Priority: Earth Overhaul Mod represents 4 years of cumulative work that transforms Mass Effect 3's lowest point into its highest; a comprehensive attempt to improve the finale in every way possible, featuring restoration of cut content, more polish, new gameplay elements, and so much more. All while remaining faithful to Bioware's original vision.
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Changelogs
Version 2.2
Added language support for Spanish, German, French, Italian, Polish, Russian, and Japanese
Improved functionality for Garrus so that his ambient lines and the ones from other Turians don't trip over each other
Fixed a bug with the mod where Kirrahe's men did not have collision
Fixed a bug with the mod where Garrus was still selectable after his lines were exhausted
Version 2.1
Added a Compatibility Patch for Miranda Mod
Rebalanced how frequently Miranda adds her commentary during the mission in comparison to other squadmates
Version 2.0
Rebalanced all ambient audio in the level and polished various triggers
Introduced dozens of changes, additions, and restorations to the Forward Base (check the corresponding section in the mod description)
Introduced dozens of changes that contribute to a total rework of the visuals
Expanded compatibility to include all of Scotinna's "X lives" mods, excluding the newly released Legion Lives
Several changes to the Westminster section (e.g. Cortez's scene)
Notifications related to your forces will appear during the Hammer Assault section
Expanded the Streaming changes to include the Hub, meaning that it is now visible when you look back during the Hammer Assault section
Additional bug fixes for both the mod and the vanilla game
TONS of miscellaneous polish and improved functionality
Version 1.1a
Fixed several issues with the Take Earth Back patch
Version 1.1
A version of mod designed for compatibility with Take Earth Back is now available. For users of this version, TEB will take over the Forward Base and the Conduit Run, while PEOM's changes take priority everywhere else throughout the mission. While in the Hub, TEB users will also see the Reaper Destroyer and the overhauled vista from PEOM.
Several bug fixes for the 1.0 version
Dialed back the lighting changes a little bit (what was I thinking???)
From the original PEOM, ported the short music track that plays when jumping into Coats' shuttle.
Expanded the liberated Hammer convoy with more particle effects, vehicles, and 3D soldiers that physically move across the streets. Number of new vehicles and soldiers depend on your EMS. Convoy is overhauled compared to the original PEOM.
Fixed a (vanilla) issue at the Turret Building where the liberated Hammer convoy wouldn't advance if the player reloaded a save.
Major Streaming Update: All areas and parts of the level between the Oxford Street (e.g. where you meet Grunt) and Thannix Area (e.g. where you meet Zaeed) are now a cohesive whole that is loaded at all times. This means you can now see areas you're going to and areas you've previously been at. You can also see more areas ahead of you while in the Hub. This is all very important for visual immersion and maintaining a sense of progression.
Major Art Update: The vista has been overhauled and now feels much more alive and less static compared to vanilla. This includes:
From the original PEOM, ported the Reaper who lands and takes off from various distant locations while in the Hub. Overhauled compared to the original.
From the original PEOM, ported various particles from around the level: Alliance Fighters, smoke, falling debris, fire, etc. The number of Alliance Fighters in the sky depends on your EMS. Overhauled compared to the original.
Unlike the original PEOM, the position and rotation of cloud particles has been hand-adjusted to complement the skybox, which makes it come to life in ways that are unusual for Mass Effect 3.
"Coffees" are very much appreciated and noticed, especially as this is an ongoing project and modding tends to extend long into the night, where "caffeine" helps me stay awake. ;)
PEOM is one of the most detailed, well-crafted mods I've ever seen. - Randy M., Tester
The greatest journey demands the greatest finale.
The re-release of Priority: Earth Overhaul Mod for the Legendary Edition doubles as both a port of the original project and an update for the same.
PEOM finishes what Bioware started a decade ago, by providing a satisfying finale for one of the most popular franchises in gaming culture. Simultaneously, it strictly remains true to Bioware's original vision and design for Priority: Earth before the production issues took their toll.
