Let's discuss Mass Effect.

[PureIrony]

Regarding Liara: NO. There is absolutely no reason for that kind of sub-plot. Mass Effect has an ancient machine race coming to destroy the galaxy. They already have enough fodder for drama, and there are more interesting things they can do with your relationship with Liara then knocking her up.

In the first game, I used Wrex almost every chance I got because I love his character, and I tended to switch between either Garrus or Liara for my second companion.

In ME2, I'd take Mordin everywhere for similar reasons and had Garrus, Tali and Grunt as my secondaries, though on Insanity I took Miranda everywhere because she was just so damn useful.

 

[Mr.Squishy]

I'll just say what I usually do in these threads: I wish I could sparta kick Jack out the closest airlock, and I found Jacob and Kaidan to be well-adjusted people, not 'boring' as some people said. Also ME2 was more streamlined, where ME1 was a bit rocky.
*raises flameshield* Come at me, bro

 

[LetalisK]

For instance, if you have kinky asari sex with Liara in the first game....shouldn't Liara have a daughter in the 2nd game?

Perhaps it can take Asari more than once to conceive as well?

What's your favorite squad in ME 1? I've gotta say...I don't think I've ever used Kaiden or Ashely. Like, ever...and I've got 7 characters all with multiple playthroughs. Why bother with Ashely when I can use Wrex? Why bother with Kaiden when I can use...anyone else? I dunno, maybe I just like working with aliens better, but I tend to keep Liara in my squad for her biotics, and I'll switch out between Wrex and Tali depending on if I'm on a mission against organics or Geth.

Kaiden and Liara for me. The NPCs are shit shots but can be accurate with their powers, and since I usually go Soldier or Vanguard, I handle all the shooting while my companions handle the powers. Edit: also add in companions seem to be utterly retarded in ME1 when trying to take someone down with a gun and end up getting themselves killed, yeah, they are staying in the back.

As for ME 2, I tended to mix it up a bit more. Some characters I never used unless it was their loyalty mission...Jacob, Jack, Miranda, Thane. Grunt, of course, makes a kick ass tank, but I also liked Zaaed for his fire bomb. If I wasn't playing a biotic and I needed one, I'd take Samara, if I knew I was going up against the Geth I'd take Tali, if I was going to be fighting organics I'd bring Mordin. Basically just took things on a situational basis.

Same thing here, so it's usually Miranda and Jack. I know I should including Tali in both games for Geth missions, but I always felt biotic powers were sufficiently effective.

 

[Skin]

I know I am probably complaining about the wrong thing for ME; its like me saying "oh, the jumping animation in Skyrim was not fluid enough for my liking" whereas there are larger issues at hand, but that one puzzle just got to me. I had JUST come off Dark Souls, and even in that game, when I did not know where to go or what to do, it was still fun. But I got stuck at that god damn puzzle and walked all around the complex because I had no idea what to do, and when I realized it was a puzzle sitting infront of me all along, I just snapped.

Other than that, the combat is nice and visceral and using abilities is fun. The one thing that detracts is the shitty RPG nature of it (huge reticles till you train the skill and whatnot). I also hate the fact that you have to keep upgrading your equipment to the one with the higher numbers. The process takes far too long and is uninteresting.

 

[EmperorSubcutaneous]

But the way asari procreation is described, it doesn't sound like it's the type of thing that would take more than one shot. The asari blends her entire being with her mate's, fusing minds and genetic heritage and whatnot, taking information from the mate's DNA to fuse it with her own. I suppose it's possible the pregnancy just didn't take, however it just doesn't seem likely to me.

And granted, they are an alien race and we don't know the gestation period. But come on...two years and she doesn't even have a baby-bump? I think that's a bit much.

I see no reason to believe that asari can't choose when they become pregnant. If they became pregnant every time they had sex, they would either become overpopulated really damn quickly, or they'd all be really sexually frustrated and angry all the time. (And the asari consort would never have become a thing.)

