Your Response When Our Designated Bestfriend This Time Is Human

Thanks....I'll take a look.

Well, I think people are reading too much into Liara's hug.  It's really not worth flipping out over.  Both scenes result from Bioware wanting to use the same motions to cover a cut scene between Shepard and a character they may be in a romance with.  The same is also true with Garrus on earth where that "shoulder pat" motion is the start of a kiss if Garrus is Shepard's LI.  What they cut from the Thane scene was the actual kiss that a romanced FemShep gives Thane... while leaving in the motion of leaning in for that kiss.  What they cut from the Liara hug on Ilium was Shepard trying to actually kiss Liara and Liara pushing Shepard away.  It's all about conserving computing resources... nothing more.

Can they do better?... I've said three times that they certainly can and that's a fair criticism.  Flipping out over Bioware "forcing" Liara as a BFF on the players is not a reasonable criticism, IMHO. 

To compensate a bit if they have an issue with it, the player can 1) opt to skip many conversations with her; 2) be rude to her in several conversations; 3) recruit her so late in ME1 that a relationship is not possible in that game; 5) forfeit recruiting Thane and Samara and skip meeting Liara on Illium altogether; 5) skip the ME3 cabin conversation and the conversation on the Citadel; and 6) for further good measure, skip talking to her on Earth as well. 

As I've also said, combined with talking frequently with whoever I want to make seem like my BFF, I can manipulate the situation sufficiently to make it clear that person is my BFF or LI and not Liara.  I just can't make her hate Shepard... and that's not really a big deal for me since some people do inexplicably dote on people who don't like them IRL... just like some people can't stand people around them not being as upset about their complaints as they are.  I really shouldn't have to repeat myself so much... I have already leveled a fair criticism on this matter.

Which is still wrong from a role-play aspect, if the player is constantly forced to interact with a certain charactor.

I disagree... if a player is not required to interact at all with any of the characters in the story, then what's left is a sandbox game, not an RPG.  They do need some "bare bones" interactions on which to construct the story arc/plot.  If a player wants to interact with nobody, they should play Minecraft in single player mode and make up their own story in the head as they build up their own story setting, etc.

It can be annoying, especially  if you  don't  like  the companion, but as long as they don't take  up squaddie space while they fulfill their purpose then I don't  really mind.

Agree that it can be... it can also be something objectionable... just like a "hug" greeting can be interpreted differently in different cultures and circles.

As I said above though... ALL those scenes occur because of Bioware trying to make the same motion by the NPC or player "work" across different scenarios by only "cutting out" the part that actually shows a kiss or an attempted kiss.  People here though are using Liara's hug scene to imply that Bioware forces her on the player as a BFF... which is, IMO, making too much out of that scene because it suits their purpose while ignoring (even denying) the other scenes in the game where the same sort of thing occurs.

Having a charactor be part of the story is one thing, but when you can't continue the story without that charactor then the story becomes pointless, and the player ends up resenting the fact that they are forced to be involved with that charactor all of the time.

Apologies, I misunderstood your message.

You can't complete ME3 without the humans James, Joker or Samantha.  On one thread here, we have a group complaining that Bioware writing ME:A with companions not integral to the plot as being a bad thing... and then on this thread saying that having some interactions with companions being necessary to the plot being a bad thing.  It can't be both... so which it is is just a matter of opinion... and not worth flipping out over.

Ditto what I just said to themikefest.

... and Shepard looks like he wants to slobber all over Thane... leaning in like that and pursing the lips... even though the kiss is cut out.  It's an error on Bioware's part for both scenes not to have cut out more of the action for non-LI characters... it's just NOT critical proof, IMO, of some sort of alien BFF conspiracy... which is what you want to make of it.

Yep, and this is precisely how we end up with something lackluster like DAI, because you've got Bio trying to satisfy two competing philosophies that run counter to one another.  Typically when you try to satisfy everyone, you end up satisfying no one.  I'd wish they'd go one way or the other so I could either move on or stay in the fold.  Mediocrity is a place I never expected Bioware to land.  Just my opinion of course.  Just for the record I enjoy companions (even if I don't like 'em) interwoven into the main story over just being there as filler.