Mass Effect 2

2

Comments

  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    You have to have everybody loyal to have the best chance at it, and there are a couple of different combinations that will work for team leaders. I failed my first time through, but I have a good plan for the second, I think.
  • KoreishKoreish I'm a penguin, deal with it. KCMO Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    I'd imagine that Jacob or Miranda would make good fire team leaders as well, because that's just how BioWare did it with ME1 ex: Ashley/Kaiden.
  • DogSoldierDogSoldier The heart of radical Amish country..
    edited February 2010
    I think this game is too cerebral for me.. It lost me as soon as I got into a deep interactive conversation with some soldier, I was then expected to order this guy to.. well, do something. I dunno, I never could get into games like this. I expected it to be more FPS than it is, the over the shoulder 3rd person view is a negative for me also. Looks like I'll be uninstalling this puppy. Too bad, It looks fantastic and the cut scenes are the most impressive I've seen this year.
  • kryystkryyst Ontario, Canada
    edited February 2010
    Borrowed it from a friend this weekend and played it for about 4 hrs. Man was that 4 hours of boredom. I don't know what it is but I've completely lost any interest in Bioware's RPG forumula games. They are all the friggen same.

    You there - you know the new guy. You are the most important person in the universe you are going to do this mission for us. No shut-up you don't get a say in it, no we don't care if you are as pure as the fallen snow or rotten to the core, yeah you can be mean but ultimately you'll still do good things. Yes, fine cross your fingers behind your back and screw us in the end if you must. Blah, blah, blah random meaningless dialogue, fast forward to the action part, fight, shoot, fight, blah, blah BIG FIGHT, fast forward back to playing the universes whipping boy, blah, blah blah, fight etc...etc...etc...

    This was the same formula they've been using since Baldur's gate. Despite their promises of evolving things and making you know - real choices - the games till all feel the same you just might get rewarded with a different cut scene. They only thing differentiating them now is their combat engines and how you can play dress up with your rag dolls.

    So there I am playing ME2 and the whole story part of it was boring me to tears. Then the combat system comes up and it's not bad, pretty solid actually if it weren't for the fact that they only have 3 types of combats. You get the jump on them, they get the jump on you or the boss fight. Anyway I fought my 'three' fights and said hey this cover system is like Gears of War. Which I also realized I'd much rather be playing that game right then and there. I mean after all the thing that I found best in ME2 was fighting and Gears of War does fighting way better so that's what I did and I was happy.
  • KoreishKoreish I'm a penguin, deal with it. KCMO Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    At least BioWare tells a story. I'm still not sure if there is a story to Gears of War, other than chest high walls are awesome.
  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    Some like it, some don't, I guess. I thoroughly enjoyed the story arc and exploring all the dialog.

    I did find out that ME2 has a level 30 cap, so playing again to get to level 60 suddenly seems less necessary... but I'm gonna do it again.

    Then ME1 again. Then ME2 again with the ME1 character. You hush, I'm not obsessed.
  • kryystkryyst Ontario, Canada
    edited February 2010
    Koreish wrote:
    At least BioWare tells a story. I'm still not sure if there is a story to Gears of War, other than chest high walls are awesome.

    GoW tells a story, it's not as big a story as ME2 but there is still a story being told as you fight your way through the hordes of enemies. But more importantly what use is there in telling a story if I'm too bored to care about it.

    At least in GoW the story unfolds easily through the game you aren't plagued with rambling dialogues or pointless missions just to add some filler. I'm not suggesting in any sense that GoW is an RPG it's a 3rd person shooter. However to suggest that there is no story being told is plain false.

    For a story to work you need to care about the characters and be interested in what's going on, why they are doing what they are doing. I actually get that in Gears. I may not have any choice of the direction I'm heading in, but much like in a novel, I still want to flip that next page and see what happens. ME2 on the other hand I have no investment and it's just going through the motions. Much like a Choose Your Own Adventure novel where you just flip to various page numbers to see which one isn't the 'your dead page'.
  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    Hmm. I got caught up in everybody's stories, but it might be because I talked to every crew member after every mission.

    I dunno! Different strokes. I liked GoW as well, but sometimes I like a nice long story.
  • kryystkryyst Ontario, Canada
    edited February 2010
    I have nothing against big stories or RPG's. I just can't get into ME2 or any Bioware game lately. They all just feel the same to me. I think what it comes down to is if you are creating an RPG let me play a role. Don't make it feel like I'm a rat in a maze. I think far to often then not I'm finding that Bioware RPG's are creating this illusion of freedom and choice where none really exists and if there is no choice then why bother with all the false hood in the first place.

    This would be opposed to an RPG like Fallout, where the story is secondary to your actions.
  • GrimnocGrimnoc Marion, IN
    edited February 2010
    I agree with kryyst.

