Massively Late Mass Effect Review

As I had mentioned yesterday, I was close to finishing Mass Effect. As it turns out, I was really close as I completley finished the game last night.

Wow.

Mass Effect is an action based RPG for the XBox 360, set in a sci-fi space setting. You get command of a space ship and get to fly around, saving the galaxy. It's played in a third person perspective, and it feels very much like a shooter with stats and special skills. Something of a hybrid of the two genres that really works well.

The story is…awesome. It's produced by Bioware, a company that knows how to make a good story so I really shouldn't be surprised. The main campaign set pieces are so amazingly well done and scripted that you never quite know what to expect when you round the next corner. And just when you think they've thrown out something so cool that they can't top it…they do. The entire last section of the game was filled with these sorts of moments, one after the other in one of the most fun to play ending sequences I've had the pleasure of experiencing.

The game is very cinematic too. From the cutscenes to the music, to the slight hint of film grain on the screen…it feels like you're playing an interactive movie. Also little touches like displaying the dialog options a few seconds before the NPC that you're talking to is finished speaking, thereby eliminating any pauses in the conversation while the player chooses an option really help increase the movie-like feel. The voice acting is pretty good too, featuring the like of Seth Green and Marina Sirtis (Troi from Star Trek, The Next Generation)

I do have a couple complaints however. First, the side quests on the unexplored worlds are…boring. They're all pretty much the same with no twists, on generic maps with generic bad guys living on generic planets. And the rover you drive around in…VERY hard to control, and very hard to aim correctly when you're trying to shoot people. I had better luck running over bad guys than I did hitting them with the gun.

However, all that aside, it's a very good game and highly recommended if you missed out on it. I know it's a little old by now, but I'm just catching up here! I can't wait for the sequel to come out.

Read and post comments |
Send to a friend