Can we be racist? [in Andromeda]

My Shepard liked working with them until they were turned into the keystone cops in ME3. I would like my Ryder to have a poster of the Cerberus logo and a poster of TIM in her/his cabin. Even have Cora, if related to TIM, talk about him.

That would make for such a nice romance plot.

I don't think outright hatred or contempt for aliens would be a particularly useful attitude to accommodate.

The attitude of Ashley Williams that basically says we need to look out for ourselves first and assume the aliens do the same could maybe fit.

We might also have a place for "racism" against specifically the natives of Andromeda, as contrasted to those from the Milky Way? Though that sort of attitude would probably make more sense among the old council races, who've been essentially part of the same political unit for centuries, than for a human whose people haven't really been on the galactic scene long enough to yet see Turians and Salarians as part of the "us" group.

edit:  Specific racism against the Kett could also make sense, if we take significant losses that might create resentment towards them generally, even if we met a specific Kett who was friendly.

You mean just the chain of command? 

I doubt you can be racist in a way of calling other races the equivalent to the n word. I think you will be able to refuse to do quest for aliens, have choices that would benefit humanity at the cost of others. That sort of thing.

yeah

ME1:

Most racist: You were at worst, xenophobic and human focused, with insults more about jabbing at someone than to insist on human supremacy. And I don't think Shepard was ever supremacist, even in the meanest form of the ending. You'd use aliens for what they offer, but not for what they are.

Least racist: You were at best, ignorant of aliens but open to learning about them and appreciating them a little. You'd gain aliens as friends and lovers.

Result: Regardless, Shepard learns that from cooperation with aliens things can get done, but also that the grand proclamations of cooperation in the galaxy is a lie. Shepard will make their own group, though now they're open to it being multi-racial.


ME2:

Most racist: You were at worst, supportive of much of the agenda of a human survivalist organization and more tolerating of any supremacist sentiments from them. Shepard is no longer xenophobic or purely human focused, but he can still be insensitive and largely human focused. Aliens were valued as assets to a team, not just tools (though some could still be), even if regarded more as the 'other' like was always the case in ME1. The ME1 battle has formed at least a comrade-in-arms closeness with certain aliens, but no further.

Least racist: You were at best, tolerant and friendly to aliens, and rather appreciative of them, even as you never lose your identity and priority of humanity. You enjoy aliens as friends, lovers, and at least on the personal level, true allies. Aliens are equal members of your team and you value them just as much as a human, even if not in all cases, then at least in battle.

Result: Regardless, Shepard learns of the particular value of aliens (personal or otherwise) and rejects treating them with disrespect for their race. But they also learn that human protectionism is essential, that aliens will not necessarily easily unify, and that everyone has their own problems that humans may not easily relate to.


ME3:

Most racist: You were at worst, disregarding of the problems aliens were encountering, as you yourself scramble to get anything useful to save Earth and humanity. Shepard is no longer quite so insensitive and largely human focused, but their sensitivity can slip and they can get dark when it comes to something they think humanity needs in order to survive. Aliens were viewed with value and respect, but with the dire circumstances, they were not necessarily treated with priority or placating or honesty. The ME2 battle has formed allying relationships with aliens, but this doesn't mean that humanity goes second.

Least racist: You were at best, prioritizing the safety and cooperation of the galaxy, over a purely human concern. Shepard still highly values humanity, but is forced not just to entertain certain aliens, or work with many aliens, but to greatly consider the larger scale state of many civilizations, even if without a particularly longer-term perspective. Aliens can be the closest people to Shepard and Shepard can feel the loss of aliens just as much as losing humans, and have dreams for their future as if they are of his own.

Result: Regardless, Shepard opens up to some degree of care to collectives of aliens, and desires a unified galaxy one way or another. But they also can consider any or all of the other systems of the galaxy to be inadequate and they end up enforcing something of their own, and therefore of the actions of the Alliance.


Trilogy Result: Shepard goes from someone rather ignorant and neutral at best about aliens, always to someone who wants the galaxy to be unified, if maybe only in the face of the Reapers. So occupied with how to defeat the Reapers, Shepard takes what he needs for that, and it turns out that this ultimately means some level of galactic-level cooperation, regardless of any other priorities for other things.



What I predict of MEA is something around ME2-ME3 level (so nothing that can be overtly bigoted sounding at all), and with a twist of being a different person with their own personality and story, and an agenda that is even more unity-oriented than ME3.

So where ME1 was 'I don't need the Krogan' and ME2 was 'I don't exactly need the Krogan', and ME3 was 'I wish we didn't need the Krogan, but we do', MEA may be 'We need to be careful about it, but we need the Krogan'. Still enough to recognize human priorities, but not insist on them as much as before.


That sounds like its just a soft, weak, lame progression of things. Maybe it will be. But what COULD MAYBE MAYBE be interesting, is if the writing gets smarter, and determines 'priorities' to be the unintended evils of politics. Simply calmly choosing one thing, could blow up into a political clusterfuck anyway. Ryder could be more susceptible to blowback because he isn't as much about going headstrong into the clearer dangers. There could be a story where you have options to basically disregard multiple factions and their needs (even if you're not immediately as extincting them), and that could make you out to be rather callous and ironically more human-supremacist than Shepard ever was, since Shepard would always recognize some level of truly cooperating with aliens, and Ryder might very well only do that on the superficial level just to get the Initiative successful. We know we can be a jerk, but I wonder HOW?

There's good possibilities here. Lets see.

Mandatory joke...

Why would a nationalist be unable to work with foreigners? As long as they are not migrating into his country, he wouldn't have a problem with them. And nationalists tend to get along really well with nationalists from other countries.

For example, 4chan's /pol/ is filled with nationalists and is probably one of the most anti-semitic places on the internet, and yet they get along well with the few zionist Israelis who frequent the board. There may be some savage banter, but everyone gets their share of that.

On the topic: The problem with 'casual, professional, emotional and logical' is that you don't really know which one will let you be a total dick to people. Renegade choices and interrupts and the lower dialogue options were pretty reliable in that regard. The concern that the game will shoehorn us into being Mr. Nice Guy like in DAI is a valid one in my opinion.

Its not a completely one species craft, just like the other arks. Theres members of the council races on all ark in the staff, but which ark it is determines what the vast majority of the members are. So on Hyperion they have a couple of dozen of salarians, turians and asari. On turian ark they have couple of dozen humans, asari and salarians etc.

On the nexus they have all kinds of species, mixed, maybe also embryos for colonization, to boost the growth etc.

There's a solution for that. It starts with 'g' and ends with 'enocide'.

I'm certainly hoping that there will be aggressive options, though i'm worried given the tones we've heard that this won't be the case & will be rather close to repeating the problems with the inquisitor.