    Then again, I don't play games for their stories because no matter how 'great' the story is it still sucks in comparison to even mediocre literature.
  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    You are an elitist little man, aren't you, Grimnoc? ;)
  • Cliff_ForsterCliff_Forster Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    Grimnoc wrote:
    I agree with kryyst.

    Then again, I don't play games for their stories because no matter how 'great' the story is it still sucks in comparison to even mediocre literature.

    The medium's are so different. Literature tells a story a certain way, mostly relying on the minds eye of the reader, film tells it another, if you look at books that have produced films later on, its always interesting to see what changes the director makes in order to accommodate the medium, then you have games, which tell a story hopefully by making the player feel a part of it.

    I guess my point is that its hard to compare the three mediums. They all have merits, but to me saying that games are not a worthwhile storytelling medium really isn't a fair assessment of what gaming has to offer.
  • pigflipperpigflipper The Forgotten Coast Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    Eh, this is just the Halo fanboys gettin pissy that their game has only a so-so story.
  • kryystkryyst Ontario, Canada
    edited February 2010
    The medium's are so different. Literature tells a story a certain way, mostly relying on the minds eye of the reader, film tells it another, if you look at books that have produced films later on, its always interesting to see what changes the director makes in order to accommodate the medium, then you have games, which tell a story hopefully by making the player feel a part of it.

    I guess my point is that its hard to compare the three mediums. They all have merits, but to me saying that games are not a worthwhile storytelling medium really isn't a fair assessment of what gaming has to offer.

    I agree. Memorable games often tell a story as well. But that story should flow naturally and not feel like it's being forced down your throat as some home work assignment.
  • chrisWhitechrisWhite Littleton, CO
    edited February 2010
    pigflipper wrote:
    Eh, this is just the Halo fanboys gettin pissy that their game has only a so-so story.

    Ironic thing about Halo is their universe is fantastic and they tell some really compelling stories outside of their games but the games have only moderately decent stories.
  • kryystkryyst Ontario, Canada
    edited February 2010
    pigflipper wrote:
    Eh, this is just the Halo fanboys gettin pissy that their game has only a so-so story.

    Straight and to the point delivers a message far better then long tedious and rambling. Specially if you give up long before the book is over.
  • GrimnocGrimnoc Marion, IN
    edited February 2010
    Snarkasm wrote:
    You are an elitist little man, aren't you, Grimnoc? ;)

    Yes, and no.
    The medium's are so different. Literature tells a story a certain way, mostly relying on the minds eye of the reader, film tells it another, if you look at books that have produced films later on, its always interesting to see what changes the director makes in order to accommodate the medium, then you have games, which tell a story hopefully by making the player feel a part of it.

    I guess my point is that its hard to compare the three mediums. They all have merits, but to me saying that games are not a worthwhile storytelling medium really isn't a fair assessment of what gaming has to offer.

    I agree, to a point. The mediums certainly are different, which necessitates the story be told in a different fashion (for the most part). Also, the story in a game is naturally going to be less focused upon because the main strength and point of games is their interactivity, or actual 'gameness'.

    However, this is no excuse for a sad sack story in games, and it's especially no excuse for terrible writing. It's exactly that I feel games can be a worthwhile storytelling medium that it pisses me off that they generally do such a terrible job of it. The fact of the matter is that until we hold games accountable for being suck-o in that department, they will never evolve to the next level. We'll keep saying that "games are different so we should treat them so," (which as I said I acknowledge to a degree) which only serves to let us make excuses for why this-or-that is bad. For instance, the level of technical writing skill, not story, but actual writing in a game could potentially be just as good as a book or novel, yet when it is not we just excuse it because it's a 'game'. Or even worse, when it's better than other games we say the writing is fantastic when it's not actual fantastic, it's just better than other games. This mentality in my opinion holds the art form down overall.

    I swear the next time I have to hear some moron say, "Metal Gear Solid has awesome writing (or yes, even story)", I'm just going to scream in their stupid, idiot face "YOU ONLY THINK THAT BECAUSE YOU DON'T READ AND THEREFORE DO NOT KNOW WHAT GOOD WRITING IS YOU BLOODY IDIOT."
  • edited February 2010
    Grimnoc, the elitist prick.

    I agree with you.
  • Cliff_ForsterCliff_Forster Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    Grimnoc wrote:
    Yes, and no.



    I agree, to a point. The mediums certainly are different, which necessitates the story be told in a different fashion (for the most part). Also, the story in a game is naturally going to be less focused upon because the main strength and point of games is their interactivity, or actual 'gameness'.

    However, this is no excuse for a sad sack story in games, and it's especially no excuse for terrible writing. It's exactly that I feel games can be a worthwhile storytelling medium that it pisses me off that they generally do such a terrible job of it. The fact of the matter is that until we hold games accountable for being suck-o in that department, they will never evolve to the next level. We'll keep saying that "games are different so we should treat them so," (which as I said I acknowledge to a degree) which only serves to let us make excuses for why this-or-that is bad. For instance, the level of technical writing skill, not story, but actual writing in a game could potentially be just as good as a book or novel, yet when it is not we just excuse it because it's a 'game'. Or even worse, when it's better than other games we say the writing is fantastic when it's not actual fantastic, it's just better than other games. This mentality in my opinion holds the art form down overall.

