As has been said, AP really nails choice and consequence, even if other parts of it are lacking. It also integrates gameplay and narrative in some nifty ways; for example, in one part of the game you have to choose between recovering some important data and letting an ally be executed - unless you've invested significant points into technical skills, in which case Thorton is able to do both.
Holy shit, if I'm thinking part you're thinking of, you can do both? Mind blown, I've never invested a lot in the tech tree.
Or, you know, that science simply can't explain yet. If the Reapers were eternal beings, how is this any less of a religious overtone?
How does one explain the sudden galaxy-wide transformation of every living thing including plants into cybernetic organisms complete with flashing circuitry? That's something so far beyond the ME universe's 'believability' scale that it should have been explained in some fashion.
If they had a typical ending, nobody would be talking about it. It wouldnt be on Forbes, there would be world wide speculation and debate. The ending debacle has caused more speculation and conversation than the game itself.
Maybe im crazy but, to me, IT makes perfect sense, everything else is a plot-hole filled mess. Im just going to sit and wait patiently. Id rather be blissfully ignorant by believing the IT and have some reason to the madness OR be bitter, unsatisfied and accept the terrible nonsensical ending thus leaving the series with a bitter taste in my mouth. But that's just me, we all have different perspectives as well as different subjective opinions on art.
Eh, people would have been talking about the ending to a player-choice-agency driven trilogy like ME3's no matter what. I agree that Bioware had to go above and beyond what was expected in some shape or form, but instead, they take a sudden abrupt turn into WTF's parking lot.
I also agree that IT solves a lot of the problems, but to me, that can't be used as the springboard for an argument, especially given the details we are given regarding re-writing the ending due to the script leak, only Walters and Hudson working on it, etc.