Getting a present a couple months after the holiday season, especially when your birthday is in the later half of the year makes a person feel real special. Mass Effect 2 from Bioware delivers that oh so sweet feeling that doesn’t come around too often with the additional surprise being it’s so early in the year. The size of the joy ME2 can bring is dependant on something that few sequels care to worry about, but in the case of ME2 creates a stepping stone for any wannabe series to come. But before all of that, lets get deep into the vastness that is Mass Effect 2.
It has been three years since the first release so comparisons are necessary in nature but overall, ME2 is a large improvement over the first. The final product is more slick and polished much like Sean Connery has become with time and an equal happy memory to dwell on for years to come. And what makes all of this possible? Nothing as large as some controversial issues or groundbreaking ideas even though there are a couple of each. They are not the focus. And no, not the large thrills you get while watching the World Series of Poker repeats on ESPN Classics or the highlight reels from Millionaire Matchmaker and the Bad Girls Club on REALtv. Those are close but with ME2 it’s truly just a beautiful mixture of roleplaying, story, characters, graphics, music, and gameplay or as the lapers say, everything you want out of a game.
Mass Effect 2 takes place in 2183 out among the depths of space. The story is a direct continuation of the first game transitioning with little questions other than those intentionally put there. You are put in charge of a crew and a ship and are asked to put together an elite squad who are scattered throughout the universe each with unique abilities to solve a threat to all of humanity. If you happened to have played through the entire first Mass Effect, you can import your character with all your previous choices made which in turn affects the 2nd’s plot and characters. Bioware’s trademark dialogue choices are abound as you interact with those old and new giving you the chance to be a true renegade or a goody two shoes. Added to this version are opportunities to enforce extreme instances of painful force or saving grace simply by hitting the appropriate button during dialogue cutscenes.
With all the dialogue choices it is apparent that Mass Effect 2 is a roleplaying game which gives some a bad feeling to start but the flip side is the over the shoulder 3rd person combat. The combat improvements over the first installment are all shining examples of a company listening to their fanbase. The controls are easier to handle with squadmate commands and abilities and layouts of environments make more sense tactically even though they are obvious indicators of incoming fights on occasion. The fighting itself is tougher than ME1 requiring you to stay as low as much as possible, timing and taking good shots, and playing the angles with your group. A new addition is the attribute of abilities to specific classes such as special ammunition, biotic and tech abilities, and military type abilities such as increased shields or a cloaking device. Each additional character is assigned a character class that is unique in weaponry and abilities and is larger in number than ME1. There is some building on technical attributes such as specific ammo working well on robotic enemies and also working well on shields, but the combinations and best use matches are at times tough to predict with regards to group makeup or even on the fly with changing combat conditions. All of this makes you forget about your missing pet Wookie.
Equipment, armor, and upgrades are under a completely revised system making full use of resources and credits. The idea of credits in the first was a complete waste if you scoured the universe for upgrades in turn not needing to spend a single one, but in this version credits become essential for needed equipment upgrades, ship fuel, and probes used to gain resources necessary to create upgrades. The searching of planets with probes is the only real downfall of the game as the pace and repetitiveness is aggravating if not downright headshakingly mind numbing. But even this is a step up from the driving of the survey vehicle over gigantic terrain in the first.
The characters in ME2 are quite diverse and with much more personality than those Hadouken guys of Street Fighter. Each are vital help in your endgame mission to save humanity as well as possible choices for an out of this world love interest. Where the first installment would allow you to completely ignore some characters the entire game, ME2 has specific missions for each character to gain their loyalty and unlock additional abilities. This is important as the final outcome is judged on the loyalty gained before undertaking the endgame missions. And with all of the different missions it becomes apparent quickly that no 2 missions in ME2 feel repetitious in design unlike most of the additional side quests of ME1. Many of the locations throughout the universe are quite stunning visually with music to match inside and outside of combat. Specific city locations are much more simple in layout and require a lot less travel time and loading screens to get to where you need to go.
Most importantly, the story with the character development, new and old included, is by far the biggest highlight for the game. This aspect is where this series makes others shameful to consider sequels and will make a few companies stare longingly into Bioware’s eyes wondering how they got so cute. As a standalone game for someone that did not play the first my enthusiasm may be hard to comprehend even if most of the previous highlights are explained in this game. But the intertwining of both games and their storyline with its character presentation and evolution in the second is done even better than most movie sequels have ever been able to accomplish save for maybe Rambo or Land Before Time. A nice bonus is the new plot character who rivals the cigarette smoking man from X-Files. He is played by actor Martin Sheen doing one of the best voice acting jobs since the narrator of the Fallout series or any character in Resident Evil 1. And not to be overshadowed by Martin’s spectacular job, the rest of the voice acting is top notch even if some of the facial expressions during dialogue scenes don’t do the best job conveying emotions.
In theory, RPG fans will automatically pick this title up without batting an eye while others may be slightly apprehensive. But after playing through this and the first game, it is easy to see that fans of action movies or games or sci-fi in general will find a place on the dusty trophy shelf for Mass Effect 2. Without playing the first there is still enough meaty goodness within this game for anyone as long as you are a bit on the mature side with the snap violence that even the dialogue can bring. With the amazing storyline, gameplay, characters, etc, Mass Effect 2 is a game you’ll not regret later in life. So with the dry year of 2009, start off 2010 right with all your extra saved cash on Mass Effect 2.
Rating: {9.5}
Whodini – Friends