Since reproduction for asari involves a mental connection rather than a physical one, I'd say it's pretty likely that becoming pregnant is a conscious choice.

Besides, it just adds to their already-pretty-fanservicey nature.

 

[RJ 17]

I will admit that this game broke me. I got up to the part where you had to break the claw with the steam thing, and when I saw I had to do a puzzle, I turned the game off and never played again.

I just don't understand why this game has god damn puzzles. It is not necessary. It is enough hassle trying to win a gunfight with a reticle that is the size of the sun, and the god damn obligatory Mako sections, but these god damn puzzles break up the flow of the game so much. Who the fuck finds that steam puzzle interesting? I will find you and slap you.

I might give it another chance, but the combat is god damn awful. I mean, I can't aim down the scope of the sniper rifle... How fucking ridiculous. I hear ME2 gets much better in terms of cutting out all this random bullshit, so I might give that a try, but I guess I ought to finish ME1 so I can get the carry overs to ME2 and whatnot.

Yeah, gotta say I think you're overreacting a bit on this one. It's not even really a puzzle, it's "can you add up to 31?" And true, the aiming is difficult to begin with...but that's why you buy/find better equipment with better accuracy which means small crosshairs. As for the sniper rifle, as someone already mentioned, you have to be trained in it. Sure, any random military person could pick up a sniper rifle and use it, that doesn't mean they'd be any good with it...certainly not as good as a trained sniper.

I do agree that the Mako sections were lame...you always seem to land in the most rugged, mountainous region of every planet you land on. Unfortunately, they replace the Mako sections with Planet Scanning in ME 2 which is even more mind-numbing (though I'm pretty certain they've actually patched it so the process is much faster now).

Regarding Liara: NO. There is absolutely no reason for that kind of sub-plot. Mass Effect has an ancient machine race coming to destroy the galaxy. They already have enough fodder for drama, and there are more interesting things they can do with your relationship with Liara then knocking her up.

Heh heh, my comment about Liara was mostly a joke. But come on, what's wrong with having a little asari following Liara around saying "Mommy? Why don't I have a daddy?" xD

 

[Ragsnstitches]

I don't know what it is about Bioware, but they make Human Characters both unattractive and unrelatable more often then not. Mass Effect kaiden and Ashley, 2 of the worst characters ever created in a bioware game, I only wish I had a choice to kill them both... and holy crap that...

Spoiler

... "dilemma" was only hard because I wanted both to die but could only choose one

In Mass Effect 2, I can't even remember the human characters names they uninterested me so much. I know I kind of like the Merc you can hire (was he in DLC) but after his sub-quest line he just becomes a decoration in the ship.

Dragon Age... despite the apparent majorities consensus, I liked Alistair until the very end (when he BLATANTLY became the dry shit member of the group, despite his up-to-that-point playful personality and witty sarcasm), Leiliana bored the hole off of me, and the Circle woman was boring up to a specific point, where I decided she was "okay". Morrigan is the best human character in their roster thus far.

Dragon Age 2, this is definitive, bioware hates humans. In the game I hated my brother/sister and almost always chose the

Spoiler

path where they die.

The Holy Rogue fella (added in DLC) is equally bad imo and the red haired girl you meet from the start is just so irritating she's punchable.

Every single alien/non-human character they ever invest time into are always, at the very least, interesting, if not completely enjoyable. Even Garrus' seemingly bizarre personality change between 1 and 2 was more relatable then token black guys daddy issues. For fuck sake bioware.

 

[Zack Alklazaris]

And by that, I mean actually discuss it. Not how much you hate it or love it, but specifically discuss things about the series.

For instance, if you have kinky asari sex with Liara in the first game....shouldn't Liara have a daughter in the 2nd game?

Not really, just like you can have unprotected sex with someone and not have a baby. (though I strongly recommend against it. And yes its possibly to have a child. The Asarians are for lack of a better word an all A sexual race. They bond with aliens to produce offspring morphing their organs to make themselves compatible. At least thats what the codex say.

