Mass Effect: Love it or Hate it?

Spoiler:

Why of course I did the Asari Consort. Er, did the Asari Consort's mission. I was male though, but Asari aren't limited to just males partners.

End spoiler.

 

Its definately friendly to those of you who cant play RTS to save your life. Think of Mass Effect as a third person shooter with interactive storylines, player customization, leveling, and a startegic combat system.

Its not as a hardcore of a shooter in many respects. You wont be able to run up to an enemy and chainsaw its arm off. But you can do basic combat maneuvers such as meele attack, hide behind cover, shoot from cover, etc. Sounds like your standard shooter, not so fast, the fact that you cant Jump is the real difference between a standard FPS and Mass Effect.

But all in all combat is well implemented and balanced by an engrossing storyline and character interactions. The story is what gets you into combat and the fun of combat is what keeps you coming back into progressing the story line. Finding new enemies to kill, new powers to test and strategies to implement is still only half the fun of this game.

People who traditionally enjoys first person shooters will find this right up their alley. It wont be as daunting as embarking on a full scale MMORPG or other RTS games of deep caliber and may turn up a novel flair up the old FPS alley.

 

yeh, must be pretty different from your perspective, with the consort offering you the same service she offered me playing as the male shepard. See with my situation, i never had to wonder how it would work, as i must imagine you do in your case! lol, but I really learned to not be too surprised at what a blue skin alien would do in a bioware game.

Anyways, I am playing the third time through now and will attempt to do all renegade options. now I kind of wish shepard would grow horns or somethings for all the evil I am about to bask in. It feels really good to finish the game a couple of times and know the outcome of the story enough so you wont feel binded to always give responses to propell the plot. Now instead I can just selecting the most absurd option I see. Yep its definately going to be fun the third time through the game and on Insane for the first time.

 

I plan to be a large a$$hole the third time, im almost done the second and im being so nice it almost hurts.....o well soon enough

 

Yea, I was being way too nice the first time around and was taking sh*t that I shouldn't. Now I'm just telling it as I see it. Getting in the face of the council and other a**holes as they deserve.

 

the council pisses me off, i plan on killing them

 

YES! except for the girl, shes kinda hot and definitely not as stupid as the other two ugly mofos.

 

got that right, ok, I guess she can live but the other two...to the depths with them

 

Does anyone else hate the fact that the game only have like two sets of really good armor or weapon or any equipment? and when you have to ration them out to your squad, you end up looking like a gang of similarly dressed teeny boppers? Its that or slap some crappy second rate gear on your squad mates. I guess ive been spoiled by the colossus and spectre gear. Because after them, thats all you want you and your squad members to use..

 

Well, to defend the "decisions in the game." If you don't train Charm/Intimidate high enough, there are some decisions that will effect some things a lot...besides the decision between who to sacrifice. For example, the thing that you can do to Wrex...And has anyone tried telling any of the squad members who join you, that you don't need them? I wonder what happens?

But your right overall, there's not much variety to the effects of your actions. I'd choose an ******* thing to say, and it Shepard would say the say thing if I had chosen the other thing to say lol.

 

I think with this its a hit and miss thing for Bioware. The conversation option you choose are the basic motives of speech, the voice and intention. And when sheperd speaks from the options I choose, sometimes he really impress me and Im like, "hey thats exactly what I mean and you described it really well", but other times he doesnt really care what option I choose and go on with his own agenda. And there its either, man sheperd cant speak for **** or that ive misinterpreted the choices themselves.

And then theres other times where bioware know what the player wants to input intentionally misinterprets our responses to **** with our heads. Theres examples in this game, just g2 find where.

 

Typically there's 2-3 blocks of dialogue per conversation response, only the first one is different based on the renegade or paragon choice. After they complete the first piece, it's usually the same for both options.

 

I just got ME, a couple of days ago, and played through the first brief mission. The combat is a far cry (pun unintended) from any polished PC shooter, and feels clunky, for lack of a better term. Remapping the mouse keys also seems to screw up the menu systems..i can't click on my many items now :/

The storyline seems quite interesting though.

I'll play for a few more hours tomorrow and hopefully this game will deliver.

 

Just beat it today, 22 hours of gameplay time and finished at level 40. I must admit I wasn't overly impressed with the ending. It was ok but could have done a better job in summarizing all the choices you made throughout the game to define who you really are.

I played through as a soldier the first time, might try it as an adept or infiltrator the next (although I find it really hard to aim biotec powers from far away).

Overall, the game is action packed but way too short for a single-player only RPG (especially one made by Bioware) and the ending leaves much to be desired. They really need to improve on gameplay length and the impact of your coversation choices in the sequel.