This means that everything in PEOM feels authentic and you will never feel like you're playing with a "mod" installed, but rather with a greatly improved original experience. You have my personal guarantee for all of that.
CHANGES
PEOM is massive. Bear in mind that the Legendary Edition port is an open, ongoing project. A large chunk of changes from the original PEOM is yet to be implemented, but will be over time. As this happens, they will be listed in their respective sections.
All changes are listed in the order in which they appear as you play through the level.
General changes refer to edits that encompass the entire level, expand beyond Priority: Earth, or target multiple areas of the level at once. Expand the section below:
Spoiler:
Show
New (50+ audio effects): Rebalanced the volume and triggers for all ambient audio, creating a far more immersive experience
New (40+ changes):Starting with the Forward Base, completely overhauled the visuals: Better lighting, fog, and tons of new or changed geometry, props, particle effects (e.g. fighters in the sky, fires, etc.), bug fixes to materials and cubemaps (e.g. roads and glass reflections), and much more. The skybox has also been rotated to match the official artwork, and various effects such as clouds or lightning have been hand-placed to complement the new skybox, thus brining it to life in ways that are unusual for Mass Effect 3's traditionally static skyboxes.
Removed some lens flares from the background Conduit
Fixed various (vanilla) issues with streaming that resulted in glaring holes inside the level
Fixed various (vanilla) issues that resulted in stuttering
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where some dialogue during Hammer Assault wouldn't play after reloading a save
The Reaper Destroyer will loom over the level starting with the Hub, and occassionally announce his presence
New: Starting with the Hub, a single Reaper Capital Ship will be visible in the far distance. He will take off and land at various places and complement the visuals.
New: Cortez's potential status has been overhauled, and visiting him at the Citadel Memorial is the only factor determining his survival in London. This also means that a romanced Cortez can still die. This change fixes the infamous "STEEVE" moment and unlocks new dialogue at the Hub Arrival scene, as Lord Casey intended.
New: Streaming: Starting with the Forward Base, all areas and parts of the level are now a cohesive whole that is loaded at all times. This means you can now see areas you're going to and areas you've previously been at.
Spoiler:
Show
Added a "fake" loading screen in-between Sword and the Shuttle intro
Restored: The original shuttle scene, featuring new Joker dialogue, tweaks to editing, and a variation of Shepard's response to Cortez
New: An original combat track now plays during this section, starting after the shuttle cutscene
New: The AA Gun must now be completed within a time frame, as Hammer's forces are taking a continuous beating in accordance with the narrative Failing to do so results in a Game Over screen alongside a BIK showing your forces being wiped out
Reduced the AA Gun shake from 1.5 to 0.8
The AA Gun will no longer abruptly stop during Cortez's Crash scene
Restored: If Cortez dies, Ashley/Kaidan/James will shoot their weapons into the sky out of anger. Also some miscellaneous polish to scene overall.
New: If Cortez dies, his crashed shuttle will now be visible in the level.
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where Shepard's animations while wielding a dual-handed weapon did not match the animations while wielding a one-handed weapon.
Restructured the placement and timing of Shepard's lines calling for evac: The first call and subsequent radio static happen immediately after Cortez crashes
Restored: A line when Shepard picks up the Cain
Restored: Henchmen commentary when taking out the AA Gun
Restored: A camera shot when the AA Gun gets destroyed
Adjusted various timers and delays during the Horde mode so that the section drags out less
New: A short music track now plays when jumping into Coats' shuttle
Coats will be subtitled as "Radio" before he arrives with the shuttle, and the subtitle for his static transmissions are no longer hidden
Rebalanced the Shuttle's HP so that the mechanic is an actual challenge; also re-arranged a few of Coats' lines
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where if the shuttle is destroyed, the engine emitters will no longer stay flying in the air
Spoiler:
Show
New: Overhauled the audio design for the Hammer Landing BIK scene, including the restoration of audio lines for Alliance Marines
New: Overhauled and expanded the cutscene when you arrive at the Hub based on developer Stage Directions: Includes new shots, fighters flying by, NPCs, a bug fix for vanishing squadmates, a curated music trigger and appropriate drop in ambience volume, and more.
