Because apparently cover-based shooting, nickel and diming and crap endings are like crack to some people.
Okay, I'm Sorry but... Just What on Earth is so Great about Mass Effect?!
- Thread starter WhyWasThat
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The Big Bang Theory is the most pirated TV series, does it's popularity prove anything?wintercoat said:
Back in 2004 nobody complained about HL2. In 2011 it would not receive perfect scores. The game is not popular anymore, but should that affect it's quality, specially when said quality was evaluated years ago?
Almost all the characters had much more going on than their presentations or even first appearances. I actually use that as a great barometer for how much people have played the games, particularly in the cases of Jack and Miranda (though, God help me, I cannot bring myself to find a single fuck to give about Kaiden). And I don't mean how many times they've beaten it, but more how much they explore, how often they talk to crew, etc.
But yeah, it's a living, breathing, ORIGINAL universe (and I don't mean no concepts were borrowed, homaged, stolen, whatever word you want to use, I mean it's not based on a pre-existing property) that has almost every inch of itself well thought out. They gin up explanations for FTL travel, space magic, weapons with unlimited ammo (and then why ammo was limited in future games), they create aliens that actually LOOK alien (and some that LOOK human, because why not?), and they have some of the best dialog, bar-none, in videogames. I'm not going to sit here and say one's better than the other because that's like comparing apples and jogging, they're not really trying to accomplish the same thing, so it's hard to place one objectively above the other.
But yeah, it's a living, breathing, ORIGINAL universe (and I don't mean no concepts were borrowed, homaged, stolen, whatever word you want to use, I mean it's not based on a pre-existing property) that has almost every inch of itself well thought out. They gin up explanations for FTL travel, space magic, weapons with unlimited ammo (and then why ammo was limited in future games), they create aliens that actually LOOK alien (and some that LOOK human, because why not?), and they have some of the best dialog, bar-none, in videogames. I'm not going to sit here and say one's better than the other because that's like comparing apples and jogging, they're not really trying to accomplish the same thing, so it's hard to place one objectively above the other.
I don't think the "bar" rises linearly. This might not have happened all over the world, but gaming magazines (didn't have internet back then) would tear apart games that today get 8s and 9s. Things change, and so does the consensus between reviewers and consumers.Devoneaux said:
When you get in a world where most CoDs had a protagonist that doesn't talk much, you see things happening in real time and not just in cutscenes, vehicles sections, etc and you play HL2 you think "Am I supposed to be impressed by all this? This is another generic shooter".
In hindsight... not much really.
People like to crow about the writing, but it's nothing special. Circular logic + cryptic holograms + giant tentacled space whales =/= the pinnacle of storytelling.
Some people like to go on about how wonderful the characters are. And yet nobody seems to be able to agree on which are great and which are horrible pastiches of cliches. I've heard people claim Miranda Lawson is a genuinely intriguing character, and then I've heard people complain about her ass at such great length it strains belief.
Player choice? No. Next point.
Gameplay? Mass Effect 1 has abysmally bad gameplay across the board. Mass Effect 2 had shooting from behind cover and nothing else (except minesweeper, which everyone hated). Mass Effect 3 also had shooting from behind cover and nothing else (except minesweeper, which everyone now loves).
People like to crow about the writing, but it's nothing special. Circular logic + cryptic holograms + giant tentacled space whales =/= the pinnacle of storytelling.
Some people like to go on about how wonderful the characters are. And yet nobody seems to be able to agree on which are great and which are horrible pastiches of cliches. I've heard people claim Miranda Lawson is a genuinely intriguing character, and then I've heard people complain about her ass at such great length it strains belief.
Player choice? No. Next point.
Gameplay? Mass Effect 1 has abysmally bad gameplay across the board. Mass Effect 2 had shooting from behind cover and nothing else (except minesweeper, which everyone hated). Mass Effect 3 also had shooting from behind cover and nothing else (except minesweeper, which everyone now loves).
That's nice and all, but what does that have to do with me cheekily pointing out I've always hated the show Seinfeld?ElPatron said:
I never got the whole loving of the Half Life series, to be honest. I mean, they're decent first person shooters, but that's about it for me. Yes, interesting story and yes a character who isn't completely generic and blah-di-blah, but Mass Effect has an interesting story, and multiple characters who the player cares about.
Shepard is actually part of the universe, not just a camera floating around with a gun attached who gets told he's an icon for freedom dispite never having done anything but thrown a can at a Combine's face and suffered the consequences. Freeman seems to me like he's just doing what he's told without having any clue what the fuck is going on. Shepard knows what he/she's doing. The game gives you a reason for the people wanting to follow Shepard. The game gives you a reason for you to want to follow Shepard.
This is why I love Mass Effect and I think Half Life was simply "okay", and maybe occasionally good. I don't care about the Half Life universe or its inhabitants as much as I do about the Mass Effect universe and its inhabitants. Hell, I had to spend several hours on the Half Life wiki reading articles so I would start caring about what the Combine was doing.