I'll definitely be replaying The Witcher before I replay Mass Effect though.

 

just a few comments/questions on the game if anyone would be kind enough to help me. plz comment on any of the following questions, i'd appreciate it greatly!

1.) what is the best/most powerful "class"? i basically want fun ;p

2.) where does it say your total omni gel

3.) when using your powers (i.e. throw) - does it need to be on direct target of the enemy? does distance matter?

4.) does anyoe else find it hard to manage your squad mates? any tips?

5.) is the inventory confusing or is it just me - any tips?

6.) anyone else experience "clunky" gameplay.. any tips?

thank you for anyone who can give me some feedback on these questions

 

1) Don't know ,I play thru the 1st round as a Soldier and it was pretty easy.

2) Inventory screen will show your total.

3) Don't know yet as my soldier does not have any other ability.

4) Use Space bar to pause a lot. Just remeber that only you can use the Heal command.

5) Yes, No way around it.

6) Defrag your drive, update drivers, lower detail or res.

 

1. Soldier - If you want to be good at doing damage and taking lots of hits, no crowd control or techs
Vanguard - Good at doing damage and crowd control, low defense though, uses shotguns, close range
Infiltrator - Good at doing damage and techs (my favorite class), uses sniper rifles, long range
Engineer - Almost pure support with techs (debuff enemies + heal teammates)
Adept - Pure crowd control
Sentinel - Crowd Control and Techs (not as good as engineer at techs and adept at CC, but has both worlds)

For a first time play through, I'd recommend the soldier. Make sure your teammates cover your weaknesses too.

2. IIRC you can check your omnigel in your inventory - press 'i'

3. Biotics have a fairly short range, techs have longer range. Yes you need to target, but IIRC most biotics have an area of effect.

4. Squad commands are done well IMO. Just pay attention, and you may want to set powers to 'defense only' under options-->gameplay so you can tell them exactly when to use their offensive powers (some powers you will want to save for certain situations)

5. Keep your inventory clean by upgrading everyone between missions and selling the remaining stuff off, or converting to omni-gel.

6. Elaborate on clunky gameplay.

 

thnks for the replies so far, just wondering bout a couple things

what is IIRC?

do i really need to push the "up" arrow to command my squad to move forward? its really awkward when your using wsad controls for me or am i doing something wrong?

in terms of "clunky" -- it feels like a console game or something, just not smooth when moving about.


i guess im gonna restart as a soldier - i made a vanguard but i dont understand a lot of stuff. the inventory is just weird to me, i dont really know what im doing whether its upgrading/switching weapons... and why is there two slots to equip stuff in? is one for armor?

 

IIRC is just an acronym for 'if I remember correctly'

I'm sure you can remap the command to something else, but I generally like using the spacebar to issue commands.

I played it both on the 360 and the PC, but I liked the PC version more because of the mouse and keyboard. However, I know there are some things that didn't port over perfectly.

A tip as a vanguard would be to use your biotics (throw, lift, etc) to knock down and immobilize enemies. Then cleaning up with the shotgun. In upgrading weapons, my primary method of determining which weapons to use is just to equip the one with higher damage, since if you fire in bursts you don't have to worry about overheating or accuracy that much. The two slots for upgrading weapons is the 'mod' and the 'ammo'. For upgrading the mod, just equip something that helps you with whatever problem you're having. If you're having overheating problems, attach a heat sink. If aiming is the problem, attach a kinetic stabilizer. I personally go with damage adds. For the ammo, go with whatever fits your style and enemy. If you know there are synthetics (geth) ahead, equip armor piercing/thorium rounds, or shredder/anti-personnel for organics. Inferno and chemical rounds are very good all-round ammo that do damage over time preventing shields from coming back up.

I actually have a character planning spreadsheet that I'll upload soon.

Also, this site is great for information, just watch out for spoilers. If you stick to the class guides and equipment guides, you *should be fine, but just be careful when clicking on random links.

Hope this helps!

 

I started a new game as an infiltrator. It is a kind of tedious class though because they are experts with sniper rifles but you can't aim your tech powers from sniper rifle range (at least not very well). It kind of defeats the purpose of using a sniper rifle if you have to move to assault rifle range to get an accurate tech power off.

I might start again to try a vanguard. I have a strange feeling that using powers then running in to cleanup with a shotgun will be very satisfying

But im sure I could get good enough with a sniper at close range to get over that hump. Some kinetic stabilizers or those lower heat absorbtion upgrades should work.

Which do you think would be more fun Dire...vanguard or infiltrator?

 

Infiltrator gets really freaking boring, go Vanguard. I had a lot more fun as one. Although it's really satisfying to have 2 Scram Rail X's and a Tungsten/Shredder round equipped, stuff goes down in like 1 shot.

