Okay, I'm Sorry but... Just What on Earth is so Great about Mass Effect?!

[WoahDan]

Oh, I completely agree about the voice work in Half-Life 1. Compared to today it was horrendous. But remember, it came out in 1998. And, I was referring to the series as a whole in my previous posts. In which case, the VO work in Half-Life 2 and the episodes more than make up for it.

However, I still must say that Halo is practically worshipped compared to the hatred and ire Half-Life seems to garner. At least, in the form of thread topics.

I won't deny that there are still many who will insult someone for saying they like Halo, I've had it happen to me plenty of times, but you rarely if ever see entire threads themed on how "bad" the Halo series is. At least, now-a-days.

The way I see it HL2 and the Mass Effect series are roughly equal in terms of voice work whilst HL1 drags Half-Life's overall average down so to speak. Of course if your talking about the VO work relative to when they came out HL is superior as a series, but then that's not really fair to Mass Effect as the 'average' level of VO work was much higher when the ME games came out.

I don't think you need me to tell you that simply looking at the title threads is a really bad metric for measuring feelings to a series, for every anti Half-Life comment I'm willing to bet you could find twenty anti-Halo comments. The only reason that threads aren't made to bash Halo any more is that it would be redundant as Halo is already bashed pretty much everywhere, hell even in this thread there are four or five Halo-bashing comments and this topic isnt even related to Halo! It seems a silly way to treat popular games imo but if that's the way people choose to waste their lives who am I to spoil the fun?

 

[Archereus]

Fictional girlfriends, soft core space porn and Garrus.

But seriously, Mordin and the whole Geneophage plot line carries the series. Everything else is kind of mediocre in my eyes.

ED: mediocre is the wrong word, more like everything else just makes par or worse.

To make a big point on why Mass Effect is so popular is I am on the same boat as you but for a different reason. For me the big plot that carries the story in the war between the Quarians and the Geth and how much I love Legion, for me the game improved like 20 fold when I met him.

But I hope the point I am trying to make here is clear enough, the game does a great job with creating plot and sub plots and also characters so that almost all people who play the game will enjoy at least one of those things

 

[Madgamer13]

Greets!

We're talking about the Mass Erect series of games? Who could ever forget their most memorable colour picking minigame, maybe they should have sold it as a DLC! Oh, wait.

By the way, this is what it is all about:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGz7tdOMIas

 

[Vigormortis]

Oh, I completely agree about the voice work in Half-Life 1. Compared to today it was horrendous. But remember, it came out in 1998. And, I was referring to the series as a whole in my previous posts. In which case, the VO work in Half-Life 2 and the episodes more than make up for it.

However, I still must say that Halo is practically worshipped compared to the hatred and ire Half-Life seems to garner. At least, in the form of thread topics.

I won't deny that there are still many who will insult someone for saying they like Halo, I've had it happen to me plenty of times, but you rarely if ever see entire threads themed on how "bad" the Halo series is. At least, now-a-days.

The way I see it HL2 and the Mass Effect series are roughly equal in terms of voice work whilst HL1 drags Half-Life's overall average down so to speak. Of course if your talking about the VO work relative to when they came out HL is superior as a series, but then that's not really fair to Mass Effect as the 'average' level of VO work was much higher when the ME games came out.

I don't think you need me to tell you that simply looking at the title threads is a really bad metric for measuring feelings to a series, for every anti Half-Life comment I'm willing to bet you could find twenty anti-Halo comments. The only reason that threads aren't made to bash Halo any more is that it would be redundant as Halo is already bashed pretty much everywhere, hell even in this thread there are four or five Halo-bashing comments and this topic isnt even related to Halo! It seems a silly way to treat popular games imo but if that's the way people choose to waste their lives who am I to spoil the fun?

Fair point. Though I will admit to being one of the ones mentioning Halo, though it was specifically aimed at someone I knew who liked the series. And, I begrudgingly admit, the comment I made was meant to illicit a response. So that one, in this case, probably doesn't count.

Either way, you're probably right. It's just so damned annoying that people on this forum can't talk about their enjoyment or love of a series without being berated and lambasted for it.

That is, unless that series is from Bioware or Bethesda. Then you're safe. :/

(couldn't help myself. sorry.)

 

[userwhoquitthesite]

For some time now, pretty much since Mass Effect 2 released, fans haven't been able to shut up about how amazing the Mass Effect series is. This has always confused me, as having played the lengthy demos for both Mass Effect 2 and 3, I have to say that fair graphics, standard gameplay, okayish acting, and Jordan Shephard's glassy eyed mannequin head didn't even come close to impressing me. But I just rolled my eyes and got on with it.
However, in a very recent post on this very forum, a user claimed that Half Life 3 would probably not be worth the wait due to the Mass Effect series having very likely eclipsed Valve's flagship series in the meantime.

Mass Effect. Better. Than Half Life.
That was the final straw.

So I ask you all... What the fuck is the big deal?

the biggest draw is how much personal choice carries into the games, i think.

otherwise, yes, they are standard space opera fare

 

[Smeggs]

Mass Effect. Better. Than Half Life.
That was the final straw.

So I ask you all... What the fuck is the big deal?

Half-Life really isn't as spectacular as you seem to think it is. Yes, it's an above average shooter with a decent enough story and "OMG PHYSICS ENGINE", but any game with a protagonist that never even shows his face or talks will never be perfect in my eyes. All you basically are is a pair of arms with a crowbar.

