NPC versus Squad Romance Debate Thread.

I voted for other because it all depends on how well they are implemented. Way back in NWN1 Bioware did non-companion romances, but I found them to be lackluster, because your character only talked to them like three times, learned their backstory and then they fell in love with you. There really wasn't a emotional connection. However, non-companion romances in DA:I, like Cullen, were absolutely wonderful. Cullen is actually my favorite romance from DA:I.

I suppose I'll throw my opinion on this one out.

While Mass Effect hasn't typically treated non squadmate romances all that well, for those of you who didn't play DA:I they gave you 2 non party member romance options which were full and proper romance options. One for female Inquisitor, Cullen, is one of the better romances in the game although as somebody pointed out in the other thread he has had 3 games worth of character development at this point(not too much in Origins, though). The other one, Josephine, isn't too bad and I personally prefer her to Cassandra for a male Inquisitor. I will note she doesn't get a sex scene, but I don't consider that a requirement of a romance story arc.

Figuring that this is the new standard for these romances then I think it'll work out just fine, and it allows them to give us more options without needing to make the squad size as big as it was in Mass Effect 2 which is something they don't seem to want to do again.

Regardless of what people think though, I believe that BioWare is never going to think of the non squadmate LIs as being second class compared to the squad from here on out.

I feel like this argument is a vicious cycle and I mostly want out of the game-but I'll post at least one more time and see how the mood in this new thread goes...

For me squad romances will always be the best. I love being able to take my romance character with me on missions. Even if they have zero banter about the romance-I'd still feel like I'm getting quality content by the fact I'm playing a game where I don't have to be straight-and I'm able to go out and do things with my virtual boyfriend. It may seem unimportant to straight people who literally get this kind of experience in every form of media, but for LGBT people we have to get out our magnifying glasses and scour the world over to get even a glimpse of some kind of content (other then porn maybe).

I'm not sure why we're even having this discussion. I don't think this is really about Squad vs NPC romances. The only reason this topic is here is because a leak of questionable reliability claimed that one specific demographic was going to be treated differently from the majority, and the excuses started afterwards.

This whole debate over Squad vs NPC romances doesn't strike me as any different than the asinine excuses Bioware threw out when they tried to claim that MaleShep has to be straight even though FemShep does not.

I never finished Mass Effect 3 with a squadmate romance. And the romances I did play(Jack, Miranda, Traynor) all got enough content. Especially with Citadel DLC, Jack is IMO the best one.

With Andromeda, I'm more interested in Lexi than any other. Though it does seem that BiOWare is taking a more Dragon Age approach to the banter in this game, so their might actually be relevant romance dialogue on missions. But, for example, you take Cora and Peebee on a mission and they talk about Ryder's relationship with Lexi, is IMO, equal to say them talking about Ryder's relationship with one of them.

I have to say no.

Even though I really did enjoy the Cullen DAI romance, it was nowhere near as intense as the Solas romance...and I dislike playing elves in general. I just had such a stronger bond with Solas because I learned so much about him through squad banter.

And of course...nothing compared to being able to do missions with love interests in DAO. It was especially powerful because we were able to set tactics for our squad mates. I could, for example, set Alistair to shield bash any melee opponent who tried to attack me (my hero!! ). When I played as a male, I set Leliana to take out any ranged character that was giving me grief. Having my love-interest protect me in battle was such a cool added bonus! Not being able to set tactics in subsequent games really sucked gameplay-wise AND romance-wise for me.

I have never been a big fan of ME romances, so I am not really stressed about it either way, tbh. Now if I could have romanced Legion...but oh!! To be denied my metal lovah!!!

If Suvi and Gil weren't second class romances, they'd have face models. Both their faces, while not ugly, look made in the CC. What's the point of telling everyone the crew member romances are just as important and then don't give them unique face models. The two gay characters are SECOND CLASS characters for the second game in a row. Extremely disappointing. 

I do prefer NPC romance in mass effect, my favorite so far are josephine and samantha.

Having a squadmate romance does press me to have them on the field everytime in order to not miss any interaction with them and with only 2 squadmate you exclude yourself from many party banter. I also tend to avoid taking them on plot heavy mission because i don't wand to have to make a difficult choice. The Virmire mission felt forced in that regard.

Also I do like returning from a job trip to my home (Tempest/normandy) and get some rest and NPC relationship are perfect for that. Unfortunatly they have often less screentime aboard the ship or cities than other crewmember. Not being able to meet Samantha in the presidium or other area was too bad.
On another note i really disliked Kelly Chambers, loving everyone and everything you do just to have a cheap streaptease in latex suit was like a 50s fantasy of the secretary and her boss, yuks.

I do hope they had simili-loyalty mission for those crewmember, they were no labeled as such but mission like the Grayson academy was a good way for those NPC to shine in their job. And with Comlink I see no reason for them not to be "present" during missions.

I agree that it's already basically confirmed that the crew romances in Andromeda are second rate to the companion romances based on the fact that companions got model scans and generally much higher attention to detail on their designs than the crew romances. Gil and Suvi aren't as high quality models, so even with as little as we know, it's obvious they're not equal. I doubt Gil and Suvi will get as much attention in their content as even Cullen and Josephine, because at least Cullen and Josephine got more attention to their unique designs.

I feel like this is mostly about the issue of demographics, though. It's not necessarily a bad thing for NPC romances to exist. In DA things were somewhat different, since everyone had companion options that were exclusive to them in addition to some having NPC romances. In the Mass Effect franchise, so far, NPC romances have been a way to add gay and lesbian characters instead of offering a slot in the party to those demographics. In Andromeda, it's possible that gay men won't even get one option in the squad. I think it's overtly unfair and I really don't accept the argument that this isn't an obvious problem.

Basically, for my personal opinion, I like companion romances better. I like taking my LI with me and having them there on all my adventures. Having them there gives the feeling of having spent so much more time with them. I like the narrative of having gone through everything with them like that. So, even if NPCs have a lot of dialog and cutscenes, it's just not the same to me. I totally get that some people like aspects of NPC romances, though, whether it's the "something to come home to" trope, or something else. So, I think it's good to offer a variety. Just don't try to convince me that it's really offering a variety if the NPC romances are always there to fill one specific demographic.

Not having a face model isn't a sign of anything like that.  There's probably a good number of reasons why there's no face models for them.  You're getting paranoid.

Can you name some good reasons?

I think it can come close to companions romances, like Cullen and Josephine(both are a big part of the inquisition and were promoted as such, with unique faces and clothes). In ME:A I do not think so, it seems it will be a lot worse. So I will always prefer to be on the safe side and make them only companions.