Review of Mass Effect 3: Citadel by Adam Milton

This is my favorite DLC in the Mass Effect series, and it is not even close. Rarely does a DLC reach the heights this one does, exceed expectations, and feel so clearly designed by people who loved Mass Effect for people who love Mass Effect. This is more than I could have hoped for in terms of story and gameplay. This DLC just gets it, gets Mass Effect. This is a walk‑off grand slam in the All‑Star Game, and we all get to witness it.

I generally play this as the last thing before the final Priority mission in Mass Effect 3. It starts out as a dinner date with a squadmate and ends in a reaffirmation of why Mass Effect is so important to so many. Surviving squad members show up and help you fight a rogue mercenary group as you run through the archives of the Citadel. There is comedy in watching characters from all three games interact and fight together, and in listening as even Shepard pokes fun at himself. The mission ends with a poignant message about Shepard, the squad, and the series. I simply cannot think of a better way to end this DLC.

But it does not end there. You can throw a party in Anderson’s old Citadel apartment, and all of your living squadmates are there. They reminisce, talk, drink, dance, and catch up. It is excellent. Do the jokes always land? No. But it is fun and funny because the characters are great. After that you can spend time with each squad member out in the Citadel, playing games and getting them out of trouble.

My favorite part is the battle simulator. You get to pick the level, the difficulty, modifiers to earn more points, your squad, and the enemies you fight. Each time I play this DLC I spend weeks putting off finishing the game just to play this.

The rumors are that a lot of what people dislike about Mass Effect 3 is thanks to the undue influence of Electronic Arts. The ending, narrative, and certain gameplay choices were different before Electronic Arts forced changes. This DLC cannot prove that one way or another, but it does lend credence to the idea that BioWare may have had its hand forced, because no one who made this DLC would have made the same choices in the base game.

I cannot recommend this enough, as for me no Mass Effect playthrough is complete without it.