Yet another Mass Effect 2 Review

by Jérôme ~ February 17, 2010

While waiting for Fallout: New Vegas, Mass Effect 2 sounded like a suitable alternative. Looking at all the post on Mass Effect forum comparing Fallout 3 versus Mass Effect 2, ME2 was supposed to be a “better F3″.

As I bought a new copy of the game at GameStop, I had access right away to the Cerberus Network and the Terminus Armor. The armor is just an equipment only available to those who purchase the game at GameStop. But the Cerberus network is something that EA integrated into the game. If you want to have access to the DLCs you need the Cerberus network and the code to activate it works only once. You got it! When you borrow the game from a friend, or rent it, or buy it used, you need to buy a new code for $7.50 to have access to the DLCs. Some say it is to kill the used and rental market, I say it is a smart move to gain some extra bucks for the same game.

If you have not played the first Mass Effect, you might get lost during a couple of discussions (more than a couple). The main story is good maybe too short, even at the end of the game, you ask yourself: “And?”, something is missing, some questions have not been answered. Probably to let the door open for a ME3. Fortunately, the side stories add lots of deep into the game.

Something amazing in ME2 are the dialogues, the wheel of answers during the dialogues make the interactions within the dialogues more real and give the player more control. The cameras angles during those dialogues as well are a good example how producers can learn from Hollywood. Even if there are more dialogues than action in this game, it makes the game more like a movie. The graphics are eyes blowing, details on the face, the hand, impressive.

Do not expect ME2 to be Fallout 3 in space, I would classify this Game as a RPG-Arcade game. Arcade because after playing 3 hours you notice the pattern in the game: Find the you future teammate, he or she can join you only if you do something dangerous, go from point A to point B by fighting non-stop, find the data, he or she accept to come. Sure, this is a simplify version of what happens, but as soon as you noticed that, you are less enjoying the game. Do not try to analyse how it works, just play, listen to the dialogues and enjoy the game.

My main concern is the lack of real open-world-ness. You have a ship, a crew, access to the entire Milk-Way, and you are limited to half-dozen of worlds, the rest of the planets, you cannot lands, you cannot find new systems, no news planets. I felt the void was too… empty. No exploration, no discovery, no random encounters.

I did the game twice, and the second time, of course, I tried to do everything, buy everything, every upgrades, do every side missions, explore every planets, and even after that I was running short on cash. You cannot trade, sell armors or weapons, minerals you collect. The economic system has an issue, hope they will fix it in the next installment.

Pros:

• FPS-like combat system
• Dialogues
• Side stories, all of them
• Team creation
• Detail graphics

Cons:

• Economy
• Not a real open world

Conclusion: I might have bashed the game, but I liked every minutes I played it. It’s graphically a beauty, a pleasure during the combat phases, a perfect balance between story and combat. My advise, buy it!

PS: Between F3 and ME2, I’ll choose F3. But I’m biased, I like the post-apocalyptic story and decors of the Fallout universe.