It's a minor thing...but (Mass Effect 3 spoilers below)
So I've been playing Mass Effect 3, and overall, enjoying it. It's epic, with gorgeous graphics and I've been surprised how much I've enjoyed the combat missions. In fact, I'd gotten through every mission without dying once-which for me, is astoundingly good!
Well, up to now. I've run into one mission that seemed just annoying and silly to me.
The set up is quite cool: In one of the pivotal battles, Shepard (the player/protagonist) and allies are trying to defeat a Reaper (a gigantic sentient spacecraft/synthetic lifeform/genocide machine) that has landed on a planet. The Reaper is far too humongous to beat with conventional weapons. My job as Shepard was to land with a team on the planet, get close to the reaper, and paint it with a targeting laser so the fleet in orbit could triangulate weaponry on its position and blow it to smithereens.
"Ah!" I said. "That's a neat idea, and quite different from other video game boss battles I've played!"
Unfortunately, the game did not provide a tutorial how to use the targeting laser. "No problem!" I thought. "If it works like real-life targeting lasers, I need to find a bit of cover, point the laser at the Reaper, and hold it steady until the fleet can lock on to it!"
WRONG. I sat there in puzzlement as I tried this tactic. Repeatedly. And every time, after a few seconds of my targeting laser doing nothing, the Reaper calmly turned toward me and blasted me into little Shepard bits.
Again. And again. And again.
By this time, I was baffled. If I moved, then it interrupted the targeting process. But if I didn't move, I died! How was I supposed to complete this mission?
I decided to go online. And here's what the Mass Effect Wiki said:
1. You have to START by not moving, and hold the targeting laser on the Reaper until the lock-on process starts. BUT...
2. Once the Reaper starts to fire at you, you need to STOP TARGETING AND RUN AWAY. Apparently, the wiki reassured me, your targeting process will be interrupted but still processing while you drop the laser and dodge. Lol, whut?
3. Only after the Reaper gets bored and stops shooting at you should you reposition yourself and then continue the targeting process, repeating several times until targeting is completed and the Reaper goes boom.
OK, fine. I followed these instructions and it worked...but seeing as the game gives you no hints in-mission the targeting laser game mechanics work this way (this is the only mission you use it in), how would someone figure this out without a hintbook?
Plus, I may be wrong, but the whole idea of dropping the laser, running away and resuming seems silly. Kind of like starting to boil an egg, turning off the oven, then starting over 15 minutes later. I'm pretty sure targeting lasers don't work that way in real-life.
Anyone else have thoughts on this who's played ME3?
(Overall, the game is still quite good. It was just this particular sequence I found extremely silly.)
Well, up to now. I've run into one mission that seemed just annoying and silly to me.
The set up is quite cool: In one of the pivotal battles, Shepard (the player/protagonist) and allies are trying to defeat a Reaper (a gigantic sentient spacecraft/synthetic lifeform/genocide machine) that has landed on a planet. The Reaper is far too humongous to beat with conventional weapons. My job as Shepard was to land with a team on the planet, get close to the reaper, and paint it with a targeting laser so the fleet in orbit could triangulate weaponry on its position and blow it to smithereens.
"Ah!" I said. "That's a neat idea, and quite different from other video game boss battles I've played!"
Unfortunately, the game did not provide a tutorial how to use the targeting laser. "No problem!" I thought. "If it works like real-life targeting lasers, I need to find a bit of cover, point the laser at the Reaper, and hold it steady until the fleet can lock on to it!"
WRONG. I sat there in puzzlement as I tried this tactic. Repeatedly. And every time, after a few seconds of my targeting laser doing nothing, the Reaper calmly turned toward me and blasted me into little Shepard bits.
Again. And again. And again.
By this time, I was baffled. If I moved, then it interrupted the targeting process. But if I didn't move, I died! How was I supposed to complete this mission?
I decided to go online. And here's what the Mass Effect Wiki said:
1. You have to START by not moving, and hold the targeting laser on the Reaper until the lock-on process starts. BUT...
2. Once the Reaper starts to fire at you, you need to STOP TARGETING AND RUN AWAY. Apparently, the wiki reassured me, your targeting process will be interrupted but still processing while you drop the laser and dodge. Lol, whut?
3. Only after the Reaper gets bored and stops shooting at you should you reposition yourself and then continue the targeting process, repeating several times until targeting is completed and the Reaper goes boom.
OK, fine. I followed these instructions and it worked...but seeing as the game gives you no hints in-mission the targeting laser game mechanics work this way (this is the only mission you use it in), how would someone figure this out without a hintbook?
Plus, I may be wrong, but the whole idea of dropping the laser, running away and resuming seems silly. Kind of like starting to boil an egg, turning off the oven, then starting over 15 minutes later. I'm pretty sure targeting lasers don't work that way in real-life.
Anyone else have thoughts on this who's played ME3?
(Overall, the game is still quite good. It was just this particular sequence I found extremely silly.)