I don't agree with the other user's statement that the game won't be worth the wait, however it seems as though Valve has forgotten the series that made them so popular to begin with. There is no possible way Valve can deliver the level of hype that will be generated once they finally announce the game, especially since the series has been over a decade in the making. I doubt it will be anywhere close to the pinnacle of shooters.

 

[StashAugustine]

I'm not judging it, I have no opinion on the game. That's the whole point of this thread, my pedigree chum. I'm asking you fine folks that HAVE played the games to tell me what the hook is.

The demos really don't do it justice. The gameplay doesn't get any better, nor graphics, acting a little. Mass Effect is about three things: exploring the galaxy, making choices, and meeting interesting characters. None of these are present in the demos, which present a slightly above average tactical shooter with some serious control issues.

 

[Dfskelleton]

My God, man! What have you done! You've... you've brought the quality of Mass Effect into question... on the Escapist!

OT: I've never seen what's so special about it either, but I'm not particularly bothered by the fact that other people enjoy it. Everyone has different tastes, after all.

Also, I have to thank them for the weeks of entertainment they all gave me from the ME3 ending ordeal. It was one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time.

 

[CrazyJew]

Bioware hasn't made a decent RPG since KOTOR. There, I said it. I won't even put my flame-shield up, I live close enough to the equator to be able to withstand the heat. I hereby claim this kitchen in the name of me.

 

[DudeistBelieve]

The story. It hit the same tone as the Star Wars movies for some folk, I suppose.

It used to be the story was the best thing about it, until they screwed that pooch as royally as possible. Now it's a middling action shooter series with a fantastic out-of-the-gate start that fell prey to a disease of lame-ness somewhere between the end of the second game and the announcement of the third. Everything after that, well, that's history, now.

Psssh for you maybe.

I got the ending where the universe was wiped clean of all life.

My renegade sheppard brought peace to galaxy by any means necessary.

 

[Spearmaster]

Ive played way better RPGs but I think the only other popular RPGs that are of a space/sci-fi origin are either JRPGs or starwars and the latter has not been done in a while so it leaves mass effect nothing major to compete with.

I realy liked baldurs gate 1&2, KotOR 1&2, ME was ok but ME2 felt like a crappy FPS with a dating sim between each section and the story was of a strait to DVD quality so I did not even bother with the third, rather spend time with skyrim or the witcher 2

People can say the characters made the game but even the best characters cant make the plot better it just makes the game better as a whole so I would call it a unique game with interesting characters, sub par movie plot with mediocre quality game-play.

So people probably like it mostly for the uniqueness and the characters would be my guess.

 

[TheCaptain]

It just tickles me in all the right places. Great, relatable characters, (in my ears) supreme voice acting, and, for the most part, a solid story. It's pretty standard stuff, but that's what Bioware does best, after all. Standart fantasy/scifi-plots are standart for a reason; it's because they work. If well executed, they work particularly well.
Also, awesome soundtrack.

 

[SpectacularWebHead]

Half Life is eclipsed by everything, it's an over hyped shooter that only gets any publicity because it's made by valve.

Ok, not getting into the topic of the thread at all, but that is just factually wrong. The only reason anyone knows who valve are is because they released half life, it's the game that put them on the map. They certainly didn't buy it because it was made by valve, they care about valve because they made half life.

Half life one was good for it's time. All else after that was inferior and over-hyped.

 

[maninahat]

It totally isn't a good game. I finished Mass Effect a year ago, and found bloody awful. The biggest problem by far, above all else, was that I wasn't able to get into it. The atmosphere and settings just weren't hitting any of the right notes. Specifically, it is because every location seems to consist of bland steel corridors. Even the big citadel was just a load of metal walkways in front of a shitty back drop. The upshot is that places felt lifeless, bland, and unlived in. This didn't feel like a real, living breathing universe. It felt sterile.

I know that is a problem with sci-fi settings in general, but really, why is metal the only building resource? Is it really that hard to get hold of some wood or textiles? Even Mass Effects "market" was made entirely out of steel. That's bullshit and horrible to look at.

 

[SeeIn2D]

Well after hearing all kinds of talk about how awesome it was and after playing the first one a bit, I bought Mass Effect 2 off of PSN and it was definitely a good game with an awesome story line...but...it just wasn't all that fun to play for me personally. I might just be stupid and impatient and the game clearly required a bit more thought than a lot of other games, but it just wasn't all that fun for me.

 

[llew]

For some time now, pretty much since Mass Effect 2 released, fans haven't been able to shut up about how amazing the Mass Effect series is. This has always confused me, as having played the lengthy demos for both Mass Effect 2 and 3, I have to say that fair graphics, standard gameplay, okayish acting, and Jordan Shephard's glassy eyed mannequin head didn't even come close to impressing me. But I just rolled my eyes and got on with it.
However, in a very recent post on this very forum, a user claimed that Half Life 3 would probably not be worth the wait due to the Mass Effect series having very likely eclipsed Valve's flagship series in the meantime.

Mass Effect. Better. Than Half Life.
That was the final straw.

So I ask you all... What the fuck is the big deal?

the issue is that all you played was the demos, the demos are nothing compared to the full game, you dont even get Garrus in the demos! (ok for about 5 minutes you do but thats besides the point)