-Can control all the Reapers throughout the galaxy.
-Can overthrow its organic masters and nearly annihlate them
-Can somehow rewrite genetic and synthetic code for all living/synthetic being in the galaxy with some help.
but it can't observe the lesser races and open the portal to Deep Space to the Reapers on the very space station is resides? You know the whole plot of ME1 with Sovereign.
Guess space magic has its limits.
I am curious about how the Catalyst managed to usurp the Leviathans, though on the other hand the overall operating timeline for it is extremely long; as unlikely as it may seem that it could do so, it had a ton of time to work as well.
The whole DNA rewrite thing I guess it depends on what you think the limits of technology ultimately are. I mean the current cycle's technology is still absolutely primitive relative to the capabilities of Reapers/Leviathans, but even so Cerberus was able to accurately reconstruct and 'reactivate' Shepherd so it's clearly a universe where DNA/cell replication and manipulation 'works'. Plus the AI clearly learns as it progresses, so who knows what it could be capable of starting with Leviathan tech and having eons worth of knowledge added to that.
It certainly isn't omnipotent however. As an AI it's still physically restricted by it's hardware, it can't just walk outside and look around; it has no physical form, the 'child' is presumably just a projection. It's unknown if the Citadel was actually constructed by the Leviathans or the Catalyst/Reapers, but having those kinds of physical shackles might give credence to the idea that the Leviathans built it with those specific restrictions in mind to try to help keep the Catalyst in check. It's my understanding/interpretation that the Reapers are the eyes/ears/hands of the Catalyst.
One thing that I've also always been curious about is the Reaper's sentience. Whether or not each reaper is actually a distinct intelligence or just a 'reduced' copy of the Catalyst. Or maybe even just drones that the Catalyst can control absolutely and he simply portrays them as individuals.
No. You are correct IrishScott, StarChild was created as a last minute character to wrap up the game. Specifically, he's a Deus es Machinma.
Depends on your interpretation, but to me, I think it's logical that an AI directs the reapers. The citadel is still such an enigma that nobody could know it exists explicitly, so there's good reason it's concealed until the end, because it fits. It's simply unattainable knowledge until you encounter the Leviathans or reach the Citadel's interior. But at the same time, given how the reapers all act in unison and they act so methodically and the simple fact that they are machines were all clues that there might be something behind the scenes directing them.
It's no more of a deus ex machina than Saren's body fortunately shattering Sovereign's shields in ME1 imo. There's really no good reason for that to happen, there's no plan for it to happen, but yet it's absolutely necessary for our survival and pretty much saves our asses from out of nowhere. But sometimes you just get lucky, and if you think about it a lot of the great, big, bombastic stories that we enjoy require no small amount of luck. I think part of enjoying them is just rolling with the punches and not thinking about it too much at times