 

I tried that b4.. its not that bad as long as you stay at AS range behind cover. I dont think you should ever go close range with a sniper, i usually find myself dead in those situations. =/

 

I personally enjoy the infiltrator, but it depends on your playing style. If you like to go guns blazing and throw people across the room, then vanguard is your class. If you like more methodical take down the enemies one by one, then go infiltrator. With regards to the sniper rifle at close range, its not necessary to zoom if you have a lot of points in SR. Treat it as a shotgun, because it has just as powerful of a knockback effect.

My first playthrough was a renegade infiltrator. Now I'm running a soldier through Hardcore (bonus talent: electronics) and its been a blast so far. I'm planning on taking my infiltrator (starting over of course with hacking bonus talent) and a adept with shotgun as a bonus talent through insane.

When is Mass Effect 2 coming out for the PC again?

 

ya, Ive been playing through the classes and im gonna soon run out of them! And ME2 will be at least a year away i think. I mean this game just came out on PC, theres no way they'll sell the 2nd series any time soon... how long did it take between KOTOR I and II?

You guys should try the Bastion build with Assault Rifle as bonus talent. Its a all in one package to try a bit of each class. You'll feel like such a bad ass even on insane, just run in lift/throw everyone and start the rampage that way.

I would think that it'll be pretty hard to play as soldier on insane. since you dont have many disables and a majority of plp have immunity just like you do.

 

Finally at arrived to my country, i bought it, and i was Dissapointed about the game, Even on Everything maxed out, Best Filtering, 1440x900, the game looked like Crap comparing to other games, Seriously , The Film Grain looked like Crap, and The suites that the marines wear were nothing near Detailed.

 

Yeh I had the same sentiment. The beginning of the game looks like crap but once you get out too other places, they tend to look pretty gorgeous. Did you get to the citadel yet? I think parts of the citadel looks great.

Bioware turned down alot of its graphics and you can turn them back up by editing the bioengine ini file. Still, you should have to edit game files to get the game to look good, bioware kind of screwed us on that one.

 

Yeah i see i've just uninstalled the game, I like graphics above Gameplay. (in some cases only)

 

overall dissapointed in graphics and gameplay ;[ i guess this game just wasnt for me.


note: too.......much.........dialog.........

 

what did you guys all think it being a shooter rpg?

 

tooooooooo much dialog. boring to death. rather go watch a movie. uninstalled the game.



time for tf2 ;p

 

I thought the dialog is what put the icing on the cake. It helped flesh out the world and made it more immersive, but I know what you mean with the amount. After the first play through I'm skipping through most of the dialog, but I did read through 95% of it on my first play through.

Then again, I'm a huge fan of Bioware crafted stories.

 

Yep, the story makes the game and the voice acting is the best I have seen in while (although there's still a few place where the tone seems off).

 

the story is great, very plot driven. Interesting cast of characters too. My only complaint is that the only good parts of the game is the story line. Exploring the universe outside the story line kinda sucked.

 

In game pictures anyone?
Thats wrex with battlemasters and garus with phantom

 

Mass Effect tweak Guide is out: http://www.tweakguides.com/ME_1.html

Theres a couple of interesting tweaks in there to improve playing experience:

I personally like to enable physics on dead bodies and set the corpse clean up to 10 minutes: it add alot when you retrace your steps and find the heaps of fallen hoes you have demolished.

You can also enable console, which has a couple of interesting tweaks like slow motion and flying.

 

Highly overrated. I got caught up in the hype for this game before its PC release and was sorely disappointed after completing it. In its capacity as a RPG, it lags far behind Oblivion in terms of scope, and KOTR I & II (its nearest neighbour) in terms of flexibility/freedom, story arc, realism and all-around enjoyability. In its capacity as a FPS, it's comparable to Kane and Lynch: Dead Men, with an unsophisticated combat system and dull, unintelligent enemies.

It went wrong in so many ways that I'd just like to make a list to save myself time:

1. Repetitive and boring nature of side-quests which had little to do with the plot, thereby stealing urgency from the main storyline
2. Too much Mako, an uncontrollable vehicle at the best of times, on terrain that seems custom-designed to frustrate and bore the player (90 degree ascents over mountaintops to get to a bunch of damn rocks?)
3. No sense of a 'real' universe. Where are all the NPCs? Where is the sense of a daily routine occurring around you? Where is there even a hint of life in this world? Compared to KOTR and Oblivion, this is terrible
4. Story too short, too straightforward, too simple -- not very interesting
5. Moral decisions not very tough and their consequences both too few and too mild, although I respect the effort and would like to see more elements like this incorporated into future games
6. Repeated use of identical models and interiors -- laziness?
7. Clunky inventory system. Nothing is worse than having to individually convert 50 upgrades to omni-gel
8. Uninspired mini-games (surveying, unlocking crates, defusing the shield, gambling, etc.)

