“Is It Too Much to Ask That We’re Allowed to Win the Game?”: Character Attachment and Agency in the Mass Effect 3 Ending Controversy

Jacqueline Burgess; Christian M Jones

doi:10.1177/0270467618819685

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“Is It Too Much to Ask That We’re Allowed to Win the Game?”: Character Attachment and Agency in the Mass Effect 3 Ending Controversy

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“Is It Too Much to Ask That We’re Allowed to Win the Game?”: Character Attachment and Agency in the Mass Effect 3 Ending Controversy

Jacqueline Burgess and Christian M Jones

Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, Vol.37(3), pp.146-158

2017

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0270467618819685

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Abstract

Sociology

History and Philosophy of Specific Fields

character attachment

agency

Mass Effect

video game

narrative

emotion

The interaction between the concepts of character attachment, agency, and choice in a video game narrative was investigated using BioWare's Mass Effect trilogy. Posts on a BioWare forum discussing the depiction of their player characters in the ending sequences of Mass Effect 3, the final game in the trilogy, were downloaded and analyzed using thematic analysis. Players demonstrated emotional attachment for the characters and narrative and expected to see the consequences of their choices play out, as in the previous games. Furthermore, players conflated winning the game with achieving a narratively satisfactory ending for the game world and its characters indicating emotional consequences for players that developers should consider when designing games with a high degree of player choice and agency. However, for some players character attachment is incongruous as they described Shepard as "acting out of character," which needs further research.

Details

Title: “Is It Too Much to Ask That We’re Allowed to Win the Game?”: Character Attachment and Agency in the Mass Effect 3 Ending Controversy
Authors: Jacqueline Burgess (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Arts, Business and Law
Christian M Jones (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Arts, Business and Law
Publication details: Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, Vol.37(3), pp.146-158
Publisher: Sage Publications Inc.
Date published: 2017
DOI: 10.1177/0270467618819685
ISSN: 0270-4676
Organisation Unit: School of Business and Creative Industries; School of Social Sciences - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; USC Business School - Legacy; Engage Research Lab; School of Law and Society
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99450793702621
Output Type: Journal article

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