The Good:
Once again, the voice acting is superb. Of course, Jennifer Hale as FemShep was outstanding, but the other voice actors were also excellent. Even the background characters sounded real and fleshed out- something that is a rarity in most video games. I only played as a female Shepard, so I have no clue how the voice acting for male Shepard was. The only character whose voice acting I could not stand was the war reporter, Diana Allers (voiced by Jessica Chobot). It was very clear, especially in comparison to the other characters, that Jessica Chobot is not an actress. Her lines were stilted and not very convincing.

The characters themselves are also a high point. Old friends and enemies show up in various ways, and getting to talk to them (even briefly) made me very happy. The people who have been interacting with since Mass Effect 1, Kaiden, Ashley, Joker Wrex, Garrus, Tali, and Liara have grown and developed in a way that is realistic. Even the squadmate you did not save (in my case, Kaiden) is mentioned numerous times, making your relationships seem much more real. A few new characters appear, such as James Vega. At first I didn’t know what to think about him, but in the end I really enjoyed talking to him. He is pretty damn hilarious, and his conversations with other crew members on the Normandy were a high point. One of the best parts was hearing the characters interact with one another. As I ran from one part of the Normandy to another, I would walk in on shipmates talking with each other. Liara would be talking to Garrus, Joker and Edi would be mid conversation, etc. Stopping to listen to these conversations was fun and enlightening.

Shep is back and she's as badass as ever (or 'he' if you prefer).

The story itself was also great. You start off with Earth being attacked by the Reapers, and it just goes non-stop from there. It is up to you, as Commander Shepard, to reunite the races for the upcoming war. This is not an easy task, and centuries of mistrust and bad blood run through all of the races. Supporting the Krogan to help cure the genophage will result in the losing the support of the Salarians. The Quarian and Geth conflict also comes to a head. It is possible to get almost all of the factions on your side, but you have to play an almost perfect game.

The Average:
The combat system has improved even more from Mass Effect 2, but compared to most shooters it’s still average. There is a new cover system that is good in theory, but doesn’t always work in practice. Many times I found myself running to a point, only to suddenly find myself in cover, facing the wrong way and getting shot at. This was frustrating and made what could have been a really good combat system hard to work with at times. The best improvement was allowing all classes to carry any weapon they want. This is balanced out with a weight system- the heavier the weapons, the longer it takes your powers to cool down. I played as an infiltrator, and after I got an awesome sniper rifle, I only carried that. As a result of having only one weapon, my powers cooled down within seconds, allowing me to use them more often.

Bioware took the complaints of Mass Effect 2 leveling up system to heart and tweaked it for the third game. It has much more of an RPG feel to it, similar to the first game, without all the issues. You have many more choices when leveling up powers, and modifying your weapons is satisfying and shows actual changes. You still don’t have the depth that was available in Mass Effect 1, but I think Bioware found a good balance between RPG and Third Person Shooter.

Multiplayer is something that was added for the third game. It directly affects the single player game by helping your “galactic readiness.” You and three people can choose between the 6 classes and various races and have to hold off ten waves of either geth, reapers, or Cerberus troops and survive. Sprinkled in the 10 waves are different objectives, so you aren’t able to just camp out and shoot people. I played both with random people and with friends, and it is much more satisfying with friends. This is a game you need to communicate with your teammates, and it’s much easier to do that with friends. Plus, who hasn’t wanted to play as a Krogan?

Go ahead punk make my day

Kinect voice commands were also added to Mass Effect 3. I do not have a Kinect, so I was not able to test it myself, but I had a friend (and fellow Mass Effect junkie) test it out for me and give me her results. She said it took a while to get used to using it in combat, but once she got the hang of it she loved yelling out commands during battles and seeing squadmates react. She enjoyed it the most during conversations. She was able to put down the controller and get into the scene, and just speak the prompts and watch her Shepard react. Other people have told me they have trouble with the Kinect system, and there is not guide on what commands to use, so a lot of it is a guessing game on what you should exactly be yelling.

