Mass Effect

Voices of: Mark Meer, Jennifer Hale, Ali Hillis, Brandon Keener, Steven Barr, Seth Green, Keith David, Kimberly Brooks, Lance Henriksen, Marina Sirtis, Ash Sroka, Raphael Sbarge, Fred Tatasciore
Developer: BioWare
Directed by: Casey Hudson
Rating: M
Genre: Action role-playing
System: Xbox 360
2007

Times Completed:
Tim: 1

Summary: Commander Shepard must investigate and stop a rogue agent working for a mysterious race known as Reapers, who have plans to take over the galaxy.

Review:
Tim: I loved Mass Effect. It's a wonderfully entertaining action RPG that tells a detailed and interesting galaxy-spanning story. It features thrilling gunfights. There's a few surprises, a diverse, complex cast of characters. The game has some flaws, but it's exceptional. I had a blast stepping into the shows of John Shepard.

I've played a lot of RPGs in my life, but too few set in space. I thought the adaptation to this environment worked well. You level up your character, boost their stats, pick up stronger and strong weapons, collect credits to make purchases- all the RPG staples. The third person shooter approach was a lot of fun, too. It's always fun to shoot up space villains and this game gives you plenty of opportunities to do that. I thought the story itself was really well done- the Reapers, the hunt for Saren, all the planets and various stops along the way- they're all so immersive and exciting. The game does a terrific job of worldbuilding. I'll never forget the Citadel, the Normandy, the various alien races, the Council, the powers of mass effect. The game is scripted in such a way, providing so many details and specifics into this world that it's easy to slip into the story. This part of the game is exceedingly strong.

The characters are great. I really like John Shepard and I love the game's use of Morality- whether you want to make Paragon choices, or Renegade ones. Other games have done this before Mass Effect, but it was a nice addition that makes Shepard's choices feel slightly less obvious. You have at least some sense of freedom, and the ways you speak to people will result in different dialogue and behaviors. It's always fun when you have the sense your choices in a game matter. There's one point where you have to choose to sacrifice between two characters- your choice feels difficult and there are real repercussions for it. These choices added a great level of complexity to the character of Shepard and it was just a blast playing as him.

Outside of Shepard, Garrus was my favorite character. I just thought he was so exceptionally cool. He makes such an excellent companion, I included him in my squad nearly every time. I was also a big Liara fan. Her scientist role was unique among the team and it was fun building the relationship between Liara and Shepard. Her character is decently developed. Urdnot had a surprisingly interesting backstory. He's a character that seems obvious on the surface, but there was a great deal beneath. I really enjoyed learning about his story, too. Kaidan and Ashley were fine- not my favorites, but solid. Tali'Zorah was my least favorite main party character. There's nothing wrong with her, I just felt her story was a bit boring. I likely used her the least. The voice cast works well for these and the many supporting characters. I really liked hearing Seth Green as Joker and Keith David as Captain Anderson. I haven't played a ton of games voiced by more recognizable actors, so that was fun.

Now, as much as I loved the game, I did have frustrations with it. There were a few points where the difficulty of a battle seemed beyond absurd. I struggled repeatedly on the fight in the elevator. Some of the rocket launchers on different planets were stupid hard, too. This is a minor complaint, as the struggles I experienced were mostly good- this can be a challenging games at times. Some of the different assignments were repetitive, but I generally had a blast flying around the galaxy on various missions.

I ended up playing the game for about 39 hours. I got Shepard into Level 50. My experience was 238,100. Health was 746. I maxed out the Assault Rifle, Combat Armor, Fitness, Shock Trooper. I got Full Paragon. I completed 55 Assignments, including the 3 X57 DLC ones. There were 2 others that I technically "completed" but I was locked out of registering- the Lorik Qui'in was one. I completed 20 Missions.

Mass Effect is an incredible game. The graphics are solid (nice work, Xbox 360). The game is definitely mature- I don't think I've played a game that had a sex scene before. It's mild, but surprising. It offers an engrossing, exciting world populated by memorable characters and it just so much to play. It's absolutely one of the best games of 2007 (I think arguably the best) and one of the better games ever made. This game is superb and I can't wait to play the sequel.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: N/A



If You Enjoyed This Game, We Recommend: Star Fox, Bioshock, Starlink: Battle for Atlas, Borderlands