Mass Effect 3 Walkthrough, Guide, Gameplay, Trophy, and More
by Naveenkumar
Updated Mar 31, 2023
Mass Effect 3 Guide
Everything You Need to Know About the Final Game in the Trilogy
Mass Effect 3 is the epic conclusion to the original Mass Effect trilogy, and this guide will provide you with everything you need to know to navigate the game from start to finish. You'll take control of Commander Shepard, a human soldier tasked with uniting the galaxy's various species to combat the invading Reapers. The guide will cover each of the game's four acts, beginning with the opening on Earth and ending with the grand finale. Throughout the guide, you'll find tips on how to prepare for and win combat encounters, where to find collectables, and how to choose the right dialogue options to shape your playthrough.
Act 1 covers your escape from Earth and your quest to stop the Reapers. It includes the Prologue, Priority: Mars, Priority: The Citadel 1, Normandy: First Visit, and Normandy Collectibles. Act 2 focuses on Shepard's efforts to rally support from the galaxy's leaders, and includes Priority: Palaven, EDI is Offline, Citadel Excursion 1, Priority: Sur'Kesh, Citadel Excursion 2, and Priority: Tuchanka. Act 3 sees Shepard attempting to end the longstanding conflict between the Quarians and the Geth, and includes Priority: The Citadel 2, Citadel Excursion 3, Citadel Excursion 4, Priority: Geth Dreadnought, and Priority: Rannoch. Finally, Act 4 takes you to the Asari homeworld of Thessia in search of the Catalyst, and includes Priority: The Citadel 3, Priority: Thessia, Priority: Horizon, Priority: Cerberus Headquarters, and Priority: Earth.
Note that completing only the main story missions is enough to finish the game, but players are encouraged to complete any side missions they come across, especially if they're related to the main story. With this guide, you'll be well-equipped to take on the Reapers and save the galaxy.
Mass Effect 3 Walkthrough
Mass Effect 3 Walkthrough covers the whole walkthrough from the opening on Earth to the grand finale of the Mass Effect Trilogy. It provides tips on how to prepare for and win all combat encounters, where to find all the collectables, and how to pick the right dialogue options for your playthrough. The guide also covers the rewards and fallout in the aftermath of each Mission.
Act 1 - Earth: In the opening, Commander Shepard must escape Earth and find a way to stop the Reapers from annihilating all sentient life in the galaxy. This section covers the Prologue, Priority: Mars, Priority: The Citadel 1, Normandy: First Visit, and Normandy Collectibles.
Act 2 - Turians and Krogan: With the Council unwilling to band together in support of the Crucible, Shepard decides to appeal directly to their leadership. This section covers Priority: Palaven, EDI is Offline, Citadel Excursion 1, Priority: Sur'Kesh, Citadel Excursion 2, and Priority: Tuchanka.
Act 3 - Quarians and Geth: Shepard must attempt to end one of the longest-standing cold wars in the galaxy after securing Krogan's support for the Turians. This section covers Priority: The Citadel 2, Citadel Excursion 3, Citadel Excursion 4, Priority: Geth Dreadnought, and Priority: Rannoch.
Act 4 - Cerberus and Reapers: Shepard is directed to the Asari homeworld of Thessia in search of the Catalyst, the key component of the Crucible, putting them on a collision course with Cerberus. This section covers Priority: The Citadel 3, Priority: Thessia, Priority: Horizon, Priority: Cerberus Headquarters, and Priority: Earth.
The Finale: This section covers the Endings of the game.
Note that completing only the primary story Missions is enough to finish the game, but players are encouraged to complete any Side Missions they might pick up along the way, especially if they're related to the primary ones.
Mass Effect 3 Wiki
The Mass Effect 3 Wiki is a comprehensive resource for exploring the third entry in the Mass Effect trilogy. Originally released as an Xbox 360 exclusive in 2007, it was later ported to Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 3 in 2008 and 2012, respectively. In 2021, a remastered version of the entire Mass Effect trilogy was released for Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 as Mass Effect: Legendary Edition.
Mass Effect 3 boasts incredible, interactive storytelling that allows players to create and customize their character, including Commander Shepard's appearance and skills, as well as a personalized arsenal. Players can unleash devastating abilities as they command and train their team, with each decision controlling the outcome of each mission, relationships with crew members, and ultimately, the entire war.
The game features an expansive universe to explore, from the massive Citadel to the harsh, radioactive landscape of the Krogan home world. Players can travel to the farthest outposts aboard the SSV Normandy, the most technologically advanced ship in the galaxy. They can follow clues left by ancient civilizations, discover hidden bases with fantastic new tech, and lead their hand-picked crew into explosive alien battles.