    I swear the next time I have to hear some moron say, "Metal Gear Solid has awesome writing (or yes, even story)", I'm just going to scream in their stupid, idiot face "YOU ONLY THINK THAT BECAUSE YOU DON'T READ AND THEREFORE DO NOT KNOW WHAT GOOD WRITING IS YOU BLOODY IDIOT."

    I think we fundamentally agree. For me, I judge storytelling in a game if I care about the characters. Thats a fairly simple requisite vs. my expectations for literature, and cinema, which as you point out, may be part of the games as a story telling medium problem, just general lower expectations.

    Games as storytelling art? Half Life 2 is a good case, I think some Final Fantasy titles can make a good case, even to a certain more juvenile degree certain Zelda titles. Grim Fandango was a standout, Beyond Good and Evil is another story driven title that comes to mind. So it can be done, its just really rare, and, your right, the bar is much lower, perhaps because we have not demanded better.
  • pigflipperpigflipper The Forgotten Coast Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    True storytelling in games died with the disappearance of the adventure genre (Monkey Island, Loom, Grim Fandango, etc...wait, aren't those all Lucas Arts?!)
  • kryystkryyst Ontario, Canada
    edited February 2010
    Not true at all many modern games tell a story. Look at Gears of War, Half Life 2, Assassins Creed, Crimson Skies, Fallout 3, Oblivion, Bioshock, Dragon Age and ME just to name a few.

    They all tell stories, some better then others and some through actions and others by copious amounts of dialogue and text.
  • WinfreyWinfrey waddafuh Missouri Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    Grimnoc wrote:
    I swear the next time I have to hear some moron say, "Metal Gear Solid has awesome writing (or yes, even story)", I'm just going to scream in their stupid, idiot face "YOU ONLY THINK THAT BECAUSE YOU DON'T READ AND THEREFORE DO NOT KNOW WHAT GOOD WRITING IS YOU BLOODY IDIOT."

    Beware the wrath of Canti.
  • GrimnocGrimnoc Marion, IN
    edited February 2010
    Games as storytelling art? Half Life 2 is a good case, I think some Final Fantasy titles can make a good case, even to a certain more juvenile degree certain Zelda titles. Grim Fandango was a standout, Beyond Good and Evil is another story driven title that comes to mind. So it can be done, its just really rare, and, your right, the bar is much lower, perhaps because we have not demanded better.

    I can definitely agree with you on Half-Life 2 and Grim Fandango. I would also add Max Payne for the writing, though not necessarily the story, and Myth I and II for the story, writing, and story presentation.

    I haven't played Beyond Good and Evil yet, though I did buy the Steam version!
    Winfrey wrote:
    Beware the wrath of Canti.

    Uh oh! And I play Borderlands with the guy! Canti, regardless of what I said about Metal Gear Solid, I've always really enjoyed the games. :)
  • KoreishKoreish I'm a penguin, deal with it. KCMO Icrontian
    edited February 2010
    Grimnoc didn't say anything about My Little Pony or Barbie's Horse Adventure. How angry can Canti get.
  • GrimnocGrimnoc Marion, IN
    edited February 2010
    Koreish wrote:
    Grimnoc didn't say anything about My Little Pony or Barbie's Horse Adventure. How angry can Canti get.

    That's because the quality of writing in My Little Pony and Barbie's Horse Adventure are stellar. One could say out-of-this-world!
  • coldalarmcoldalarm England, UK
    edited March 2010
    I have ME2 Digi Deluxe. Yeah, £10 I maybe shouldn't have spent.
    It's a pretty good game, but I find it's too easy to complete quickly. The game "rushes" you along and sometimes, before you know it, you're on the last lot of missions. I've not saved everyone yet, but I hope to get one of those saves done before ME3.
  • coldalarmcoldalarm England, UK
    edited April 2010
    Double post *horror*.

    Kasumi came out last night, and I just finished her mission. Pretty good, actually. I won't spoil it but if you have ME2 and play any class that uses the SMG, she's really worth getting.
  • GrimnocGrimnoc Marion, IN
    edited April 2010
    So I finally started playing Mass Effect 2 about a week ago and I have to say that they did a much better job with the characterization this time around.
  • edited May 2010
    Mass effect triolgy is not exclusive to Xbox 360. It would be a descrace to Bioware and the game.Mass Effect 2 will not have any form of multiplayer because it is strictly a Single Player RPG.
  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited May 2010
    Uh... welcome to the past. It's clearly not a 360 exclusive, as most of us played it on PC, and ME2 has been out for months - we all know there's no multiplayer.

    What exactly did you mean to post?
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