The Bad:
The scanning system is back. No, you aren’t scanning for minerals like in Mass Effect 2, or driving around planets on the Mako finding hunks of rocks, but it’s still just as irritating. Now you fly your Normandy around the galaxy map, and scan the systems for “war assets” that help you in your cause. That in itself is not a bad thing, but now if you scan too much, the Reapers fly in and you have to evade them. Essentially you are playing Pac-Man with the Reapers. I found this system to be jarring and it took me out of the game.

If you play the game without playing Mass Effect 1 and 2 first, you will have a perfectly fine game, but I don’t think you will be getting the full experience. As much as Bioware claims you can jump in without playing the first two, I think that is doing yourself a grave disservice. Part of my enjoyment of the game was seeing the loads of people from the first two games show up. Actions I did in the first two games directly affected my galactic readiness. Conversations that brought up past actions were common. I can’t imagine I would have any clue what was going on if I hadn’t played the first two games. I cried a few times during the game when certain characters died. I don’t know if the emotional impact would have been there if I hadn’t gotten to know the characters previously. This is truly the end of a trilogy. It would be like reading the last book in a trilogy without reading the first two. You will probably enjoy it, but miss a lot of the backstory and richness of the culture and world as a whole.

The Romance:
Bioware certainly stepped up the gay factor on this one, and I love it. Our gay brothers finally get same sex romance options. Yes, that’s plural. There are two males that can romanced by a male Shepard: Kaiden and Cortez, a shuttle pilot. For the ladies, there are three options. First, you can continue your romance with Liara, start a relationship with your com officer Samantha Traynor (lesbian only romancable by female Shepard), or hook up with war reporter Diana Allers. You can also continue your relationships from Mass Effect 2, with a few exceptions. I found my relationship with Liara to be the most in depth one of the three ladies. You have many conversations with her about the past, the future, and your relationship. I haven’t done that much processing since my last real life relationship. The romance with Samantha Traynor was sweet and definitely sexy (one word: shower.) I thought the relationship with Diana Allers was forced and not very realistic, and was my least favorite of all them, gay or straight.

Great game and then there was that ending we can't discuss due to spoilers.

I applaud Bioware for taking the time to add the same-sex relationships to Mass Effect 3. It made the universe seem much more realistic. You will randomly hear conversations from people of both sexes talk about their husbands and wives, and no one so much as bats an eye. The first time I talked to the shuttle pilot Cortez and he casually mentioned he lost his husband, I about dropped my controller in shock. My second thought was “That was so cool!” It takes a lot to shock me in a video game, and Bioware did it in a good way. My only complaint was that I was unable to romance Ashley Williams as a female Shepard. Kaiden is romanceable by both genders, but Ashley is not? I don’t understand why that was overlooked, Ashley really grew on me over three games and I would have loved have romanced her. That is, hoever, a small complaint in what is otherwise a great game.

The Ending:
No, I won’t spoil the ending for you. All I will say is that I thought the last 5 minutes were jarring and seemed very out of place in the Mass Effect Universe. The “optimal” ending (or what constitutes as one) is up for debate, and is very difficult to get if you do not play multiplayer. Not impossible, but difficult. If anyone wants to talk more about the ending privately, feel free to PM me on the forum (Name: Xan) or hit me up on the Lesbian Gamers Facebook page and I am willing to discuss the ending in depth. But it does bring closure to the end of a trilogy, and that is the important thing.

Overall, it’s a satisfying conclusion to 6 years, three games, and countless novels and comics. I love this universe, I love Commander Shepard, and I did love this game. It has some flaws, and there are a few things I wish was done different, but I felt like it was telling MY story of MY Shepard. In the end, I think that was what made the game great.

According to Bethesda same-sex marriage in game isn’t a big deal, so they’ve not really thought to mention it before someone on Twitter asked them directly. The question was posed: “Is same sex marriage in Skyrim? I know the option to get married to ppl is in. The subject seems like hush hush”, to which VP of PR and Marketing at Bethesda Pete Hines responded: “Not hush hush, just not making a huge deal out of it. You can marry anyone”. Hines then added: “Sorry, should clarify. Not any NPC, just mean any male or female. Doesn’t matter what you’re playing.” Well who’s all happy now huh? Good news.. Thanks Bethesda.

