The Mass Effect Minority

[Littaly]

I agree with you on your complaints on the story (except the shabby Yahtzee imitations ^^). It feels as if it's treading water, it's like a friend of mine put it, it's less Empire Strikes Back more Matrix Reloaded. It's lining up the pieces quite smoothly (really, look at some of the loyalty missions, they make a lot more sense in the bigger context that they seem to), but on it's own, it's too unfocused and flat.

I don't get your complaints about the equipment though. As good as ME1 was, the inventory and gear was awful. It worked excellently in Dragon Age, but for a space shooter/RPG it was overkill. Fiddling around with armor, weapons and upgrades for every darn crew member really didn't add to the experience. It could have worked if there was a whole catalog of magical and special items like in any other BioWare RPG, but it didn't work at all for Mass Effect. I'm not always positive towards streamlining, but in this case it was really needed.

As for lack of real roleplaying... yeah sure, but was it ever any different? Isn't sinner/saint what all RPGs boil down to? I agree it sucks, but was it ever any better? I agree that it's kind of stiff the way the game awards you "Good Guy" or "Bad Guy" points, but it's still a lot more effective than a lot of other games. Limiting the choises helps the game runs smoother (in non-technical terms), it does take away, but adds at the same time. And I did feel like there was some room for mixmatching, you could easily play a character that has a burning hatred for Geth but feels pity for Krogans without feeling TOO schitzo.

 

[GuiltBlade]

More awake now so hopefully manage a little better than yesterday/early morning (3 hours sleep, 9 hours work later etc).

Reading through the replies (and yes I have been reading them all) I have enjoyed noting the counter arguments which were in-fact arguments, you have said things which did strike a cord, I miss the exploration as well but not as much and my views have had the corners rounded off somewhat, although that's probably just due to the venom and acid eating away at one another.

I'm not blaming others for liking this game, and I'm not saying anyone's wrong, if anything I just needed to get an opinion out there which said the negative things. I really hate this game, in the same way that love and hate are easily changed. It seems some others agreed with elements of what I said in my sleep deprived mumblings and so this hasn't been an utter waste.

My ME2 experience is not good, it keeps me playing it because I do not wish to waste it and because I loved ME1 and so have some dire need to continue where that left off.

As such I hate the game for the most part, I say I dislike it with a passion because that's how I feel playing it. It has its good points and it has elements that keep me playing, if nothing else for the sake of the characters and a possibly epic closing segment.

Also preferred class in both games is Infiltrator with assault rifles and/or barrier (seeing as 2 allows you to keep weapon training).

Just another attempt to clarify.

 

[Quad08]

I enjoyed them both. Great characters, story and, most importantly, good fun to be had in both.

If you like one, but dislike the other, thats your choice.

Yep, they dumbed it down for the ever increasing, twelve year old 360 masses. There's less skill trees, less weapons, much less armour and more shooty shooty kill kill and sex. The same thing happened to Splinter Cell: It went from a slow and methodical stealth game where planning your actions was key; to a Jason Bourne auto targeting murder fest where you only have to worry about slaughtering everyone in your way.

You say dumbed down, I say streamlined. I barely used half the stuff I received in ME1 and getting rid of all that cluttered improved my ME2 expirence drastically.

More sex? What? You have the possibility to romance one of your companions just like in the last game, no more than in the first game. I fail to see where this is coming from.

And I actually found myself being more tactical in the second game due to the ammo limit, where in the first game (playing the soldier class) I felt like an invincible tank.

As for the 'slaughter everyone in your path' and 'auto targeting murder fest' I'm beginning to question whether or not we played the same game here. I did not kill everyone in my path, I actually saved quiet a few people down my path. Perhaps you were playing on Renegade? If so then it was your choice to go down that path, because most action RPG games tend to have you killing creatures/people/aliens that oppose you

 

[Rusty Bucket]

I actually somewhat agree with your points. And you know what? I still love it. In my opinion, none of these things have any serious negative effect on the game.

