User blog comment:The Milkman/The Writing of the Ending/@comment-24174486-20120726200543/@comment-1786741-20120823183449

First off, yes, the Crucible is not a Deus Ex Machina but it is a similar plot device known as a MacGuffin. "In fiction, a MacGuffin (sometimes McGuffin or maguffin) is a plot device in the form of some goal, desired object, or other motivator that the protagonist (and sometimes the antagonist) is willing to do and sacrifice almost anything to pursue, often with little or no narrative explanation as to why it is considered so desirable." Sure, you try to build the Catalyst because you think it could defeat the Reapers but you don't even know how it does this or if it can even work. Second, just because you're told the Catalyst exists does not mean that is proper foreshadowing. Sure, you know it's SOMETHING and you need it for the Crucible. Can you honestly tell me you knew the Catalyst was an AI that controlled the Reapers before you actually saw it? If you say yes, then you're obviously lying because no one less than a psychic Sherlock Holmes could see that coming. While you do learn about the Catalyst before the ending, you only find out it exists roughly two-thirds into the game. Hell, even Wikipedia recognizes the Catalyst as a literal Deus Ex Machina, just look at this quote: "In Mass Effect 3, the story is resolved using Deus ex machina, via "The Catalyst." The Catalyst is able to conveniently solve the series' primary problem (organic life vs. synthetic life) through one of three different solutions. The way this works is never explained in detail, except that the Crucible has changed the Catalyst, and there are now "new possibilities." The Catalyst represents Deus ex machina both literally and figuratively."