Mass effect 2(Wow.. i cant believe i waited this long to play it)

[wolas3214]

So, being totally late to the party i jsut completed mass effect 2. Easily my favorite rpg now, an amazing example of what games should aspire to be and one of the rare times where i felt connected to those little 1's and 0's.

I started my little journey skeptical, i heard alot about the game and was expecting mainstream crap like halo... I was pleasently surprised.. it was a little slow going at first, kelly was the only crew member i genuinley liked and i planned on making her my love interest, however tali caught my eye(having no experience with mass effect 1 i had no idea for quite the while) From archangel to our ships doc. i found myself getting drawn into the game. Between jack and grunt i wanted to murder both of them at first before slowly learning to love them, never playing a mission without grunt.

Jack outpaced kelly as my love interest when we visited the lab... however when i recruited tali i decided that between psycho and strange quarian i perferred the quarrian.. the final nail in the coffin was when i was her attourney per se(im stil upset they never showed her face) jack never talked to me again. Kelly quickly forgotten until she was abducted... i felt cold and empty without my npc's.. knowing they were dead. previously unnoticed backround nosie gone.. my livign breathing enviroment suddenly no longer the home i once knew. on the suicide mission i was determined not to lose anyone. sending legion as my first specialist(geth hacking seemed obvious) Until he took a bullet..

i was completley and utterly surprised which made every event after that just that much more climatic.. i had no idea who would live and die. After blowing up the ship and the spectre i had a body count of four, miranda, our crazy scientist, the assassin and legion. I was devastated(minus miranda.. ice *****) i sat for a moment.. torn.. I honestly wanted to do a playthrough but i almsot dont want to replay it.. itd be like talking to my family who all had amnesia.. it wouldnt be the same.

TL;DR- mass effect 2 blew my freaking mind, feel free to share your experiences

 

[MisterShine]

TL;DR- mass effect 2 blew my freaking mind, feel free to share your experiences

Glad you've joined the rest of us who enjoyed it, about a year and a half later than most but hey... you probably paid about a tenth of what I did if it makes you feel better

I don't know how I'd rate Mass Effect 2 as an RPG, but as a game it certainly is excellent. I too at first hated Jack and Grunt and they warmed up to me, but I executed the "suicide mission" flawlessly and didn't lose a single person. I guess I'm just cooler than you My first playthrough was my Renegade-slowly-turning-Paragon Femshep who romanced Liara in the first game, and since none of the new squaddies caught my eye I stuck true to her. Pays off real well in Lair of the Shadowbroker let me tell you (PS did you do any of the DLC missions? They're damn good)

If I may recommend.. try grabbing ME1 and seeing how you dig that. Transferring your save file and Shepard from the first game and seeing all the cool references and old characters and such is pretty sweet. Though you might get annoyed by the changes in combat between the two.

 

[Amphoteric]

I preferred Mass Effect 1. I thought Mass Effect 2 had a terrible non-nonsensical end boss fight and then there was a moral choice that made no sense to end the game.

 

[bjj hero]

I stopped after the first paragraph. Not a case of TLR, more I started ME2 last night. I planned to have a quick half an hour importing a charecter before bed then ended up going to bed at 0330...

So far I like it.

How many ME1 charecters will it recognise? Only I'm sure I played through more than 3 times and I was only offered 3 charecters to import.

*on the 360*

 

[Edge Hypermatter]

Honestly? I missed being able to go around on random planets in the buggy. I don't remember the buggy handling as bad as everybody says. I also didn't approve of having to keep track of ammo, and the limited gun choices. Other than that, it's a pretty good game. Fantastic story and I love the depth of the world, how all the tech is explained and everything. I'm curious to see whether the third game improves the interface or makes it worse. Also, what is Red Sand and why is it illegal? I get that it's a drug, but there should totally be a codex entry on it!
I did start out with an infiltrator, but then I saw my sister playing a vanguard and using the biotic charge ability. I was all over that. I love being able to get up in my opponent's faces and then blasting them. The only thing that could have improved it would be some sort of beam sword.

 

[Bara_no_Hime]

**snip**

Played it for the first time back in January when I got it for the PS3 - loved it. Loved it so much I downloaded Steam just to get ME 1 (I hate playing games on my PC) and played through ME1 twice.