Shepard is actually part of the universe, not just a camera floating around with a gun attached who gets told he's an icon for freedom dispite never having done anything but thrown a can at a Combine's face and suffered the consequences. Freeman seems to me like he's just doing what he's told without having any clue what the fuck is going on. Shepard knows what he/she's doing. The game gives you a reason for the people wanting to follow Shepard. The game gives you a reason for you to want to follow Shepard.
This is why I love Mass Effect and I think Half Life was simply "okay", and maybe occasionally good. I don't care about the Half Life universe or its inhabitants as much as I do about the Mass Effect universe and its inhabitants. Hell, I had to spend several hours on the Half Life wiki reading articles so I would start caring about what the Combine was doing.
Pretty much this.Djinn8 said:
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Pretty much what is above pushed this game to 10s all over. The fact that it had a fun buddy to follow you around, fake girlfriends and 'sex' made it much more 'mature' then many others. /kinda sarcasm
Well the original had a lot of promise and essentially two is what you see from that.
In the op, you say you've never played the actual games? Try 'em. The first one is pretty cheap now (I think) but in my opinion, that one's the worst... But I liked them because I liked the characters, and the plot was better than the plot of most games, possible all of them if you REALLY liked it.
And Apparentlly I'm one of the only people who didn't hate the ending of the third game, so prehaps I'm just braindead compared to the everyone else, but it's my favourite game series.
And Apparentlly I'm one of the only people who didn't hate the ending of the third game, so prehaps I'm just braindead compared to the everyone else, but it's my favourite game series.
Bioshock Infinite...what was so great about that? Bland & unlikable characters, clunky and repetitive combat, uninspired setting and plot, atrocious pacing, generic enemy types with clearly next to no imagination lavished on them.... I could go on.
I just can't figure why people liked that game so much.
I just can't figure why people liked that game so much.
My opinion.. it doesn't get really good until game 3, and then only because you're getting the payoff from the first two games.WhyWasThat said:
Mordin's arc keeps getting mentioned, and there's a reason for that. It is one of the best story arcs I've ever seen in a game. I actually didn't like Mordin when you first met him, my response was along the lines of "ugh.. this guy is going to be used for cheap comic relief way too much". By the end of ME2, I really liked the character, and I inevitably cried in ME3 when his plot was finally tied up.
Most video game stories can be summarized along the lines of "character wants or needs something -> obstacles -> character gets what they want without having grown or changed at all". For all that there is a lot of clichéd pulpy crap in the Mass Effect series, there is also genuine character growth. Sometimes it's awkward and sometimes it goes a bit wrong, particularly when they try to do with minor characters, but when it goes right it is such a satisfying payoff. Character development is the stuff which elevates story above a mere device to chain together sequences of gameplay, and very few games do it. The Mass Effect games really embrace it, practically every character ends up getting some semblance of an arc.
On a more general level, I personally like what it represents, which is a bridge between the traditional WRPG insistence on customization and freedom and a more JRPG emphasis on telling a story with fixed characters. It succeeds in giving just enough choice to create the illusion of freedom while keeping just enough constraint to keep the story meaningful. I thought overall that was really good and I hope it will be the real legacy of the series.
I appreciate your level-headedness. Perhaps I will give the first entry a try. Heck it'll help justify buying a 360 (ME1 ain't available on PS3).Patrick Buck said:
Plus a pre-owned copy is cheap as chips.
i really liked ME1 and thought the series had potential but i was kinda disappointed with the gameplay in 2 and 3. however what kept me playing were Garrus. He was just a really cool guy and friend to shepard who was also a total badass without having to point it out to everyone.
there were some other characters i liked (Mordins death was one of the saddest things i ever saw in a game) but none of them were a constant in every game (i didn't like Liara)
there were some other characters i liked (Mordins death was one of the saddest things i ever saw in a game) but none of them were a constant in every game (i didn't like Liara)
I...never said it did...ElPatron said:
I was responding cheekily to the remark that Half Life is effected by the "Seinfeld is Unfunny" trope, and that I found it to be unfunny when it was still on T.V.
Not only was I not judging the perceived value of Seinfeld, but I was being partially disingenuous. You just chose to take it more seriously than I was.
The reason Mass effect is so good is because it lets you shape the character in this huge setting into whoever you want it to be. Only through countless hours of interactions and difficult choices cxan you attain such depth of character... and that character will always be who and what you make it.
Because of this, Mass Effect grows on you into a very fun experience. You become invested.
Personally, I have never been a fan of half life. I have never seen anything in it beyond any other generic FPS.
Because of this, Mass Effect grows on you into a very fun experience. You become invested.
Personally, I have never been a fan of half life. I have never seen anything in it beyond any other generic FPS.