The voice acting was top-notch, but man, what a waste overall.

 

Well the side quests are what they are, side quests. It'd be very hard pressed to find a game where the side quests are as deep as the main quests. There were a few gem sidequests though.

I feel you about the Mako. I chose not to do the 'find _____' missions the second time around because of this. Much less Mako and a much happier me (see example: )

NPCs could use a little work, but there the ones that were there were very good, great voice acting lots of dialog options.

Story I thought got really crazy at the end. Loved it. A bit short though.

Moral decisions were good, but I agree I wish there were more. And also harsher consequences as well.

I'm sure if they had time/budget they would have changed the identical models, but the scope of the game is pretty large (~30 sidequest worlds), so this is probably something that couldn't be helped.

Inventory systems are hard to do. I thought they did a fair job of it, just some annoyances (like not being able to equip everyone at the same time or level everyone at the same time and not being able to convert/sell more than one item at time).

It would have been cool to have the 360 minigame as a change of pace or perhaps a numerical game.

ME wasn't perfect, but its still on my top 10 games of all time.

 

The game itself is pretty enjoyable. I haven't beat it yet, but very close now.

I whole-heartedly agree about the horrible inventory interface.
Why they couldn't implement something that is proven to work well like a rag-doll alongside some sort of chest is beyond me. Even if they wanted to make a list, they could've at least grouped the same items (i.e. put a number next to a name) and that would have saved a lot of time. Mouse-over descriptions of items are always a plus too, maybe I'm lazy but pressing a separate button every time I want to check an item's properties gets very tedious very fast.

 

How intrusive did you guys find the DRM to be? I was going to get this game to test out my new Gateway M-152XL but have been hearing horror stories about the DRM.

Would you guys recommend this or The Witcher?

 

Beyond having to run it directly and as an administrator the very first time, it is practically non-existent. Laptops are actually ideally suited for this kind of DRM because it is not easy to upgrade them. However, if you do change your hardware or your OS, it can be a pain in the neck (install it more than 3 times and you'll have to talk to tech support before it works).

In my opinion, it is much better than having to insert a disk every time (though I would not buy such a thing unless I knew there was a crack out there just in case).

 

i have a question about the game. i want to get it but do u have to pay a monthly fee cuz its a MMOG ?

 

Mass Effect is a single player RPG. Not a MMO.

 

Love it, love the characters, though I spent more time lately playing around with the mako(lots of fun, I don't understand why everybody is complaining about the handling) than actually taking care of the main quests...

 

Yeah, I agree with you. Game is great fun

 

Bump
* Bringing Down the Sky is Out, just played through it. I g2 say its the best sidequest by far!

 

Totally, love it. Bringing Down the Sky could've been better. It was pretty all right hough.

Anyone who just likes awesome games in general, should love this game. I'm eagerly awaiting the next one (as it will be a trilogy).

 

Hands down...and I played with the long loading times. just wait until the enhanced edition comes out.

Both games are weak on the combat side but the other parts of each game are fantastic.

 

might be a while till the next one comes out, and might be such a while that i'll have to get a new rig to play it =/. Im still pretty excited about it though. Since Bioware really won it big with setting off the series, the second one will definitely rock.

 

Yeh true that, but with mass effect you only have to hold the shoot button =D. And I actually really enjoyed the squad commands. Ive came up with some really interest strategies with it. You guys should try:

using ashley and kaldren

Ashley--> immunity
Ashley --> move to an open spot with enemy fire to divert attention
Kaldren --> lift/sabotage/stasis biggest threat
Me--> Assault rifle to pick off most immediate threat
Ashley+kaldren+Me -->combine fire on biggest threat while its still disabled
Me---> charge in with shotgun and do the clean up

theres a bunch of coordination tactics like this but this is my faviorite!

 

Mass Effect is my main thing on the side when I am at home with an hour or two to kill. Been a long time since I had got to play a PC RPG.

RPG's have always been my favorite type of game but I am more of a xenogears, final fantasy, chrono trigger kind of person.

With both a new desktop and laptop now tho I am playing a ton of games rather than focusing on just one. I beat Crysis and CoD4 and really liked both of them a lot. Next on the list is FEAR, Doom 3, Mass Effect

From there probably go online with UT3 or CoD4 and maybe some TF2.

Its a pretty safe bet that when starcraft 2 comes out that it will take ownership of all my free time for gaming and wipe all other games off the list.