On my third play through of ME2 - still loving it. ^^

 

[pyrrhic victory]

I just got my hands on a copy back in about March, and I still haven't even gotten to play it.

 

[The Madman]

I really enjoyed the game as well. Some people complain about the streamlining of the games mechanics, but beyond perhaps having done a bit overboard in places by almost completely removing armour save in the most absolutely basic sense I feel Mass Effect 2 is an example of streamlining for the better. Game felt more smooth, the action was more visceral, and I'll be damned if it wasn't pretty as hell.

My only major complaints are twofold; one, I disliked the ending and the overarching 'collector' plot, it just felt completely superfluous to the actual main storyline and never 'clicked' with me in the same way Saren and the Reaper threat did for the first game. There's no major antagonist, no major villain, no real sense of urgency, and frankly the entire chapter just feels like stalling for time. Still, the characters personal quests and stories more than made up for that, so it's not all bad.

Second, the DLC. I don't buy dlc, it's a personal thing, I just refuse to support that sort of business method and the best way to show that dislike is by just not buying it. I know it's a pointless gesture but still. That I feel I've missed so much of the plot without having paid extra... well it annoys me, but that's more my problem than a problem with the game itself.

Overall a brilliant experience however. I have high hopes for Mass Effect 3!

 

[Defense]

I didn't play the first Mass Effect, but I'd expect my experience to be just as average. The game is nothing special, really. It only deserves mention because it's a game that does a lot of things right, but hardly anything above average.

The RPG part of the game is laughable at best though. Even using the "you're playing a role" interpretation, there was hardly any role playing in the game. Choosing stupid dialogue choices to raise stats that hardly matter themselves is not roleplaying.

Chrono Trigger has more roleplaying than Mass Effect 2, and I'll be damned if the writing isn't better either.

 

[Elamdri]

I didn't play the first Mass Effect, but I'd expect my experience to be just as average. The game is nothing special, really. It only deserves mention because it's a game that does a lot of things right, but hardly anything above average.

The RPG part of the game is laughable at best though. Even using the "you're playing a role" interpretation, there was hardly any role playing in the game. Choosing stupid dialogue choices to raise stats that hardly matter themselves is not roleplaying.

Chrono Trigger has more roleplaying than Mass Effect 2, and I'll be damned if the writing isn't better either.

I am personally of the opinion that there is no such thing as a video game RPG. If you're not rolling for initiative, you're not playing an RPG.

 

[Shodan1980]

The first time I played through the finale mission of ME2 my nerves were a wreck, I knew there was the achievement for 100% survival and I was terrified I'd lose anybody. Every time it asked you to make a choice I agonised about making the right one. Course by the second time through I realised the only criteria it cares about is are they loyal and do they have the skills? If both yes then grats they live. ME2 is one of those few games that have felt as fresh and new on the second time through as the first, and the DLS was great icing on the cake (if rather bloody expensive for some)

 

[Defense]

I didn't play the first Mass Effect, but I'd expect my experience to be just as average. The game is nothing special, really. It only deserves mention because it's a game that does a lot of things right, but hardly anything above average.

The RPG part of the game is laughable at best though. Even using the "you're playing a role" interpretation, there was hardly any role playing in the game. Choosing stupid dialogue choices to raise stats that hardly matter themselves is not roleplaying.

Chrono Trigger has more roleplaying than Mass Effect 2, and I'll be damned if the writing isn't better either.

I am personally of the opinion that there is no such thing as a video game RPG. If you're not rolling for initiative, you're not playing an RPG.

I'm of the opinion that RPGs are about stat balancing/team organizing(and thus nonlinear gameplay) since the Ultima series, an early adopter of D&D mechanics, seems to be big on character creation. But we would never have this problem in the first place if the RPG term was more specific so the Final Fantasy XIIIs of the world wouldn't proudly carry the false label.

 

[MisterShine]

I am personally of the opinion that there is no such thing as a video game RPG. If you're not rolling for initiative, you're not playing an RPG.