We’ve had a bit more use on Facebook the last couple of weeks, so we’ve decided to ramp things up over there. If you’re on facebook and you haven’t liked us yet, you can of course do so: Lesbian Gamers Facebook page. Whereas the website (that’s the thing you’re on at the moment) will remain the hub of relevant gaming news and of course our wonderful forum, the Facebook page is more of an engagement space, well it is a social networking site after all, so let’s be social! We won’t be posting a multitude of crap and filling your facebook pages, we hate when other facebook pages do that, but we will be having fun hopefully, so if you haven’t liked us yet.. get on over and do it you cheeky devil.. go on.

Oh we also added one of those facebook widgety things to the side of the main site.

Check out this awesome female Commander Shepard (femShep) video by YouTuber “gametourists”. The video shows off many of the female Commander Shepards in game, all so neatly knitted together with a funky soundtrack. There’s even some girl on mono-gendered alien lovin (and femshep with dudes.. ugh). I know I spotted someone that looked very like my Commander Shepard, how about you? check out the awesome video and let us know. “I’m just here to get the job done, let someone else be on the poster”. Genius.

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“The answer is obvious. But it’s understandable when many young adults gather around in a group, isn’t it? Especially, when they are hooking up in the in-game chat. A female Dragon’s Call player named “HOT_FUDGE_SUNDAE”, typed up words about “whipped cream” with an evil smile in the world chat, which lit up the fire for a series of adult sex talks last week. Another player reported to the official with captured chat screenshots on the official forum board and asked “Is it appropriate to talk about Sexual Innuendo in world chat?”

The GH (Game Helper, player volunteer of Dragon’s Call) group suggested adding the following rules for Dragon’s Call – “No sexual innuendo in world chat. And do not use cell phone to send advertise messages while you get drunk in the bathroom.” A few chat mutes will surely be applied as a warm for those random horny young adults, but the official doesn’t seem to have further solutions for this.

Actually, a similar issue happened on the Gay Pride Week last year. This news might remind you a bit – “A Player Threatens to Sue Dragon’s Call Dev. for Censoring the Word ‘Gay’”. What if those gays came back again and asked for the equal rights in world chat? OH, what a big mess, I have to stop here before it goes all wrong. But on the other hand, those world chat screenshots did help innocent adults like me pick up some new words, such as “Fleshlight”. Oops, just broke the new rule.

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Image Credit [ScrewAttack].

Hello fellow tabletop RPG geeks and Dragon Age fans! Fancy taking your love of the Dragon Age computer / console RPG adventures one step further, then the Dragon Age tabletop roleplaying game might be for you. For those not in the know, tabletop RPG’s are pretty much restricted only by your imagination. For the gay gamer this of course means any character can be gay or lesbian. This was something that was introduced in the Dragon Age videogame, but in a tabletop setting you could take it all the way.

Here’s the official blurb about the Dragon Age tabletop RPG:

Dragon Age RPG setting: It has been hundreds of years since the last Blight ravaged the world of Thedas. Many believe that it can never happen again, that the Dragon Age will pass without the rise of such evil. They are wrong. Beneath the earth the darkspawn stir. A new archdemon has risen and with it a Blight that will scourge the lands and darken the skies. The nations of Thedas need a new generation of heroes, but who will answer the call?

Fantasy roleplaying goes back to its dark and gritty roots with the Dragon Age RPG, the latest game from the company that brought you A Song of Ice and Fire Roleplaying and Mutants & Masterminds. Based on the highly anticipated Dragon Age: Origins computer game, the Dragon Age RPG brings the excitement of BioWare’s rich fantasy world to the tabletop. Make your own heroes and control your own destiny as a Blight comes to Thedas once again.

Designed by award-winning author Chris Pramas (Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, Freeport), Dragon Age features an all-new game system that’s both easy to learn and exciting to play.

