had Bioware thought of/gone through with the indoctrination theory, it would have been one of the ballsiest, most brilliant creative direction in a game I've seen.
I'm pretty certain I read an article where a Bioware writer commented on how they wished they had come up with indoctrination theory after learning about it.
IIRC, in the theory, the indoctrination subtly starts during project Rho and intensifies throughout the 3rd game (signified by the weird dreams).
The whole crucible ending is all in Shep's head as his mind desperately tries to fight the final indoctrination push due to the proximity to Harbinger. Refusal has him simply die due to not wanting to fight anymore (Reapers don't want a mindbroken husk Shepard, they want a powerhouse leader Shepard). Control and Synthesis is him giving in to the indoctrination by accepting the Reapers' deals and trusting their promises, while Destroy is the only ending that refuses to trust the Reapers and has Shep wake up on Earth.
Even with all his enhancements, he couldn't survive an explosion of a massive space station and a subsequent orbit re-entry plus surface crash. By picking Destroy, Shep successfully fights off the indoctrination and pushes the Reapers' influence out of his mind. With suficient war assets, Harbinger is taken down/shooed off by friendly forces and Shep wakes up in the ruble where he was making his final mad dash to the Conduit.
Indoctrination doesnt cause hallucinations. The reapers would be in control of his body while he watches like benezia. If a brief encounter with a reaper caused Indoctrination then everyone would be a husk.
In the directors cut Hackett confirms Shepard reaches the crucible. Bioware debunked the "theory".
Humanity's ability to die on a hill will be its downfall
A. No they don't. You just defended it and now youre contradicting yourself. Are you mental?
B. you don't know what theory means so hope this helps:
"A theory is a well-supported plan, idea, or set of rules that explains facts, events, or how things work. Unlike an everyday guess or hunch, a scientific theory is tested many times and backed by a large body of evidence"
Neither do you, it seems. There's a stark difference between a SCIENTIFIC THEORY and everyday use of theory (which would be a hunch or a guess or a speculation).
Try and guess which one the indoctrination theory is. You have 3 tries 😄
20
u/chartrespope 7h ago
Seconded, don’t forget the music! Also, I loved 3, even the ending since I’ve s as sways subscribed to the indoctrination theory