Diversified the appearance of Alliance Marines (20+ changes): including new faces, an unused version of the "clean" armor, props like hats or microphones, etc.
For the sake of polish/immersion, interactable characters in the Hub will start performing some kind of action after you talk to them rather than standing awkwardly.
New: Additional NPCs belonging to various races have been placed in the Hub. Some of them will appear in cutscenes later in the mission.
New: Backported the animation catalogue from the DLC. This means that existing animation sets will be expanded to feature new animations and less repetition.
New: In order to make things feel less static, some NPCs have received hand-crafted animation sets that emphasize motion and movement.
The shuttle which drops the crate will no longer appear out of nowhere as you climb down the ladder, but will instead fly down (with the crate) beforehand.
Streaming: James and other NPCs will now be visible before you climb down the ladder
Restored: Dialogue in James's cutscene
Restored: A voice line from Shepard during Cortez's goodbye
New: If he was spoken to at Sur'kesh, Kirrahe and the STG will now appear in the Hub. His speech is an optional cutscene.
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where an Alliance Marine was standing in a blocked off window and clipping through the blinders
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where James would vanish after walking up to the Turian Room
New: The Marines guarding the Barricade are now visible before you start the Barricade event, and include hand-crafted animation sets.
Restored: The Turian Sniper and his corresponding voice lines.
Restored: Primarch Victus is no longer a brief ambient exchange, but is now a full conversation that has all of its cut content restored.
Restored: The original conversation with Garrus, featuring the Turian Ninth Platoon. Restoration also includes a few unused ambient lines by Garrus.
Restored: The original Barricade/Turret event; includes Marines being overwhelmed by Husks, an ambient scene where Marines try to escape the crashed APC, an additional Marine who helps in shooting. Also includes UI elements that communicates Bioware's vanilla mechanic - the outcome of which is now appropriately reflected in the subsequent hospital area.
New: Streaming: The entire Hub is now loaded at once, which fixes many holes in the level. As a result of supporting changes, that includes when NPCs are loaded/unloaded, there is a lot more freedom to walk back and forth. For instance, the Barricade door will no longer seal when you enter the hospital, allowing you to go back if you want. Once the doors eventually close, they'll have appropriate VFX.
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where ambient audio would vanish after finishing the Barricade section.
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where the second fighter did not have engine emitters.
New: Added more wounded soldiers to the Hospital based on the aforemtnioned Barricade objective, alongside other NPCs and props.
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where the Hospital Radio dialogue would only continue to play under very rare circumstances
The Doctor is now subtitled as "Doctor" rather than "Marine".
Javik's position/rotation will now be consistent before and after the cutscene; also polished his cutscene
New: The Krogan/Salarian armies have been expanded with new NPCs, including Varren and combat drones.
New: Asari, Geth, and Quarian forces are now present in the Alien Hall.
New: A brief cutscene will play when approaching Wrex/Wreav/Vaykom
Restored: A variation of Wrex's greeting; depends on friendship status
Restored: One of Wrex's shouts to his men
Wrex/Wreav will no longer repeat their ambient lines infinitely
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where reloading a save in the Alien Street (Krogan/Salarian army) reveals the 3 Alliance Marines who participate in the previously unused event
Restored: Speaking of which, the event where a shuttle drops off additional soldiers has been restored
New: Three camera shots can be triggered in the Alien Hall. The shots portray the various races that gathered around
Restored: Several ambient lines spoken by Anderson
Both the Quarians and the Geth can now appear in the Hub if peace was achieved on Rannoch.
Polished and improved the conversation with Admiral Raan
The flow/chain of ambient lines spoken Anderson/Coats will no longer be interrupted by speaking to any of the characters in the Command Room. The ambient lines will dynamically continue after each conversation.
