Mass Effect 2

If the original Mass Effect was a prototype for the game it should have been, then Mass Effect 2 is the full realization of everything the first game should have been.

It's obvious right from the beginning that Mass Effect 2 is a much more emotionally ambitious story than its predecessor. While the overall plot with the Reapers seems to be on hiatus for most of the story, this new tale has a bit more character depth, along with greater attention to detail and realism. When things happen in this game, you actually care.

The feel of the game's world is remarkably realistic. Whether at a maximum security prison, an alien nightclub, or an insectoid spacecraft, everything just feels right. Every audio and visual element comes together to craft worlds that the audience can believe in.

Instead of the sparkly-clean altruism of Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2 deals more with the seedy underworld elements of the Mass Effect universe. Instead of the Enterprise from Star Trek: The Next Generation, think Jabba's palace from Return of the Jedi. It's very much a "dirtier" and less morally clear-cut story. Indeed, sometimes it makes more sense to play this story as a renegade than a paragon, since many of the alliances you forge are with the morally-corrupt, and there's definitely an attitude of "the end justifies the means" for much of the game.

This rougher attitude is even represented in the way the game plays. The combat is far, far improved. In fact, it feels like it's not even the same game. Instead of being RPG combat with a shooter interface overlaid on top of it, now it's straight-up shooter combat with RPG elements enhancing it. There's no more worrying about loot or stat-tracking; nearly everything is streamlined here and it's wonderful. The guns even have a traditional ammo reloading system instead of the previous game's overheating system, which really helps things to feel more visceral and less annoying. On top of that, the game runs at a solid 30 FPS. It all comes together to make combat that's honestly better than many top-level third-person-shooter games out there.

The fact that combat is only one part of the gigantic Mass Effect 2 experience is one of the things that makes it so great. After all, movies aren't just one two-hour action scene (usually); there's more to it than that. Were ME2 all action, all exploring, or all dialogue, it could get boring. This game never gets boring. It finds a near-perfect balance of every kind of element you'd want in an interactive story.

Going along with the newer, more aggressive tone, Shepard gets new armor. In the first game, Shepard's default armor looked like black space pajamas. His new armor in Mass Effect 2, however, looks like actual armor, while still carrying over the few elements that really worked in the first place.

The characters in general are far better-written than before, with a ton of added depth. It's partially because the writers seem to know how to write the characters better, and partially because the returning characters from Mass Effect have had two years of in-universe time to grow. However, the new characters vary in levels of depth. Few of them are particularly amazing, and most are just "there." In fact, it could easily be said that most of the characters are superfluous. There's a total of twelve squad member characters, far more than necessary. It might have been better for the game to focus down on perhaps only six squadmates, as in the first game.

As said before, this game focuses not so much on the overall plot with the Reapers, but on a new plot with a new enemy, the Collectors. As the story goes on, Shepard learns that everything is more closely connected than it initially seems, however, the fact remains that most of ME2's story is self-contained and somewhat tangential to the ongoing story of the game trilogy. What's even odder is the fact that Shepard is working for "the bad guys" in this story, fighting an even more dangerous enemy. While the game makes a decent case for why Shepard does this (it boils down to "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" and "we need all the help we can get"), there isn't a choice given to the player in the story, and it feels obviously wrong. It might make a certain level of sense for a renegade Shepard, but not for a paragon or neutral Shepard.

In general, the graphics are much, much improved. There's still some weirdness with characters' faces and hair, but it's not enough to be a real bother. The fact that the game runs at a solid 30 FPS now is great, as are the upgraded textures. The dialogue sections are much more lifelike, with characters doing more than just standing still and delivering lines. Now characters actually move around and gesture as they talk, making them feel more believable.

Unfortunately, there's a major problem with the way that the game displays text on a standard-definition screen. Not only is it extremely tiny, but there's not very much contrast. Most everything is in different shades of orange, or occasionally green. Since I played the game on a standard-def TV, I sometimes literally could not read what was on-screen and had to guess. Once or twice, this meant that I chose an incorrect option and had to reload a previous save file. It honestly is a huge problem since so much of the game is text-reliant. Still, though, it's a testament to the game's brilliant design that I was able to play, finish, and greatly enjoy the game despite only barely being able to read anything.

Seriously. Can you read this?

Mass Effect 2 is easily one of the best games ever made. It might not reach the very top, but it's extremely close. The few technical issues are far outweighed by the great visual design, and although the overall story and new characters may be a little bit underwhelming, they're at least decent. The level of quality put into the feel of the game is outstanding, and the overhauled combat is insanely fun. All these elements come together in the end to make one absolutely incredible experience.

9/10

DLC:


Kasumi: Stolen Memories
This is a fun little side mission. It feels like equal parts heist movie, spy thriller, and action blockbuster. As expected, the new squad character, Kasumi, isn't all that important to the main story, and generally stays out of the way of the entire main plot until the ending, where she serves only a minor—and unnecessary—purpose. This is a decent bit of fun, but, as stated, unnecessary.
7/10


Overlord
This one has a great classic sci-fi plot, but the actual gameplay is more time-consuming than fun. It's just too long.
5/10


Lair of the Shadow Broker

This should be upheld as the prime example of how to do story-based DLC properly. Not only is it a lot of fun, but it gives Liara the most character development she's ever had. Actually, it gives Liara more development than any other character in the entire main game. Provided that Shepard romanced Liara in Mass Effect, there's a ton of new relationship stuff that can happen here, and it's all well-written. In fact, everything in this DLC is well-written. There's plenty of great banter between the characters, some extremely well-choreographed cutscenes, and a plot twist that genuinely surprises. This is probably the pinnacle of storytelling quality in Mass Effect 2 as a whole; the fact that it's DLC makes it all the more notable.
10/10