The boxed set includes:

• A 64-page Player’s Guide with an introduction to tabletop roleplaying, background on Thedas and the nation of Ferelden, a complete guide to character creation, rules for character classes and talents, a primer on magic, and the basic game rules.
• A 64-page Gamemaster’s Guide with an introduction to this key role, advice on the art of game mastering, advanced game rules, and an introductory adventure that plunges the characters right into the world of Dragon Age.
• A beautiful poster map of the nation of Ferelden, the opening setting for the Dragon Age RPG.
• 3 six-sided dice.

The Dragon Age RPG is the perfect portal to tabletop roleplaying. The core system is easy to use and most actions can be resolved with a roll of the dice. Dragon Age also features an innovative stunt system that keeps combat and spellcasting tense and exciting.

So gather your friends, grab some dice, and get ready to enter a world of heroes and villains, of knights and darkspawn, of gods and demons … the world of Dragon Age!

The cool thing here is that the game sort of hearkens back to the original D&D Boxed Sets. There will be four sets in the Dragon Age tabletop roleplaying game with each one covering 5 levels for the classes of player-characters. Like the original D&D Basic set, the first set includes two books: the Player’s Guide and a Game Master’s Guide, a map and 3 six sided dice. Then all you need is a few friends, some pens and paper and your imaginations.

We’ve been checking out Fallout New Vegas female character Veronica Renata Santangelo, a Brotherhood of Steel Scribe who can be found at the 188 Trading Post in 2281. What’s interesting about veronica is, we’re told she’s a lesbian (though the wiki suggests she’s could be bi). Her sexuality is alluded to via conversational pointers, When she’s asked if she’s ever been in love she responds that she and a girl were in love, but due to her parents belief that lovers should procreate things didn’t work out with them. She also alludes to the fact her parents probably prefer her not to be home, but rather out in the wastes, which suggests they have issue with her. If playing a male character Veronica will also state: “This is as close as I get until you turn into a leggy brunette.” How awesome is that? On a side note of geek girl awesome, Veronica is also voiced by none other than Felicia Day.

Thanks to Misajingles and Fallout Wiki xx

Saw this and figured since we cover gay gaming it was relevant. Reddit user Taximes states “In the spirit of satirical protests, I was compelled to make this Borderlands photoshop”. It is of course a borderlands screenshot photoshopped with a protest sign based on the Westboro Baptists “God Hates Fags” sign. On looking further into this we also noted there is a website called GodHatesSkaggs.com (though rarely updated) from a guy whose last name is Skaggs and he’s an atheist. Skags might not be to everyone’s taste, but God probably has more important things on her mind than hating on them. Word!

That’s Fort Gay, which is a real town in West Virginia. The gamer, 26 year old Josh Moore, not gay himself, just innocently put he lived in Fort Gay and before he knew it had his account suspended. Moore contact Microsoft Xbox ‘customer services’ to explain he really did live in Fort Gay and the helpful Representative should just Google the postcode which Moore supplied, customer support replied with “I can’t help you”.

Moore stated he was angry and although not being gay himself felt that Microsoft were definitely discriminating. Moore said he was met with non help and even a warning that if he replaced the information in his bio his account would be canceled and Microsoft would keep his monthly fee.

As usual Microsoft have downplayed the situation, saying it’s just a miscommunication and that they will contact Moore to apologize.

Now rather than having a knee jerk reaction to this story, we at lesbian gamers actually think what MS have stated is true. Someone complained about Moore having “Fort Gay WV” in his bio, it was then passed onto a representative and dealt with in the usual MS manner. The problem with MS reps however is that they follow a strict code and don’t deviate from that, it’s almost like they’re reading from a script. I myself have almost been in tears on the phone to MS because their ‘reps’ offer NO help and merely keep you on the phone reading from a set script. I think perhaps this is what Microsoft should look at next.

These reps are meant to represent the company and offer ‘service’ and ‘help’ but more often than not you end up having a one sided non helpful conversation that gains no useful outcome, as is the case here. A quick check would have noted the term Fort Gay was in fact a real place and a quick “sorry sir I see YOU are right, sorry for the inconvenience” could have been issued and this wouldn’t even be in the news right now, making Microsoft look – once again – like they’re somewhat homophobic. They REALLY need to look at the way their customer service is run.