I found this summary on the BioWare forums of the theory:
Quote:
1. The endgame scenario is Indoctrination/Manipulation from the Reapers (Harbinger) trying to force you into choosing to let the Reapers live. Shepard is not awake during the final sceens!
2. Choosing to control the Reapers allows them to live. Reapers win. They will still exist.
3. Choosing to combine organic and synthetic life: Reapers win. They will still exist.
4. Choosing to destroy all synthetic life: Reapers loose. Shepard lives. Reapers die.
5. Choosing to destroy all synthetic life option is more Renegade in appearence. Controlling the Reapers is more Paragon in appearence. The Illusive Man's choice should not be Paragon colors, just as Anderson's choice should not be Renegade.
6. Shepard awakes at the end of destroying Reapers. But Shepard is not awaking from the aftermath. He is awaking from either after he is hit by Harbingers lazer attack on Earth or after the scene with Anderson and the Illusive Man.
7. Stating that all sythetic life will be destroyed will give you pause; destroying the Geth can force you to a different conclusion. This choice exists for the illusion of choice; the other choices are ment to sound better.
8. Shepard does not awake in the other 2 "endings" because you are fully indoctrinated by the choices you made to allow the Reapers to win. "Assuming Control!"
9. Never trust any child construct, be it a ghost or artificial intelligence, or heck even human. They are just creepy.
10. Shepard awakes at the end because he has broken hold of the Reaper's control.
11. Shepard has spent alot of time around Reapers. Soveriegn, various Reaper artifacts, the Human Reaper, 2 Reaper destroyers, the Artifact from "The Arrival." Its foolish to assume there is not some level of indoctrination.
12. Bioware not only get more $$$ for DLC for the final battle, but big props for INDOCTRINATING A LOT OF ITS OWN PLAYERS! I do not know of another gaming company that has tried to fool all of its consumers, but they look to be the first and reap all of the attention.
13. Look at these screenshots. I believe the 1m1 is a clue, because of how often it shows up, and how human it is, when the ship is supposedly older then the ancients.
14. Definitions:
Catalyst =1. Chemistry A substance, usually
used in small amounts relative to the reactants, that modifies and
increases the rate of a reaction without being consumed in the process.2. One that precipitates a process or event, especially without being involved in or changed by the consequences[/color][color=rgb(51, 51, 51)]
Addition information compiled from community and written by:
Crucible=
1. A vessel made of a refractory substance
such as graphite or porcelain, used for melting and calcining materials
at high temperatures.2. A severe test, as of patience or belief; a trial. See Synonyms at trial.3. A place, time, or situation characterized by the confluence of powerful intellectual, social, economic, or political forces:
Kitten Tactics:
-The endgame scenario is Indoctrination/Manipulation from the Reapers
(Harbinger) trying to force you into choosing to let the Reapers live.
Shepard is not awake during the final scenes.
-Choosing Control - You can not control them, they control you. Shepard says as much to the Illusive Man moments earlier.
-Choosing
Synthesis - Allows everyone in the galaxy to be manipulated by Reaper
code, like they have done to the Geth multiple times now.
-Choosing Destroy - Breaks the hold the reapers have on Shepard's mind.
-Choosing
to destroy all synthetic life option is more Renegade in appearence.
Controlling the Reapers is more Paragon in appearence. The Illusive
Man's choice should not be Paragon colors, just as Anderson's choice
should not be Renegade. The reapers are saying that Destroy is the
worst, Control is worse, and Synthesis is the best. They want you to
fail.
-Stating that all sythetic life will be destroyed will
give you pause; destroying the Geth can force you to a different
conclusion. This choice exists for the illusion of choice; the other
choices are ment to sound better.
-Shepard wakes up after
Destroy, because the Reaper's hold is diminished. Shepard does not
awake in the other 2 "endings" because you are fully indoctrinated by
the choices you made to allow the Reapers to win. "Assuming Control!"
-The
child does not actually exist. He is an attempt to indoctrinate
Shepard. Nobody but Shepard ever sees or interacts with the child.
-When
Anderson calls for Shepard at the beginning of the game, when Shepard
is talking to the child, Shepard turns back and the child is gone.
Shepard has been "snapped out of it".
-When Shepard turns towards
Anderson after being "snapped out of it", a growl is heard. In the
third novel, when Greyson resisted the reapers they would make a
growling noise once they realized they didn't have him under complete
control.
-During Shepard's final dream with the child, chatter
can be heard over the radio about nobody making it to the beam. Shepard
is still in London.
-When Shepard catches the child in the final
dream, they are both engulfed in flame. Going with the child (the
reapers) means Shepard's destruction.
-Shepard has spent alot of
time around Reapers. Soveriegn, various Reaper artifacts, the Human
Reaper, 2 Reaper destroyers, the Artifact from "The Arrival." Its
foolish to assume there is not some level of indoctrination.
-When Shepard wakes up at the end of Destroy, he/she is waking up in London, after being hit with the laser.