New: The conversation with the Geth Prime now features cameras, animations and a dialogue wheel. The conversation can also be repeated, and several unused lines have also been restored.
Restored: Anderson's smile during the Debrief Scene.
New: In the Command Room, the city map and globe now use new, more detailed, and more accurate models.
Miscellaneous polish (e.g. Snipers no longer shooting into nothing at the sky)
Spoiler:
Show
I could write a goddamn essay on every good game design decision this mod makes. - greaterRybobski, Tester
"Cross No-Man's Land" objective is now "Take Earth Back"
New: Notifications indicating the status of Hammer Forces will be shown at various points. Some notifications depend on EMS.
The timing/positioning of some radio dialogue has been changed to accomodate the Temporary Allies and other changes; also polished vanilla sequences so that dialogue isn't cut off by entering new areas or opening doors
Restored: A voice line from an Alliance Marine ("We've got Harvesters incoming")
New: Temporary Allies; The Geth can now drop down from orbit to assist you
New: The Mako vs. Harvester Duel will now feature an HP bar for the Mako that better communicates Bioware's vanilla mechanic
Combat Music will no longer stop after the Mako vs. Harvester duel is finished. It continues until the end of Hammer Assault, with appropriate switches between the High and Low versions
The enemies in the underground parking have been rebalanced for more explosive gameplay
Restored: While in the underground parking, Shepard will enable his weapon flashlight
New: Expanded the liberated Hammer convoy with more particle effects, vehicles, and 3D soldiers that physically move across the streets. The scene was hand-created and loops. Number of new vehicles and soldiers depends on your EMS.
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where the liberated Hammer convoy wouldn't advance if the player reloaded a save.
New: Temporary Allies - Oxford Street now contains an interactive battlefield where you can cross paths with Kirrahe and Grunt
Oxford Store contains fewer enemies and is used to slow down the pacing
The Reaper Destroyer BIK scene now plays at the door leading into the Oxford Bar and is used to complement the radio dialogue
Restored: Squadmate commentary when Brutes burst through the wall; the event also features slow motion
New: Temporary Allies - The Thannix Area now contains an interactive battlefield where you cross paths with Zaeed and Jacob
Fixed a (vanilla) issue where the Reaper Destroyer didn't close his facial plate after he shooting his beam. Also fixed a vanilla issue where the eye lens flare clips through that same plate.
COMPATIBILITY
Patching permissions are open, meaning other authors or users may create patches between PEOM and another mod.
Not Compatible:
Turian Fireteam
Legion Lives
Semi-Compatible (untested, or it means that one mod overrides the other in certain parts)
Project Variety
Box of Tweaks
Compatible:
Take Earth Back
Everything else, including Ending Mods
INSTALLATION
Simply plug and play. Please note that some functionalities of PEOM will not work if you load a save during the mission itself. In other words, to avoid issues, it's best to play the mission from the start.
Voice Acting: George Szilagy (Bioware) - Major Kirrahe Rosie Alldred (Bioware) - Rose Mainer
SPECIAL THANKS
The people behind the Unofficial LE2 Patch, the LE1 Community Patch, and MELLO for inspiring me to start modding the LE through their tireless and incredible work.
FAQ
1. Do I need to start a new playthrough?
No. PEOM, and all of it's features, function perfectly regardless of your playthrough's status.
2. What's up with all of your claims about being "faithful to Bioware's vision"? How could you ever do that?
Answer:
Spoiler:
Show
In Skyrim terms, PEOM is a Vanilla+ kind of mod.
The reason for that is because the majority of PEOM's changes stem from:
a) Content that was already in the files, which was either unused or in a fragmented state that had to be put back together.
b) New content, which was created by interpreting developer commentary found inside the files, or within the game's original script from 2011.
c) New content that aims to give better explanation, context, and/or meaning to what is already happening on the screen. For instance, a health bar for the Mako during the Mako vs. Harvester duel, that simply communicates an existing (but invisible) mechanic to the player.