What's your favorite squad in ME 1?

Garrus Vakarian, Urdnot Wrex, and Tali'Zorah Nar Rayya. I love their personalities and they fit very well as a team.

ME2 was similiar except take out Wrex and insert Legion. Which was a good call because during the Tali mission bringing Legion along made for some interesting commentary.

 

[Lilani]

For instance, if you have kinky asari sex with Liara in the first game....shouldn't Liara have a daughter in the 2nd game?

I'm pretty sure asari and humans can't produce offspring just like how most of earth animals can't unless they have the same DNA

I'm pretty sure the asari can mate and have babies with any species, that's sort of how they work lol. But as others have pointed out, just because they had sex doesn't mean it was unprotected, and even if it was it doesn't necessarily mean she'd get pregnant. Not everybody gets pregnant on the first go.

 

[Puddleknock]

Squadmates in ME1: 1st playthrough Tali and Liara. 2nd Garrus and Wrex

Squadmates in ME2: 1st Tali and Mordin 2nd. Garrus and Thane

Also loved Legion in ME2 but you get him so late, by the time he is an option I'm already settled into a team.

Looking at what I've just typed I've realised I never choose a human as a squadmate. That's odd, might have to change that up for the 3rd one (though who am I kidding I'm going to choose Tali + Liara again).

 

[Shavon513]

And by that, I mean actually discuss it. Not how much you hate it or love it, but specifically discuss things about the series.

For instance, if you have kinky asari sex with Liara in the first game....shouldn't Liara have a daughter in the 2nd game?

Uh... I don't remember the lore specifically, but I think the meld has to be intentional in order for the Asari to become pregnant. Which is awesome, as she never has to worry about birth control

What's your favorite squad in ME 1? I've gotta say...I don't think I've ever used KaidAn or Ashely. Like, ever...and I've got 7 characters all with multiple playthroughs. Why bother with Ashely when I can use Wrex? Why bother with Kaiden when I can use...anyone else? I dunno, maybe I just like working with aliens better, but I tend to keep Liara in my squad for her biotics, and I'll switch out between Wrex and Tali depending on if I'm on a mission against organics or Geth.

I agree with you on Ashley... I play the hybrid classes, and tend to take the two squadmates who balance the cobmat/tech/biotics out, unless I choose a squadmate for a specific mission for RP purposes. For example, Geth invasion, I always bring Tali (otherwise she is always left on the ship). My main two Shepards, one is an infiltrator, and the other is a vanguard, so I always use Kaidan, Garrus and Wrex to complement them...

Kaidan is an underrated character, when it comes to combat. I can be quite the powerhouse especially after level 30. When I bring him on the final missions, enemies usually don't ever touch the ground again, once combat starts, even on Veteran and Hardcore difficulty settings. I also really, really don't like to use Tali, I it's always Garrus or Kaidan to help open lockers, etc.

As for ME 2, I tended to mix it up a bit more. Some characters I never used unless it was their loyalty mission...Jacob, Jack, Miranda, Thane. Grunt, of course, makes a kick ass tank, but I also liked Zaaed for his fire bomb. If I wasn't playing a biotic and I needed one, I'd take Samara, if I knew I was going up against the Geth I'd take Tali, if I was going to be fighting organics I'd bring Mordin. Basically just took things on a situational basis.

The squad synergy didn't seem to matter as much to me in ME2, unless husks were involved, where I would prefer to bring Jack for her shockwave ability. I like controlling my squad, and found using certain party members very frustrating, even if they were useful. Miranda, for example will run ahead in battle and get herself killed or miss targets a lot...

Idk, I tend to just use my favorite characters since they are biotics and complement the two classes I use fairly well. I never found use for pure soldiers such as Ashley, Grunt, or Zaeed. Thane, Miranda and Jack are who I tend to use the most (love the warp ability and shockwave).

