Why is Mass Effect considered so good?

[Poomanchu745]

So i bought mass effect yesterday off steam for 5 bucks and am about 4 hours in now and just fail to see why everyone raves about it. I mean it is a good game but nothing better than a lot of other games out there, namely Fallout 3 and Dragon Age. I liked teh atmosphere and combat a hell of a lot more in Fallout 3 and so far I believe the story in Dragon Age to be superior. So am I just missing something so far or just don't get it?

 

[Curtmiester]

It's called opi....no, I seriously don't think anyone needs to explain this.

 

[Gather]

Demon Magic! (It explains everything)

 

[pseudo721]

I kind of agree. I mostly liked the conversations/dialog in ME, but the combat, inventory system, equipment and customization is definitely better in Fallout 3 and DA:O.

 

[Inco]

I found the combat to be really enjoyable once your character gained some combat depth (as in, you customized it to your leisure.. but it requires micromanagement of weapons.)
It has pretty good backstory and can become thoroughly addictive after a few hours of play, when you start getting into the swing.

 

[Poomanchu745]

I found the combat to be really enjoyable once your character gained some combat depth (as in, you customized it to your leisure.. but it requires micromanagement of weapons.)
It has pretty good backstory and can become thoroughly addictive after a few hours of play, when you start getting into the swing.

Maybe its just my MMO fantasy background but I found the group management a hell of a lot better done in dragon age. I still don't fully understand how to manage a group in a 3rd person shooter type of game. I wish that had been better explained because as of now I just sort of run around shooting shit and hoping my team doesn't die (which they usually do) and occasionally pause with the space bar to activate a random doo-hickey.

 

[quiet_samurai]

Once you really get the ball rolling on the story it becomes quite the fantastic game. The combat has a little to be desired, and the micromanagement of your gear is a nightmare. But it is an all around good game and a fun experience, especially once the story advances a little. Just stick with it.

 

[sagacious]

cause it is. /thread

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

I found the combat to be really enjoyable once your character gained some combat depth (as in, you customized it to your leisure.. but it requires micromanagement of weapons.)
It has pretty good backstory and can become thoroughly addictive after a few hours of play, when you start getting into the swing.

this.

the menu/tools were a little goofy, and the map i didn't like very much, but once i got into the game and knew what i was doing, i would get immersed in that thing for a good 4-5 hours at a time without blinking (not literally)

maybe give it more time? or progress more on the main story line a bit

i would def. agree saying htat dragons age was way better imo, and fallout 3's expansiveness and free sandbox was awesome, bioware tried to combine both of these imo and it came out a little goofy but i really believe me2 will be a big hit

 

[Amnestic]

Every Mass Effect purchase comes with a free android hooker of your alien race of choice. Didn't you get the popup with the options for it? Better recheck your installation sonny Jim.

/Loves his Tali android.

 

[Unit Alpha]

I'm not sure myself but I loved it. Probably because the story was a lot of fun and the squad members were interesting (except Kaiden).

 

[CuddlyCombine]

So i bought mass effect yesterday off steam for 5 bucks and am about 4 hours in now and just fail to see why everyone raves about it. I mean it is a good game but nothing better than a lot of other games out there, namely Fallout 3 and Dragon Age. I liked teh atmosphere and combat a hell of a lot more in Fallout 3 and so far I believe the story in Dragon Age to be superior. So am I just missing something so far or just don't get it?

That's personal opinion right there. For example, the graphics are a better than those in DA or Fallout 3: also, you've got a voiced protagonist, a morality system, etc. It's got certain things that appeal to some people more than they do to others.

Also, see, I thought that DA's story was actually far-inferior to that of Mass Effect. Dragon Age reminded me way too much of every fantasy cliche ever, while Mass Effect, although not without cliches, was more involving.

 

[Booze Zombie]

Mass Effect was the thing Bioware built Dragon Age's success on top of, you'll see the simularities straight away if you play both games directly after one another.

Mass Effect was a great game, but flawed, too.
Mass Effect 2 looks ready to impress and with little over 3 weeks to go, I'm pretty pumped for it.

 

[Ghostdraconi]

I mean it is a good game but nothing better than a lot of other games out there, namely Fallout 3 and Dragon Age.

So its just as good as two of the best RPGs out there?

 

[Kollega]

First, it's the background. Not fully realistic, but plausible and so detailed you could probably spend hours reading the Codex and imagining what, oh say, usual Turian's life is like. Secondly, the "role-playing" part is actually quite good. You decide not to be good or evil - rather, you choose if you want to reach your good goals by being a paragon of virtue or an intolerant jerkass.

Oh, and the protagonist has voice acting for once.

 

[RRilef]

Had the same feeling, but once I got going, it got much, much better. Personally, I believe if you like DAO and Fallout 3, there is a good chance you'll warm up to Mass Effect, but thats just me.

My Opinion on the games:

Fallout 3 has a great atmosphere, with a big focus on you're character and how he developes. Not through the main story, but by what you do.

Dragon Age: Origins has a great story, and the combat is very different.

Mass Effect has better combat than FO3, and about equal to DA, but completely different. Storywise, it has very, very good backstory in the logs you can get, and its especially nice to see those occasionally brought into the present story.

 

[Worgen]

I had the same opinion about it untill I started getting further into it