Just Completed Mass Effect

[da teacha]

It's been a while since it came out, but I've only recently got a high end laptop so have been able to discover some of the treasures from the previous few years....

A brilliant game, however what really intrigued me is how they presented the future. It felt as if though the future really could take such a course, and that I was playing through life in a few hundred/thousand years. I found the political issues found between the different alien races to be particularly interesting.

It's a shame there weren't so many developed worlds to discover however. I wanted to see the home planets of each of the different races, and it was a shame that many of the planets were barren, with facilities which just felt like they were obviously copied and pasted en masse.

Of course it's a huge game, and it would've taken so much time to expand the story and create a vast array of other worlds as detailed as the citadel, probably without increasing sales so much. So I can understand. But questing overly felt like a grind in the midgame, and very disattached from the main story. Additionally, I hated how wherever you would go, the things you would find would be in line with your charecter's power. It felt like you couldn't find anything special anywhere, just endless crates of average items which you could sell for no real purpose. Thsi especially became annoying after I bought the spectre weapons upon returning to the citadel. The rest of the game I felt overpowered and obliterated everything, even though it was veteran difficulty.

The ending was a bit of a letdown too. The final fight with Saren was a bit of a joke. I had a weapon overheat bug, which meant whenever he used biotitcs to overheat my weapons, they'd never cooldown. I had to defeat him using an untrained shotgun and assault rifle with biotics, and it didn't even feel tense. He was floating around for the taking. And the second form wasn't much of an improvement either. I'm pretty sure they could've put together an epic scene with some great music for the finale of such an epic game...

But still, all in all, I'm very glad I played through it, and Mass Effect 2 shall be started shortly. Am I in for a good ride?

[Yurpen]

No it will suck as much as yer mom does.

[Arcade]

Ya you are...the only bad thing I can say about mass effect 2 really is that...some of the missions are a bit repetitive...but, it is an RPG...imo mass effect 2 is a lot better then the first one and if it wasn't for RDR I think it would have swept the board for game of the year in many categories.

[Eridani]

Pretty much agree with what you said. The generic planet "side missions" were pretty much a waste of time.

ME2 is a lot better anyway. One of the most fun combat systems in any shooter I thought and the boss battle at the very end is pretty memorable (if still a bit easy).

[Issue313]

I got pissed off with Mass Effect when I realised that EVERY mission involves shooting endless streams of generic baddies. Seriously they seem to be lining up to be shot at times, constantly murdering everything in the galaxy just gets repetitive. I'm not a great fan of shooters, and ME2 seemed somehow worse. Also why was it necessary to suddenly kill and resurrect Shepherd in the cut scenes right at the beginning of ME2?

[ComradeAsh]

Did you find what to do with the Relic?

[EssJay]

I liked Mass Effect, but my problem was the start was just too slow, particularly the first Citadel visit. That at first turned me away from the game for a while, then once I'd finished all the other games I owned at the time I went back and played it and rather enjoyed it from there onwards.

[Mantikore]

yeah, the two biggest annoyances for me were the crappy side quests, involving 10 minutes of driving, followed by 2 minutes of shooting, as well as the mountain of useless items you tend to rack up. Both of these have been eliminated by the second game. I did like the ME1 ending though, but the actual boss fight is easy, since there are so many little things you can abuse.

ME2 is a lot better IMO, but feels very different. The story is also slightly crappier, but the gameplay is improved significantly

Originally Posted by ComradeAsh

Did you find what to do with the Relic?

Do you mean the trinket from the Consort's quest? It just activates a prothean artefact on eletania (the monkey date module quest)

[typedthiswithmytits]

the terrain on all those uncharted worlds...


planets arent like that

[nutsack]

I finally got around to finishing it not that long ago as well, really cool game. Things that annoyed me slightly were: millions of useless items, chore-like exploring of generic planets, Ashley ditching me and leaving me with Liara when I suggested a threesome.

Great complete and interesting sci fi universe, gives you a feeling of optimism for the future of humanity even though there is such a dark cloud hanging over the story.

[da teacha]

Originally Posted by nutsack

I finally got around to finishing it not that long ago as well, really cool game. Things that annoyed me slightly were: millions of useless items, chore-like exploring of generic planets, Ashley ditching me and leaving me with Liara when I suggested a threesome.

Great complete and interesting sci fi universe, gives you a feeling of optimism for the future of humanity even though there is such a dark cloud hanging over the story.

I definitely agree with how the ending felt. The end credits especially were a great touch.

YouTube - Mass Effect Credits Music (with lyrics)

YouTube - Mass Effect Credits Music (with lyrics)
Video: click to display

Humanly, hopeful lyrics, overlaying dark mysterious undertones of space.