Edit:

- Plot hole. The same process returning Shepherd to life at game beginning - why does this mean the "suicide" mission is so ominous? Save a few pennies and Shepherd returns. So why will ME3 be different from ME2's beginning?

And how do you propose they retrieve the bodies?

 

[Rusty Bucket]

Whoops, apologies for the double post.

 

[squid5580]

My left index finger is now seized thanks to the stupid scanning mini-game. ME2 is 100% completionists worst nightmare. Can you imagine trying to deplete every planet? *shudders*

 

[reg42]

I think you're looking too much into the small things about the game, but it's your opinion so whatevs.
I love the second one. I really liked the first, and I love the second one. I really don't understand how one can like the first and hate the second, but hey, To each his own.

 

[Cosmic Naginata]

I went through ME again for the save file before going through ME2. It's a change but one for the better imo. While I like complexity and hope to see more of it in ME3 the systems (inventory, weapon mods) in ME were not perfect to begin with so the sudden change didnt bother me.

The interupt system was a god send. I enjoy being a paragon but every now and then a bit of ruthlessness is needed and I never feel like I'm breaking character.

The loyality missions were a great addition, I have a tendency to favour Garrus and Tali. With this I work with every member of the team. I would like to see more of these missions in replace of the N7 sidequests.

Personally I enjoy the Mass Effect series for its characters and the interactions I have with them. So long as there's plenty of that in ME3 I'll be happy.

 

[thedailylunatic]

It looks to me like most of the people here complaining about ME2 are doing so because of their own lack of playing ability. The ammo powers are a little weird in-game, but if you're boosting them up to squad-level (especially on more than one character) then that's really your fault. Also, universal cooldown may be a bit of a pain, but the cooldowns are so fast that it more than makes up for it; if you didn't have universal cooldowns, you could be blasting off powers left and right, this just keeps the whole power system more balanced and controlled. Friendly AI in ME2 is absolutely brilliant compared to ME1 and even where it isn't, the simple fact that you can tell each one to go to a different spot makes tactics a million times improved since ME1. Also, the mining mini-game may be a bit annoying, but it's really not that bad (especially when you get the upgrade) and it CERTAINLY beats spending a GAZILLION GODDAMN HOURS searching through EVERY GODDAMN INCH of EVERY GODDAMN PLANET to find all the STUPID FREAKIN MINERALS; something which honestly took up a huge percentage of my play-throughs of ME1. I'm actually re-playing ME1 now so that I can port more chars into ME2, and it's SOOO much better now that I don't give a shit about mining anymore (I mean, I miss out on XP harvesting of thresher maws on foot, but I'll live).

As for the RPing... there's really nothing schizophrenic about the dialogue choices. My main character plays pretty much neutral: he generally does good things and goes out of his way to help people, but feels no compunction about solving a problem by shooting it in the face (basically just like Garrus, now that I think about it). Bioware is pretty much the only video game company to get moral choice systems right: there are more shades of gray in the nuances of Shepard's character than pretty much any other in videogame history. And it's not like Paragon is always the choice of "good" and Renegade is always the choice of "bad:" the difference is philosophical, between meeting evil with a strict code of honor or with a boot between the buttcheeks(less good vs evil, more Superman vs Batman). The question Mass Effect raises is this: is is more "good" to sacrifice lives to maintain the high moral ground or to sacrifice one's own integrity to safeguard the innocent?

This is not schizophrenia; this is art. And as far as art goes, Mass Effect 2 is a goddamn masterpiece.

 

[xqxm]

On an unrelated tangent, i have never played either ME or ME2.

Why? Because i dislike RPG's with such a passion that i, when i can be bothered to play them, often become bored within minutes, with few exceptions.

So why are you here?

Because i registered a twitter account and a blog yesterday and as such have lost all sense of humility.

 

[(whitty name here)]

Spoiler: Yes, some Characters were bland. For me, most(if not all) the human characters.

