Ha, so you thought BioWare was only revamping the already existing endings?  For shame.  Out today, June 6th 2012 for XBLA, there was an update for the last game in the Mass Effect trilogy.  This update takes the original concepts for the endings and extends them with more footage and explanations.  The theory here is that after the fan outcry from disappointment, that BioWare could fix the tears from their fan base.

On top of all that, there has been a completely new ending added.  When I played through ME3, this ending actually crossed my mind – what if I don’t choose any of the three endings?  What if you trusted all your war efforts to beat the Reapers?  This is now an option for Shepard.

*SPOILERS*

There are new dialogue options where you basically tell the little boy to go stuff himself and that you aren’t anyone’s monkey.  This ends poorly for Shepard since now that all three options are removed you are stuck with the repercussions of your inaction.  If you thought all your running around playing Paul Revere would have stopped the Reapers… you were wrong.  The little boy says “The cycle continues” indicating that the Reapers will destroy / harvest all developed life so the fledgling species can evolve; rinse and repeat.   

While it isn’t showed, your efforts are all for nothing in this ending.  The next scene shows Liara’s capsule broadcasting to the universe about everything they know, how to beat the Reapers, and about their war with the Reapers.  She uses this capsule to represent hope for the next powerful species in the universe. 

At the very end there is a different scene with the child and Stargazer.  First off, the Stargazer is a woman and the dialogue is slightly different.  Even though Shepard didn’t make a decision back in his / her day, Shepard is still viewed as a great hero still. 

One thing that stood out to me in this ending is when you make your decision to do nothing, the child responds in a metallic and deep voice similar to Harbinger – saying, “So be it.”  So while BioWare has basically debunked all the “indoctrination ending” theory crafting, this one pitch change opens some new possibilities about his origin.  Check out the ending above if you haven’t seen it or want to spoil it for yourself.