The combat in Mass Effect 3 is both exciting and strategic, requiring players to find the perfect combination of squad mates and weapons for each battle to emerge victorious. Players must know their enemies and employ different tactics for different foes, such as heavily armored Geth Colossi or enemies with devastating biotic attacks.
Mass Effect 3 was originally released on March 6th, 2012, and was published by Electronic Arts and developed by BioWare.
Mass Effect 3 Trophy
Welcome to the MASS EFFECT 3 TROPHY GUIDE, where you can learn all about the 39 trophies available in this popular action role-playing video game. Whether you're a seasoned player looking to complete your trophy collection or a newcomer seeking guidance on how to earn these achievements, this guide will provide you with the necessary information to succeed. So buckle up and get ready to embark on an epic journey through the Mass Effect universe.
One of the new mechanics in Mass Effect 3 is Galaxy at War, a list of war assets that Shepard has secured during the game. To get the Master and Commander trophy, you need to gather approximately 75% of these assets. While the DLCs help with reaching this target, it's still advised to complete as many side missions as you can as they contribute to the collected Galaxy at War assets.
Upgrading Weapons
Like Mass Effect 2, Mass Effect 3 allows you to upgrade your weapons via a terminal in the Normandy Shuttle Bay. All you need is credits, with each subsequent upgrade on the same weapon costing a little bit more. You'll need to upgrade any weapon to level 10 for the Gunsmith trophy.
Phase One – Play up to Priority: Tuchunka
During this phase of the game, you'll be focusing on completing every mission available to you up to Priority: Tuchunka. The reason for this is that Priority: Tuchunka acts as a point of no return for some side missions. Once you progress beyond the Tuchunka mission, many uncompleted side missions will automatically fail, robbing you of potential war assets.
Visiting the Citadel often is recommended as Shepard can overhear people talking, leading to collection quests. These quests can be completed by traveling to the cluster mentioned by the quest giver and scanning planets to find an item. However, some of these quests need items that won't be accessible until after Priority: Tuchunka. If you're sure you can't complete a quest, move on and check back later.
You can also choose to complete the Omega and Leviathan DLCs during this phase, though you can wait until Phase Three if you prefer to do some leveling up first.
Phase One Trophies
During Phase One, you can earn the following trophies:
Completing these trophies will help you get the most out of your Mass Effect 3 experience.
Mass Effect 3 Roadmap
Phase One:
Phase Two:
Phase Three:
Mass Effect 3 Gameplay
- Customize Commander Shepard - Before the game begins, the player can customize their character's gender, appearance, military background, combat training, and first name.
- Import old save file - If the player has a completed saved game from Mass Effect 2, the character from that game can be imported, and decisions from prior Mass Effect titles are carried over, impacting the plot of Mass Effect 3.
- Choose character class - The player can choose from six different character classes, each with their own unique set of skills.
- Earn experience points - By completing assignments and quests, the player earns experience points which allow Shepard to level up, unlocking or upgrading skills along a tree.
- Select campaign mode - Mass Effect 3 has three pre-set campaign modes: Action, Story, and RPG, each with different conversation and combat difficulty settings.
- Augment guns - Players can augment guns with different ammo types, barrels, modifications, and scopes to improve their effectiveness in combat.
- Use Kinect for voice commands - If the player has Kinect, customization choices can be made verbally instead of selected using a controller.
- Unlock New Game+ - Upon beating the game, a New Game+ is unlocked, allowing the player to restart with certain bonuses, such as the ability to further upgrade weapons.
- Navigate using Normandy SR-2 - The primary mode of transportation in Mass Effect 3 is a starship called Normandy SR-2. Players can use a galaxy map to choose a destination point, scan planets for resources, or start missions.
- Manage tasks using a journal - The game automatically logs available missions in a journal, but does not distinguish between main quests and side quests.
- Increase Effective Military Strength - Mass Effect 3 revolves around increasing "Effective Military Strength" (EMS) to prepare for its final mission.
- Acquire War Assets and play multiplayer - TMS is increased by acquiring "War Assets," including accomplishments from all three Mass Effect games, whereas RR is increased by playing the multiplayer mode.
Mass Effect 3 Walkthrough -FAQs
While it is possible to jump into Mass Effect 3 without playing the previous games, it is highly recommended that you play Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 first, as the story and characters carry over and your choices in previous games can impact the events of Mass Effect 3.
Yes, you can customize your character's appearance in Mass Effect 3, including their gender, facial features, and armour. You can also import your character's appearance from previous games in the series.
Yes, Mass Effect 3 includes a cooperative multiplayer mode where players can team up to take on waves of enemies and earn rewards that can be used in the single-player campaign.
Yes, Mass Effect 3 has several difficulty levels to choose from, ranging from Casual to Insanity. The difficulty affects the strength and number of enemies you face, as well as the rewards you can earn.