 

[BodomBeachChild]

I love(d) Mass Effect. It sits up there with SotC and Metal Gear Solid. I am a sci-fi lover, but I also really enjoy science. The hard science in the first game was great (while still very out there) but ME2 put science to the backburner. I always found the Krogan as enjoyable company. I loved their view of everything because of circumstance. Yes, they are naturally agressive and can crush most people but ti was their background about the genophage and how Mordin explains to them the horrible use of Krogans as a tool. But in ME2 the Krogan still felt like the cast from Dinosaurs. (see the Krogan about fish). ME3 just doens't look fun though. It looks like a spin-off of my favorite series witht he same case. ME2 still feels that way when I play it.

ME Squad favs (Infiltrator): Garrus and Liara
ME2 Squad favs (infiltrator): varied on level usually, but mostly Garrus and Grunt/Kasumi.

 

[Idocreating]

ME1 just sits badly with me. I like the story but I played ME2 first, so the gameplay feels really clunky and Garrus, despite being badass supreme, just looks horrific without a patch to fix his low-res face.

ME2 I ended up dragging Garrus along most places, both for his lines and I find Snipers are the best guns for squadmates to use as the A.I. squadmates seem to have perfect accuracy. When I got into Insanity playthroughs I ended having to drag Miranda everywhere by default for her squadwide-buff, otherwise it really did depend on the enemies in the level. Mordin's recruitment is HELL without incineration tech or bullets.

Kasumi's usually my first point of business, her loyalty mission is easily do-able on Insanity at the beginning and her Stun grenade kicks ass too.

Infact, most of the squad members in ME2 get a good deal of use with me. Except Jack. Jack's biotics aren't worth much on Insanity so I'd drag her to a loyalty mission and dump her back in the cargo hold to mope.

 

[Black Arrow Officer]

O.k, imma give a rundown of all Squad Members for ME2, since I don't have ME1.

Jacob Taylor-Absolute joke. I like his personality a bit and find his romance to be hilarious, but I can't count a single time where he's been particularly useful. His weapon selection is crap, he doesn't have a single direct damage ability and his loyalty power is a more useless Fortification or Geth Shield Boost. 0/10

Miranda Lawson-In contrast to her colleague Jacob, Miranda is a squad member who fits in almost every situation. Warp and Overload are good against almost any type of enemy, although I don't really see the point of Slam. Her Passive ability is nice too, giving your entire squad increased weapon damage or health. I tried not to use her too much, as I needed to give my other squad members some time too. 10/10

Mordin Solus-He's very good at what he does, which is anti-armor and crowd control (somewhat). He's pretty squishy and tends to die a lot if not babysat, but Heavy Incinerate really does a number on those Scions and organic enemies in general. 5/10

Garrus Vakarian-An all around great squad member. Overload and Armor-Piercing Ammo are useful against shields and armored enemies, respectively. Concussive Shot is another great ability that can disable an enemy for a short amount of time, but also has the upside of making Pull a much better ability to use. Weapon selection is great, too. Sniper Rifles are always the best choice for squad members. His only real problem is that Armor-Piercing Ammo isn't at good as an ability such as Incinerate, or even Incendiary Ammo. 8/10

Grunt-Another great squad member. His Incendiary Ammo is great for tearing up enemies (especially Blood Pack and Collectors), Fortification makes him extremely hard to kill and Concussive Shot is a pretty decent ability. Weapon selection isn't too bad as well. He suffers from no anti-shield ability and only one offensive ability that is useless against protected enemies. 8/10

Jack-Like Jacob, she's a next to useless Biotic. Shockwave is situational, even on lower difficulties where many enemies aren't protected. Pull is generally a poor ability with minimal use. Warp Ammo is the only decent ability, but it isn't even enough to save her from never being used. She also has the same crap weapon selection as Jacob. 1/10

Kasumi Goto-SMG's are good, Overload is great, Shadow Strike is amazing, Flashbang is good. Also, her voice and personality is fantastic. Most commonly used on "merc" missions where I would be facing a hodgepodge of enemies who have backs ready to be Shadow Struck. Only downside is she's squishy. 9/10

