How important are romances in Mass effect 1-3?

[Zoggeritis ohne Iris]

how important is the romance in mass effect 1-3?
is there any preffer relationship i should pick or it realy doesnt matter who you choose?
does it affect the game in any wise in mass effect 2 and 3 or i should not care about this?.
who you guys picked and why?.
i think Liara T'Soni is the only character u can choose in evry mass effect.

[IrationalFear]

Unlike some other games, Mass Effect doesn't include anything like extra items/perks/stats for romances. Frankly, the romances have virtually no mechanical impact on the game and offer no advantage.

There 2/3 exceptions, however.

1. If you complete the romance with Miranda in Mass Effect 2, but break up in Mass Effect 3, then this character will die in ME3.

2. If you complete the romance for Ashley or Kaiden, and maintain that relationship in ME2 and ME3, there is a persuasion event in Mass Effect 3 which will be easier to complete than if you started fresh without the romance; the effect of that persuasion event is solely tied to the fate of this same character, so it only matters as an "advantage" if you have taken almost no moral stances and have been neutral through the entire trilogy up to that point. As such, there's no real mechanical advantage here.


Despite having almost no mechanical effect, romances can provide a lot of insight into the lore of the game, character development, significantly longer conversations, extra cutscenes regarding other characters not being romanced (or exes), and more. It's some of the best content in the trilogy and one of the main draws.

Instead of planning romances ahead of time, I would suggest simply playing the game as you go, only going for romance if you really like the character.

Note that some characters are available for romance in ME2 or ME3 but weren't in ME1; every ME1 romance option can be picked in ME3 even if you didn't in ME1.

Furthermore, although Liara is available for a 3-game romance, the difference in total content for her romance and the others available in ME1 and ME2 from a trilogy-long perspective is smaller than you'd think. Go for who you think is most interesting (if anyone), not who the developers spent the most money and resources on (unless they are the same, as plenty of players would agree).

There are also scenes in each game in the trilogy made specifically for players that romanced nobody, which are worth seeing at least once.

[Synavix]

The only thing I would add to the above post is Kelly Chambers in ME2. If you flirt with her then halfway through the game you'll get the option to have a private dinner with her, and after that she will offer to feed your fish for you. It doesn't change anything, and it doesn't count as a "real" romance option, but it means you don't have to worry about feeding your fish manually after every mission.

I usually pick Liara since she has a lot of little extra scenes, but I always do Kelly Chambers too just for the fish feeding.

[Zoggeritis ohne Iris]

Originally posted by IrationalFear:

Unlike some other games, Mass Effect doesn't include anything like extra items/perks/stats for romances. Frankly, the romances have virtually no mechanical impact on the game and offer no advantage.

ok thx for the informations :).
but i thought u can date ashley and kaiden only ind ME 1 and 3 and 2 u cant date them.....

ok since the romances aren o important part i can play now much more relaxed thx^^

[Dethlane]

Originally posted by Synavix:

The only thing I would add to the above post is Kelly Chambers in ME2. If you flirt with her then halfway through the game you'll get the option to have a private dinner with her, and after that she will offer to feed your fish for you. It doesn't change anything, and it doesn't count as a "real" romance option, but it means you don't have to worry about feeding your fish manually after every mission.

On top of that IF (and only if) you had dinner with Kelly in ME2, you can meet her in ME3 for a couple of dialogues and depending on your next actions she lives, gets killed or commits suicide

[InquisitorGrey]

Tali'Zorah, all the way :)
First introduced in ME1, can be romanced in 2+3. Worth it

[Avalanche]

Originally posted by Fedaykin:

Tali'Zorah, all the way :)
First introduced in ME1, can be romanced in 2+3. Worth it

Yeah, i am personally a fan of Tali.

[X90]

Not at all. Totally overblown by the media and horny kids online.

Do it if you want, they're mostly completely inconsequential and uninteresting, and have almost zero story ramifications.