Mass Effect 2 (With spoilers!)

[thebobmaster]

I hear him and think: DECAF DUDE!

Don't drink coffee. Keeps me up. Have enough trouble sleeping.

[TheWriter]

Complete newb to the Mass Effect franchise.  Looks interesting, just never had a good enough computer or a 360 for it.  Is it worth tracking down a PC copy of Mass Effect 1 before trying 2?

[Slywyn]

Here's the thing.
If you play ME2 first, then 1, you'll hate almost every second of playing through 1. It's just that much better.
They fill you in on the main points if you don't have a character to transfer over, so you won't be lost on the story.

Though you'll either need a pretty good computer or a 360 first.

[TheWriter]

So it's a case of Persona 3 to 4?  I'll keep that in mind.

Pretty good computer?  Check.  I need to turn down some of the graphics settings, but I can generally run most current-gen games at a decent speed.  I can run Dragon Age, for instance.

[Slywyn]

If you can run Dragon Age, you should be fine with Mass Effect.

[TheWriter]

Haven't played it yet, but I want to give it a shot.  I'm not usually one to go in for sci-fi games, but I did enjoy Dragon Age, and from what I hear they went the extra mile to fill out the universe and backstory a little, so I'm a bit intrigued.  That, and I haven't even played the game yet and I know that if I do Tali's gonna be my main sidekick.  She's just so damn adorable.

Thing is, I haven't played ME1 yet either.  If I play either it'll be PC, no 360.  Getting as many opinions as I can before spending my hard-earned.  Recommendations?

[Karma]

Play them both on PC. ME1 saves are transferred to ME2, with all story decisions impacting ME2.

[TheWriter]

Let's assume for a moment that I am a lazy man, with not much spare time between Bayonetta/Dragon Age/BlazBlue until uni starts up/SSF4 comes out.  If I were to get ME2, and import a downloaded ME1 save with all sorts of neat stuff I would be otherwise too cbf to get, would I be missing out on much?  Key plot points that would make no sense to someone who hasn't played the first game?

[Callie Del Noire]

Edi vs Joker.. totally hilarous.








gets scarey when she starts calling him by his proper name though

Once again.. the AI has the BEST lines in the game. BAR NONE.. though it's kind of hard to find any lines that AREN'T good in this game.

[Karma]

Yes, Writer. The continuity is very heavy.

[Avi]

We may need a separate thread just for all the awesome quotes from this game. :P

[Karma]

>_> I was unaware of this thread.

[Frost]

picked up the game today and took me ages to decide which class to play, i went with soldier and imported my character from ME1 as i played as soldier before in ME1 so thought id complete it first as i started in the first installment.


Man i love the new graphics the look alot more polished

also starting to get into it, im just too tired at the mo to play so will have a bash after the gym tomorrow :)

[Slywyn]

Once I saw you could romance Tali I didn't even go after any of the others. >_> I just think she's all cute and stuff and it was something I wished could have happened in the first came.

[TheWriter]

I'd heard that from my usual haunt.  The place was covered with "NOT YOURS YES MINE CAN'T HAVE CAN HAVE DOESN'T LOVE YOU LOVES ME" spam for days; almost as bad as the original spamming back when ME1 came out.

[thebobmaster]

Once I saw you could romance Tali I didn't even go after any of the others. >_> I just think she's all cute and stuff and it was something I wished could have happened in the first came.

Tali is, bar none, my favorite of the party members in both games.

[Xenophile]

Best Game of the Year came early this year, I tell yew wut.

And TALI MAI WAIFU

[Callie Del Noire]

Best Game of the Year came early this year, I tell yew wut.

And TALI MAI WAIFU

I think so too.but it came out too early to actually net it (ditto Bioshock 2)..something mid year will win it. :(

[Sabby]

Just finished it. I'm torn...

Mass Effect 1 was saved by its plot. As a game, it was functional, but lacking. Mass Effect 2 is a shooter to go a few rounds with Gears of War 2. Yes, thats a pretty big improvement. I can play ME2 like its Gears and have a blast.

