Does anyone else think ME is overhyped and overpraised?

[JackShandy]

I personally like Mass Effect 1, but I agree that it isn't too hot as a game. Gameplay-wise, the shooting is annoying, the vehical sections likewise, the inventory is suffocating, and the sidequests are bland and useless. Plot/pacing wise, you spend an eternity jogging around the citadel chatting to people before finally getting your own ship, but having gotten to the meat of the game, you find the 3 main planet-quests you're given disappointingly shallow (The items you need for all the side-quests are convieniently placed on the route to the main quest.) Finally, the way they used the villain kind of sucked- he did jack all for most of the game, and when he finally showed up, he was quickly shown to be a mere puppet for a greater threat anyway.

Mass Effect was like an awkward teen: Unpleasantly caught between two stages of life, with the worst sides of both. The inventory-system acne of RPGs and the greasy-skin shallowness of shooters. It was still good stuff, despite it- I guess it was mainly the excellent ending that made me like it.

Mass Effect 2 blows it out of the water, though- especially if you want more shooty. Try that one.

 

[Uilleand]

Not even close. They both blew my mind...

 

[psychic psycho]

I don't think it was overhyped, other than the escapist and a few other sites no one really talks about Dragon Age or Mass Effect. Nobody in school ever talks about those games. To me a game is hyped when even people at school talk about it (Halo, GTA, COD, Guitar Hero).

Other RPGs such as Oblivion and Fable gave life to their worlds in a way that Bioware just hasn't, and that's what matters to me, I want to feel like I care about the characters as people and not just see them as a tool to filter dialogue and story through.
I'll add that I don't think they're bad games, they just seem too lifeless. If you get what I'm saying.

Really? I actually feel the exact opposite. Reading codex entries in DA:O and ME(2) really expand on their universes. It is a bit cheap that they have to rely on codex entries but they do a great job in explaining their universes through dialog too.

On the other hand the universes of Fable and Oblivion felt empty to me. Just big empty areas filled with NPCs giving you quests. I didn't care about characters, heck I can't even remember any character from Oblivion except Uriel Septim (that's only because he's voiced by Patrick Stewart).

 

[ultrachicken]

It is only overhyped if you didn't like the games. It all comes down to opinion.

Other RPGs such as Oblivion and Fable gave life to their worlds in a way that Bioware just hasn't, and that's what matters to me, I want to feel like I care about the characters as people and not just see them as a tool to filter dialogue and story through.

What exactly did the NPCs in Oblivion and Fable do other than filter dialogue and story through? In Fable, the characters never got off their lazy ass unless it was in a linear scripted event, and even then it only lasted a bit of time. Oblivion used NPCs for nothing other than quests and dialogue. I fail to see how you feel that way, maybe explain your opinion?

 

[SextusMaximus]

Yes. Yes I do.

It's a great game, mind you and my opinion is only based off of about 20 minutes playing at a friends house...

 

[Abedeus]

Fable

Oh sorry, you lost me. Fable is not an RPG. Sorry, nope.

 

[Pegghead]

I share that opinion on mass effect, I felt like I was wheeling Shepard between elevators, cutscenes, INCREDIBLY mediocre gunfights and dialogue scenes which I felt weren't as good as Jade Empire (I will hunt you down if you ever disrespect Jade Empire).

 

[psychic psycho]

I'm always stuck on some linear path, I can't freely roam around a place, They limit your exploration immensely, no jump button,etc.
In Bethesda RPGs, there is true freedom, being able to go anywhere at any time, When I mean anywhere I mean anywhere, not just some small path going through the woods.

I like Bioware RPGs for that reason. Why would I want to go anywhere and everywhere? In the end I'll just want to find the most efficient way to get to my destination. In open world RPGs I'll spend most of my time traveling from place to place. Yes, there are a lot of quests and secrets to find, but they could have made the world a bit smaller to reduce the boring traveling. I know that people do appreciate the ability to explore but to me it's just fluff.

Whereas in a Bioware RPG traveling is reduced and more time is spent on fighting or dialog. I find that a more closed path condenses the game and let's you get into Dialog/battle parts faster.

In my opinion both Bioware's and Bethesda's RPGs have the same amount of linearity to it they're just presented differently.

 

[CommyGingerbreadMan]

Yes, and your not the only one.

Apparently according to the internet, EVERY GAME EVER IS OVERHYPED AND BAD, EXCEPT THIS ONE I LIKE, IT'S TOTALLY GREAT AND NO ONE KNOWS ABOUT IT.

Jk aside, I thoroughly every second of both. I found it a fun sci-fi experience.