I guess I missed out on a powerful ending because I changed my mind on my charecter's course halfway through; going from paragon to renegade.

I decided to do away with the council, and that humans, headed by Anderson, should spearhead the galaxy to victory. I hope this will have interesting effects on the 2nd....

[da teacha]

Originally Posted by typedthiswithmytits

the terrain on all those uncharted worlds...


planets arent like that

Yeah, some variation there would've been nice. It'd have been great to see some really extreme alien landscapes. Huge waterfalls, monstrous mountains, deep chasms, unpassable rocky terrain, complex cave systems...

[da teacha]

Just started the 2nd... Fuck, I'm hyped up for an intense experience.

Banged it on nightmare mode for good measure. Hopefully I won't be retrying as often as I have been at the start, and that it'll transform into more pressure and tension later on as I improve.

[Eridani]

Also, unlike ME, in ME2 soldier is probably the most fun class (I thought so anyway) because of how the combat works; powers etc. don't seem to be as strong and guns are better.

[ComradeAsh]

Originally Posted by Mantikore

Do you mean the trinket from the Consort's quest? It just activates a prothean artefact on eletania (the monkey date module quest)

Yes.

[Mantikore]

Originally Posted by Gith

Also, unlike ME, in ME2 soldier is probably the most fun class (I thought so anyway) because of how the combat works; powers etc. don't seem to be as strong and guns are better.

I thought the soldier was meh. To me it felt like gears of war. I like the infiltrator and vanguard

[ComradeAsh]

Fuck, I want to play this again right now.

I'm even tempted to pay money for it for the convenience of having it right now.

[Captain Politik]

Originally Posted by ComradeAsh

Fuck, I want to play this again right now.

I'm even tempted to pay money for it for the convenience of having it right now.

ME1 and 2 are cheap as fuck and some of the best games ever so I say its actually worth it considering you will actually replay it

[Issue313]

Originally Posted by antonio123

ME1 and 2 are cheap as fuck and some of the best games ever so I say its actually worth it considering you will actually replay it

Just make sure you buy ME2 new, it has that VIP BS on board whereby you can only get certain DLC if you have a brand new copy of the game - a mechanism to stop game trading.

[BATTLESTEER]

Anybody else start to get attached to the characters in game?

[Thought Riot]

Mass Effect 2 is a huge improvement to the first. There are only a couple of things that were bad with it:

-scanning planets for resources. Boring as hell, but necessary if you want the upgrades, which you will need if you play on Insanity.
-you only get a couple weapon choices. While I loved how they got rid of the whole "great, now I have 50 worthless inventory and now I have to sell all of it" crap, the second sniper rifle is a piece of shit. I would've liked a couple different choices.
-When you sex Tali, you don't see her face.

Oh, and Soldier+Widow (sniper)+heightened adrenaline rush=rape, especially after you get the headshots do +50% damage.

[Mantikore]

Originally Posted by Issue313

Just make sure you buy ME2 new, it has that VIP BS on board whereby you can only get certain DLC if you have a brand new copy of the game - a mechanism to stop game trading.

Do you mean cerberus network? Its not exactly like that. They discourage game trading by giving you the cerberus network for free with new games. You can get them with used games, but you have to purchase the DLC separately

Originally Posted by BATTLESTEER

Anybody else start to get attached to the characters in game?

I have a video-game love affair with Tali

Originally Posted by Thought Riot

Mass Effect 2 is a huge improvement to the first. There are only a couple of things that were bad with it:

-scanning planets for resources. Boring as hell, but necessary if you want the upgrades, which you will need if you play on Insanity.
-you only get a couple weapon choices. While I loved how they got rid of the whole "great, now I have 50 worthless inventory and now I have to sell all of it" crap, the second sniper rifle is a piece of shit. I would've liked a couple different choices.
-When you sex Tali, you don't see her face.

Bioware did mention they were going to do something about the mineral scanning for ME3. They werent going to remove it completely though. Still, the latest patch for ME2 makes mining slightly faster than the original game. They did also mention that ME3 will have a mix of fluid combat like 2 and the RPG mechanics of 1.

[da teacha]

Wow, what a fucking great game this is panning out to be.

I'm only sloowwwllllyyy grinding through it though. Nightmare mode is fucking difficult. But it's worth it though, as I've had some pretty intense shootouts, and it really forces you to stay on your toes.

High difficulty level should come as standard imo. These little faggot kids don't learn to appreciate a game, or how to think, when they can run through guns blazing.

But yeah, mining's a bit of a pain in the ass. I should give a poor Russian babushka my laptop and teach her how to mine all the planets.....

