(I played through the game once, and I'm about 30-40% through my new game+ file. I think I put 50 hours into the game between the two files.)
The Short, Short Version:
When I first saw Mass Effect 2, I was skeptical, despite the commercial and critical success. However, I was surprised by how entertaining this game was and how well the characters and character development was. If you like story driven games and/or third-person shooters, you should definitely check it out. Mass Effect 2 has many things going for it, but there are some annoyances which prevent it from making it a perfect game. However, all of these are relatively minor and don't take away from my overall enjoyment of the game. I am really glad I finally caved in and bought this game.
The More Detailed Version:
I will start with the cons, since the pros will be a partial re-emphasizing some of the things I mentioned in the short, short version.
THE CONS:
-While it was pretty easy to dive into Mass Effect 2 without playing Mass Effect 1, there was one thing which I felt was left out: more talk about The Reapers. Yes the game makes it very clear that they are a threat and they kill all organic life every 50,000 years or so. But the entire time I was wondering why. Do they have a motivation or are they merely a plot device? Between playing the game and using the digital comic which was made for the PS3 version, this was the only thing I wanted more information about. Besides this, the transition was seamless.
-The main antagonist in the game is pretty weak. He's a figure named The Harbinger. He doesn't have a personality and when he does talk it's pretty corny. Half the time he is saying "Assuming control" or "Assuming direct control" or emphasizing how he is in control. Now The Collectors are a pretty neat enemy, especially when you see some of the creepier elements in the game. The Collectors as a whole are a threat. The Harbinger is not. Fighting against an enemy who never stops saying "Assuming control" and "This hurts you" and other random catch phrases every 3 or 5 seconds isn't that interesting.
-On rare occasions, the sound effects in cut scenes would be delayed. I have no idea why. Most of the time everything was fine. It isn't my TV either, since other games work perfectly and sometimes I don't encounter this problem. I don't know if this only happens on the PS3 or if it slows down because the game is doing something in the background or what.
(I should comment on the glitch problem some people had. Apparently the game would freeze and if this happened as it was saving it would corrupt your save file. From one review I read this resulted in all of your saves for your character being corrupted. Well I pre-ordered this game and played it when it arrived in the mail, and the game never froze on me. In fact I didn't encounter any glitches or errors at all. The only technical issue I had with the game was with how some cut scenes seemed like they weren't in sync. For some reason this only happened with explosions. Maybe it's a frame rate issue. I don't know)
-First, let me say that I really enjoyed the suicide mission. There was a lot of anticipation and it was a pretty thrilling (and it was shocking to see one of my crew members die, because of something I did). However, I wish there was more to it. I thought it would be more complex and longer than it actually was with more parts or objectives. It didn't feel too short, but I wanted a more epic experience for all of the planning that went into it. After all, you need to do between 10, 15, or 20 one hour missions in preparation for a mission which was only 2 hours, including the cut scenes. I wanted to make more decisions which would determine whether people lived or died.
-This is more nit-picking than anything else, but it did annoy me. There are some optional vehicle missions in the game. The exploration missions are fine and pretty fun, but there are other missions where you have to kill enemies. These missions in particular are frustrating because you almost always have to complete them in one sitting (no saving) and your vehicle can die easily (at least it does on Veteran).
-Load times are a mix batch. Sometimes the game can run huge levels with multiple cut scenes seamlessly and even jump to a new location or a different part of the level. I know that Mass Effect 1 was infamous for it's elevators, but I would rather have those elevators than seeing a 30 second animation showing an elevator shaft going up a building or a spaceship. Also, whenever you die it has to load. Sometimes the load times don't bother me (like going to a new planet), but sometimes they do (such as, on Insanity, taking 30 seconds to load, go the wrong direction, get shot and killed 5 seconds later, and then reloading my file and waiting for another 30 seconds, or navigating the Normandy).
-I wish some areas were easier to navigate. The Normandy takes a while, because of the load times between each floor and Iliam just takes a while to reach one end. I wish these areas were designed a little better, like Omega, where it is both easier to walk around and you can do so without any long load times.