Miranda: Genetically modified super-b*tch. She was made to be unlikeable to me

Jacob: I didn't talk to him as much as the other characters, but when I did, he bored me, he felt too linear

Zaeed: You don't even get to talk to this guy, he just tells stories about himself in his room. All about random war encounters, no variety or depth.

Jack: She was meant to be shallow. Angry, tortured her entire life, raised without friends, bred to kill. Does she sound like a person who has something nice to say?

Spoiler: The inhuman characters/the thought-out characters

Mordin: Salarian scientist who is no less than a genius in the biological field. Constantly researching, but has morals that he does not contradict(no live specimens, no forced operations, no uneccessary risks), but he also enjoys art, worked in a salarian spy squad, and can sing.

Thane: An assasin trained from the age of 6 to be nothing but the best, plagued with a disease unique to his race, he retires and helps Shepard make the galaxy a little brighter before he dies. Has a son, regrets the death of his wife, the action of his son, filled with regret of his actions, looking to redeem himself.

Grunt: Genetically modified to be the perfect krogan. Trained to be a warrior, given a history of the Krogan, and all around lover-of-a-fight.
Part of that is the archetype of a krogan;a fight loving warrior. Thats a trait of a race, put in there to show similaritites. He learns control,respect, and humor.

Legion: A modified geth that was made to be smarter as a single installation than any other single geth. hes a robot, so obviously he has to be linear, but all in all hes a very likeable character. Legion is a character that has to be experianced yourself, I find it hard to explain him.

Tali: A character from Mass Effect, therefore given twice as much room to grow. has mixed opinions of many topics, and her character would take too long to write down, or I'm too lazy to at the moment(most likely the latter).

Garrus: Turian who wants to get problems solved his way, but is always being caught up in politics. Applies to be a spectre, fails, starts a group of vigilanties to rid the galaxy of crime, betrayed by a teammate, seeks revenge a soon as he can.

Gameplay, I have mixed opinions.

Ammo powers: waste of time, you only need to use one; the biotic/warp rounds. Does extra damage against shields, barriers,armor,and health(which is everything).

Biotic powers: I like this method better than Mass Effect's. Easier to combine powers, easier to execute them, they work more effectively.

I was surprised that the weapon section was completely revamped, and most were taken out for simplicity. But other than Heavy Weapons, there is no need to ever change weapons as the new weapon's description says its a direct upgrade to the last. At least before you could sacrifice damage for rate of fire or accuracy for damgage, or any combination of each.

It makes sense that its a little more linear than the first as it has to meet certain guidelines so that Mass Effect 3 will make sense, Bioware can't be making 2 versions of Mass Effect 3 just so that they can keep the fans happy. Its unethical and too time and resource consuming to work.

When I heard "fully customizable armor", I thought Mass Effect with visual changes to be made appealing to the player, not 3-5 options for anything with minimal change to combat.

Hacking and bypass leave alot to be desired as it is nearly impossible to fail. Your skill in the matter at hand is always the same, and its difficulty never increases. Just the same 5 symbols, and matching them, or watching for your distinctly colored text to climb up the screen. No challenge.

But all in all, despite its faults, its an amazing game and I'm sure Bioware will fix its mistakes or at least make Mass effect 3 good for both sides of peoples arguments. Sadly, finding a medium usually results in a loss of quality.

Lets see how it turns out

 

[Boba Frag]

I loved both games. I played the 2nd one twice and then tried to go back to the first and just couldn't do it. There is just too much micromanaging to do that takes away from the game. The 2nd pretty much improved on everything minus the planet scanning.

I have to agree with you- the micromanaging damn near killed my eyesight, although to be fair the inventory items could be extremely useful.

I'll miss that wonderful feeling of unlimited ammo with that insanely advanced heatsink *sniffs*

 

[GrumpyOldSod]

Me... I loved it. And I seriously hope there is much more downloadable content simply featuring a certain Scientist Salarian singing other great songs from that vast repetoire.