Mass Effect 2 to the big screen is flat out wrong. In a universe that has been created to rival the likes of Star Wars it makes no sense to waste time and resources trying to capture the essence of these two games (because it's impossible for a movie to do so), when there's a whole wealth of other storylines that can be brought to life in the form of a movie. The Rachni Wars, the Krogan Rebellions, the release of the genophage, the Battle of Shanxi (First Contact War), the events of Mass Effect: Revelation, and the events of Mass Effect: Ascension are all good examples of potential plots for a movie that could be made.

I really wish that the BioWare executive producers would focus on fanservice and I hope they get their voices heard by the director and other producers of the film. The Mass Effect series does not need a film based off the existing games in order to generate revenue and get more licensed products, that can happen with the release of a movie based off of any of the storylines that I mentioned. I'm sure that a well made movie based off of a plot other than ME1 and ME2 could also spark interest in audience members who see the movie and want to know more about the ME universe. I can't see a shitty, two-hour rendition of ME1 generating enough interest for newcomers to say "You know, maybe I need to go pick up this Mass Effect game, now."

Unfortunately, I feel like all signs point to the project heading towards this adaptation of ME1. Seeing things like Kotaku mention "Commander Shepard and crew" and the Mass Effect 2 site saying "You can read more about the movie and discuss who you want to be Commander Shepard on the Mass Effect forums" are not solid evidence to support this feeling, but it's definitely not a good sign to me either. Plus, there's just a general feeling of pessimism over the fact that no studio will know how to handle a monster of a story such as the one we've witnessed across ME1 and ME2 and be able to trim it down into 2-3 hours, without sacrificing quality.

The highest end of the spectrum for me (or, the best that this movie could do) would be to reach the level of the XMen movies from recent years. The movies themselves were fairly entertaining, with cool fight scenes and nice visuals, but if you knew any of the lore behind XMen you left the movies feeling pretty raw and disgusted because of what they did with most of the characters. That's about the best I can say for a project like this, at least for myself. Even if it did reach that level, that would not mean "success" in my eyes by a long shot. A film adaptation of Mass Effect deserves to be as good as the Star Wars movies, nothing less. The low end of the spectrum, of course, is the movie being compared to Tomb Raider, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Resident Evil, and any video game movie out there.

I full well know that, regardless of the movie's success/failure, the games' sales won't be hurt because of it. The only thing I honestly care about is the quality of the DLC being pumped out for ME2 and the perfection of ME3. I'd prefer not to have to read about some shitty adaptation of ME1 or ME2, which I consider my babies, but it won't ruin my life or cause me to hate BioWare or Legendary Pictures by any means. I understand the business side to all of this, but my arguments have been in the spirit of turning this project into something for the fans - not something for the movie-going population.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']
The only thing I honestly care about is the quality of the DLC being pumped out for ME2 and the perfection of ME3.
[/quote]

It's not like the people making the DLC and ME3 would be in anyway involved with the movies vs. maybe meeting with the movie producers to talk about plot and characters a couple of times--if even that.

So there should be no impact on that stuff regardless of whether they do movies or more books and comics etc. as that's all separate from the game development team.



I'd prefer not to have to read about some shitty adaptation of ME1 or ME2, which I consider my babies, but it won't ruin my life or cause me to hate BioWare or Legendary Pictures by any means.
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Then don't waste time reading about it! I'd take a step back as well, from the "babies" comment you come across as one of those obsessed fans who think the content creators owe them some stake in the franchise as they've spent so much time following it.

I'd suggest taking a step back and just focus on the games and other parts of the franchise you enjoy, and not worry about the rest of it. A crappy movie (or a great movie) will have no impact on the game franchise, just like the Resident Evil movies had no impact on that series etc. Just totally seperate entities.
 
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