 

[Jandau]

I came into this thread planning a long post about why Mass Effect (and DA:O) are awesome, but I realized I won't achieve anything with that. I'll just say that they are great games, no matter how many malcontents you can dig up from the corners of the net to agree with you otherwise. They don't need your approval to determine their worth, they have the profits, the fans and the critical acclaim to give them that. Both the Mass Effect games and DA:O are great RPGs with good stories, solid writing and excellent characters, coupled with fun gameplay that only gets better with every new game Bioware releases.

So you go right ahead hating them, I'll go right ahead and have fun with them!

 

[Layz92]

The sequel is good, wasn't a big fan of 1. Especially the car bits. But it is only that, a quality game. Not the second coming in game form many make it out to be. God of War 1/2 are the only games I have enjoyed that much.

 

[Sajuuk-khar]

I honestly feel as though they've been repackaging and reselling the same games ever since then, because they all just sort of have the same feel to them, if you get what I mean.

Oh I get what you mean, and you do have a point, but isn't that what all RPGs, arguably all games even, do? Oblivion wasn't that revolutionary compared to Morrowind. Fallout 3 was a lot like Oblivion in a Fallout setting. Most jRPGs work technically, and often storywise, the same. Yes Fable was something different, but Fable 2 also went on with the same style.

What exactly did the NPCs in Oblivion and Fable do other than filter dialogue and story through? In Fable, the characters never got off their lazy ass unless it was in a linear scripted event, and even then it only lasted a bit of time. Oblivion used NPCs for nothing other than quests and dialogue. I fail to see how you feel that way, maybe explain your opinion?

That's not completely true. In towns/cities you'd notice that most of them would go to sleep at night, wake up in the morning and go to work or walk arround during the day. It's not much, but it's a lot more than most games do.

Also I liked the characters in Fable, probably because of the more European (read: British) like setting and characters and language. An opinion I heard lots of non-Europeans don't really agree with.

As for the topic, I disagree. I like both, ME2 is a bit better than ME1. It removed most of the parts I found annoying in ME. Only think I didn't like were the plannet scanning and more mission based structure. I like the rich conversation options in both the games.

 

[Mortons4ck]

Sure it may be overhyped and overpraised, but that doesn't mean its not deserving of it. Since I don't usually watch TV, I wasn't bombarded with the constant stream of ME2 BUY NAO! images. I had just started playing the first one again (after a year and half hiatus) and thought it might be fun to play the sequel. Most fun I've had in awhile.

 

[manaman]

Honestly, from this? I do kinda think "less talky more shooty".

I do believe they tried to follow that advice in the second one. It made for a game half as long, and I enjoyed what was there half as much.

You can't please everyone and I wish the games would stop trying. They had their market and I was a part of it, but if the game goes anymore Action-shooter in place of RPG on me I will find myself extremely disliking the third one.

 

[Julianking93]

*raises hand*

I thought it sucked.

Plain and simple, I just didn't like Mass Effect. I thought it was boring, tedious and too self absorbed.

 

[Gildan Bladeborn]

What are you on about OP? There wasn't nearly enough talking in Mass Effect, ha ha!

But seriously, I could have easily accommodated far more dialog than they actually included and I'd have been happy to receive it. I played the shooting bits to get to more dialog.

 

[Insideout Ink Demon]

Being a lover of 80's sci-fi movies, ME has ticked every box in feel for me:

I feel like 3d really helps because it crafts a more believable and immersive world and I'm not hating on Bioware at all, they made some of my favorite games of the late 90s/early 00s such as Neverwinter nights.
I honestly feel as though they've been repackaging and reselling the same games ever since then, because they all just sort of have the same feel to them, if you get what I mean. The game itself isn't my problem nor are the characters. It's just that none of it feels alive to me, like none of it matters.
Other RPGs such as Oblivion and Fable gave life to their worlds in a way that Bioware just hasn't, and that's what matters to me, I want to feel like I care about the characters as people and not just see them as a tool to filter dialogue and story through.
I'll add that I don't think they're bad games, they just seem too lifeless. If you get what I'm saying.

The fact you find the Fable universe more immersive than than recent Biowar universes shows we are extremely different and could never agree on this subject.

That said, in answer to your opening post, my answer is: "No, not over hyped it does what it said on the tin"

 

[Eleima]

Well, I respect your opinion, even though it's blatantly misinformed and wrong!
... Joking aside though, I can't say that either of those games are overhyped in my personal view, since I enjoyed both of them very much. I will agree to the fact that they're probably not the best games for everyone due to, like you said, the sheer amount of dialog in the games. But I believe that you should at least give ME2 a try, since you said you wanted more combat, which Bioware really improved for number 2. Maybe rent it or borrow from a friend.

You said it so well, I just had to quote you.
I really, really enjoyed Mass Effect 2, and don't think it's overhyped, but then again, I enjoyed Mass Effect 1, love the dialogs (the more the merrier, I say!). I'd never been much of a FPS gamer, anyhow, so that might be the reason why I have a different perspective. I think it's all a matter of taste, in the end.