Having your character talk during cutscenes

[Kallera]

I'm not so sure about that, I mean as the OP mentioned, Mass Effect gave Shepard a voice and yet you never feel disassociated with your character because it's you choosing the dialogue and what they have to say. A character that stands on the sidelines and never really makes any choices or effects the decisions made in a conversation gives the player a sort of distant relationship from the events of the game, as if we're merely observing a scene play out instead of inhabiting it. With a voice, we're taking the reins and gain control of our character, instead of being shunted to the side.

And I mean, personally I don't see why other characters having the same voice would effect how we immerse. In no instance are we going to be talking to someone with the same voice, or even hear the same voice in a cutscene because the scenes are specific to our character. After all, the voice we choose when we initially create a character is a product of our decision. I can understand why others feel differently, but I guess it's merely a matter of preference.

Mass Effect 3 is a single player RPG with Shepard. If Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer only allowed you to play male or female Shepard voices, that would only be a sampling of the problems you'd have in a MMO with limited voices.

And that's not even going into the costs as the MMORPG expands in recording new lines and keeping said actors available, making much more difficult than with its smaller cousins.