Mass Effect
I’ve been completely sucked into Mass Effect. To be honest, it has been a time since a video game has this kind of effect on me – in fact, it you may have to go back to the original Baldur’s Gate to find a single player game that sucked me in like this one has. I only got the game just under a week ago, and I have already put almost twenty hours into it, which is unheard of for me.
From a story-telling perspective, they’ve nailed it. The new dialog system works beautifully, and conversations play out with a dramatic, cinematic flair. Fantastic voice acting paired with some of the best facial animation I’ve ever seen in a game lead to conversations that convey real emotion and give you a very personal connection the characters. In fact, I find myself enjoying the conversation mechanic so much that I strike up conversations whenever I have the chance. Being science fiction, you are ultimately free from the good-vs.-evil conventions that plague fantasy RPGs. The Mass Effect universe is all about shades of grey, and you can play the hard-as-nails military man who accomplishes his goals at all costs and still not feel like a “bad guy.”
After you complete the first of the three missions, you are introduced to the idea that the galaxy is really a pretty big place, and you can roam all over, surveying worlds and taking on side missions. These are typically far less intense than the plot missions, and they help to advance your charter, both in terms of level and equipment. They also make for great short session if you only have a half-an-hour to play. After you bulk your party up a little bit in these side missions, everything starts getting quite a bit easier. It’s almost a shame that the game design doesn’t do a better job easing you into the combat portions by introducing you to the side missions earlier. A little attention up front would have saved me a lot of frustration later on.
I came at this game actually being fairly skeptical. Bioware’s last few efforts left me a little cold. Neverwinter Nights wasn’t what is should have been, and even games like Knights of the Old Republic felt somewhat clunky and dated. It is also fair to say that both games are pretty much d20 based, and while I love my d20 at the table top, it makes for a hell of a confusing mess in video game form… Still, it has always been clear that Bioware is one of the best story-telling game companies out there. I was excited to see what they could do freed from the limitations of d20-based mechanics and licensed properties.
From a story-telling perspective, they’ve nailed it. The new dialog system works beautifully, and conversations play out with a dramatic, cinematic flair. Fantastic voice acting paired with some of the best facial animation I’ve ever seen in a game lead to conversations that convey real emotion and give you a very personal connection the characters. In fact, I find myself enjoying the conversation mechanic so much that I strike up conversations whenever I have the chance. Being science fiction, you are ultimately free from the good-vs.-evil conventions that plague fantasy RPGs. The Mass Effect universe is all about shades of grey, and you can play the hard-as-nails military man who accomplishes his goals at all costs and still not feel like a “bad guy.”
While the conversation mechanics are great, the combat system kind of sneaks up on you… It doesn’t really work like anything I’ve played before, and that ends up meaning you die a lot for the first few hours of combat-intensive gameplay. At first, it looks like your typical third-person shooter (think Gears of War), but you will quickly realize that it doesn’t play anything like one. You will realize two things: First, cover is life. Okay, that concept isn’t so new, but it is very pronounced. Second, you need to use the shoulder buttons on your controller to open your “special actions” menu almost constantly. When you access this menu, the game pauses, and you are free to assess the situation, issue orders, queue up abilities and choose new targets. Getting good at doing this and actively managing your character and your team is key to survival.
The game itself does a poor job of introducing you to combat. The few hours (up to five or six if you are a completionist like me) are spent on Citadel station, mostly exploring, running various Fed-Ex missions and having conversations as the world, characters and back story are fleshed out. There are a few light fire-fights, but nothing too challenging. As that opening chapter comes to a close, the game sends you out into the galaxy with leads on three different planets. Each of them is home to fairly tough, combat-heavy adventures. I set off first for Noveria, and upon arrival died over and over and over. I was actually getting fairly discouraged, especially after I loved the first part of the game so much, and began to worry that the combat was just broken. Slogging through it (with some various forum pointers and game guides) I finally started to get the hang of it.
After you complete the first of the three missions, you are introduced to the idea that the galaxy is really a pretty big place, and you can roam all over, surveying worlds and taking on side missions. These are typically far less intense than the plot missions, and they help to advance your charter, both in terms of level and equipment. They also make for great short session if you only have a half-an-hour to play. After you bulk your party up a little bit in these side missions, everything starts getting quite a bit easier. It’s almost a shame that the game design doesn’t do a better job easing you into the combat portions by introducing you to the side missions earlier. A little attention up front would have saved me a lot of frustration later on.
The plot itself is phenomenal, and the Mass Effect universe is more complete and well though out than many pen-and-paper RPG campaign settings I have read. As you have conversations or read terminals throughout the game, details about the universe are added to your codex to be read at your leisure. While not necessary, taking the time to read and digest all of it adds a great deal to the depth and richness of the game. In fact, if there was a d20 Future supplement for Mass Effect, I would be all over it. Somebody get on that.
Technically, they finally figured it out. This is the first Bioware game that actually looked like it belonged in the current generation. The tech is great, with great haze and depth of field effects, and as I mentioned earlier, some of the best facial animations I have ever seen. By default there is a strange ‘film grain’ effect turned on (I think to camouflage some of the strange, pixelicious shadows), but thankfully it can be turned off. The models are great, and the skinning looks awesome.
In all, it’s an awesome game. The story and conversations are great, and their new universe is incredible. There is a little wonkiness in combat, but after a few sessions you will work that out. There are a few other little user interface problems that piss me off from time to time (I can’t count how many times I have accidentally exited the galaxy map), but they are small complaints considering the quality of the whole package.
Labels: consoles, RPGs, video games, XBOX