You roll for initiative in Neverwinter Nights

Second, the DLC. I don't buy dlc, it's a personal thing, I just refuse to support that sort of business method and the best way to show that dislike is by just not buying it.

If anything can convince you that DLC can be a good thing, Lair of the Shadowbroker is it. Give it a shot.

 

[feauxx]

maybe a spoiler warning for those who haven't played it yet?


mass effect 2 is my fav game ever, can't wait for mass effect 3 to take that place

 

[Elamdri]

I'm of the opinion that RPGs are about stat balancing/team organizing(and thus nonlinear gameplay) since the Ultima series, an early adopter of D&D mechanics, seems to be big on character creation. But we would never have this problem in the first place if the RPG term was more specific so the Final Fantasy XIIIs of the world wouldn't proudly carry the false label.

My issue is that we tend to view an RPG as a system, rather than a concept. People just see attributes, and levels and skills and go, oh, this is an RPG.

But that's not the case. That's the SYSTEM that the RPG runs on, but the actual roleplaying is something that comes from the player. The issue that I have with calling Videogames that use a d20 system, RPGs is that they so fundamentally limit a player's ability to truly roleplay. Often your'e not even playing "Your" story, but some random character's story in the game. Sure, they might give you a limited list of pre-designed responses, but the true essence of an RPG is total control over your character, which is not something you get in a video game.

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

That great I'm glad you liked the game. Although you do know why they can't/shouldn't show Tali's face and why in my opinion is why she shouldn't be a viable option for Romance?

 

[Defense]

I'm of the opinion that RPGs are about stat balancing/team organizing(and thus nonlinear gameplay) since the Ultima series, an early adopter of D&D mechanics, seems to be big on character creation. But we would never have this problem in the first place if the RPG term was more specific so the Final Fantasy XIIIs of the world wouldn't proudly carry the false label.

My issue is that we tend to view an RPG as a system, rather than a concept. People just see attributes, and levels and skills and go, oh, this is an RPG.

But that's not the case. That's the SYSTEM that the RPG runs on, but the actual roleplaying is something that comes from the player. The issue that I have with calling Videogames that use a d20 system, RPGs is that they so fundamentally limit a player's ability to truly roleplay. Often your'e not even playing "Your" story, but some random character's story in the game. Sure, they might give you a limited list of pre-designed responses, but the true essence of an RPG is total control over your character, which is not something you get in a video game.

What game would you say got the closest to an actual RPG then? Ignoring labels of course, so platformers and such would count even if there's no stat balancing whatsoever.

 

[Shodan1980]

No computer game can ever truly be an RPG in a D&D sense, there will always have to be a set storyline in there and if you want dialogue the character has to be pretty formed already. You may choose between some preset character personalities as you play, but you'd never be able to go off on a wild pen and paper style flight of fancy until you can get a computer game that does a passable Turing impersonation to change the game around you. And don't hold your breath for that. People do use MMORPGs to RP, but its always extraneous outside the framework of the game, and they might as well do it over the phone for as much as the game matters to their RP.

 

[Elamdri]

I'm of the opinion that RPGs are about stat balancing/team organizing(and thus nonlinear gameplay) since the Ultima series, an early adopter of D&D mechanics, seems to be big on character creation. But we would never have this problem in the first place if the RPG term was more specific so the Final Fantasy XIIIs of the world wouldn't proudly carry the false label.

My issue is that we tend to view an RPG as a system, rather than a concept. People just see attributes, and levels and skills and go, oh, this is an RPG.

But that's not the case. That's the SYSTEM that the RPG runs on, but the actual roleplaying is something that comes from the player. The issue that I have with calling Videogames that use a d20 system, RPGs is that they so fundamentally limit a player's ability to truly roleplay. Often your'e not even playing "Your" story, but some random character's story in the game. Sure, they might give you a limited list of pre-designed responses, but the true essence of an RPG is total control over your character, which is not something you get in a video game.

What game would you say got the closest to an actual RPG then? Ignoring labels of course, so platformers and such would count even if there's no stat balancing whatsoever.

Maybe a game like Heavy Rain. I know no one considers it an RPG because it doesn't work off a D20 system, but if you think about it in the context of roleplaying, then Heavy Rain is far more like an RPG than most RPGs.