zer0netgain wrote:
We don't have spoiler tags, but since nobody who doesn't want to know about the game should be reading this, consider yourself warned.
***
ME2...beaten it a couple of times. I applaud the better graphics (just the removal of the horrible lag time Mass Effect suffered from in drawing textures was enough to deserve praise), but they went above and beyond just fixing what was broken.
I don't like the limited exploration in places like the Citadel (which is supposed to be massive) and Omega (for the same reason). This "target specific" exploration was a real downer after getting a feel for how big some places were in Mass Effect...especially when you consider that this game is 2 DVDs in size. You really just expect "more" but never get it.
I somewhat like the new mechanics of combat. Many others complained that they neutered the Adept class (full biotics), but I'm on the fence. I liked the Adept class, but Mass Effect on Insanity difficulty was no challenge to a fully leveled Adept. They reworked powers (making them work more true to description...Warp was fairly useless by itself in Mass Effect), but now Adepts are nowhere near as powerful. Some say it's too frustrating to beat the game on Insanity with an Adept. I haven't tried yet, but I find all games are designed to be beatable...it's a question of employing the right tactics for the class of character you create.
Combat was "simplified" and well-explained within in the game if you think about the story (SPOILER AHEAD).
The game starts with the Normandy being destroyed and Sheppard dying from a suit rupture. Cerebus brings him back to life via the Lazarus Project. When you first import a character from Mass Effect, you are given the chance to change your appearance (reconstructive/genetic surgery) and your class. Since it is clear that "Sheppard reborn" is the product of 2 years of medical treatments, surgeries and cybernetic implants, the reworking of his skills and appearance makes sense for any changes between the two games. So, that a biotic can now use sniper rifles, heavy weapons, etc. rather than just be limited to a pistol is a credible leap. You get X weapon options based on what you find and what type of weapons your class can use. I played a biotic and did not have a sniper rifle until a mission where I could choose one of three or four new weapons to equip. I picked the sniper rifle. So, by the end I could equip a "pistol," a "sub machine gun" (basically a full-auto pistol), a "sniper rifle," and the heavy weapons. I suspect an Adept would not be allowed to pick an assault rifle, but I don't recall clearly on that matter.
They got rid of the horrible inventory system which was a cornucopia of unremarkable armor and weapon choices and instead gave you set armor with some upgradable pieces (or DLC) with the bulk of "improvement" coming from upgrades you either bought or researched that worked on everyone's armor and weapons. There were also upgrades to biotic amps and omni-tools. How useful these were to you would depend on the class you played. As an adept, I wanted all the biotic upgrades. With limited funding, I did not see the need to get all of the omni-tool upgrades. Some say you don't need to buy any of those, but I found the first level of extended time for hacking useful as most of the credits you find in the game come from hacking open containers and terminals.
You can customize armor appearance for color and texture preferences. The casual appearance options were lame and I would have liked to see more DLC on that, but since it was more than Mass Effect offered, I suppose it was still an improvement.
However, they seriously crippled the monetary system of the game. Mass Effect made having money easy once you started doing exploration. Credits for finding minerals...credits for doing side quests...credits for selling stuff you find (which was a lot). Maxing the credit meter was easy enough to do. In ME2, it's a lot harder. In fact, I don't think it is possible to buy every upgrade available with the credits you find AND keep every team member alive (you get credits for selling out one of your crew, but then you don't have all of them on your team). This makes some sense because it forces you to be smart in what you buy. However, no definitive guide on what the upgrades are or where they are found has come out yet (that I know of), so being strategic at this point is difficult.
This is complicated by the fact that you also need money to explore, and (as far as I can tell) you don't get paid for searching planets. Credits to buy fuel for inter-star cluster travel and probes cut into what you have to spend on stuff you need. The finite credit level also kills how much post-game play you can experience once you beat the game. This is not a game breaker, but it is annoying and counterproductive to continuing game play after you complete the main quest.
Scanning for minerals is the most universally hated part of ME2. Driving around in the Mako in Mass Effect was bad at times, but this is worse. Mostly, the scanning is slow and repetitive. Miranda (once you complete her loyalty quest) will give you an upgrade to the scanner to double the speed of it, but it's still slow.
Thankfully, you don't need to search for minerals any more than you need for what you want to do. Any planet not reported as "RICH" isn't worth bothering with as far as time expended to resourced recovered is concerned. You can stretch how far your probes go by only "harvesting" the mineral(s) you need once you have acquired more than enough of others. To "scan" for a side quest, you only need to enter into orbit and activate the scanning mode. If there is an anomaly on the planet, EDI (the ship's AI) will tell you there is one to find. You will be given an indicator to find it and you only need one probe to open that side quest for landing.
I loved the dialogue. Darker, sexier, more innuendo. Moments that make you LOL.
I hated the sex. Mass Effect had partial nudity (a source of great controversy, even if it never exceeded what you'd see on prime time TV). Now everyone does it with their clothes on (only two characters take anything off). Totally unrealistic and senseless when you consider the vulgar language the developers had no issue using that was not present in Mass Effect.
The story unravels a bit more of the mystery of the Reapers.
SPOILERS!
The Collectors are indoctrinated/converted Prothains. They are kidnapping humans to turn them into this cyber-organic goo that is used to build a new Reaper. If the tech is consistent, this means Reapers are synthetic/organic hybrids. Even a "dead" Reaper can indoctrinate people who stay too long inside of it. This indicates that Reapers are "alive" not just in an AI sense of "alive" but if you think of every living being turned to goo making one cell in a Reaper "body" then even a dead Reaper consists of billions of minds enslaved into its formation.
This might explain why the Reapers come back every 50,000 years or so. Reaper "reproduction" probably requires a mass harvesting of organic life and technology to build more Reapers.
The comment is made in-game by the Collectors (who are ultimately controlled by a Reaper) that humanity would find salvation through destruction. As if the gooification of living people somehow preserves them in a new form. This is analogous to the Geth crew member who indicates that modern Geth are thousands of AI programs operating together (where the original Geth were individual units who could work together in a limited way) and "individual" Geth were hundreds or even thousands of AI programs uploaded into a "mobile platform."
This makes me wonder if the origin of the Reapers was a synthetic/orgainic hybrid experiment that produced a gestalt mind that then directed further development. Basically...a different version of the Borg.
Very good points on ME2 and lack of funds. I struggled to get every upgrade, thought I had everything except for the Medibay upgrade (which removes your scars), thought I was prepared, but I had three team members kick it at the end. As for the planet exploring, I kind of liked it, but NOT getting paid for the exploration sucked. And NOT getting money for every kill also sucked.
And yeah the bad guys of the game SCREAM BORG!
As for class, so far I have tried soldier (my favorite), and am doing an Adept in ME1. WORRIED about the Adept in ME2. I HOPE it isn't as weakened as people say. I really like the Adept.
07 Feb 2010, 7:36 pm
