Is Mass Effect a Star Ocean 3 ripoff?

[EZ-Megaman]

During the first two games in the Mass Effect series, I shrugged similartieis like the Executioners and Reapers off as a coincidence, but both games ended similarly, by breaking the fourth wall. Both of them ignore that the entire galaxy is destroyed too.

Does anyone else see anything similar between Mass Effect and Star Ocean 3?
I know that Mass Effect is pretty popular, so I expect everyone to have at least heard of it, but I don't know many people who have played/heard of Star Ocean 3, so here's its Wiki page if you want to know about it.
Also, sorry if this is the wrong board, or a similar topic already exists.

 

[Skelletonike]

I'm quite a fan of Star Ocean, hell, I own all the games, and just love the series...

And well, they're pretty dif, one is more action turn based rpg, whereas the other is TPS rpg, they have similar backgrounds sure, but the rest is like totally dif... If you actually played all Star Ocean and all Mass Effect games, you'll see that they're nothing like one another, just the place where the games take place, which is in Space.

 

[Guild McCommunist]

They're all just rip offs of Star Trek as the Borg have been trying to do exactly what the Reapers have been wanting to do since Star Trek TNG.

The plot point of having a powerful, hive-based race wanting to destroy life that isn't it isn't new to sci-fi. It's a staple if anything.

 

[emigre]

I'm just here to say Star Ocean is shit.

Star Ocean is shit.

 

[rdurbin]

I always thought star ocean was a rip off of star trek, they have similar technology, similar rules, for example in star ocean they have a rule where you not suppose to interfere with worlds that are underdeveloped, sounds a lot like the Prime Directive in Star Trek. In Star Ocean I think it was underdeveloped planetary pact or something similar

 

[Gahars]

This would be like saying Unforgiven is a rip off of The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly because both are westerns with horses.

Also, while the Reapers (and whatever the equivalent is from SO3) do bear a certain resemblance to the Borg, they're much closer to the Shadows and Vorlons from Babylon 5. Bring it, Guild. Just pointing that out.

 

[Guild McCommunist]

Also, while the Reapers (and whatever the equivalent is from SO3) do bear a certain resemblance to the Borg, they're much closer to the Shadows and Vorlons from Babylon 5. Bring it, Guild. Just pointing that out.

I was gonna say Babylon Why but I forgot what the Blogons bad guys were.

Also see the Cylons in Battlestar Galactica and the trash cans in Doctor Who (their names escape me at the moment) for other examples of this.

 

[Gahars]

Also, while the Reapers (and whatever the equivalent is from SO3) do bear a certain resemblance to the Borg, they're much closer to the Shadows and Vorlons from Babylon 5. Bring it, Guild. Just pointing that out.

I was gonna say Babylon Why but I forgot what the Blogons bad guys were.

Implying that Community too was inspired by Babylon 5 (Still hoping for a 70s infused remake titled Babylon Jive). I guess you might just have to...

 

[Phoenix Goddess]

Implying that Community too was inspired by Babylon 5 (Still hoping for a 70s infused remake titled Babylon Jive). I guess you might just have to...

That guy has some awesome hair.

 

[Guild McCommunist]

That guy has some awesome hair.

For the record.

 

[Gahars]

That guy has some awesome hair.

For the record.

For the record, that's the formal style for the Centauri. The Centauri know how to class it up.

 

[gweigeiss]

*** Spoilers ***
I presume you are referring to Plot device wise, if so they are similar. Both pass a point their technology incited the destruction of their kind for Mass Effect it was Artificial Intelligence and Star Ocean technology breaching to the 4th Dimension, Both weren't given a chance to eliminate their works because of future possible creation, Executioners(anti-virus) and Reapers to help eradicate, so goes for anything having mass destruction in other scifi or fantasy. Both involve scifi tech same can be said for many other scifi. Both live continuously with their worlds separated in the end (relays destroyed, 3D and 4D diverge to separate entities). That is as far as I have come across.

However, main plots differ, one being that virtual AI becoming self aware and able to go to the 4D that the creator became paranoid at eliminating them. Mass Effect plays a story similar to Adam and Eve, Reaper leave their technology for other species to base on (Putting the tree of knowledge in Eden knowing the outcome already) which in turn would eventually lead to the development of AI (Determined to Sin from the FRUIT) and after the deed was done destroy them all (Cast out of Eden to bear suffering).

All in all the latter have a ridiculous story. If the Reapers were clever enough to make a path to lead to becoming a reaper without killing or no AI at all the story would unwind differently and maybe more interesting however, they didnt explain clearer why AI would turn against organics, what strike me most odd is that the Citadel banned development of AI and the reapers used the help of their worst enemy AI (Geth) and also their plot devices and technology were rather weak/not very high tech/society for such an interstellar society same like star wars (inb4 not in the same galaxy) since our society have already been studying these field increasingly. Also might I add, Teggen Toppa Gurren Lagann has also very similar story, but this involve a population control so that Spiral Energy dont burn out the universe thus being controlled by ancient powers that transformed themselves to another form (like the reapers) to regulate other species and destroy them all when the threshold was reached. also they employ the use of beastmen (synthetics).

 

[prowler]

I'm quite a fan of Star Ocean, hell, I own all the games, and just love the series...

And well, they're pretty dif, one is more action turn based rpg, whereas the other is TPS rpg, they have similar backgrounds sure, but the rest is like totally dif... If you actually played all Star Ocean and all Mass Effect games, you'll see that they're nothing like one another, just the place where the games take place, which is in Space.

he isn't saying the gameplay is a ripoff

 

[EZ-Megaman]

Huh. I've never watched/read/played many sci-fi works other than the aforementioned games (and a few others) so I guess that was dumb on myr part. >_<
Probably would've been better if I researched into it more. :/