[ComradeAsh]

And I just picked up a set of Spectre gear.

Raep tiem!

[Thought Riot]

Originally Posted by da teacha

Wow, what a fucking great game this is panning out to be.

I'm only sloowwwllllyyy grinding through it though. Nightmare mode is fucking difficult. But it's worth it though, as I've had some pretty intense shootouts, and it really forces you to stay on your toes.

High difficulty level should come as standard imo. These little faggot kids don't learn to appreciate a game, or how to think, when they can run through guns blazing.

But yeah, mining's a bit of a pain in the ass. I should give a poor Russian babushka my laptop and teach her how to mine all the planets.....

Soldier with heightened adrenaline rush (+140% damage)+Widow sniper+upgrades (including +50% to headshot damage)=win. Get warp ammo for the Collectors.

[da teacha]

Originally Posted by Thought Riot

Soldier with heightened adrenaline rush (+140% damage)+Widow sniper+upgrades (including +50% to headshot damage)=win. Get warp ammo for the Collectors.

Hmm, running thorugh as Infiltrator with Garrus and Miranda. Generally area overloading the fuck out of defenses, as I cloak around and bang face with a sniper rifle or submachine gun. Got me to the loyalty missions so far, so I guess I'm on course to completion.

It's definitely not as difficult as MGS on Euro Extreme.


What characters are people generally playing with?

[Mantikore]

My favorite dude is the infiltrator with warp ammo as an additional power. Widow as the weapon specialisation. Miranda is good with the infiltrator, since she can boost your damage as well, which adds damage to the all important headshot with the widow. She also has overload, which supplements the sniper rifle's weakness against shields, although disruptor ammo helps too.

With that setup, plus the kuwashii visor armor piece, and assassination cloak, you can one-hit most minions on insanity at level 30

[Captain Politik]

yea but that game was annoying as fuck b/c I always picked miranda for every mission/always talked to her to make sure i sexed her


I really really miss the exploration of ME1 and some of the fucking amazing background sets on some of the random bullshit planets you visited

[Rocko]

Thanks to this thread I'm playing through ME1 and 2 again.

[da teacha]

And there's the 2nd one completed. Banged through it on hardest difficulty; nightmare it's apparently called.

Rusty start, but e-z game towards the end.

Let's hope the 3rd instalment comes our way soon.

[Satyr]

I just finished Mass Effect 1 and 2 as well. I have to say that these games were by FAR the best games I've played in a long time.

The gameplay in the first game was a bit meh, but got better as the game went on (Virmire and the last mission on the Citadel were epic). The reason I loved it so much was the incredible depth and awesome story. I'm still amazed at how they thought it all out, how much detail they provided in everything. They didn't just imagine a new race and got done with it, but they gave them a history, a culture, traditions. And most importantly: it was believable.

Mass Effect 2 didn't have the same depth, and the story was less grand. But even though it was less, it was still some of the best I've seen in a videogame. The gameplay itself was hugely improved though (imo). Vanguards, fuck yeah.

Both games allow you to really shape your own character. And no matter how you do it, it is always believable. Shepard just fits in the story. Plus, the way you play actually influences the story.

I recently lend the game to a friend of mine. He is playing the game and thinks it's great. "Oh, great", I think, "another person convinced about Mass Effect". But then he says that he likes it, except for the 'boring talking bits where you have endless dialogs, which he just skips everytime'. He also didn't like the codex in the game, 'it's way too much reading'. Goddamn fucking moron. Plus, he didn't like Tali.

[Uriah Heep]

Mass Effect 2 is just a build-up for mass effect 3.

It's hands down the best and my favorite series.

[Orpheus]

Mass effect 2 was awesome. Vanguard was the shit, ashley got cheated on and photo turned over like the dirty skank she was....

[The Pat-Man]

Finally someone recognizes greatness. These games are seriously good. I can't think of a game that sucked me in like that except maybe rdr. Also if you fuck the alien chick, you don't even see her face, which is the only reason I would go out of the way to do that. The characters are actually interesting too.

[Servant Girl Annihilator]

how weird! i just finished mass effect yesterday again and am playing another round of 2. i like 2 better just because driving around in the first one seriously sucked. they both have their pros and cons but that was definitely the tipping point for me. plus the armor customization is better in 2.

also when playing do you guys use the same squad everytime? in 1 i always used tali and liara, and the second one tali and the lizard dude, not garrus. you have such a bigger squad in two its a bit harder to pick favorites. never the krogans though, or any human male. in games like this i always say "ok this time im going renegade, and be dick to everyone!" then i feel bad when i tell em who's boss or whatever.