Getting through ME (1) when playing the trilogy is a chore

Actually, ME1 came out before DAO. Unless you mean ME2 did well and that's when they shifted to more action.

edit: this was directed at ToLazy.

Huh, you're right. Look at me, i'm a fuckin' idiot. 

Ah well, point is that BioWARE is shit and i'm the smartest person who ever lived. Objective fact. 

Yeah, I've seen it once. Pretty worthwhile that was. She was out of her damn mind.

It's definitely worth shaking things up, sometimes. Something lost amongst the ME3 ending disappointment is the amazing variety the team built into the journey. Your final choices may ultimately come down to destroy, control or synthesis, but the incredible diversity to be found along the way, if you vary your choices, is amazing.

I wish the team got more credit for this. Though I hated the ME3 endings initially, I'd say the very worst part of them was that they burnt the setting to the ground. Now, knowing that the setting is intact, and that there is more Mass Effect to come, they aren't so horrible. (They're still poor. ) I think if the endings hadn't drowned out all other concerns, the team would've received a lot of praise for the great many things they got right over the years of hard work.

Yeah, I suspect many felt that way. I had to make myself try to see it from Casey's perspective (not just his, but he's maybe the prime example.)

This was always going to be a trilogy. They were never on the hook to end the series in a way that was favorable for future games. The original endings were garbage, flat out, IMO. The EC, though, fleshed out enough to make for a suitable ending for the IP. I didn't want the ME IP to end, but the EC endings were suitable.

EA likes making money, though, and ME makes money, so here we are. We're going to Andromeda, because BioWare fans can't handle a canon ending being chosen, and the devs know it. Some of the devs at least claim to be of a similar mindset, in terms of not wanting to chose a canon ending. Whatever the case, I'm at peace with ME3, and I'm happy that the IP continues, whether in the Milky Way or Andromeda.

Sorry for the derailment, guys. I promise I'll return to topic. I did make a contribution to the theme a bit up-thread. 

Since we won't be importing choices from the original trilogy into MEA, we won't likely be seeing anything like the Keep for the trilogy.

You could build a save using gibbed save editor. I'd never use it to skip a game altogether, but I use it to fix glitches (like the Conrad Werner import flag glitch) all of the time. I also haven't scanned a planet for resources in ME2 in years.

One of the best parts of ME1 was Conrad Verner. If you play as femshep and let him take a picture of her, the second time you see him, he will say femshep is beautiful. That was cool. Its too bad femshp couldn't say thanks for the compliment or even give him a hug for saying that.

ME1 may be a chore to play through, but seeing Conrad, especially as femshep, is worth it. Plus he can be seen  in the next two games

Story and worldbuilding wise, ME1 is the best. Everything you mentioned is great. Humans are new and trying to find their place. Humans are special, but in what they add to the whole, not in being better than everyone else. Saren and Sovereign are excellent and compelling antagonists. The plot is about uncovering mysteries (even if they botched the Rachni reveal). There are a few problems, but it's quite solid.

Then ME2 had a terrible plot and was just about getting badasses and shooting bug men. I did like most of those badasses and enjoyed the combat, but the world and story were lacking.

Though I like the ending, I totally agree with the rest of your post! I started changing things up in my 3rd run, currently on the 5th, and each time it feels so different, and it's so rewarding to see how some choices play out. I sometimes still can't believe a game captivated me so much I played through it multiple times already and want to keep doing that, but I guess this is one of the main reasons why that happened. It's incredibly diverse, and so much fun.

And for my next run I finally want to leave recruiting Liara for last. Should be fun as I've never even actually seen a YT video of it

I'm glad I found this thread. I just completed ME1 for the first time and I enjoyed the story but not really the game play. It kind of made me feel guilty in a way. Whenever I finish playing DAO I immediately want to play another round, yet I was kind of happy to move on tbh even though the plot is engaging. If I wasn't such a believer that the game picks up I wouldn't have continued.

At the very least, just flirt with him

I play entire Trilogy on hardest setting (without new game plus). I actually miss the ME1 Citadel and Elevators (never take quick travel). Combat is fine enough for me (though I only play Soldier).