Until BioWare officially releases their extended cut ending for Mass Effect 3, fans can at least bask in the awesome comic deviantART user Koobismo is crafting. Titled ‘Marauder Shields’ after an in-joke that exploded online around the same time outrage over the Mass Effect 3 ending engulfed the Internet, Koobismo’s graphically stunning rendition of what the conclusion should have been is already garnering thousands of views. The project is also a major component of the Take ME3 Back campaign, which is working tirelessly to give fans a satisfying close to the Mass Effect trilogy.
Popularity over Koobismo’s work has grown to the point where audiobooks of his endings are now available. Fan devotion to the Mass Effect series is clearly unwavering, and BioWare can learn a thing or two from its core audience in how to conclude a story.
Fan-Made Game Endings
Koobismo Spearheads Take Back ME3 with 'Marauder Shields' Comic
Trend Themes
1. Fan-made Endings - The trend of fans creating their own game endings creates opportunities for disruptive innovation by allowing fans to take ownership of a game's narrative and creating new ways for game developers to involve their audience in the storytelling process.
2. Take Back Campaigns - The trend of Take Back campaigns, where fans organize to demand changes to the storyline, creates opportunities for disruptive innovation by allowing the audience to have a more significant input in the creative process and holding developers to a higher standard for satisfying narrative conclusions
3. Online Fan Communities - The trend of Mass Effect's online community of fans indicates new opportunities to create and engage with online fan communities that can shape and influence the development of future games
Industry Implications
1. Video Game Development - The video game development industry has the opportunity to disruptively innovate by involving their audience in the storytelling process and allowing fans to take ownership of a game's narrative
2. Comic Book Industry - The Comic Book industry can disruptively innovate by partnering with video game developers to offer alternative endings to popular franchises in a different medium, focusing on fan ownership of a narrative
3. Crowdfunding Platforms - The crowdfunding industry has the opportunity to disruptively innovate by supporting fan-made projects that allow the audience to shape the development of their favorite games, turning them into active stakeholders in the progress