LogFAQs > #934255880

Mass Effect 2

Played on: Xbox 360
Release Date: January 26, 2010
Genre: Third-Person Shooter/RPG

THE FIRST BLOCKBUSTER OF THE DECADE (GOTY 2010)

Mass Effect 2 is easily one of the most improved sequels of all time. It took a game, that was by most accounts a bit of a slog and at worse, a bore, and built upon that game's core concepts and amazing world building potential to craft a game that isn't greater than the sum of its parts, but is amazing because of those parts. The game literally starts off by exterminating the past: the original Normandy is destroyed, Shepard is pretty much killed off, and your old squad mates are nowhere to be found. In this baptism by fire, Mass Effect is essentially rebooted and given a chance to make a whole new first impression on the player, and it makes the most of it. Gone is the jank of simply moving your character, gone are the tepid, floaty shooting mechanics, and gone is a tedious checkpoint system that could waste whole sections of the game if you ever forgot to save. Mass Effect was reborn here, and with these new changes in effect, the stage was set for a fantastic, engrossing story you would never forget.

You could say Mass Effect 2 is about searching for the alien race known as the Collectors and investigating missing colonies, and you wouldn't really be wrong. But as anyone who's played the game can attest to, Mass Effect 2 is much more character driven than it is plot driven. The cast of squad mates in this game somehow has the most quantity AND quality of the series which is incredibly hard to achieve. Mass Effect 2 dumps all squad mates from ME1 save for Garrus & Tali (AKA the two best ones) and replaces them with a far more varied, interesting cast of characters. You've still got the main human dynamic with Miranda & Jacob replacing Kaidan & Ashley, and though Jacob ultimately isn't really that interesting, Miranda definitely steals the show with her femme fatale wiles and mysterious backstory, giving the player conflicting feelings on her trustworthiness. Fan-favorite, fast-talking Mordin rattles off scientific technobabble with an adorable charm backed up with a hard-edged level of combat prowess atypical of Salarians. One of my personal favorites, Thane Krios, not only gives us a first-hand look at a new race, but intrigues with his mix of assassination prowess and spiritual nature. Even Garrus & Tali get rebooted introductions better showing off their character traits while still showing growth from the events of ME1. Recruiting and getting to know the entire cast of ME2 is what makes the game so fantastic in my eyes, and by the time you reach the final "suicide mission" you feel so ingrained with these characters that the stakes feel incredibly tense, stressful, and above all, real. It's like having an extended family with how well you get to know everyone and you want to protect them in any way you can.

The dialogue system has been streamlined, with new paragon and renegade choices that can interrupt a conversation with an often devastating blow. These choices are cool, but can often be too unpredictable. Also, a lot of the lore dumps from ME1 are gone to make way for these, which isn't the worst change since I found a lot of those to be rambling and boring in all honesty, but having them around would've still been a good option for some conversations. Still, the new system fits the game's breezy style, and overall struck a nice balance of having meaty dialogues without feeling like your standing there for half an hour listening to the most boring lecture this side of planet Thessia.

All of the changes made to ME2 were ultimately for the better, because it's still the game I remember most and the game I always look forward to replaying the most as well. Choices feel like they actually have weight thanks to the expanded cast and a streamlined experience on the whole paces ME2 so well, because who the hell misses 10 minute awkward elevator rides and 20 minute loading screens to drive a weak-ass tank on planet Empty Wasteland. When I think of why I love the Mass Effect series, THIS is absolutely the game I point to, and past & future aside, why ME is still one of the most legendary franchises out there.


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Too much horror business, drivin' late at night
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