Up to, during, and after its release, Mass Effect set the imaginations of gamers ablaze. It was an experience that many people seemed to embrace without a second thought. It was some time after its release that people saw Mass Effect for what it really was: a nice, if unsuccessful attempt. Poor handling during driving sequences (that only served to pad gameplay), bland combat, cumbersome inventory management, long load times, and texture pop-in marred what could have been a great game.
Gamers complained. Bioware listened. Mass Effect 2 is a prime example not only of what a sequel should be, but of how good games can be when everything just works.
For the uninitiated, Mass Effect is a space opera third person Action RPG where you play galactic savior Commander Shepard. In the first game, playing as either a male or female Commander Shepard, you uncover a plot by an ancient group of alien AIs to destroy all organic life. The sequel picks up as your ship is attacked by an unknown vessel, an attack that starts you on a journey that could cost you your life.
Mass Effect 2 uses a cover system somewhat borrowed from Gears of War. I say somewhat, because even with the improvements, cover still feels a little off and the lack of blind fire capability is conspicuously absent. The sequel differs from Mass Effect in that weapons now each have an ammo counter, as opposed to the heat management you needed to worry about in the first game. Minor changes in movement speed, the closeness of the camera to Shepard, and the general feel of firing the weapons make for a distinctly noticeable improvement in the combat.
When you’re not shooting things, you’ll find yourself exploring world and conversing with all manner of friendly and hostile aliens and humans. The conversation system from the first game hasn't changed a bit, allowing you to pick a general idea and then listen to Shepard elaborate on it. Sometimes you’ll even get to pick a Renegade or Paragon special response that will help you resolve a situation in a unique way either in a very positive or very negative manner. The major new addition to the dialog system is that in certain cases, you’ll be able to hit the left or right trigger to interrupt the action and prompt Shepard to act like a Paragon (like saving someone from getting shot) or a Renegade (like shoving someone out a window).
One of Mass Effect’s big gimmicks is that the choices your character makes in the various quest lines in the first game can carry over to the second, assuming you finished the first game. Minor decisions, like how you handled side quests and whether you offered people 2nd chances, are remembered and referenced. Bigger events, from as main characters perishing to truly galaxy changing events, can have sweeping repercussions in the 2nd game.
If you’ve played the first game, every noticeable consequence and reaction (to your actions) will bring a grin to your face. These small things add to the sense of the world's depth, from a photo of your love interest from ME appearing on your desk in your quarters, to a meeting with a character you kept from dying who’s grateful to see you again. Even more mind-boggling is that the game logs these decisions, so that when you make a decision in Mass Effect 2 based on decisions you made in Mass Effect, this chain of choices will lead to unique situations in Mass Effect 3.
Mass Effect 2 is also host to a gigantic amount of gameplay and interface. There are no driving sequences (although there has been talk of a hovertank for DLC …), and texture pop-in is gone. While the load times are still a bit lengthy, they’re forgivable. Inventory management has been all but removed. Now, you’ll pick up armor pieces to mix and match, and you can customize your look and armor color. Just as welcome is the new weapon system: new guns are much more rare (while upgrades are common), making each new rifle and pistol feel unique.
Gameplay aside, Mass Effect 2’s presentation is downright amazing. Character design, world design, art direction, voice acting – the game is a wonder to see and hear, truly invoking the feeling of being in a totally alien environment. The world has darker, more serious notes, mirroring the desperate state of your character and of the galaxy. The squad mates you’ll recruit are significantly more diverse than last time; each NPC has his or her own unique history and personality. The sheer amount of dialog in the game is pretty insane as well; there are 10 squad mates in the game out of the box, each with their own responses to every event and side story. So much work was put into making this feel like an organic experience that it almost transcends being a game.
If Mass Effect 2 fails in any significant way, it it’s that it suffers from ‘Empire Strikes Back’ Syndrome. Its ending lacks closure, making it feel like little more than a stop gap for the fight to come. Aside from the ending, the only other major gripe I had is that I ran into more than a couple small glitches. These glitches ranged from getting stuck on furniture, to some minor HUD glitches, to the complete game crashes. These are minor issues in the grand scheme of things, but they are worth mentioning.
Speaking of things that are worth mentioning, Mass Effect 2 took me around 35 hours to complete on normal difficulty (including all of the side quests and day one DLC). To get the aforementioned DLC, all you need to do is activate the Cerberus Network token inside the game box. However, if you buy the game used, you won’t get this token and in order to access most of the DLC, you’ll need to purchase a Cerberus Network token on Xbox Live for $15. Bioware has promised that they’ll be heavily supporting Mass Effect 2 with DLC, but Mass Effect was supposed to have regular content to close the gap between the first game and its sequel. Instead we received two paltry expansion. Only time will tell if Bioware can fulfill their commitment this time around.
It’s very easy to recommend Mass Effect 2 because of how engrossing and fun it is. It’s unfortunate that it was released in 2010 because it’s better than many of the games that were released in 2009. Is it too early to start talking about Game of the Year for 2010? Buy Mass Effect 2 and find out.
Playthrough Details: Played for 35 hours. Completed all side quests and Day 1 DLC on Normal. Our copy was provided by EA for this review.
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