I still haven't played it yet. I really liked ME1 but ME2 was going in the wrong direction for me. The reviews and demo for 3 turned me away from the series. I'll give it a try when it comes to ps+

I don't know who thought it was a good idea to change the gameplay from RPG to cover based shooter in a trilogy, it had so much potential.

The entire mass effect series is overrated :P

just my opinion though

The network mission in Geth Space is an optional mission, it's not DLC.  You actually have to do that mission to save both Geth and Quarian.  If you don't you have to choose.  That mission involes you going in the Geth network.  In there you find out how the war started.  Legion or whatever Geth is with you if Legion is dead, shows you the history in a 3D holographic fashion.  Legion explains that the imagery is being done by Shepard which is why the Quarian's in the flashbacks are in their suits since she/he didn't know what they look like underneath.  With that knowledge and a bit of imagination, you can figure out why Shepard manifested the A.I. as the child she/he couldn't save. 

The game was finished, the evac part after Harbinger attacks was a plot hole that may or may not have been finished.  The patch adds the evac in.

The second part I explained I didn't get from any wiki.  If you listen to what the A.I. says you can pretty much figure out what happens.  The A.I. explains why he was created and then gives you the means to alter the future.  It's just that you need the energy from the Mass Effect relays to actually get it done, which is why all the endings are the same video.  The outcomes though, are very very different for each one, you just have to figure out what happens.  For instance,  I actually predicted what Shepard would do if he/she took over the Reapers.  Months later I watched the paragon ending (I only did that one) and everything that happened is pretty much what I assumed would happen.  The only problem is that they don't really give a good ending for the rest of the characters and you need a bit of thinking to figure out what would happen in the 3 endings since they don't show it. 

I really enjoyed it! I thought the last act was spectacular, my only disappointment was the very last 10-15mins. It didn't do the rest of the story justice and failed to resolve many of the question which still lingered in my mind. Also it felt a bit cheap everything just being explained to you by an AI, almost like they ran out of time and had to just release it. That very ending should have been developed more.

Also I found the middle section a bit weak, too much military rambling.

Funnily enough, I did do that mission. But I guese I was starting to lose interest in the story because the last game I played to the end was Saints Row 3 and in there they too did a VR mission and I felt this was a stupid idea for a mission so my attention wasn't there all the time.

But I was made an offer I couldn't refuse. I had no interest in the series and would not have played it if it had not been on ps+. After playing 3 and the demo of 2 a while ago (assuming 1 plays exactly the same way) I'm not missing anything gameplay wise.

I admit, storywise I knew I was missing something because Kaiden kept being a moany bitch to me (I know in an alternate universe where Sheppard is a man, the two of them were in a relationship) but that still doesn't justify his cosiness with me.

Come back once you've played the entire series before critiquing the story aspect. As for the other things, we all have opinions.

I never understood the logic of skipping the previous entries of an established story and then trying to judge the story based on the merits of the conclusion...

I played 3 as well, the only one. Played it on pc.
Just really got bored of it.
People say mgs and heavy rain are just movies...
Mass effect is worse. Its a poorly written book.

Every level just felt like rooms with enemies. The bar planet was cool.
Space mining was interesting.
Game was just way too serious without any reason to care imo

Whilst a story being part of a continuation is enough to give it leeway it should however be enough to stand alone on its own two legs without its prequels and sequels. Mass Effect 3 for all its hype didn't it was just a bunch of sidequests thrown together to ultimately no consequence. 

One thing I didn't mention in my OP is the idea that you can't get the "best" ending i.e the best level of readiness unless you play multiplayer. THAT was BS, what does multiplayer have to do with my own individual playthrough? At no time should MP impact my game on a story driven game. To add insult to injury, from what I understand, there isn't much or any difference between the ending I got and the "best" ending.