However... the story is what has me torn. Its broadened its scope so much, which I LOVE (I squealed SO hard whn I found I could visit the Flatilla, AND the Krogan homeworld, PLUS a Terminus System knock off of the Citadel) I'm in total love with ME's gameworld, so I was very happy to go deeper into it ^^ though, I'm not holding my breath with visiting the Volus homeworld... unless I can blow the pompous lil fuckers fat off.

In all this expansion, the story has suffered. Theres nothing wrong with it, just has shifted focus in a way that doesn't work for me. ME1 was bombshell after bombshell, one revelation after another, right up until the ending. Slowly revealing the nature and power of the Reapers, then having one stair you in the face... and THEN finding out just how they put the knife in... was amazingly well paced.

And now, the focus is more on character developement. Don't get me wrong, the new Normandy's crew is actually hugely interesting ^^ but there just weren't many twists, and the new enemy were never quite as scary as the Reapers...

Hell, the Reapers are a Pandora's Box. I don't care what anyone says, if a Reaper Agent manages to open the Mass Relay to Dark Space, theres not a damned thing the universe can do to save themselves, even if Citadel Space, the Terminus Systems,  the Rachni, the Flatilla, and the Geth could all put aside their differences and unite, they'd be torn apart. Just look at what Soveriegn managed... and he is only one of possibly thousands, hundreds of thousands.

The focus should stay on prolonging their return to prepare a pre-emptive strike... if they keep to the dire mood set out in ME1, the lil glimpse at ME3 we saw at the end should be having even Sheppard crapping his pants. Thats just insane, man...

So a bunch of Indoctrinated bugs don't really live up to that xD but I was fricken blown away when I saw the Collectors ship exploding... right where the Reaper withdraws... not like it controlling the Collectors was a big secret or anything, just the way it abandoned them, and the resignation in its voice.... it knew it had lost that battle, and the host it left to die was just as resigned. Truly a great scene.

Did a Paragon Vanguard female. Got all crew, did all their backstory and loyalty quests, fully upgraded the Normandy, and the entire crew survived the game. Also, I did Garrus :3

[thebobmaster]

All I know is that if ME2 does not win Voice Acting of the Year at least once, and Liz Sroka (Tali) isn't mentioned, heads will roll. I'll make sure of it.

[TheWriter]

Best Game of the Year came early this year, I tell yew wut.

I know.  Bayonetta was awesome, wasn't it?   ;D

All I know is that if ME2 does not win Voice Acting of the Year at least once, and Liz Sroka (Tali) isn't mentioned, heads will roll. I'll make sure of it.

Mmmm.... I suppose, considering Uncharted 2 and Dragon Age Origins were both last year.  Again, though, ME2 would be given a run for its money by Bayonetta.  From what I've heard of the supporting cast it's a good chance, but ME2 might be let down by Manshep, who sounds horribly forced at times.  On the flipside Hellena Taylor and Yuri Lowenthal were fan-fucking-tastic in Bayo, as well as the Joe Pesci lookalike whose voice actor I don't know.

[Sabby]

Uhm... Bayonetta can't hold a candle to ME2 for voice acting. Even if the quality of the voice acting were just as good or better, theres no where near the amount of lines. ME2 has it beat in quality and quantity. No contest.

[Sabby]

Flipping through the art book... the Human embryo design for the Reaper was much better. The Terminator looking one shows they only want the humans likeness (meaning the Reapers creators were most likely an identical looking race of insects, which also explains the Reapers eventually coming out with an insectoid race in the Collectors, when the Protheans were mammals) but having a curled up fetus would have been much more frightening and awe inspiring... seeing the abomination that it is as a small infant, and realizing that even though its a machine, it will grow into an adult much like we would... it just impacts on a maternal part of our minds.

Disappointed in the choice to use the Terminator instead of the fetus, but I do love the Reapers, regardless.

[Karma]

Fighting a giant skeleton mech at the end was AWESOME. It hearkens back to all those SNES shmups, especially Contra and such. Oh man, I was bugging out.

[MagicalPen]

Is it possible to romance more then one girl at once? Wondering if its possible to 'sleep around' with one of them (I can't pick)...and is Kelly a possible option? (The girl next to the star map). The dialogue options sure are flirty.