mAsS efFEct’S rEVivAl rEMInDs uS iT’s tIMe tO aBOliSh tHE spACe pOliCe
1Today I react to Polygon's article called... “Mass Effect's revival reminds us it's time to abolish the space police”...
I'm going read with you the major parts I extracted from the article, and easily dismount them one by one – by the way, major spoilers alert!
Polygon's article: https://www.polygon.com/22436615/mass-effect-legendary-edition-police-ea-bioware-brooklyn-99
“The Legendary Edition is proof enough that there remains a lasting sense of goodwill toward the franchise, enough to invest the time and energy needed to update and re-release it.
But when most fans reminisce about what they truly love about the games, it’s the memorable relationships between the young, diverse cast of characters that they tend to bring up. Less warm recollection is spent on the jobs these characters hold, which exist (in various forms) in the military arms of the galaxy’s major political players. Whether it’s as Earth Alliance Military, Cerberus Commandos, or reinstated Alliance Navy Officers, Shepard and their crew are always some version of glorified space cops.”
First of all Sheperd is not at all a Police Officer, if he was he would have worked for C-SEC, the organization responsible for keeping quiet and security to the Citadel from outside and inside threats! Sheperd is a Spectre, which is a special agent endorsed by the Council to run operations in deep space for the safety of all Galactic civilizations! Sheperd's job is to save the galaxy from extinction, not to enforce order. The narrative of Mass Effect is driven by the Reapers, ancient machines that periodically wipe out advanced civilizations in the Milky Way, and ideally Sheperd brings all galactic species together to face them, and save everyone. Like, why isn't Polygon happy about such a diverse Galaxy being united? It's like Polygon didn't even play the game. Keep in mind that Shperd's behavior is in total control of the player, if you disagree with what you are asked to do in a quest, you always have the right dialogue options to make Sheperd behave as you please the most! And while I can agree that the most beloved part of the series is the relationship you have with the crew, you can't understate how much the Reapers are a major driving force for the player's enjoyment of the game! And even if I chose to be a jerk, which you clearly can: it's a role playing game, and choice is a big part of this type of experience. Video games are not supposed to carry the flag of your political beliefs...
“As a package, Mass Effect doesn’t immediately resemble modern American policing. Their crew is made up of aliens, robots, and humans of many different races and genders (though, it is worth noting, Black women are absent).” I'm pretty sure the Mass Effect's fan base is as much as diverse as the characters of the game, so I think Polygon implying that Black women are unable to enjoy Mass Effect, just because there isn't any character that represents them inside Sheperd's crew, is an insult to all the Mass Effect fans who also are Black women: it's not possible to represent every single area of the human spectrum in every video game, because each person is very unique and special! The only way to do that, would be to embrace stereotypes about each social group of people, which wouldn't do justice to anyone. Besides, Sheperd is a fully customizable human, so this solves Polygon's problem, and proves they didn't play the game enough!
It then reads: “How else would you describe the events of Mass Effect 2, in which Shepard comes back from the dead, now working for Cerberus — a violent pro-human organization labeled as terrorists by the Council — and is allowed to continue operating pretty much the same as before? And when they return to the fold in the third game, they’re never taken to task or made to account for their previous decisions. This is because Shepard’s power is a police power. It is a form of power that persistently manages to break through any parameters imposed on it.” You can choose. I didn't like being at work with Cerberus, in fact I questioned every single decision they made, from start to finish. But even if I didn't, it is a game! Video games are not meant to be a tool that solves world hunger or something, they are meant to be fun for the individual person that plays them. For what concerns Mass Effect 3's handling of Sheperd's behavior in Mass Effect 2, you need to remember that he or she's a hero that saved hundreds of thousands, and is the only one with the skills and intel to stop the Reapers.
#MassEffect #Polygon #Reaction
Intro 00:00
Reading and reactions 00:37
Proof that Polygon is wrong 07:25
Bye bye 08:50
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