Zaeed Massani-Disruptor Ammo isn't the best, but it really shines on Overlord and other Geth missions. There aren't too many of them, but when it can be used, it really is a fantastic ability. Inferno Grenade and Concussive shot are good abilities in general, but nothing to fawn over. 7.5/10

Tali'Zorah vas Normandy-Combat Drone has saved me numerous times and is good enough to make up for her other 2 junk abilities, besides maybe Energy Drain. She has crappy weapons though. Give her the Geth Plasma shotgun as soon as you can. An all around average squad member. 6.5/10

Samara-Reave is the best Biotic ability in the game. Absolutely amazing against Barriers, Armor and unprotected (teehee) enemies alike. Pull is bleh, Throw is meh. She has a nice weapon selection that's a tad redundant, but still better than a lot of other squad members. 7.5/10

Thane Krios-I was surprised to find out he was a Biotic. A Biotic hitman is one of the most badass things I've ever heard of. Warp is always a useful ability, Throw has some use and Shredder Ammo isn't particularly stand-outish. Snipers and SMG's are a definite plus, pushing him a notch above others. 8/10

Legion-Are you kidding me? The first robot squad member, and he sucks robot nutz? A.I hacking is useless in almost any scenario and should never be invested in, ever. Geth Shield Boost is crap, way worse than Tali's loyalty ability. Combat Drone is the same as Tali's, a great distraction that can save you and make a big difference in an intense firefight. But it still isn't enough to make him a worse version of Tali. Not even his weapon selection will make up for the extreme disappointment. 4/10

 

[KrossBillNye]

I will admit that this game broke me. I got up to the part where you had to break the claw with the steam thing, and when I saw I had to do a puzzle, I turned the game off and never played again.

My memory must be very fuzzy. Can anyone help me out in explaining where this happened in the game?

 

[Shockolate]

I will admit that this game broke me. I got up to the part where you had to break the claw with the steam thing, and when I saw I had to do a puzzle, I turned the game off and never played again.

My memory must be very fuzzy. Can anyone help me out in explaining where this happened in the game?

First Mass Effect, Feros, the plant with the Thorian.

You have to dislodge the geth ship using a combination of numbers to hit the right number to close the door on the claw.

 

[KrossBillNye]

I will admit that this game broke me. I got up to the part where you had to break the claw with the steam thing, and when I saw I had to do a puzzle, I turned the game off and never played again.

My memory must be very fuzzy. Can anyone help me out in explaining where this happened in the game?

First Mass Effect, Feros, the plant with the Thorian.

You have to dislodge the geth ship using a combination of numbers to hit the right number to close the door on the claw.

The pressure gauge? I never found that to be very difficult. In fact I loved the puzzles in the game.

 

[Shockolate]

I will admit that this game broke me. I got up to the part where you had to break the claw with the steam thing, and when I saw I had to do a puzzle, I turned the game off and never played again.

My memory must be very fuzzy. Can anyone help me out in explaining where this happened in the game?

First Mass Effect, Feros, the plant with the Thorian.

You have to dislodge the geth ship using a combination of numbers to hit the right number to close the door on the claw.

The pressure gauge? I never found that to be very difficult. In fact I loved the puzzles in the game.

I didn't find it difficult either.

I was just answering your question.

 

[KrossBillNye]

I didn't find it difficult either.

I was just answering your question.

No I know. Just stating in general. Thanks for clarifying that for me. I never thought of it as the Claw puzzle but more of the pressure gauge puzzle so I got confused Thanks again.

 

[hermes]

For instance, if you have kinky asari sex with Liara in the first game....shouldn't Liara have a daughter in the 2nd game?

Not necessarily. Sometimes, people just don't get pregnant from it.

What's your favorite squad in ME 1?

I used Kaiden and Ashley until I have the chance to change them... After that, it was Tali and Liara all the way.
In Mass Effect 2 I stick with Miranda and Jack until the middle of the game, when I switched to Tali and Samara.