Red, you need 4000EMS points and need to chose the Destroy option. That's the only way Shepard survives.
But if he lives doesn't that mean there are different endings? Ahhhhh. I'll just figure out myself :grin:
I've heard the first ME is a bit of a chore. If I skip number one and go straight to number two, how much will I miss out on?
It may be necessary if you want to get to 4,000 EMS. I did everything I could do, but due to some decisions in earlier games, I couldn't get my war assets over 8,000. Because I didn't play online, my galactic readiness stayed at 50% and my EMS stayed below 4,000. If I'd played online a little, I would've gotten over 4,000 easy.
I didn't play number 1 because I have it on the ps3. They do a good job of introducing the characters and the world and I don't feel like I missed out on much. You can also watch the mass effect 1 summary on youtube.
You can quickly gloss over it in a few days. The chores are the little meaningless assignments where you have to find certain minerals, signs of battles, and medallions scattered all over the galaxy. Besides, there are some pretty big decisions in the first one which carries over to the ME2 like if you let certain members of your companions live/die and killing the council (you'll understand when you play). I recommend you play through it quickly. It shouldn't take you long at all.
Yes, you have to play online for the 4000EMS, if you didn't perfect all choices in the three games. The 4000EMS Destroy ending defers in a few words and one additional sequence after the game, that's it. But still it is the only one that gives you an indication that Shepard survives.
Waking up in a pile of rubble is considered a sign of being fully indoctrinated. I remember reading that somewhere.
Waking up in the rubble means you successfully fought indoctrination in these guys opinions. You have your own mind again and wake up in London, everything about the God Child and Citadel was under indoctrination and you get to fight the Reapers now. It would explain why you don't breath with under 4000EMS and the other options, because there you are either tricked into wrong decisions or don't have enough power to fight the indoctrination. The problem with the Indoctrination theory is that they say they always wanted a bittersweet ending for the game, their scripts that were out for half a year said nothing about it and actually like how they did it. Read some Casey Hudson interviews, he states they wanted people to speculate.The coming DLC only brings "closure" and explanations, so I highly doubt that they fooled us and you were indoctrinated. I've come to the conclusion that they were pressured by EA or on drugs, rushing the end and screwin everything up.
Like I tell my friends, 95% of the game is awesome. Unfortunately the 5% that isn't is right at the end.
Gameplay-wise it completely destroys 1&2, it really is a shame how they screwed the ending. Otherwise that would've been one of my favourite games of the last decade.