-This probably can't be improved, but I wished the cover system was slightly better. For one, you have to be pressed up against your cover before you can jump over it. This is a little bit of a hassle when you are running across a level (running 20 feet, going behind cover, only to jump over it). Also occasionally I would unintentionally stand up or jump over my cover when I didn't intend to do so (like when 10 enemies are shooting at me, which results in my death). These problems mostly result with how often I use the X button. Sprinting, getting behind cover, standing up from behind cover, jumping over cover, and interacting with objects and people are all done with X. So sometimes I would intend just to get behind cover, but accidentally get behind it and then quickly jump over it. Like I said there really isn't a way to fix this, since it would be too complicated or clunky to use multiple buttons.
As I said, these complaints don't kill the game. In fact, they aren't even bad enough to lower my star rating (so if you think I'm trashing this game, I'm not). If I was to give it a number rating, I would probably give it a 9/10. Even some of my favorite games of all time aren't a perfect 10, so even with some of these things fixed or improved, I wouldn't bump it up to a 10. Maybe a 9.5, but not a 10.
Anyways...
THE PROS:
-The graphics are overall fantastic. Some random areas aren't as good as others and some things look fuzzy, but there are huge environments and impressive character models (the best one is probably Samara's) which look beautiful. I saw one brief clip which compared the PS3 version with the 360 version. From that short clip, it does look like the PS3 version is better, especially with some of the lighting. It isn't a massive leap forward, but they are noticeably better.
-Being able to customize the appearance of Shepard, and even picking the character's gender, is appreciated.
-The voice-acting is great. The only real exception for me is the male Commander Shepard. I don't know why, but I never really liked him. However, Jennifer Hale does an outstanding job voicing the female Shepard.
-As I mentioned earlier, characterization is great. Every playable character has a backstory and some characters (like Samara and Thane) even foil each other, which makes the game interesting thematically. While I wish The Reapers and The Harbinger were fleshed out a little more, the characterization in your squad easily makes up for it. This game is one of the better games I have played recently which has handled characters and character development. I also like how you can develop a relationship with some of the members in your squad.
-I like how there are multiple ways to handle some situations through your good and bad actions. I'm working on my new game+ file, but I do know how some situations can be played out differently. I will probably explore the renegade side more with an entirely new file, probably when Mass Effect 3 comes out.
-The action is exciting and the game mixes third-person shooter, with strategy elements, and the option to use your abilities (depending on which class you are, that is). At first, my powers and abilities felt limited (I played as an adept). However, once I reached a higher level, I started to see how useful my abilities were. Compared to pretty much every other RPG I have ever played, Mass Effect is probably the most simplistic in terms of how many powers you have at your disposal at one time. Not that this is a bad thing, since the game is too fast paced and, above everything else, a third-person shooter for you to be messing around with 4 or 5 characters, each with 37 abilities. However, as your level and number of available squad members increases, the game really fleshes out. I wouldn't say the game starts slow (it doesn't), but it took some time before it felt deeper.
-The digital comic did a decent job filling me in on the backstory and Shepard's previous squad members. It is well presented and Jennifer Hale did a good job narrating it. I was expecting a few more decisions, but I know those 4, 5, or 6 decisions I made will have a big impact on Mass Effect 3's story.
-Finally, I was really surprised how funny this game is. If you were to take out The Collectors and The Reapers, Mass Effect would be a straightforward comedy. There are jokes in the background (like Elcor Hamlet), there are funny comments made by the characters in your squad (like Mordin), and a few of your decisions are dialogue options are pretty funny too (like Shepard telling someone he needs to run away, because there's a bomb nearby). For me, the funniest stuff in the game involves the Elcors. I feel like they could appear in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
So yeah, even though I found several things to complain about, this is an awesome game. Right now I'm trying to receive a platinum trophy with my new game+ file and I'm excited for Mass Effect 3.
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Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2011
Platform For Display: PlayStation 3Edition: StandardVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States on March 3, 2011
Platform For Display: PlayStation 3Edition: StandardVerified Purchase
Top reviews from other countries
M k
Works well
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 29, 2020Platform For Display: PlayStation 3Edition: StandardVerified Purchase
Tank
Old is better
Reviewed in Canada on February 7, 2019Platform For Display: PlayStation 3Edition: StandardVerified Purchase
Salena
Ordered twice - incorrect product both times.
Reviewed in Canada on October 22, 2020Platform For Display: PlayStation 3Edition: StandardVerified Purchase
bethany perrin
Good game
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 2, 2016Platform For Display: PlayStation 3Edition: StandardVerified Purchase
Monzika
They do not send the right version
Reviewed in Canada on January 14, 2021Platform For Display: PlayStation 3Edition: StandardVerified Purchase
