A late little note about Mass Effect

[Necromancist]

So I finally got around to playing Mass Effect for the PC. I finished it. It was amazing, simply amazing. I can't explain how amazing it was. I was torn between hope and despair for hours on end before the nerve-shattering final showdown. And what a showdown it was!

Now I have contracted a severe case of Awesomitis. Symptoms include restlessness, eye dehydration following incapability to blink, hyperventilation, balance and coordination problems as well as a tendency to jump up and down in one spot while explaining to your (mostly) indifferent relatives how awesome this game is.

I'll wait for responses a while before collapsing on my bed. Hopefully I will have regained the ability to stand up come morning.

 

[sammyfreak]

I really liked the writing, animations, art direction and camera angels; they all created a most entertaining cinematic gaming experience.

 

[ThaBenMan]

Yeah, Mass Effect was an incredible game, pretty much the reason I got an Xbox 360. Can't wait for the sequel! And I know where you're coming from, man - I described the story to my mom, and she just nodded and was like "that's nice", heheh

 

[OurGloriousLeader]

Really? I thought it was really, really bland. There was a lot of back story and effort put into the universe, which I liked, but nothing could make up for emotionless characters and samey worlds. Glad you liked it though.

 

[Joeshie]

Yeah, the last hour or two of Mass Effect is probably one of the best climaxes in video game history.

The other thing that REALLY impressed me with Mass Effect was how well they handled explaining how their universe worked. They didn't give bullshit explanations like, "well the Starships jump through space after sucking up a power called Black Hole residue". They actually had some real scientific understanding when they explained their universe which, being an engineer, drew me into their universe greatly. I've often been turned off by certain movies and such because they will blatantly ignore the laws of physics.

 

[Vivaldi]

I completely and totally agree with the thread creator and I experianced the exact same emotions when I finished the game.

Now I am thinking of playing it through again (it would be the fifth time for me).

 

[Alex_P]

I loved it.

Some criticisms, though...

All the driving? Really goddamn boring. Really just a way to take a few short fights and make them take half an hour.

The enemy AI is awful. All they do is stand still or rush you.

-- Alex

 

[Exterminatus]

Yeah, cool game.

They could have made that little space battle at the end better though. Whatever happened to those awesome space combat manoeuvres and weapons I read about in the codex? Each ship looked like they were flinging flaming garbage at each other from catapults or something.

 

[HSIAMetalKing]

Mass Effect is one of the few games that has been able to hold my attention for multiple consecutive playthroughs-- I played that game all the way through three times, and loved each one.

 

[the fifth]

i got to the citadel agian after all the stuff starts going down and then my 360 screws up i still havent finished it and am realy pissed

 

[Vincent9mm]

I actually hated Mass Effect until I read the book Mass Effect: Revelations. Having a bit more back story to really start me off gave me a reason to explore every bit of Mass Effect, started to find the combat pretty impressive for an rpg (far from a good shooter). Played up til 1000 points and plan to do it again (started a new profile to consolidate my gaming). My only real beef was with sidequests and enviroments that are not main story. Repetitive and aside a few details mostly are bland and dull. Wish more had the content or intensity of Wrex and Garrus' side quests.

 

[Usige Beatha]

Loved it. I'm just sad Wrex had to die *I was unable to save him and I was forced to kill him*.

I have to say though, I did feel that the Biotics were a little over powered... did anyone ell's notice this?

 

[Alex_P]

I have to say though, I did feel that the Biotics were a little over powered... did anyone ell's notice this?

I think they're poorly balanced but not necessarily overpowered. Sometimes biotics end a fight immediately. Sometimes, due to range or slow recharge or whatever, they're worthless.

I think the biggest mistake was including all that junk that totally immobilizes you (like, err, Singularity?). It's not very tactical. A much heavier focus on counters and limited disruption (like the weapon-overheating ability) would've made the gameplay itself a lot more fun, in my opinion.

-- Alex

 

[geldonyetich]

No question that Mass Effect was pretty hardcore. (Although some people had a hard time getting a hang of the combat system - there was a little learning curve there.) I played the X-Box 360 version, I'll probably shell out for the PC version if I have the cash.

The really encouraging thing about Mass Effect is knowing they plan to make a trilogy out of it. Two more games coming down the pipe in which you can import your character from the start, along with consequences of their actions from previous installments.

 

[Copter400]

Now I have contracted a severe case of Awesomitis. Symptoms include restlessness, eye dehydration following incapability to blink, hyperventilation, balance and coordination problems as well as a tendency to jump up and down in one spot while explaining to your (mostly) indifferent relatives how awesome this game is.

I went through the exact same thing with Bioshock. Not even after playing it, I was like that before it even came out.

Rehabilitation was long and painful.

My first time playing Mass Effect, I loved it too. The whole thing with the Rachni has to be one of the hardest choices I've made in gaming.

Then I realized that there weren't enough biotic and tech powers, that it was hard to gauge how getting new armour and weapons altered gameplay, that I had gotten through a significant chunk of the game without using any upgrades, that my allies were retarded, that buying new equipment was too expensive and that every shopkeeper in the game is too cheap to give you a decent price for your equipment, that unskippable cutscenes are never, ever a good idea...

Ah well. It was fun while it lasted.

 

[SilentHunter7]

Mass Effect was an incredible game, but for some reason it didn't agree with my rig. I got a bug every 10 minutes that either glitched the sound or prevented a gun to cool down once it overheated. After googling fixes for my problem, I found I was just one of many who was getting crap like that. Very disappointing to say the least.

Looking past the bugs, the only glaring gameplay flaws I found was that the game forced me into a relationship I didn't want. And the love sidequests feel awkward at best. Especially when you realize that you're hitting on someone in front of the whole crew, which any military officer in real life can tell you is huge no-no.

Well, that and the fact that I must have stormed the same exact base 30 times, each time on a different planet in my play through.

 

[Asehujiko]

Is Bringing Down The Sky out for the pc version by now? As well as a patch to fix the perma overheat? The final boss is realy hard if you can only pistol whip him.(soldier shepard, ashly and wrex with all points in weapon skill)

The main thing i liked about mass effect were the costumizable weapons. Sniper rifle + high cal barrel + sploding ammo = rocket launcher.

Biotics are rather overpowered indeed but so is the infinite ammo assault rifle(spectre gun and heat reduction upgrades)

Also, any planet other then the main plot ones were extremely boring.

 

[Erana]

I really liked the writing, animations, art direction and camera angels; they all created a most entertaining cinematic gaming experience.

I want a camera angel to make my gaming experience a most entertaining and cinematic one.

 

[Dommyboy]

Its a great game for the reason that its developers actually put effort into it. Some of the plot parts are about as see through as glass but its a great game nether the less. The amount of background info they put into it is a good sign that there are actually game developers out there that give a shit.

 

[Larmo]

I enjoyed the game, the story was epic, but the sidequests felt a little repetitive (mostly the planets themselves) ans the AI was sometimes helpful, and sometimes my allies repeatedly shot me in the back while my opponent rushed me.

I think the next game will be better if the use the same basic formula and use more time to fine tune the world and the AI